Fix fails to reach finals in hometown national tournament

TULSA – Daton Fix failed to even get to the alter of the NCAA Wrestling Championships in his hometown.

The three-time national runner-up was taken down repeatedly – unable to get any offense going of his own – in his semifinal loss to Cornell’s Vito Arujau by 11-3 major decision at the BOK Center

It was the worst loss of Fix’s collegiate career – coming a day after he became the 45th Cowboy to win 100 matches and just a few short hours after he became just the 15th Oklahoma State wrestler to earn a fourth All-American honor. Prior to the loss to Arujua, Fix – who was undefeated on the year – had never lost a match by more than two points.

Fix was not made available to talk following his first loss of the season, and Oklahoma State wrestling coach John Smith did not meet with the media as he typically does – including at the conclusion of Thursday’s first day of the tournament.

With Fix falling short of the final, it marked the first time since 2018 the Cowboys will not have a wrestler competing in the final session of the national tournament.

They head into the final day of the tournament with 25 points and are 19th in the team standings. The worst finish in program history was 16th in the 2009 tournament. The team is on pace for its third finish outside the top 10 over the past five tournaments – with the other two being third-place finishes.

Oklahoma State avoided having just one All-American in a national tournament for just the second time in program history – the other being the 2009 tournament with Jared Rosholt’s third-place finish being the only top-eight finish – thanks to returning All-American Dustin Plott fighting off defeat in his first consolation match against Demetrius Romero of Utah Valley, a Big 12 Conference affiliate.

Plott found himself down after one period after giving up an early takedown, but he limited the scoring to that. A reversal and a takedown of his own in the second frame gave him a one-point advantage – which was evaporated when Romero managed a third-period escape.

However, the Tuttle product needed just five seconds in the first overtime to come up with a takedown for a 7-5 sudden victory to secure All-American honors at 174 pounds for the second-straight season.

Plott, who finished sixth at the weight last season, followed it up with a win in the consolation quarterfinals – knocking off Ohio State’s Ethan Smith by 8-4 decision. He will wrestle Virginia Tech’s Mekhi Lewis – the No. 3 seed – in the consolation semifinals Saturday morning to figure out if he will wrestle in the third-place match or, once again, in the fifth-place match.

Consolation semifinals are set to begin 10 a.m., and will be broadcast on ESPNU.