Oklahoma State University Athletics
Friday, March 6
Tulsa, Okla.
Oklahoma State University
vs
Big 12
Cowboy Wrestling Wins Second Straight Big 12 Championship
March 07, 2026 | Cowboy Wrestling
Photos
TULSA, Okla. – The Oklahoma State wrestling program claimed its second consecutive and 57th overall conference championship Saturday night, finishing the 2026 Big 12 Wrestling Championship with individual titles from Casey Swiderski at 149 pounds, Troy Spratley at 125 pounds, Jax Forrest at 133 pounds and Sergio Vega at 141 pounds.
The Cowboys' 176 team points rank as the second-most in Big 12 tournament history, trailing only the 176.5 points OSU scored in 2017. This year's total was 32 points better than Iowa State, who finished second with 144 points.
"It was good," coach David Taylor said. "This is a really tough tournament. There's ups and downs even in the finals. We talked to our guys about being present and staying in the moment and that's still true even in these big matches. … We've got some adjustments that we've got to make, and we'll get those addressed before the national championships."
Taylor is the second coach in Big 12 history to win team titles in each of his first two seasons as head coach, joining Cael Sanderson who won three with Iowa State from 2007-09.
Forrest, who earned bonus point wins in all four bouts this weekend, was named Most Outstanding Wrestler. He is the third true freshman in school history to win the honor, joining Coleman Scott in 2005 and AJ Ferrari in 2021.
His title combined with Vega's gave OSU a pair of true freshman conference champions for just the third time in Oklahoma State history. The duo joins Scott and Nathan Morgan, who won in 2005, and Lee Roy Smith and Eric Wais, who won in 1977. They are the 14th and 15th true freshmen in OSU history and the first since 2021 to win a conference title.
With a 23-point lead entering the finals, the Cowboy needed just one win to secure the team title. It didn't take long to silence any doubts, as Casey Swiderski handled No. 6 seed Caleb Rathjen of Northern Iowa, 5-3, at 149 pounds in the opening bout of the finals.
It marked the first career conference title for the junior Swiderski, who finished third in 2024 and fourth in 2023.
A Big 12 finalist for a third-straight season, Spratley was the next Cowboy to secure his individual title. Heading into the third period down 1-0, Spratley secured a reversal with 1:35 remaining, earned a two-point nearfall and rode out the period to win a 5-2 decision for his career conference finals win.
Forrest, who earned technical falls all the way through to the finals, kept his point total flying in his final bout, dominating Arizona State's second-seeded Kyler Larkin in a 15-2 major decision.
With a weekend total of 70 points scored in his matches, he scored 12 more points than any other wrestler in the tournament.
Fellow freshman Vega provided the final fireworks of the night, battling through a tiebreaker rideout of Iowa State's second-seeded Anthony Echemendia to earn a gritty 2-1 win in the last bout of the tournament.
Cowboy fans also played a large part in another historic note for the weekend as 7,044 fans came to the BOK Center to set a Big 12 championship session attendance record.
The team championship marks OSU's 55th conference tournament title in wrestling. Oklahoma State has now claimed 21 of the 30 Big 12 tournament trophies that have been awarded in conference history, as well as the 2012 and 2013 regular season titles in the only years it was awarded.
With the addition of the individual titles, OSU now has 126 Big 12 individual championships and 301 conference individual championships in its wrestling history.
Four other Cowboy dropped close decisions in the finals, including Landon Robideau at 157 pounds, LaDarion Lockett at 165 pounds, Alex Facundo at 174 pounds and Konner Doucet at heavyweight.
The Cowboys now turn their attention to the NCAA Championships in Cleveland, set for March 19-21 at Rocket Arena.
2026 Big 12 Wrestling Championship
March 7, 2026 | BOK Center | Tulsa, Okla.
Session 4 (Saturday Night)
Final Team Standings
Finals
149: No. 1 Casey Swiderski (OSU) dec. No. 6 Caleb Rathjen (UNI), 5-3
157: No. 1 Kaleb Larkin (ASU) dec. No. 2 Landon Robideau (OSU), 4-3
165: No. 3 Nicco Ruiz (ASU) dec. No. 1 LaDarion Lockett (OSU), 2-1, TB-1
174: No. 3 Cam Steed (MIZZ) dec. No. 1 Alex Facundo (OSU), 10-6
HWT: No. 1 Yonger Bastida (ISU) dec. No. 2 Konner Doucet (OSU), 4-1
125: No. 1 Troy Spratley (OSU) dec. No. 2 Stevo Poulin (ISU), 5-2
133: No. 1 Jax Forrest (OSU) MD No. 2 Kyler Larkin (ASU), 15-2
141: No. 1 Sergio Vega (OSU) dec. No. 2 Anthony Echemendia (ISU), 2-1, TB-1
TULSA, Okla. – The Oklahoma State wrestling program claimed its second consecutive and 57th overall conference championship Saturday night, finishing the 2026 Big 12 Wrestling Championship with individual titles from Casey Swiderski at 149 pounds, Troy Spratley at 125 pounds, Jax Forrest at 133 pounds and Sergio Vega at 141 pounds.
The Cowboys' 176 team points rank as the second-most in Big 12 tournament history, trailing only the 176.5 points OSU scored in 2017. This year's total was 32 points better than Iowa State, who finished second with 144 points.
"It was good," coach David Taylor said. "This is a really tough tournament. There's ups and downs even in the finals. We talked to our guys about being present and staying in the moment and that's still true even in these big matches. … We've got some adjustments that we've got to make, and we'll get those addressed before the national championships."
Taylor is the second coach in Big 12 history to win team titles in each of his first two seasons as head coach, joining Cael Sanderson who won three with Iowa State from 2007-09.
Forrest, who earned bonus point wins in all four bouts this weekend, was named Most Outstanding Wrestler. He is the third true freshman in school history to win the honor, joining Coleman Scott in 2005 and AJ Ferrari in 2021.
His title combined with Vega's gave OSU a pair of true freshman conference champions for just the third time in Oklahoma State history. The duo joins Scott and Nathan Morgan, who won in 2005, and Lee Roy Smith and Eric Wais, who won in 1977. They are the 14th and 15th true freshmen in OSU history and the first since 2021 to win a conference title.
With a 23-point lead entering the finals, the Cowboy needed just one win to secure the team title. It didn't take long to silence any doubts, as Casey Swiderski handled No. 6 seed Caleb Rathjen of Northern Iowa, 5-3, at 149 pounds in the opening bout of the finals.
It marked the first career conference title for the junior Swiderski, who finished third in 2024 and fourth in 2023.
A Big 12 finalist for a third-straight season, Spratley was the next Cowboy to secure his individual title. Heading into the third period down 1-0, Spratley secured a reversal with 1:35 remaining, earned a two-point nearfall and rode out the period to win a 5-2 decision for his career conference finals win.
Forrest, who earned technical falls all the way through to the finals, kept his point total flying in his final bout, dominating Arizona State's second-seeded Kyler Larkin in a 15-2 major decision.
With a weekend total of 70 points scored in his matches, he scored 12 more points than any other wrestler in the tournament.
Fellow freshman Vega provided the final fireworks of the night, battling through a tiebreaker rideout of Iowa State's second-seeded Anthony Echemendia to earn a gritty 2-1 win in the last bout of the tournament.
Cowboy fans also played a large part in another historic note for the weekend as 7,044 fans came to the BOK Center to set a Big 12 championship session attendance record.
The team championship marks OSU's 55th conference tournament title in wrestling. Oklahoma State has now claimed 21 of the 30 Big 12 tournament trophies that have been awarded in conference history, as well as the 2012 and 2013 regular season titles in the only years it was awarded.
With the addition of the individual titles, OSU now has 126 Big 12 individual championships and 301 conference individual championships in its wrestling history.
Four other Cowboy dropped close decisions in the finals, including Landon Robideau at 157 pounds, LaDarion Lockett at 165 pounds, Alex Facundo at 174 pounds and Konner Doucet at heavyweight.
The Cowboys now turn their attention to the NCAA Championships in Cleveland, set for March 19-21 at Rocket Arena.
2026 Big 12 Wrestling Championship
March 7, 2026 | BOK Center | Tulsa, Okla.
Session 4 (Saturday Night)
Final Team Standings
- Oklahoma State – 176.0
- Iowa State - 144.0
- Arizona State - 94.0
- Missouri - 84.5
- West Virginia - 77.5
- South Dakota State - 76.5
- Oklahoma - 73.0
- Wyoming - 67.5
- North Dakota State - 54.5
- Northern Iowa - 51.0
- Air Force - 31.5
- California Baptist - 21.5
- Northern Colorado - 15.0
Finals
149: No. 1 Casey Swiderski (OSU) dec. No. 6 Caleb Rathjen (UNI), 5-3
157: No. 1 Kaleb Larkin (ASU) dec. No. 2 Landon Robideau (OSU), 4-3
165: No. 3 Nicco Ruiz (ASU) dec. No. 1 LaDarion Lockett (OSU), 2-1, TB-1
174: No. 3 Cam Steed (MIZZ) dec. No. 1 Alex Facundo (OSU), 10-6
HWT: No. 1 Yonger Bastida (ISU) dec. No. 2 Konner Doucet (OSU), 4-1
125: No. 1 Troy Spratley (OSU) dec. No. 2 Stevo Poulin (ISU), 5-2
133: No. 1 Jax Forrest (OSU) MD No. 2 Kyler Larkin (ASU), 15-2
141: No. 1 Sergio Vega (OSU) dec. No. 2 Anthony Echemendia (ISU), 2-1, TB-1
Players Mentioned
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
Big 12 Championship: Sergio Vega vs Anthony Echemendia (ISU) - Oklahoma State Wrestling (03/07/26)
Sunday, March 08
Big 12 Championship: Jax Forrest vs Kyler Larkin - Oklahoma State Wrestling (03/07/26)
Sunday, March 08
Big 12 Championship: Troy Spratley vs Stevo Poulin - Oklahoma State Wrestling (03/07/26)
Sunday, March 08
Big 12 Championship: Casey Swiderski vs Caleb Rathjen - Oklahoma State Wrestling (03/07/26)
Sunday, March 08
