The Cowboys (13-2) extend their win streak to 11 with the victory over the Tar Heels.
"It was a good match to watch," coach John Smith said. "If I were up in the stands I'd become a big wrestling fan really quick. There was a lot of action and you can tell Coleman (Scott) has really put his stamp on that program. He doesn't have guys sitting around; they're looking for points. Those two matches at 149 and 174 was what needs to happen. You've got to score points and we did that."
The first upset of the night came at 141 pounds, where Dean Heil suffered his first loss of the season to No. 9 Joey Ward. The match went in to sudden victory, where Ward got the takedown and claimed the win.
Anthony Collica, ranked No. 12 in the nation at 149 pounds, quickly redeemed the Cowboy loss picking up his fourth pin a row, this time over No. 5 Evan Henderson. Collica led the Tar Heel, 5-4, going into the third period and started in the top position. At the 1:25 mark, Collica put Henderson to his back for the pin. The Cowboy extends his streak to six-straight matches resulting in bonus points.
"I knew I had to come out and wrestle hard, and to keep attacking," Collica said. "I gave up the first takedown, but pushed through it and grabbed the next one. I felt him wearing down a little bit, so I took advantage of that."
In the final upset of the night, Chandler Rogers handed No. 2 Ethan Ramos his third loss of the season in a wild match. Rogers went up early with takedown and a four-point nearfall and Ramos wasn't able to overcome the Cowboy's lead. Rogers went on to score a reversal, nearfall and three escapes to win the bout, 13-8.
"I wasn't expecting it," Rogers said. "I try to take it one match at a time. Coach always tells me that rankings don't matter, and what matters is who wants it more. I never try to get too overconfident, but it's good to be confident in yourself and to put your best foot forward. The whole time before the match, I was telling myself that if I stick to the plan and do everything right, things might go my way. No one goes out there planning on beating the No. 2 guy in the nation, so I was real happy with it."
The night was also about saying farewell to three treasured seniors who wrestled their final matches in Gallagher-Iba Arena.
Eddie Klimara began the dual with bonus points for the Cowboys, earning a technical fall over Cody Karns in 4:40. The senior wowed the crowd with four takedowns and two four-point nearfalls to dominate the Tar Heel. Klimara wrapped up his career in Gallagher-Iba Arena with a 27-3 home record, including a 7-1 mark this year.
"It was a great experience wrestling for the Cowboys in Gallagher-Iba," Klimara said. "It's a sad thing that it was my last home dual but the fans and coaches have been awesome, and it was one of the best choices I've made in my life to come to school at OSU."
Senior and top-ranked Alex Dieringer amassed 28 wins in Gallagher-Iba after defeating No. 11 John Staudenmayer with an 11-1 major decision at 165 pounds. After a slow start in the first, wrapping up the first three minutes scoreless, he turned it on in the second period, scoring nine points and took a huge lead into the third period. Dieringer extends his win streak to 73 and owns the fourth-longest win streak in Cowboy Wrestling history. He trails Mike Sheets by just one match for third place on the all-time list.
"It was a good feeling to see all the support tonight," Dieringer said. "These fans are awesome and that's one of the big reasons I came here. They've been loyal and true since I got here and I can't thank them enough for that."
The final senior of the night was Austin Marsden, ranked fifth at heavyweight. The Illinois native, went out in style, picking up his 100th career win in front of a rowdy home crowd. Scoring more bonus points for the Pokes, Marsden stayed consistent throughout the match, picking up a takedown in each period. He also scored two sets of nearfall points, which put the match in his control and gave him a 16-1 tech fall over Cory Daniel.
"It was great timing," Marsden said. "My dad kept telling me, 'you better not lose because I'm coming down for senior night and for the big 100.' So I told him I would take care of it. It was very humbling to be able to be a part of this program, and to be able to leave a mark in it as well. I was just very fortunate to be able to wrestle for Oklahoma State."
The Cowboys also picked up big wins at 133, 157 and 184 pounds to push the Pokes to their 11th-straight dual win.
Oklahoma State will travel to State College, Pa., to face No. 1 Penn State in the NWCA Bowl Dual Series championship match on Sunday at 4 p.m. CT.
Results:
125: No. 6 Eddie Klimara (OSU) TF Cody Karns (UNC), 18-2; 4:40
133: Gary Wayne Harding (OSU) MD James Szymanski (UNC), 14-6
141: No. 9 Joey Ward (UNC) dec. No. 1 Dean Heil (OSU), 3-1 SV1
149: No. 12 Anthony Collica (OSU) fall No. 5 Evan Henderson (UNC); 5:35
157: Ryan Blees (OSU) dec. Robert Henderson (UNC), 6-5
165: No. 1 Alex Dieringer (OSU) MD No. 11 John Staudenmayer (UNC), 11-1
174: Chandler Rogers (OSU) dec. No. 2 Ethan Ramos (UNC), 13-8
184: No. 13 Nolan Boyd (OSU) dec. No. 19 Alex Utley (UNC), 10-6
197: Chip Ness (UNC) dec. Preston Weigel (OSU), 5-3
285: No. 5 Austin Marsden (OSU) TF Cory Daniel (UNC), 16-1; 6:47
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