Oklahoma State 197 lber Luke Surber (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)We’re coming down the home stretch of the 2022-23 regular season. A few months ago, one of the prime topics was “ducking” and the “All that Matters is March” mindset. Well, we’re less than a month away from March so coaches are trying to fine-tune their athletes so they’ll peak at the right time. That just means we have two more good weeks of action and then the best part of the collegiate schedule.
During the last week, there was plenty to discuss. One of the most unique duals of the season took place (on our sister site; MatScouts), a top-ranked wrestler was upset and plenty more. We’ll talk about them all in the 7 Big Stories from the Week in College Wrestling.
Cowboys Win Two Top-Ten Duals
For the majority of the 2022-23 season, Oklahoma State has been laying low, with respect to their typical rankings. A month in, the Cowboys lost a dual to Minnesota and tumbled out of the top ten. Last weekend, Oklahoma State suffered a loss to Big 12 favorite #3 Iowa State. There was no time for head coach John Smith’s team to lick their wounds as they had a busy week with #6 Michigan and #9 Missouri on the horizon.
Friday, Oklahoma State traveled south for the second annual Bout at the Ballpark, a dual meet held at Globe Life Field, home of MLB’s Texas Rangers. The Cowboys were tasked with a Michigan team that they rarely ever meet in dual competition.
As these things happen, Michigan was banged up and missed three of their starters. The Cowboys were in a bind of their own as they’ve been without the services of two-time NCAA qualifier Trevor Mastrogiovanni at 125 lbs since mid-January. In his absence, veteran Reece Witcraft made the difficult cut down to 125 lbs, a weight he made only twice in 2021-22. Despite losing via fall in sudden victory, Smith called Witcraft “one of the heroes of the dual,” for stepping up and enduring a tough weight cut in order to face a ranked opponent in Jack Medley.
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