"This was a great way for us to start this season," remarked Sooner head coach Mark Cody.
Four true freshmen made their collegiate debut in the Crimson and Cream as Kyle Garcia (125), Matt Reed (174), Greg Wilson (184) and Brad Johnson (197) each took to the mat.
"I thought it was great - how our freshmen came out and performed." explained Cody on his group of newcomers.
"No matter where you're at or who you start with, you're freshmen a lot of times are going to come out and be very hesitant. Tonight, they just let it fly. I didn't see one coward or scared guy among the bunch, they just went out there and got after it."
Reed highlighted the young Sooner class after he pinned Stars' senior Tyson Campbell, ranked 15th in the NAIA, in 0:50 in the 174 pound matchup to earn OU's first pin on the year.
Wilson and Johnson followed in the 184 and 197 pound matchups, respectively, immediately after Reed's show on the mat.
Wilson went up seven null in the first period courtesy of a takedown and trio of consecutive nearfalls. His opponent, OCU sophomore Cody Silverstein, escaped in the opening seconds of the second period to go on the board, but Wilson answered with back-to-back takedowns to take an 11-1 lead. Silverstein totaled one more escape, however Wilson walked away with a 14-1 major decision after he totaled an escape and takedown in the final period.
Johnson put on a show in his Sooner debut with a third-period comeback against Stars sophomore Michael Brown in the 197 pound bout.
Brown entered the final period with a 3-0 lead after totaling one escape and adding a takedown in the closing seconds of the middle period. At the 1:39 point of the third period Johnson escaped, and just seconds later added a takedown to tie it up 3-3. It was a battle until the final minute, but one last takedown and 1:05 riding time gave Johnson the 6-4 decision.
Fellow freshman, Garcia, put together a scrappy match towards the end of the night to keep each of the true freshmen undefeated in their collegiate debut.
The Edmond, Okla., native finished the first period with just a 6-5 advantage, but was the lone scorer in the second with an escape to go up 7-5. OCU Senior Kidd Gomez added an escape and takedown halfway through the third to take an 8-7 lead, but Garcia followed with a quick escape and takedown in the final 10 seconds to take home his first victory with a 10-8 decision.
Dalton Dennis was the first Sooner on the mat Friday night in the 141 matchup to earn OU its first of nine total victories against OCU.
It wasn't until the second period that his opponent, Trevor Sterling, was on the board after he registered an escape to cut Dennis' lead, 7-1. Dennis added two takedowns, one escape and 1:51 riding time to take his first win of 2012 by major decision, 14-2.
Redshirt sophomore Chase Gordon scored eight points in the third period with four takedowns to earn a 22-6 tech fall victory over Hunter Muskrat in the 149-pound bout.
Teammate, Justin DeAngelis, held the momentum throughout the 157-pound matchup against OCU's Mark Meyer. The redshirt sophomore totaled seven takedowns, one escape and 2:32 riding time to Meyer's five escapes to win by major decision, 16-5.
Bubby Graham, ranked No. 9 out of all 165 pounders, took home a victory over Stars' Zach Skates with a 10-4 decision. Neither wrestled put points on the board in the first period, but Graham won by decision, 10-4, after he steadily totaled four takedowns, one escape and added 1:27 riding time to secure the victory.
OCU's Stanley Lattimore put the Stars on the scoreboard near the final minutes of the match with a 4-2 decision over Keldrick Hall.
Kyle Garcia, a 133 pounder, closed out the night in fashion with a pin of Tyler Espitia in 3:39.
Oklahoma will be back in action next weekend when it travels to Brockport, N.Y., for the annual Brockport Classic. The Sooners will be on the hunt for their 15th-straight title at the event, when they take to the mat on Sat., Nov. 10.
For up-to-the-minute updates, follow Oklahoma wrestling on Twitter at @OUWrestling (https://twitter.com/OUWrestling).
Results:
125: Kyle Garcia (OU) decision Kidd Gomez (OCU), 10-8
133: Cody Brewer (OU) pin Tyler Espitia (OCU) 3:39
141: Dalton Dennis (OU) major decision Trevor Sterling (OCU), 14-2
149: Chase Gordon (OU) technical fall, 5:43, Hunter Muskrat (OCU), 22-6
157: Justin DeAngelis (OU) major decision Mark Meyer (OCU), 16-5
165: Bubby Graham (OU) decision Zach Skates (OCU), 10-4
174: Matt Reed (OU) pin Campbell (OCU), 0:50
184: Greg Wilson (OU) major decision Cody Silverstein (OCU), 15-2
197: Brad Johnson (OU) decision Michael Brown (OCU), 6-4
HWT: Stanley Lattimore (OCU) decision Keldrick Hall (OU), 3-2
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