NDSU Wrestling Heads to Big 12 Championships in Tulsa

FARGO, N.D. – North Dakota State wrestling travels to Tulsa, Oklahoma this weekend for the Big 12 Championships on Saturday, March 8, and Sunday, March 9, at the BOK Center.
 
Weekend Schedule
Saturday, March 8

Session 1: Preliminary & Quarterfinal Matches – 10:00 a.m. CT

Session 2: Semifinal & Consolation Quarterfinal Matches – 5:00 p.m. CT
Sunday, March 9
Session 3: Consolation Semifinals – 12:00 p.m. CT
Session 4: Finals – 8 p.m. CT
 
Tickets
All-session tickets are available through TicketMaster and the BOK Center Box Office. General admission seats start as low as $37, while reserved seating is $57 and premium reserved and premium center seating is available for $112 and $122, respectively.
 
Coverage
The first three sessions will be carried on ESPN+ with the championship round broadcasted on ESPNU. Live statistics for the event will be available through TrackWrestling. Links are available on GoBison.com.
 
Burwick, Drexler Pre-Seeded for Championships
Kyle Burwick (133) and Gavin Drexler (174) have been pre-seeded ahead of the Big 12 Championships. Burwick received a five seed, going 22-10 during the regular season, including an 8-1 mark in Big 12 duals. Drexler also received a five seed after a 18-8 regular season and a 7-2 record in Big 12 duals.
 
NDSU Big 12 Championship History
The Bison have a had three conference champions in the first nine years in the Big 12. In 2023, Jared Franek claimed the top spot at 157 pounds. Cam Sykora took the 133-pound title in 2020 and Luke Weber won the 165-pound title in 2021. NDSU’s nine placers and 90.5 team points in 2020 were the most by a Bison team. NDSU’s highest finish in the team standings was fourth in 2017 with 82.5 points.
 
Bison Placing at Big 12 Championships
Heading into this weekend’s championship, the Bison have had a total of 53 placers over the first nine seasons, averaging nearly six placers per year. Aside from the three champions, NDSU has also had 11 second-place finishers and six third-place finishers.
1st – 3  |  2nd – 11  |  3rd – 6  |  4th – 6  |  5th – 6  |  6th – 10  |  7th – 6  |  8th – 5
 
Big 12 Allocated 58 NCAA Qualifying Spots
The Big 12 Conference has been pre-allocated 58 qualifying spots for the NCAA Division I wrestling championship. The top seven placers at 125, 141, 165 and 184 pounds will receive automatic qualifying berths. 133, 157 and 174 pounds will be the top six, while 149, 197 and 285 pounds will be the top four.
 
Burwick Leads Bison Represented in RPI Rankings
Six Bison are ranked in the second release of the RPI rankings, with Kyle Burwick (133) leading the way for the Bison, sitting in 25th overall. Max Petersen (157), who will miss the Big 12 Championships is ranked 26th, with Aidan Brenot (184) is 30th. Gavin Drexler (149) is 31st, Boeden Greenley (165) is 32nd and Tristan Daugherty (125) rounds out the rankings for NDSU at 33rd.
 
Burwick On Dominant Stretch
Kyle Burwick has been on a dominant stretch to close the dual season, winning eight-straight Big 12 duals, including seven bonus-point decisions. During the winning run in Big 12 competition, the senior won four straight 15-0 shutout tech falls, before a win by fall, decision and then two major decisions headed into championship weekend. In his last eight Big 12 duals, Burwick is outscoring his opposition by a combined 105-14.
 
Young Herd
Seven of the 10 Bison set to compete at the Big 12 Championships will be freshman or sophomores, with a true freshman, two redshirt freshmen and four sophomores. NDSU also has just one wrestler who has competed at the Big 12 Championships in Gavin Drexler (149), who went 1-2 last season at 141 pounds in his first appearance. Tristan Daugherty (125) and Kyle Burwick (133) also have conference championship experience at previous institutions, with Daugherty transferring from Buffalo and Burwick from Wisconsin and Nebraska.
 
Daugherty Coming Off Undefeated California Trip
Tristan Daugherty (125) went 3-0 with a major decision during NDSU’s recent trip to California, his final matches headed into championship weekend.
 
Moore To Make Official NDSU Debut at Big 12
Sophomore transfer Peyton Moore spent two seasons at Missouri before transferring to NDSU this season. After wrestling a pair of opens in the fall, which ended with an injury, Moore had to sit out most of the season, and will make his return to the Bison in Tulsa.
 
Drexler Eyeing Improved Tulsa Finish
Gavin Drexler made his Big 12 debut as a redshirt freshman last season, going 1-2 with his first trip to the BOK Center. Drexler has moved up to 149 from 141 and has seen a big improvement. He went 7-7, including 3-5 in Big 12 duals last season. This year Drexler went 9-6 in duals and 7-2 against the Big 12.
 
Drew Closes Dual Season Strong
Bison newcomer and heavyweight Drew Blackburn-Forst closed out the dual season on a strong run, winning three of his last four. Following a ranked win with a pin of then No. 29 Michael Wolfgram of West Virginia in late December, Blackburn-Forst gained momentum for the spring dual season, going 5-2 in Big 12 duals. The heavyweight added another ranked win over No. 27 Luke Rasmussen of South Dakota State in the season finale.
 
Postseason Debuts
Seven Bison will make their postseason debuts this weekend, with six of the seven coming in the six highest weight classes. Junior Bison Gabriel Schumm (157) has been a spot starter earlier this season and will make his first trip to Tulsa, while redshirt freshmen Boeden Greenley (165) and Aidan Brenot (184) make their first trips to the BOK Center after their first full seasons.
 
Peyton Moore (141), Devin Wasley (174) and Drew Blackburn-Forst (285) transferred to NDSU this season after two seasons as back ups at Missouri, Minnesota and Northern Colorado, respectively. The Bison also suit up a true freshman in Tayshaun Glover (197).
 
NCAA D1 Qualifiers
The Bison have had 65 NCAA Division I qualifiers in 16 years of postseason eligibility, including 21 over the last four seasons. Rich in wrestling history, the Bison sent 27 to NCAA Division I Championships from 1971 to 1991, bringing the total to 91.
 
NCAA D1 All-Americans
The Bison have 12 All-Americans at the Division I Championships, including a best finish of 3rd by Steven Monk at 165 in 2014. In 2015, Kurtis Julson and Hayden Zillmer both placed in the top 8, while Jared Franek and Michael Caliendo were the most recent to earn All-American honors in 2023.