by PITTSBURGH – The No. 18 Oklahoma wrestling team dropped a close 19-18 contest with Pittsburgh on Sunday afternoon inside Fitzgerald Field House.
The Sooners held an 18-13 lead with one bout remaining, but a late pin at heavyweight sealed the match for the Panthers.
Oklahoma opened the dual with a 6-0 lead after Pitt forfeited at 125 pounds to No. 17 Christian Moody. However, the Sooners trailed 7-6 after losses in the next two bouts.
Davion Jeffries (Mvskoke Creek) put OU back on top, 9-7, with a 4-0 decision over Robert Lee at 149 pounds. The Sooner recorded a takedown, an escape and the riding time point to claim the win.
With the Sooners trailing after intermission, Dawaylon Barnes reclaimed the lead for OU. He defeated Jake Wentzel, 4-0, at 165 pounds, claiming a takedown in the first period and adding on two penalty points in the third.
No. 13 Yoanse Mejias extended OU’s lead by taking down Austin Bell in a 9-4 decision. Mejias recorded two escapes in the first and third periods and posted an escape in the second.
At 197 pounds, Andrew Dixon earned three more points for the Sooners with a 4-3 decision over Kellan Stout. Entering the final period with a 2-0 deficit, Dixon escaped and took his opponent down to regain the lead. He sealed the match with the riding time point.
Jake Rubio dropped a 12-3 major decision to No. 11 Dom Forys at 133 pounds. At 141 pounds, Mike Longo narrowly fell to No. 17 Nick Zanetta by 10-8 decision. In the 157-pound match, Justin Thomas was downed by No. 18 Taleb Rahmani, 1-0. In his first match of the season, Hayden Hansen dropped a 6-3 decision to Gregg Harvey. At heavyweight, freshman Connor Webb was pinned in 3:51 by No. 15 Ryan Solomon.
The Sooners are back in action on Jan. 12-13 (Friday-Saturday) at the Virginia Duals in Virginia Beach, Va.
