Jacks’ record streak ends at Oklahoma
NORMAN, Okla. – South Dakota State’s school-record 12-match dual winning streak came to an end Sunday as the 24th-ranked Jackrabbits were upended at No. 7 Oklahoma, 19-13.
The Sooners, who won four of the final five bouts to secure the victory, improved to 10-5 overall, including 5-1 in the Big 12. SDSU, meanwhile, fell to 13-6 overall and 5-2 against Big 12 Conference foes. All six of the Jackrabbits’ dual losses this season have been to teams currently ranked in the top 25.
Oklahoma grabbed an early 7-0 lead after two of its ranked wrestlers posted victories. Eighth-ranked Ryan Millhof notched a 10-3 decision over Ben Gillette in the 125-pound bout and fourth-ranked Cody Brewer followed with a 16-5 major decision over Brance Simms at 133 pounds.
The Jackrabbits rallied to take a 10-7 lead with wins in the next three matches to close out the first half of the dual. Seth Gross got the streak started with an 8-2 decision over Trae Blackwell in the 141-pound match and Alex Kocer added a 9-5 decision over Davion Jeffries at 149 pounds, improving to 21-9 on the season. Gross became the fifth Jackrabbit wrestler this season to reach the 20-win mark, improving to 20-11 overall.
Senior Cody Pack gave SDSU its lone bonus-point victory of the dual with a 15-1 major decision over Shayne Tucker in the 157-pound weight class. With the win, the fifth-ranked Pack improved to 24-2 on the season, including 14-1 in duals.
The second half of the dual belonged to the Sooners, who regained the lead with consecutive wins by Clark Glass, Matt Reed and Andrew Dixon.
SDSU’s other ranked wrestler, Nate Rotert, brought the Jackrabbits to within 16-13 heading into the final bout with a 6-2 decision over Brad Johnson. The 15th-ranked Rotert upped his record to 23-8 on the season.
In the decisive final matchup, 17th-ranked Ross Larson of Oklahoma sealed the Sooner victory with a 4-0 shutout of Alex Macki.
The Jackrabbits close out the dual season next Sunday (Feb. 21) with a Big 12 dual at North Dakota State. Start time is 2 p.m. at Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse on the NDSU campus in Fargo.
No. 7 Oklahoma 19, No. 24 South Dakota State 13
125: #8 Ryan Millhof (OU) dec. Ben Gillette (SDSU), 10-3
133: #4 Cody Brewer (OU) major dec. Brance Simms (SDSU), 16-5
141: Seth Gross (SDSU) dec. Trae Blackwell (OU), 8-2
149: Alex Kocer (SDSU) dec. Davion Jeffries (OU), 9-5
157: #5 Cody Pack (SDSU) major dec. Shayne Tucker (OU), 15-1
165: #13 Clark Glass (OU) dec. Luke Zilverberg (SDSU), 6-1
174: Matt Reed (OU) dec. David Kocer (SDSU), 9-4
184: Andrew Dixon (OU) dec. Brady Ayers (SDSU), 4-3
197: #15 Nate Rotert (SDSU) dec. Brad Johnson (OU), 6-2
285: #17 Ross Larson (OU) dec. Alex Macki (SDSU), 4-0