TODAY'S ACTION
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lions (0-0, 0-0 B1G), ranked No. 1 nationally, will open up the 2019-20 season on Sunday, Nov. 10, by hosting the Navy Midshipmen (2-1). The dual meet is slated for a 2 p.m. start in Rec Hall. Penn State utilizes InterMat's individual and tournament power index for rankings, both team and for each weight.
Penn State has won eight of the last nine NCAA titles and heads into the new campaign with a talented line-up. Many preseason ranking services have as many as nine Nittany Lions ranked. Penn State has eight returning All-Americans on its roster, including three wrestlers who have won national titles.
Penn State has returning starter Devin Schnupp (Lititz, Pa.) and talented redshirt freshman Brody Teske (Duncombe, Iowa) available at 125. Sophomore Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.), one of Penn State's eight returning All-Americans, is ranked No. 3 at 133. Junior Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), a two-time All-American, is ranked No. 3 at 141. Sophomore Jared Verkleeren (Greensburg, Pa.) is ready to compete at 149 as is junior Luke Gardner (Pottsville, Pa.).
Sophomore Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.), an NCAA qualifier at 149 last year, is ranked No. 6 at 157 heading into the year. Three-time All-American, three time NCAA finalist and two-time NCAA Champion Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.) returns for his senior season with a No. 1 ranking at 165. Fellow senior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), also a three-time All-American, three-time finalist and one-time NCAA Champion, returns at 174 and is ranked No. 1 nationally.
Senior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), an All-American in 2018, is ranked No. 3 at 184. Newly minted Nittany Lion Kyle Conel (Ashtabula, Ohio), an All-American at Kent State in 2018 as well, is ranked No. 3 at 197 for his final season of eligibility and his first in the Blue and White singlet. Defending NCAA Champion Anthony Cassar (Rocky Hill, N.J.), who won the heavyweight title last year in Pittsburgh, enters the season ranked No. 1 at 285.
Navy saw action last weekend, going 2-1 on a West Coast swing that saw the team compete on the Broadway Pier in San Diego and aboard the celebrated USS Midway. Navy beat Fresno State 25-9 and dropped a hard-fought dual to No. 6 Wisconsin, 24-12, on Friday. Navy closed out its weekend trip with a 27-6 victory over California Baptist. The Midshipmen featured two ranked grapplers. Junior Tanner Skidgel is No. 11 at 165 and went 2-1 this past weekend. Senior Spencer Carey is No. 17 at 174 and went 2-1 as well. Junior 125-pounder Logan Treaster went 3-0 in the California duals as did freshman 197-pounder Jacob Koser. Navy's Josh Roetman is ranked No. 13 at 197 but did not compete last weekend.
Penn State will head to West Point, N.Y.) next Sunday for the Army-West Point Invite on Sunday, Nov. 17. The invitational will begin at 10 a.m. with many Lions making the trip.
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 NITTANY LIONS (0-0, 0-0 B1G)
125 Devin Schnupp Jr. Lititz, Pa./Warwick 0-0
Brody Teske Fr. Duncombe, Iowa/Fort Dodge 0-0
133 #3 Roman Bravo-Young So. Tucson, Ariz./Sunny Side 0-0
141 #3 Nick Lee Jr. Evansville, Ind./Homeschool 0-0
149 Luke Gardner Jr. Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville 0-0
Jarod Verkleeren So. Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield 0-0
157 #6 Brady Berge So. Mantorville, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville 0-0
Bo Pipher Jr. Paonia, Colo./Paonia 0-0
165 #1 Vincenzo Joseph Sr. Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic 0-0
174 #1 Mark Hall Sr. Apple Valley, Minn./Apple Valley 0-0
184 #3 Shakur Rasheed Sr. Coram, N.Y./Longwood 0-0
Creighton Edsell Fr. Wyalusing, Pa./Wyalusing 0-0
197 #3 Kyle Conel Sr. Ashtabula, Ohio/Lakeside 0-0
285 #1 Anthony Cassar Sr. Rocky Hill, N.J./Montgomery 0-0
NAVY MIDSHIPMEN (2-1)
125 Logan Treaster Jr. Newton, Kan./Newton 3-0
133 Casey Cobb Jr. Nampa, Idaho/Kuna 1-1
OR Jacob Allen So. Poway, Calif./Poway 1-0
141 Cody Trybus Jr. Elkton, Md./Mount Saint Joseph 2-1
OR Wyatt Long Jr. Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley 0-0
149 Morgan Fuenffinger So. Mountain Iron, Minn./Hibbing 1-2
157 Scout Skidgel Jr. Tulsa, Okla./Cascia Hall 1-2
165 #11 Tanner Skidgel Jr. Tulsa, Okla./Cascia Hall 2-1
OR Dillon Taylor Jr. Elmer, N.J./St. Augustine Prep 0-0
174 #17 Spencer Carey Sr. Ringwood, N.J./DePaul Catholic 2-1
184 Andrew Buckley Jr. Smithfield, Ky./Kearney (Mo.) 1-2
197 Jacob Koser Fr. Dillsburg, Pa./Northern York 3-0
285 John Birchmeier Fr. Ashburn, Va./Broad Run 1-2
Rankings listed are InterMat TPI/InterMat Individual as of 11/5
THIS WEEK
#1 Penn State (0-0, 0-0 B1G) opens up the 2019-20 season by hosting the Navy Midshipmen (2-1) on Sunday, Nov. 10. The dual meet is set for Rec Hall and begins at 2 p.m.
UP NEXT
Penn State will trek to West Point, N.Y., to take part in the Army West Point Invite. The tournament takes place on Sunday, Nov. 17, and starts at 10 a.m.
ON THE AIR
TV - None
Radio - WRSC (93.3 FM) or, occasionally, WQWK (103.7 FM)
Radio online - Free all year via Lionvision at GoPSUsports.com
Live Web Video - BTN+ ($)
NOTES:
JOE LEE, CARTER STAROCCI WIN TITLES AT CLARION OPEN
Eleven members of the Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team competed both attached and unattached at the Clarion Open in the first open tournament of the new season. Three true freshmen advanced to the finals at their respective weights, with Joe Lee and Carter Starocci winning titles. Lee rolled to a 4-0 record including three majors to win the 165-pound title in his first open tournament. Fellow true freshman Starocci also went 4-0 at 174 and won his weight class with two majors as well. True freshman Michael Beard advanced to the finals 197 before losing a close decision, going 2-1 with a major to place second. Redshirt freshman Brandon Meredith had a good showing at 125. Meredith went 4-1 overall with two majors and a tech fall to place third. True freshman Terrell Barraclough also placed third in his first open tournament. Barraclough went 5-1 at 149 with two majors to take third place.
MILESTONES
A number of team and individual records and milestones are in play as of now:
* 100 career win plateau
Mark Hall -- 93 wins
Vincenzo Joseph -- 74 wins
Kyle Conel -- 78 wins (78 at KSU, 0 at PSU)
* Dual meet win % in PSU history
Mark Hall -- 8th at 97.1 (34-1)
* Falls in PSU history
Mark Hall -- 12th at 31
Shakur Rasheed -- 19th at 28
* Dual win streak (59 dating back to end of 2014-15 season)
NITTANY LION NATIONAL TV SLATE SET; EVERY B1G ROAD DUAL INCLUDED!
The Penn State wrestling team has a bevy of national tv broadcasts set for this season with every home event and/or conference dual either being a national telecast or a BTN+ live stream. Penn State's Big Ten opener against Illinois on Friday, Jan. 10, in Rec Hall starts at 7 p.m. The Nittany Lions then host Northwestern two days later on Sunday, Jan. 12, in a 2 p.m. dual. Both the Illinois and NU duals are BTN+ broadcasts. Penn State's first national TV dual will originate from Rec Hall when the Nittany Lions host Rutgers on Sunday, Jan. 19. The Lions and Scarlet Knights will battle at 5 p.m. in a dual that airs live nationally on ESPNU.
The Nittany Lions head to Nebraska for a dual on Friday, Jan. 24, that begins at 7 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. local) and airs live on the Big Ten Network (BTN). A week later, Penn State's meeting at Iowa on Friday, Jan. 31, also airs live on BTN and begins at 9 p.m. Eastern (8 p.m. local). Penn State's Big Ten road trip to Wisconsin and Minnesota will also air live on the Big Ten Network. The Lions visit Wisconsin on Friday, Feb. 7, for a 9 p.m. (8 p.m. local) dual that the BTN will carry. Two days later, Penn State is at Minnesota at 2 p.m. Eastern (1 p.m. local) in another BTN live broadcast. Penn State's final of six national broadcasts will take place in the Bryce Jordan Center. The Nittany Lions host Ohio State in the 2020 BJC Dual at 7:30 p.m. and the BTN will carry the meeting.
Penn State's home duals against Navy (Nov. 10), Penn (Dec. 8), Illinois (Jan. 10), Northwestern (Jan. 12), Maryland (Feb. 2) and American (Feb. 23) will all stream live on BTN+. Additionally, Penn State's road dual at Arizona State on Friday, Nov. 22, starts at 9 p.m. Eastern (7 p.m. local). The Nittany Lions' visit to Lehigh on Friday, Dec. 6, will begin at 7 p.m. All Penn State wrestling duals airing live on BTN will also be streamed live on the Fox Sports App. Penn State's other Big Ten duals and all home duals will stream live on BTN+. BTN+ is a subscription only streaming service. Please remember that all dates and times on the schedule are, as always, subject to change.
PENN STATE HOSTING 2020 OLYMPIC TRIALS IN THE BJC
Bryce Jordan Center on the campus of Penn State University in University Park, Pa. has been selected to host the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials /Wrestling on Saturday, April 4 and Sunday, April 5. Penn State University is serving as the local organizing committee. The champions from the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Wrestling will become eligible to represent the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, August 2-8. In the two-day format, Saturday, April 4 will include start of the Challenge Tournament in all 18 weight classes. Included in Saturday's action will be the Challenge Tournament finals, which will determine one athlete in each weight class who advances to the Final X Championship Series on Sunday. On Sunday, April 5, all 18 best-of-three Final X Championship Series will be held, which determines the U.S. Olympic Team Trials champions in each weight class. This series will feature the top seed and the Challenge Tournament champion, as determined by the 2020 Olympic Games Team Selection Procedures. In addition, the completion of the consolation rounds of the Challenge Tournament will be held on Sunday.
