OU: Wrestling Sooners Knock Off No. 5 Mizzou In Upset Win

With the match knotted at 18, heavyweight Ross Larson recorded a win by fall in the final bout of the afternoon to help the Oklahoma wrestling team knock off No. 5 Missouri, 24-18, on Sunday inside McCasland Field House.

The No. 18 Sooners registered six bout wins in the match, including a win by forfeit for DaWaylon Barnes at 157 pounds. With the win, OU moves to 2-3 on the season.

“It’s exciting to get any win,” OU Head Coach Lou Rosselli said. “They (Missouri) weren’t at full strength, but I think it’s still a reflection of where we’re headed. It’s always a big win to beat a top-tier team, even with some of their backups in there. I’m excited for some of the guys that did a nice job, even a couple of guys who didn’t win. I thought we might be in trouble giving up a couple of falls, because usually it’s trouble, but we found a way to get through that and still win. Andrew Dixon came through to give us a chance, and then Ross (Larson) capped it off with a pin at the end to make the difference.”

The contest started out at 125 pounds, with OU’s Christian Moody recording a 6-4 decision over No. 14 Barlow McGhee. Moody struck first with an early takedown and led 2-1 at the end of the opening period. The redshirt freshman tacked on an escape and a takedown in the second and added an escape in the final period for the win.

At 141 pounds, junior Mike Longo won 2-1 over Mizzou’s Zach Synon. Longo earned a penalty point and an escape in the second frame for the lead, and Synon responded with an escape in the third for the only points of the match.

In his first match as a Sooner, junior Yoanse Mejias started on fire with an 8-4 decision over Phyllip DeLoach at 165 pounds. The majority of Mejias’ points came in the third period, as he collected two takedowns and tacked on the riding-time point for the victory.

In the 184-pound bout, junior Andrew Dixon registered a big win for the Sooners, downing Matt Lemanowicz, 6-0. The match was scoreless after the opening frame, but Dixon recorded a reversal to start the second and led 2-0 through two periods. He added a reversal and a 2-point nearfall in the third for the win.

Redshirt senior Ross Larson capped off the match with a win by fall in 5:59 over Austin Myers to clinch the upset for Oklahoma. He tallied two takedowns and an escape to lead 5-0 at the time of the fall.

“This shows our guys that they can compete with everybody,” Rosselli said. “It’s showing that you’re a competitive team and that you can go out there and do a nice job and compete with the best. It gives us an opportunity to see some of these tough guys, so you should be a little more settled and unnerved by the competition and be able to compete better when you get to nationals.”

In his first match for the Sooners, Jacob Rubio (133 pounds) lost by fall to No. 15 John Erneste in 2:32, and at 149 pounds, No. 12 Davion Jeffries dropped a 3-1 decision to No. 4 Lavion Mayes. 

Mizzou’s Dylan Wisman recorded a win by fall in 2:59 over Matt Reed in the 174-pound bout, and redshirt senior Brad Johnson dropped a 4-1 decision to No. 1 J’Den Cox at 197 pounds.

Next up, the Sooners travel to Hampton, Va., this Friday and Saturday, Jan. 13-14, for the Virginia Duals. Oklahoma returns home on Jan. 22 at noon for a Big-12 matchup with West Virginia.