Dec. 23, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State Nittany Lion wrestler Jimmy Lawson (Toms River, N.J.) has been named the Big Ten Wrestler of the Week for the week ending Dec. 21, 2014. The honor is the second weekly award for Penn State this year.
Lawson won the award with his dual clinching win over No. 6 Ty Walz at heavyweight in Penn State's 20-15 victory over Virginia Tech on Dec. 19. Over 6,300 fans were brought to their feet as the Lion senior posted a 5-3 (sv) win over Walz to secure the victory. Lawson joins Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), who was honored on Nov. 11.
Meeting the ranked Hokie with the dual meet on the line, Lawson took a 2-1 lead in the second period with a strong takedown. An escape to start the third period gave the Lion a 3-1 lead only to see Walz take Lawson down with just seconds left to tie the bout. Lawson appeared to escape as time expired and was awarded the takedown. But the official reviewed the call and reversed it, sending the bout into sudden victory. Undaunted, Lawson turned a single leg into a dual clinching takedown in extra time.
The Nittany Lions improved to 5-0 with the win. Penn State returns to action on New Year's Day. The Nittany Lions will carry four straight Southern Scuffle titles into the 2015 Southern Scuffle on Jan. 1-2 at UT-Chattanooga. Penn State's next home dual is set for Friday, Jan. 9, when Indiana visits Rec Hall for a 7 p.m. match-up. A limited number of SRO tickets are available for select Penn State Rec Hall dual meets, although the SROs for the Lehigh dual are sold out. For ticket inquiries, call 1-800-NITTANY. Penn State 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 2014-15 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.