AMES, Iowa – The No. 8 Iowa State wrestling team (11-2 overall, 2-1 Big 12) had six finalists to finish second at the Big 12 Championships Saturday afternoon in Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones totaled 68 team points, finishing runner-up to No. 6 Oklahoma State (92 points).
No. 2 Kyven Gadson joined an elite list of Cyclone greats by winning his third conference crown at 197 pounds. Gadson, who improved to 25-1 on the season, whipped WVU’s Jake Smith, 10-2, to become just the 18th wrestler in Cyclone history to win a trio of league titles.
The two-time All-American registered three takedowns in the victory.
ISU’s fourth-ranked Earl Hall fell to OU’s fifth-ranked Cody Brewer, 10-5 in the 133-pound final. Hall got a takedown in the first 10 seconds, but Brewer added a takedown in the first, second and third periods. In the 141-pound championship, OSU’s Dean Heil pinned ISU’s Dante Rodriguez at 4:49.
The marquee matchup was at 165 pounds where OSU’s No. 1 Alex Dieringer battled ISU’s second-ranked Michael Moreno in the title bout. Dieringer kept his perfect season in tact (28-0) with a 14-4 major decision over Moreno.
Tanner Weatherman lost a heartbreaker at 174 pounds, falling in the second tiebreaker (3-3) on riding time criteria to OSU’s Kyle Crutchmer. The only scoring in the match came by escapes. Weatherman appeared to get a takedown on the edge of the mat in the final seconds of the second tiebreaker, but the referees didn’t award it after a thorough review. Crutchmer’s eight seconds of riding time was the deciding factor in the Cowboy win.
Lelund Weatherspoon’s bid for his second-straight Big 12 title fell short in the 184-pound final to OSU’s Nolan Boyd. Boyd won by a 2-1 decision with riding time the deciding factor.
Iowa State led by two points over Oklahoma State (63-61) after the semifinals and consolation matches concluded. The Cyclones received bonus points from Gadson, Rodriguez, Michael Moreno and Luke Goettl, who all recorded falls in the morning session.
Goettl got the quick pin in 0:28 seconds over WVU’s Brutus Scheffel in the 157-pound third-place match. It was a great way for the senior to cap off his final match in Hilton Coliseum, as Goettl recorded the second-fast pin in Big 12 Championship history.
ISU suffered a setback at 149 pounds when No. 2 seed Gabe Moreno lost 7-6 to OU’s Shayne Tucker. Moreno had control of the match until dislocating his shoulder early in the third period. He couldn’t hang onto the lead after the injury. Moreno did pick up third-place points with an injury default over OSU’s Josh Kindig.
Iowa State will prepare for the 2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships, March 19-21 in St. Louis, Mo. ISU’s NCAA qualifiers and seeds will be determined on March 12.
Iowa State Finals Results
133: Cody Brewer (OU) dec. Earl Hall (ISU), 10-5
141: Dean Heil (OSU) wbf Dante Rodriguez (ISU), 4:49
165: Alex Dieringer (OSU) maj. dec. Michael Moreno (ISU), 14-4
174: Kyle Crutchmer (OSU) dec. Tanner Weatherman (ISU), 3-3 TB2 RT
184: Nolan Boyd (OSU) dec. Lelund Weatherspoon (ISU), 2-1
197: Kyven Gadson (ISU) maj. dec. Jake Smith (WVU), 10-2
Final Team Scores
Oklahoma State: 92
Iowa State: 68
Oklahoma: 43
West Virginia: 3
