NO. 7 COWBOY WRESTLING FIGHTS OFF NO. 10 IOWA STATE

AMES, Iowa – Oklahoma State wrestling, ranked seventh in the nation, is 6-3 on the season after a 20-15 nail-biting win over No. 10 Iowa State in Ames, Iowa, on Sunday.

The Cowboys won six of the afternoon’s 10 bouts, with bonus points coming at 141 pounds and 165 pounds.

“I liked the hustle today. We hustled hard,” coach John Smith said. “We knew going in that we were going to have to win six matches and we did that. It was a good win for the team on the road, and the way we won was pleasing. I hope that during this break we have, we’ll see ourselves really improve.”

At 125 pounds, Eddie Klimara went down 6-1 in the first period from two takedowns and a nearfall by Kyle Larson. That didn’t stop the Cowboy as he produced a full-period ride out in the second period. In the third, Klimara stormed back with an escape, two takedowns and a penalty point for stalling from Lawson to tie it 7-7. Klimara was awarded a point for riding time and earned the 8-7 win to start the dual.

True freshman Gary Wayne Harding battled No. 6 Earl Hall at 133 pounds but fell in a tough 9-5 bout.

At 141 pounds, Dean Heil picked up the first bonus points of the day for the Cowboys, defeating Dante Rodriguez with a 17-3 major decision. The redshirt freshman scored five takedowns and two nearfall counts en route to his 16th win of the season.

The Pokes dropped 7-2 decision at 149 pounds as Davey Dolan took on No. 13 Gabe Moreno.

Anthony Collica also earned his 16th win of the season when he produced an 8-2 decision over Luke Goettl at 157 pounds. It was the sophomore’s third dual-win of the season.

At 165 pounds, top-ranked Alex Dieringer knocked off No. 4 Mike Moreno with a 13-3 major decision. Dieringer controlled the entire match, tallying four takedowns to maintain his undefeated status on the season.

“Today I wanted to go out and make a statement,” Dieringer said. “Wrestling the No. 4 guy in the nation is always going to be a hard fought match, but I had to go out there and show everyone that I belong in this weight class. Moreno is a great competitor, and to go out and get a major decision for the team feels good.”

Sophomore Kyle Crutchmer upset No. 10 Tanner Weatherman with a 7-4 decision. The Cowboy opened scoring with less than a minute left in the first period and earned the final points of the bout with five seconds left in the third period. It was the second win for Crutchmer over Weatherman this season.

“Today was huge for me and the team,” Crutchmer said. “For myself, this is something I can build off of and get ready for the next upcoming matches. For the team it’s a big deal winning on the road, and we did it with some things that we haven’t done all year.  I’m excited to see what we can do in the next couple of weeks.”

The win at 174 pounds gave the Pokes a 17-6 lead in the team score, but that was quickly threatened as the Pokes suffered a loss by decision at 184 pounds and a loss by fall at 197 pounds to hang on to a two-point lead.

It came down to the heavyweight bout as No. 5 Austin Marsden went up against Quean Smith. Marsden scored first with takedown in the opening period and maintained his lead to defeat the Cyclone, 5-4, and snag the team win for the Cowboys.

The Cowboys will take a week off before hosting Wyoming on Feb. 6 in Gallagher-Iba Arena.

No. 7 Oklahoma State 20, No. 10 Iowa State 15
Jan. 25, 2015 :: Ames, Iowa (Hilton Coliseum) :: Attendance – 2, 295

125: No. 10 Eddie Klimara (OSU) dec. Kyle Larson (ISU), 8-7
133: No. 6 Earl Hall (ISU) dec. Gary Wayne Harding (OSU), 9-5
141: No. 18 Dean Heil (OSU) MD Dante Rodriguez (ISU), 17-3
149: No. 13 Gabe Moreno (ISU) dec. Davey Dolan (OSU), 7-2
157: Anthony Collica (OSU) dec. Luke Goettll (ISU), 8-2
165: No. 1 Alex Dieringer (OSU) MD No. 4 Mike Moreno (ISU), 13-3
174: Kyle Crutchmer (OSU) dec. No. 10 Tanner Weatherman (ISU), 7-4
184: No. 17 Lelund Weatherspoon dec. No. 18 Nolan Boyd (OSU), 5-1
197: No. 3 Kyven Gadson (ISU) fall Luke Bean (OSU), 2:50
285: No. 5 Austin Marsden (OSU) dec. Quean Smith (ISU), 5-4