OSU finishes second at Big 12 Wrestling Championships

Rowdy Baribeau Staff Reporter

Notebook

TULSA — Mis- souri’s near-perfect first day at the Big 12 Tournament all but sealed the deal for the Tigers on day two.

OSU and Iowa State rounded out the second and third place team standings. Going into the tournament, it figured to be a twoteam race between Missouri and Iowa State with OSU on the outside looking in. The

Cowboys exceeded expectations in the team race, but fulfilled expectations at the 133 and 174 weight classes, and at new weights.

Here are three notes from the tournament.

OSU has three placers at new weights

Luke Surber and Travis Wittlake each earned thirdplace finishes at their new weights. Surber defeated Owen Pentz from North Dakota State with a 8-2 decision. Smith said Surber wrestled a solid final match.

“Surber, still is just kind of bright-eyed a little bit,” Smith said. “Although he separated some scores, I thought his very best match of the tournament was for third. I wanna see that, I want to see this demenaor and see like, ‘there is an end to this tournament, and I’m going to end it on a good note.’”

Wittlake rematched Missouri’s Colton Hawks and won by decision 8-3. Wittlake separated the score compared to his last match where he won 6-4 in early February. Wittlake debat- ably faced a tougher opponent in the consolation semifinals, DeAnthony Parker from NDSU. Smith said it was one of the best matches he’s seen from Wittlake.

“I thought Travis had two of the best matches that he’s had all season,” Smith said. “Goes down pretty quickly (against Parker) and just gathers himself up and slowly takes bites out of him. Good effort, that’s what you want to see. He followed it up with a solid win for third.

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OSU had four student applicants in 2022, with two of them receiving grants. This number surpassed the University of Oklahoma and the University of Tulsa. The Cowboys also have

The U.S. Congress funds the Fulbright Program and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs manages it.

Cara Menasco Eubanks, the associate director of development at the OSU Foundation and former academic programs coordinator at the School of Global Studies, said the importance of the Fulbright Program should not be overlooked.

“At its core, Fulbright is a diplomacy tool, and a Fulbright award recipient essentially serves as an ambassador to their home institution, home state, and, most importantly, country,” Eubanks said. “Often when students and faculty go overseas for a Fulbright, study abroad or vacation, they only consider how that experience will impact them. Often not considered is the impact that experience will have on the people they interact with while abroad. Every person’s interaction abroad can shape foreign audiences’ and governments’ perceptions of our country. The more positive interactions we have, the more international people and governments like us, leading to people working together to solve global problems.”

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