Wrestling Heads to Oklahoma, NDSU, for Final Road Duals of Season

Oklahoma Sooners (3-6, 1-5 Big 12)
Friday, Feb. 14 | 6 p.m. MT
McCasland Field House | Norman, Okla.

North Dakota State Bison (7-3, 4-1 Big 12)
Sunday, Feb. 16 | 12 p.m. MT
Scheels Center | Fargo, N.D.

THIS WEEK: The Air Force Academy wrestling team has its final two road duals of the season when it heads to Oklahoma to battle the Sooners, Friday, Feb. 14, followed by a trip to North Dakota to spar with the Bison, Sunday, Feb. 16. Action in Norman is set to begin at 6 p.m. MT, while the dual against NDSU will start at noon MT.

FOLLOWING THE ACTION: The OU dual will have a for cost stream through Sooner Sports TV, while NSDU will have its stream on FloWrestling. Both duals will also have live results on TrackWrestling, and fans can follow along on Twitter, @AF_Wrestle.

LAST TIME OUT: Air Force went 1-1 in dual action this past weekend, falling to Big 12 foe No. 11 Oklahoma State, 37-3, before blowing by Cal Poly, 29-14.
Sophomore HWT Kayne Hutchison had the biggest weekend, going 2-0 including the lone bout win against OSU, as well as a first period pin against Cal Poly.
Against the Mustangs, AF won six matches, including three via pin and one via tech fall.

LAST SEASON VERSUS OU/NDSU: Last season against OU, AF hosted the Sooners and fell in dual action, 31-9. AF won two matches, a decision win from Hutchison at HWT and a pin at 157. Against NSDU last season, AF lost a barnburner at home to the then 19th ranked Bison, 24-13. AF won the first three matches to take a 12-0 lead, but NDSU won six of the last seven to claim victory.

ALL-TIME AGAINST THE SOONERS: Friday marks the fifth meeting between the Falcons and Sooners, but the second as Big 12 conference foes. The first three meetings occurred from 1969-1972, with OU taking all three matches.

ALL TIME AGAINST THE BISON: Sunday will mark the 18th meeting between the two programs dating all the way back to 1964. NDSU leads the all-time series, 15-2, including winning the last eight meetings. Air Force won the first ever meeting in 1964, 25-3, and last claimed victory in 2011, 22-19.

NATIONALLY RANKED FALCONS: Coming into the weekend, Air Force has a pair of its wrestlers gaining recognition in the national polls. At 125 lbs., sophomore Sidney Flores is tabbed as high as 14th overall by WIN Magazine, while at 165 lbs., senior Randy Meneweather is ranked 24th overall by TheOpenMat. Both are also ranked in the second NCAA Coaches Panel, which is one of the three deciding factors when it comes to NCAA Tournament bids.
One of the other deciding factors into NCAA bids is the NCAA's RPI ranking system. There, AF has three ranked, including junior Lenny Petersen at 141 lbs (31st), Meneweather (22nd) and sophomore 184 pounder Jake Thompson (33rd).

PINS ON PINS ON PINS: To this point in the season, Air Force has been one of the most dominant teams on the mats when it comes to pinning opponents. AF has 45 pins against D1 competition, which is tied for the ninth-most of any other D1 team thus far
In addition, junior Cody Surratt and senior Randy Meneweather both have nine D1 pins on the season, with Surratt's coming in 11:50 and Meneweather's in 20:53. This ranks them sixth and seventh in the country, respectively. AF is the only team in the nation with two in the top-10.

NEXT UP: The Falcons will have their final dual of the season next Sunday, Feb. 23, when they welcome in Big 12 and in-state rival Northern Colorado to Clune Arena. Action against the Bears begins at 2 p.m., with a Senior Day ceremony precluding the match.

Wrestling Heads to Oklahoma, NDSU, for Final Road Duals of Season

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Players Mentioned

Sidney Flores

Kayne Hutchison

Randy Meneweather

Lenny Petersen

Cody Surratt

Jake Thompson

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