They entered the holidays as an unknown team with a few standout wrestlers. They emerged as the No. 10 team in the nation with six wrestlers ranked nationally.
The month of December may go down as one of the most successful in Oregon wrestling history. What is deceiving about the holiday break, however, is that the Ducks picked up their first three losses of the season in that time.
On Dec. 13, Oregon began the break by defeating in-state rival Oregon State for the first time since 1997.
Sophomore heavyweight Eric Webb provided inspiration and a key six points with his pin over the Beavers’ Jason Cooley to begin the match. Webb tangled with No. 2 Cooley for three rounds before earning a pin with only eight seconds remaining.
“It was exciting,” Webb said. “I finally wrestled my match. It was me controlling the match and I was mentally prepared.”
Oregon State stormed back, taking a 16-15 lead with two matches remaining. Seniors Doug Lee and Chael Sonnen came through for Oregon, each earning decisions to seal the upset.
“On paper we had five solid weight classes that we knew we could win,” Oregon head coach Chuck Kearney said. “We got the extra win at heavyweight and that really gave us momentum.”
The Ducks also participated in two prestigious tournaments where they impressed the national pollsters. The Ducks placed sixth at the Reno Tournament of Champions, placing four wrestlers. Webb continued his tear in recent matches, earning three wins en route to Oregon’s only finals appearance.
Junior’s Shaun Williams and Eugene Harris each placed third at 125 and 157 pounds, respectively.
Oregon faced stiffer competition the week after Christmas at the Midlands tournament in Evanston, Ill. Although only three Ducks placed, their points were good enough for 10th place out of 53 teams.
Sonnen led the Oregon contingent, placing third while knocking off a ranked opponent from Iowa State.
“Chael wrestled very consistent and very controlled,” Kearney said. “I’m pleased with how he wrestled and his loss came to a defending national champion.”
The matches that may have taught Oregon players the most, however, were the three losses they sustained earlier this month.
Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Iowa — three of the greatest wrestling powerhouses in the nation, who between them have won 60 of the last 73 NCAA titles — were all on the Oregon schedule within a period of five days.
“We scheduled tough opponents so we could compete against the best wrestlers,” Kearney said. “When you wrestle against top teams, you need to finish matches and fight through tough situations.”
On Jan. 2, Oregon put up a tough fight against No. 6 Oklahoma, but dug themselves too deep a hole. After falling behind 24-0, Lee sparked a valiant comeback with a technical fall over the Sooners’ Nick Curcio. Sonnen, Webb, Williams and sophomore Brian Watson followed with wins but it was too little, too late. Final score: Oklahoma 24, Oregon 21 in Norman, Okla.
The next day Oregon traveled 82 miles up I-35 to face No. 2 Oklahoma State in Stillwater. The road-weary Ducks ran out of gas against the Cowboys, who fielded nine ranked wrestlers to Oregon’s five.
Williams won a 9-7 overtime nailbiter over Oklahoma State’s Matt Brown for the Ducks lone score. Final score: Oklahoma State 33, Oregon 3.
Oregon faces easier times ahead with mostly in-state matches for the rest of the season. The Ducks will travel to Portland on Friday for the Oregon Classic Duals, where they will face four teams in one day.