North Dakota State University wrestlers Aidan Brenot and Devin Wasley have secured spots at the NCAA Championships following the first day of competition at the 2026 Big 12 Championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Five NDSU athletes will continue into the second day of the tournament. Alongside Brenot and Wasley, Ezekiel Witt, Max Petersen, and Gavin Drexler advanced to Saturday’s rounds.
Witt reached the semifinals after defeating #11 Jett Strickenberger of West Virginia 9-6. He later lost to #10 Stevo Poulin of Iowa State 9-3. Petersen also made it to the semifinals by beating Hunter Hollingsworth from Oklahoma 6-0 and #20 Josh Edmond from Missouri 9-5 before falling to top-seeded #9 Casey Swiderski of Oklahoma State 16-3.
Brenot moved through the consolation bracket with a strong start, winning over Brian Burburija of Air Force 17-3. After a loss to top seed #3 Aeoden Sinclair of Missouri, he defeated David Alonso from California Baptist in sudden victory to secure his second consecutive NCAA bid. He ended Friday with a win against Caleb Uhlenhopp from Utah Valley.
Wasley received a bye in his opening round but lost his first match to #2 Rocky Elam of Iowa State. He rebounded with a major decision over Eli Sheeren from California Baptist, which clinched his first NCAA qualification. Wasley finished Friday with a loss to #6 Bennett Berge of South Dakota State.
At 157 pounds, Drexler went 3-1 for the day. His performance included his first collegiate pin against Lincoln Gregersen (Air Force) and wins over Mark Takara (Utah Valley) and Jared Hill (Wyoming). Drexler joins Petersen and Witt in Saturday’s consolation semifinals; any one win in their final two matches would qualify them for nationals as their weight classes each have five automatic bids.
Shilo Jones had an upset victory over #11 Christian Carroll of Wyoming but was disqualified after a technical violation in his next match and eliminated from further competition.
NDSU is currently ranked tenth in team standings with 39.5 points after Friday’s events.
The tournament continues on Saturday at noon at the BOK Center, where all five remaining NDSU wrestlers will compete for further advancement.
“Aidan Brenot and Devin Wasley qualified for the NCAA Championships on day one of the 2026 Big 12 Championships presented by Allstate at the BOK Center.”
