Chambana Sun

The University of Illinois wrestling team finished seventh at the 2025 National Duals Invitational in Tulsa, Oklahoma, after defeating Missouri 26-18 on Sunday. The event was sponsored by Paycom.

Illinois entered the tournament ranked No. 12 and faced No. 11 Virginia Tech in the consolation semifinals earlier in the day. The Illini narrowly lost to Virginia Tech, 19-18, after a tiebreaker based on near fall points decided the match.

In their dual against Virginia Tech, Illinois trailed early but tied the score at several points through wins from Lucas Byrd, Kannon Webster, Braeden Scoles, Colin Kelly, and Chris Moore. However, Virginia Tech secured victories in the final two bouts to even the score at 18-18. With pins and match points equal between both teams, officials used near fall points as a third criterion; Virginia Tech had four compared to Illinois’ three.

After this close loss, Illinois went on to face Missouri for seventh place. Spencer Moore started with a shutout win for Illinois at 125 pounds. Lucas Byrd followed with a pin over Kade Moore at 133 pounds. Will Baysingar won his bout at 149 pounds in overtime and Kannon Webster extended Illinois’ lead with a decision victory at 157 pounds.

Braeden Scoles achieved a technical fall over Joel Mylin at 165 pounds and Colin Kelly won via injury default against Cam Steed at 174 pounds. Missouri claimed victories in the last three matches but could not overcome Illinois’ lead.

For their performance, Illinois received $25,000 along with an additional $10,000 earned previously for having the fastest team takedown average during Saturday’s session.

Illinois is scheduled to compete against Missouri again on Monday, November 24 in Columbia, Missouri.