The Golden Gophers won their fourth National Duals title and its first since 2002. Last year, Minnesota placed third.
Konrad earned his first official win over Mocco. He defeated the OSU wrestler earlier this year in an exhibition match at the NWCA/Marines All-Star Classic. Last year, Mocco defeated Konrad three times, including an overtime decision in the NCAA Championship final.
With Minnesota leading 15-14, the heavyweight match started slow. The two wresters traded escapes in the second and third periods, but 26 seconds into the third, Konrad got Mocco in a body lock and used an inside trip to send him to his back. He recorded the pin in 5:34. Konrad would be named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler.
Konrad's win capped a memorable dual for Minnesota. The Golden Gophers fell behind early as the Cowboys took a 7-0 lead. At 125 pounds, Coleman Scott earned an 11-0 decision against Travis Lang.
Things looked bleak for the Golden Gophers following the 133-pound match as sixth- ranked Nathan Morgan held on for a 6-4 win over fourth-ranked Mack Reiter. Reiter trailed 5-1 in the third period, but got back into the match with a takedown to cut the lead to one. Unfortunately, time ran out as Reiter fell to 19-2 on the year.
A momentum swing came in the form of sophomore Manuel Rivera. The unranked wrestler upset sixth-ranked Daniel Frishkorn at 141 pounds by a 9-4 decision. Rivera trailed 4-1 after the first period, but turned things around in the second. Rivera got in on an ankle pick and forced Frishkorn to his back. The takedown and near fall gave him a 7-4 lead. It was Rivera's second win this season over Frishkorn.
Things got better from there as true freshman Dustin Schlatter knocked off his third top- five ranked wrestler on the weekend. He upset defending NCAA Champion Zack Esposito in an entertaining 8-7 match. Trailing 7-5, Esposito tied the match with a third-period reversal. Schlatter would claim the win though as he earned a point for the escape. Schlatter is now 26-1 on the year.
His older brother, C.P., followed with a 2-0 decision against 11th-ranked Kevin Ward at 157 pounds. Ward had beaten Schlatter twice ealier this season. Schlatter rode Ward the entire second period which earned him the bonus point. The Schlatter brothers have combined to go 21-2 this year in duals.
Trailing 9-7, the Cowboys regained the team lead as fourth-ranked Johny Hendricks defeated No. 9 Matt Nagel, 8-3, at 165 pounds. Hendricks avenged an earlier loss to Nagel. Esposito broke the match open with a late takedown in the first period.
The Golden Gophers climbed back in front for good with three wins in the final four matches. Eighth-ranked Gabriel Dretsch gave Minnesota a 12-10 lead with a 3-1 decision over ninth-ranked Brandon Mason at 174 pounds. Dretsch's third-period takedown proved to be the difference.
The lead increased to 15-10 after seventh-ranked Roger Kish earned a 7-3 decision against Brent Parkey. Kish took an early 2-0 lead with a takedown and increased the lead to 5-1 in the second period.
The Cowboys won at 197 pounds to set up the heavyweight classic. Two-time NCAA Champion Jake Rosholt collected a 13-5 major decision against Minnesota's Mitch Kuhlman at 197 pounds. The win made the score 15-14 with one match to go.
"We told our guys that they had to wrestle with emotion," head coach J Robinson said. "We started slow, but Manuel (Rivera) got us back in the match. Cole (Konrad) went out there with great focus. There's not a guy in the nation that works harder than Cole. Anyone that has watched him in the practice room every week wouldn't be surprised by the result today."
Minnesota now returns home to open its Big Ten season. The Golden Gophers will host Northwestern on Friday night at the Sports Pavilion. Minnesota will host Iowa in the annual Border Brawl at Williams Arena on Sunday afternoon.
Fans wanting to see the Minnesota-Oklahoma State dual can tune into College Sports Television (CSTV) on Jan. 19.
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