The No. 4 Cyclones hit the road for the final time in the regular season for a pair of ranked matchups in Oklahoma.
Up first for the Cyclones was No. 18 Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma. The Cyclones continued their run of dominance, defeating the Sooners with ease 37-4.
Six Cyclones secure bonus point victories
The Cyclones have been racking up bonus point victories all season and that did not change Friday.
Over half of the dual’s matches ended in a Cyclone securing bonus points, which propelled the Cyclones to their dominant victory.
At 133 pounds, No. 7 Evan Frost was the first to secure bonus points, defeating Jace Koelzer by major decision (12-2).
Following Frost, was No. 8 Anthony Echemendia at 141 lbs. Echemendia was able to one-up his teammate, securing a tech fall victory over Oklahoma’s Kaden Smith.
The Cyclones took home four other bonus point victories, including a tech fall victory for No. 3 David Carr (21-3), a pinfall for No. 23 MJ Gaitan, a major decision for No. 10 Will Feldkamp and one last major decision for No. 3 Yonger Bastida.
Bastida stays undefeated
Coming into the season one of the major storylines surrounding the Cyclones was how well Bastida would adjust after making the jump to heavyweight.
Bastida has erased any doubt surrounding the bump up in weight class and has dominated at 285 pounds, moving to 16-0 on the season following his victory Friday night as he sits ranked at No. 3 in the latest poll.
The two-time All-American has secured bonus points in 10 of his 16 matches, and has only given up one takedown on the season.
The senior looks primed to make a run at a Big 12 Championship, and will likely be one of the top seeds going into the NCAA Championships in March.
Looking ahead
Up next for the Cyclones is a matchup that has been circled on the schedule for the entire season. On Saturday the Cyclones will travel an hour and a half north to face No. 5 Oklahoma State.
The Cyclones are looking to win a third straight dual against the Cowboys for the first time since 1980-82, and with a victory the Cyclones can firmly cement themselves as one of the nation’s elite teams.
The Cowboys defeated No. 22 Northern Iowa 22-12 Friday night, making it so both teams have significant momentum going into the top-five matchup.
The dual between the Cyclones and the Cowboys is set to start at 6 p.m. Saturday and can be streamed on ESPN+.
