Nov. 22, 2015
PALO ALTO, Calif. -- No. 1 Penn State (4-0, 0-0 B1G) dominated No. 18 Stanford (2-1) in the second California dual of the weekend for the Nittany Lion wrestlers, rolling to a 31-12 victory in Stanford's Maples Pavilion. Over 2,500 fans watched as head coach Cael Sanderson's squad won seven of the nine contested bouts.
The dual began at 165, where red-shirt freshman Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) took on No. 6 Jim Wilson to start the dual. Wilson fought off a last second Rasheed comeback to post a hard-fought 6-3 win and give Stanford a short-lived 3-0 lead. Red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 8 at 174, dominated Keaton Subjeck on his way to a 12-4 major with 3:22 riding time to put Penn State up 4-3. Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 184, then took care of Garet Krohn, 6-3. Senior Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, thrilled many friends and family with a pin of Stanford's Boomer Fleming. The California native got the fall at the 4:11 mark of the second period. Stanford's Josh Marchak received a forfeit victory at 285 and the Nittany Lions led 13-9 heading to intermission.
Senior Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 125, dominated No. 18 Connor Schram, posting a 7-1 win with 2:04 in riding time while forcing Schram into four stall warnings. Senior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, took care of Mason Pengilly with a 10-4 decision to put Penn State up 19-9 with three bouts left. Junior Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 141, dropped a tough 7-3 decision to No. 4 Joey McKenna for Stanford's last win of the dual. Sophomore Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at 149, pinned Paul Fox from the neutral position at 6:35 to clinch the dual and put Penn State up 25-12. Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 157, closed out the dual with a takedown clinic (11 takedowns in just over two periods) before pinning Ryerson Dempsey at the 5:24 mark. The final fall gave Penn State the 31-12 victory.
Penn State moves to 4-0 on the year while Stanford now sits at 2-1. Penn State dominated the match from start to finish, winning seven of the nine contested bouts and rolling to a 30-5 takedown edge. Penn State picked up 10 bonus points off three pins (McIntosh, Retherford, Nolf) and a major (Nickal).
Penn State will take part in the Nittany Lion Open on Sunday, Nov. 6 in Rec Hall. 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 31, #18 Stanford 12
November 22, 2015 -- Palo Alto, Calif.
165: #6 Jim Wilson STAN dec. Shakur Rasheed PSU, 6-3 / 0-3
174: #8 Bo Nickal PSU maj. dec. Keaton Subjeck STAN, 12-4 / 4-3
184: #14 Matt McCutcheon PSU dec. Garet Krohn STAN, 6-3 / 7-3
197: #1 Morgan McIntosh PSU pinned Boomer Fleming STAN, WBF (4:11) / 13-3
285: Josh Marchak STAN win by forfeit / 13-9
125: #4 Nico Megaludis PSU dec. #18 Connor Schram STAN, 7-1 / 16-9
133: #8 Jordan Conaway PSU dec. Mason Pengilly STAN, 10-4 / 19-9
141: #4 Joey McKenna STAN dec. #5 Jimmy Gulibon PSU, 7-3 / 19-12
149: #2 Zain Retherford PSU pinned Paul Fox STAN, WBF (6:35) / 25-12
157: #4 Jason Nolf PSU pinned Ryerson Dempsey STAN, WBF (5:24) / 31-12
Attendance: 2,500 (appx.)
Records: Penn State 4-0, 0-0 B1G; Stanford 2-1
Up Next for Penn State: Nittany Lion Open, Sunday, Dec. 6, Rec Hall
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
165: Red-shirt freshman Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) met No. 6 Jim Wilson at 165, a returning All-American. Rasheed shot first, nearly taking Wilson down, but the Cardinal countered the move for a takedown of his own and an early 2-0 lead. Wilson then controlled the action for over a minute, building up a riding time edge and working the clock down to under minute in the opening period. Rasheed rolled to an escape and a 2-1 deficit with :43 on the clock, Wilson owning a 1:41 riding time edge. Rasheed chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 2-2 tie. Rasheed worked for a shot in the center of the mat but Wilson was able to fight off the Lion freshman's attempts and keep the bout tied at 2-2. Rasheed nearly scored as the second period ended, but Wilson picked up a stall warning and killed the clock. Wilson chose down to start the third period and worked his way to an escape and a 3-2 lead with 1:30 on the clock, holding a 1:24 time edge as well. Rasheed tied the bout as he forced Wilson into another stall and then shot low as the bout ended. Wilson was able to counter the scrambling Rasheed for a final takedown and a hard-fought 6-3 win.
174: Red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 8 at 174, took to the mat against sophomore Keaton Subjeck. Nickal scored quickly, using a low single to open up an early 2-1 lead. The Lion freshman countered a high Subjeck shot for a second takedown and a 4-1 lead midway through the opening period. Nickal continued his offensive press after a second Subjeck escape but the Cardinal was able to defend his way through the rest of the period. Trailing 4-2, Subjeck chose down to start the second period but Nickal controlled the action for :40 before the Cardinal escaped. Nickal owned 1:43 in riding time. Leading 4-3 with 1:43 riding time, Nickal chose down to start the third period. A quick escape was followed by a furious takedown and a 7-3 lead for the Lion freshman. With riding time well in his favor, Nickal added two near fall points to up his lead to 9-3. Nickal cut Subjeck loose at the :50 mark, looking for another takedown and a major. The Lion freshman quickly used a low double to up his lead to 11-4 and then broke Subjeck down to ride him out and post the 12-4 major with 3:22 in riding time.
184: Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 184, wrestled junior Garet Krohn. McCutcheon scored quickly, taking Krohn down for a 2-0 lead. Krohn nearly countered for a reversal before working his way to an escape and McCutcheon led 2-1 midway through the opening period. McCutcheon, leading by one, chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. He then worked his way to a takedown and a 5-1 lead before Krohn was able to escape to a 5-2 deficit. McCutcheon led 5-2 with :40 in riding time after two periods and Krohn chose down to start the third. McCutcheon controlled the action long enough to build up over 1:00 riding time before Krohn escaped to a 5-3 McCutcheon lead. McCutcheon shot low again and Krohn once again tried to counter for a takedown of his own. The action ended in a stalemate and action resumed on the Cardinal S in the center of the mat. McCutcheon would wind out the clock and post the 6-3 win with 1:09 in riding time.
197: Senior Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, faced off against Cardinal Boomer Fleming. McIntosh quickly threw Fleming down for an opening takedown and a 2-1 lead after cutting Fleming loose. McIntosh added another takedown and cut to lead 4-2 midway through the opening period. McIntosh worked his way into control of Fleming's left ankle and added a third takedown to up his lead to 6-2 as the opening period wound down. Leading 6-2 with 1:26 in riding time, McIntosh chose neutral to start the second period and quickly took Fleming down for an 8-2 lead. McIntosh then worked Fleming over at the shoulders an picked up the pin at the 4:11 mark.
285: Stanford's Josh Marchak received a forfeit victory at 285.
125: Senior All-American Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 125, met No. 18 Connor Schram in a key bout to start the dual meet. Megaludis and Schram traded early shots with the action ending in a stalemate at the :30 mark. Neither wrestler broke through on offense and action moved to the middle period scoreless. Schram chose down to start the second stanza but Megaludis was able to break the Cardinal grappler down to build up some riding time. The Lion senior controlled the action from the top position for a minute before action moved out of bounds. Megaludis then continued to dominate from the top, forcing two stall warnings to lead 1-0 as the clock wound down. The strong ride-out and Schram's inactivity gave Megaludis a 1-0 lead with 2:00 in riding time after two. Megaludis chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 2-0 lead and a 1:57 riding time edge. Megaludis turned a low single into a scramble and a takedown to lead 4-1 after cutting Schram loose at the :55 mark. Schram continued to stall, giving Megaludis a 5-1 lead with :42 on the clock. With the riding time point clinched, Megaludis forced Schram into another stall and the Lion posted the 7-1 win with 2:04 in riding time.
133: Senior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, tangled with sophomore Mason Pengilly. The duo battled evenly for the opening two-minutes plus until Conaway blew through a head outside single for a takedown and a 2-0 lead. Conaway then controlled the action for the rest of the period, working the Cardinal on the mat and taking a 2-0 lead with :52 riding time into the second period. Conaway chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. He then used another high shot to notch his second takedown and up his lead to 5-0. Pengilly escaped to a 5-1 score, but Conaway had 1:32 in riding time. The Nittany Lion senior led 5-1 after two periods and Pengilly chose down to start the third. Pengilly escaped to a 5-2 Conaway lead and the Lion senior immediately worked behind a Cardinal shot for another takedown and a 7-3 lead with a clinched riding time point. Conaway added another takedown and a riding time point (2:18) to poste the 10-4 victory.
141: Junior Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 141, battled No. 4 Joey McKenna in the dual meet's marquee match-up. McKenna wasted no time with his offense, bulling through Gulibon's waist for a takedown and a 2-0 lead. McKenna then controlled the action from the top position, building up big riding time edge with the strong ride. Gulibon got hit with a first stall warning at the :21 mark and action moved out of bounds. The Lion junior could not escape off the reset and McKenna led 2-0 with 2:53 in riding time after one period. McKenna chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. Gulibon began to pick up the pace as the second period wound down but McKenna was able to keep the Lion junior at arm's length, but he did give up one stall warning. Trailing 3-0, Gulibon chose neutral to start the third period and quickly worked his way into a low single and a takedown at the 1:40 mark. He cut McKenna loose and action resumed with the Cardinal up 4-2 with a clinched riding time point. Gulibon nearly tied the bout with another takedown at the 1:00 mark, with McKenna on the defensive. McKenna countered a low Gulibon shot for a clinching takedown at the :45 mark and led 6-2. Gulibon escaped as the bout ended but McKenna would post the 7-3 win with 3:13 in riding time.
149: Sophomore Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at 149, took on Paul Fox. Fox opened up the bout with a quick shot, forcing a scramble in the middle of the mat as Retherford fought off the takedown attempt for nearly a minute before a stalemate was called at the 2:00 mark. Retherford fought off a second Fox shot and then began forcing the Cardinal back towards the outside circle before connecting on a double leg for a 2-0 lead with :34 on the clock. Retherford controlled the action for the rest of the period and carried that lead into the second stanza. Leading 2-0, Retherford chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. Retherford worked his way behind Fox for a second takedown and a 5-0 lead at the 1:25 mark. Retherford then controlled the action from the top position until Fox escaped at the :50 mark. Retherford was relentless however, picking up a third takedown to lead 7-1. Retherford then rode Fox out to carry the 7-1 lead with 1:37 in riding time into the third period. Fox chose neutral to start the third period but Retherford continued to press his offense. The duo scrambled and Fox fought off the Retherford shot and a reset was called at the 1:07 mark. Retherford worked Fox's shoulders to the mat with his leg and picked up the neutral position fall at the 6:35 mark.
157: Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 157, battled Ryerson Dempsey. Nolf attacked from the start of the match, forcing Dempsey back towards the outside circle. Dempsey slipped behind Nolf on a loose shot and led 2-1 after a quick Nolf escape with 1:50 on the clock. Nolf quickly tied the bout at 3-3 with a takedown. Energized by giving up the opening takedown, Nolf went on to stack up six more takedowns as the period ended and led 13-7 after three minutes. Dempsey chose down to start the second period and escaped to a 13-8 score. Nolf continued his takedown clinic, adding a flurry of takedowns and picking up multiple stall points to lead 23-12 after two periods with 1:06 in riding time. Nolf chose neutral to start the third, turned a low single into a cradle and a pin at the 5:24 mark.