LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock wrestling is set to wrap up its regular season this Sunday, Feb. 7 with one final matchup against Oklahoma State. The dual will begin at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
Click here to watch the action live. Extra matches will start at 6 p.m. and will not be streamed, but results will be posted on Twitter
@LittleRockWRES.
"It's our final competition of the season before conference and nationals. A time for us to go out and compete against the best guys in the country," said head coach
Neil Erisman. "We're looking for improvement from our previous dual with Oklahoma State. As a program, we are always striving to be better and this will be a good measuring stick to see how we've improved."
Paul Paving the Way
Redshirt senior
Paul Bianchi had himself a day last weekend in the final home event for the Trojans, going 3-0 on the day against two ranked programs and picking up a ranked win in the process. Bianchi moves to 8-3 on the year and finds himself back in the TrackWrestling Division I 133-pound rankings, checking in at number 29.
Program History Made
January 24th was monumental for the Little Rock wrestling program, as the Trojans picked up back-to-back dual wins in their first-ever D1 victory over Fresno State, followed by their first conference win over Pac-12 opponents CSU-Bakersfield just hours later.
Read all about the historic day and Coach Erisman's first wins as a head coach here.
Oklahoma State, Part Three
In the final dual for the Trojans, Little Rock returns to Stillwater for one last challenge before spending the next two weeks preparing for the Pac-12 Championships. In January, the Trojans competed at Oklahoma State in a four-team event, but didn't go head-to-head with the Cowboys until a week later in Little Rock's home opener. That makes this upcoming Sunday the first time that the Trojans face the Cowboys not only on the road, but also at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
A Glance at the Rankings
Oklahoma State sits at #5 in this week's
NWCA Coaches Poll, the same rank that the Cowboys received a few weeks ago when the Trojans wrestled them at home in the Jack Stephens Center. This time around, Oklahoma State has seven probable starters within FloWrestling's standings, with the only three unranked positions at 133, 141, and 285 pounds.
Little Rock Probables
125:
Khyler Brewer, Fr. (4-6)
133:
Paul Bianchi, R-Sr. (8-3)
141:
Conner Ward, R-So. (1-10)
149:
Kyle Prewitt, R-Fr. (2-8) or
Joseph Bianchi, R-Fr. (2-7)
157:
Noah Aziere, R-Sr. (1-6)
165:
Alex Hernandez, Fr. (3-8)
174:
Triston Wills, R-Fr. (5-7)
184:
Zane Davis, Fr. (0-5) or
Tanner Mendoza, Fr. (4-7)
197:
Dylan Johnson, Sr. (4-8)
HWT:
Gabe Beyer, R-Fr. (6-6)
#5 Oklahoma State Probables
125: #15 Trevor Mastrogiovanni, Fr. (7-1)
133: Reece Witcraft, So. (5-3)
141: Dusty Hone, R-Sr. (4-2)
149: #4 Boo Lewallen, R-Sr. (7-0)
157: #13 Wyatt Sheets, R-Jr. (2-1) or Jalin Harper, R-So. (5-1)
165: #4 Travis Wittlake, R-So. (7-0)
174: #12 Dustin Plott, Fr. (6-0)
184: #13 Dakota Geer, R-Sr. (6-1)
197: #11 AJ Ferrari, Fr. (7-0)
HWT: Austin Harris, R-Jr. (5-2)
For the latest information on Little Rock Wrestling, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockWRES on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
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