FARGO, N.D. - North Dakota State (5-1, 0-1 Big 12) is scheduled to face RV/#19/#20 Wyoming (0-1, 0-1 Big 12) in a conference dual on Sunday. The Bison are slated to take on the Cowboys at 2:30 p.m. CT at the Uniwyo Sports Complex in Laramie, Wyo. 

POSTPONED: The Bison were scheduled to take on Utah Valley (5-3, 0-2 Big 12) on Friday in the first of two duals for the weekend, but that dual against the Wolverines was postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the Utah Valley wrestling program. Makeup details have not been announced at this time.

ONLINE COVERAGE: Sunday's dual against Wyoming will be streamed live on FloWrestling. Live Results of the event will be available through TrackWrestling.

THE SERIES: This is the 21st meeting between North Dakota State and Wyoming dating back to the 1989-90 season. Wyoming has a 13-7 lead in the all-time series. However, the Bison have had success at Wyoming, holding a 5-6 record against the Pokes in Laramie, including three wins in the last four trips. In the last meeting, on January 10, 2020, the Bison fell to Wyoming in Fargo 34-6.

IN THE RANKINGS: North Dakota State currently has seven wrestlers ranked in the InterMat and/or FloWrestling weight class rankings. Junior Jared Franek (14-1) leads the way for the Bison and hold the No. 7 spot at 157 pounds in the InterMat rankings and No. 8 by Flo. 165 pound senior Luke Weber (12-3, 14/16) and heavyweight senior Brandon Metz (13-3, 19/21) are also ranked in both polls. Four Bison are currently ranked in the InterMat classifications and also receiving honorable mention in the Flo rankings. 174 pound Austin Brenner (16-7, 24), 133 pound Kellyn March (10-5, 25), 141 pound Dylan Droegemueller (8-2, 29) and 197 pound Owen Pentz (10-4, 32) all received rankings by InterMat.

APPROACHING 100: NDSU Head Coach Roger Kish is quickly approaching 100 career victories in dual matches at the helm of the Bison. In his 11th season, Kish currently holds a 93-63 record. 
SCUFFLE CHAMPION: Junior Jared Franek had a perfect start to 2022, as the 157 pounder went 5-0 at the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tennessee to claim the Scuffle title. Franek recorded a career best pin of 26 seconds over Buffalo's Ty Raines to begin the trip and added a win over Chattanooga's Weston Wichman before three ranked wins by decision to lift the title.

BISON WITH RECORD FINISH AT SOUTHERN SCUFFLE: Bison Wrestling opened up the new year with some strong performances at the Southern Scuffle, leading to a best-ever finish by the Bison at the event, who took second overall in the 30-team field. The previous best team result for the Bison was a fifth overall at the Scuffle in 2019-20. Led by Jared Franek's win at 157 pounds, NDSU had six placers, including a third from Brandon Metz (285) and fourths from Gaven Sax (149) and Austin Brenner (174). Luke Weber (165) claimed fifth and DJ Parker (184) took home eighth.

NCAA D1 QUALIFIERS: The Bison have had 53 NCAA Div. I qualifiers in 14 years of postseason eligibility since moving to Division I in the 2004-05 season, including 10 qualifiers over the last two seasons. Rich in wrestling history, the Bison have also sent 26 wrestlers to the NCAA Div. I Championships from 1971 to 1991, bringing the total to 79 NCAA Div. I qualifiers in program history. The Bison have had 10 placing finishers at the NCAA Div. I Championships including an NDSU best finish of 3rd place by Steven Monk at 165 pounds in 2014. In 2015, Kurtis Julson and Hayden Zillmer both placed in the top 8.

BIG 12 CHAMPIONS: The Bison, who enter year seven in the Big 12, have a had a pair of conference champions since joining the conference, with both championships coming in the last two seasons. Current assistant coach Cam Sykora took home the 133-pound title for the Bison in 2019-20 and current senior Luke Weber won the 165-pound title during the 2020-21 season.

COMING UP: The Bison are scheduled to be back on the road next weekend as well for two more Big 12 matchups in the state of Iowa. North Dakota State will take on Northern Iowa on Saturday, Jan. 22, in Cedar Falls before a trip to Ames on Sunday, Jan. 23, to take on Iowa State. The dual against UNI is slated for a 7 p.m. start inside West Gym, while the matchup against the Cyclones will be at 2 p.m. inside Hilton Coliseum.