Missouri wrestling began its Big 12 slate with a dual victory over West Virginia. The Tigers leaped to a hot start and never looked back, taking the dual 38-3.
Freshman Peyton Moore and redshirt senior Connor Brown opened the dual for Missouri at 125 and 133 pounds, respectively. Their matches were similar, as each wrestler secured a win by fall in the first period, giving the Tigers a 12-0 lead in the dual after two matches.
The next two matches for Missouri were dominant, although falls were not secured. At 141 pounds, redshirt senior Allan Hart was able to secure a takedown and have two minutes and 45 seconds of riding time in the first period. Hart controlled the match and secured a major decision. Redshirt junior Brock Mauller’s match was similar, as he also controlled the riding time and secured another major decision to give the Tigers a 20-0 lead.
The first close match of the day was between Missouri’s senior Jarrett Jacques and West Virginia’s Alex Hornfeck. The opening period was tight, as the only points were secured by Jacques on a takedown. The match remained close, sitting at 4-1 after the second period. In the third period, Hornfeck was able to secure a reversal, going from bottom to top position, to make it 4-3. He gained the riding time advantage, but it was not enough, as Jacques won 4-3 to stretch Missouri’s lead to 23-0.
The biggest match of the day came from the Tigers defending national champion sophomore Keegan O’Toole, weighing in at 165 pounds. He faced All-American junior Peyton Hall for West Virginia — marking the first time they squared off since O’Toole came out on top at the Big 12 championship in March.
The match was incredibly close with no score after one and 1-0 after two on an O’Toole escape.
The score remained the same for the third period, until O’Toole scored a takedown with 10 seconds left to secure the match for Missouri, making the score 26-0.
Missouri won the next two matches, one by forfeit from redshirt sophomore Sean Harman and one by decision for redshirt junior Peyton Mocco. West Virginia’s only win of the dual was against sophomore Colton Hawks, who weighed in at 197 pounds and could not beat West Virginia’s redshirt sophomore Austin Cooley.
In the final match of the day, redshirt junior Zach Elam was able to secure one final victory for Missouri,
winning the dual 38-3.
The Tigers moved to 2-1 on the year and now look ahead to their next dual Dec. 11 against the Virginia Tech Hokies. Along with this dual, the Tigers also have the UNI Open on Dec. 10 and the Southern Scuffle on Jan. 1.
Edited by Matt Guzman | mguzman@themaneater.com