The Oregon wrestling team returned to Eugene on Monday after losses to two Pacific-10 Conference opponents. The Ducks are now 5-6 overall and 2-3 in Pac-10 action.
On Friday night, Oregon fell to No. 24 Boise State in a 19-13 decision that head coach Chuck Kearney said the Ducks let slip away.
“There were some spots that we didn’t wrestle as well as we needed to. Hopefully, the team will turn this around and use it as a learning experience,” Kearney said.
After leading the meet 6-3, the Ducks lost four consecutive matches to the host Broncos including a loss in the 125-pound weight class by No. 12 Shaun Williams at the hands of No. 4 Ben VomBaur.
In the final weight class with the score 16-13, Shane Webster, a 174-pound redshirt freshman, had a chance to tie the match for the Ducks but lost 13-11 in overtime against Boise State’s Pat Owens.
Eugene Harris provided the Ducks with the opportunity to tie the dual in the final match when he beat Nathan Ploehn in a 19-5 major decision. Harris, who is now ranked No. 6 in the nation according to Amateur Wrestling News, was also victorious in his match on Sunday over Arizona State’s Nick Frost.
Webster, who won by an 18-2 technical fall, and Casey Hunt (149 pounds) were the only other Oregon wrestlers to record wins over the Sun Devils. No. 10 Arizona State, which improved its record to 9-2 overall and 6-0 in the Pac-10, won the meet 30-11.
The Ducks were also hindered by having to give up six team points at the 125-pound class because Williams failed to make weight.
Tony Overstake, who is ranked No. 17, narrowly missed a win over No. 11 Rocky Smart, losing 3-2. Oregon’s 157-pound wrestler, Overstake has been wrestling well for the Ducks after recovering from a knee injury that sidelined him for three of Oregon’s dual meets. Against Boise State, Overstake defeated Tyler Robertson, 11-5.
Along with Overstake’s one point loss, Oregon also lost the heavyweight match by one point as No. 9 Kellen Fluckiger defeated No. 15 Eric Webb 3-2 in overtime.
“The dual score wasn’t indicative of how close it was,” Kearney said. “We had some matches where we were in the position to win.”
Kearney is hopeful that his team will use the defeat in Tempe as a gauge of where they are in the Pac-10.
“In the loss, our guys are looking at where they need to be to make a run at the Pac-10 conference title.”
The Ducks next compete against UC-Bakersfield and Fresno State on Friday at McArthur Court.
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