Cowboys Pick Up Top-Five Road Win Over NC State, 22-12

RALEIGH, N.C. – The ninth-ranked Oklahoma State wrestling team picked up its biggest win of the young season Friday night, taking down No. 4 NC State, 22-12, at James T. Valvano Arena at William Neal Reynolds Coliseum. The win continued Oklahoma State’s undefeated season at 5-0, while NC State dropped to 9-2.

The Cowboys have won three straight duals on the road and boast a trio of wins over ranked opponents this season. With the win, head coach John Smith improved his record to 25-1 as a head coach in head-to-head matchups against his former wrestlers.

Oklahoma State is now 3-1 in its past four dual against opponents ranked in the top-10, while Friday’s victory also marked its first win over a top-five opponent since defeating No. 3 Iowa on February 24, 2019.

“We were ready,” Smith said. “I thought some of the younger guys wrestled some of their better matches and they made the difference. In the big, tough dual meets like this, there’s always somebody that lights the fuse, and I thought we lit it a few times. 125, 157 – two good wins from those guys. That’s how you win big dual meets is somebody steps out there and does something that wasn’t expected.”

Troy Spratley began the night with a clutch 7-2 decision over No. 17 Jakob Camacho, who spent much of December as the top-ranked 125-pounder according to Intermat. Spratley’s win over Camacho was his highest-ranked win as a Cowboy and improved his record to 11-3.

Third-ranked Daton Fix then faced No. 5 Kai Orine in a top-five matchup at 133 pounds. Fix jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the opening period and never looked back, taking the match by major decision, 11-3. Fix’s win was the seventh of his career over a top-five opponent and first time earning bonus points in such matches.

Fourth-ranked Ryan Jack managed a takedown in the match’s final seconds to defeat Tagen Jamison, 6-4, and No. 3 Jackson Arrington’s major decision over Jordan Williams evened the dual at 7-7.

In the final match prior to intermission, No. 23 Teague Travis swung the momentum back in OSU’s favor with a huge 7-6 decision over fifth-ranked Ed Scott. In a wild third period, the two wrestlers traded blows, but two reversals by Travis was ultimately enough to complete the upset. Travis is 5-0 in duals this season and now boasts his first career win over a top-five opponent.

“He’s a hard worker,” Smith said of Travis. “It’s just a matter of him believing this is where he is and this is what he can do. He’s finding that out a little bit through his hard work and through his effort. It’s really good to see him have success.”

The Cowboys then continued their surge after the break, winning three straight matches by Izzak Olejnik, Brayden Thompson and Dustin Plott.

Olejnik handled AJ Kovacs at 165 pounds and nearly picked up bonus points, while Thompson grinded out a tight 3-2 decision over No. 31 Alex Faison in tiebreakers for his fourth consecutive win. Plott fell behind fifth-ranked Dylan Fishback in the first period, but battled back and iced the bout with a late takedown to win 13-8. It marked Plott’s first career win over a top-five foe.

Following No. 4 Trent Hidlay’s technical fall over Jersey Robb, Konner Doucet capped the night off with a 2-1 victory over No. 16 Owen Trephan. Doucet moved to 10-2 on the year with the win and owns three wins over ranked opponents.

Oklahoma State will continue its string of road duals next weekend with duals against No. 13 Pittsburgh on Friday, January 12, and No. 20 West Virginia two days later. OSU’s meeting with the Panthers will be available on ACCNX, while the dual against West Virginia is set to air on ESPN+.