A 16-15 loss to Missouri didn’t discourage the ISU wrestling team.

Although disappointed, the seventh-ranked Cyclones (11-5, 1-1 Big 12) soon put Sunday’s home dual in perspective.

Freshman Joe Curran lost a 6-3 third-period lead and eventually his 197-pound match, giving the 10th-ranked Tigers (10-4-1, 2-2) the road victory.

“They are a tough team, and they did everything right to keep it close,” said junior Kurt Backes. “They had a good match plan – they stole it from us, you know. It won’t happen again, we’ll get them again.”

Backes’ 2-0 decision over Raymond Jordan gave the Cyclones a 15-13 lead heading into the final match. Curran (10-16) faced former Big 12 Champion Jeff Foust (11-5).

Under pressure, Curran showed no signs of intimidation, taking the first shot just seconds into the dual. The Cyclone fell behind early, but tied the match at three, then rode Foust for the last 1:31 of the second period.

In the final period, Curran escaped and took Foust down with 1:16 left.

But, in the span of the final minute, the 15th-ranked Tiger scored two takedowns – the last coming with nine seconds left.

“When the meet is on the line, you gotta hold on,” Curran said.

A roused Hilton crowd quickly turned silent.

“In the third period, he could have stalled his way through the match, but got countered while taking another shot,” said coach Bobby Douglas. “That is the only way you can get better in the long run.”

Douglas accepted his freshman’s mistakes.

“It was a tough dual meet for us,” Douglas said. “Curran wrestled a great match, he just got out-experienced and out-positioned a couple of times . he wrestled a tremendous match.”

Each team won five matches, but a major decision came back to haunt the Cyclones. Missouri’s top-ranked Ben Askren (35-0) beat David Bertolino, 16-5.

Fifth-ranked Tiger Matt Pell took a key 6-2 decision over eighth-ranked Travis Paulson.

“Some bonus points would have helped out,” said senior Nate Gallick. “I know we were close in a few matches, mine especially. It is hard wrestling someone who is trying hard to keep the score close.”

Gallick won an 8-2 decision over Chris McCormick. The Missouri senior was penalized four times for stalling.

“They wrestled us smart,” Gallick said. “A good portion of their guys . were wrestling to go out there to keep it close, and not get majored. It is hard to wrestle someone who is not wrestling.”

Junior Trent Paulson beat freshman Michael Chandler, 10-3. He kept Iowa State’s loss in perspective.

“It is disappointing every time you leave Hilton with a loss,” Paulson said.

The Cyclones are back at home next weekend, hosting Nebraska.

“We’ve gotta pick it up here for Nebraska next week,” Douglas said. “They are just as tough, if not tougher [than Missouri].”