Feb. 20, 2015
By Matt Allibone, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - For Penn State wrestler Zack Beitz, last March was the definition of bittersweet.
The redshirt freshman had filled a void for the Nittany Lions all of last season at 149 pounds, but when the postseason arrived, he was relegated to the sidelines as senior teammate James English won the starting spot and helped Penn State win both the Big Ten and NCAA Championships.
While he was happy for his teammates, Beitz was still disappointed that he wasn't able to contribute in the biggest tournaments of the year.
"You're still cheering for your teammates, you're with them every day and you want to see them succeed," Beitz said. "It definitely helped motivate me though. Kept me focused on my goals and things like that."
Now a year later, Beitz has started every dual for Penn State at 149 after taking the mat for 10 of them last year. While his season has had some ups and downs, the sophomore delivered the biggest win of his career last weekend at Oklahoma State.
In a match between two of college wrestling's great programs, Beitz found himself matched up against Josh Kindig, last year's NCAA runner-up and the fourth-ranked grappler at their weight. The underdog, Beitz shocked the Oklahoma State crowd by pinning Kindig off of a reversal to start the second period.
Having lost a close 5-3 match to Kindig last year, it wasn't surprising to see Beitz hold his own. Still, seeing him completely dismantle an All-American with one move after a scoreless first period was an incredible moment for a Penn State team that needs bonus points wherever it can get them.
"[Last year's match helped with] just a lot of little things," Beitz said. "I knew what kinds of shots he was going off of and that kind of thing. Just being familiar with his style and knowing what to look out for. You go into a match not expecting to lose. I just told myself, I always go in trying to score bonus points. Just wrestling to the best of my abilities.
"It was exciting. Also just wrestling in Oklahoma [State], they had a good environment, a lot of people there so it was cool."
The win was Beitz's first dual meet pin of the season and improved his record in such meets to 10-4 while also bumping him up from 18th to 14th in the national rankings. Apart from the numbers, the victory gives the Mifflintown, Pennsylvania, native confidence that he can beat top-ranked opponents with this year's postseason right around the corner.
Keeping matches close has never been an issue for Beitz, whose last two matches against top-10 guys resulted in a 6-4 loss to No. 2 Brandon Sorensen of Iowa and a 6-5 win over No. 9 Alec Pantaleo of Michigan. With the fall over Kindig now in the 149-pounder's pocket, the Nittany Lions staff is excited to see what Beitz can do moving forward.
"The last month Zack continues to improve, and a guy like that where he's been right on that edge, last year he was real close with the top guys, and this year he's starting to beat them," head coach Cael Sanderson said. "Confidence if everything. You're going to be a bit more bold and shooting with more intent. It's a good time to get things rolling, but Zack's always going to go out and swing it."
With the Nittany Lions featuring a much younger lineup than in years past, they will need extra production from every wrestler when the Big Ten Tournament kicks off on March. 7. Though it will be his first postseason trip, Beitz is looking forward to the challenge.
"I haven't ever competed there, so I'm excited," Beitz said. "It should be a cool experience."
Brown Thankful for Penn State Experience as Senior Day Approaches
For Matt Brown, going to college hasn't been like it is for most people, or even for most athletes.
Over the past seven years, the Penn State wrestling captain has attended two schools, lived in two continents, gotten married, been a part of three national championship squads and been an All-American twice.
Now, with his final home match approaching on Sunday against Rider, Brown is trying to stay focused while also reflecting on his journey.
"I've been fulfilled at Penn State socially, academically, obviously athletically with wrestling," Brown said. "It's been everything I hoped for in a school. I'm grateful for my coaches and the support structure I've had with my family."
Although he is known by Nittany Lions fans as the lynchpin of Penn State's lineup, a guy who racked up a 110-15 record over the past four years, Brown is so much more than that.
For starters, he's managed to balance being one of the best wrestlers in the country with being a member of Army ROTC, maintaining a near perfect GPA, and being a husband. As incredible as that sounds, Brown's story goes deeper than that.
The West Valley City, Utah, native spent his redshirt-freshman year at Iowa State, where Sanderson was coaching at the time. The wrestler then spent the next two years in Africa on a mission for the Mormon Church before transferring to Penn State upon returning.
While he has achieved the aforementioned accomplishments on the mat since then, Brown is someone that Sanderson will remember more for how he acted when he wasn't competing.
"He's done great things," Sanderson said. "He's a leader, just by example, academically. Socially he's not a guy we have to worry about, he's a guy that's going to be very successful in life. If he goes after it he can end this season the way he wants."
What Brown wants isn't a secret to anybody. After finishing as the NCAA runner-up two years ago and coming in fifth place last season, the senior is striving for an individual national title. This Sunday may be a reminder of some great times in a blue and white singlet, but for Brown, the most important stretch of his career is yet to begin.
"It's one more chance to wrestle in Rec Hall so it'll be fun, I've had some fun matches there," Brown said. "I can appreciate the dual season coming to a close but now I kind of have to worry about myself. Obviously [a national title] is my goal and what I'm aiming for, but I can look back and say I did everything I could."