Nov. 24, 2013
VIDEO: Post-Match Press Conference
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, ranked No. 1 nationally in Intermat's Tournament Power Index, opened up the home portion of its 2013-14 schedule with a dominating 34-6 win over visiting Lock Haven. A sell-out crowd of 6,498 packed Rec Hall for the event, the 12th straight home sellout for Penn State dating back to the 2011-12 season.
All-American Nico Megaludis (Murraysville, Pa.), ranked No. 3 at 125, opened the dual up with a dominating 21-6 technical fall over Lock Haven's Ronnie Perry. Sophomore Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.) followed that up with a strong 10-5 win over LHU sophomore Matt Bryer, giving Penn State an 8-0 lead heading into one of the dual's marquee match-ups at 141.
Nittany Lion true freshman Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 12 at 141, remained undefeated on the year with a strong 6-1 win over Lock Haven's Dan Neff. The Bald Eagles got on the scoreboard at 149 when senior Mac Maldarelli fought off a late burst from Penn State freshman Zack Beitz (Mifflintown, Pa.) to escape with an 8-7 decision. Penn State senior James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) closed out the dual's opening half with a 12-4 major over Lock Haven's Billy Randt. The win put Penn State up 15-3 heading into intermission.
All-American David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio), ranked No. 1 at 165, thrilled the sold out Rec Hall crowd by pinning Haven senior Jake Kemerer at the 6:09 mark to put Penn State up 21-3. The fall was the sixth for Taylor this season and the Lion is undefeated at 8-0. It is also the 43rd of his career, second all-time at Penn State and just 10 shy of the all-time Lion record of 53. All-American Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 174, dominated Lock Haven's Adam Mackie, picking up an 18-3 technical fall at the 6:02 mark, putting Penn State up 26-3.
Nittany Lion red-shirt freshman Wes Phipps (Grove City, Pa.) made his Penn State dual meet debut against 19th-ranked Fred Garcia of Lock Haven and gave the ranked junior all he could handle before dropping a tough 3-1 decision at 184. Penn State got back on the winning track at 197 when No. 4 Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.) roared to a 15-3 major over Lock Haven's Phil Sprenkle. Nittany Lion junior Jimmy Lawson (Tom's River, N.J.), ranked No. 10 at 285, closed out the 34-6 victory with an impressive 14-4 major over Lock Haven's Brad Emerick.
The Nittany Lions won the takedown battle with a lopsided 40-4 margin. Penn State's eight wins brought in ten bonus points off a pin (Taylor), two tech falls (Megaludis and Brown) and three majors (Vollrath, McIntosh and Lawson). Nittany Lions Conaway and Retherford picked up decisions. The sell-out is the 12th straight for Penn State in Rec Hall, dating back to the 2011-12 season.
Junior Andrew Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 149, and twin brother Dylan Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 157, are both still recovering from off-season surgery and will return mid-December. Senior Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 184, is suspended for violation of team rules.
Penn State improves to 3-0 on the year while Lock Haven falls to 2-3. Head coach Cael Sanderson's squad returns to action in two weeks when it travels to Boston University for a 7 p.m. dual meet on Friday, Dec. 6. The Lions then trek right home for a Sunday showdown in the Bryce Jordan Center. Penn State will entertain Pittsburgh on Sunday, Dec. 8, at 2 p.m. Tickets can still be purchased via ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-800-NITTANY.
With the full season of Rec Hall duals sold out prior to the start of the campaign, a very limited number of standing room only tickets are available to a few of the remaining Rec Hall duals. Also, there are still limited tickets available for Penn State's Dec. 8 dual against Pitt in the Bryce Jordan Center. People may purchase tickets by calling 1-800-NITTANY, visiting Ticketmaster.com online or by visiting the Penn State Athletics ticket office located in the BJC. Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at www.twitter.com/pennstateWREST and on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling. The 2013-14 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.
#1 Penn State 34, Lock Haven 6
November 24, 2013 - University Park, Pa.
125: #3 Nico Megaludis PSU tech fall Ronnie Perry LHU, 21-6 (TF; 7:00) -- 5-0
133: Jordan Conaway PSU dec. Matt Bryer LHU, 10-5 -- 8-0
141: #12 Zain Retherford PSU dec. Dan Neff LHU 6-1 -- 11-0
149: Mac Maldarelli LHU dec. Zack Beitz PSU, 8-7 -- 11-3
157: James Vollrath PSU maj. dec. Billy Randt LHU, 12-4 -- 15-3
165: #1 David Taylor PSU pinned Jake Kemerer LHU, WBF (6:09) -- 21-3
174: #3 Matt Brown PSU tech fall Adam Mackie LHU, 18-3 (TF; 6:02) -- 26-3
184: #19 Fred Garcia LHU dec. Wes Phipps PSU, 3-1 -- 26-6
197: #4 Morgan McIntosh PSU maj. dec. Phil Sprenkle LHU, 15-3 -- 30-6
285: #10 Jimmy Lawson PSU maj. dec. Brad Emerick LHU, 14-4 -- 34-6
Attendance: 6,498
Records: Penn State 3-0, 0-0 B1G; Lock Haven 2-3
Up Next for Penn State: Friday, Dec. 6, at Boston University, 7 p.m.; then Sunday, Dec. 8 home vs. Pittsburgh, 2 p.m. in the Bryce Jordan Center.
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
125: Junior Nico Megaludis (Murraysville, Pa.), ranked No. 3 nationally at 125, took on Lock Haven's Ronald Perry. Megaludis got in on an early single and notched the bout's first takedown at the 2:10 mark, taking a 2-1 lead after a quick Perry escape. The Lion junior connected on a high single shortly afterwards and led 4-2 at the 1:10 mark. Megaludis added a third takedown and then put together a strong ride and led 6-2 after one. Perry chose down to start the second and quickly escaped, but Megaludis tacked on a quick takedown and cut to lead 8-4 at the 1:40 mark. He added a fifth takedown and led 10-4 with :30 in the period before action moved out of bounds and forced a reset. Megaludis turned Perry for three back points before the period ended and led 13-4 after two. He chose down to start the third, escaped and took Perry down again to lead 16-5 with 1:20 left. Two more takedowns and the Lion closed out the technical fall with a ride out. 2:36 in riding time gave Megaludis the 21-6 tech fall at the 7:00 mark.
133: Sophomore Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.) took to the mat for Penn State at 133 to take on Lock Haven's Matt Bryer. Bryer notched the first takedown for an early 2-1 lead a minute into the bout. Conaway answered, going chest to chest with Bryer and forcing the Bald Eagle to the mat for a 3-2 lead of his own. Conaway then rode Bryer out to lead by one after a period. He chose down to start the second stanza and deftly worked his left arm around to gain control of Bryer, getting the reversal and leading 5-2 at the 1:30 mark. Bryer escaped with 1:10 left to cut Conaway's lead to two. Trailing 5-3, Bryer chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 5-4 Conaway lead. Conaway had 1:40 in riding time in hand as well. The Lion sophomore tacked on another takedown with 1:20 on the clock, upping his lead to 7-4. Conaway added on another takedown and a riding time point and rode away with the strong 10-5 win.
141: True freshman Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 12 nationally by Intermat at 141, battled Lock Haven's Dan Neff, ranked by a number of other entities, in one of the dual's most anticipated match-ups. The duo of ranked grapplers battled evenly for the first period, with offense being hard to come by over the opening three minutes. Tied 0-0 after one, Retherford chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. He then gained control of Neff's left leg, working for the opening takedown at the 1:40 mark to take a 3-0 lead. The Lion true freshman then broke Neff down, putting together a strong ride en route to building up over 1:00 in riding time. A 1:36 ride out gave the Lion freshman a 3-0 lead after two periods. Neff chose neutral to start the third period but Retherford was too strong, using a low single to work to a takedown and a 5-0 lead with 1:00 left to wrestle. With the riding time point clinched, Retherford worked for a turning combination. Neff escaped as the bout ended but 2:45 in time gave Retherford the 6-1 victory, putting Penn State up 11-0.
149: Red-shirt freshman Zack Beitz (Mifflintown, Pa.) to the mat for Penn State to face Lock Haven senior Mac Maldarelli at 149. Maldarelli got in on an early shot, gaining control of Beitz left ankle. The Lion fought the move off for a minute but the Haven senior got the call for an early 2-0 lead. Beitz wasted little time countering however, easily notching a reversal to tie the bout at 2-2 with 1:20 on the clock. Maldarelli escaped to a 3-2 lead and action resumed in the center circle with 1:10 left in the opening period. Beitz gained control of Maldarelli and nearly got a takedown as the period wound down, but the Haven senior countered for a takedown of his own as the period ended and Beitz trailed 5-2 after the first period. Beitz chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 5-3 deficit. Beitz used a swift low single for his first takedown and trailed 6-5 after a quick Maldarelli escape with a minute on the clock. Beitz almost finished of a low ankle pick as the period ended but the LHU grappler was able to kill the clock to hold the one point lead after two. Maldarelli chose down to start the final stanza and worked his way to an escaped and a 7-5 lead. Beitz once again got in on a low shot and scrambled his way to a tying takedown with 1:00 left to wrestle. With the score tied 7-7, Maldarelli escaped with :32 left to take a one point lead. Beitz nearly scored on a low single but Maldarelli escaped out of bounds, forcing a reset with :10 left. The Haven grappler was able to hold off final shots to post the 8-7 win.
157: Nittany Lion senior James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) faced off against Lock Haven senior Billy Randt at 157. Vollrath wasted no time gaining control of Randt, using a high single to take a 2-0 lead just over a minute into the bout. Randt escaped only to get lifted off the mat by the Lion senior for a second takedown with :40 on the clock. Vollrath dominated action from the top position and, with the ride out, led 4-1 with 1:15 in riding time after the opening period. Randt escaped after taking down to start the third, but Vollrath quickly took the Bald Eagle down for a 6-3 lead with 1:00 left in the middle period. Leading 6-3, Vollrath chose down to start the third and quickly escaped to a 7-3 lead. He then used a fast low shot for another takedown and an 8-3 lead with 1:35 on the clock. Vollrath cut Randt loose with 1:07 left and began working for another takedown. After fighting off a solid Randt shot, Vollrath reset with :30 on the clock and drove through a high double with :10 left. A short ride-out gave Vollrath, with 2:05 in time, the 12-4 major, putting Penn State up 15-3 at the break.
165: Senior David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio), ranked No. 1 at 165, faced off against Lock Haven senior Jake Kemerer. Taylor wasted no time gaining control of Kemerer's right ankle, tripping the Haven senior to the mat for a takedown and an early 2-1 lead. He added a second quick takedown shortly afterwards and put together a strong ride. Taylor was a vise on top, controlling Kemerer for a minute-plus before cutting him loose at the 1:30 mark. He took Kemerer down less than :05 after that, then cut Kemerer loose to a 6-3 lead at the :40 mark. Taylor tacked on a fourth takedown with :10 left in the period and led 8-3 with 1:57 in time after the opening three minutes. Kemerer chose neutral to start the second period and scrambled his way to a near takedown. But Taylor countered the move for two points of his own and led 10-3 at the 1:30 mark. The Lion senior turned Kemerer for three back points and a 13-3 lead with 1:00 left to wrestle, then reset again. The Loin All-American nearly pinned Kemerer, turning him to his back for a near fall as time expired, getting three back points in the process. Taylor led 16-3 after two with a clinched riding time point and chose top to start the final period. He steadily gained control of Kemerer's working his back to the mat for a fall at the 6:09 mark. The pin was the sixth in eight bouts for Taylor and the 43rd of his career. He is now just 10 pins shy of tying the all-time Penn State record.
174: Junior Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 174, met Bald Eagle Adam Mackie. Brown quickly took Mackey down for a 2-0 lead less than :20 into the bout. Mackie worked to an escape and a 2-1 Brown lead midway through the period. Brown scrambled to a second takedown and a 4-2 lead after cutting Mackie loose at the 1:30 mark and action resumed at the center circle. Brown caught Mackie's chest and put him to the mat for another takedown and two near fall points to lead 8-2. The Lion All-American added another takedown and led 10-3 with almost 2:00 riding time after the opening period. Brown chose down to start the second period, quickly escaped and then took Mackie down to lead 13-3 with 1:10 to wrestle in the middle stanza. Brown continued to work strong on top, battling for another turning combination but action was halted with a potentially dangerous call. After a Brown ride out, Mackie chose down to start the third period and was quickly turned for three back points by Brown. Brown reset, then picked up a point on a second Mackie stall to lead 17-3 with 1:10 left. A third stall call gave Brown the 18-3 technical fall at the 6:02 mark, putting Penn State up 26-3.
184: Red-shirt freshman Wes Phipps (Grove City, Pa.) made his Penn State dual meet debut at 184 for Penn State to take on No. 19 Fred Garcia of Lock Haven. Garcia gained control of Phipps' leg early for a takedown and a 2-1 lead under a minute into the bout. Phipps then battled the ranked Bald Eagle evenly for the next minute-plus, fighting off a Garcia shot before blood time was called at the 1:11 mark. Phipps worked in on a high single with :20 on the clock but Garcia fought the move off to hold onto his one point lead after the opening period. Phipps chose down to start the second period but Garcia was able to control the action from the top position. Phipps continued to battle for an escape but the ranked Bald Eagle was able to ride the Lion freshman for the full period. Leading 2-1 with 2:06 in time, Garcia chose down to start the final period. This time it was Phipps who controlled the action up top, working off the riding time edge before cutting Garcia loose to a 3-1 Haven lead with :40 on the clock. Phipps but countered with a late shot but Garcia was able to work the outside circle and kill the clock for the hard-fought 3-1 win.
197: Sophomore Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 4 at 197, took on Bald Eagle Phil Sprenkle. The due battled through an even two minutes with each grappler looking for an opening to score. As the opening three minutes wound down, McIntosh used a quick single to gain control of Sprenkle, finishing off the takedown for a 2-0 lead as the period ended. McIntosh took down to start the second period, quickly escaped and then bulled through a second takedown to lead 5-0 just :30 into the middle stanza. Sprenkle escaped to a 5-1 McIntosh lead with :24 left and action resumed with a reset. McIntosh continued to close out the period strong, notching another takedown to lead 7-1 with 1:19 in time after two periods. Sprenkle chose down to start the third period and McIntosh cut him loose to a 7-2 score. McIntosh shot low with 1:20 and steadily worked his way to a 9-2 lead with a fourth takedown. With a riding time point in hand, McIntosh cut Sprenkle lose then deftly iced the major with a takedown at the :45 mark. With bonus points at hand, McIntosh turned Sprenkle to his back, working the Bald Eagle over for a near pin as the bout ended. Three back points and the riding time point gave McIntosh the 15-3 major and put Penn State up 30-6.
285: Junior Jimmy Lawson (Tom's River, N.J.), ranked No. 10 at 285, battled LHU freshman Brad Emerick. Lawson quickly took Emerick down, cutting the Eagle loose to lead 2-1 less than :30 into the bout. Leading by one, the 10th-ranked Lion worked the middle of the mat, then worked his way into control of Emerick's chest, taking him down for a 4-1 lead with :45 left to wrestle. Lawson went to work on top and rode Emerick out to lead 4-1 with 1:02 in time after the first period. He chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. Lawson used his quickness to sidestep an Emerick shot, slipping behind the Eagle for another takedown and a 7-1 lead. He then turned Emerick to his back for two near fall points and a 9-1 lead. After a quick reset, Emerick escaped and action resumed in the middle of the mat with the Lion up 9-2 with :30 left in the second period. Trailing 9-2, Emerick chose down to start the third but Lawson made the Eagle pay for the decision with a strong ride. With the riding time point clinched, Lawson cut Emerick loose at the 1:00 mark and led 9-3. Seeking bonus points, Lawson countered an Emerick shot and worked his way around for another takedown and an 11-4 lead after cutting him loose with just :10 left. He then roared through for a final takedown and a 14-4 major with 3:06 in riding time.