Ohio State clinches team title at National Duals Invitational sponsored by Paycom

Photo: Ben Davino (right) of Ohio State put together an impressive 4-0 weekend, including a win over two-time defending NCAA finalist Drake Ayala of Iowa. Photo by Sam Janicki.

Editor’s Note: WIN’s Volume 32 Issue 3, which prints on Nov. 26, 2025, will contain complete coverage of the first National Duals Invitational sponsored by Paycom. Subscribe here by Wednesday, Nov. 19 to guarantee print-copy delivery. 

By Tristan Warner

The Ohio State Buckeyes rolled to the team title at the first National Duals Invitational sponsored by Paycom at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla. on Nov. 15-16. Posting a 4-0 record on the weekend, Ohio State topped Iowa, 27-12, in the finals Sunday night, which were televised nationally on ESPN2.

The Buckeyes outscored all four opponents by a staggering 122-27 margin, which included wins over Wyoming and three programs ranked within WIN’s Top-10 Dual-Meet Team Rankings, including Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa.

Several individuals registered head-turning performances as well, perhaps none more notable than redshirt freshman Ben Davino at 133 lbs. The South Elgin, Ill. native went 4-0 on the weekend, accumulating two tech falls, a major and a 10-4 decision over two-time defending NCAA finalist Drake Ayala of Iowa.

“Dual tournaments are fun and wrestling is fun,” Davino remarked after the tournament. “You go out and score points, and we figured out how to do that a lot this weekend. I think we are going to grow from this and keep getting better as a team.”

“We train year-round, which is the beauty of Ohio State. We are always ready and never afraid to compete. We battle hard in the room and are always ready to compete. This was a big testament to that.”

Associate head coach J Jaggers spoke on the dominant performance, tempering his enthusiasm and taking the team’s performance in stride.

“That was really fun,” Jaggers said. “It was a cool early-season thing for teams to see where they’re at. This is a great accomplishment, but this will be as big or little as we make it depending on what we do going forward. If we don’t wrestle well the rest of the season or at the NCAA tournament, then we will just look back at this as a cute little memory. If we build off this, then that could be something that springboards us to something different.”

Jaggers went on to point out that Ohio State went a remarkable 20-0 on the weekend at the first five weight classes, as Brendan McCrone (125), Nic Bouzakis (125), Ben Davino (133), Jesse Mendez (141), Ethan Stiles (149), Maddox Shaw (149) and Brandon Cannon (157) all combined for an undefeated two days of wrestling.

Fearless Freshmen

Aside from Davino’s impressive showing, several other freshmen had fans oohing and ahing throughout the BOK Center. Perhaps nobody stole the spotlight more than Oklahoma State true freshman Sergio Vega, a native of Sunnyside, Ariz., who last spring was the recipient of WIN Magazine’s Junior Schalles Award as the nation’s top high school pinner. Vega, who entered the event ranked No. 15 in WIN’s Nov. 11 Individual Rankings, went 4-0 on the weekend, notching victories over three former All-Americans including NC State’s Ryan Jack, Iowa’s Nasir Bailey and Nebraska’s defending NCAA finalist Brock Hardy. Vega put an exclamation point on his weekend by majoring the Cornhusker, 13-2, in the event’s third-place dual meet.

Fellow Cowboy true freshmen Landon Robideau and Dee Lockett also proved their ability to contend right away at the collegiate level, as both went 4-0 as well. Robideau earned a “ranked win” over two-time NCAA Blood-Round finisher and Top-10 foe Jackson Arrington of NC State, 8-2, while Lockett defeated defending NCAA finalist Michael Caliendo of Iowa, 7-3, among others.

A trio of Virginia Tech freshmen also impressed, perhaps none more than upperweight Sonny Sasso, the younger brother of former Ohio State great Sammy Sasso, who showed his prowess as a budding star for the Hokies as well, going 5-0 at 197 lbs. Sasso earned a 12-2 major decision over Wyoming’s returning All-American Joey Novak.

Meanwhile, true freshmen Noah Nininger and Ryan Burton each posted impressive victories, as Nininger bumped up from 149 lbs. to 157 lbs. and defeated Top-10 ranked Jackson Arrington of NC State, while Burton took out NC State freshman Will Denny (see below) and Minnesota’s Andrew Sparks.

Denny, a 2024 Super 32 champion hailing from Manhattan, Ill., made his presence felt quickly among the collegiate ranks Saturday morning by defeating Northern Iowa’s Top-10 ranked Ryder Downey with a buzzer-beating takedown.

WIN will take a more in-depth look at these notable freshmen performances in the upcoming Volume 32 Issue 3.

Complete results from the 2025 National Duals Invitational sponsored by Paycom can be found here.

Medal-Match Results

Championship: Ohio State 27 Iowa 12
125: Nic Bouzakis (OHST) fall Dean Peterson (IOWA), 1:34
133: Ben Davino (OHST) dec. Drake Ayala (IOWA), 10-4
141: Jesse Mendez (OHST) TF Nasir Bailey (IOWA), 17-1, 5:13
149: Ethan Stiles (OHST) dec. Ryder Block (IOWA, 3-2)
157: Brandon Cannon (OHST) MD Victor Voinovich (IOWA), 14-2
165: Mike Caliendo (IOWA) dec. Paddy Gallagher (OHST), 4-1 SV1
174: Patrick Kennedy (IOWA) dec. Carson Kharchla (OHST), 4-1 SV1
184: Angelo Ferrari (IOWA) dec. Dylan Fishback (OHST), 4-1 SV1
197: Massoma Endene (IOWA) dec. Seth Shumate (OHST), 8-3
285: Nick Feldman (OHST) win by forfeit

Third-place match: Oklahoma State 33, Nebraska 6
125: Troy Spratley (OKST) fall Alan Koehler (NEB), 2:59
133: Ronnie Ramirez (OKST) dec. Kale Lauridsen (NEB), 9-3
141: Sergio Vega (OKST) MD Brock Hardy (NEB), 13-2
149: Casey Swiderski (OKST) dec. Nikade Zinkin, 7-6
157: Landon Robideau (OKST) TF Dez Garterell (NEB), 21-6, 6:45
165: LaDarion Lockett (OKST) wins by forfeit
174: Alex Facundo (OKST) dec. Christopher Minto (NEB), 2-1
184: Silas Allred (NEB) dec. Zach Ryder (OKST), 5-2 SV
197: Cody Merrill (OKST) dec. Camden McDanel (NEB), 2-1 TB1
HWT: AJ Ferrari (NEB) dec. Konner Doucet (OKST), 2-1

Fifth-place match: Minnesota 25, Virginia Tech 10
125: Jore Volk (MINN) dec. Eddie Ventresca (VT), 4-2
133: Dillon Campbell (VT) dec. Brandon Morvari (MINN), 2-0
141: Vance VomBaur (MINN) dec. Tom Crook (VT), 4-1
149: Noah Nininger (VT) MD Jager Eisch (MINN), 16-4
157: Charlie Millard (MINN) dec. Collin Gaj (VT), 9-4
165: Andrew Sparks (MINN) MD Ryan Burton (VT), 11-2
174: Ethan Riddle (MINN) MD Sergio Desiante (VT), 15-4
184: Max McEnelly (MINN) TF Jaden Bullock (VT), 22-5, 6:05
197: Sonny Sasso (VT) dec. Gabe Nagel (MINN), 9-8
HWT: Bennett Tabor (MINN) dec. Jimmy Mullen (VT), 3-2

Seventh-place match: Illinois 26, Missouri 18
125: Spencer Moore (ILL) dec. Mack Mauger (MIZ), 4-0
133: Lucas Byrd (ILL) fall Kade Moore (MIZ), 1:13
141: Zeke Selter (MIZ) dec. Kole Brower (ILL), 5-1
149: Will Baysingar (ILL) dec. Easton Hilton (MIZ), 2-1 TB1
157: Kannon Webster (ILL) dec. Seth Mendoza (MIZ), 5-3
165: Braeden Scoles (ILL) TF Joel Mylin (MIZ), 21-5, 5:44
174: Colin Kelly (ILL) INJ. Def Cam Steed (MIZ), 0:24
184: Aeoden Sinclair (MIZ) dec. Chris Moore (ILL), 7-2
197: Evan Bates (MIZ) MFOR Dylan Connell (ILL)
HWT: Jarrett Stoner wins by forfeit

Program Prizes

1st place – Ohio State, $200,000
2nd place – Iowa, $150,000
3rd place – Oklahoma State, $150,000
4th place – Nebraska, $75,000
5th place – Minnesota, $50,000
6th place – Virginia Tech, $40,000
7th place – Illinois, $25,000
8th place – Missouri, $20,000
*All 16 programs received $20,000 for participating