LEWISBURG, Pa.; November 30, 2018 – No. 1 Penn State (2-0, 0-0 B1G) made its first-ever visit to Bucknell (2-2) for a dual meet and dominated the homestanding Bison in sold out Sojka Pavilion. The Nittany Lions won nine of ten bouts, including three pins, to roll to a 42-3 victory in Lewisburg, Pa.
The dual was wrestled in front of a sellout crowd of 4,279 in Bucknell's Sojka Pavilion. The crowd is the largest wrestling crowd in Bucknell history and the third largest in Sojka Pavilion history.
The dual began at 125 where Lion sophomore Devin Schnupp (Lititz, Pa.) picked up his first dual win as a Nittany Lion. Schnupp used two takedowns, including a late one, to post a 5-2 win over Bucknell's Geo Barzona to give Penn State a lead it would never relinquish. True freshman Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.) stayed hot at 133, rolling to a 21-7 major over David Campbell. Sophomore Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 4 at 141, was also impressive, posting a 15-5 major over Bucknell's Matthew Kalonia.
Red-shirt freshman Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.), ranked No. 13 at 149, made his Penn State dual meet debut, picking up a strong victory. Berge dominated Joey Schiele, posting a 25-10 technical fall at the 6:21 mark to put Penn State up 16-0 after four bouts. Senior Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 157, stayed perfect on the year with a second period pin over BU's Zach Hartman. Nolf's pin at the 3:49 mark gave Penn State a 22-0 lead heading into intermission.
With top-ranked Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.) not feeling well, sophomore157-pounder Bo Pipher (Paonia, Colo.) moved up to 165 for the Lions. Pipher was strong in the match but could not overcome BU's D.J. Hollingshead, who put Bucknell on the board with a 10-5 win. Junior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), ranked No. 2 at 174, put on a takedown clinic on his way to a 20-7 major decision over Nick Stephani with over 3:00 in riding time. Senior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), ranked No. 4 at 184, notched his fifth takedown of the year, picking up the fast fall over Kyle Inlander at the 0:31 mark.
Senior Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 1 at 197, continued to dominate his new weight. Nickal rolled up seven takedowns to post a 16-6 major decision over Drew Phipps, giving the Lions a 36-3 lead. Senior Anthony Cassar (Rocky Hill, N.J.), ranked No. 5 at 285, closed out the dual with a fast fall of his own, pinning Brandon Stokes in just 0:32. Cassar's pin allowed the Nittany Lions to walk away with a with a resounding 42-3 win.
The Nittany Lions posted a lopsided 51-3 takedown advantage. Penn State has now won 47 straight dual meets dating back to the end of the 2014-15 season.
Penn State is now 2-0 overall while Bucknell falls to 2-2. The Nittany Lions host No. 10 Lehigh on Sunday, Dec. 2, in sold out Rec Hall. The match-up will air live nationally on the Big Ten Network and begins at 1:30 p.m.
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. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.
#1 Penn State 42, Bucknell 3
November 30, 2018 – Lewisburg, Pa.
125: Devin Schnupp PSU dec. Geo Barzona BU, 5-2 3-0
133: Roman Bravo-Young PSU maj. Dec. David Campbell BU, 21-7 7-0
141: #4 Nick Lee PSU maj. Dec. Matthew Kalonia BU, 15-5 11-0
149: #13 Brady Berge PSU tech fall Joey Schiele BU, 25-10 (6:21) 16-0
157: #1 Jason Nolf PSU pinned Zach Hartman BU, WBF (3:49) 22-0
165: D.J. Hollingshead BU dec. Bo Pipher PSU, 10-5 22-3
174: #2 Mark Hall PSU maj. dec. Nick Stephani BU, 20-7 26-3
184: #4 Shakur Rasheed PSU pinned Kyle Inlander BU, WBF (0:310 32-3
197: #1 Bo Nickal PSU maj. dec. Drew Phipps BU, 16-6 36-3
285: #5 Anthony Cassar PSU pinned Brandon Stokes BU, WBF (0:32) 42-3
Attendance: 4,279 (new Bucknell wrestling record)
Records: Penn State 2-0; Bucknell 2-2
Up Next for Penn State: home vs. #10 Lehigh, Sunday, Dec. 2, 1:30 p.m. in Rec Hall
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
125: Sophomore Devin Schnupp (Lititz, Pa.) took on Bucknell's Geo Barzona at 125. Schnupp and Barzona battled in the middle off the mat for the opening minute before Schnupp took an early lead with a takedown at the 1:45 mark. Barzona escaped to a 2-1 score and action continued on the Bison logo in the middle of the mat. Schnupp continued to shoot, connecting on a low single. But Barzona was able to force a scramble that ended in a stalemate with :40 left in the opening period. Trailing by one, Barzona chose down to start the second period. Schnupp was able to control the action from the top position for :30 before Barzona escaped to a 2-2 tie. Schnupp was also hit with a first stall warning during the Barzona escape. Schnupp countered a slight Barzona shot to keep the bout tied 2-2 as the clock moved below :30. Barzona tried to turn a late shot into a takedown but Schnupp fought it off to head into the third period tied 2-2. Schnupp chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-2 lead. He then turned into Barzona and forced a scramble in front of the Penn State corner with a low shot. Barzona nearly scored but Schnupp was able to return to neutral and the bout continued to the 1:00 mark with Schnupp leading 3-2. Schnupp nearly locked up a cradle on the edge of the mat but Barzona was able to work his way out of bounds to force a reset with :35 on the clock. Schnupp continued to shoot, using a low single to bring Barzona down for a bout clinching takedown and a 5-2 win.
133: True freshman Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.) faced off against David Campbell at 133. Bravo-Young attacked quickly, taking the Bucknell wrestler down for an early 2-0 lead just :20 into the bout. The Lion freshman the controlled the action from then let Campbell loose and worked his way to a second takedown and a 4-1 lead with 1:00 left in the opening period. Bravo-Young closed out a dominant first period with one more takedown and led 6-2 with 2:06 in time after one period. Campbell chose down to start the second period and Bravo-Young cut him loose to a 6-3 score. The Lion freshman quickly tacked on two more takedowns to up his lead to 10-4 with 1:16 left in the middle period. Bravo-Young added one more takedown with :18 left to lead 12-5 with nearly 3:00 in riding time after two periods. He chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 13-5 lead and the poured on the offense. Bravo-Young added another takedown and then fought off a solid Campbell shot with :50 left, forcing a scramble in front of the Bucknell corner that ended with a Penn State takedown. He would add one final takedown and 3:06 in riding time to roll to a 21-7 major decision.
141: Sophomore Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 4 at 141, met Matthew Kalonia. Lee scored twice in the opening minute, bolting out to an early 4-1 lead on Kalonia. He cut Kalonia loose again, worked on his feet for a few moments and blew through a strong shot for a third takedown and a 6-2 lead with 1:10 left in the opening period. Lee carried that lead into the second stanza, along with 2:17 in riding time. Lee chose down to start the second period and escaped to a 7-2 lead. He then notched his fourth takedown and began working on a strong ride with 1:00 on the clock. He picked up a point on a second Kalonia stall, all while working for a chance to turn the Bison for back points. Kalonia fought off the tilt long enough to kill the clock and Lee led 10-2 with 3:06 in time after two. Kalonia chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 10-3 score. But Lee continued to pour on the offense. The Lion sophomore used a quick low shot to take Kalonia down for a 12-3 lead. He then cut him loose at the 1:05 mark and took him down again quickly to lead 14-4 with over 4:00 in riding time. Lee
149: Redshirt freshman Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.), ranked No. 13 at 149, met Bucknell's Joey Schiele. Berge wasted no time opening up a big lead, notching two quick takedowns in his Penn State dual debut to open up an early 4-1 lead in just 1:00 of action. Berge then worked his riding time edge up to 1:25 before cutting Schiele loose, only to take him down quickly to lead 6-2 with :55 left in the opening period. Berge picked up a penalty point and added one more takedown to lead 9-3 with 2:15 riding time after one period. Berge chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 10-3 lead. He rolled up two fast takedowns and led 14-4 with 1:00 on the clock. Berge continued to press Schiele, forcing the Bison to the edge of the mat. Berge led 14-5 with 2:45 riding time after two and cut Schiele to start the third period. He turned quickly into a takedown, cut Schiele again, and took him down an eighth time to lead 18-7 with 1:25 on the clock. He took Schiele down a total of 11 times on his way to a 25-10 technical fall at the 6:21 mark.
157: Senior Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 157, met Bucknell freshman Zach Hartman. Nolf put on an offensive show early, rolling up three takedowns in the opening minute-plus to lead 5-2 before the midway point of the first period. Hartman countered with a takedown that cut Nolf's lead to 6-5. Nolf then escaped to a 7-5 lead with :45 left to wrestle in the opening period. Leading 7-5, Nolf chose down to start the second period. Hartman was able to keep Nolf down for :30 before the Lion escaped to an 8-5 lead. Nolf fought off a quick Hartman shot, quickly gained control of the Bison's shoulders and, from a standing position, turned him to his back on the mat for a pin. Nolf got the fall at the 3:49 mark, his fifth of the year.
165: With top-ranked Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.) not feeling well, sophomore Bo Pipher (Paonia, Colo.) moved up to 165 and took on Bison senior D.J. Hollingshead. Pipher scored quickly, taking Hollingshead down for an early 2-0 lead. But the Bison reversed Pipher to briefly tie the bout before Pipher escaped to a 3-2 lead, all within the first :45 of the opening stanza. The duo battled evenly for the next minute-plus with neither man finding an opening. Leading 3-2 after the opening period, Pipher chose down to start the second stanza and escaped at the :55 mark. Pipher's escape gave the Lion a 4-2 lead. Hollingshead had 1:04 in riding time but picked up a stall in the process. Trailing 4-2, Hollingshead chose down to start the third period, needing a quick escape. Pipher was able to control the Bison until the 1:52 mark before he escaped to a 4-3 Pipher lead, with the riding time point erased. Pipher fought off a high Hollingshead shot at the 1:20 mark, but the Bison was able to work his way to the two points and a 5-4 lead with :45 on the clock. Pipher escaped to a 5-5 tie but Hollingshead had 1:04 of riding time, all with :27 left in the bout. Pipher battled for a late takedown to grab the win, but Hollingshead was able to hold off the Lion, adding a late four-point move to post a hard-fought 10-5 win.
174: Junior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), ranked No. 2 at 174, met Bucknell's Nick Stephani. Hall opened up an early 2-1 lead with a quick takedown in the opening period. He controlled the action in the middle of the mat, stepping away from a slight Stephani shot, using an underhook and adding a second takedown with :40 left in the period. Leading 4-1 with over 1:00 in riding time after one, Hall chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. Hall bulled his way to a third takedown at the 1:05 mark, cut Stephani loose and then added a fourth takedown with :30 left. Not content, Hall picked up fifth takedown and rode Stephani out to lead 11-3 with 2:04 in riding time after two periods. Stephani chose down to start the third period and Hall cut him loose to an 11-4 score. The Lion junior notched another takedown off a scramble, cut Stephani loose and went on to roll to a 20-7 major decision with 3:06 in riding time.
184: Senior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), ranked No. 4 at 184, battled Bucknell junior Kyle Inlander. Rasheed made quick work of the Bison grappler. He took Inlander down in the opening seconds and then wrapped up a cradle for the fall at the 0:31 mark. The pin was Rasheed's fifth of the year.
197: Senior Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 1 at 197, took on Bison junior Drew Phipps. Nickal and Phipps battled evenly for the opening seconds, but the Lion senior's relentless offense resulted in a takedown and an early 2-1 lead. Nickal picked up a second takedown at the 1:00 mark and then rode Phipps out to lead 4-1 with 1:44 in riding time after one period. Leading by three, Nickal chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. He quickly defended a Phipps shot, stepped back from a low double and worked his way into control of the Bison's shoulders. Nickal worked his way around for a takedown and a 7-1 lead with :50 left in the middle stanza. He rode Phipps out and led 7-1 with 2:22 in time after two. Phipps chose down to start the third period and Nickal cut him loose to a 7-2 score. He turned a solid high single into a takedown and then cut Phipps loose to a 9-3 score. Nickal added two more takedowns to up his lead to 13-4 with the clinched riding time point with :18 left to wrestle. He added one final takedown and, with riding time, posted a 16-6 major decision.
285: Senior Anthony Cassar (Rocky Hill, N.J.), ranked No. 5 at 285, met Bucknell's Brandon Stokes. The Lion senior put an exclamation point on the dual meet by taking the Bison big man down quickly, turning him to his back and picking up Penn State's third fall of the dual. Cassar got the pin in just 0:32 to put a capstone on Penn State's dual victory.
