by CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. — The Oklahoma wrestling team posted a 1-2 record at the Journeymen/My House Northeast Duals, defeating Sacred Heart, 53-0, but falling to No. 12 Rutgers, 22-9, and No. 8 NC State, 27-13. The single-day event took place at Shenendehowa High School.
Oklahoma 53, Sacred Heart 0
The Sooners opened their day with a dominant 53-0 win over Sacred Heart, highlighted by four wins by fall and four technical falls. The dual opened as redshirt sophomore Christian Moody (125 pounds) won by forfeit to give OU a 6-0 start early.
Redshirt junior Jake Rubio (133 pounds) and senior Mike Longo (141 pounds) then earned back-to-back technical falls to put the Sooners up, 16-0. Rubio opened with two takedowns and a 4-point nearfall to go up 8-1 over Shaun Williams in the first period. He grew his lead to 15-1 in the second, and an escape and the riding time point gave him a 17-1 victory in 5:04.
Longo followed with a technical fall of his own in 2:47. He posted a takedown, three 4-point nearfalls and a 2-point nearfall to defeat Hunter Adams, 18-0.
The Sooners then recorded three consecutive wins by fall. Junior Davion Jeffries (Mvskoke Creek) pinned SHU’s Russell Feye in 2:28 at 149 pounds. Redshirt freshman Justin Thomas (157 pounds) downed Adrian Nelson in just 29 seconds before redshirt freshman Jeremy Thomas defeated William Schmidt in 1:09 at 165 pounds to give the Sooners a 34-0 lead.
Oklahoma 9, No. 12 Rutgers 22
OU dropped its second match of the day, falling 22-9 to No. 12 Rutgers. The Sooners earned three decisions in the dual, coming from Justin Thomas, Mejias and Dixon.
Thomas opened his 157-pound bout with Rutgers’ Brett Donner by recording a takedown in the first period. He added an escape in the second frame and another takedown in the third to earn a 5-0 decision.
At 174 pounds, Mejias recorded a 7-3 decision over No. 18 Jordan Pagano. Mejias posted a takedown in the first period to take a 2-1 advantage into the second. He grew his lead to 6-3 in the second period and was awarded the riding time point to defeat Pagano.
In the 197-pound match, Dixon and Rutgers’ Kevin Mulligan were scoreless after the first period. Dixon escaped at the start of the second, and he received a penalty point and the riding time point in the third frame to post a 3-0 decision.
Moody narrowly fell to No. 2 Nick Suriano, 4-2, at 125 pounds. Rubio (133 pounds) dropped a 16-6 major decision to No. 12 Scott DelVecchio, and Longo (141 pounds) was defeated by Mike Van Brill in a close 3-2 decision. Rutgers’ Eleazar DeLuca downed Jeffries (149 pounds), 8-2, and John Van Brill claimed a 6-5 decision over Dawaylon Barnes (165 pounds) with the riding time point. Waddell (184 pounds) fell to No. 10 Nicholas Gravina by 4-2 decision, and Razohnn Gross used a riding time point to defeat Webb (285 pounds), 2-1.
Oklahoma 13, No. 8 NC State 27
In their final match at the event, the Sooners dropped a 27-13 dual with No. 8 NC State. OU saw bout wins from Moody, Rubio, Jeffries and Mejias.
At 149 pounds, Jeffries opened his bout with Sam Melikan with a takedown and a 4-point nearfall to claim a 6-1 lead after the first period. He grew his lead in the second to 8-2 with a reversal, and finished the third period off to claim a 10-5 decision.
At 141 pounds, No. 2 Kevin Jack defeated Longo by 24-7 major decision in 7:00. Justin Thomas (157 pounds) fell to Hayden Hidlay, 12-1, and Jeremy Thomas (165 pounds) was pinned by No. 19 Brian Hamann in 3:35. No. 3 Pete Renda won by technical fall, 16-1, over Waddell in 5:43, and Dixon dropped a 9-3 decision to No. 9 Michael Macchiavello. At 285 pounds, Webb fell by 13-3 major decision to Malik McDonald.
The Sooners return to action on Nov. 18 at the Lindenwood Open in Lindenwood, Mo.
