Nov. 13, 2015
VIDEO: Highlights & Post-Match Interviews
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The top-ranked Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team opened up the 2015-16 season with a resounding 50-0 win over visiting Lock Haven on Friday night. A sell-out crowd of 6,356, the 27th straight home sell-out for Penn State, watched as Penn State won all ten bouts.
Penn State notched bonus points in eight of the ten bouts, including four pins, two of which came from All-Americans returning after red-shirt campaigns.
The dual began at 125 where All-American Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 2 nationally, returned to action after a red-shirt season by pinning Lock Haven's Jake Field at the 6:07 mark. All-American Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, rolled to a 19-4 technical fall with riding time at the 7:00 mark to put Penn State up 11-0 early. All-American Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at his new weight of 141, posted a strong 3-1 win over No. 12 Dan Neff in the dual's marquee match-up.
All-American Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at his new weight of 149, mirrored Megaludis with a pin, getting the fall over Kyle Hammond at the 2:15 mark. The first of three straight red-shirt freshmen making their Penn State dual meet debuts followed as Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 6 at 157, rolled out to a big lead over Aaron McKinney before getting the fall at the 2:42 mark. The pin put Penn State up 26-0 at intermission.
Classmate Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) followed at 165 with a win over Dillon Gavlock. Rasheed was up 2-0 in the first when Gavlock took an injury default, putting Penn State up 32-0. Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 14 at 174, was the third straight red-shirt freshman up and the Texas native rolled to a 21-6 technical fall at the 7:00 mark.
Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 184, notched Penn State's fourth fall of the night. McCutcheon was up big when he pinned Tristan Sponseller at the 5:56 mark. All-American Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, rolled to a 13-2 major over LHU's Phil Sprenkle to give the Lions a 47-0 lead with one bout left. True freshman Jan Johnson (Mohnton, Pa.), who joined the Nittany Lions in mid-October, secured the shut-out victory and thrilled the sold out crowd with a rousing 3-2 win over Lock Haven junior Brad Emerick at 285. Johnson turned a second period takedown into a victory and Penn State posted the 50-0 shut-out.
The Nittany Lions dominated the dual from start to finish, rolling to a 36-1 takedown advantage. Eight of the ten bouts featured bonus points: four pins, one injury default, two technical falls and one major, giving Penn State 20 bonus points. The shut-out was Penn State's first since a 35-0 win over Michigan State last year on Feb. 1, 2015.
Penn State is now 1-0 on the year while Lock Haven falls to 0-1. The Lions trek to Blacksburg, Va., for a 1 p.m. dual at No. 7 Virginia Tech on Sunday. The dual meet can be seen live online via ESPN3. With season tickets once again sold out in advance of the campaign beginning, Penn State is giving fans more opportunities than ever to see the Nittany Lions compete, including Penn State's next home dual meet on Dec. 13. Fans may purchase singles to Penn State's two BJC Duals (Wisconsin on 12/13 and Ohio State on 2/5) online at www.GoPSUsports.com/accountmanager or by calling 1-800-NITTANY.
BJC Dual public tickets are $16 for adults and $8 for youth (12-and-under). Group tickets for the BJC Duals are now available as well, allowing fans to purchase 20 or more tickets at only $8 per ticket. Group tickets can be purchased by calling 1-800-NITTANY. With the five Rec Hall duals already at seated capacity, a limited number of Standing Room Only tickets (SROs) can be purchased for each of those five duals as well. Rec Hall SROs may only be purchased by calling 1-800-NITTANY and are $15 per person.
Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. The 2015-16 Penn State wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.
#1 Penn State 50, Lock Haven 0
November 13, 2015 -- Rec Hall -- University Park, Pa.
125: #2 Nico Megaludis PSU pinned Jake Field LHU, WBF (6:07) / 6-0
133: #8 Jordan Conaway PSU tech fall Bobby Rehm LHU, 19-4 (TF; 7:00) / 11-0
141: #2 Jimmy Gulibon PSU dec. #12 Dan Neff LHU, 3-1 / 14-0
149: #2 Zain Retherford PSU pinned Kyle Hammond LHU, WBF (2:15) / 20-0
157: #6 Jason Nolf PSU pinned Dillon Gavlock LHU, WBF (2:42) / 26-0
165: Shakur Rasheed PSU inj. def. Dillon Gavlock LHU, inj. def. :35 (up 2-0) / 32-0
174: #14 Bo Nickal PSU tech fall Tyler Wood LHU, 21-6 (TF; 7:00) / 37-0
184: #14 Matt McCutcheon PSU pinned Tristan Sponseller LHU, WBF 5:56 / 43-0
197: #1 Morgan McIntosh PSU maj. dec. Phil Sprenkle LHU, 13-2 / 47-0
285: Jan Johnson PSU dec. Brad Emerick LHU, 3-2 / 50-0
Attendance: 6,356 (27th straight home sell-out)
Records: Penn State 1-0, 0-0 B1G; Lock Haven 0-1, 0-0 EWL
Up Next for Penn State: at No. 7 Virginia Tech, Sunday, November 15, 1 p.m. (ESPN3)
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
125: Senior All-American Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at 125, took on Lock Haven's Jake Field. Megaludis scored quickly, taking a 2-0 lead just :20 seconds into the bout. Field escaped to a 2-1 deficit and action resumed with Megaludis looking for control on the edge of the mat. The Lion finished the move and led 4-2 midway through the opening period. Megaludis dominated the rest of the first period, tacking on two more takedowns and two near fall points to lead 10-3 heading into the second. Megaludis chose down to start the second, quickly escaped to an 11-3 lead, and took Field down and to his back for two near falls and a 15-3 lead. Field escaped to a 15-4 score, but Megaludis quickly took him down to up his margin to 17-5 after cutting the Bald Eagle loose. Megaludis picked up a quick takedown to up his lead to 19-5. He rode Field out to carry that lead and over 2:00 of riding time into the third period. Field chose down to start the third. Megaludis worked his way into control Field's arm and worked his way to a pin at the 6:07 mark.
133: Senior All-American Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, met Bald Eagle senior Bobby Rehm. Rehm picked up a quick takedown to lead 2-1 after Conaway escaped. The Lion senior then took a 3-2 lead with a takedown of his own at the 1:00 mark. He then controlled Rehm for the rest of the period to lead 3-2 with 1:10 in riding time after one. Conaway chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 4-2 lead. He upped his lead to 6-2 with a strong single leg with just over a minute left in the period and controlled the Bald Eagle senior for the rest of the period. Conaway turned Rehm for four near fall points and led 10-2 after two. Rehm chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 10-3 score, but Conaway countered a Rehm shot and upped his lead to 12-4 at the 1:06 mark with another takedown. Conaway tacked on another takedown and four more near fall points to lead 18-4 with :20 left. 3:24 in riding time gave Conaway a 19-4 technical fall at the 7:00 mark.
141: Junior All-American Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at 141, met Lock Haven senior Dan Neff in the dual's marquee match-up. Neff entered the dual ranked No. 12. Gulibon and Neff traded early shots and the match was scoreless midway through the opening stanza. Neither wrestler could break through the other's defense over the opening three minutes and the bout moved to the second period scoreless. Gulibon chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Gulibon continued to shoot and Neff was able to play defense for the rest of the second period. Trailing 1-0, Neff chose down to start the third period and quickly tied the score at 1-1 with an escape. Gulibon continued to press for a takedown and broke through Neff's defense to lead 3-1 at the :55 mark. The Lion All-American then tripped Neff back to the mat after the Bald Eagle tried to escape multiple times to ride Neff out. The strong third period gave Gulibon a 3-1 decision.
149: Sophomore All-American Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at 149, took on Lock Haven's Kyle Hammond. Retherford notched the match's first takedown early in the period and then gained control of Hammond's waste with his legs. Steadily turning Hammond to his back, Retherford quickly worked his way into a pinning position and got the fall at the 2:15 mark in the first period.
157: Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 6 at 157, made his Nittany Lion dual meet debut against Lock Haven senior Aaron McKinney. Nolf wasted no time notching his first Penn State takedown, using a low single to take McKinney down. Nolf cut the Eagle loose, adding a second takedown and led 4-2 less than 1:00 into the bout. Putting on an early takedown clinic in his Rec Hall debut, Nolf added a third takedown and then turned McKinney for four near fall points to lead 10-3 after cutting him loose. Nolf countered a takedown attempt by McKinney, rolled through a takedown and turned a nearside cradle into a takedown at the 2:42 mark.
165: Red-shirt freshman Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) made his Penn State dual meet debut at 165 against Bald Eagle junior Dillon Gavlock. Rasheed notched the first takedown and then Gavlock injury defaulted quickly. The injury default victory for Rasheed came at the :35 mark.
174: Red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 14 at 174, made his Nittany Lion dual meet debut against Lock Haven junior Tyler Wood. Like the two freshmen before him, Nickal notched the bout's first takedown early, leading 2-0 just :30 into action. Nickal cut Wood loose and nearly had another takedown on the edge of the mat but action slid out of bounds. Nickal used a fast low double to take a 4-1 lead at the 1:00 mark and then built up a 2:05 riding time edge with a ride out to lead 4-1 after one period. Nickal chose down to start the second stanza, quickly escaped, and then blew through a high double to take wood down for a 7-1 lead at the 1:33 mark. Wood escaped only to be taken down by Nickal once again and the Lion freshman led 9-2 with a clinched riding time point (3:30 in time) after two periods. Wood chose top to start the third and Nickal quickly escaped to a 10-2 lead. Nickal added another takedown and cut Wood loose to lead 12-3 with 1:16 left in the match. Continuing his takedown clinic, Nickal used a low single to lead 14-3 at the :55 mark. Wood escaped, Nickal took him down and cut him loose with :12 left and the finished off the tech fall with a takedown at the :06 mark. The late takedown gave Nickal a 21-6 tech fall at the 7:00 mark with 4:15 in riding time.
184: Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 184, took on LHU freshman Tristan Sponseller. McCutcheon notched the first takedown early and led 2-1 less than a minute into the bout. McCutcheon added two more quick takedowns and on the latter, added four near fall points to lead 10-2 with :30 left. He continued to press offensively and added another takedown to lead 12-3 one period. McCutcheon chose neutral to start the second period and took Sponseller down for a 14-3 lead. McCutcheon cut Sponseller loose and then took him down again to lead 16-4. The Lion sophomore tacked on one more takedown and led 18-4 with 2:55 riding time after two. Sponseller chose down to start the third and escaped, but McCutcheon turned a high takedown into a quick fall, getting the pin at the 5:56 mark.
197: Senior All-American Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, faced off against Bald Eagle senior Phil Sprenkle. McIntosh and Sprenkle battled evenly for the opening three minutes, with neither wrestler working through for a takedown. Tied 0-0, Sprenkle chose down to start the second period and McIntosh made him pay. McIntosh forced him into two stall warnings and then the Lion senior turned Sprenkle to his back for four back points, nearly getting the fall as the period ended. Leading 5-0, McIntosh chose down to start the third period, escaped to a 6-0 lead, and then tacked on another takedown to lead 8-0. McIntosh notched another four point near fall but action ended on an illegal hold by McIntosh, forcing a reset with the Lion up 12-1. Sprenkle added a late takedown but McIntosh's 3:18 in riding time allowed him to post a 13-2 major.
285: True freshman Jan Johnson (Mohnton, Pa.) made his Penn State wrestling debut after joining the team in October against Lock Haven junior Brad Emerick. Johnson worked offense early with Emerick fighting off the early shots. With Johnson trying to control action up high, Emerick was able to work the clock down to zeroes and the bout moved into the second period scoreless. Tied 0-0, Johnson chose down to start the second period. Johnson worked to his feat repeatedly looking to escape, and Emerick pushed him out of bounds each time. Johnson picked up the escape to lead 1-0 with Emerick having only :28 in riding time. The Lion freshman then turned a low single into a takedown in front of the scorer's table to lead 3-0 with 1:01 left in the middle period. Emerick escaped to a 3-1 score and action resumed in the center circle with :50 on the clock. Emerick worked ion on a low shot and Johnson rolled into a scramble that lasted the final :20, killing the clock and maintaining his 3-1 lead heading into the third period. Emerick chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-2 score. The duo battled evenly for the final seconds and Johnson posted a thrilling 3-2 win in his Penn State debut.