University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Oklahoma
UNI wrestling falls at Oklahoma, 23-18
1/31/2026 9:09:00 PM | Wrestling
Panthers come up short against Sooners in Norman. UNI visits South Dakota State next weekend.
NORMAN, Okla. --- The 13th ranked UNI wrestling team battled through early injury a handful of hotly contested matches, but ultimately came up short on Saturday night in a 23-18 dual loss at No. 21 Oklahoma.
Looking to bounce back after a difficult showing at No. 5 Oklahoma State on Friday night, Northern Iowa picked up four victories, including a pin at 133 pounds. Despite having a chance to win the dual late in the final match of the night, the loss snaps the Panthers' eight dual winning streak against the Sooners.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
After Trever Anderson was forced to medically forfeit just 32 seconds into his bout at 125 pounds, Julian Farber responded at 133 pounds with a pair of takedowns of Beric Jordan for a 6-1 lead. Extending his lead to 9-2, Farber would get the fall on Jordan to tie the dual at 6-6 with his third pin of the season and his fifth bonus point win in the last seven matches.
Max Brady gave No. 26 Tyler Wells a challenge at 141 pounds, but came up short after giving up a late third period takedown in the final 30 seconds in a 4-1 loss. Ethan Basile put UNI back on track at 149 pounds by jumping out to a 7-0 lead with a takedown and four nearfall points with over two and a half minutes of riding time on Hunter Hollingsworth. Despite Hollingsworth battling back in the third, Basile would hold on for a 9-5 victory with riding time to even the dual at 9-9.
Following a narrow 3-2 loss for RJ Weston at 157 pounds to Layton Schneider, Ryder Downey righted the ship for the Panther Train at 165 pounds against Bryce Burkett. After a scoreless first period, Downey scored on an escape to begin the second and added a takedown for a 4-0 lead, adding two points on penalties and riding time for a 7-1 decision, evening the dual once again at 12-12.
In a matchup of top-12 opponents at 174 pounds, Jared Simma and No. 8 Carter Schubert battled down to the wire. Schubert would take a 2-0 lead on a technical violation for a headgear touch and escape, with Simma escaping midway through the final frame in a narrow 2-1 loss for Simma. At 184 pounds, Nick Fox jumped out to a 7-0 lead on No. 10 Carter Saldano at 184 pounds with a takedown and four nearfall before the match ended with Saldano being forced to medically forfeit, giving UNI an 18-15 lead with two bouts to go.
It would be all DJ Parker at 197 pounds as John Gunderson surrendered nine points in the second period in a 14-2 major decision loss. With the dual coming down to the final match, Adam Ahrendsen would give No. 21 Juan Mora an early challenge at heavyweight, but could not establish his offense in a 16-4 major decision loss.
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UP NEXT
The Panthers return to dual action on Sunday, Feb. 8 as they visit No. 15 South Dakota State. Competition is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. CT at First Bank & Trust Arena in Brookings with live coverage of the event available on FloWrestling.
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FINAL RESULTS (#Intermat/Flowrestling rankings listed)
No. 21 OKLAHOMA 23, No. 13 UNI 18
- 125 | #26/27 Conrad Henricksen (OU) def. #32/23 Trever Anderson (UNI), MFF
- 133 | #25/18 Julian Farber (UNI) pins Beric Jordan (OU), Fall 4:51
- 141 | #26/29 Tyler Wells (OU) dec. Max Brady (UNI), 4-1
- 149 | Ethan Basile (UNI) dec. Hunter Hollingsworth (OU), 9-5
- 157 | Layton Schneider (OU) dec. RJ Weston (UNI), 3-2
- 165 | #6/6 Ryder Downey (UNI) dec. Bryce Burkett (OU), 7-1
- 174 | #8/8 Carter Schubert (OU) dec. #12/13 Jared Simma (UNI), 2-1
- 184 | Nick Fox (UNI) def. #10/12 Brian Soldano (OU), MFF
- 197 | #11/12 DJ Parker (OU) maj. Dec. John Gunderson (UNI), 14-2 MD
- HWT | #21/21 Juan Mora (OU) maj. Dec. Adam Ahrendsen (UNI), 16-4 MD
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UNI wrestling action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (University of Northern Iowa Wrestling), X (@UNI_wrestling) and on Instagram (@uni_panther_wrestling). Check out the latest Panther news and information online at UNIpanthers.com.
Players Mentioned
