Mizzou wrestling completes reintroduction to Big 12 Conference with tournament title
What a reintroduction for Missouri wrestling to the Big 12 Conference.
Missouri won the Big 12 Tournament on Sunday in Tulsa, Oklahoma, behind 10 podium finishes and an individual first-place showing from Keegan O'Toole, culminating in a team title in the program's first year back since departing the league in 2012.
The championship marks the Tigers' 11th straight conference crown, winning their first in the Big 12 in 2012 before nine straight in the Mid-American Conference.
Missouri posted a final tally of 131.5 points in the two-day Big 12 Tournament. Oklahoma finished second at 113, with Iowa State third at 110.
"That's why we came back to the Big 12," Missouri coach Brian Smith said. "We wanted to be in this tough atmosphere. When you think of 11 years of winning a conference, that's a long time. It's a great accomplishment by many people."
Smith was named Big 12 coach of the year after also winning the award in 2012.
Following a slow start to the tournament, Missouri gained momentum into Saturday night and finished Session II in first place with 109.5 points. The Tigers would not give up the lead for the remainder of the weekend.
O'Toole won the 165-pound bracket, defeating West Virginia's Peyton Hall by a 13-7 decision in the final. O'Toole led 5-3 after the first period behind two takedowns and an escape. He put more points up on the board in the second with an additional two takedowns before finishing the match with a strong third.
Allan Hart finished second at 141 pounds following a 6-4 loss in the final. Hart provided important team points for the Tigers on Saturday with a major decision in the semifinals to advance to Sunday's final.
Peyton Mocco was the runner-up at 174 after dropping a 4-3 decision to Oklahoma State's Dustin Plott. Mocco led until the final 20 seconds of the match when Plott scored a takedown to flip the advantage.
Jeremiah Kent finished Missouri's run in the tournament with a second-place finish at 184 in a 14-3 final against the top-seeded Parker Keckeisen from Northern Iowa. He knocked off the second- and third-seeded wrestlers on his way to Sunday's final.
Zach and Rocky Elam took third place in the tournament at heavyweight and 197, respectively. Jarrett Jacques (157) and Josh Edmond (149) rebounded to win fifth place in their respective weight classes. Connor Brown (133) and Noah Surtin (125) helped the Tigers' cause Sunday afternoon with seventh-place finishes.
After winning the Big 12 championships, Missouri is scheduled to conclude the 2021-22 season at the NCAA championships in Detroit from March 17-19.
"We'll celebrate tonight and then get ready to do it again in 10 days in Detroit," Smith said.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Mizzou wrestling wins Big 12 Conference Tournament title
