Oklahoma State University Athletics
Dieringer Ready to Make Impact on the Mat
October 29, 2012 | Cowboy Wrestling
Oct. 29, 2012
STILLWATER--Alex Dieringer has known from a young age that he had something special.
A redshirt freshman for the Oklahoma State wrestling team, Dieringer is suiting up for varsity action for the Cowboys for the 2012-13 season.
The Port Washington, Wis., native began wrestling in the summer of his second grade year. The trainer for the summer program, who was also the coach at a local high school, encouraged him to continue wrestling. It wasn't long before he began showcasing his talent in the sport through various tournaments.
"I took second place my first year of wrestling at kids' state," Dieringer said. "That's when I knew I had something special. I started going to national tournaments in 4th grade, and I did really well in those."
Every year after that, he competed in several national tournaments each year. During his high school years at Port Washington High School, Dieringer made a name for himself.
He won the state championship in 2007 at 103 pounds. In 2009, he earned the state title at 140 pounds and was the Fargo Freestyle and Greco Cadet National Champion. At 145 pounds, Dieringer took first in both the Freestyle and Folkstyle Junior National Championships at Fargo in 2010.
"Winning Fargo my junior and senior year was one of my favorite wrestling moments," Dieringer said.
His efforts did not go unnoticed. Dieringer was recruited by several of the nation's top wrestling programs, including Oklahoma State, Minnesota and Wyoming. He eventually chose OSU because of its history, longstanding tradition and the coaches.
Dieringer admitted that his collegiate career did not start as smoothly as he had hoped, but with a little time and effort, he was where he wanted to be.
"When I first got here, I had trouble," he said. "I had trouble finishing my shots, but within two months I had gotten so much better."
Taking a redshirt his first year, the 157 pounder finished the season with an impressive 17-1 record, competing exclusively in open tournaments. Nine of his wins came with bonus points attached en route to winning titles at the Fort Hays State Open, Roger Denker Open and MVC Open.
OSU coach John Smith said over the past year he's watched Dieringer grow not only athletically but also in several other areas.
"One of the things I've seen from Alex is an improvement in his lifestyle," Smith said. "He's always been a pretty good worker in the room. He's got a good attitude when he comes, and I've seen a lot of growth in maturity in the past year. There's always a positive when you see kids moving in that direction, and you don't have to preach it every day. That makes him really fun to coach."
In May, Dieringer, along with teammate Austin Marsden, earned a spot on U.S. Junior World team and traveled to Thailand in September to compete at the FILA Junior World Championship, where he split his matches before being eliminated.
"Thailand was a really good experience," he said. "It didn't turn out the way I wanted. The first match I pinned the guy quickly. Then I had the returning silver-medalist, but I didn't think I wrestled very smart. At least I still have one more year for juniors."
As the season inches closer, Dieringer said that he doesn't feel much of a difference taking on his new role as a possible starter.
"I'm not really thinking about that very much right now," Dieringer said. "Once it gets closer, I'm sure I'll feel a big difference. There will be pressure if I don't do well, but I think I'll be fine."
Dieringer shared that he has a few things to work on, but once he's mastered those, he's confident in his upcoming season and where it will take him.
"This year, I feel like I have a good shot at placing high or even winning a national title."
