Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Wrestlers Hit the Road to Battle Ducks and Beavers
December 13, 2001 | Cowboy Wrestling
Dec. 13, 2001
Oklahoma State's Cowboy grapplers head west to wrestle Oregon and Oregon State on Dec. 16. Oklahoma State (3-1overall, 1-0 Big XII) will wrestle No. 24 Oregon State at 1 p.m. and Oregon at 7 p.m.
The Cowboys are coming off a big win against Bedlam-rival Oklahoma and plan to continue the momentum during the road trip. Oregon and Oregon State wrestled each other recently where the two teams tied 16-16.
"There are going to be some tough individual matches," said assistant coach Mark Cody. "We need to be in better match shape if we intend to do well against our opponents."
Oklahoma State now has nine out of their 10 wrestlers that are ranked in the polls. This includes top-ranked wrestlers Johnny Thompson and Pat Popolizio.
Oregon has four wrestlers that are ranked in the top 20, while Oregon State has three, one of whom is in the top 10. Oregon and Oregon State are two evenly matched teams, with Oregon having a slight edge over Oregon State with a couple wrestlers having more experience under their belt.
After the Oregon duals, the Cowboys will continue the road trip to Reno, Nev., to compete in the Reno Duals on the 20th. Sixteen teams will compete in the tournament with teams consisting of Cal Poly, Fullerton, and Penn State just to name a few.
"The Reno tournament will give us an opportunity to get in the condition we want and for our backups to get some mat time as well," said Cody. "There is too much of a difference between wrestling in dual action and just wrestling in the practice room."
