Wrestling Readies for Big 12 Championship in Tulsa

Friday, March 6

Tulsa, Okla.

10 a.m.

Missouri

Session I

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Wide overhead view of a wrestling arena inside the BOK Center during the Big 12 Championships. The arena is dimly lit with dramatic red lighting around the concourse and ceiling trusses. A single wrestling mat sits illuminated at the center of the floor beneath a large scoreboard, surrounded by a packed crowd filling the lower bowl while the upper sections fade into darkness. The scene creates a high-energy, championship atmosphere focused on the mat in the middle of the arena.

3/5/2026 12:58:00 PM | Wrestling

BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP: #14 Missouri (12-8, 5-3 BIG 12)
Match Details	Friday, March 6 - Saturday, March 7 • Tulsa, Okla. • BOK Center
Match Coverage	Championship Central \| Brackets
Match Notes	Missouri
Social Media	Twitter: @MizzouWrestling \| Instagram: @MizzouWrestling

TULSA, Okla. - No. 14 Mizzou wrestling begins the postseason in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for the Big 12 Championships on Friday, March 6, and Saturday, March 7, at the BOK Center.

REGULAR SEASON REVIEW

Missouri finished the season 12-8 and 5-3 in Big 12 duals, marking the 22nd season under head coach Brian Smith, totaling 10 or more wins.
The Tigers closed the season at No. 4 Iowa State, where they earned two upset wins in a 20-14 loss, Feb. 22. Seth Mendoza defeated No. 9 Jacob Frost, and Max Mayfield beat No. 13 Connor Euton.
Additionally, it marks coach Smith's 23rd winning season with only three below .500 in his 28 years at Mizzou.
With the Tigers' 12 wins, two were shutouts of their DI opponents in LIU and Northern Colorado, both 42-0. Mizzou outscored its opposition this year 510-469 in dual team points.
The Black and Gold took the top spot at Solder Salute, Jan. 3-4, with 166.5 points and three individual champions (Mack Mauger, Josh Edmond and Aeoden Sinclair).

MAX IS BACK

Graduate student Max Mayfield stamped his return to the starting lineup at 165 pounds with a win over No. 13 Connor Euton, 8-6.
Mayfield made his first appearance in the lineup since sustaining an injury against North Carolina's Bryce Hepner in the Soldier Salute final, Jan. 4. His last dual appearance was Dec. 14, 2025, against Northern Iowa.
Mayfield is 12-5 this season and ranked No. 26 at 165 pounds in the NCAA Coaches' Poll.

FULL STEED AHEAD

Redshirt Junior Cam Steed picked up his third-ranked win of the season over No. 12 MJ Gaitan of Iowa State,
Steed earned Big 12 Wrestler of the Week Honors from the league office on Feb. 10, after defeating No. 13 Brody Conley by fall in 23 seconds.
Despite a tough 11-5 season, Steed is ranked 10th at 174 pounds by the NCAA Coaches Poll, with seven of his wins coming with bonus points, and enters the postseason on a five-match win streak.

PACING THE PACK

Redshirt freshman Aeoden Sinclair leads the team with 26 wins, followed closely by redshirt senior Evan Bates with 21. Redshirt sophomore Jarrett Stoner joined the duo after earning his 20th win of the season against Brock Kehler of West Virginia.
Sinclair tops the team with 19 bonus-point wins and seven pins, and leads the team with 103 takedowns this season, followed by redshirt senior Evan Bates (62).

CONFERENCE SEEDING

Eight of Missouri's 10 wrestlers earned a seed in the Big 12 Championship.
Aeoden Sinclair got the No. 1 seed at 184 pounds, while Cam Steed earned the No. 3 seed at 174 and Max Mayfield has the No. 4 seed at 165.
Josh Edmond is the No. 5 seed in the 149-pound bracket, and Gage Walker (133) is the No. 6. Teague Travis (157), Evan Bates (197) and Jarrett Stoner (285) all received the No. 7 seed in their respective brackets.
Both Mack Mauger at 125 pounds and Easton Hilton at 141 pounds enter the tournament unseeded.

SIGNED, SEALED, SINCLAIR

Redshirt freshman Aeoden Sinclair secured his 20th straight win with a technical fall over Iowa State's Jacob Helgeson, 21-5 (2:55).
The second-ranked 184-pounder leads the team with 26 wins to just one loss, and has a 103-2 takedown ratio this season to average 3.8 takedowns per match.
Moreover, the redshirt freshman's 103 takedowns lead all NCAA wrestlers this season per TrackWrestling.

BEST IN THE BUSINESS

Head coach Brian Smith recorded his 350th career dual win with a 42-0 victory over Northern Colorado, Jan. 25.
Coach Smith now has 353 wins, which is currently tied for second among active NCAA Division I coaches behind North Carolina's Rob Knoll with 357. Ohio State's Tom Ryan is tied with coach Smith at 353 wins.
Moreover, Coach Smith ranks atop the Big 12 coaches, with the closest competition being Tim Flynn at West Virginia (285) and Kevin Dresser at Iowa State (265).

NO DEBATE(S)

Redshirt senior transfer Evan Bates has continued to rise since putting on the Black and Gold singlet, with his most recent win being over No. 14 Rune Lawrence of West Virginia, 7-4, on Feb. 6.
Bates ranks 11th at 197 pounds and is second on the team in wins (21) and bonus point wins (13).
Moreover, the Chesterton, Indiana native, has well surpassed his takedown average from a season ago at Northwestern. Bates is averaging 2.21 takedowns per match (62 takedowns in 28 matches), compared to 1.21 (39 takedowns in 32 matches) from a season ago.

DEDICATED TO DEVELOPMENT

True freshman Seth Mendoza has been making a name for himself during his redshirt season with a 15-6 record overall and is 8-4 in countable matches.
Mendoza most recently took down No. 9 Jacob Frost, 8-2, in Missouri's dual against No. 4 Iowa State.
Additionally, true freshman David Gleason made the finals of the Cyclone Open (Jan. 19), won the Missouri Valley Open and placed seventh at Solder Salute (Jan. 3-4). Gleason is 12-5 in attached matches this season.
Classmate Dominic Bambinelli is 13-6 in his attached matches this season at 165 pounds, having claimed a Missouri Valley Open title and Outstanding Wrestler award at the tournament.
Additionally, Bambinelli placed fifth at the Cyclone Open (Jan. 4) and eighth at the Cyclone Open (Dec. 7).
Additionally, freshman Danny Heiser claimed the top spot at 174 pounds in the Missouri Valley Open and holds a 10-4 record in countable matches this season.

THIS TIME LAST YEAR

Missouri finished eighth last season in the Big 12 Championship with 65.5 team points.
Cam Steed and Keegan O'Toole made the conference finals at 165 and 174, respectively, with O'Toole claiming the top spot.
Kade Moore also earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by finishing fourth as the eighth seed at 133 pounds.

CONFERENCE HISTORY

Mizzou has won three Big 12 Championships as a team: 2012, 2022 and 2023.
Individually, the Tigers have had 24 wrestlers take home titles, with Keegan O'Toole winning most recently in 2024 at 165 pounds and 2025 at 174 pounds.
The Black and Gold's first Big 12 Champion was Tyron Woodley at 165 pounds, followed by Scott Barker at 184 pounds, both in 2003.
Moreover, Missouri has four wrestlers who have won multiple, with Ben Askren, Nick Marable and Keegan O'Toole claiming the most Big 12 titles with three apiece.

MOST WINS (Active, 50+)

Josh Edmond (78), Max Mayfield (76), Evan Bates (73) and Luqman Masud (67).

ON THE HORIZON

The qualifying Tigers will prepare for NCAA Championship, March 20-22. The tournament will take place at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.

FOLLOW THE TIGERS
Visit MUTigers.com for the latest information on all things Mizzou Wrestling. You can also find the Tigers on social media by liking us on Facebook (Mizzou Wrestling) and following us on Twitter and Instagram (@MizzouWrestling).