Oklahoma State Prepares for NCAA Wrestling Championship
The Oklahoma State Cowboys wrestling program exploded onto the scene this season. The long history of Cowboys wrestling was solidified by the legacy built by the great John Smith and first year head coach David Taylor had some massive shoes to fill. He entered Stillwater as a legend in the wrestling world and by season's end he had shown that the Cowboy wrestling program had their sights set on the throne.
Oklahoma State raced to a 13-1 overall record on the season and climbed as high as No. 2 in the national rankings. Their only loss of the season came in a 16-21 loss to current No. 2 Iowa late in the season. The Cowboys bounced back with their first Big 12 Championship win since 2021.
The path is set.
— OSU Cowboy Wrestling (@CowboyWrestling) March 13, 2025
📰: https://t.co/jy2WugV6iA#GoPokes pic.twitter.com/58wHesvv2s
The Pokes now head into the always important NCAA Championships. Oklahoma State is hoping to make a strong showing in the tournament against the best the nation has to offer. They enter the NCAA Tournament with seven wrestlers seeded in the top eight of the tournament.
The top-seeded Cowboy in the tournament is Wyatt Hendrickson who holds down the No. 2 seed in the tournament behind only Minnesota's Gable Stevenson. Hendrickson is a perfect 22-0 on the season and is the only Poke to win an individual Big 12 title.
Dean Hamiti Jr. enters the tournament as a No. 3 seed following an impressive 22-1 regular season. His only loss of the season came against No. 1 seed Keegan O'Toole of Missouri in the Big 12 Championship.
Dean Hamiti Jr. is headed to Philadelphia as the No. 3⃣ seed at 174 pounds!#GoPokes l @HamitiDean pic.twitter.com/t4LrcFEDjT
— OSU Cowboy Wrestling (@CowboyWrestling) March 13, 2025
Dustin Plott is seeded No. 4 at 184 and he is coming off of his fourth straight appearance in the Big 12 finals. Troy Spratley and Tagen Jamison both recieved seven seeds at 125 and 141 pounds. The duo made Big 12 finals this past week and are searching for their first ever All-American finish.
The Cowboys have a pair of No. 8 seeds at 165 and 197 pounds. Cameron Amine and Luke Surber have been ranked in the top 8 all season long and are hoping for a strong NCAA Tournament. Amine has made the podium the past three seasons and Surber his searching for his first career podium following an impressive career.
Caleb Fish is headed to Philadelphia as the No. 1⃣2⃣ seed at 157 pounds!#GoPokes l @CalebFish_1 pic.twitter.com/VJgz6OAeii
— OSU Cowboy Wrestling (@CowboyWrestling) March 13, 2025
Caleb Fish holds the No. 12 seed at 157 pounds and Teague Travis rounds out the roster with a No. 33 seed in the 149 pound division. Travis takes on No. 32 Wynton Denkins in the preliminary rounds.
The NCAA Championships begin Thursday, March 20, with two sessions per day through Saturday, March 22. The morning sessions will be televised on ESPNU, while the evening sessions are set to air on ESPN.
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Taylor Skieens has been an avid sports journalist with the McCurtain Gazette in Idabel, Oklahoma for seven years. He holds the title of Sports Editor for one of the oldest remaining print publications in the state of Oklahoma. Taylor grew up in the small lumber town of Wright City Oklahoma where he played baseball and basketball for the Lumberjax.