Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
Michigan
Cowboys Host No. 8 Missouri Looking for Second Top-10 Win of the Weekend
February 04, 2023 | Cowboy Wrestling
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The Basics
The No. 11 Oklahoma State wrestling team (10-2 overall; 5-1 Big 12) is set to host No. 8 Missouri on Sunday at 2 p.m. in Gallagher-Iba Arena. The match will conclude a stretch of four duals against top-15 opponents for OSU, which included a 24-15 upset over No. 6 Michigan on Friday night.
On the Air
Oklahoma State's dual with Missouri will be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ with J. Carl Guymon and Hardell Moore on the call. It can also be heard on Hot 93.7 KSPI-FM with Rex Holt going on air at 1:30 p.m. Live stats for the match can be found on Trackwrestling.com. An audio only broadcast will also be available on FloWrestling.org.
The Series - Missouri
Oklahoma State and Missouri have met a total of 53 times for dual competition in the programs' histories in a series that dates back to 1929. The teams have met at least once every calendar year since 2002 with the exception of 2021 when the Tigers participated in the Cowboy Challenge Tournament rather than a traditional dual. OSU has been dominant in the series holding a 44-8-1 record against the Tigers, although the teams have split the last four meetings. John Smith is 25-8-1 against Missouri in his tenure, while Brian Smith has gone 8-19-1 against Smith and the Pokes. Last season, the Tigers won in Columbia, 21-20, after falls at heavyweight and 125 was barely enough to win, even with a Daton Fix technical fall in the final bout.
About the Cowboys
No. 11 Oklahoma State is 10-2 on the season coming off of a 24-15 victory at Bout at the Ballpark against No. 6 Michigan that saw OSU win six of 10 individual bouts and take down the Wolverines a total of 15 times while only giving up two takedowns. The Pokes return four All-Americans who have earned All-America honors a total of eight times, headlined by three-time NCAA finalist Daton Fix. Wyatt Sheets and Travis Wittlake are both two-time All-Americans for OSU, while Dustin Plott is coming off of his first appearance on the podium last season. The OSU lineup has seen some movement from a season ago with weight changes from past starters opening opportunities at 165 pounds and heavyweight. Wittlake moved up two weight classes to 184 pounds in the offseason where he has started 12-3, while Luke Surber dropped down a weight to 197 pounds. In their places, Wyatt Sheets has filled the void at 165 pounds, while redshirt sophomore Konner Doucet is off to a 13-5 start at heavyweight and placed third at the Scuffle. Big 12 champion Kaden Gfeller decided to return to Oklahoma State for his final season in August and has put together a 13-5 record so far 157 pounds, while talented freshman Victor Voinovich has started every dual at 149 pounds. With Sheets and Gfeller back for their COVID seasons, the middleweights could see some different looks throughout the course of the season.
An Oklahoma State Win Would...
• Move the Cowboys to 11-2 overall; 6-1 in conference matches
• Give Oklahoma State its fifth win over a top-25 team and back-to-back wins over top-10 opponents
• Improve John Smith's record against Missouri to 26-8-1
• Improve OSU's record against Missouri to 45-8-1; 24-3 in Stillwater
Cowboys in the Polls
Oklahoma State's roster features 10 wrestlers ranked in various polls this week, with three holding spots inside the top-10. Senior 133-pounder Daton Fix is the consensus No. 2 wrestler at his weight and is the highest ranked Cowboy as the reigning Big 12 champion and a national finalist the last two seasons. Following Fix, Dustin Plott appears as high as No. 5 at 174 pounds after earning All-America honors for the first time last season with a sixth-place finish. Travis Wittlake makes his return to the top-10 at 157 pounds for the second time in WIN Magazine's poll. Kaden Gfeller is ranked just outside the top 10 at No. 13 in two of the four polls at 157 pounds with a 13-4 record, while Carter Young jumped to No. 14 in the FloWrestling poll at 141 pounds after two ranked wins that earned him Big 12 Wrestler of the Week. The remainder of the Cowboys find themselves ranked in some of the polls and left out of others, although it should be noted that The Open Mat and WIN Magazine only rank the top 20 of each weight class. Victor Voinovich sits at No. 19 in WIN Magazine's 149-pound rankings, while Wyatt Sheets (165) is at No. 24, according to Intermat. Trevor Mastrogiovanni (125) and Konner Doucet (HWT) both remain in the twenties at their respective weight classes in Intermat's rankings, but are higher ranked by FloWrestling. Luke Surber lands at No. 19 in Intermat's 197-pound rankings with a 13-5 record
Players Mentioned
