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STILLWATER — Casey Swiderski isn’t one to hide his emotions in the most bland of scenarios, so when the Oklahoma State wrestler took a late lead in a match against his former team in front of a charged Gallagher-Iba Arena crowd, the moment overtook him.
Swiderski kept his intensity in check long enough to finish the upset of Iowa State’s Jacob Frost, which was among the key matches the No. 5 Cowboys pulled out for a 24-9 win over the third-ranked Cyclones on Sunday.
But after a takedown in the final minute of the match, Swiderski almost started to celebrate a bit too early.
“I was like, ‘Hey ding-dong, look over here. We got 50 seconds left, we gotta stay focused,’” OSU coach David Taylor said with a laugh. “And he did a good job of that.
“This is just a part in his season, but you need little victories along the way.”
The 149-pound Swiderski sat out with an injury last year at Iowa State, then transferred to OSU shortly after the season. Facing a challenging schedule, he entered Sunday with five losses and a No. 12 ranking, so the upset of the sixth-ranked Frost was big without the additional emotion.
More: Oklahoma State wrestling vs Iowa State highlights: Cowboys cruise to top-5 upset
“It was an opportunity for me to just stay present like Coach tells me, just wrestle and have clarity,” Swiderski said. “I couldn’t hold back a little bit at the end, but this was a big moment for me.
“I went through a lot, had a lot of people say things about me. It was fun.”
Swiderski’s win was sandwiched between wins by Sergio Vega at 141 and Landon Robideau at 157 that each required third-period takedowns and swung the dual heavily in favor of the Pokes.
Both were tossup matches, with No. 2 Vega scrambling his way into the winning takedown against No. 3 Anthony Echemendia, and sixth-ranked Robideau finishing his takedown with 14 seconds left against No. 8 Vinny Zerban.
By the time 174-pound Alex Facundo won his match, the Cowboys had clinched the dual without Iowa State even getting on the board.
A total of 18 points were scored in the first period across all 10 of Sunday’s matches, and OSU’s Jax Forrest was responsible for 13 of them.
The electric freshman used a takedown and three nearfalls to build a 13-0 lead before finishing off a 16-0 technical fall of Iowa State backup Osmany Diversent.
The 12th-ranked Forrest is now 8-0 on the season, but missed a chance for a significant matchup because Iowa State starter Evan Frost was out. Frost, ranked third at the weight, missed two duals this weekend because of the flu, according to Iowa State coach Kevin Dresser.
Forrest still can redshirt by competing in just one more date this season, but when asked about his status, Taylor’s response suggested he’s not considering the idea — even if his words ultimately said differently.
Taylor said he didn’t know how many of the five dates Forrest had used after Sunday’s dual before being told.
“This was four today?” Taylor said. “We’ll keep taking it week by week.”
More: David Taylor thinks Oklahoma State wrestling has 'more to give' after routing UNI
After the 4-2 decision over 13th-ranked MJ Gaitan, Facundo is 12-4 on the season, but nine of his 16 matches have come against wrestlers ranked 13th or better. Seven have been against top-10 opponents.
Yet the redshirt junior Penn State transfer has held his own along the way, building momentum with 10 wins in his last 11 matches.
“He’s had a fun season,” Taylor said of the seventh-ranked Facundo. “He’s stacking good days and good weeks and good matches, and you’re starting to expect the end result to be what you want.”
Rocky Elam, who had a long and successful career at Missouri before transferring to Iowa State last offseason, handed OSU redshirt freshman 197-pounder Cody Merrill his second loss of the year — needing tiebreaker overtime for the 4-1 decision.
The wrestlers appeared visibly exhausted after tough rideouts by both throughout the match.
Elam, undefeated and ranked second, couldn’t escape Merrill’s grasp in the first rideout tiebreaker period, but Elam opted for a neutral start and got the winning takedown in the second half of the tiebreaker.
Considering the Big 12 Championships are just over a month away, the two could be on a collision course for a rematch in Tulsa.
“Tough match,” Taylor said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been a part of a match that, in mid-match, got the energy of that match. It was crazy. It was the energy of getting a big pin or a victory. But a mid-match thing, that was cool.
“What an experience for Cody. You’re a freshman. That guy’s a senior, ranked No. 2 in the country. And not that you’re thinking about that, but that guy’s been good. Been in a lot of those experiences, and Cody really hasn’t. He’ll learn from those things.”
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No. 5 Oklahoma State 24, No. 3 Iowa State 9
125: Troy Spratley, OSU, dec. Stevo Poulin, 3-1
133: Jax Forrest, OSU, tech fall, Osmany Diversent, 16-0 (3:31)
141: Sergio Vega, OSU, dec. Anthony Echemendia, 4-2
149: Casey Swiderski, OSU, dec. Jacob Frost, 4-2
157: Landon Robideau, OSU, dec. Vinny Zerban, 4-1
165: Dee Lockett, OSU, major dec. Conner Euton, 12-3
174: Alex Facundo, OSU, dec. MJ Gaitan, 4-2
184: Isaac Dean, ISU, dec. Trevor Dopps, 5-1
197: Rocky Elam, ISU, dec. Cody Merrill, 4-1 TB-1
HWT: Yonger Bastida, ISU, dec. Konner Doucet, 5-2
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @ScottWrightOK. Sign up for the Oklahoma State Cowboys newsletter to access more OSU coverage. Support Scott’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State wrestling rides Casey Swiderski in upset of Iowa State
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Swiderski kept his intensity in check long enough to finish the upset of Iowa State’s Jacob Frost, which was among the key matches the No. 5 Cowboys pulled out for a 24-9 win over the third-ranked Cyclones on Sunday.
But after a takedown in the final minute of the match, Swiderski almost started to celebrate a bit too early.
“I was like, ‘Hey ding-dong, look over here. We got 50 seconds left, we gotta stay focused,’” OSU coach David Taylor said with a laugh. “And he did a good job of that.
“This is just a part in his season, but you need little victories along the way.”
The 149-pound Swiderski sat out with an injury last year at Iowa State, then transferred to OSU shortly after the season. Facing a challenging schedule, he entered Sunday with five losses and a No. 12 ranking, so the upset of the sixth-ranked Frost was big without the additional emotion.
More: Oklahoma State wrestling vs Iowa State highlights: Cowboys cruise to top-5 upset
“It was an opportunity for me to just stay present like Coach tells me, just wrestle and have clarity,” Swiderski said. “I couldn’t hold back a little bit at the end, but this was a big moment for me.
“I went through a lot, had a lot of people say things about me. It was fun.”
Swiderski’s win was sandwiched between wins by Sergio Vega at 141 and Landon Robideau at 157 that each required third-period takedowns and swung the dual heavily in favor of the Pokes.
Both were tossup matches, with No. 2 Vega scrambling his way into the winning takedown against No. 3 Anthony Echemendia, and sixth-ranked Robideau finishing his takedown with 14 seconds left against No. 8 Vinny Zerban.
By the time 174-pound Alex Facundo won his match, the Cowboys had clinched the dual without Iowa State even getting on the board.
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Jax Forrest rolls to easy victory
A total of 18 points were scored in the first period across all 10 of Sunday’s matches, and OSU’s Jax Forrest was responsible for 13 of them.
The electric freshman used a takedown and three nearfalls to build a 13-0 lead before finishing off a 16-0 technical fall of Iowa State backup Osmany Diversent.
The 12th-ranked Forrest is now 8-0 on the season, but missed a chance for a significant matchup because Iowa State starter Evan Frost was out. Frost, ranked third at the weight, missed two duals this weekend because of the flu, according to Iowa State coach Kevin Dresser.
Forrest still can redshirt by competing in just one more date this season, but when asked about his status, Taylor’s response suggested he’s not considering the idea — even if his words ultimately said differently.
Taylor said he didn’t know how many of the five dates Forrest had used after Sunday’s dual before being told.
“This was four today?” Taylor said. “We’ll keep taking it week by week.”
More: David Taylor thinks Oklahoma State wrestling has 'more to give' after routing UNI
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Alex Facundo continues gauntlet
After the 4-2 decision over 13th-ranked MJ Gaitan, Facundo is 12-4 on the season, but nine of his 16 matches have come against wrestlers ranked 13th or better. Seven have been against top-10 opponents.
Yet the redshirt junior Penn State transfer has held his own along the way, building momentum with 10 wins in his last 11 matches.
“He’s had a fun season,” Taylor said of the seventh-ranked Facundo. “He’s stacking good days and good weeks and good matches, and you’re starting to expect the end result to be what you want.”
Cody Merrill, Rocky Elam set stage for future showdown
Rocky Elam, who had a long and successful career at Missouri before transferring to Iowa State last offseason, handed OSU redshirt freshman 197-pounder Cody Merrill his second loss of the year — needing tiebreaker overtime for the 4-1 decision.
The wrestlers appeared visibly exhausted after tough rideouts by both throughout the match.
Elam, undefeated and ranked second, couldn’t escape Merrill’s grasp in the first rideout tiebreaker period, but Elam opted for a neutral start and got the winning takedown in the second half of the tiebreaker.
Considering the Big 12 Championships are just over a month away, the two could be on a collision course for a rematch in Tulsa.
“Tough match,” Taylor said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been a part of a match that, in mid-match, got the energy of that match. It was crazy. It was the energy of getting a big pin or a victory. But a mid-match thing, that was cool.
“What an experience for Cody. You’re a freshman. That guy’s a senior, ranked No. 2 in the country. And not that you’re thinking about that, but that guy’s been good. Been in a lot of those experiences, and Cody really hasn’t. He’ll learn from those things.”
More: How did Oklahoma State athletics fare financially in 2025 fiscal year?
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Oklahoma State vs. Iowa State wrestling results
No. 5 Oklahoma State 24, No. 3 Iowa State 9
125: Troy Spratley, OSU, dec. Stevo Poulin, 3-1
133: Jax Forrest, OSU, tech fall, Osmany Diversent, 16-0 (3:31)
141: Sergio Vega, OSU, dec. Anthony Echemendia, 4-2
149: Casey Swiderski, OSU, dec. Jacob Frost, 4-2
157: Landon Robideau, OSU, dec. Vinny Zerban, 4-1
165: Dee Lockett, OSU, major dec. Conner Euton, 12-3
174: Alex Facundo, OSU, dec. MJ Gaitan, 4-2
184: Isaac Dean, ISU, dec. Trevor Dopps, 5-1
197: Rocky Elam, ISU, dec. Cody Merrill, 4-1 TB-1
HWT: Yonger Bastida, ISU, dec. Konner Doucet, 5-2
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @ScottWrightOK. Sign up for the Oklahoma State Cowboys newsletter to access more OSU coverage. Support Scott’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State wrestling rides Casey Swiderski in upset of Iowa State
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