Jan. 18, 2017
TODAY'S ACTION
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- No. 2 Penn State (7-0, 3-0 B1G) heads to Iowa City, Iowa, to take on the third-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes (7-1, 3-0 B1G) on Friday, Jan. 20. Action in Carver-Hawkeye Arena is set for 9 p.m. Eastern / 8 p.m. Central. The two teams currently sit atop the Big Ten dual standings with identical 3-0 conference marks. The dual will air live nationally on the Big Ten Network.
The Nittany Lions are coming off a sizzling 37-6 win over Rutgers in Rec Hall last Friday night. Head coach Cael Sanderson's squad won eight of ten bouts and rolled to the win thanks to two pins, three technical falls and a major. Penn State heads into the dual meet riding a 24-dual win streak dating back to the end of the 2014-15 season. Penn State could send six underclassmen into action in the dual against Iowa while the Hawkeye line-up could feature five seniors and a junior.
The Nittany Lion line-up is young, balanced and talented. Five Penn Staters sport perfect records and 10 are ranked in the latest InterMat individual rankings. True freshman Nick Suriano has wrestled one of the nation's toughest schedules to date and is 11-0 with a pin and five majors. He is ranked No. 3 nationally at 125. Sophomore Jered Cortez, out of the line-up since mid-December working his way back from injury, is 6-2 and ranked No. 14 at 133. If Cortez does not compete, look for sophomore George Carpenter to get the nod. Senior Jimmy Gulibon is 7-6 at 141 and ranked No. 12 nationally.
Junior Zain Retherford, ranked No. 1 at 149, has a perfect 12-0 mark with ten pins, a technical fall and a major. Sophomore Jason Nolf, ranked No. 1 at 157, is also a perfect 12-0 with seven pins, four techs and a major. Red-shirt freshman Vincenzo Joseph is ranked No. 4 at 165 and sports a 10-1 mark with four techs. Senior Geno Morelli is ranked No. 14 at 174 and sports a 10-1 records with three pins as well. Sophomore Bo Nickal has a perfect 11-0 record with nine pins and a major and is ranked No. 1 at 184. Junior Matt McCutcheon is ranked No. 10 at 197 and has a 9-2 mark overall. Sophomore Nick Nevills is Penn State's fifth unbeaten grappler, sporting an 11-0 mark with four pins and two techs.
Iowa will enter the weekend coming off a tough 24-11 loss at Oklahoma State last Sunday. Head Coach Tom Brands could send a veteran line-up into action against the young Lions. Senior Thomas Gilman is 17-0 and ranked No. 1 at 125 while classmate Cory Clark is 9-1 and No. 3 at 133. Senior Topher Carton is 17-3 and ranked No. 18 at 141. Junior Brandon Sorensen is 17-1 and ranked No. 3 at 149 while freshman Michael Kemerer is 19-0 and No. 2 at 157. Look for freshman Joey Gunther (13-3) or sophomore Sklyer St. John (5-3) at 165. Senior Alex Meyer is ranked No. 13 at 174 with a 14-4 mark. Freshman Cash Wilke is 11-5 at 197 and sophomore Sam Stoll is 7-2 and ranked No. 8 at 285.
Iowa leads the all-time series between the two schools, holding a 26-9-2 advantage. The Hawkeyes won the last meeting, an 18-12 victory on 2/8/15 in the Bryce Jordan Center. Penn State, however, won the last meeting at Iowa, a 24-12 win on 12/21/14 in CHA.
Penn State will face two Big Ten opponents next weekend. The Nittany Lions visit Wisconsin on Friday, Jan. 27, for an 8 p.m. Eastern / 7 p.m. Central dual. Penn State returns to Rec Hall on Sunday, Jan. 29, when it hosts Northwestern at 2 p.m. Rec Hall duals are sold out but a limited number of standing room only tickets are available to the events. Fans can purchase these SROs on a first-come, first-serve basis by calling the Penn State Athletics ticket office at 1-800-NITTANY while supplies last. 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 2016-17 Penn State wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.
#2 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (7-0, 3-0 B1G)125 #3 Nick Suriano Fr. Paramus, N.J./Bergen Catholic / 11-0
133 #13 Jered Cortez So. Carol Stream, Ill./Glenbard North / 6-2
OR George Carpenter So. Chapel Hill, N.C./Carrboro / 1-7
141 #12 Jimmy Gulibon Sr. Latrobe, Pa./Derry Area / 7-6
149 #1 Zain Retherford Jr. Benton, Pa./Benton / 12-0
157 #1 Jason Nolf So. Yatesboro, Pa./Kittanning / 12-0
165 #4 Vincenzo Joseph Fr. Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic / 10-1
174 #14 Geno Morelli Sr. DuBois, Pa./DuBois / 10-1
OR Shakur Rasheed So. Coram, N.Y./Longwood / 5-1
184 #2 Bo Nickal So. Allen, Texas/Allen / 11-0
197 #10 Matt McCutcheon Jr. Apollo, Pa./Kiski Area / 9-2
285 #5 Nick Nevills So. Clovis, Calif./Clovis / 11-0
#3 IOWA HAWKEYES (7-1, 3-0 B1G)125 #1 Thomas Gilman Sr. Council Bluffs, Iowa/Skutt Catholic / 17-0
133 #3 Cory Clark Sr. Pleasant Hill, Iowa/Southeast Polk / 9-1
141 #18 Topher Carton Sr. Rock Island, Ill./Davenport Assumption / 17-3
149 #3 Brandon Sorensen Jr. Cedar Pins, Iowa/Denver / 17-1
157 #2 Michael Kemerer Fr. Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional / 19-0
165 Joey Gunther Fr. Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville / 13-3
OR Skyler St. John So. Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Prairie / 5-3
174 #13 Alex Meyer Sr. Pleasant Hill, Iowa/SE Polk / 14-4
184 #5 Sammy Brooks Sr. Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park / 16-1
197 Cash Wilcke Fr. Battle Creek, Iowa/OA-BCIG / 11-5
285 #8 Sam Stoll So. Kasson, Minn./Kasson Matoville / 7-2
Individual rankings are InterMat, team ranking is InterMat TPI
(Tournament Power Index) as of 1/17
THIS WEEKNo. 2 Penn State (7-0, 3-0 B1G) heads to Iowa City, Iowa, to take on the third-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes (7-1, 3-0 B1G) on Friday, Jan. 20. Action in Carver-Hawkeye Arena is set for 9 p.m. Eastern / 8 p.m. Central. UP NEXTPenn State will face two Big Ten opponents next weekend. The Nittany Lions visit Wisconsin on Friday, Jan. 27, for an 8 p.m. Eastern / 7 p.m. Central dual. Penn State returns to Rec Hall on Sunday, Jan. 29, when it hosts Northwestern at 2 p.m. ON THE AIRTV - Big Ten Network (national)
Live Web Video - BTN2go.com
Radio All Season - Penn State Radio Network. All live streaming of Penn State audio is free this year. All audio and some video (both free and $) can be accessed through GoPSUNow ( http://www.gopsusports.com/collegesportslive/ ). NOTES!LIONS DOMINATE #21 RUTGERS 37-6 FOR B1G WIN
The Penn State Nittany Lions downed #21 Rutgers 37-6 to win their 24th straight dual meet dating back to the 2014-15 season. The Lions won eight of ten bouts, including two pins, three techs and a major, to roll to the Big Ten win in front of the 32nd straight Rec Hall sell out crowd. Zain Retherford pinned #14 Ken Theobold (5:33), Bo Nickal pinned #14 Nicholas Gravina (4:27), Jason Nolf teched #16 John Van Brill while both Vincenzo Joseph and Nick Nevills picked up techs as well. Nick Suriano stayed unbeaten with a major and Geno Morelli and Matt McCutcheon picked up decisions.
NOLF'S BIG WEEKEND NOTCHES HIM B1G WoW HONORS
Sophomore Jason Nolf dominated two of the Big Ten's best in a road swing through the midwest. Nolf pinned #9 Jake Short of Minnesota at the 3:44 mark of the second period. Nolf's fall came after opening up a gaudy 14-4 lead after one period. His win helped Penn State roll over the homestanding Gophers 33-6. Two days later, the Nittany Lion All-American cruised past #3 Tyler Berger of Nebraska with a 15-7 major. Nolf dominated the match from start to finish, posting a six to one takedown edge. Nolf's win helped propel Penn State to a dominating 27-14 win over #6 Nebraska in Lincoln. The honor is the second for Nolf (he won once last year) and the first for Penn State this year.
NITTANY LIONS HAND MINNESOTA LOPSIDED DEFEAT IN MINNEAPOLIS
The Nittany Lion wrestling team roared through Minneapolis on Friday, Jan. 6, handing the homestanding Golden Gophers a 33-6 defeat. Penn State won eight of ten bouts in the lop-sided dual, including three pins. True freshman Nick Suriano downed #6 Ethan Lizak 8-6, rolling up four takedowns to get the win at 125. Jimmy Gulibon downed #9 Tommy Thorn 6-3 at 141, Vincenzo Joseph beat #14 Nick Wanzek 7-4 at 165 and Nick Nevills shut-out #8 Michael Kroells 4-0 at 285. Penn State got pins from Zain Retherford at 149, Jason Nolf (over #9 Jake Short) at 157 and Bo Nickal at 184.
PENN STATE'S YOUTH TAKES DOWN SENIOR-LADEN NEBRASKA SQUAD IN LINCOLN
Penn State's line-up featuring six underclassmen rolled through Lincoln, Neb., on Sunday, Jan. 8, to beat #6 Nebraska 27-14. The Nittany Lions youthful line-up won seven of ten bouts against a veteran NU squad that featured six seniors. True freshman Nick Suriano downed #5 Tim Lambert 3-2 in one marquee match-up while sophomore Nick Nevills pinned senior Collin Jensen at the 6:01 mark in another key bout at 285. Sophomore Bo Nickal handled No. 3 TJ Dudley in the showcase bout at 184, with Nickal rolling up four takedowns in a 10-5 win over the senior. Penn State also got key wins from Zain Retherford at 149, Jason Nolf with a 15-7 major over No. 3 Tyler Berger at 157, Vincenzo Joseph at 165 and Geno Morelli at 165.
SO ABOUT TRUE FRESHMAN Nick Suriano'S EARLY SEASON STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE...
True freshman Nick Suriano, less than a year removed from winning yet another New Jersey state high school title, has faced perhaps one of the nation's toughest early season schedules. Suriano has met, and beaten, all 11 of his opponents. Four of those 11 wrestlers were all ranked among the nation's best, each within the top six. Suriano has defeated (with rankings listed at the time of the match) #4 Connor Schram of Stanford (3-0), No. 4 Darian Cruz of Lehigh (7-0), No. 6 Ethan Lizak of Minnesota (8-6, with four takedowns) and No. 5 Tim Lambert of Nebraska (3-2).
Mark Hall WINS SOUTHERN SCUFFLE TITLE; NAMED OW!
True freshman Mark Hall, red-shirting and wrestling unattached, blazed through a rugged field of nationally ranked opponents to win the 174-pound title at the 2017 Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn. Hall went 5-0 with two pins and a major to claim the crown and was named the tournament's Outstanding Wrestler. He pinned Martin Duane of the Citadel in the first round and majored Oklahoma State's Jordan Rogers 12-4 in the second. He then dominated tourney top seed and No. 3-ranked Casey Kent of Penn 9-4 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, he pinned No. 15 Ryan Preisch of Lehigh to advance to the championship finals. Hall then roughed up No. 6 Kyle Crutchmer of Oklahoma State in the finals, opening up a 6-0 lead and rolling to a 10-3 victory.
HALL WINS CSU OPEN TITLE
True freshman Mark Hall, red-shirting this year and competing unattached, posted a perfect 5-0 mark at 174 with three pins and a major to win the 2016 Cleveland State Open on 12/17. Hall's victory was his second open tourney title of the year. Classmate Luke Gardner also competed at the event, picking up a tech fall win at 149.
WEATHER KEEPS LIONS FROM COMPETING AT RENO
A nation-wide weather event, from ice storms in the East to snowstorms in the Rockies, kept the Penn State Nittany Lions from competing at the 2016 Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 18. Missing the tournament means that Penn State was out of action from Dec. 11, 2016, to Jan. 6, 2017, nearly one full month.
NICKAL MAJORS #13 SCHNEIDER TO LEAD PSU TO 46-0 SHUT OUT WIN V. BINGHAMTON
Sophomore Bo Nickal dominated #13 Steve Schneider of Binghamton on 12/11, posting an 18-7 major over the talented Bearcat. The victory was the highlight in Penn State's 46-0 shut out victory over BU in front of a sold out Rec Hall crowd.
SURIANO DOWNS #4 CRUZ IN BJC DUAL WIN OVER LEHIGH
True freshman Nick Suriano continued his superb start to the 2016-17 season with a dominating 7-0 win over returning All-American Darian Cruz of Lehigh on 12/4. The win helped spark Penn State to a 30-10 victory over #9 Lehigh in front of over 15,000 fans in this year's BJC Dual. It was Suriano's second win over a returning All-American.
NICKAL AND RETHERFORD CONTINUE PIN PARADE IN BJC DUAL WIN OVER LEHIGH
Sophomore Bo Nickal and junior Zain Retherford each picked up their seventh straight pin in Penn State's 30-10 win over #9 Lehigh in the BJC Dual on 12/4. Nickal pinned Kyle Gentile at the 2:35 mark for his seventh pin in as many matches while Retherford pinned #9 Laike Gardner at the 3:55 mark for his seventh straight pin in his eighth match.
LIONS CROWN 8 AT KEYSTONE CLASSIC; DOMINATE THE FIELD IN PHILLY
Penn State dominated the field in the Keystone Classic on 11/20, crowning eight champs with ten finalists, to win the team title. Nick Suriano (125) went 4-0 to win at 125; Zain Retherford went 5-0 with five pins to win at 149 and claim OW honors; Jason Nolf went 5-0 with three pins and two techs to win at 157; Vincenzo Joseph went 4-0 with two techs, and wins over #5 and #13, to win at 165; Shakur Rasheed went 5-0 and won the 174-pound title with a 2-1 (tb2) victory over teammate Geno Morelli, who took second with a 4-1 mark and three pins; Bo Nickal went 4-0 with four pins to win at 184; Matt McCutcheon went 4-0 to win at 197 and Nick Nevills went 4-0 to win at 285. Kade Moss was runner-up at 141 with a 4-1 mark; Jered Cortez went 4-1 to take third at 133 and Gary Dinmore went 3-2 to take fourth at 149.
SURIANO, MORELLI AND NEVILLS NOTCH BIG WINS TO LEAD LIONS OVER #12 STANFORD
True freshman Nick Suriano dominated #4 Connor Schram at 125, rolling up nearly 2:00 in riding time to post a 3-0 shutout in his Rec Hall dual debut; senior Geno Morelli dominated #13 Jim Wilson to post a 6-3 win at 174; and sophomore Nick Nevills beat #10 Nathan Butler 3-1 at 285 to lead Penn State to a resounding 36-6 win over 12th-ranked Stanford. Penn State won eight of ten bouts in sold out Rec Hall.
NITTANY LIONS SHUTOUT ARMY WEST POINT 45-0
Penn State opened up its season at Army West Point on 11/11 and won all ten bouts. Three Nittany Lions won their Penn State and collegiate debuts: Nick Suriano (125), Jered Cortez (133) and Vincenzo Joseph (165) all got wins in their inaugural action in the blue and white singlet. Jimmy Gulibon got the night's most impressive win, a 17-6 major over #17 Logan Everett. Matt McCutcheon had a 4-2 win over #11 Rocco Caywood at 197.
HALL WINS BEARCAT OPEN; DINMORE SECOND
Ten members of the Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team trekked to Binghamton, N.Y., for the 2016 Bearcat Kaloust Open today. True freshman Mark Hall, wrestling unattached, came away with 174 pound title while red-shirt freshman Gary Dinmore took second at 149. Five members of the team were competing attached, five unattached. Hall rolled to the title at 174 in his first open tournament wrestling unattached at the collegiate level. Hall went 5-0 with two pins, a tech fall and a 12-4 major over Harvard's Josef Johnson in the finals. Dinmore went 4-0 with a major, winning four straight before losing in the finals to a non-collegiate wrestler (meaning the loss does not count on his record). In addition to Dinmore and Hall, eight other Lions wrestled at Binghamton. Red-shirt freshman Dominic Giannangeli went 2-2 at 141 and red-shirt freshman Kellan Stout went 2-1 at 197. Francisco Bisono picked up a win at 174 and upped his season long win total to seven. Bisono went 6-1 at last week's Clarion Open to place third.
BISONO TAKES THIRD AT CLARION OPEN
Red-shirt freshman Francisco Bisono rolled to a 6-1 record at the Clarion Open on 11/6, placing third at 174. Bisono had one pin during his run as well. True freshman Bo Pipher went 2-2 with a pin at 141 as well. Devon Van Cura picked up a win at 184 while true freshmen Devin Schnupp and Brian Friery competed as well.
TEN LIONS RANKED BY INTERMAT AND FLO
Ten Nittany Lions are ranked by InterMat in the latest release by the site. Nick Suriano is #3 at 125, Jered Cortez #13 at 133, Jimmy Gulibon #12 at 141, Zain Retherford #1 at 149, Jason Nolf #1 at 157, Vincenzo Joseph #4 at 165, Geno Morelli #14 at 174, Bo Nickal #2 at 184, Matt McCutcheon #10 at 197 and Nick Nevills #5 at 285. Ten Penn Staters are ranked by Flo Wrestling: Suriano #4, Cortez #14, Gulibon #18, Retherford #1, Nolf #1, Shakur Rasheed #14 at 174, Nickal #2, McCutcheon #8 and Nevills #5.
PENN STATE RADIO NETWORK SET FOR 2016-17
The Penn State Wrestling Radio Network has been finalized for the 2016-17 campaign. Forever Media's WRSC-AM 1390 will serve as the flagship station for the network. The Penn State Coaches Show featuring Cael Sanderson, presented by Pepsi, will be carried by Forever Broadcasting as well. Forever Media will air the bulk of the season on WRSC-AM 1390 with select dates tabbed for WQWK-AM 1450. In addition to those two stations WIBF-FM 92.5 Mexico/Lewistown and WDBF-FM 106.3 Mt. Union/Huntingdon will broadcast the full season as well. Jeff Byers will once again serve as the voice of Penn State Wrestling, calling each broadcast mat-side with the Nittany Lions. The Penn State Coaches Show featuring Cael Sanderson, presented by Pepsi, will air on Forever Media as well this year. The one-hour program will take place at Lettermans on East College Ave. in State College nearly every Wednesday at 6:05 p.m. from November 11 through mid-March. Fans are encouraged to attend the program throughout the year. The show will air live on WQWK-AM. Sanderson will be the featured guest for most shows from November 16 through mid-March. In addition to Sanderson, The Penn State Coaches Show will include various coaches from other Penn State teams and athletics administrators. The show is slated for Nov. 16, Nov. 30, Dec. 6, Dec. 14, Jan. 4, Jan. 11, Jan. 18, Jan 25, Feb. 8, Feb. 15, Feb. 22, March 1 and March 8. The Penn State Coaches Show featuring Cael Sanderson, presented by Pepsi, will feature guests answering questions from fans at Lettermans and online. Fans can submit questions to www.GoPSUsports.com/askthecoach. All Penn State wrestling broadcasts this season, both live action and the Penn State Coaches Show featuring Cael Sanderson, will be streamed online for free on GoPSUsports.com via GoPSUNow.