By KIP CARLSON, Sports Information

CORVALLIS, Ore. - Oregon State wrapped up its home wrestling season in disappointing fashion Monday night, as the 14th-ranked Beavers lost to Brigham Young 22-16 in a non-league dual meet at Gill Coliseum. OSU (14-8 overall, 6-1 Pacific-10) got a rousing sendoff from one of the seniors in its lineup but saw a tough home finale for another.

Heavyweight Mat Orndorff earned an 11-1 major decision over Chris Miller in his final match at Gill Coliseum. However, co-captain Oscar Wood didn't make weight at 149 pounds and the Beavers had to forfeit that match to the Cougars (10-4, 0-1 Western Athletic).

"It's a shame things worked out the way they did," said Orndorff, who has shared co-captain honors with Wood this season. "Oscar and I have been through so much here together."

The Beavers also honored a third senior, Jake Crumley, who was not in the lineup (and had a mid-term Monday night).

While disappointed with the team outcome, Orndorff did find some satisfaction in his match. "I felt I pushed it pretty hard and scored some points," said Orndorff, ranked sixth nationally. "It's nice to go out with a win - I had a lot of fun wrestling here."

The news that Wood, ranked third nationally, wasn't announced until the 149-pound match was scheduled to begin. The forfeit left the Beavers trailing 19-13 with two matches remaining.

OSU 157-pounder Eric Jorgensen, ranked 18th nationally, took a 9-7 win over Russell Brunson to pull the Beavers within 19-16 with one match left. But at 165 pounds, BYU had fifth-ranked Rangi Smart waiting; he took an 8-2 win over Oregon State's Nathan Coy to put away the meet.

"It was anti-climactic, to say the least," OSU head coach Joe Wells said of the outcome. "It's disappointing for our seniors. Mat and Oscar have been our captains this year and have led by example. They've done a great job. As coach (Dan) Hicks said, Oscar has also pulled us out of jams a time or two."

The Beavers now look ahead to the Pacific-10 Championships, which will be held Feb. 27-28 at Stanford. That meet could have as many as four teams in the race for the championship.

OSU could be in the thick of that battle. Oregon State has had strong performances at almost every weight class this season, but seldom have they all come in the same meet.

"That's what we've been talking about - trying to click all together," Orndorff said. "We've got a lot of youth on this team, and that's apparent in our on-and-off performances. We've talked about clicking at the Pacific-10 meet and I think there's a good chance that can happen."

A year ago, the Beavers lost their final five dual meets before placing second at the Pacific-10 Championships and tying for ninth place at the NCAA Championships.

"There's a lot to prove between now and the end of the year," Wells said. "I'm proud of these guys. They could be a big factor at the conference and national meets with Mat and Oscar leading the way."

BRIGHAM YOUNG 22, NO. 14 OREGON STATE 16
(Current Amateur Wrestling News national rankings in parentheses)
174 - Clint Wilson, OSU, dec. Ethan Harris, BYU, 9-3.
184 - Scott Coleman, BYU, dec. Isaac Weber, OSU, 5-0.
197 - Shane Zajac, OSU, by forfeit.
HWT - (6) Mat Orndorff, OSU, major dec. Chris Miller, BYU, 11-1.
125 - Jose Enriquez, BYU, dec. (14) Nathan Navarro, OSU, 7-4.
133 - Aaron Holker, BYU, dec. Ben Richards, OSU, 8-3.
141 - Tom Meacham, BYU, major dec. Paul Barron, OSU, 14-6.
149 - Gary Sanderson, BYU, by forfeit.
157 - (18) Eric Jorgensen, OSU, dec. Russell Brunson, BYU, 9-7.
165 - (5) Rangi Smart, BYU, dec. Nathan Coy, OSU, 8-2.

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