A point Oregon wrestling head coach Chuck Kearney hammered on leading up to last Friday’s non-conference dual meet against Oklahoma State was that to be one of the best wrestlers in the nation, you must first beat one of the best.
One of the Ducks did just that. Redshirt junior Ryan Dunn beat the No. 1 ranked 133-pound wrestler in the nation Friday to provide Oregon with its only match win out of the 10 matches contested, on the way to a 33-3 dual meet loss.
“It was a great win for Ryan,” Kearney said. “Ryan’s been, for the last two years now, knocking on the door of being one of those guys. He’s had opportunities to knock those people off wrestling in great matches but it just hasn’t happened.”
Oregon (9-12) was hardly blown out by the No. 3 Cowboys (14-2-1), however, losing six of nine matches by three points or less. Only redshirt sophomore Kyle Bounds at 157 pounds, senior Marcus Meyer at 184 pounds, and heavyweight Charlie Alexander lost by a larger margin.
“I was real pleased with how hard we wrestled and how we gave ourselves an opportunity to score points,” Kearney said. “They went out there and battled. They worked hard in the third round, and our kids were attacking.”
Redshirt senior Joey Lucas showed that fighting spirit at 125 pounds for the Ducks, clawing back from a 5-1 deficit going into the third round of his match to within 5-4. The decision widened to 6-4 in favor of Oklahoma State’s No. 16-ranked Tyler Shinn on riding time.
Next up was Dunn. Kearney has previously noted that Dunn’s high-energy style depends on the redshirt junior not getting caught into too large a hole in the early rounds, and in this match against Coleman Scott – the No. 1 133-pound wrestler in the nation – Dunn kept it close. With the margin just one point going into the third round, Dunn chose bottom and managed to escape to tie the match, 3-3. After a quick series of flurries, Dunn shot in for a single-leg takedown with 25 seconds left and McArthur Court began to rock.
When he swept Scott’s leg out to score the two-point takedown with less than five seconds remaining in the match, the 501 people in Mac Court erupted. Dunn won 5-3 in a match he compared to his first high school state final.
“It was a lot like that (match),” Dunn said.
Dunn couldn’t describe what was going through his mind during the match, but was happy with the victory, which sets him up with more confidence for the last two meets leading into the Pacific-10 Conference Championships at Mac Court.
“It was a big win, but it was another match,” Dunn said. “It was a tough match but it was good to get one of those under your belt.”
In the 141-pound match, redshirt junior Cody Moulton built a three-point lead in the second period that was erased by a near fall and cost him the match. One point of riding time brought the final score to 9-8. At 149 pounds, redshirt senior Elliott Tracy was caught in a stalemate of flurries and being ridden to a 2-0 defeat.
Sophomore Zack Frazier again impressed despite losing 9-8 after Oklahoma State’s Kevin Wainscott earned the riding time.
“I can’t say enough about (Frazier),” Kearney said. “He goes out and wrestles with such courage. There isn’t an ounce of quit in him and we’re pleased with his progress.”
Ron Lee faced off against another ranked Cowboy, Brandon Mason, who was No. 8 in the country in the 174-pound class, losing 7-5. Kearney was pleased with the redshirt sophomore’s progress, noting that Mason pinned Lee in a match last season.
Senior walk-on Marcus Meyer again fought valiantly but was pinned with 1:25 left in the first period. Shaun Dee lost 4-1 at 197 pounds after scoring on a 1-point reversal, and heavyweight Charlie Alexander was defeated by Oklahoma State’s Jared Rosholt, 22-8. Rosholt is No. 8 in the nation in the heavyweight class.
Oregon wrestlers next take the mat on Wednesday against Portland State in Portland before traveling to Corvallis next Sunday to face Oregon State.
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