Three Cowboys Finish Third; Team Remains In Second Overall

Three Cowboys made their way back through the wrestlebacks on Saturday morning, giving Oklahoma State three NCAA third-place finishers in Alex Dieringer, Tyler Caldwell and Alan Gelogaev. The Cowboys are only three points behind Penn State, 114.5-111.5, going into tonight's finals.

Freshman phenom Alex Dieringer racked up some bonus points for the Pokes, pinning Northern Iowa's David Bonin in 1:39 in the third-place match. Sending him to the bout was his 12-2 major decision over Jedd Moore in his first match of the day.

"I wrestled really well today. It feels good to come back like that," Dieringer said. "I was just inches from competing in the finals tonight so that hurts, but I've got three more years. I'm going to make sure to build off that [semifinals] loss."

After taking a year off from NCAA wrestling, Caldwell returned to show that he was still a worthy contender, finishing third at 165 pounds after dominating No. 4 Peter Yates, 5-1, in his final bout of the year.

"It's a disappointment after taking second two years ago, but it's also good to come back and finish strong, getting third place," Caldwell said. "I'm feeling really good about my wrestling and the way I'm training. I'm already excited for next season. I'm surrounded by studs."

One of the Cowboys' most exciting matches of the day came from Gelogaev, who took on Zac Thommusseit in the sixth round of wrestlebacks. Thomusseit maintained the lead throughout the match until Gelogaev scored a takedown in the final second of the match, which sent him to the third-place bout with a 5-4 win over Thomusseit. Gelogaev finished his career as the No. 3 heavyweight following an epic 3-2 battle with Missouri's Dom Bradley.

Entering the season ranked 11th, Jon Morrison finished the season as the nation's No. 5 133-pounder with his intense 6-4 win over Chris Dardanes of Minnesota. The junior went into the fifth-place bout after losing to A.J. Schopp of Edinboro, 9-3, in the sixth round of wrestlebacks.

At 197 pounds, Blake Rosholt finished eighth after suffering a 7-4 loss to Wyoming's Alfonso Hernandez in the seventh-place match.

The Cowboys keep their national title hopes alive entering tonight's finals. The finals, featuring Cowboys Jordan Oliver and Chris Perry, will begin tonight with the 174-pound final at 7 p.m. Fans can watch the action on ESPN.

Team Standings

1. Penn State - 114.5 points

2. Oklahoma State - 111.5 points

3. Minnesota - 99 points

4. Iowa - 69 points

5. Cornell - 61 points

Championship finals schedule

149: Jordan Oliver (OSU) vs. Jason Chamberlain (Boise State)

174: Chris Perry (OSU) vs. Matt Brown (Penn State)

Oklahoma State results

Championship first round

125: Steve Mitcheff (Kent State) dec. Eddie Klimara (OSU), 6-2

133: Jon Morrison (OSU) MD Mackenzie Maguire (Kent State), 8-0

141: Steven Keith (Harvard) fall Julian Feikert (OSU), 3:39

149: Jordan Oliver (OSU) MD David Habat (Edinboro), 16-6

157: Alex Dieringer (OSU) MD Ryan Watts (Michigan State), 9-1

165: Tyler Caldwell (OSU) MD Pierce Hager (Northwestern), 9-1

174: Chris Perry (OSU) dec. Cody Weishoff (Oregon State), 5-4

184: Max Thomusseit (Pittsburgh) dec. Chris Chionuma (OSU), 4-1

197: Blake Rosholt (OSU) dec. Braden Atwood (Purdue), 3-2

285: Alan Gelogaev (OSU) fall Ben Apland (Michigan), 0:18

Championship second round

133: Jon Morrison (OSU) dec. Scotti Sentes (Central Michigan), 3-1

149: Jordan Oliver (OSU) MD Derek Valenti (Virginia), 13-3

157: Alex Dieringer (OSU) MD Spartak Chino (Ohio), 9-0

165: Tyler Caldwell (OSU) dec. Josh Condon (Chattanooga), 4-2

174: Chris Perry (OSU) dec. Jonathan Fausey (Virginia), 4-0

197: Blake Rosholt (OSU) dec. Kyven Gadson (Iowa State), 8-7

285: Alan Gelogaev (OSU) fall Jeremy Johnson (Ohio), 0:34

Championship quarterfinals

133: Tony Ramos (Iowa) dec. Jon Morrison (OSU), 6-1

149: Jordan Oliver (OSU) MD Jake Sueflohn (Nebraska), 11-3

157: Alex Dieringer (OSU) dec. Georgi Ivanov (Boise State), 6-4

165: Tyler Caldwell (OSU) dec. Taylor Massa (Michigan), 3-1

174: Chris Perry (OSU) dec. Nick Heflin (Ohio State), 3-2 TB1

197: Matt Wilps (Pittsburgh) dec. Blake Rosholt (OSU), 7-1

285: Alan Gelogaev (OSU) dec. J.T. Felix (Boise State), 10-5

Championship semifinals

149: Jordan Oliver (OSU) MD Steve Santos (Columbia), 13-4

157: Derek St. John (Iowa) dec. Alex Dieringer (OSU), 3-2

165: Kyle Dake (Cornell) dec. Tyler Caldwell (OSU), 2-0

174: Chris Perry (OSU) dec. Robert Kokesh (Nebraska), 4-2 SV2

HWT: Tony Nelson (Minnesota) dec. Alan Gelogaev (OSU), 5-4

Consolation pigtails

125: Eddie Klimara (OSU) dec. Max Soria (Buffalo), 8-1

Wrestleback first round

125: Eddie Klimara (OSU) MD Ben Willeford (Cleveland State), 11-2

141: Julian Feikert (OSU) dec. Joseph Spisak (Virginia), 8-5

184: Chris Chionuma (OSU) fall MacKain Stoll (North Dakota State), 2:26

Wrestleback second round

125: Eddie Klimara (OSU) dec. Christian Cullinan (Central Michigan), 6-3

141: Joey Lazor (Northern Iowa) dec. Julian Feikert (OSU), 7-2

184: Jacob Swartz (Boise State) dec. Chris Chionuma (OSU), 6-4

Wrestleback third round

125: Tyler Cox (Wyoming) dec. Eddie Klimara (OSU), 11-7

Wrestleback fourth round

133: Jon Morrison (OSU) MD Geroge DiCamillo (Virginia), 10-2

197: Blake Rosholt (OSU) MD Christian Boley (Maryland), 10-2

Wrestleback fifth round

133: Jon Morrison (OSU) MD Nathan McCormick (Missouri), 10-2

197: Scott Schiller (Minnesota) dec. Blake Rosholt (OSU), 5-2

Wrestlebacks sixth round

133: A.J. Schopp (Edinboro) dec. Jon Morrison (OSU), 9-3

157: Alex Dieringer (OSU) MD Jedd Moore (Virginia), 12-2

165: Tyler Caldwell (OSU) dec. Conrad Polz (Illinois), 2-1

HWT: Alan Gelogaev (OSU) dec. Zac Thomusseit (Pittsburgh), 4-3

Third place match

157: Alex Dieringer (OSU) fall David Bonin (Northern Iowa), 1:39

165: Tyler Caldwell (OSU) dec. Peter Yates (Virginia Tech), 5-1

HWT: Alan Gelogaev (OSU) dec. Dom Bradley (Missouri), 3-2

Fifth place match

133: Jon Morrison (OSU) dec. Chris Dardanes (Minnesota), 6-4

Seventh place match

197: Alfonso Hernandez (Wyoming) dec. Blake Rosholt (OSU), 7-4.