The #2 Iowa Hawkeyes will take on the #9 Oklahoma State Cowboys at The Bout At The Ballpark on Saturday, February 12 in Arlington, Texas. This will be one of the best dual meets of the season with a number of top 10 matches and 18 of 20 wrestlers ranked in the top 20 in the country. Take a look below at the probable lineups along with a breakdown and prediction of each match.

Probable Lineups:

125: #12 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (OK State) vs #10 Drake Ayala/Jesse Ybarra (Iowa)

133: #2 Daton Fix (OK State) vs #3 Austin DeSanto (Iowa)

141: #17 Carter Young (OK State) vs #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa)

149: #18 Kaden Gfeller (OK State) vs #10 Max Murin (Iowa)

157: #14 Wyatt Sheets (OK State) vs #13 Kaleb Young (Iowa)

165: #7 Travis Wittlake (OK State) vs #5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa)

174: #10 Dustin Plott (OK State) vs #2 Michael Kemerer (Iowa)

184: #9 Dakota Geer (OK State) vs #16 Abe Assad (Iowa)

197: Gavin Stika (OK State) vs #3 Jacob Warner (Iowa)

285: Luke Surber (OK State) vs #2 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa)

125: #12 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (OK State) vs #10 Drake Ayala/Jesse Ybarra (Iowa)

Should Ayala take the mat against Mastrogiovanni, expect a tight match decided by a takedown or less. Mastrogiovanni is 12-1 on the year with ranked wins over Jaret Lane, Brody Teske, and Patrick McKee while Ayala is 13-4 with wins over Michael DeAutustino, Devin Schroder, and Noah Surtin. However, Iowa’s Jesse Ybarra has wrestled in Ayala’s place the last two dual meets. If it’s Ybarra against Mastro, which looks to be the case, expect a controlling decision for the Cowboys.

Prediction: Mastrogiovanni by decision - Iowa 0, OK State 3

133: #2 Daton Fix (OK State) vs #3 Austin DeSanto (Iowa)

Daton Fix is 2-0 against Austin DeSanto with two, close wins - Fix beat DeSanto 3-2 at last year’s NCAA tournament and 2-0 in 2019. In both matches, Fix was able to control the action in the neutral position and has a slight edge on the mat because of his ability to ride. DeSanto is capable of pulling the upset but I’m expecting Fix to take the match by a point or two.

Prediction: Fix by decision - Iowa 0, OK State 6

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141: #17 Carter Young (OK State) vs #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa)

Returning NCAA runner-up Jaydin Eierman will be a big favorite against true freshman Carter Young. However, Eierman’s wrestling style, and results this year, make it challenging to predict how this match will unfold. Will Eierman get a pin? Will he give up points early and have to come from behind? Eierman is about as unpredictable as they come which will make for an exciting match against Young. 

Prediction: Eierman by decision - Iowa 3, OK State 6

149: #18 Kaden Gfeller (OK State) vs #10 Max Murin (Iowa)

Kaden Gfeller is putting together the best season of his college career with ranked wins over Josh Edmond, Jarrett Degen, and Michael Blockhus. However, Max Murin’s style will likely be a unique code for Gfeller to crack. Murin wrestles at a hard pace for seven minutes and seldom gives up more than one takedown a match. This is a huge swing match for both teams and could play a big role in deciding the outcome of the dual.

Prediction: Gfeller by decision - Iowa 3, OK State 9

157: #14 Wyatt Sheets (OK State) vs #13 Kaleb Young (Iowa)

Kaleb Young has defeated Wyatt Sheets in 2 of the 3 matches they’ve wrestled in college including their last meeting in the 7th place match at the 2021 NCAA Tournament. If the Cowboys hope to win this dual, they will likely need Wyatt Sheets to repeat his performance from the 2020 dual against Iowa when he defeated Kaleb Young, 9-4. In that 2020 match, Sheets took a 3-2 lead into the third before he scored 2 takedowns, an escape, and locked up riding time in the final frame to ice that match. This year, Young is having a slightly better season than Sheets and should be considered a slight favorite. 

Prediction: Sheets by decision - Iowa 3, OK State 12

165: #7 Travis Wittlake (OK State) vs #5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa)

There are a number of potential “swing matches” in this dual and the Marinelli-Wittlake match might be the biggest. These two met two years ago with Marinelli coming out on top in a tight, 3-2 decision. That match was tied at 1 going into the third period before Marinelli scored a takedown with about a minute to go in the match. Their match in Arlington will likely transpire in a similar fashion, decided by a takedown or less.

Prediction: Marinelli by decision - Iowa 6, OK State 12

Marinelli's win over Wittlake from 2020:

174: #10 Dustin Plott (OK State) vs #2 Michael Kemerer (Iowa)

Returning NCAA runner-up Michael Kemerer looks to be wrestling as good as ever and will be a huge favorite against Oklahoma State’s Dustin Plott. The two have never wrestled in college but Plott has struggled as of late with recent losses to Sean Harman and Lance Runyon. Bonus points are a possibility for Kemerer but I expect Plott to keep the match to a decision. 

Prediction: Kemerer by decision - Iowa 9, OK State 12

184: #9 Dakota Geer (OK State) vs #16 Abe Assad (Iowa)

Another toss-up! Geer is a two-time All-American but has dropped matches this year to #6 Marcus Coleman, #4 Parker Keckeisen, and #15 Tate Samuelson. Assad is having a similar year with losses to #1 Aaron Brooks, #5 Kaleb Romero, and #3 Trent Hidlay. Geer and Assad have never met in competition but their history shows this should be a highly competitive bout.

Prediction: Geer by decision - Iowa 9, OK State 15

197: Gavin Stika (OK State) vs #3 Jacob Warner (Iowa)

Without AJ Ferrari, Warner will be a huge favorite in this dual at 197 pounds against Oklahoma State’s Gavin Stika. Stika is 12-6 on the year and has given up three major decision losses to Yonger Bastida, Layne Malczewski, and Tate Samuelson. Considering those results, I’m expecting Warner to secure valuable bonus points for the Hawkeyes. 

Prediction: Warner by major dec - Iowa 13, OK State 15

285: Luke Surber (OK State) vs #2 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa)

Cassioppi has five consecutive ranked wins with big, recent ones over #11 Trent Hillger and #3 Greg Kerkvliet. Cassioppi should cruise to victory against Surber on Saturday night and could even pick up bonus points for the Hawkeyes. However, in his 6 losses on the season, Surber has only given up two by bonus - to Gable Steveson (20-7) and Zach Elam (pin).

Prediction: Cassioppi by major dec 

Final Score Prediction: Iowa 17, OK State 15

There it is! The Iowa-Oklahoma State dual should be fantastic and has the potential to come down to the last match. There are a number of toss-up matches with many favoring the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Cowboys can win this dual but have very little room for error - in fact, we spelled out the path to victory for the Cowboys here. Regardless of how the dual unfolds, there are sure to be a number of incredible matches in this historic rivalry on Saturday night!