Saturday, March 3
Tulsa, Okla. (BOK Center)
10:00 a.m.
West Virginia University
at
Big 12 Championships
Moisey, Smith Move on to Big 12 Finals
March 03, 2018 10:00 PM | Wrestling
TULSA, Okla. – Redshirt junior Zeke Moisey (125) and redshirt senior Jacob A. Smith (197) made their way back to the Big 12 finals, as the West Virginia University wrestling team completed day one of the 2018 Big 12 Wrestling Championship on Saturday evening, at the BOK Center, in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Moisey, seeded No. 3 at 125 pounds, avenged his season-opening loss to Utah Valley's Taylor LaMont with an 8-5 win in the Big 12 semifinals. Smith, seeded No. 4 at 197 pounds, also avenged his loss to Oklahoma State's Preston Weigel with a 4-3 victory in his semifinal matchup. Moisey will take on Oklahoma State's Nick Piccininni, while Smith faces Nate Rotert of South Dakota State on Sunday. Both WVU grapplers are in search for their first Big 12 title.
The championship matches are set to begin at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday. The consolation semifinals, as well as the third- and fifth-place matches will start at 1 p.m. ET earlier that day.
The first session of the day will be carried by FloWrestling, with live stats on FloArena. The championship matches will be broadcasted live on various FOX Sports affiliates around the nation. Check local listings for more information.
"We had some ups and downs today," said fourth-year coach Sammie Henson. "But at the end of the day, I'm proud of the way everyone came out and wrestled. I'm also extremely proud of Zeke and Jake's performances. They have been leading this team all season, and we are looking forward to seeing them compete tomorrow. Matt and Parker also faced some adversity, but they battled through it, and they still have a chance to compete for a podium finish tomorrow."
Moisey, a native of Northampton, Pennsylvania, went 2-0 on the day, picking up an 11-3 major decision over Northern Iowa's Jay Schwarm in the quarterfinals Saturday afternoon. He collected a pair of takedowns, two nearfall points and a reversal in the first to take an 8-0 advantage into the second stanza. Moisey then added another takedown in the third before claiming the riding time point in the win.
He later took down LaMont in the semifinals, advancing to the 125-pound finals for the first time since 2015. Moisey scored the first takedown of the match and did not look back. After two periods of wrestling, Moisey held a 7-4 lead over LaMont. LaMont escaped to start the third, but Moisey was still in control, as he added the riding time point for the 8-5 decision.
Smith, a native of Charleston, West Virginia, also went undefeated on Saturday, winning a 4-2 decision over Iowa State's Sam Colbray in sudden victory in the quarterfinals. Colbray scored first with a reversal in the second, but Smith quickly escaped to cut his deficit to one entering the final frame. Smith then started in the defensive position, tacking on another escape to tie the match at 2-2, as the grapplers entered sudden victory for the second time this season. Smith eventually collected a takedown with three seconds remaining, claiming the 4-2 decision in the quarterfinals.
He then defeated Weigel in the semifinals, advancing to the 197-pound finals for the second straight year. Following a scoreless first period, Weigel was called for stalling twice, putting one point on the scoreboard for Smith. With Smith holding a 1-0 advantage, Weigel chose to start on bottom in the third. Weigel escaped to tie the match at 1-1, but Smith continued to put up a fight, scoring a takedown to push his lead to 3-1 midway through the final frame. Weigel then added another escape, but he was called for stalling once again, giving Smith the 4-2 advantage. Weigel ended up tacking on the riding point at the end of regulation, but it wasn't enough, as Smith walked away with the 4-3 victory.
Redshirt freshman Matthew Schmitt registered a 2-1 mark on the day, as he remains in contention for third place at 133 pounds. Schmitt, seeded at No. 5, picked up a quick victory in the round of 16, winning by tech. fall over Fresno State's Trevor Williams.
The Platte City, Missouri, native then avenged his loss to Northern Colorado's Rico Montoya earlier this season with a 9-2 decision in the quarterfinal round. Schmitt scored a pair of takedowns in the first for a 4-1 lead. Montoya then earned an escape to start the second, but Schmitt continued to roll, adding another takedown to push the score to 6-2. Starting the third in the defensive position, Schmitt notched a reversal and added the riding time point for the 9-2 decision.
However, Schmitt's run to the 133-pound finals was halted when he ran into No. 1 seed Seth Gross of South Dakota State. Schmitt suffered a 10-2 setback in the match, but looks to bounce back Sunday evening, when he takes on North Dakota State's Cam Sykora in the consolation semifinals. The two previously went head-to-head on Jan. 7, with Schmitt claiming a 3-1 decision in sudden victory.
Redshirt senior Parker VonEgidy bounced back from a first-round loss with two wins over Air Force and Wyoming in the second session. With a pair of consolation victories, the Marshville, North Carolina, native remains in contention for a podium finish at 174 pounds. VonEgidy will wrestle Oklahoma State's Jacobe Smith in the consolation semifinals. The two previously met on Jan. 19, with Smith winning a 9-4 decision.
Junior Christian Monserrat (141) and Zachary Moore (157) also picked up consolation victories in their respective weight classes. Both grapplers went 2-2 on the day, finishing their run at the Big 12 Championship.
As a whole, West Virginia sits in sixth place after two sessions with 46.5 points. Oklahoma State leads the team race with 106.5 points, followed by Northern Iowa in second with 78 points. South Dakota State is currently third with 71.5 points.
Semifinals:
125: Zeke Moisey (WVU) dec. Taylor LaMont (UVU), 8-5
133: Seth Gross (SDSU) major dec. Matthew Schmitt (WVU), 10-2
197: Jacob A. Smith (WVU) dec. Preston Weigel (OSU), 4-3
Consolations:
141: Christian Monserrat (WVU) major dec. Ben Polkowske (UNC), 9-1
141: Mike Longo (OU) wins by fall Christian Monserrat (WVU), F 5:15
149: Matthew Ontiveros (UVU) major dec. Kyler Rea (WVU), 9-1
157: Zachary Moore (WVU) wins by fall Taylor Kinn (UNC), F 1:51
157: Logan Ryan (UNI) major dec. Zachary Moore (WVU), 10-0
165: Isaiah Patton (UNI) dec. Nick Kiussis (WVU), 3-1 [SV-1]
174: Parker VonEgidy (WVU) dec. Michael Billingsly (AFA), 8-2
174: Parker VonEgidy (WVU) dec. Kyler Pope (WYO), 12-8
184: Dane Pestano (ISU) dec. Brenden McRill (WVU), 3-2
HWT: Alex Macki (SDSU) dec. Brandon Ngati (WVU), 3-2
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Moisey, seeded No. 3 at 125 pounds, avenged his season-opening loss to Utah Valley's Taylor LaMont with an 8-5 win in the Big 12 semifinals. Smith, seeded No. 4 at 197 pounds, also avenged his loss to Oklahoma State's Preston Weigel with a 4-3 victory in his semifinal matchup. Moisey will take on Oklahoma State's Nick Piccininni, while Smith faces Nate Rotert of South Dakota State on Sunday. Both WVU grapplers are in search for their first Big 12 title.
The championship matches are set to begin at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday. The consolation semifinals, as well as the third- and fifth-place matches will start at 1 p.m. ET earlier that day.
The first session of the day will be carried by FloWrestling, with live stats on FloArena. The championship matches will be broadcasted live on various FOX Sports affiliates around the nation. Check local listings for more information.
"We had some ups and downs today," said fourth-year coach Sammie Henson. "But at the end of the day, I'm proud of the way everyone came out and wrestled. I'm also extremely proud of Zeke and Jake's performances. They have been leading this team all season, and we are looking forward to seeing them compete tomorrow. Matt and Parker also faced some adversity, but they battled through it, and they still have a chance to compete for a podium finish tomorrow."
Moisey, a native of Northampton, Pennsylvania, went 2-0 on the day, picking up an 11-3 major decision over Northern Iowa's Jay Schwarm in the quarterfinals Saturday afternoon. He collected a pair of takedowns, two nearfall points and a reversal in the first to take an 8-0 advantage into the second stanza. Moisey then added another takedown in the third before claiming the riding time point in the win.
He later took down LaMont in the semifinals, advancing to the 125-pound finals for the first time since 2015. Moisey scored the first takedown of the match and did not look back. After two periods of wrestling, Moisey held a 7-4 lead over LaMont. LaMont escaped to start the third, but Moisey was still in control, as he added the riding time point for the 8-5 decision.
Smith, a native of Charleston, West Virginia, also went undefeated on Saturday, winning a 4-2 decision over Iowa State's Sam Colbray in sudden victory in the quarterfinals. Colbray scored first with a reversal in the second, but Smith quickly escaped to cut his deficit to one entering the final frame. Smith then started in the defensive position, tacking on another escape to tie the match at 2-2, as the grapplers entered sudden victory for the second time this season. Smith eventually collected a takedown with three seconds remaining, claiming the 4-2 decision in the quarterfinals.
He then defeated Weigel in the semifinals, advancing to the 197-pound finals for the second straight year. Following a scoreless first period, Weigel was called for stalling twice, putting one point on the scoreboard for Smith. With Smith holding a 1-0 advantage, Weigel chose to start on bottom in the third. Weigel escaped to tie the match at 1-1, but Smith continued to put up a fight, scoring a takedown to push his lead to 3-1 midway through the final frame. Weigel then added another escape, but he was called for stalling once again, giving Smith the 4-2 advantage. Weigel ended up tacking on the riding point at the end of regulation, but it wasn't enough, as Smith walked away with the 4-3 victory.
Redshirt freshman Matthew Schmitt registered a 2-1 mark on the day, as he remains in contention for third place at 133 pounds. Schmitt, seeded at No. 5, picked up a quick victory in the round of 16, winning by tech. fall over Fresno State's Trevor Williams.
The Platte City, Missouri, native then avenged his loss to Northern Colorado's Rico Montoya earlier this season with a 9-2 decision in the quarterfinal round. Schmitt scored a pair of takedowns in the first for a 4-1 lead. Montoya then earned an escape to start the second, but Schmitt continued to roll, adding another takedown to push the score to 6-2. Starting the third in the defensive position, Schmitt notched a reversal and added the riding time point for the 9-2 decision.
However, Schmitt's run to the 133-pound finals was halted when he ran into No. 1 seed Seth Gross of South Dakota State. Schmitt suffered a 10-2 setback in the match, but looks to bounce back Sunday evening, when he takes on North Dakota State's Cam Sykora in the consolation semifinals. The two previously went head-to-head on Jan. 7, with Schmitt claiming a 3-1 decision in sudden victory.
Redshirt senior Parker VonEgidy bounced back from a first-round loss with two wins over Air Force and Wyoming in the second session. With a pair of consolation victories, the Marshville, North Carolina, native remains in contention for a podium finish at 174 pounds. VonEgidy will wrestle Oklahoma State's Jacobe Smith in the consolation semifinals. The two previously met on Jan. 19, with Smith winning a 9-4 decision.
Junior Christian Monserrat (141) and Zachary Moore (157) also picked up consolation victories in their respective weight classes. Both grapplers went 2-2 on the day, finishing their run at the Big 12 Championship.
As a whole, West Virginia sits in sixth place after two sessions with 46.5 points. Oklahoma State leads the team race with 106.5 points, followed by Northern Iowa in second with 78 points. South Dakota State is currently third with 71.5 points.
Semifinals:
125: Zeke Moisey (WVU) dec. Taylor LaMont (UVU), 8-5
133: Seth Gross (SDSU) major dec. Matthew Schmitt (WVU), 10-2
197: Jacob A. Smith (WVU) dec. Preston Weigel (OSU), 4-3
Consolations:
141: Christian Monserrat (WVU) major dec. Ben Polkowske (UNC), 9-1
141: Mike Longo (OU) wins by fall Christian Monserrat (WVU), F 5:15
149: Matthew Ontiveros (UVU) major dec. Kyler Rea (WVU), 9-1
157: Zachary Moore (WVU) wins by fall Taylor Kinn (UNC), F 1:51
157: Logan Ryan (UNI) major dec. Zachary Moore (WVU), 10-0
165: Isaiah Patton (UNI) dec. Nick Kiussis (WVU), 3-1 [SV-1]
174: Parker VonEgidy (WVU) dec. Michael Billingsly (AFA), 8-2
174: Parker VonEgidy (WVU) dec. Kyler Pope (WYO), 12-8
184: Dane Pestano (ISU) dec. Brenden McRill (WVU), 3-2
HWT: Alex Macki (SDSU) dec. Brandon Ngati (WVU), 3-2
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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