Nine Sooners Place at Big 12 Championship

Saturday, March 4

Tulsa, Okla.

University of Oklahoma

Big 12 Wrestling Championships

Photo by: Austin Bernard

Nine Sooners Place at Big 12 Championship

March 05, 2023 | Wrestling

The Oklahoma Sooners concluded their trip to the Big 12 Championship with nine placements, including two third place finishes.

OU finished in fourth place with 97.5 team points, ranking ahead of No. 14 South Dakota State, No. 16 Northern Iowa, and No. 18 North Dakota State.

"We had a good round overall today," head coach Lou Rosselli said. "It's good to leave on a good note. Having eight wrestlers qualify for NCAAs is important for us as well."

Starting the tournament unseeded, Wyatt Henson clinched third place in the 133-pound bracket after winning six straight, including a 9-3 win over No. 2 seed Kyle Biscoglia (UNI) in the third place bout.

At 149 pounds, Mitch Moore took third place after defeating OSU's Victor Voinovich 4-1 and NDSU's Kellyn March 4-0. In a Bedlam rematch, Mitch Moore picked up a four-point near fall in the second period of the consolation semifinals to trounce Victor Voinovich 4-1.

Joey Prata started the second day with a 3-1 decision victory to advance to the third-place match, but fell short to Reece Witcraft (OSU) in sudden victory. Prata took fourth place at 125 pounds, securing his third trip to the NCAA Championships.

Tate Picklo took fifth place in the 174-pound weight class after receiving a forfeit in the fifth place match. Picklo's top-6 finish qualifies him for his first NCAA berth.

At 157 pounds, Jared Hill fell short in his two placement bouts, claiming sixth place. In his first season competing, the Broken Arrow, Okla. product finished in the top-7 of the 157-pound pool to punch his ticket to NCAA Championships in his home city.

In the 165-pound seventh place battle, Gerrit Nijenhuis finished in seventh place after defeating Tanner Cook (SDSU) 8-3. His top-8 finish secures his spot at the NCAA Championships for the third time in his collegiate career.

In the heavyweight division, Josh Heindselman claimed seventh place with a 6-4 decision win over Michael Wolfgram (WVU) in the seventh place bout.

Mosha Schwartz and Keegan Moore both medically forfeited early in the day, but Schwartz finished in sixth place and Keegan claimed eighth place at 184 pounds.

The eight NCAA qualifiers will travel to the NCAA Championships on March 16-18 at BOK Center in Tulsa.