Oklahoma State Big 12 Championships advance press release

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Josh Maxson (Oklahoma State)
03/01/2001


Projected Cyclones' Lineup  125    Jacob Moore (1-19)  133    #8 Matt Azevedo (27-8)  141    #10 Zach Roberson (20-12)  149    Billy Maldonado (19-9)  157    #7 Cole Sanderson (29-5)  165    #2 Joe Heskett (30-3)  174    #8 Perry Parks (28-7)  184    #1 Cael Sanderson (33-0)  197    #2 Zach Thompson (27-4)  285    Mark Knauer (19-10)    Projected Tigers' Lineup  125    #16 Justin Spates (21-8)  133    Jesse West (15-14)  141    J.P. Reese (15-10)  149    Kenny Burleson (22-8)  157    Jesse Jordan (13-11)  165    Mark Vollmar (15-22)  174    #10 John Kopnisky (27-4)  184    Ry Stone (14-14)  197    Dante Stone (15-12)  285    Scott Barker (14-8)    Projected Huskers' Lineup  125    #6 Jason Powell (17-6)  133    #3 Todd Beckerman (20-3)  141    Dusty Spaulding (12-12)  149    Travis Baker (15-15)  157    #2 Bryan Snyder (22-1)  165    Tony Denke (4-4)  174    #12 Ati Conner (11-10)  184    Matt Fletcher (9-14)  197    #1 Brad Vering (22-2)  285    Pat Miron (14-18)    Projected Sooners' lineup  125    #12 Matt Ridings (22-4)  133    #18 Witt Durden (25-12)  141    #2 Michael Lightner (28-0)  149    #9 Jared Frayer (32-4)  157    Brian Burrows (10-6)  165    #5 Robbie Waller (26-4)  174    #9 Michael Bager (25-8)  184    Josh Lambrecht (13-12)  197    #11 Waymon May (27-9)  285    #11 Leonce Crump (25-9)    Projected Cowboys' Lineup  125    #9 Matt Brown (18-9)  133    #2 Johnny Thompson (26-2)  141 #8 Charles Walker (16-6)  149    #1 Reggie Wright (26-0)  157    #16 Shane Roller (11-10)  165 Chris Pendleton (13-3)  174    #6 Tyrone Lewis (24-4)  184    #3 Daniel Cormier (22-3)  197    #3 Mark Muñoz (19-5)  285 #14 James Huml (18-9)    A look at the 2000-01 Cowboys  The 2000-01 edition of Oklahoma State Wrestling has once again turned in an outstanding season. The Pokes head into the fifth Big 12 Championships with a 17-1 record and ranked second in the nation. OSU ran the table in the Big 12 Conference this season going 6-0, claiming two wins over both the Sooners and Cyclones. OSU started the year with a 21-14 win over then-No. 1 Iowa in Oklahoma City. The win vaulted the Cowboys to the top of the NWCA Coaches' Poll. Oklahoma State solidified that spot with a win over Oklahoma in Norman and a 25-12 win over No. 2-ranked Minnesota in Minneapolis. The Golden Gophers exacted revenge in the finals of the National Duals, picking up a 20-12 win. OSU closed the season with wins over Northern Iowa, Iowa State, Nebraska, Oregon State and Oklahoma.    The Big 12 Championships  The Big 12 Championships roll into Stillwater for the first time. The newly renovated Gallagher-Iba Arena will play host to four teams ranked in the top-10 in this week's AWN poll. Second-ranked Oklahoma State, fifth-ranked Iowa State, sixth-ranked Oklahoma, ninth-ranked Nebraska and Missouri will fight it out for Big 12 bragging rights on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Championships start at 6 p.m. on Friday with the pigtail round with the semifinals starting at 7 p.m. The tournament starts up again on Saturday at 10 p.m. with the consolation semifinals and consolation finals. The finals begin at 2 p.m.     Head coach John Smith  In his ninth season on the OSU bench, John Smith owns a career record of 138-20-3. A win today will tie Smith with Edward C. Gallagher for third on OSU's all-time coaching wins list with 138. Smith's Cowboys claimed the national title in 1994 and have captured five conference championships during his tenure, including the Big 12 title last season. Smith also wrestled for the Cowboys from 1984-88, posting a 154-7-2 record and capturing two national championships. On the international stage, Smith won Olympic Freestyle Gold in 1988 and 1992 along with World Championships in 1987, 1989, 1990 and 1991. In 1990, Smith was honored as the only wrestler ever to win the James E. Sullivan Award, honoring the nation's top amateur athlete for the previous year.    Big 12s set for Television  The Cowboy Television Network and Fox Sports Chicago, in cooperation with Learfield Communications and Cox Communication, has picked up the 2001 Big 12 Championships. Larry Nugent will do the play-by-play with former OSU NCAA Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist, Kendall Cross, on color. The match will be carried live on the Cowboy Sports Network. Fox Sports Chicago has also picked up the championships and run them on March 11, at 2 p.m.    Head-to-head  Here is a breakdown of how current Cowboy starters have fared against their Big 12 rivals.     125: Matt Brown vs.  Jacob Moore (ISU); Brown leads, 2-0  Justin Spates (MU); Spates leads, 1-0  Jason Powell (NU); Brown leads, 1-0  Matt Ridings (OU); Ridings leads, 4-1    133: Johnny Thompson vs.  Matt Azevedo (ISU); Thompson leads, 2-0  Jesse West (MU); First meeting  Todd Beckerman (NU); Tied, 1-1  Witt Durden (OU); Thompson leads, 2-0    141: Charles Walker vs.  Zach Roberson (ISU); Walker leads, 1-0  J.P. Reese (MU); First meeting  Dusty Spaulding (NU); Walker leads, 1-0  Michael Lightner (OU); Lightner leads, 4-0    149: Reggie Wright vs. Billy Maldonado (ISU); Wright leads, 2-0  Kenny Burleson (MU); Wright leads, 1-0  Travis Baker (NU); Wright leads, 1-0  Jared Frayer (OU); Wright leads, 9-0    157: Shane Roller vs. Cole Sanderson (ISU); Sanderson leads, 3-0  Jesse Jordan (MU); Roller leads, 2-0  Bryan Snyder (NU); Snyder leads, 3-0  Brian Burrows (OU); First Meeting    165: Chris Pendleton vs.  Joe Heskett (ISU); Heskett leads, 1-0  Mark Vollmar (MU); First meeting  Tony Denke (NU); Penletion leads, 1-0  Robbie Waller (OU); Waller leads, 1-0    174: Tyrone Lewis vs.  Perry Parks (ISU); Lewis leads, 2-0  John Kopnisky (MU); Kopnisky leads, 1-0  Ati Conner (NU); Lewis leads, 1-0  Michael Barger (OU); Lewis leads, 2-1    184: Daniel Cormier vs.  Cael Sanderson (ISU); Sanderson leads, 4-0  Ry Stone (MU); First meeting  Matt Fletcher (NU); First meeting  Josh Lambrecht; Cormier leads, 2-0    197: Mark Muñoz vs.  Zach Thompson (ISU); Thompson leads, 4-0  Dante Stone (MU); Muñoz leads, 1-0  Brad Vering (NU); Muñoz leads, 6-4  Waymon May (OU); Muñoz leads 3-0v    285: James Huml vs.  Mark Knauer (ISU); Huml leads, 2-0  Scott Barker (MU); First meeting Pat Miron (NU); Huml leads, 1-0  Leonce Crump (OU); Crump leads 2-0    Last time out  The second-ranked Cowboys dismantled the sixth-ranked Sooners, 24-12, in front of 10,802 fans at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Daniel Cormier and Shane Roller picked up falls at 184 and 157 pounds, respectively. OSU also won 133, 149, 174 and 197-pound weight classes.    True freshman takes over at 165 pounds  True freshman Chris Pendleton, a native of Lemoore, Calif., has taken over the starting spot at 165 pounds due to the loss of junior Ty Wilcox. Wilcox suffered a tear of his ACL and partial tear of his MCL against Joe Heskett of Iowa State at the National Duals. Since joining the lineup, Pendleton has posted a 2-3 record in duals; he is 13-3 overall. In his debut at Gallagher-Iba Arena, Pendleton pinned Oregon State's Jed Penell in 1:17. He narrowly lost a 4-2 decision to OU's Robbie Waller, just missing a late third-period takedown.    Thompson tearing it up at 133 pounds  Oklahoma State redshirt freshman Johnny Thompson (26-2) is making the country take notice. The Putnam City West product is ranked second in this week's AWN poll, behind Iowa's defending national champion Eric Juergens. He will face another challenge on Saturday against fourth-ranked Todd Beckerman. Thompson owns a 1-0 career record against Beckerman, picking up a 3-2 decision. He won the starting job from senior Charles Walker, who defeated Juergens earlier in the year. Thompson defeated Minnesota's second-ranked Brett Lawrence, 4-1, at the National Duals. However, Thompson lost his first ever match at 133 pounds last Saturday, when fourth-ranked Todd Beckerman of Nebraska caught Thompson and pinned him in 1:17.    Tyrone Lewis gets hot  Redshirt freshman Tyrone Lewis is beginning to show why he is considered one of the top freshman in the country. Now 24-4, his 14-match winning streak was broken against Northern Iowa's Eric Brown. During that stretch he pinned 5 opponents and picked up a 21-6 technical fall in the another. Lewis has pos