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Oklahoma State will have four wrestlers competing in Friday night’s semifinals to earn a spot in the finals at the NCAA Wrestling Championships at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.
No. 1s Daton Fix (133) and Derek White (heavyweight), No. 2 Nick Piccininni and No. 3 Preston Weigel (197) will be seeking their first finals appearance. No. 15 Kaid Brock (141) and No. 26 Dakota Geer (184) are also competing in the consolation bracket as they try to become All-Americans.
A win in the championship bracket is worth seven points, with one point for advancing to the finals and six placement points for finishing at least in second. A win in consolation is worth 3.5 points, with half a point for advancing and three for placing.
All six of OSU’s remaining wrestlers will compete Friday night at 7 p.m., with the session televised on ESPN and every match on every mat available on watchespn.com.
125: No. 2 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 3 Spencer Lee (Iowa)
Piccininni is 1-2 against Lee, with the Cowboy’s lone win being a second-period pin at the dual this year in Stillwater. The winner gets the No. 1 Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern)-No. 5 Jack Mueller (Virginia) winner. Piccininni hasn’t faced Rivera or Mueller, who are both undefeated at 125 just like Piccininni.
133: No. 1 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 5 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State)
Fix and Pletcher have not wrestled each other. The winner gets the No. 2 Stevan Micic (Michigan)-No. 3 Nick Suriano (Rutgers) winner. Suriano and Micic were the runner-ups at 125 and 133 last year, respectively. Fix holds a 3-2 win in tiebreaker 2 over Suriano, but hasn’t faced Micic.
197: No. 3 Preston Weigel (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Kollin Moore (Ohio State)
Moore and Weigel have not wrestled each other. The winner likely gets two-time defending NCAA champion Bo Nickal (Penn State), who faces No. 4 Patrick Brucki (Princeton). Weigel was sidelined and didn’t wrestle Brucki in the dual.
HWT: No. 1 Derek White (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 4 Jordan Wood (Lehigh)
White holds a 3-2 decision over Wood in the dual at Lehigh. The winner of the rematch will face the winner of No. 2 Anthony Cassar (Penn State)-No. 3 Gable Steveson (Minnesota). Cassar dealt Steveson his first loss this season in the Big 10 finals.
White’s lone loss this season is to Steveson, an 8-2 decision in the dual. The Cowboy beat Cassar, 3-2, in the Southern Scuffle finals.
Team scores
1. Penn State – 80
2. Ohio State – 66.5
3. Oklahoma State – 56
4. Iowa – 43.5
5. Michigan – 40
6. Missouri – 37
7. Minnesota – 32
8. Rutgers – 29.5
9. NC State – 29
10. Cornell – 26.5
Semifinal matchups
125 pounds
No. 1 Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) vs. No. 5 Jack Mueller (Virginia)
No. 2 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 3 Spencer Lee (Iowa)
133 pounds
No. 1 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 5 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State)
No. 3 Nick Suriano (Rutgers) vs. No. 2 Stevan Micic (Michigan)
141 pounds
No. 1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) vs. No. 5 Jaydin Eierman (Missouri)
No. 3 Nick Lee (Penn State) vs. No. 2 Joey McKenna (Ohio State)
149 pounds
No. 1 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) vs. No. 5 Matthew Kolodzik (Princeton)
No. 6 Austin O’Connor (North Carolina) vs. No. 2 Micah Jordan (Ohio State)
157 pounds
No. 1 Jason Nolf (Penn State) vs. No. 5 Hayden Hidlay (North Carolina State)
No. 6 Kaleb Young (Iowa) vs. No. 2 Tyler Berger (Nebraska)
165 pounds
No. 8 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) vs. No. 4 Evan Wick (Wisconsin)
No. 3 Josh Shields (Arizona State) vs. No. 2 Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State)
174 pounds
No. 1 Mark Hall (Penn State) vs. No. 4 Myles Amine (Michigan)
No. 3 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) vs. No. 2 Daniel Lewis (Missouri)
184 pounds
No. 1 Myles Martin (Ohio State) vs. No. 5 Max Dean (Cornell)
No. 6 Drew Foster (Northern Iowa) vs. No. 15 Chip Ness (North Carolina)
197 pounds
No. 1 Bo Nickal (Penn State) vs. No. 4 Patrick Brucki (Princeton)
No. 3 Preston Weigel (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Kollin Moore (Ohio State)
285 pounds
No. 1 Derek White (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 4 Jordan Wood (Lehigh)
No. 3 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. No. 2 Anthony Cassar (Penn State)
Consolation round of 12
141 pounds
No. 15 Kaid Brock (OSU) vs. No. 13 Kyle Shoop (Lock Haven)
184 pounds
No. 26 Dakota Geer (OSU) vs. No. 13 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh)