TODAY'S ACTION
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. --The Penn State Nittany Lions (7-1, 4-0 B1G), ranked No. 2 nationally on InterMat's Tournament Power Index, visit No. 1 Iowa (8-0, 5-0) on Friday, Jan. 31, in a BTN national telecast. The Nittany Lions and Hawkeyes battle at 9 p.m. Eastern/8 p.m. Central. Two days later, Penn State hosts Maryland (2-11, 0-5) on Sunday, Feb. 2, at 2 p.m. in Rec Hall.
Penn State is coming off a hard-fought 20-18 victory at No. 7 Nebraska last Friday night. The Lions got big decisions from Vincenzo Joseph and Seth Nevills, majors from Roman Bravo-Young and Nick Lee, and a pin from Mark Hall to grab the victory. All five Penn State wins were over ranked opponents. The victory improved Penn State to 7-1 overall and 4-0 in the Big Ten.
The Nittany Lions feature a strong line-up that includes an even split between upperclassmen and underclassmen. Freshman Brandon Meredith is 11-8 at 125 while sophomore Roman Bravo-Young is 12-0 and ranked No. 3 at 133. Junior Nick Lee is 12-0 and ranked No. 2 at 141 while sophomore Jarod Verkleeren is 12-3 at 149. Junior Luke Gardner is 6-1 at 149 as well. Junior Bo Pipher sports an 8-9 record at 157 while sophomore Brady Berge is 1-0 in limited action this year.
Senior Vincenzo Joseph is 7-0 at 165 and ranked No. 1 nationally while classmate Mark Hall leads Penn State in wins with a 15-0 mark and is ranked No. 1 at 174. Aaron Brooks, one of two true freshmen in Penn State's line-up, is 7-1 and ranked No. 9 at 184 while senior Shakur Rasheed is 2-2 after returning from injury after 10 months and is ranked No. 18 at 197. True freshman Seth Nevills is 10-0 overall and ranked No. 15 at 285.
Iowa enters Friday's dual meet with 10 wrestlers ranked by InterMat, all in the top 10. The Hawkeyes are 8-0, 5-0 in the Big Ten. Junior Spencer Lee is 10-0 overall and ranked No. 1 at 125 while junior Austin DeSanto is 12-1 and ranked No. 2 at 133. Sophomore Max Murin is 10-1 and ranked No. 9 at 141 while senior Pat Lugo is 13-1 overall and ranked No. 3 at 149. Junior Kaleb Young is 11-2 on the year and ranked No. 5 at 157 and junior Alex Marinelli is 14-0 and ranked No. 2 at 165. Senior Michael Kemerer is 8-0 and ranked No. 2 at 174 while freshman Abe Assad is 18-3 and ranked No. 6 at 184. Sophomore Jacob Warner is 11-2 and ranked No. 7 at 197 and freshman Tony Cassioppi is 13-0 and ranked No. 3 at 285.
Penn State trails in the all-time series with the Hawkeyes 10-27-2. The Lions have won the last two meetings and four of the last six. The two teams are the last two Big Ten teams with unbeaten marks in conference action.
Maryland, which is at Ohio State Friday night while the Nittany Lions are at Iowa, enters the weekend with a 2-11 mark, 0-5 in the conference. Maryland is led by senior Jahi Jones, who is 11-4 at 157. Sophomore Kyle Cochran sports an 11-5 mark at 165 while sophomore Phillip Spadafora is 14-9 at 174. Kyle Jasenski has nine wins at 184 this season while freshman King Sandoval has nine at 133.
The Nittany Lions own a 41-1-2 lead in the all-time series, including the last 29 meetings.
Penn State closes out a tough road stretch with two Big Ten away duals next weekend. The Nittany Lions visit Wisconsin on Friday, Feb. 7, at 9 p.m. Eastern/8 p.m. Central. Penn State then heads to Minneapolis for a dual at Minnesota on Sunday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m. Eastern/1 p.m. Central. Penn State's next home dual will be on Saturday, Feb. 15, when the Nittany Lions host Ohio State in the 2020 BJC Dual. Action in the Bryce Jordan Center begins at 7:30 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.
#2 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (7-1, 4-0 B1G)
125 Brandon Meredith Fr. Limerick, Pa./Spring-Ford 11-8
133 #3 Roman Bravo-Young So. Tucson, Ariz./Sunny Side 12-0
141 #2 Nick Lee Jr. Evansville, Ind./Homeschool 12-0
149 Jarod Verkleeren So. Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield 12-3
Luke Gardner Jr. Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville 6-1
157 Bo Pipher Jr. Paonia, Colo./Paonia 8-9
Brady Berge So. Mantorville, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville 1-0
165 #1 Vincenzo Joseph Sr. Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic 7-0
174 #1 Mark Hall Sr. Apple Valley, Minn./Apple Valley 15-0
184 #9 Aaron Brooks Fr. Hagerstown, Md./North Hagerstown 7-1
197 #18 Shakur Rasheed Sr. Coram, N.Y./Longwood 2-2
285 #15 Seth Nevills Fr. Clovis, Calif./Clovis 10-0
#1 IOWA HAWKEYES (8-0, 5-0 B1G)
125 #1 Spencer Lee Jr. Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional 10-0
133 #2 Austin DeSanto Jr. Exeter, Pa./Exeter 12-1
141 #9 Max Murin So. Ebensburg, Pa./Central Cambria 10-1
149 #3 Pat Lugo Sr. Homestead, Fla./South Dade 13-1
157 #5 Kaleb Young Jr. Punxsutawney, Pa./Punxsutawney 11-2
165 #2 Alex Marinelli Jr. Miamisburg, Ohio/St. Paris Graham 14-0
174 #2 Michael Kemerer Sr. Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional 8-0
184 #6 Abe Assad Fr. Carol Stream, Ill./Glenbard North 18-3
197 #7 Jacob Warner So. Tolono, Ill./Washington Community 11-2
285 #3 Tony Cassioppi Fr. Roscoe, Ill./Hononegah 13-0
MARYLAND TERRAPINS (2-11, 0-5 B1G)
125 Brandon Cray Jr. Steinert, N.J./Steinert 3-13
133 King Sandoval Fr. Waldorf, Md./St. Mary's Ryken 9-11
141 Hunter Baxter So. Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland 6-14
149 Michael Doetsch Jr. Severn, Md./Severn 9-12
157 Jahi Jones Sr. Fort Washington, Md./Oxon Hill 11-4
165 Kyle Cochran So. Paramus, N.J./Paramus 11-5
174 Philip Spadafora So. Dix Hills, N.Y./Half Hollow Hills East 14-9
184 Kyle Jasenski So. Schenectady, N.Y./Albany Academy 9-11
197 Jaron Smith Jr. Columbia, Md./Oakland Hills 8-7
285 Parker Robinson Fr. Eldersburg, Md./McDonough School 1-16
Rankings listed are InterMat TPI/InterMat Individual as of 1/28
THIS WEEK
Penn State (7-1, 4-0 B1G) visits Iowa (8-0, 5-0) on Friday, Jan. 31, in a BTN telecast. Action begins at 9 p.m. Eastern/8 p.m. Central. Two days later, Penn State hosts Maryland (2-11, 0-5) on Sunday, Feb. 2, at 2 p.m. in Rec Hall.
UP NEXT
Penn State closes out a rugged 16-day road stretch at Wisconsin on Friday, Feb. 7, at 9 p.m. Eastern and at Minnesota on Sunday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m. Eastern.
ON THE AIR
TV - Iowa on BTN/Maryland BTN+
Radio - WRSC (93.3 FM) or, occasionally, WQWK (103.7 FM)
Radio online - Free all year via Lionvision at GoPSUsports.com
Live Web Video - Iowa via Fox Sports App/Maryland BTN+
NOTES:
LIONS DOWN #7 NEBRASKA FOR B1G ROAD WIN
Penn State split the dual 5-5 with Nebraska but won the bonus point battle to post a thrilling 20-18 victory in Lincoln in front of a Cornhusker record crowd of nearly 6,000 fans. Roman Bravo-Young majored #13 Ridge Lovett 11-3 at 133, Nick Lee majored #8 Chad Red Jr. 9-1 at 141, Vincenzo Joseph dominated #5 Isaiah White 5-1 at 165 and Mark Hall pinned #6 Mike Labriola at the 6:52 mark at 174. With the Lions trailing by one, true freshman Nick Nevills then controlled #15 Christian Lance for the entire bout to post a 4-0 win at 285 and secure Penn State's 20-18 dual victory.
BRAVO-YOUNG, RASHEED NOTCH RANKED WINS IN DUAL VICTORY OVER RUTGERS
Sophomore Roman Bravo-Young and senior Shakur Rasheed recorded wins over ranked opponents in Penn State's 38-6 victory over Rutgers in Rec Hall on Jan. 19. Bravo-Young used a last second takedown in the second sudden victory period to post a 4-2 (sv2) win over #9 Sammy Alvarez at 133 while Rasheed dominated #18 Jordan Pagano, rolling to a 6-0 victory.
BROOKS AND NEVILLS RECORD FIRST PINS IN REC HALL
True freshmen Aaron Brooks and Seth Nevills each recorded their first career pins in Rec Hall during Penn State's 38-6 dual meet victory over Rutgers on Jan. 19. Brooks pinned Billy Janzer at the 4:36 mark while Nevills capped off the dual by pinning Alex Esposito at 2:24 in the first period.
LIONS ROLL OVER WILDCATS, EDSELL MOVES UP TO 184 AND GRABS FIRST BIG TEN DUAL WIN
The Penn State Nittany Lions won seven of ten bouts to rout #12 Northwestern on Jan. 12. With a handful of starters out, redshirt freshman Creighton Edsell moved up to 184 pounds and picked up his first Big Ten victory. Edsell, stepping in for Aaron Brooks, posted a convincing 4-1 win over Wildcat starter Jack Jessen. Penn State had three tech falls in the dual (Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Mark Hall) and one pin (Vincenzo Joseph).
NEVILLS, RASHEED LEAD LIONS TO WIN OVER #24 ILLINOIS
True freshman Seth Nevills made his Penn State debut in fine fashion, picking up a 6-3 win over Illinois' Luke Luffman to help lead Penn State to a 22-16 victory over visiting Illinois on Jan. 10. With defending NCAA Champion Anthony Cassar out for the year, Nevills got the nod and came up big for Penn State. Senior Shakur Rasheed also competed for the first time all season, getting a 3-0 win over Matt Wroblewski at 197. Mark Hall picked up an impressive DQ win over #8 Joey Gunther at 174, rolling up 17 points before Gunther stalled out of the bout with a fifth stall. Junior Nick Lee also majored #16 Dylan Duncan 13-5 at 141.
KIRKVLIET AND SHUNK SHINE AT HITCHCOCK
The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team had seven wrestlers competing at Millersville University's Floyd 'Shorty' Hitchcock Memorial. Penn State had grapplers competing both attached and unattached at the event and five of the seven wrestlers placed. True freshman Greg Kirkvliet (on the 285-pound title, wrestling unattached at 285. The Minnesota-native went 4-0 with three pins and had an addition win against a non-collegiate wrestler. True freshman Baylor Shunk went 2-1 unattached at 125. The central Pennsylvania native placed third at the event.
DEFENDING CHAMPION TOP RANKED ANTHONY CASSAR AND ALL-AMERICAN KYLE CONEL LOST FOR THE SEASON
Head coach Cael Sanderson announced on Tuesday, Jan. 7, that top-ranked senior heavyweight Anthony Cassar will miss the remainder of the year with an injury and that All-American transfer senior Kyle Conel will also be out the rest of the year due to injury.
SEVEN LIONS WIN TITLES AT WILKES OPEN
Penn State sent 22 wrestlers, both attached and unattached, to the Wilkes Open on Sunday, Dec. 22. The Lions came away with seven titles at the open tournament. Penn State had 19 of its 22 competitors place in the top five at the event. The Nittany Lions had seven champs, four runners-up, one third-place, four fourth-place and three fifth-place finishes. Freshman Brandon Meredith (125), sophomore Roman Bravo-Young (133), sophomore Jarod Verkleeren (149), true freshman Joe Lee (165), senior Mark Hall (174) and true freshman Michael Beard (197) all won titles.
STAROCCI WINS AT 174, BEARD AND LEE SHINE AS UNATTACHED FRESHMEN AT THE SCUFFLE
Penn State had three true freshmen competing unattached at the 2020 Southern Scuffle. The two-day event took place in Chattanooga on Jan. 1-2. All three Lions placed at the tournament with Carter Starocci winning the 174-pound crown. Starocci went 6-0 with a pin, a tech and two majors to win yet another tournament title. Michael Beard went 3-2 with two majors and two wins over top-six ranked foes to take fourth at 197 and Joe Lee went 5-2 with ranked wins, two techs and a pin to take fifth at 165.
MEREDITH DOWNS #10 COLAIOCCO, BROOKS WINS BY TECH FALL IN PSU'S 33-7 VICTORY OVER PENN
Redshirt freshman Brandon Meredith downed #10 Michael Colaiocco of Penn 8-5 to spark Penn State to a 33-7 victory over Penn in sold out Rec Hall on Dec. 8. True freshman Aaron Brooks posted a 19-4 tech fall over Penn's Jesse Quatse at the 6:03 mark as well. Both Lions were making their Rec Hall dual debuts.
MARK HALL WINS 100TH CAREER MATCH
Senior Mark Hall posted a 19-4 technical fall over Penn's Neil Antrassian on Dec. 8, 2019, to win his 100th match as a Nittany Lion. Hall's victory helped spark the Lions to a 33-7 win over the Quakers and improved his career mark, at the time, to 100-5.
AARON BROOKS MAKES DUAL DEBUT WITH WIN AT LEHIGH
True freshman Aaron Brooks made his Penn State dual meet debut in the Nittany Lions' 23-10 dual victory at Lehigh on Dec. 6. Brooks rolled to a 10-5 win over Mountain Hawk junior Chris Weiler, notching three early takedowns to set up the win.
HALL HAMMERS #2 KUTLER TO LEAD LIONS IN BIG WIN AT #14 LEHIGH
Senior Mark Hall dominated #2 Jordan Kutler in Penn State's rousing 23-10 victory at #14 Lehigh on Dec. 6. Hall rolled to a 7-2 victory as the Nittany Lions won seven of ten bouts in front of a record-setting sellout crowd in Lehigh's Stabler Arena.
STAROCCI DOWNS #12 HARVEY TO WIN GMU OPEN TITLE
True freshman Carter Starocci claimed the 174-pound title with a win over a nationally ranked foe in the finals. Starocci went 4-0 with two pins to win his second open tournament title of the year, having already won the Clarion Open earlier this season. Starocci took on Army's Ben Harvey in the finals and posted a 3-2 victory. Harvey entered the tournament ranked No. 12 nationally by InterMat at the time.
TRIO OF LIONS WIN MAT-TOWN OPEN TITLES
Seven members of the Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team took part in the Mat-Town Open at Lock Haven University on Sunday, Dec. 1, in Lock Haven, Pa. All seven wrestled unattached and three true freshmen won individual titles at their respective weight classes. True freshman Aaron Brooks went 3-0 at 184 to win Penn State's first title of the day. Brooks had one pin along the way to the 184-pound crown. True freshman Michael Beard went 3-0 at 197 to win his title. Beard had two tech falls and a major decision. True freshman Seth Nevills went 3-0 at 285 to win the heavyweight crown. Nevills had two pins in his three victories.
RBY, JOSEPH, HALL, CASSAR PICK UP RANKED WINS & LEE GETS TF IN DUAL AT #6 ARIZONA STATE
Penn State, wrestling down two starters and giving up a forfeit victory, split bouts with Arizona State 5-5 but had its 60-dual win streak (dating back to the end of the 2014-15 season) snapped in a close 19-18 loss at #6 Arizona State on Nov. 22. Wrestling in front of an ASU record crowd of over 8,500, the Lions won five of the nine matches wrestled, all in impressive style. #3 Nick Lee rolled to an 18-3 tech fall at 141, #3 Roman Bravo-Young posted a 7-6 win over #16 Josh Kramer at 133, #1 Vincenzo Joseph notched a strong 7-4 win over #5 Josh Shields at 165, #1 Mark Hall rolled to an 11-3 major over #8 Anthony Valencia at 174 and #1 Anthony Cassar dominated #5 Tanner Hall in a 9-5 victory. But ASU had four bonus points to Penn State's three and grabbed the dual victory in Tempe.
PENN STATE CROWNS 4 CHAMPS AT BLACK KNIGHT INVITE
Penn State dominated action at the 2019 Army West Point Invite on Nov. 17 in West Point, N.Y. Fifteen Penn Staters competed at nine weights and the Nittany Lions came away with four champions with 11 total place-winners. The Nittany Lions four champions were Roman Bravo-Young at 133, Nick Lee at 141, Jarod Verkleeren at 149 and Mark Hall at 174. Luke Gardner was runner-up at 149 as well, dropping a tough bout in an all-Penn State final at that weight.
NITTANY LIONS ROLL UP 11 OF 15 PLACE WINNERS AT BLACK KNIGHT INVITE
Penn State had 15 competitors at the Army West Point Black Knight Invite on Nov. 17 and 11 of Penn State's competitors placed at the event. Roman Bravo-Young (133), Nick Lee (141), Jarod Verkleeren (149) and Mark Hall (174) all won titles while Luke Gardner (149) lost to Verkleeren in the finals for second place. Brody Teske took third at 125, Konner Kraeszig took third at 165, Brandon Meredith placed fifth at 125, Bo Pipher was fifth at 157, Creighton Edsell was fifth at 184 and Austin Hoopes was sixth at 197.
FOUR PINS, FOUR DEBUT WINS, A SHUTOUT OVER NAVY
Penn State opened up its 2019-20 season by shutting out Navy 45-0 on Nov. 10 in front of yet another sold-out Rec Hall crowd. Four Lions picked up falls in the victory and four grapplers earned victories in their Nittany Lion dual debuts. Junior Luke Gardner got a fall at 149 in his Lion dual debut, junior Nick Lee picked up a pin at 141, senior Mark Hall got a fast fall in just 0:58 at 174 over #17 Spencer Carey and Anthony Cassar picked up a pin at 285. In addition to Gardner's debut win at 149, redshirt freshman Brody Teske got a victory at 125 in his Lion debut, classmate Creighton Edsell picked up a win at 184 in his first Lion dual and graduate transfer Kyle Conel picked up the victory at 197 in his Nittany Lion dual debut.
LIONS SEND 3 TO BINGHAMTON OPEN
While the Penn State Nittany Lions were opening up their dual season in a raucous Rec Hall by shutting out Navy on Nov. 10, three true freshmen ventured to the Binghamton Open unattached. Donovon Ball and Ritchie Heywood competed at 184 while Keagan Carmenatty went at 285. Heywood picked up his first open tournament victory with a pin while Carmenatty had a fall at heavyweight as well.
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 -- 108 wins
Vincenzo Joseph -- 81 wins
* Dual meet win % in PSU history
Mark Hall -- 7th at 97.7 (42-1)
* Overall winning % (min. 30 matches)
Mark Hall -- 7th at 95.6 (108-5)
* Falls in PSU history
Mark Hall -- 8th at 37
Shakur Rasheed -- 19th at 28
Vincenzo Joseph -- nearing top 20 at 23
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.
