All-American heavyweight Cole Konrad was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week after being named Most Outstanding Wrestler at the National Duals. Konrad pinned top-ranked and two-time NCAA Champion Steve Mocco of Oklahoma State to clinch Minnesota’s 21 -14 upset of the top-ranked Cowboys. This is the third time Konrad has been named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week this season.
Minnesota ended OSU’s consecutive winning streak at 30, while Konrad snapped Mocco’s 85-match winning streak. Mocco defeated Konrad three times last year, including an overtime decision in the finals at the NCAA Championship.
In the Golden Gophers’ first round matchup against Hofstra, Konrad pinned Jon Andriac in 1:44 to become the 26th wrestler in school history to reach 100 career wins. In the semifinals, Konrad clinched Minnesota’s 20-15 win over Central Michigan with a 9-1 major decision against 18th-ranked Bubba Gritter.
Konrad is now 24-0 on the year and has won 53 of his last 54 matches.
Top-ranked Minnesota opens the Big Ten season on Friday night at the Sports Pavilion vs. Northwestern. On Sunday, the Golden Gophers host No. 7 Iowa at 2 p.m. at Williams Arena.
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