Oklahoma

Oklahoma State wrestling hoping to get ’10K in GIA’ for Missouri dual

Published

9 months ago

February 1, 2025

Press Room

Oklahoma State wrestling hoping to get ’10K in GIA’ for Missouri dual

STILLWATER — David Taylor isn’t the type to hide his goals.

One in particular that the first-year Oklahoma State wrestling coach has expressed is attendance — and the pursuit of bringing 10,000 fans to Gallagher-Iba Arena.

The Cowboys have surpassed 8,200 twice this year, and are well ahead of pace to break the program’s single-season average for attendance since the arena was expanded to its current capacity for the 2001 season.

But the third-ranked Cowboys have one last shot to hit Taylor’s 10,000 mark when they host No. 20 Missouri at 2 p.m. Sunday at GIA. They’ve labeled the goal as “10K in GIA” on social media promotions.

OSU’s season high attendance is 8,257, set a couple weeks ago in the 30-12 rout of West Virginia, and that brought the season average to 7,073.

Last year’s Cowboys set the known record for season average at 5,871. This year, the team has been over 6,000 for every dual.

“It’s pretty awesome,” Taylor said after the West Virginia win. “When we sat down with guys, we were like, ‘Hey, these are our goals for the season.’ They said, ‘You guys aren’t gonna be able to do that unless you get Team X, Y and Z to come in here. I was like, why’s that? You don’t know.

“Oklahoma State wrestling, this is an important thing to people. So I think it’s awesome.”

It’s possible that OSU has had a higher average attendance than whatever this year’s number ends up being.

Before the major renovation for 2000-01, which brought the capacity to 13,611, the previous arena had seated 6,381 since 1986. It was in the 6,700 range for a few years before that.

But the exact attendance numbers from anything before 2001 weren’t as closely tracked as they are today.

So maybe there was a season when the historically legendary program brought more fans through the GIA turnstiles.

But this year remains historical regardless, and signals the excitement Taylor brought to OSU both with his reputation and the product he’s putting on the mat — an aggressive, enthralling style of wrestling that draws fans’ attention.

“I love the amount of fans that we have,” OSU 141-pound sophomore Tagen Jamison said. “Other programs, if you look at their videos, they’re not having the support system that we have here. It’s really awesome to see the amount of fans that we get to show up.

“I think it helps drive what we’re doing already.”

At a point in time when revenue is about to become a much more impactful term in college athletics — with the NCAA antitrust settlement expected to open the door for revenue sharing directly with athletes.

“We’re in a time in college athletics where that stuff matters,” Taylor said. “How many people that come to our matches matters.

“I think we’re continuing to push the limits. It means a lot to our guys, our program, our university. It’s really cool to see that and be a part of a program that can show that type of support for wrestling.”

And it’s been particularly inspiring for the newcomers from other programs that don’t draw the way OSU has this year to see the support Cowboy fans have brought.

“I think it’s really exciting,” said OSU heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson, who wrestled the last four years at Air Force. “Stillwater is a special place. The wrestlers that come here are all special guys. There’s a lot of good stuff going on here and it’s contagious when you’re in that environment and there’s so much passion toward a sport.

“They’re all here to support the Cowboys and see some good wrestling, and we like to deliver that every single time.”

OSU vs. Missouri

2 p.m. Sunday at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater (ESPN+)

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Oklahoma

Three Takeaways from Oklahoma’s Loss to UCLA

Published

10 hours ago

November 11, 2025

Press Room

Three Takeaways from Oklahoma’s Loss to UCLA

Despite two of its best players struggling with foul trouble, Oklahoma was right there with UCLA well into the third quarter.

But the No. 3-ranked Bruins took over from there, pulling away for a 73-59 win over the No. 6 Sooners in an early season showdown between two of women’s college basketball’s top teams in Sacramento, CA.

Starting in that decisive third quarter, UCLA ripped off a 16-3 run to stretch a one-point lead into a 59-45 advantage.

OU never got closer than seven the rest of the way.

Payton Verhulst led the Sooners with 16 points while Zya Vann added 13, playing a big role early when Aaliyah Chavez went to the bench with foul trouble. Raegan Beers also found foul trouble early.

Vann scored seven of her points in the first quarter, including hitting a 3-pointer in the closing seconds.

Oklahoma shot just 30.7 percent from the field.

Gianna Kneepkens led the Bruins with 20 points, while Angela Dugalic added 16 points and 15 rebounds.

The Sooners (1-1) return to action against Kansas City at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Lloyd Noble Center.

Here are three takeaways from the Sooners’ loss:

Less than four minutes into the game, Oklahoma freshman point guard Aaliyah Chavez was already heading to the bench.

The 5-star phenom picked up a pair of fouls less than 40 seconds apart to limit her time on the floor in the first quarter.

The Sooners were up 9-7 when Chavez headed to the bench, and UCLA took advantage without her on the floor, outscoring OU 17-7 during that span.

Whether it was due to Jennie Baranczyk’s trust in her, or necessity with the game in danger of slipping away early, Chavez didn’t stay on the bench long.

She re-entered the game with 1:25 remaining in the first quarter and remained in the game for all but a few seconds of the second quarter.

Chavez never did pick up a third foul.

But though she was able to fight through the foul trouble, Chavez struggled with her shot against the Bruins.

She finished 4-of-16 from the floor, though she didn’t have a turnover in 32 minutes. Chavez had 11 points and three assists.

Chavez still flashed the skill that made her the top player in the 2025 class.

In the closing seconds of the first quarter, Chavez drove baseline, flipping it to Sahara Williams through traffic for a midrange jumper.

Williams’ shot, though, was released just after time expired, giving UCLA a 24-22 lead after one.

The matchup between former middle school teammates and high school competitors Raegan Beers of OU and Lauren Betts of UCLA was front and center going into the game.

Both had their moments, but ultimately Betts won out, as the reigning national defensive player of the year finished with nine points and 10 rebounds.

She also blocked four shots, though also finished with a career-high seven turnovers.

Early in the fourth quarter, there was a scary moment when Beers crumpled to the floor with an apparent non-contact knee injury.

But after being checked out on the bench, Beers was back less than two minutes later.

Beers finished with seven points and 14 rebounds on 2-of-7 shooting with two steals.

While OU’s offense has been a strength under Baranczyk, the Sooners have often struggled to limit turnovers in their free-wheeling offensive system.

But with Chavez helping direct the offense Monday, OU finished with just nine turnovers while forcing 16. The Sooners outscored UCLA 16-9 off turnovers.

The turnover numbers were OU’s lowest since late January 2024.

The Sooners turned the ball over 18 times in their season-opening 84-67 win over Belmont.

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Oklahoma

Oklahoma will give Alabama offense toughest test yet. What to know about the Sooners

Published

2 days ago

November 9, 2025

Press Room

Oklahoma will give Alabama offense toughest test yet. What to know about the Sooners

There have been few defenses in the country better than Oklahoma.

The Sooners have allowed only 14.1 points per game this season, which leads the SEC and ranks seventh in the nation. Oklahoma also ranks first in the SEC in fewest yards allowed per game at 264.22. That also ranks seventh nationally.

A season ago, the Sooners held Alabama to three points on the road. Now, with a much different offense and a new offensive coordinator and quarterback, the No. 4 Crimson Tide (8-1, 6-0 SEC) will aim to have much more offensive success against No. 11 Oklahoma on Saturday (2:30 p.m. CT, ABC) at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Here’s what you need to know about the Sooners (7-2, 3-2 SEC).

Oklahoma’s resume so far

The Sooners started the season on a five-game winning streak but have lost two of their last four games.

The first loss of the season occurred against then-unranked Texas, now ranked No. 10. The second loss was two weeks later against No. 6 Ole Miss, who was then ranked eighth.

Oklahoma’s best win this season has been against No. 18 Michigan. The Sooners also went on the road before an open week and beat No. 21 Tennessee.

According to ESPN, the Sooners have the No. 12 strength of record. Their strength of schedule ranks 16th.

The Oklahoma offense

The Sooners have an offense that sits in the bottom half of the conference in points per game, ranked 11th scoring 28.89 points per game.

Only Kentucky, Auburn, LSU, Florida and South Carolina have worse offenses in the SEC.

The Sooners also rank 11th in rushing offense and defense in the conference in yards per game.

Washington State transfer quarterback John Mateer has been the primary quarterback running the offense, but he hasn’t been near as effective since returning from a hand injury.

Before the hand injury, Mateer threw for six touchdowns and rushed for five more over the first four games of the season.

In the four games since, Mateer has thrown for two touchdowns and rushed for one. Those four games since the hand injury have all been against SEC competition whereas the first four included two overmatched, unranked teams.

Isaiah Sategna III has been his top target. The receiver has caught 40 passes for 692 yards and five touchdowns. He ranks fifth in the conference with 76.89 yards per game. Deion Burks has also been a top weapon, catching 42 passes for 435 yards and two scores.

Tory Blaylock has been the top rusher, taking 94 carries for 401 yards and four scores.

The Sooner defense

Oklahoma doesn’t give up many points or yards, but the Sooners also don’t get many takeaways.

They rank 117th in the country in takeaways per game at 0.8. For comparison, Alabama ranks 18th, gaining 1.8 takeaways per game.

Defensive lineman Taylor Wein is one of the SEC’s top players at securing tackles for loss. He averages 1.22 per game. Defensive lineman R Mason Thomas is another, averaging 1.06 per game. They rank tied for fourth and seventh in the conference, respectively.

Thomas is also one of the top pass rushers in the conference. He has tallied 6.5 sacks, which ranks tied for fifth.

As a whole, Oklahoma has been effective at getting to the quarterback. The Sooners have tallied 33 sacks, which ranks fourth in the country behind only UConn (35), Texas A&M (34) and Texas (34).

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Oklahoma

Man arrested after high speed chase through two Oklahoma counties

Published

3 days ago

November 8, 2025

Press Room

Man arrested after high speed chase through two Oklahoma counties

ATOKA COUNTY, Okla. (KXII) – A man was arrested on a number of charges, including a DUI, after a high-speed pursuit through Bryan and Atoka Counties.

Josiah Hemby, 29, was driving north on Highway 69 in Bryan County when a Tushka Police Officer tried to pull him over for speeding. He refused to stop.

A pursuit began that entered into Atoka County. According to Atoka County Sheriff Kody Simpson, speeds eclipsed 100 mph. Hemby almost collided into an officer during the pursuit.

The pursuit finally stopped in front of the Dollar General in Atoka, on Highway 69 near Virginia Avenue.

Hemby was arrested and booked into the Atoka County Jail on a number of charges, including driving under the influence, felony eluding, speeding, reckless driving, and running a roadblock.

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