Fix, Pitt finish as national No. 2
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Oklahoma State wrestling great Daton Fix wrapped up a historic career Saturday night at the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships, finishing runner-up in the 133-pound bracket to record his fourth career finish as an NCAA finalist. Dustin Plott also claimed runner-up at 184 pounds to mark the best finish of his career to date.
Only three other Cowboy wrestlers in history have been four-time NCAA finalists, as Fix joins Richard Hutton (1947-50), Pat Smith (199092, 1994) and Mark Branch (199497) on the short list.
“He’s one of our all-time bests,” coach John Smith said. “Not only was he highly competitive in college, but he’s a World Championship silver medalist at the senior level. He’s done a lot of things that will motivate others. He’s meant a lot to us.”
Despite dropping a closely contested finals match to defending national champion Vito Arujau of Cornell, 5-3, Fix’s runner-up finish adds another line to an already outstanding résumé as he ends his Cowboy career with an overall record of 123-7.
His wins total ranks as the 10thbest in school history and he is one of just six wrestlers in Cowboy history to claim more than 120 wins with less than 10 losses, joining John Smith (1984-88), Pat Smith (1990-94), Alan Fried (1991-94), Jordan Oliver (2009-13) and Alex Dieringer (2012-16).
Fix’s career winning percentage of .946 is also among the top 15 to ever wear the orange singlet.
He is the first and only five-time All-American in school history (only 14 others have earned four), the first and only five-time Big 12 champion in history (only 11 others have won four), and the first and only fivetime conference champion in school history (only nine others have won four).
Included in his wins total are 22 pins, 27 major decisions and 26 technical falls, giving him bonus point wins in 58% of his career matches. His 26 technical falls rank fourth in the history of Cowboy wrestling and his 75 total bonus-point wins are in the top 10.
In addition to his impressive list of college honors, Fix won a silver medal at the 2021 World Championships to claim the best finish for an OSU wrestler at the World Championships in nearly 30 years.
Fix also entered his career as a Cowboy fresh off winning a gold medal at the 2017 Junior World Championships and earning the 2017 Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award.
Plott’s match pitted him against UNI’s Parker Keckeisen, who entered the match ranked No. 1 in the nation with a perfect 30-0 record. The match remained within one score after two periods, but the topseeded Keckeisen pulled away in the final period for a 14-5 win.
The result moved Plott’s final season record to 31-4 and closed his third consecutive All-America finish at the NCAA Championships. He has one year of eligibility remaining and can try to become OSU’s 16th four-time All-American in 2025.