Nov. 20, 2015 BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- No. 1 Penn State (3-0, 0-0 B1G) took care of home standing CSU Bakersfield (3-2) in the first of two California dual meets for the Nittany Lions. Head coach Cael Sanderson's squad won nine of ten bouts to roll to the 39-3 victory. Red-shirt freshmen Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) and Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas) picked up big wins to lead Penn State.
The dual began at 133 where senior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, dominated Carlos Herrera on his way to a 16-5 major decision. Junior Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 141, extended Penn State's team lead to 7-0 with a strong 8-1 win over Ian Nickell. Sophomore Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at 149, then pinned Coleman Hammond at the 1:17 mark to put Penn State up 13-0. Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 157 put on a takedown clinic in rolling to a 24-9 tech fall over junior AJ Fierro. Red-shirt freshman Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) then posted the dual's biggest win at 165. Rasheed dominated No. 13 Adam Fierro, storming to a 6-0 win with 3:17 in riding time. The victory gave Penn State a 21-0 lead at the midway point.
Red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 8 at 174, pinned No. 16 Bryce Hammond, a returning All-American, in the first period, getting the fall at the 1:57 mark. Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 184, majored Jesus Ambriz 12-3 to put the Lions up 31-0. Wrestling in his home state for the first time as a collegiate wrestler, top-ranked 197-pounder Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.) majored Reuben Franklin 13-5. True freshman Jan Johnson (Mohnton, Pa.) took to the mat at 285 for the second time as a collegian and dropped a tough 4-0 decision to Matt Williams. Senior Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 125, closed out the dual with a strong 23-10 major over Sergio Mendez, giving Penn State the 39-3 victory.
The Nittany Lions posted a dominant 43-1 edge in takedowns and picked up 12 bonus points off two pins, a tech fall and four majors. Penn State is now 3-0 on the year while the Roadrunners fall to 3-2.
Penn State visits No. 18 Stanford on Sunday, Nov. 22, at 4 p.m. Eastern/1 p.m. Pacific in a dual will be broadcast live on the Pac 12 Network/Bay Area. 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 vs. Wisconsin. 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 39, CSU Bakersfield 3
November 20, 2015 ââ'¬" Bakersfield, Calif.
133: #8 Jordan Conaway PSU maj. dec. Carlos Herrera CSUB, 16-5 / 4-0
141: #5 Jimmy Gulibon PSU dec. Ian Nickell CSUB, 8-1 / 7-0
149: #2 Zain Retherford PSU pinned Coleman Hammond CSUB, WBF (1:17) / 13-0
157: #4 Jason Nolf PSU tech fall AJ Fierro CSUB, 24-9 (TF; 7:00) / 18-0
165: Shakur Rasheed PSU dec. #13 Adam Fierro CSUB, 6-0 / 21-0
174: #8 Bo Nickal PSU pinned #16 Bryce Hammond CSUB, WBF (1:57) / 27-0
184: #14 Matt McCutcheon PSU maj. dec. Jesus Ambriz CSUB, 12-3 / 31-0
197: #1 Morgan McIntosh PSU maj. dec. Reuben Franklin CSUB, 13-5 / 35-0
285: Matt Williams CSUB dec. Jan Johnson PSU, 4-0 / 35-3
125: #4 Nico Megaludis PSU maj. dec. Sergio Mendez CSUB, 23-10 / 39-3
Attendance: 1,846
Records: Penn State 3-0, 0-0 B1G; CSU Bakersfield 3-2
Up Next for Penn State: at #18 Stanford, Sunday, Nov. 22, 4 p.m. Eastern/1 p.m Pacific
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
133: Senior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, met freshman Carlos Herrera. Conaway notched the first takedown at the 1:42 mark in the first period and worked his way into control of Herrera, looking to turn the Roadrunner for back points. The Lion maintained control of Herrera, nearly notching near fall points on two occasions before Herrera escaped to a 2-1 Conaway lead. Leading 2-1 with 1:47 in riding time, Conaway chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. The Lion added another takedown quickly and led 5-2 after a quick Herrera escape at the :30 mark. Trailing 5-2, Herrera chose down to start the third period but Conaway worked his way into control, turning the Roadrunner for a four-point near fall and a 9-3 lead after another Herrera escape. Conaway added another takedown and cut to lead 11-4 with a clinched riding time point and then added two more takedowns to post the 16-5 major with 3:02 in riding time.
141: Junior Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 141, wrestled senior Ian Nickell. Gulibon wasted no time taking Nickell down and bolted out to an early 2-1 lead. He then got in on another high single and steadily worked his way to a second takedown and a 4-1 lead at the 1:15 mark. Gulibon maintained control of the CSUB senior for the remainder of the period and led 4-1 with 2:27 riding time after one. Nickell chose neutral to start the second period but Gulibon drove through a low single to a third takedown and a 6-1 lead. The junior All-American built up a huge riding time edge with another ride out and led 6-1 with 3:51 in riding time heading into the third period. Gulibon chose down to start the third period. Nickell kept control of the Nittany Lion for over a minute before Gulibon escaped to a 7-1 lead with a clinched riding time point. Gulibon nearly picked up a major clinching takedown with :12 left but action moved out of bounds. The Lion settled for a strong 8-1 decision with 2:47 in riding time.
149: Sophomore Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at 149, faced off against sophomore Coleman Hammond. Retherford quickly took Hammond down to lead 2-0 right out of the gates. The sophomore All-American then began to work the action from the top position, looking for a chance to pin the Roadrunner. After just a little bit of work, Retherford rolled Hammond's shoulders to the mat and got the fall at the 1:17 mark.
157: Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 157, met Roadrunner AJ Fierro.; Nolf quickly took Fierro down and led 2-1 after a quick CSUB escape. Nolf wasted no time in upping his lead to 4-2 with 1:40 on the clock with a second takedown and then picked up a quick third to lead 6-2 at the 1:20 mark. Nolf cut Fierro loose to a 6-3 score and went back to work on his feet. Nolf added a fourth takedown with :30 on the clock and then rode Fierro out to lead 8-3 with :30 left. Nolf rode Fierro out and carried that lead into the second period. Nolf chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 9-3 lead. Nolf countered a solid Fierro shot and forced a stalemate at the :45 mark. He then scored off the reset to lead 11-4 after cutting Fierro loose. Nolf added one more takedown to lead 13-4 with 1:16 riding time after two. Fierro chose down to start the third period and worked his way to an escape and a 13-5 Nolf lead. Nolf went on to add three
165: Red-shirt freshman Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) took on senior Adam Fierro at 165, who entered the dual ranked No. 13 nationally. Rasheed notched the first takedown, blowing through a shot for an early 2-0 lead. Rasheed controlled the action from the top position for the remainder of the period and carried a 2-0 lead with 2:51 in riding time into the second period. Rasheed chose down to start the second stanza and worked his way to an escape and a 3-0 lead while still holding 2:30 in riding time. The Lion freshman then turned a low single leg into a second takedown and a 5-0 lead with :35 left in the middle stanza. Trailing 5-0 with Rasheed owning a clinched riding time point, Fierro chose neutral to start the final period. Needing one more takedown for a major, the Lion freshman worked into a low single but the 13th-ranked Roadrunner held off and Rasheed settled for a dominating 6-0 win with 3:17 in riding time.
174: Red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 8 at 174, met No. 16 Bryce Hammond in the dual's marquee match-up. Nickal made short work of the ranked Roadrunner. The Lion freshman took Hammond down quickly and then steadily worked his way into control of the Roadrunner's shoulders, getting the pin at the 1:57 mark in the opening period.
184: Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 184, tangled with CSUB's Jesus Ambriz. McCutcheon scored quickly, taking a 2-0 lead. He then controlled the action from the top position, looking for a chance to turn the Roadrunner for back points. Ambriz fought off McCutcheon's pinning efforts but the Lion rode him out to lead 2-0 with 1:51 in riding time after one period. McCutcheon chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. He then turned a low single into a takedown and a 5-0 lead with 1:25 on the clock. McCutcheon then kept control of Ambriz, working the Roadrunner senior from the top position for the rest of the period to lead 5-0 with a clinched riding time point (3:10). Ambriz chose neutral to start the third but McCutcheon was relentless, tacking on a third takedown to lead 7-1 after cutting Ambriz loose. McCutcheon forced Ambriz down for another takedown and cut to lead 9-2. McCutcheon quickly added another takedown and cut with :30 left and rolled on to a 12-3 major with 3:30 in riding time.
197: Senior Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, wrestled in his home state for the first time as a collegian and faced off against senior Reuben Franklin. McIntosh scored quickly, taking the CSUB senior down for an early 2-0 lead. McIntosh kept control of Franklin for nearly a minute before Franklin escaped. But McIntosh added a quick second takedown and cut to lead 4-2 midway through the period. McIntosh then added a third takedown to lead 6-2 with 1:34 in riding time. McIntosh chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 7-2 lead. The Lion senior fought off a solid Franklin shot to hold his lead at the 1:00 mark but then gave up the dual's first takedown at the :17 mark, still leading 7-4. McIntosh escaped as the period ended and lead 8-4 with 1:07 in riding time after two periods. Franklin chose neutral to start the third period. McIntosh worked his way into a high single but Franklin was able to counter and work his way into a potential counter takedown. The Lion senior was able to force a stalemate with :50 on the clock, still leading 8-4. McIntosh dropped in on a low single and picked up another takedown at the :20 mark to lead 10-5. He then clinched the major with a final takedown at :08 mark and, with 1:17 riding time, posted the 13-5 major decision.
285: True freshman Jan Johnson (Mohnton, Pa.) met Roadrunner sophomore Matt Williams at 285. The duo battled on the edge of the mat for the opening two minutes with Johnson getting called for a first stall warning at the 1:20 mark. A reset at the 1:04 mark got the wrestlers back to the center circle and Johnson then fought off a strong Williams shot, nearly countering it for a score of his own, but settling for a reset out of bounds. With the bout scoreless, Johnson chose down to start the second period but Williams was able to lock into control of the Lion freshman and build up a solid riding time edge. A second Johnson stall put Williams up 1-0 with 1:00 on the clock. Johnson gave up another point on a stall and trailed 2-0 after two periods. Williams chose down to start the third and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead with 1:57 in riding time. Johnson worked for his own score with two low singles in the center circle, but Williams was able to step out of trouble and maintain his lead. Johnson finished the bout in on a single leg but Williams was able to keep the Lion from scoring and posted the 4-0 win with 1:57 in riding time.
125: Senior All-American Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 125, took on junior Sergio Mendez in the dual's first bout. Megaludis scored quickly, taking Mendez down to lead 2-0 less than :30 into the bout. The Lion senior added a second takedown and led 4-2 at the midway point. Two more Lion takedowns and the Lion led 8-3 at the :33 mark. Megaludis then rode the Roadrunner out to lead 8-3 with 1:04 in riding time after the opening period. Megaludis chose down to start the second period and escaped to an 8-4 score, but Megaludis added a takedown to lead 10-5 after a cut with 1:30 on the clock. Megaludis added two more takedowns and led 14-6 after two periods. Megaludis chose down to start the third period and quickly reversed Mendez to lead 16-7 after cutting the Roadrunner loose. The Lion senior added another quick takedown and upped his lead 18-7 with a clinched riding time point. Megaludis cut Mendez loose and quickly used a low single to take Mendez down for a 20-8 lead. Mendez picked up a late reversal and Megaludis quickly reversed him back. With 3:09 riding time, Megaludis posted the 23-10 major decision.