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![]() KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The 2023-24 Oklahoma State wrestling season concluded Saturday night with a 10th-place finish at the NCAA Wrestling Championships after Daton Fix and Dustin Plott both lost in the finals. Here are five thoughts on the Cowboys’ season. 1. Cowboy Wrestling Is Back in Right DirectionSaturday night might have seemed like a disappointment, but the 2023-24 season was far from it. After finishing in 18th and 14th at the NCAA tournament the past two years, the Cowboys climbed back inside the top 10 this season. OSU was 14-1 in duals. A Gallagher-Iba Arena wrestling season attendance record was set. The Cowboys, barring any transfers, will return eight starters. Four of those were freshmen this season. Dustin Plott will return as an NCAA finalist. “I thought this team was exciting for us all year,” OSU coach John Smith said. “We set an attendance record. When you set records at Oklahoma State wrestling — we’re a program that’s 100-plus years and you’re setting records, that’s the quality of people that we’re dealing with on our team — guys that are gonna get better. The future looks bright. The guys that are in the room, the guys that are coming in. This team kind of helped us get back in a direction that we needed to go in from the last two seasons.” 2. Daton Fix Is Still a Cowboy Wrestling GreatMy favorite part of OSU’s alma-mater is the line, “Ever you’ll find us loyal and true” before everyone echoes, “So true!” Ever you’ll find Daton Fix loyal and true after spending seven years as a Cowboy. Fix lost his fourth NCAA final appearance to defending champion Vito Arujau of Cornell, 5-3. It was a final match tainted by delays and boos from almost every college wrestling fan at T-Mobile Arena, as well as Fix coming up just shy of a national title yet again. Fans complained of Fix’s lack of offense after not scoring a takedown in the last three matches of his career. Fans were let down by another finals appearance without a championship. But do not let one weekend overshadow seven years of Daton Fix. OSU has 143 individual national champions in its illustrious history, and though Fix isn’t one of them, he’s still one of the greatest Cowboys to wear an orange singlet. It’s rare to create history in what’s deemed “The Greatest Dynasty in Sports,” but Fix did so as the first five-time All-American and first five-time conference champion in OSU history. He was 123-7 as a Cowboy. The 123 wins are the 10th most in OSU history and his 94.6% winning percentage is the 14th best in program history. Fix won’t wear an orange singlet again, but he may wear a red, white and blue one as early as this summer. And as he’s representing the United States, or even if not, Cowboy fans should be proud that Fix represents Oklahoma State. 3. Dustin Plott Now ‘The Guy’ for OSUUnfortunately for Dustin Plott, there’s one wrestler better than him at 184 pounds. And Parker Keckeisen would be better than most wrestlers at every weight. Plott lost four times this season, and three came from Keckeisen. First it was in a dual at Stillwater, then two weeks ago in the Big 12 final. Plott lost to Keckeisen for the third time in the NCAA final Saturday night. Keckeisen wasn’t, but Smith predicted him to be awarded the tournament’s most outstanding wrestler. Keckeisen earned bonus points in all of his tournament matches, including a 14-5 major decision over Plott in the final. That capped an undefeated season for Keckeisen. Plott finished the season at 31-4 as an NCAA runner-up. With Fix and Izzak Olejnik exhausting their eligibility, Plott will be the Cowboys’ only returning All-American as an NCAA runner-up. Essentially, Plott is now “the guy” for Cowboy Wrestling. 4. Izzak Olejnik Proof of Newfound Transfer Portal SuccessIzzak Olejnik made the most of his only season at OSU with his best finish at the NCAA tournament, just like John Smith and Co. took advantage of the transfer portal by nabbing a talent like Olejnik. Olejnik was one of three newcomers in the Cowboys’ starting lineup that transferred to Stillwater since last season. The other two were redshirt freshmen Troy Spratley and Tagen Jamison, who both transferred from Minnesota after spending only a redshirt year there. All transfers qualified for the NCAA tournament and were top-10 seeds at their weights. Spratley and Jamison, unless they enter the portal again, will be back next year. Olejnik, though, is out of eligibility as a graduate transfer. Before coming to OSU, Olejnik was at Northern Illinois, where he made three trips to the NCAA tournament and last year was an All-American and the MAC Championship Most Outstanding Wrestler. With Olejnik gone and leaving a void in the lineup, OSU may look to the portal again to replace Olejnik after the success Smith had with last year’s transfer class. He hasn’t hit the portal, but the only 165-pounder who really fits the same mold of Olejnik is Binghamton’s Brevin Cassella, who actually had his season ended by Olejnik. Cassella, a junior, earned the 15 seed in his second NCAA tournament after going 30-9 this season. However, the options are limited at 165 for small program stars who could possibly find immediate success in OSU’s schedule. Another option would be shuffling around someone within the program, but right now OSU doesn’t have anyone ready to start who’s listed at the weight and returning. There’s also not anyone around 165 pounds in OSU’s signing class yet. But with such transfer portal success this year, the Cowboys could hope someone from a big-time program, even if young like Spratley and Jamison, hit the portal and entice him to Stillwater. Whether it’s the addition of Coleman Scott, the GIA atmosphere or solid NIL backing in the new age, OSU has gotten back to attracting top talent to Stillwater. 5. Big 12 Closing Competition Gap with Big TenLast summer when the Big 12 announced it was adding Arizona State, Arizona, Colorado and Utah this upcoming academic year, it didn’t look as if the sport of wrestling would benefit much from the move with Arizona State being the only school with a wrestling program. But the lone addition of the Sun Devils will be an even bigger impact than first expected. ASU finished in sixth this weekend in the NCAA tournament team standings with one individual champion in 125-pounder Richard Figueroa, who is only a redshirt sophomore. The Sun Devils would have been the second-highest Big 12 placer, behind only fourth-place Iowa Sate. They also had a second finalist in 157-pound redshirt senior Jacori Teemer. The Sun Devils have won the Pac-12 tournament four of the last five years, including this season. The conference might be detreating, though, with only six members already and two leaving for new leagues at the end of this academic year. That would leave Oregon State as the only true member of the Pac-12 left competing in wrestling, along with Little Rock, Cal Poly and CSU Bakersfield as affiliate members. OSU coach John Smith was asked last week at a media availability if there really is a gap between the Big Ten and Big 12, and he simply responded, “Hell yeah there’s a gap.” Other Pac-12 wrestling programs could follow ASU to the Big 12, but even if the Sun Devils are the only addition, the Big 12 continues to close that gap. ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It just wasn’t meant to be for Daton Fix. Fix came second in a fourth 133-pound NCAA final on Saturday in T-Mobile Center, finishing his seven-year Oklahoma State career with a 123-7 record but without an NCAA title. After a locked hands call and an escape, Fix went into the third period of his fourth NCAA final with a 2-0 lead. But in a match riddled with blood time and reviews, Fix eventually fell to reigning world champion Vito Arujau 5-3 after Arujau earned an escape, a stall point and a takedown in the final period. Fix ended his college career as a four-time runner up, which is absolutely brutal. But he is a five-time All-American and five-time Big 12 Champion. He has to be the greatest Cowboy to not have won an NCAA title, if not the best collegiate wrestler to never win an NCAA title. But even after the emotions of coming up just short one last time, Fix, with stitches in his right brow, stepped in front of reporters one final time as a Cowboy wrestler. “Obviously it’s not what I wanted, but that was the outcome,” Fix said. “Left it all out there. Wrestled hard. Just didn’t do enough to win. Same old story. “I love Oklahoma State. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. It’s been a dream come true to put on that orange singlet. I’m just very thankful for everything they’ve done for me. I just hope that I made them proud.” Dustin Plott suffered a similar fate. He fell to Northern Iowa’s Parker Keckeisen 14-5 in the NCAA final at 184 pounds. It was the third time this season Plott lost to Keckeisen. Still, it’s the best Plott has finished at NCAAs, besting a pair of sixth-place finishes at 174 pounds the past two seasons. Keckeisen again proved he is simply on another level. Plott got to the final with four bonus-point wins. Keckeisen finished with five. Like Plott, OSU 165-pounder Izzak Olejnik had a personal-best finish at NCAAs, coming in fifth. Olejnik went 1-1 on the day, falling to Iowa’s Mike Caliendo 9-8 in a match decided by riding time before besting Stanford’s Hunter Garvin 3-0 in the fifth-place match. Olejnik joined the Cowboys this season via the transfer portal from Northern Illinois and dived head first into the deepest weight class in the Big 12. The conference had four All-Americans at the weight in Iowa State’s David Carr (first), Missouri’s Keegan O’Toole (third), Olejnik (fifth) and West Virginia’s Peyton Hall (seventh). All of Olejnik’s losses this season came against guys ranked in the top 10. “I think one of the biggest impacts [wrestling this season at Oklahoma State has made] is mindset,” Olejnik said. “Being able to know that you’re going to go out there and win and mentally break dudes. I think that’s something that I lacked, I think since I started wrestling. My confidence was a little holding me back. This being my last year, I said why not go for it? … “Just being with the Oklahoma State coaching staff and teammates, I’ve said it before, but it feels like I’ve been on the team a lot longer than I really have. They truly accept you and push you and want to get the absolute most out of you. I can’t thank them enough for giving me the opportunity.” The Cowboys finished 10th in the team standings, which might not seem outstanding, but fewer than 10 points separated teams No. 6 through 10. For reference, 100 points separated No. 1 from No. 2. It’s also the first time since 2021 the Cowboys have had more than two All-Americans with Fix, Plott and Olejnik notching the honors. Daton Fix InterviewCowboys at the NCAA ChampionshipsTroy Spratley — 2-2 Top 10 Teams
![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() The Cowboys came out swinging and then leaned on their ace for the win, but it wasn’t without some late drama. Oklahoma State defeated No. 18 TCU 6-2 on Friday to tie the weekend series. Brian Holiday moved into first place in the Big 12 in innings pitched, throwing a complete game and moving to 2-1 on the season. OSU’s ace struck out a career-high 14 batters, allowed just four hits and two runs and not a single walk. The Cowboys started hot, scoring four in the first and then added two more in the eighth to keep the Horned Frogs at bay. Aidan Meola went 2-for-4 with two runs batted in and Jaxson Crull and Carson Benge each logged an RBI. Kollin Ritchie went just 1-for-5, but that one was a three-run deep ball. Benge doubled on his first outing, and then Nolan Schubart walked. Meola got the Cowboys on the board with an RBI to left field, then Ritchie cleaned the bases up with a three-run homer on his first swing to take a 4-0 lead. TCU didn’t leave home plate in the first six innings. After starting out otherworldly, Holiday came back to earth just a bit. TCU scored on an RBI double by Anthony Silva in the seventh to pull within 4-1. In the eighth, Holiday gave up base hits to the first two batters, bringing the tying score to the plate. TCU’s Karson Bowen bunted to try to load the bases but was out at first. Then Peyton Chatagnier pulled it to within 4-2 with a ground out to first. Holiday was able to stop the bleeding with a strikeout, but arms were warming up in OSU’s bullpen. The Horned Frogs used five different pitchers (including three in the eighth) as they tried to hang in for a chance to earn a series win. OSU’s batters, it appears, were not interested in a pitching change on their side. Lane Forsythe singled to center and then stole second before Charlie Carter was walked. Zach Ehrhard tapped an RBI single through left to push the lead to 5-2 and then a Carson Benge walk loaded the bases with just one out. Schubart struck out before Meola was walked for a sixth run. Ritchie grounded out to end a back-and-forth inning that ultimately went the Cowboys’ way. With the lead extended, Cowboy coaches chose to ride Holiday, who pitched OSU’s first complete game of the season. He would pull it out, but not without a little more drama. In the top of the ninth, Holiday flied out TCU’s Kurtis Byrne after a 1-2 count and then had Payton Tolle down 1-2 when he hit him with a stray slider. Silva grounded out when Meola made a nice play running into the outfield. Then Micah Kendrick advanced to third on a wild pitch by Holiday. They called ball game when TCU’s Ryder Robinson nailed one to center field, right into the glove of Benge. Next UpWith the win, the Cowboys move to 14-9 and 2-3 in conference play. The Pokes and the Frogs will play the rubber match at 1 p.m. Sunday in O’Brate Stadium. ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog.
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![]() KANAS CITY, Mo. — Those involved assure this time will be different. Oklahoma State’s Dustin Plott will wrestle Parker Keckeisen from Northern Iowa in the 184-pound final at the NCAA Wrestling Championships on Saturday night at T-Mobile Center. The two have already competed twice this season, with Keckeisen winning both meetings. The first outcome was a 12-6 decision in a dual Jan. 26 in Stillwater when they were ranked No. 1 and 2. Then, less than two weeks ago with a different title on the line, Keckeisen beat Plott 14-5 at Big 12s in Tulsa. “Any time you feel someone and wrestle with them a couple of times you have a better idea of what they do and how they wrestle,” Plott said. “I’m really excited to go and get to compete against him again.” Keckeisen, proven by his perfect record and two victories over Plott, appears to be on another level from the rest of the 184-pound weight class. But there are apparently tiers at 184, with Keckeisen in the top, Plott in the second tier and the rest of the weight class well below them. Plott and Keckeisen both earned bonus points in all four of their wins to get to the finals. Plott started the tournament with a technical fall before three-straight major decisions. He handled 2 seed Isaiah Salazar of Minnesota 11-2 in the semis while Keckeisen thumped Oregon State’s Trey Munoz, the 4 seed, 10-2 on the next mat over. “Parker’s a great competitor — he’s one of the best in the country overall,” OSU assistant coach Coleman Scott said. “And I think, I know I am, and Dustin is looking for another opportunity, right, because he was not happy nor satisfied with what happened last time. “It’ll be different. I know that. Dustin’s different this weekend.” Just before Plott and Keckeisen stepped on the mats Friday night, Iowa State’s David Carr upset defending back-to-back national champion Keegan O’Toole of Missouri in the 165-pound semifinals. Like Plott and Keckeisen, those two have went back and forth a lot in their careers. O’Toole had won their previous two meetings, including less than two weeks when O’Toole beat Carr 8-2 in the Big 12 finals. “That used to really bug me back in the day — wrestling the same guy,” Keckeisen said. “… We always get nervous because, I don’t know, you see all the time what David Carr beat Keegan O’Toole. You get familiarized opponents. And, yeah, can I get beat? Anyone can get beat on any given day. “But Dustin Plott isn’t the same Dustin Plott that wrestled just a couple Sundays ago. I’m not the same Parker Keckeisen who wrestled a couple Sundays ago, right? We got better at our skills. Looking at it from that perspective, he’s better, I’m better. Yeah, the name’s the same, but we’re two different wrestlers.” ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog.
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![]() KANSAS CITY, Mo. — There’s one more day of wrestling left. After two days of the NCAA Wrestling Championships at the T-Mobile Center, Oklahoma State sits in eighth place in the team standings with Daton Fix and Dustin Plott in the finals, and Izzak Olejnik still battling in the consolation bracket. Here are five thoughts on the second day in KC. 1. Daton Fix Has to Do More to Win First TitleThere will be plenty of praise for Daton Fix, and rightfully so after becoming a four-time NCAA finalist and five-time All-American. I have written those praises of Fix, and will continue to, but it’s wild he’s getting to wrestle on that stage Saturday night. And how he got there won’t win his first national title. Just like every other wrestler competing for a championship, Fix won four straight matches, but he hasn’t scored a takedown in his past two outings. He narrowly got past Iowa State’s Evan Frost in the quarterfinals 2-1 in a match that went to tiebreakers. Tied 1-1, neither wrestler scored in sudden victory before Fix ultimately escaped then rode Frost for 30 seconds to move on. Then, after a match like that, Fix’s next one was somehow even closer. Again tied 1-1 with no points in sudden victory, Michigan’s Dylan Ragusin, after a review and chaos, ultimately took a 2-1 lead with an escape. A stalling call against Fix that would have given Ragusin a 3-1 lead was overturned. Next, Fix was awarded a point for locked hands, and thanks to having the most riding time, he won 3-2. “If you would have told me that I wouldn’t have gotten takedowns the last two matches I won, I probably wouldn’t have believed you,” Fix said. “But I just had to do what I had to do to win. And that’s what I do.” Fix is 0-3 in three trips to the NCAA finals. Fix has also never scored a takedown in a finals bout. I dove into Fix’s losses earlier this week, but he failed to get a takedown in all six of his career losses, five of which were in the NCAA tournament. On the flip side, Fix has never lost a match in which he scored a takedown. One of those losses was in last year’s semifinals against Cornell’s Vito Arujau, who Fix will meet again in the finals. In that last meeting, Fix didn’t score a takedown as Arujau won in an 11-3 major decision. As Fix scrapped out his semifinal win Friday night, on the next mat over Arujau earned a 13-3 major decision against a guy who had beaten him twice this season. Fix can’t get out of the box that has gotten him 123 career wins and to this point, but he definitely can’t do what he did Friday to beat Arujau and win the only thing he hasn’t yet. “I’ve done a really good job at getting to the leg the last two matches, but gotta finish,” Fix said. “I’m definitely gonna have to do it [Saturday] night. I’m ready to do that.” 2. But Still Enjoy FixCowboy fans were definitely pacing and pulling their hair out while watching Fix on Friday, but despite how stressful those matches were, make Saturday enjoyable. After seven years as a Cowboy, Saturday night when Fix competes for a championship will be the last time he wrestles in an orange singlet no matter the outcome. He’s had a redshirt and an Olympic redshirt during that time, plus a pandemic that gave him another extra year. And through all that during a time of transferring taking over college sports, Fix never left, even through shortcomings in the finals. Fix has made history already the past two weeks — a rarity in Cowboy wrestling — becoming OSU’s first five-time Big 12 champion and first five-time All-American. An individual NCAA title is essentially the only thing Fix hasn’t accomplished as a Cowboy. If not in Kansas City, turn it to ESPN on Saturday night to watch Fix. Take that seven minutes (or more knowing Fix) and enjoy. 3. Experience MattersThe plot of OSU’s 2023-24 season would be its youth with four freshmen in the starting lineup. But the veterans ended up being the main characters of this tournament. All of OSU’s All-Americans and wrestlers still competing — Fix, Plott and Olejnik — are seniors in some shape or fashion. Fix is a seventh-year senior who won’t return next year. Plott is a senior but will return next season thanks to an extra year of eligibility because of the pandemic. Olejnik is a senior that won’t return, but this was his first and only season at OSU after transferring from Northern Illinois. No matter the experience, that experience does matter. In a world where everyone wants everything, especially success, immediately, these Cowboys proved the benefits of experience and being a veteran on a team. 4. Talent Gained ExperienceYoung talent, especially when it comes back, is beneficial, too. Redshirt freshmen Jordan Williams and Troy Spratley both finished short of getting All-American honors in their first NCAA tournaments, with Spratley being just one win shy. Fellow freshmen Tagen Jamison and Brayden Thompson went 0-2 this week. These freshmen were written and talked about a lot this season because of their talent. Now they have at least some experience, too. The first step is keeping them all in Stillwater. But if that’s accomplished, there will be a lot of hype for Cowboy Wrestling next season. And rightfully so. Bold statement to make a year in advance, but all four of these guys will finish better than they did this year. They showed this season how far their fresh talent could take them. Those three seniors who are all repeat All-Americans proved how valuable of an asset gained experience will be for those freshmen, too, now that they have some of it. Plott wasn’t an All-American in his first trip to NCAAs. Now he’s a finalist. 5. Day of RevengeEvery OSU wrestler competing Saturday will be looking for revenge. Olejnik will take the mat first Saturday morning against Iowa’s Mike Caliendo, who beat Olejnik earlier this season 7-2. Fix will be the only one looking to avenge a loss from last season against Cornell’s Vito Arujau, who beat Fix in last year’s semifinals. The 184-pound final will be Plott’s third meeting with Northern Iowa’s Parker Keckeisen, who has won both matches. Revenge is sweet, but it’s even sweeter when it’s for medals and national championships. ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Two Cowboys have a shot at an individual national championship on Saturday, but both have their work cut out for them. Daton Fix and Dustin Plott each started their journey at the NCAA Wrestling Championships 4-0 and will compete Saturday night for an individual title. The Cowboys haven’t had an individual champion since AJ Ferrari won the 197-pound bracket in 2021. But both Fix and Plott will have to avenge losses to obtain their glory. OSU’s first five-time All-American, Fix wrestled a pair of tight matches Friday to make the final. Both of those bouts went to tiebreakers. He bested Iowa State’s Evan Frost 2-1 in the early session before inching past Michigan’s Dylan Ragusin 3-2 in the semifinals. For his efforts, Fix will wrestle defending world champion Vito Arujau in Saturday’s final. Fix and Arujau met in the semifinals last season, where Arujau beat Fix 11-3. It was the only time in Fix’s career he was beat before the NCAA final at this event. “We’ve gotta go execute,” OSU assistant Coleman Scott said. “… If he goes and executes and stays disciplined, he will change the result of last time. Daton, no matter what’s gone against him, what’s happened, he’s found ways to win. “He’s gonna have to do better tomorrow. We know that, and he knows that.” Plott has been on the other side of offensive firepower, as he scored 61 points in his four matches this weekend and secured bonus points in all of his wins. He started his Friday with a 16-6 major-decision victory against Penn State’s Bernie Truax before steaming past 2 seed Isaiah Salazar of Minnesota 11-2 in the semifinals. But like Fix, Plott will have to exercise some demons to stand atop the podium Saturday. He’ll wrestle Northern Iowa’s Parker Keckeisen in the final. Keckeisen has beaten Plott twice this season, including a 14-5 major-decision win in the Big 12 final. “Parker’s a great opponent,” Plott said. “Gotten the better of me the first two times, for sure. Super excited to get to wrestle him again. That one at Big 12s, I did not want to be the last match with him this year. I put myself in the opportunity to go compete with him again. Just going to be myself, let everything hang out there and go compete.” Izzak Olejnik will be the only Cowboy wrestling in Saturday’s morning session. Olejnik earned All-America status Friday and won four matches. His blood-round bout with 5 seed Dean Hamiti was one of the best matches of the day. Olejnik entered the third period down 5-2 before escaping and taking Hamiti down in the frame. A Hamiti escape in the final minute sent the bout to sudden victory. And in that extra period, Olejnik took Hamiti down again to become a two-time All-American. Olejnik then beat Nebraska’s Antrell Taylor in the next round. He’ll face Iowa’s Mike Caliendo on Saturday morning. A win moves Olejnik to the third-place bout. A loss puts him in the fifth-place match. Caliendo beat Olejnik 7-2 in the Cowboys’ dual against the Hawkeyes. “His matches today, that blood-round match takes a lot of heart getting a third-period takedown and another one in overtime,” Scott said. “It’s not easy to do against a tough competitor. Just happy for him and where he’s at. We’re looking forward to getting a couple more wins. Won’t get easier tomorrow, I’ll tell you that.” No one is catching Penn State in the team race, as the Nittany Lions end Day 2 with more than double the points of second-place Michigan. OSU is in eighth place on the team board going into the final day. Coleman Scott Recaps the DayTeam Standings
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