March 19, 2015
ST. LOUIS - Had it not been for two narrow sudden victory setbacks on Thursday evening, the Nittany Lions would have been perfect on day one of the NCAA Wrestling Championships inside Scottrade Center.
The four-time defending national champions tallied a 12-2 mark on the first day of competition, including a 5-2 record during the second round of the championship draw. Jimmy Gulibon (133), Matt Brown (174), Matt McCutcheon (184), Morgan McIntosh (197) and Jimmy Lawson (285) will represent Penn State in the national quarterfinals on Friday morning after winning twice on Thursday.
Additionally, Jordan Conaway (125) and Zack Beitz (149) will wrestle in the second round of the consolation bracket on Friday. All seven Nittany Lion wrestlers have contributed to Penn State's 18.5 points following the first day in St. Louis.
Thanks to another 2.0 bonus points on Thursday evening (6.5 for the day), the Nittany Lions will head into Friday in a three-way tie for second in the team race. Penn State, Iowa and Oklahoma State each have 18.5 points after two sessions. Ohio State is first with 22.5 points.
Session II Team Standings (Main Draw/Consolation)
1. Ohio State - 13.5 (5 Main Draw/2 Consolation)
2. Penn State - 18.5 (5 Main Draw/2 Consolation)
Iowa - 18.5 (5 Main Draw/2 Consolation)
Oklahoma State - 18.5 (5 Main Draw/3 Consolation)
5. Nebraska - 17.5 (3 Main Draw/5 Consolation)
The story of day one in St. Louis can be told at 184 pounds for the Nittany Lions. McCutcheon, a redshirt freshman, making his first appearance at the national tournament looked like anything but a rookie on Thursday. After scoring a dominant technical fall victory in round one, McCutcheon used a takedown in the first sudden victory period to dispatch No. 3-seeded Blake Stauffer from Arizona State by a count of 3-1.
"I was just wrestling my match, pulling the guy around and getting to my leg attacks," McCutcheon said. "I knew I needed to finish better. I was in on him two times, and I knew I needed to finish better and get into the quarters."
McCutcheon will wrestle in the quarterfinals against Ohio State's Kenny Courts on Friday morning.
"It's been exciting, but I need to put this one in the past and get ready for the next one," McCutcheon said.
McCutcheon's teammates are feeding off of the freshman's gritty attitude. Brown and McIntosh had big grins on their faces when they embraced McCutcheon after the victory. McIntosh marched into the quarterfinals with a 14-5 major decision against Nebraska's Aaron Studebaker, but after his bout he took a moment to reflect on the job McCutcheon has done.
"Bonus points are always important, and you always have to work hard to get them," McIntosh said. "I was pumped up to go out there and wrestle after Matt (McCutcheon) got his big win. It was awesome to see him out there."
Brown outscored his opponents by a count of 22-6 on Thursday. In the evening session, the Nittany Lion senior jumped out to a 5-0 lead against Lehigh's Santiago Martinez. And thanks to nearly three minutes of riding time, Brown notched a workmanlike 10-2 major. Knowing it is his last opportunity to wrestle at the national tournament, Brown is having fun in St. Louis.
"He seems pretty loose," Sanderson said. "He is wrestling calm, and he has been ready to go. I think that is important for him. It's important to go out there and score points. The matches are going to get bigger, and the guy who wants to go out there and score points is the one who is going to win."
In addition to Brown, McCutcheon and McIntosh, Gulibon and Lawson round out Penn State's quarterfinalists. Gulibon rallied from 4-3 down to score an 8-4 decision thanks to a late four-point move against Utah Valley's Jade Rauser. Lawson used two third-period takedowns to top Minnesota's Michael Kroells by a score of 5-2.
"(Lawson's) moving well, and I think this is the best we have seen him look," Sanderson said. "He's got a big match tomorrow against the returning national champion."
Session three begins at 11 a.m. ET on ESPNU and ESPN3.com. The tournament quarterfinals will be up first before two rounds of consolation action.