PITTSBURGH, Pa.; March 21, 2019 – The Penn State Nittany Lions, under the guidance of head coach Cael Sanderson, had an outstanding opening session of the 2019 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Pittsburgh. The three-day event began today and runs through Saturday night. The Nittany Lions won all their bouts to move out into first place at the conclusion of the first session in the PPG Paints Arena.
Sanderson's squad went 9-0 with five pins and two majors in round one. The Nittany Lions, with over half their wins coming by fall and all but two for bonus, sit in first place with 21.0 points while Ohio State is second with 15.5. Oklahoma is third with 14.5.
True freshman Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.), the No. 10 seed at 133, took on No. 23 Mario Guillen in Penn State's first match of the tournament and Bravo-Young's first-ever NCAA tournament bout. Bravo-Young fought off an early Guillen shot and spent the rest of the first period in neutral to go to the second stanza tied 0-0. The Lion freshman chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Guillen then took the Lion down, Bravo-Young escaped and the match was tied 2-2 at the 1:20 mark. Bravo-Young took a 4-2 lead with a takedown at the 0:46 mark and finished on top to carry that lead into the third period. Gillen chose neutral to start the third period and Bravo-Young was able to withstand a solid Guillen effort as the clock moved below 0:30. The Lion then iced the bout with a takedown and two near fall points to post the 8-2 win.
Sophomore Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), the No. 3 seed at 141 and a returning All-American, met No. 30 Nate Limmex of Purdue in his first bout. Lee notched his first takedown seconds into the bout and took an early 2-1 lead. He added one more takedown to lead 4-1 with 1:34 in riding time after one period. Lee chose down to start the second period and quickly reversed Limmex to take a 6-2 lead. He then worked the Boilermaker over to his back and planted his shoulders for the pin at the 3:38 mark.
Redshirt freshman Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.), the No. 12 seed at 149, battled No. 21 Khristian Olivas of Fresno State in his first-ever NCAA Championship match-up. Berge took an early 2-0 lead with a swift takedown at the 1:35 mark. He cut Olivas loose and then quickly took the Bulldog down again to lead 4-1 with 0:55 on the clock. Olivas managed an escape and Berge led 4-2 with 1:11 riding time after one. The Lion freshman chose down to start the second and quickly escaped to a 5-2 lead. The score held for the second stanza. Olivas, trailing 5-2, chose down to start the third period but Berge controlled him from the top position, working his riding time edge up near 2:00 before the Bulldog escaped to a 5-3 score. Berge controlled the action from neutral for the third period and, with 1:47 in riding time, posted the strong 6-3 win.
Senior Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), the No. 1 seed at 157, a three-time All-American and the two-time defending NCAA Champion, met No. 33 Ben Anderson of Duke in the first round. The Lion senior wasted no time, taking Anderson down quickly for an early 2-0 lead. He adjusted his position, locked up a cradle, and began his final NCAA tournament with a fast fall, getting the pin at the 0:43 mark.
Junior Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.), the No. 2 seed at 165, a two-time All-American and the two-time defending NCAA Champion, took on No. 31 Evan Delong of Clarion. Wrestling in his hometown, the Pittsburgh native took a quick 2-0 lead with a fast takedown in the center circle. He then worked Delong over to his back for four near fall points and led 6-0 midway through the period. The Lion junior continued to control Delong and locked up a tilt as the clock wound down. Joseph finished off the move, getting the fall at the 2:57 mark.
Junior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), the No. 1 seed at 174, a two-time All-American and the NCAA Champion in 2017, faced off against No. 33 Devin Kane of North Carolina in the first round. Hall quickly took Kane down for an early 2-0 lead. He spent the rest of the first period in control and led 2-0 with 2:21 in riding time after the opening period. The Lion junior chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. He notched another takedown and led 5-0 midway through the period. Hall finished the second period on top and led 5-0 with a clinched riding time point (3:34) after two. Kane chose neutral to start the third period and Hall quickly rolled him to the mat for a takedown and a 7-1 lead. He added another takedown to up his lead to 9-2. The Lion added on a riding time point with a 4:28 edge and rolled to the 10-2 major decision.
Senior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), the No. 2 seed at 184 and a returning 197-pound All-American, battled No. 31 Kevin Parker of Princeton in the first round. Rasheed wasted no time taking Parker down, using a low single to open up an early 2-0 lead. Rasheed built up over 1:00 in time before turning Parker for two back points. Parker countered with a quick reversal that Rasheed reversed himself and the Lion led 6-2 after a wild scramble. Rasheed carried that lead into the second period and chose down to start it. He quickly reversed Parker to up his lead to 8-2 with over 4:00 in riding time. The Lion controlled the action on top for the remainder of the period. Parker, down 8-2, chose top to start the third period but Rasheed notched his fourth reversal of the match to open up a 10-2 lead. Another Rasheed rideout gave the Lion a dominating 11-2 major decision with a whopping 6:00 in riding time.
Senior Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), the No. 1 seed at 197, a three-time All-American and a two-time NCAA Champion, met No. 32 Ethan Laird of Rider in his first round match-up. Nickal controlled the action from the start. The Lion notched two quick takedowns, turning Laird for four back points after the second takedown to lead 8-1 midway through the opening stanza. The Lion senior then readjusted his position, locked up a cradle and got the fall at the 2:34 mark, ending the match in the first period.
Senior Anthony Cassar (Rocky Hill, N.J.), the No. 2 seed at 285, met No. 31 Antonio Pelusi of Franklin & Marshall in his first-ever NCAA Championship tournament bout. Cassar battled Pelusi evenly for over a minute, taking a couple of shots that the Diplomat was able to step back from. The Lion senior could not break through Pelusi's defense until the final seconds. After forcing Pelusi into a first stall warning, Cassar roared through a high shot at the Diplomat's waist and notched the takedown with just 0:01 on the clock. Leading 2-0, Cassar chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. The Lion then notched his second takedown to lead 5-0 midway through the second period. Cassar then muscled Pelusi's shoulders over, turning the Diplomat to his back to get the fall at the 4:20 mark.
The Nittany Lions went 9-0 overall during the session and picked up a whopping 12.0 bonus points off five pins and two majors. Nolf now has 113 career wins, well over half of them, 60, by fall. His 60 career falls is tops all-time at Penn State. Joseph's fall was his 14th of the year. Nickal now has 116 career wins, 15th all-time at Penn State, nearly half of those wins, 57, are by fall. His 57 pins are second all-time at Penn State, only to Nolf's 60.
Penn State is gunning for its eighth NCAA title in the last nine years and its fourth straight, which would be a second four-year title streak within this, Sanderson's 10th year as Penn State's mentor. The Nittany Lions concluded the 2019 dual season with a 14-0 record and won a share of the Big Ten Regular Season (dual meet) title with a 9-0 conference mark. Penn State has now won 59 straight dual meets dating back to the end of the 2014-15 season. The Nittany Lions won the 2019 Big Ten Championship on March 9-10 in Minneapolis, crowning four champions to run away from the rest of the field, winning by 30.0 points.
The event continues tonight, March 21, with session two at 7 p.m. Session three begins at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 22, and the national semifinals take place in session four on Friday at 8 p.m. The medal rounds begin day three of the event on Saturday, March 23, at 11 a.m. The Championship Finals are set for 7 p.m. on Saturday. The entire event will air live on the ESPN family of networks. All three morning sessions (1, 3, 5) will air live on ESPNU. All three evening sessions (2, 4, 6) will air live on ESPN. The entire event, including live mat-by-mat coverage is available online via ESPN3 and the ESPN App.
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.
2019 NCAA Championships – Top 3 Teams after Session 1:
Thursday, March 21, 2019 – PPG Paints Arena – Pittsburgh, Pa.
1: PENN STATE – 21.5
2: Ohio State – 15.5
3: Oklahoma State – 14.5
Penn State's individual bout-by-bout agate:
All rankings listed are official tournament seed
133: #10 Roman Bravo-Young, Fr.
Rd. 1: #23 Mario Guillen, Ohio – W, 8-2 dec.
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
141: #3 Nick Lee, So.
Rd. 1: #30 Nate Limmex, Purdue – WBF (3:38)
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
149: #12 Brady Berge, Fr.
Rd. 1: #21 Khristian Olivas, Fresno State – W, 6-3 dec.
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
157: #1 Jason Nolf, Sr.
Rd. 1: #33 Ben Anderson, Duke – WBF (0:47)
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
165: #2 Vincenzo Joseph, Jr.
Rd. 1: #31 Evan Delong, Clarion – WBF (2:57)
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
174: #1 Mark Hall, Jr.
Rd. 1: #33 Devin Kane, North Carolina – W, 10-2 maj. dec.
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
184: #2 Shakur Rasheed, Sr.
Rd. 1: #31 Kevin Parker, Princeton – W, 11-2 maj. dec.
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
197: #1 Bo Nickal, Sr.
Rd. 1: #32 Ethan Laird, Rider – WBF (2:34)
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
285: #2 Anthony Cassar, Sr. (2nd seed)
Rd. 1: #31 Antonio Pelusi, Franklin & Marshall – WBF (4:20)
Rd. 2: tonight
For this session's recap, see story above
