The moment seemed surreal to Coleman Scott as this Waynesburg Central High School graduate celebrated the biggest victory of his wrestling career.

"This is awesome. It's what you dream about," said Scott, after recording a pin in the NCAA Division I finals on March 22. "When you go to sleep at night and stuff is going through your head, that's what you picture, getting that pin. That's what you want and everything worked out perfectly."

Scott, a senior at Oklahoma State University, captured the 133-pound title with a pin just 49 seconds into his championship match against Iowa's Joey Slaton

"You have got to be visualizing that national championship long before it ever really happens," Oklahoma State coach John Smith said. "Coleman's demeanor before the match when he saw that stage, he just kind of lit up. He looked like a young man on a mission when he stepped on the mat."

Wrestling in front of a decidedly pro-Iowa crowd at St. Louis' Scottrade Center, Scott made the most of the only shot of the match, catching Slaton with a left-handed high crotch takedown, then locking in a cradle to eventually record the pin.

"It's a move that we drill all the time but, I've never used it before," Scott said. "I've hit the high crotch, but never had it where I got the head like that.

"Every day, coach tells us to go over it just in case we might need it some time and it worked out well. It was just instincts and I did it."

Smith was glad to see that Scott finally seized the opportunity.

"Coleman was very aggressive with the takedown and had an opportunity to lock up a cradle," said Smith. "Putting an opponent away is something we always talk about. If we get an opportunity to do it, then you've got to do it.

"It's an exciting time for everybody when you have somebody win an NCAA championship, because that's what their entire lives have been about. You take pride in saving your best for last, and that's what Coleman did."

Scott recorded five victories in the three-day competition and was taken down only once.

"I didn't take any shortcuts this year and it paid off in the end," said Scott, who is only the 12th four-time All-American in Oklahoma State's rich wrestling history. "I always knew I could win an NCAA title. It's the best I've ever felt."

Scott, a national runner-up last year, was ranked No. 1 most of the season, but dropped to No. 3 in the seedings after a disappointing third-place finish in the Big 12 Tournament. He was also upset by a non-ranked wrestler late in the season.

"Coleman definitely jumped a level after the Big 12 Tournament, just mentally," said Smith. "You want to see that from all your wrestlers. We take pride in having our best effort at the end.

"He identified real quickly that his attitude on the mat wasn't what it needed to be. It wasn't so much because he got beat at the Big 12, it was more that he let little things that happened in the match disturb him. The week prior to his championship, Coleman stepped up to a new level in his workouts and total focus on what he had to do to be the best."

Scott used the adversity of losing in the Big 12 Tournament semifinals to his advantage.

"It just made me work harder and realize that I have to just keep getting better every day in doing what I have to do to win that title. Once nationals came, I forgot about that stuff and just kept telling myself that I was still the best guy in the weight class and had to prove it, so that was my whole mind set going in."

Scott placed eighth in the country as a 125-pound freshman, then moved to 133 for his sophomore year and placed fifth. Last year, he advanced to the title match before dropping a 4-2 decision to Penn's Matt Valenti.

"I had a group of 40-50 fans who came from Waynesburg," said Scott. "It was great to have them there supporting me. It was so good they could experience the title with me."

Scott's long-term goal is to continue wrestling on the international stage.

"I've wrestled freestyle ever since I was about 12 years old and that's always been my goal -- to be an Olympic champ," said Scott. "I'm going to train here for as long as I can and hopefully be on the Olympic team."

Scott finished the season with a 33-4 record and concluded his collegiate career with a 117-22 record. He was also a two-time Big 12 Conference champion.