Tulsa, Oklahoma, provided many positive storylines and outcomes for the Cyclones as nine wrestlers qualified for the NCAA tournament, including Rocky Elam and Yonger Bastida winning individual titles. With just two weeks to go before the NCAA tournament in Cleveland, this was the final opportunity for many of these wrestlers to improve their seedings and earn those final marquee wins to bolster their resumes. With Oklahoma State winning the team title, Iowa State firmly established itself as the number
two team in the conference before a cluster including Arizona State, Missouri, West Virginia, and South Dakota State round out the top six.
125: Stevo Poulin
As the two seed, Stevo Poulin breezed through his matches to the final, winning by 14-3 major decision over ASU’s Anee Vigil and 9-3 decision over NDSU’s Eziekiel Witt. Poulin’s quarterfinal against UNI’s Trevor Anderson was cut short by medical default.
In the final, Poulin put up a valiant effort, but a reversal and near fall points swung the match to Troy Spratley of Oklahoma State. This is still a great result for the Northern Colorado transfer ahead of the NCAA tournament, with just a few opportunities slipping away in the final.
133: Garrett Grice
Wait, that’s a weird way to spell Evan Frost. Alas, shortly before the tournament was due to begin, Kevin Dresser put Garrett Grice in place of Evan Frost as he has been dealing with injury and illness.
After a 15-0 tech fall to Jax Forrest, Grice went on a tear. The Cyclone won his next three matches, with the latter two being by major decision. This was enough to qualify for the NCAA tournament, a great achievement for the junior after having his name called on short notice.
141: Anthony Echemendia
In his senior year, Anthony Echemendia has demonstrated why he is slated as a contender at 141. Echemdendia started the tournament with a 22-6 tech fall over Wyoming’s David Saenz and a 11-4 major decision over Carter Nogle from Air Force. In his semifinal matchup against Oklahoma’s Tyler Wells, a stalling penalty was the decider in a 2-1 decision that was certainly slower than the typical match for Echemendia.
In the final against Sergio Vega, the first three periods matched their previous bout in February, but this match went to sudden victory. After going scoreless in the first two minutes of extra time, Vega escaped and almost secure additional points in the dying seconds. A challenge did not go the Cowboys way, but Echemendia failed to escape in time to give Vega a 2-1 victory.
149: Jacob Frost
The first Cyclone wrestler who officially finished below his projected seed, Jacob Frost still had a commendable performance in the Big 12 tournament. Two tech falls over Kenneth Evans of Northern Colorado and Paul Kelly of Cal Baptist put Frost in a semi-final matchup against UNI’s Caleb Rathjen. Rathjen found the only takedown of the match in the third for a 4-3 decision to send Frost into the consolation bracket.
Jacob Frost bounced back with an 11-4 decision over Wyoming’s Willochell to earn a bout against David Evans from Utah Valley. Evans dominated in the first, securing three takedowns en route to a 12-5 decision. Jacob Frost still qualifies for the NCAA tournament with a fourth place finish.
157: Vinny Zerban
If there is one negative of the tournament for the Cyclones, it’s the unfortunate injury to Vinny Zerban. In his first round matchup against Daishun Powe, Zerban suffered a head injury. While he returned to wrestle the final seconds, coach Dresser played it safe with his seventh overall ranked wrestler by taking him out of the tournament to potentially send him to the NCAA tournament with an at-large bid.
165: Connor Euton
One of the best stories for Iowa State this season has been maintaining Connor Euton’s health. The senior has been healthy for the entire season and earned himself the fifth overall seed in the conference tournament. Euton won in a coin-flip matchup against Max Mayfield of Missouri in an 8-6 decision before dropping to Oklahoma State’s LaDarion Locket by 11-2 major decision.
Euton found redemption in the consolation bracket, winning by 12-2 major decision over Sloan Swan of Wyoming and outlasting UNI’s Ryder Downey in a 13-12 thriller. Downey is currently ranked No. 6 in the country, so a marque win is pivotal going into the NCAA tournament.
174: MJ Gaitan
MJ Gaitan recorded an honorable performance in his final season with the Cyclones and his third as the starter. Gaitan started the tournament with a 12-3 major decision over Murphy Manke of Northern Colorado and a 4-0 decision over UNI’s Jared Simma to go to the semi-finals. Gaitan headed to the consolation bracket at the hands of Alex Facundo of Oklahoma State.
In the consolation rounds, Gaitan secured a third place finish after defeating Moses Espinoza-Owens and Carter Schubert by 8-5 and 5-2 respectively. Qualifying for his third NCAA tournament, a third place finish is a good momentum builder ahead of his trip to Cleveland.
184: Issac Dean
Issac Dean had a respectable performance in a stacked weight class for the Big 12. After defeating Brock Fetting of SDSU in an 11-2 major decision, Dean overtook Zach Ryder of Oklahoma State for a 6-2 decision. Eddie Neitenbach of Wyoming sent Dean to the consolation bracket, and Dresser pulled the plug on Dean for a sixth place finish and an NCAA tournament qualification.
197: Rocky Elam
One of the headliners for the Cyclones, Elam did not disappoint. Elam opened with a 5-0 decision over ASU’s Colton Hawks and a 9-1 major over Devin Wasley of NDSU to book his ticket to the semi-finals.
In a rare sight, Elam gave up takedowns in both the semis and the finals, but some timely takedowns late secured a second Big 12 title for Rocky Elam. This is his first with the Cyclones.
285: Yonger Bastida
In one of the most surefire results of the tournament, Yonger Bastida continued his dominance on the field. Two tech falls in the first two rounds led to a dramatic fall in the semifinals of David Szuba of ASU just 1:57 in the first period. In the final, Bastida maintained the pace and the aggression to a 4-1 win over Konnor Doucet. This is Bastida’s second Big 12 title and will be the favorite in the NCAA tournament.
With this title, Bastida will finish as one of the most decorated wrestlers of the Kevin Dresser era. The next step to entrench his legacy in Iowa State wrestling? An NCAA title as the favorite.
