Cowboys Enter Guns Blazing, Dominate Hokies in Top-10 Standoff

From the opening whistle in Stillwater, not much went right for Tony Robie’s team. With the exception of a handful of strong performances, the Hokies just didn't have an answer for the Cowboys.

Virginia Tech dug itself in a hole early, going down 12-0 after losing the first three bouts of the night, each by a major decision. At 149 pounds, No. 1 Henson once again dominated, pinning his opponent No. 13 Carter Young in the first period, cutting Oklahoma State’s lead in half. At 157 pounds, No. 14 Rafael Hipolito pulled out all the stops in his thrilling win over No. 12 Caleb Fish, bringing Virginia Tech to within 3 points of Oklahoma State. From this point on, however, the Cowboys imposed their will, winning every remaining match, including two by technical fall and one by fall. The final tally of the dual was 34-9.

Match results:

• 125 lbs: No. 3 Tony Spratley major decision over No. 4 Eddie Ventresca, 10-1 
• 133 lbs: No. 18 Reese Witcraft major decision over Dillon Campbell, 14-4
• 141 lbs: No. 4 Tagen Jamison major decision over No. 13 Sam Latona, 8-0
• 149 lbs: No.1 Caleb Henson fall over No. 13 Carter Young
• 157 lbs: No. 14 Rafael Hipolito decision over No. 12 Caleb Fish, 20-15
• 165 lbs: No. 6 Cameron Amine decision over No. 29 Mac Church, 7-1
• 174 lbs: No. 3 Dean Hamiti Jr. technical fall over No. 4 Lennox Wolak, 21-4
• 184 lbs: No. 3 Dustin Plott technical fall over No. Sam Fisher, 20-5
• 197 lbs: No. 10 Luke Surber decision over No. 9 Andy Smith, 4-1 OT
• 285 lbs: No. 3 Wyatt Hendrickson fall over Hunter Catka

Going into this matchup, both squads were expected to feature 10 ranked wrestlers, as covered in our preview.

However, Tony Robie’s lineup changed at the last minute: backups Dillon Campbell at 133 pounds and Sam Fisher at 184 pounds, and Hunter Catka at 285 pounds were inserted in place of starters No. 11 Connor McGonagle, No. 25 TJ Stewart, and No. 15 Jimmy Mullen respectively. Although these lineup changes likely would not have significantly altered the final tally, they made the Hokies’ task even more difficult than it already was, and the results reflected accordingly.

Despite Virginia Tech’s earlier success this season in non-conference duals against ranked opponents Missouri and Rutgers, Thursday night's lopsided margin of defeat is a reminder that the Hokies still have work to do to compete with the country’s blue blood programs. Virginia Tech takes the mat again in the new year, first in the Southern Scuffle held on January 4th and 5th in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Hokies then open their ACC dual season against North Carolina in Chapel Hill on January 10th.