Six South Dakota State University (SDSU) wrestlers have been seeded in the top eight of their respective weight classes for the upcoming Big 12 Wrestling Championship, according to seedings and pairings released by conference officials on Monday.
Brady Roark, Julian Tagg, Cael Swensen, Marcus Espinoza-Owens, Moses Espinoza-Owens, and Bennett Berge all received seeds. Tagg, Berge, and Roark are each ranked fourth in their brackets. Swensen and Moses Espinoza-Owens are seeded sixth. Marcus Espinoza-Owens is seeded eighth at 165 pounds.
Four other SDSU wrestlers—Cale Seaton, Alek Martin, Brock Fettig, and Luke Rasmussen—will compete unseeded. Seaton will open against Jax Forrest of Oklahoma State, the No. 1 overall seed at 133 pounds. Martin faces Josh Edmond of Missouri (No. 5 seed) at 149 pounds; Fettig has a rematch with Isaac Dean of Iowa State (No. 7 seed) at 184 pounds; Rasmussen starts against Jack Forbes of Utah Valley (No. 6 seed) in the heavyweight division.
Moses Espinoza-Owens is the only Jackrabbit to receive a first-round bye and will face the winner between Cam Steed (No. 3 seed) or Hudson Rogers.
In first-round matchups: Roark will wrestle Wyoming’s Sefton Douglass at 125 pounds; Tagg meets Easton Hilton from Missouri at 141 pounds; Swensen opens with Mark Takara from Utah Valley at 157 pounds; Marcus Espinoza-Owens faces Zyon Trujillo from Utah Valley at 165 pounds; Berge begins his tournament run against Tyler Perry from Northern Colorado.
The Big 12 Conference has received a total of 63 automatic pre-allocations for this year’s NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. These allocations cover all weight classes and are determined by placements during the Big 12 Championship scheduled for March 6-7 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The championship schedule includes preliminary and quarterfinal matches beginning Friday morning at 10:00 a.m., followed by semifinals later that day at 5:00 p.m. Consolation semifinals start Saturday at noon with finals set for Saturday evening at 7:00 p.m.; doors open one hour before each session.
For more information about NCAA wrestling allocations by conference visit https://www.ncaa.com/news/wrestling/article/2024-02-22/ncaa-announces-wrestling-championship-pre-allocation-spots-and-selection-timeline.