by staff–16 Feb ’21
For the second week in a row, and second time this season, a Wyoming Cowboy has been named the Big 12 Wrestler of the Week. Hayden Hastings takes the honor after a first-place finish at the Cowboy Challenge Tournament that was held in Stillwater, Okla. the 174 lb redshirt junior went 3-0 in the tournament and sealed first place with a win over No. 7 Dustin Plott (OSU) in the finals. This is the first time in his Cowboy career that Hastings has been named Wrestler of the Week.
At the Cowboy Challenge Tournament Hastings posted back-to-back decision victories to reach the finals outscoring his opponents 11-5 in his first two matches, before he faced off against Plott in the finals.
Plott struck first in the match scoring the first two takedowns and took an early 4-2 lead over Hastings after the first period.
The second period opened with a three-point flurry from Hastings, who ended the second period tied 5-5. After an escape from Plott to start the third, Hastings turned up the pressure, took Plott down, and locked in the riding time point to secure the 8-7 victory. It was Hastings first top 10 win of the season as he improved to 11-1 on the season upping his win streak to six. Hastings becomes the first Wyoming native to win the award since Cole Verner won in it in 2018.
Up next the Cowboys will prepare for the post season as they set their sights on the on the Big 12 Championships March 6-7.
