Zabriskie used an first-period takedown and a third-period escape to beat Rosholt, 3-2 and lift Iowa State to its first Big 12 wrestling crown, the school's first conference title in 20 years and the first outright Cyclone team conference championship in a quarter century. Iowa State's other champion was Trent Paulson at 157 pounds, who beat Nebraska's Chris Oliver, 11-1 in the title match. The Cyclones finished with 66.5 points. Missouri was second with 61.5, followed by Oklahoma State with 61, Nebraska with 46 and Oklahoma with 44. Iowa State will send all 10 wrestlers to the NCAA Championship, March 16-18 in Detroit, Mich.
"This is a great accomplishment for this team," Iowa State head coach Cael Sanderson said. "We need to build on this the next two weeks. We are proud of all our guys. Dave (Zabriskie) has real class and has done a phenomenal job for us. We are real proud of him."
Trent Paulson, rated second nationally, claimed his second consecutive Big 12 Conference title after the two-time All-American jumped out to an early 5-1 lead using a takedown and a three-point nearfall. Paulson then began the second period from the down position and reversed Oliver and tacked on another three-point nearfall en route to the victory. Paulson's mark in his senior campaign improves to 24-4 and he holds a career record of 110-20 as he gets ready for his fourth NCAA tournament.
"This one means more to me (than his first Big 12 title) because it was part of an effort that won the team title for us," Paulson said. "I think I surprised him and went right for the score after talking with coach (Sanderson) about that before the match."
Redshirt freshman Cyler Sanderson placed second at 149 pounds, suffering a 5-0 loss to Oklahoma's Matt Storinolo in their title match. After a scoreless first period, Storinolo posted the first points with an escape in the second period. The Sooner maneuvered Sanderson and added a three-point nearfall. Sanderson, a Heber City, Utah, native earns a spot in the NCAA Championships and carries record of 26-9 in his rookie season.
Travis Paulson fell in the 165-pound title match to Oklahoma State's Johny Hendricks by decision, 4-3. Paulson took a 3-2 lead with an escape midway through the final period, but a takedown by Hendricks with 33 seconds sealed the Cowboy win. Despite the loss, Paulson will advance to his fourth NCAA Championship with a career record of 102-30 and a senior season record of 24-5.
Jake Varner took runner-up honors at 184-pounds, falling to Raymond Jordan of Missouri by a 4-3 decision in his title bout. Varner battled back from a 1-0 deficit to tie the match at 1-1 with an escape early in the final three minutes of the match. The Tiger scored a takedown, but was then penalized for stalling, awarding Varner with a point. Varner tied the match at 3-3, but fell short with 1:05 riding time that Jordan had accumulated. Varner, Bakersfield, Calif., native will enter the NCAA Championship with a 24-5 mark.
Nick Gallick punched his ticket to The Palace at Auburn Hills with a 2:41 stick of Oklahoma's Brian Shelton in the 133-pound third-place match. Gallick, rated 14th, scored an early takedown and a two-point nearfall before working the Sooner into prime position for the pin. In his initial season as a Cyclone, Gallick has registered eight pins and has a 26-8 record.
Grant Turner was a big story of the meet. Seeded fifth coming into the tournament at 174 pounds, he earned an NCAA Tournament birth at 174 pounds with a 5-3 decision over Nebraska's Marc Harwood in the third-place match. With the match tied at 3-3 with less than a minute to go, Turner tallied his second takedown in the final period. The third-place finish is Turner's best conference tournament performance. The senior from Johnston, Iowa, evens out his record at 14-14.
"I was not going to leave a trip to the NCAA Tournament up to anyone but myself," Turner said. "I told myself that I was going to decide this. Coach (Sanderson) told me if I wrestle the way I did in the third period, I can keep winning matches."
A duo of redshirt freshmen, Nick Fanthorpe (125) and Mitch Mueller (141), placed fourth for the Cyclones. Fanthorpe suffered a 5-3 decision at the hands of Oklahoma State's Tyler Shinn. Fanthorpe advanced to the third-place bout at 125 pounds by scoring a 7-3 decision over Missouri's John Olanowski in the consolation semifinal. The Naperville, Ill., native's record stands at 24-9. Mueller was pinned by Oklahoma's Kyle Terry in 4:32 his the third-place bout. Mueller took an 11-6 decision of Missouri's Ashtin Primus to push forward to the 141-pound third-place match. The Iowa City native returned to the mat after spending a month out due to a dislocated elbow injury that was suffered in the Feb. 9 dual against Rider. He is 17-14 in his rookie season.
Kurt Backes was defeated by Oklahoma's Joel Flaggert in the third-place match at 197 pounds. Backes worked from behind the entire match, but sent the bout into overtime with a 1:22 riding time advantage. A takedown with 16 seconds left in overtime by Flaggert clinched the Sooner win.
ISU will push forward to the NCAA Championships will take place March 16 – 18 at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Detroit, Mich.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now