WVU Wrestling in Big 12 Tournament: Freshman Ty Watters Wins 149-Pound Title

The miraculous freshman campaign for the WVU wrestling team’s Ty Watters only got better on Sunday night.

Watters claimed the 149-pound Big 12 championship in his first-ever appearance in the conference tournament by defeating Oklahoma State redshirt freshman Jordan Williams on Sunday night in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

🥇 CHAMPION 🥇

149 | Fr., No. 3 seed Ty Watters (WVU) scores the win over No. 4 seed Jordan Williams (Oklahoma St) by injury default after leading 7-0 at the 3:45 mark of the match.

Watters becomes the fourth Big 12 Champion in WVU history.

👊 #HailWV pic.twitter.com/BNV7pu7tvP

— WVU Wrestling (@WVUWrestling) March 11, 2024

The Imperial, Pa., native was ahead 7-0 with 1:16 left in the second period before the No. 4 seed Williams forfeited due to an injury default.

Watters became just the fourth West Virginia wrestler to win a Big 12 crown, the first since Killian Cardinale in 2022. He is the first 149-pounder from West Virginia to earn gold and the first Mountaineers freshman to accomplish the feat.

No. 3 seed Watters grabbed an early takedown in the first period and accumulated 2:13 of riding time to lead 3-0 going to the second frame.

He then added an escape point to begin the second and tallied another takedown to increase his advantage to 7-0 before Williams withdrew from the match.

Watters improved to 25-4 on the season and has accumulated 10 pinfall victories, five major decisions and four technical falls. He recorded two tech falls and a major decision in his first three Big 12 Tournament matches en route to winning the title.

Watters will now begin his quest for a national championship for WVU Wrestling when the NCAA Tournament begins on March 23 in Kansas City.