When No. 14 Connor Flynn lost his bout to Arizona State’s Josh Shields in the 165 weight class Friday night, No. 5 Mizzou wrestling found itself in an unusual position of discomfort. The 12-point lead it had held just two matches earlier was whittled down to 6, and No. 2 Zahid Valencia of the 174 weight class was stepping onto the mat for ASU.
That was no problem for No. 4 Daniel Lewis, who took Valencia down by fall just over a minute into the second period. The pin gave Mizzou a 21-9 lead it never relinquished, winning by a final score of 30-12.
Following an overtime loss from 125 Dack Punke to start the night, the Tigers got back on track with wins from redshirt freshman John Erneste, redshirt junior Jaydin Eierman and freshman Brock Mauller, all ranked in the top-10 of the 133, 141 and 149 weight classes. No. 15 Jarrett Jacques lost at 157 in the lead up to Flynn’s loss and Lewis’s turning-point victory.
A loss at 184 from Taylor Watkins and wins from Wyatt Koelling and Zach Elam at 197 and heavyweight closed out the night.
This was Mizzou’s final tune-up before its biggest match of the year, taking on No. 3 Oklahoma State at Hearnes Center on Feb. 16.
_Edited by Adam Cole | acole@themaneater.com_