Three Sooners Advance in Session I

2022 NCAA Wrestling Championship oklahoma

March 17-19 | All Day | Little Caesars Arena | Detroit, Mich.

Notes | Stats Hub | Watch | Brackets | Championship Hub

Oklahoma Competitors (with NCAA seed)
Weight	Wrestler	Status
125	No. 19 Joey Prata	Wrestlebacks
133	No. 23 Tony Madrigal	Wrestlebacks
141	No. 30 Jacob Butler	Wrestlebacks
149	No. 16 Willie McDougald	2nd Round
157	No. 13 Justin Thomas	2nd Round
174	No. 15 Anthony Mantanona	Wrestlebacks
184	No. 27 Keegan Moore	Wrestlebacks
197	No. 13 Jake Woodley	2nd Round
HWT	No. 30 Josh Heindselman	Wrestlebacks
Team Score
T35	Oklahoma	2.0

DETROIT, Mich. – Three Oklahoma wrestlers won their opening round bouts with the other six still alive in the consolation ladder at the 2022 NCAA Wrestling Championships.

The Sooners' nine qualifiers competed in front of a session one crowd of 17,207 in Little Caesars Arena in downtown Detroit. The nine wrestlers competing for OU is tied for the second most of any team in the tournament out of 58 schools represented. Only three programs brought more to the Motor City.

Willie McDougald, Justin Thomas and Jake Woodley all claimed victories in the first round to advance in the championship bracket.

The redshirt freshman No. 16 McDougald put the first points on the board for OU with a come-from-behind 10-7 decision win over No. 17 Jarrett Degen of Iowa State. Trailing 4-2 after the first two periods, the crimson clad wrestler used a reversal and a four-point nearfall to take the lead and move into the round of 16. It was the third time this season McDougald has beaten the 2019 All-American Degen. His next bout poses a significant challenge, as he is slated to take on No. 1 Yianni Diakomihalis of Cornell.

Wrestling for the final time in the Crimson and Cream, No. 13 Justin Thomas kicked his tournament off on the right note with a 6-5 decision win over Pitt's Eli Cleary. The sixth-year senior secured his spot in the second round thanks to two takedowns in the third period, one of which came with just 18 seconds left. He faces No. 4 Ed Scott of NC State in his next match.

Redshirt senior No. 13 Jake Woodley took the first step to repeating as an All-American when he bagged a 5-2 decision win over Navy's No. 20 Jacob Koser. A short-time reversal in the first was followed by a period long ride in the second and a takedown in the third to help Woodley into the next round. There he will face Michigan's No. 4 Patrick Brucki, whom he beat 4-2 in sudden victory in the finals of the Michigan State Open earlier this season.

No. 30 Jacob Butler and No. 30 Josh Heindselman will start things off for the Sooners in the second session with their pigtail matchups in the consolation bracket. Butler will battle No. 33 Dylan Cedeno of Virginia on mat three while Heindselman squares off with Princeton's No. 32 Matthew Cover immediately after on mat two.

SECOND SESSION MATCHES

No. 19 Joey Prata vs. Winner between McCormick and Koelzer
No. 23 Tony Madrigal vs. No. 7 Lucas Byrd (ILL)
No. 30 Jacob Butler vs. No. No. 33 Dyland Cedeno (UVA)
No. 16 Willie McDougald vs. No. 1 Yianni Diakomihalis (COR)
No. 13 Justin Thomas vs. No. 4 Ed Scott (NCST)
No. 15 Anthony Mantanona vs. No. 31 Dennis Robin (WVU)
No. 27 Keegan Moore vs. No. 22 Layne Malczewski (MSU)
No. 13 Jake Woodley vs. No. 4 Patrick Brucki (MICH)
No. 30 Josh Heindselman vs. No. 32 Matthew Cover (PRIN)

TOURNAMENT INFO

The championship will be broadcast on the ESPN family of networks, culminating with the finals live on ESPN on Saturday night. Fans can see when and what mat their favorite Sooner will compete on and then use the tournament hub to find the broadcast.

For updates, follow @OU_Wrestling on Twitter, or like Oklahoma Wrestling on Facebook.

SECOND SESSION MATCHES

TOURNAMENT INFO

Players Mentioned

Jacob Butler

Josh Heindselman

Tony Madrigal

Anthony Mantanona

Willie McDougald

Keegan Moore

Joey Prata

Justin Thomas

Jake Woodley

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics