Feb. 18, 2011
Watch Post-Dual Interviews with Coach Sanderson
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The fourth-ranked Penn State wrestling team, under the direction of head coach Cael Sanderson, dismantled No. 16 Wisconsin 30-12 in front of a standing room only crowd of 6,311 fans in Rec Hall. Sophomore All-American Andrew Long (Creston, Iowa) notched the signature win of the dual, dominating Tyler Graff at 133, 12-5.
Senior Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.) ranked No. 11 at 125, made his first Rec Hall appearance of the year the last of his career, posting a 10-5 win over Tom Kelliher to give Penn State an early 3-0 lead. Long, ranked No. 8 at 133, thrilled the SRO Rec Hall crowd by hammering No. 3 Graff 12-5 and the true freshman Andrew Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 141, continued the Lion win streak by pinning Shane McQuade at the 3:52 mark. The pin was Alton's 17th of the year, which is fourth all-time in a single season at Penn State. Junior Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.), ranked No. 3 at 149, then majored No. 10 Cole Schmitt of Wisconsin 9-1 to put Penn State up 16-0. Red-shirt freshman David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio), ranked No. 3 at 157, then completed the regular season undefeated with an 18-2 technical fall over UW's Kalvin York at the 4:57 mark to give Penn State a 21-0 lead at intermission. Taylor's 31-0 mark on the year includes 30 bonus point wins. The York tech fall was his 14th to go along with nine majors and seven pins.
Red-shirt freshman James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) then downed Wisconsin's Shawn Perry 7-3 at 165 before classmate Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa.) posted a strong 8-5 win over No. 14 Ben Jordan at 174 to put Penn State up 27-0. No. 3 Travis Rutt of Wisconsin fought off a Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.) cradle attempt and got a pin at the 4:41 mark, breaking the shut out. Wisconsin's Trevor Brandvold, ranked No. 2, then pinned Lion freshman Nick Ruggear (Oxford, Pa.) in just :42 to cut the Lion lead to 27-12. Junior Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 6 at heavyweight, downed No. 10 Eric Bugenhagen 5-2 in the final bout to give Penn State the lopsided 30-12 victory.
Tonight's dual, which was a Big Ten Network StudentU production and aired live in HD at bigtennetwork.com, will air on the Big Ten Network tomorrow morning, Saturday, at 9:30 a.m. Penn State ends the 2010-11 dual meet season with a 17-1-1 mark, 6-1-1 in Big Ten duals. Wisconsin ends its dual season at 10-6-1, 1-5-1 in conference action. Penn State's 17 dual wins is the most since the Nittany Lions went 18-3 in 1998. The .921 winning percentage is the best since the Nittany Lions went 22-0-1 in 1993. Penn State's six Big Ten dual meet wins ties the school record for Big Ten wins in a season (the Nittany Lions went 6-0 in 1998). Penn State posted a wide 20-6 margin in takedowns and, in winning eight of ten bouts, split the bonus point battle 6-6.
Sanderson's Nittany Lions will now prep for the 2011 Big Ten Wrestling Championships on March 5-6 at Northwestern University. The two-day event is the national qualifier for the conference and begins with an 11 a.m. Eastern (10 a.m. Central) session on Saturday, March 5. The Sunday session starts at 2 p.m. Eastern (1 p.m. Central) with the finals airing live on the Big Ten Network at 4 p.m. Eastern (3 p.m. Central). The 2010-11 Penn State wrestling season is presented by the Family Clothesline. All Penn State events will once again air live on Forever Broadcasting's WRSC (1390 AM) and WSQV (92.1 FM). All radio broadcasts are streamed live at GoPSUsports.com as part of the All-Access package. The 2010-11 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.
#4 Penn State 30, #16 Wisconsin 12
February 18, 2011 - Rec Hall - University Park, Pa.
125: #11 Brad Pataky PSU dec. Tom Kelliher UW, 10-5 3-0
133: #8 Andrew Long PSU dec. #3 Tyler Graff UW,
12-5 6-0
141: #7 Andrew Alton PSU pinned Shane McQuade UW, WBF (3:52) 12-0
149: #3 Frank Molinaro PSU maj. dec. #10 Cole Schmitt UW, 9-1 16-0
157: #3 David Taylor PSU tech fall Kalvin York UW, 18-2 (TF; 4:57) 21-0
165: James Vollrath PSU dec. Shawn Perry UW, 7-3 24-0
174: #2 Ed Ruth PSU dec. #14 Ben Jordan UW, 8-5 27-0
184: #3 Travis Rutt UW pinned #17 Quentin Wright PSU, WBF (4:41) 27-6
197: #2 Trevor Brandvold UW pinned Nick Ruggear PSU, WBF (0:42) 27-12
285: #6 Cameron Wade PSU dec. #10 Eric Bugenhagen UW, 5-2 30-12
Attendance: 6,311
Records: Penn State 17-1-1 (6-1-1 Big Ten), Wisconsin (10-6-1, 1-5-1)
Up Next for Penn State: 2011 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, March 5-6, Evanston, Ill., at Northwestern University
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
125: Senior Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.), ranked No. 11 at 125, made his first appearance in Rec Hall his last as the Nittany Lion wrestled on Senior Night for Penn State. Pataky took on Tom Kelliher of Wisconsin. Pataky quickly took Kelliher down for a 2-0 lead lest than :15 into the bout. He then gained control of his arm and turned him for three near fall points and a 5-0 lead. A reset and another three point near fall gave the Lion an 8-0 lead less than a minute into the bout. Pataky tacked on two near fall points before Kelliher reversed him at the 1:35 mark. Leading 10-2, Pataky was not able to break free of a solid Kelliher ride and led 10-2 after the opening period. Pataky chose neutral to start the third period and began looking for a chance to take Kelliher down and add to his lead. The duo battled evenly for the first minute, with Kelliher fighting off a Pataky double leg to keep within striking distance. Trailing by eight, Kelliher chose top to start the third period. Kelliher then turned Pataky for two near fall points to cut the lead to 10-4 with 1:10 left and over a minutes worth of riding time. Kelliher forced Pataky into a first stall warning and then rode him out. Pataky's early period fireworks gave the Lion a 10-5 win and put Penn State up 3-0 after the opening bout.
133: Sophomore Andrew Long (Creston, Iowa), ranked No. 8 at 133, battled No. 3 Tyler Graff in one of the dual's marquee match-ups. Graff drew first blood with a quick takedown for a 2-1 lead at the 2:30 mark. Graff got in deep on Long's leg again but this time Long countered the move, forced a scramble and slipped to a low double leg to take a 3-2 lead with 1:10 on the clock. Long tried to throw Graff to his back, but the Badger rolled out of trouble for an escape and a 3-3 tie with under 1:00 left in the opening period. Long turned a single leg ankle pick into a last second takedown to thrill the Rec Hall crowd with another takedown and led 5-3 at the end of one stanza. Graff chose down to start the second period and Long maintained control of the Badger until the 1:21 mark, building up :51 in riding time and leading 5-4. Long countered another Graff shot and scrambled his way into control of the Badger for a third takedown and a 7-4 lead with :45 on the clock. He then broke Graff down and proceeded to ride him out to lead 7-4 with 1:39 in riding time after two periods. Long chose down to start the third and was cut loose to an 8-4 lead. Long countered another Graff shot for a fourth takedown to up his lead to 10-5 with 1:22 on the clock after a quick Graff escape. Long, with riding time assured, scrambled for a final takedown to grab the major but could not get it. Graff gave up a penalty point and Long walked away with a convincing 12-5 win, putting the Lions up 6-0.
141: True freshman Andrew Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 141, met Wisconsin's Shane McQuade. Alton took McQuade down less than five seconds into the bout and led 2-0 early. McQuade escaped after Long build up 1:02 in riding time, but Alton was relentless, adding a second takedown with 1:15 on the clock to lead 4-2 after cutting him loose. Alton added two more takedowns to up his lead to 8-3 with :30 on the clock. Alton then rode the Badger out and led by five, with 2:09 in riding time, after one period. Alton chose down to start the second period, quickly reversed the Badger and then turned him to his back for a pin at the 3:52 mark. Alton's pin was his 17th of the year and put Penn State up 12-0.
149: Two-time All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.), ranked No. 3 at 149, met No. 10 Cole Schmitt in another top-notch encounter. The ranked duo battled evenly for almost two minutes, but Molinaro took the lead with a solid high double to take a 2-1 lead after a quick Schmitt escape with just over :50 on the clock. Molinaro continued to set the pace offensively, keeping Schmitt backing away, for the rest of the period. Schmitt chose down to start the second stanza but Molinaro was able to maintain control of the Badger and break him down to build up over a minute's worth of riding time. Molinaro worked hard to turn the ranked Badger but Schmitt was able to keep from giving up back points. Molinaro forced Schmitt into a first stall warning and then rode him out to lead 2-1 with 2:14 in riding time after two periods. Molinaro chose down to start the third stanza and quickly scrambled behind the Badger for a reversal and a 4-1 lead. The Nittany Lion junior then clinched the riding time point. Continuing to dominate the action, Molinaro picked up a point on another stall call on Schmitt. He then worked the Badger to his back, picked up three near fall points and, with the bonus point, posted the 9-1 major.
157: Red-shirt freshman David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio), ranked No. 3 at 157, looked to make it a perfect regular season against Wisconsin's Kalvin York. Taylor took York down quickly and led 2-1 after the Badger escaped. Taylor worked his way behind York and used a low double for a second takedown and lead 4-1 with 2:00 left in the opening period. Taylor then turned the Bader for three back points and a 7-1 lead with 1:25 on the clock. Taylor reset himself, added three more back points to lead 10-1, and then reset himself again to try and turn York once more. Taylor nearly pinned York at the end of the period but the Badger rolled through the move and did not give up any points. Leading 10-1 with 2:15 in riding time, Taylor chose top to start the second period to try and turn York once more. York was able to escape to a 10-2 deficit, but Taylor quickly took York down again to lead 12-2 with 1:00 on the clock. He added another three point near fall to lead 15-2, reset himself, and turned him one more time for three points and the 18-2 tech fall at the 4:57 mark. The win improved Taylor to 31-0 with 30 bonus point wins and gave the Lions a 21-0 lead at the half.
165: Red-shirt freshman James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) got the call at 165 for Penn State and met Wisconsin's Shawn Perry. Vollrath gained control of Perry quickly and worked his way to a takedown and a 2-0 lead at the 2:20 mark. He then locked Perry up in a cradle and turned him to his back and began working for the pin. Vollrath steadily locked the cradle up and turned him for once, then twice, nearly pinning him each time. Perry was able to fight off the fall but Vollrath picked up the back points and led 5-0 with :40 on the clock. Perry escaped before the period ended. Trailing 5-1 and facing 5-3 in riding time, Perry chose down to start the second stanza and escaped to a 5-2 deficit. Vollrath countered a low Perry shot and notched his second takedown to lead 7-3 with 1:40 left. The duo battled evenly for the remainder of the period and Vollrath held that four point lead with 2:05 in riding time heading into the third stanza. The Lion freshman chose down to start the third period but could not work his way free of a strong Perry ride. Perry was able to control Vollrath for the entire period. Still, Vollrath was never in danger of giving up back points and the Penn State freshman posted a 7-3 win, putting Penn State up 24-0.
174: Red-shirt freshman Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa.), Penn State's highest ranked individual with a No. 2 nod at 174, met No. 14 Ben Jordan in yet another battle of ranked opponents. Ruth shot at the 1:58 mark, but Jordan countered the move and got the takedown to lead 2-0 with 1:55 left in the period. Ruth tried to scramble out of Jordan's control and finally got the escape at the :38 mark to cut the lead to 2-1. Trailing 2-1 and facing 1:19 in riding time, Ruth chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 2-2 tie. Ruth shot again and Jordan nearly countered for another takedown, but this time Ruth was able to fight off the move and stay tied. Ruth shot low after a reset and worked for another takedown. After nearly :30 of work, Ruth got the takedown and took a 4-2 lead with :45 on the clock. Ruth was able to break Jordan down and, with the ride out, led 4-2 at the end of two periods. Jordan had :50 in riding time. Jordan chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 4-3 deficit. This time, Jordan shot low and it was Ruth's turn to counter, scramble behind the Lion, and get the takedown for a 6-3 lead. Ruth added one more takedown and posted the hard fought 8-5 win.
184: Sophomore Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.), ranked No. 17 at 184, took on No. 3 Travis Rutt of Wisconsin in a key battle. Rutt and Wade scrambled for the first takedown, with each man having a chance to secure the first points. But it was Rutt who took the lead with a takedown at the 2:14 mark. He then gained control of Wright's wrist and tried to turn the Lion for back points, but Wright was able to keep from giving up any near fall call and kept the bout close. Wright then battled his way to an escape but Rutt was able to counter a Wright shot and add to his lead at the :20 mark with another takedown. Leading 4-1 with 1:55 in riding time, Rutt chose down to start the second period and escaped to a 5-1 lead. Wright slipped down to a low single, using an ankle pick to gain control of Rutt and work his way to a takedown, cutting the lead to 5-3. Wright then worked to complete a cradle and, when working to turn Rutt over for a pin of his own, was countered by Rutt and pinned by the Badger at the 4:41 mark.
197: Freshman Nick Ruggear (Oxford, Pa.) faced off against undefeated Badger senior Trevor Brandvold, who was ranked No. 2 at 197. Brandvold quickly took Ruggear down to take an early 2-0 lead and then gained control of the Lion freshman's shoulders, turned him to his back, and picked up a pin at the :42 mark.
285: Junior Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 6 at heavyweight, met No. 10 Eric Bugenhagen in another marquee match-up. The ranked big men battled evenly for the entire first period with neither man managing a takedown or breaking through the other's defenses. Tied 0-0, Bugenhagen chose down to start the second period. But Wade made the Wisconsin senior pay for the decision by turning him to his back for two near fall points. Wade continued the strong ride, working to turn the Badger once more. Wade maintained control of the Badge for the rest of the period and led 2-0 with 2:00 in riding time heading into the final period. Wade chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. The Lion junior maintained the pressure on Bugenhagen, forcing the Badger back towards the edge of the mat while looking for an opening to score. Wade fought off one Bugenhagen shot, then got taken down by the Badger. Wade grabbed the escape, picked up the riding time point and posted the strong 5-2 win, giving Penn State the 30-12 win.