"We looked forward to this match for some time and we knew that scoring takedowns was going to be the difference and we did that," Smith said. "We didn't have much of a strategy going in except getting takedowns."
Seniors Coleman Scott and Jake Dieffenbach both picked up wins over Hawkeye wrestlers ranked No. 2 in the nation, as Scott handed No. 2 Joe Slaton an 8-6 beating and Dieffenbach claimed a 5-3 victory over second-ranked Mark Perry.
"This is nice, but it's not what I'm after," Dieffenbach said after being asked if Saturday's victorious trip to Iowa was the time of his life. "If I go 0-and-2 at NCAAs, nobody will remember me. If I win an NCAA championship, then I'll call it the time of my life."
Though Scott's and Dieffenbach's were impressive, perhaps even more crucial to the Cowboys' team success were Newly McSpadden's 4-2 decision over No. 19 Ryan Morningstar at 157 pounds and true freshman Clayton Foster's 12-1 major decision win over Rick Loera at 197 pounds. Shendandoah, Iowa, native Brandon Mason was also a winner for OSU, shutting out No. 11 Jay Borschel by a 2-0 margin.
"We're progressing every week," Scott said. "We're going to be there right in the mix at the end of the year."
The Cowboys return to action when they compete at the Virginia Duals in Hampton, Va., January 11 and 12.
Match-by-Match Breakdown:
125 pounds: Oklahoma State freshman Ben Ashmore's strong upset bid was bolstered when he recorded a three-point nearfall in the third period to take a 6-5 lead, but a reversal from No. 5 Charlie Falck with 54 seconds left in the match, plus a 1:14 riding time advantage gave Falck the final edge in a 7-5 decision.
133 pounds: In the most intense match of the evening, top-ranked Coleman Scott raced out to a 7-1 lead and held off a comeback bid by second-ranked Joe Slaton to claim a 7-6 win. Scott notched a takedown at the 1:41 mark of the first period for the only scoring of the opening stanza. After choosing down to open the second, Scott escaped at the 1:41 mark, then posted another takedown at the 1:18 mark to jump out to a 5-0 advantage. A Slaton escape with 19 seconds remaining in the period brought the score to 5-1 entering the third period. Scott bagged his third takedown of the match with 1:41 reaming to open up his widest lead at 7-1. Slaton rushed back with an escape and a late surge, but Scott kept the sophomore at bay and added a riding time point to claim the 8-4 win.
141 pounds: Nathan Morgan was the aggressor throughout the match to claim an 8-4 win over 10th-ranked Dan LeClere. Morgan notched one takedown in each of the three periods and held a 5-1 advantage after a takedown with 1:19 remaining in the second period. A LeClere escape with 29 seconds left in the second stanza trimmed Morgan's advantage to 5-2 heading into the third period. The final period started with a quick escape by LeClere to make it 5-3, but a takedown by Morgan with 51 seconds left brought the score to 7-3 and put the match out of reach for LeClere, who notched a late escape. Morgan added a riding time point to bring the final score to 8-4.
149 pounds: No. 2 Brent Metcalf established himself early and took the match to Quinten Fuentes for a full seven minutes to claim a 20-8 win over the Cowboy freshman. Fuentes was unable to take Metcalf down, with Metcalf logging eight takedowns and a reversal in a bout that was never in doubt.
157 pounds: No. 14 Newly McSpadden avoided a late takedown bid by 19th-ranked Ryan Morningstar in what ended up being arguably the key moment of McSpadden's 4-2 win. The scoring opened with a McSpadden takedown with 43 seconds remaining in the first period, followed by a Morningstar escape with 28 seconds left in the opening stanza that sent McSpadden into the second stanza with a 2-1 lead. After choosing down to start the period, McSpadden escaped to go up 3-1 with 1:43 left for the only points of the period. McSpadden rode Morningstar for the bulk of the third period, but an escape with 44 seconds left brought the score to 3-2. With Morningstar desperate for a takedown late in the match, McSpadden fought off his best effort to seal the win. He added 1:15 of riding time to bring the final to 4-2.
165 pounds: For those who were unsure of what OSU senior Jake Dieffenbach was capable of, he made a bold statement Saturday with a 5-3 win over reigning national champion and second-ranked Mark Perry. A scoreless first period that included very few shots was followed by a second period that saw Perry open the scoring by escaping at the 1:50 mark to go up 1-0. Things remained largely stagnant until Dieffenbach took the Stillwater native down with 19 seconds remaining, then turned the Hawkeye's biggest star two seconds later to record a two-point nearfall and bring the score to 4-1 entering the final period. Perry logged a takedown with 1:37 remaining to trim Dieffenbach's advantage to 4-3, but a Dieffenbach escape with 35 ticks left dashed Perry's hopes of a win.
174 pounds: Wrestling in his home state, OSU junior and Shenandoah, Iowa native, Brandon Mason claimed a 2-0 win over No. 11 Jay Borschel. After the two wrestlers went through the first period scoreless, Mason chose down to start the second and escaped with 1:38 on the clock for the period's only point. Down 1-0 to start the third, Borschel chose down. Mason capitalized on the sophomore's decision and rode him out the entire final stanza, finishing with 1:40 of riding time to claim a 2-0 win.
184 pounds: No.12 Phillip Keddy picked up a 12-2 major decision win over Oklahoma State's Cody Hill behind the strength of four takedowns and a pair of stalling calls on Hill. Keddy controlled the match from the start and finished with 4:10 of riding time added on.
197 pounds: Cowboy true freshman Clayton Foster announced his presence to the Iowa wrestling faithful by picking up a takedown and a three-point nearfall within the first two minutes of his 12-1 win over Hawkeye sophomore Rick Loera. Taking a 5-1 lead into the second stanza, Foster rode Loera out for the entire period. Starting the third period down, Foster notched an escape eight seconds in, then notched a takedown and a three-point nearfall to go up, 11-1 at the 1:07 mark. After 4:37 of riding time was added on, Foster was a 12-2 winner.
Heavyweight: Jared Rosholt was cut under his eye early in the match and lost a slow-paced 4-3 decision to No. 8 Matt Fields.
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