Friday, January 19
Stillwater, Okla.
8:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
at
Oklahoma State
Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
WVU Tangles with No. 5 Oklahoma State on Friday
January 18, 2018 03:02 PM | Wrestling
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – After opening the New Year with two upset wins in league play at home, the West Virginia University wrestling team embarks on its first Big 12 Conference road trip of the season with a dual meet at No. 5 Oklahoma State on Friday, Jan. 19, held at Gallagher-Iba Arena, in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Friday's 8 p.m. ET match with the Cowboys will be streamed live on FloWrestling.com. Live stats also can be found at TrackWrestling.com.
The Mountaineers (3-3, 2-1 Big 12) and the Cowboys (6-1, 3-0 Big 12) meet for the 13th time on Friday in a series that dates back to 1927. Oklahoma State owns a 12-0 lead in the series and took a 38-3 win in Stillwater last season as the No. 1 team in the nation. Of note, the Cowboys have taken six wins in league action.
"It's going to be tough a match," said fourth-year coach Sammie Henson. "We are wrestling one of the most historic programs in the country. I told our guys it's an exciting time. We are going to enter Gallagher-Iba Arena, and they are going to have their fans. They are awesome, and I think our wrestlers need to embrace that environment. They need to embrace being the bad guys. We are the visitors. I think it's going to be one exciting match."
West Virginia has faced five teams ranked inside the USA Today/NWCA Coaches' Top-25 Poll thus far, with No. 5 Oklahoma State becoming the Mountaineers' sixth ranked opponent of the 2017-18 season. Though West Virginia has notched three upset wins over top-25 foes (then-No. 25 Pitt, then-No. 18 Oklahoma and then-No. 25 North Dakota State), Oklahoma State will mark the Mountaineers first opponent ranked inside the top five. Of note, the Mountaineers have received votes in the coaches' poll for two straight weeks.
The Mountaineers will enter Friday night's dual with a pair of wrestlers nationally ranked by a trio of media outlets. Redshirt senior Jacob A. Smith (197) is ranked No. 12 by FloWrestling, appears at No. 13 according to Intermat and checks in at No. 15 via The Open Mat. Redshirt junior Zeke Moisey (125) is ranked at No. 13 via The Open Mat, checks in at No. 14 according to Intermat and appears at No. 16 via FloWrestling.
The Cowboys have eight wrestlers ranked at their respective weights. Though Oklahoma State's lineup is littered with elite talent from top to bottom, it's the one-two-three punch from Nick Piccininni (125), Kaid Brock (133) and Dean Heil (141) that alarm most opponents. This season, the trio has combined to go 42-7 overall thus far.
Most recently, Oklahoma State suffered its first loss of the season at the hands of No. 7 Iowa on Jan. 14, dropping a 20-12 decision to the Hawkeyes in Iowa City.
Redshirt sophomore Zachary Moore returns to his home state for the first time in his collegiate career. The Oklahoma City native competes at 157 pounds for WVU and is tied for a team-best 4-1 record in dual matches this season. He also has posted a 12-7 overall mark thus far.
The 197-pound bout will feature the most anticipated match of the evening, as Smith and Preston Weigel of Oklahoma State meet for the fourth time in their collegiate careers. The two did not meet in a dual match setting last season, but ended up going head-to-head two months later in the 197-pound finals at the Big 12 Championship. Smith was injured on a takedown in the first period and fell to Weigel in 2 minutes, 24 seconds. Weigel holds a 2-1 advantage in the 197-pound battle.
Of note, Moisey and redshirt freshman Matthew Schmitt boast a team-best 15-6 overall mark at 125 pounds and 133 pounds, respectively. Moisey also paces the Mountaineers' with 19 match points and sports a team-best 16 takedowns and four pins on the year.
Looking ahead, the Mountaineers will continue their Big 12 road trip with a match at Iowa State on Sunday, Jan. 21. Sunday's match with the Cyclones will begin at 3 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on CyclonesTV.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Friday's 8 p.m. ET match with the Cowboys will be streamed live on FloWrestling.com. Live stats also can be found at TrackWrestling.com.
The Mountaineers (3-3, 2-1 Big 12) and the Cowboys (6-1, 3-0 Big 12) meet for the 13th time on Friday in a series that dates back to 1927. Oklahoma State owns a 12-0 lead in the series and took a 38-3 win in Stillwater last season as the No. 1 team in the nation. Of note, the Cowboys have taken six wins in league action.
"It's going to be tough a match," said fourth-year coach Sammie Henson. "We are wrestling one of the most historic programs in the country. I told our guys it's an exciting time. We are going to enter Gallagher-Iba Arena, and they are going to have their fans. They are awesome, and I think our wrestlers need to embrace that environment. They need to embrace being the bad guys. We are the visitors. I think it's going to be one exciting match."
West Virginia has faced five teams ranked inside the USA Today/NWCA Coaches' Top-25 Poll thus far, with No. 5 Oklahoma State becoming the Mountaineers' sixth ranked opponent of the 2017-18 season. Though West Virginia has notched three upset wins over top-25 foes (then-No. 25 Pitt, then-No. 18 Oklahoma and then-No. 25 North Dakota State), Oklahoma State will mark the Mountaineers first opponent ranked inside the top five. Of note, the Mountaineers have received votes in the coaches' poll for two straight weeks.
The Mountaineers will enter Friday night's dual with a pair of wrestlers nationally ranked by a trio of media outlets. Redshirt senior Jacob A. Smith (197) is ranked No. 12 by FloWrestling, appears at No. 13 according to Intermat and checks in at No. 15 via The Open Mat. Redshirt junior Zeke Moisey (125) is ranked at No. 13 via The Open Mat, checks in at No. 14 according to Intermat and appears at No. 16 via FloWrestling.
The Cowboys have eight wrestlers ranked at their respective weights. Though Oklahoma State's lineup is littered with elite talent from top to bottom, it's the one-two-three punch from Nick Piccininni (125), Kaid Brock (133) and Dean Heil (141) that alarm most opponents. This season, the trio has combined to go 42-7 overall thus far.
Most recently, Oklahoma State suffered its first loss of the season at the hands of No. 7 Iowa on Jan. 14, dropping a 20-12 decision to the Hawkeyes in Iowa City.
Redshirt sophomore Zachary Moore returns to his home state for the first time in his collegiate career. The Oklahoma City native competes at 157 pounds for WVU and is tied for a team-best 4-1 record in dual matches this season. He also has posted a 12-7 overall mark thus far.
The 197-pound bout will feature the most anticipated match of the evening, as Smith and Preston Weigel of Oklahoma State meet for the fourth time in their collegiate careers. The two did not meet in a dual match setting last season, but ended up going head-to-head two months later in the 197-pound finals at the Big 12 Championship. Smith was injured on a takedown in the first period and fell to Weigel in 2 minutes, 24 seconds. Weigel holds a 2-1 advantage in the 197-pound battle.
Of note, Moisey and redshirt freshman Matthew Schmitt boast a team-best 15-6 overall mark at 125 pounds and 133 pounds, respectively. Moisey also paces the Mountaineers' with 19 match points and sports a team-best 16 takedowns and four pins on the year.
Looking ahead, the Mountaineers will continue their Big 12 road trip with a match at Iowa State on Sunday, Jan. 21. Sunday's match with the Cyclones will begin at 3 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on CyclonesTV.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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