March 3, 2006
Columbia, Mo. - Traveling to Ames, Iowa, the No. 7 Missouri wrestling program will compete in the Big 12 Championships Saturday, March 4, with the opening round of wrestling beginning at 11 a.m. CST in the Hilton Coliseum. All five Big 12 schools are currently ranked among the top 10 in the National Wresting Coaches Association poll. Three-time defending champion Oklahoma State ranks the highest at No. 3, followed by No. 5 Nebraska, No. 6 Iowa State, No. 7 Missouri and No. 10 Oklahoma.
The Tigers finished third in Big 12 dual competition this season, beating Oklahoma and Iowa State by a point each to finish with a 2-2 record. The 16-15 victory over the Cyclones was the first time that a Missouri wrestling squad has beaten Iowa State in Ames since the 1927-28 season.
Wrestling at the Qwest Center in Lincoln, Neb., one year ago, the Tigers finished in fifth place, with three grapplers taking second place in their respective brackets. The only returning second-place finisher for the Tigers, junior Ben Askren (Hartland, Wis.) enters the tournament with the nation's longest current consecutive wins streak, having won 38 straight bouts. Undefeated on the season, Askren is one of only two wrestlers in the country to hold the No. 1 ranking at his weight class throughout the campaign. A Big 12 Champion in 2004, Askren is the only member of the Tiger's starting lineup with an undefeated record against conference competition this season.
No. 16 senior Jeff Foust (Blue Springs, Mo.) is also a former Big 12 Champion at 197 pounds, having won the title in 2004 by defeating Oklahoma State's Rusty Blackmon. A team captain along with Askren and sophomore Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.), Foust is 14-5 overall and 1-2 in league competition. The starter at 133 pounds, No. 14 McCormick finished the season 25-6 and 3-1 against Big 12 opponents. Finishing the year with a six-bout win streak, McCormick defeated No. 7 Matt Keller of Chattanooga Feb. 18.
Junior Matt Pell (Luxemburg, Wis.) a 2005 All-American at 184 pounds, will look to make his third straight trip to the NCAA Championships after dropping two weight classes to grapple at 165 pounds. Facing tough competition, Pell will square off against a field in which every competitor is ranked in the top-15, against whom he compiled a 3-1 record this year.
The top three finishers at each weight class will advance to the NCAA Championships March 16-18 in Oklahoma City, Okla. The first round of wrestling begins at 11 a.m. Saturday morning, followed by the semifinals at 1 p.m., consolation bouts at 4 p.m. and the finals at 7 p.m. CST.