It’s been 15 long years since the Cyclones have found themselves at the top of the Big 12 Wrestling Championships, but if they were ever going to, this year would be the one to do so.
The Big 12 Conference is as tough as ever, with four teams ranked in the top-15: Oklahoma State (No. 4), Iowa State (No.5), Missouri (No.10) and South Dakota State (No.11).
The Cyclones are well equipped for the challenge though, as they are tied for most wrestlers with a top-four seed (seven) with Oklahoma State.
Speaking of ties with Oklahoma State, the two teams also find themselves tied atop the team race projections with 126.5 points, while Missouri comes in close behind in third.
The Cyclones are not interested in ties though, winning is the only thing on their mind.
“We don’t like ties,” head coach Kevin Dresser said. “Winning the close matches and the bonus points are going to be a difference. And, you know, the Big 12 has just gotten so much tougher over the years even since I came here in 2017, the Big 12 just continues to get really tough.”
The biggest storyline from an Iowa State perspective, is David Carr’s chase for a fifth Big 12 Championship. This has never been done before, but could be accomplished two times this weekend if Carr and Oklahoma State’s Daton Fix can walk away with tournament wins.
Likely standing in the way of Carr’s fifth title would be Missouri’s No. 1 Keegan O’Toole, who defeated Carr in last year’s national championship final, though Carr did get the better of O’Toole en route to his fourth Big 12 title.
O’Toole was out of the lineup for the Tigers in the regular season finale in Ames due to illness, but the two seem to be on a collision course for a Big 12 title.
“I’ve really been strong in my feelings and David is really ready to go,” Dresser said. “He’s ready to go technically, he’s ready to go physically. His tank is big right now. More than anything he’s ready to go mentally.”
Carr is not the only Cyclone primed for a big weekend. Anthony Echemendia (141) and Casey Swiderski (149) both earned the No. 1 seed in their respective brackets while Evan Frost (133), MJ Gaitan (174) and Yonger Bastida (285) all received a No. 2 seed. Bastida enters the Big 12 Championships 20-0 and will look to continue his win streak down south.
If the Cyclones can get deep runs from their lower-seeded wrestlers and the top-seeded wrestlers can hold up their end and advance to finals, the Cyclones should have a solid shot at claiming the long-awaited championship.
The action will start at 10 a.m. Saturday from the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and will be streamed on ESPN+.
