TODAY'S ACTION
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lions, under the guidance of head coach Cael Sanderson, will be sending nine wrestlers to the 2021 NCAA Wresting Championships on March 18-20 in St. Louis, Mo. Penn State will have four top-four seeds at the event.
The NCAA is seeding all 33 wrestlers once again. Please note that the records vs. the field listed below include only results at the qualifying weight. Penn State is sending five freshmen and a sophomore to the NCAA tournament as part of its nine-man contingent.
True freshman Robert Howard (Cranford, N.J.) will be the No. 23 seed at 125. Howard will take on No. 10 Malik Heinselman of Ohio State in his first NCAA tournament bout. Howard earned a trip to NCAAs as a true freshman off a sixth-place finish at the 2021 Big Ten Championships. He is 5-4 overall and 1-4 vs. the field.
Junior Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.) will be the No. 2 seed at 133. Bravo-Young will meet No. 31 Sean Carter of Appalachian State in the opening round. Bravo-Young is a two-time All-American and won the 133-pound Big Ten Championships this year. He is 9-0 overall and 4-0 vs. the field.
Senior Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.) is the No. 2 seed at 141. Lee will take on No. 31 Julian Flores of Drexel in the opening round. Lee is a three-time All-American already and was Big Ten runner-up this season. He is 8-1 overall and 5-1 vs. the field.
Junior Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.) will be the No. 12 seed at 157. Berge takes on No. 21 Andrew Cerniglia of Navy in the opening round. The Lion junior earned his second trip to the NCAA tournament with a sixth-place finish at the 2021 Big Ten Championships. Berge is 8-2 overall and 2-2 vs. the field.
Freshman Joe Lee (Evansville, Ind.) is the No. 23 seed at 165. Lee meets No. 10 Travis Wittlake of Oklahoma State in his first NCAA tournament match-up. He punched his ticket to nationals with an eighth-place finish at the Big Ten tournament. Lee is 6-5 overall and 2-4 vs. the field.
Freshman Carter Starocci (Erie, Pa.) is the No. 3 seed at 174. Starocci will take face No. 30 Victor Marcelli of Virginia in his first NCAA bout. The Erie-native is coming off a second-place finish at the 2021 Big Ten Championships where he was named the 2021 Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Starocci is 9-2 overall and 4-2 vs. this year's field.
Sophomore Aaron Brooks (Hagerstown, Md.) is the No. 1 seed at 184. Brooks will meet the winner of the No. 33/32 pigtail bout between Joe Accoustie of Sacred Heart and Jhaquan Anderson of George Washington in the first round in St. Louis. The All-American is coming off a second-straight Big Ten title at 184 at the 2021 Big Ten Championships and is 9-0 overall, 5-0 vs. the field.
Freshman Michael Beard (Pottstown, Pa.) is the No. 15 seed at 197. He will meet No. 18 Jacob Koser of Navy in the opening round in this, his first NCAA tourney. Beard earned a trip to nationals with a sixth-place finish at the Big Ten tournament and is 9-6 overall, 2-4 vs. the field.
Freshman Greg Kerkvliet (Grove Heights, Minn.) is the No. 9 seed at 285. He faces No. 24 Michael McAleavey of The Citadel in his first NCAA tournament match-up. Kerkvliet placed fourth at his first Big Ten Championships, earning a spot in St. Louis. He is 6-2 overall, 2-2 vs. the field.
Penn State has won eight of the last nine contested NCAA Championships with last year's being cancelled by the NCAA (all since Sanderson's arrival at Penn State and he is in his 12th season this year). The Nittany Lions have won nine NCAA titles overall, owning a championship from 1953. The Nittany Lions have won four-straight titles in 2016, '17, '18 and '19 and also won four-straight in 2011, '12, '13 and '14.
The 2021 NCAA Wrestling Championships take place on March 18-20 in the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Mo. With capacity restrictions put in place by the NCAA, the sessions and timing are different this year. Sessions 1A and 1B are at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on the 18th. Sessions 2A and 2B are at 6 and 9 p.m. on the 18th. Sessions 3 and 4 (quarterfinals) are at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on the 19th. Sessions 5 (semifinals) is at 8 p.m. on the 19th. Session 6 (medal) is at 11 a.m. on the 20th and session 7 (finals) is at 7 p.m. on the 20th. The ESPN family of networks will cover the entire event. All times listed are EASTERN.
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 (6-0, 6-0 B1G)
125 #23 Robert Howard Fr. Cranford, N.J./Bergen Catholic 5-4
(1-4 vs. the field, 0-0 all-time at NCAA tournament)
133 #2 Roman Bravo-Young Jr. Tucson, Ariz./Sunnyside 9-0
(4-0 vs. the field, 4-3 all-time at NCAA tournament)
141 #2 Nick Lee Sr. Evansville, Ind./Home schooled 8-1
(5-1 vs. the field, 10-4 all-time at NCAA tournament)
157 #12 Brady Berge Jr. Mantorville, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville 8-2
(2-2 vs. the field, 2-2 all-time at NCAA tournament)
165 #23 Joe Lee R-Fr. Evansville, Ind./Mater Dei 6-5
(2-4 vs. the field, 0-0 all-time at NCAA tournament)
174 #3 Carter Starocci Fr. Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep 9-2
(4-2 vs. the field, 0-0 all-time at NCAA tournament)
184 #1 Aaron Brooks So. Hagerstown, Md./North Hagerstown 9-0
(5-0 vs. the field, 0-0 all-time at NCAA tournament)
197 #15 Michael Beard R-Fr. Pottstown, Pa./Malvern Prep 6-4
(2-4 vs. the field, 0-0 all-time at NCAA tournament)
285 #9 Greg Kerkvliet Fr. Grove Heights, Minn./Simley 6-2
(2-2 vs. the field, 0-0 all-time at NCAA tournament)
Rankings listed are official tournament seed (as of 3/10/21)
THIS WEEK
Penn State's NCAA qualifiers will head to the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Mo., for the 2021 NCAA Wrestling Championships. The three-day event takes place on Thursday through Saturday, March 18-20.
UP NEXT
Season complete
ON THE AIR
TV - ESPN family
Radio - WRSC (93.3 FM) or, occasionally, WQWK (103.7 FM)
Radio online - Free all year via Lionvision at GoPSUsports.com
Live Web Video - ESPN family
NOTES
BROOKS WINS SECOND STRAIGHT BIG TEN TITLE AT 184
Sophomore Aaron Brooks rolled through the conference field to win a second straight title at the 2021 Big Ten Wrestling Championships held in Penn Stat's Bryce Jordan Center. The Nittany Lion sophomore went 3-0 at 184 to make it two in a row for the Hagerstown native. Brooks downed #16 Nelson Brands of Iowa 14-8 in the quarterfinals, majored #18 John Poznanski of Rutgers in the semifinals, and took care of #14 Taylor Venz of Nebraska in the finals. Brooks is now 6-0 all-time in the Big Ten Championships. He earned first-team All-Big Ten with his conference crown.
Bravo-young WINS first BIG TEN TITLE AT 133
Junior Roman Bravo-Young took down the field at 133 to win his first-ever Big Ten title at the 2021 Big Ten Wrestling Championships held in Penn Stat's Bryce Jordan Center. The Arizona-native went 3-0 overall to claim the championships. He beat Purdue's Jacob Rundell 9-3 in the quarterfinals, Nebraska's Chris Cannon 8-3 in the semifinals, and took down #3 Austin DeSanto of Iowa 5-2 in the title bout. He earned first-team All-Big Ten with his conference crown.
STAROCCI BIG TEN RUNNER-UP AT 174, NAMED 2021 BIG TEN FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Freshman Carter Starocci went 3-1 in his first-ever Big Ten Championship, advancing the conference finals at 174 before losing to #1 Michael Kemerer of Iowa, and earning runner-up status and a trip to the NCAA Championships. Starocci pinned Maryland's Phillip Spadafora in the first round, beat #6 Kaleb Romero of Ohio State 2-0 in the quarters, and took down #2 Mike Labriola of Nebraska 3-1 (sv) in the semis. Starocci was named the 2021 Big Ten Freshman of the Year after the tournament ended, becoming Penn State's seventh overall and second straight (Brooks earned the title last year).
NICK LEE TAKES BIG TEN RUNNER-UP SPOT AT 141
Senior Nick Lee went 2-1 at the 2021 Big Ten Championships, advancing to the 141-pound finals where he fell in a thrilling 6-5 bout to #1 Jaydin Eierman of Iowa. Lee posted a 16-1 technical fall over Ohio State's Dylan D'Emilio in the quarterfinals and the beat #3 Sebastian Rivera of Rutgers 8-6 (sv) in the semifinals. The runner-up tag made Lee a four-time NCAA qualifier.
5 LIONS EARN QUALIFYING SPOTS AS FRESHMAN; BERGE EARNS SECOND TRIP TO NATIONALS
While Penn State's four Big Ten tournament finalists all earned NCAA qualifier spots, five other Nittany Lions placed at the event as well to punch their tickets to St. Louis for nationals. Junior Brady Berge took sixth at 157 with a 3-2 record and earned his second trip to nationals. Penn State entered the Big Ten tournament with six freshmen in the line-up. Carter Starocci advanced to the finals (see note above) to earn a trip. True freshman Robert Howard went 3-3 at 125 and took sixth place to earn a trip; freshman Joe Lee went 2-3 to take sixth at 165 to earn his spot; and freshman Michael Beard went 3-3 at 197 to grab a bid. Freshman Greg Kerkvliet went 4-2 at 285 in his first Big Ten tournament, placing fourth and earning a trip to nationals. He downed #13 Trent Hillger and #12 Christian Lance in the process. His two losses were to #2 Mason Parris and #3 Tony Cassioppi.
BEAU BARTLETT MOVES UP TO 149 FOR B1G TOURNAMENT
True freshman Beau Bartlett moved up from 141 to 149 to compete in his first Big Ten Championships in the Bryce Jordan Center on March 6-7, 2021. Bartlett went 1-2 in his debut outing, pinning Maryland's Michael North for his victory. He dropped a heart-breaking 7-5 (sv) decision to #17 Yahya Thomas to bow out of the event.
PENN STATE WINS SHARE OF 2021 REGULAR SEASON TITLE
Penn State claimed a share of the 2021 Big Ten Dual Meet Championship, the seventh regular season crown for the Lions since head coach Cael Sanderson's arrival in Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions went 6-0 in the conference and shared the title with 5-0 Iowa.
SIX NITTANY LION FRESHMEN MAKE REC HALL DUAL DEBUTS IN 44-0 SHUTOUT OF MARYLAND
Penn State closed out the 2021 dual meet season by shutting out Maryland 44-0 on Feb. 22. The Lions featured a line-up that had seven underclassmen; one sophomore and six freshmen. All six freshmen won in their Rec Hall dual debuts. Greg Kerkvliet saw his first action of the season, getting a pin in both the dual meet and extra bouts. Beau Bartlett also went 2-0, winning in the dual and extras at 149. Robert Howard won at 125; Joe Lee won at 165; Carter Starocci won at 174 and Michael Beard won at 197.
PENN STATE ROLLS OVER OHIO STATE IN COLUMBUS
Carter Starocci took down #3 Kaleb Romero and Michael Beard's pin sealed the deal in Penn State's 28-12 win over #11 Ohio State in Columbus on Feb. 19. Starocci used a rideout in the tie-breaker to down Romero 2-1 and Beard pinned Gavin Hoffman at the 1:20 mark. Penn State won seven of ten bouts, getting victories from Roman Bravo-Young (133), Nick Lee (141), Brady Berge (157), Starocci (174), Aaron Brooks (184), Beard (197) and Seth Nevills (285).
SANDERSON GETS 200TH CAREER COACHING WIN
as penn state downs #2 michigan on the road
Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson earned his 200th career collegiate coaching victory on Feb. 14, 2021, when the Nittany Lions notched an 18-13 victory at #2 Michigan. Sanderson's victory total includes three seasons at Iowa State. His full and up-to-date coaching record can be found on page three off these notes.
STAROCCI TAKES DOWN #2 MASSA IN PENN STATE'S WIN AT MICHIGAN; NAMED B1G WRESTLER OF THE WEEK
Freshman Carter Starocci used a four-point turn in the tie-breaker period to take down sixth-year senior Logan Massa of Michigan in Penn State's dual victory over the Wolverines. Starocci and No. 2 Massa ended regulation and sudden victory tied 1-1 before the Lion freshman used the back points to break away for a 7-1 (tb) win at 174. Starocci earned Big Ten Wrestler of the Week (2/16) honors for his efforts.
FRESHMAN ROBERT HOWARD WINS COLLEGIATE DEBUT
Nittany Lion freshman Robert Howard made his Penn State and collegiate debut in Penn State's dual meet at Michigan on Feb. 14 and came away victorious. Howard picked up takedowns in the first and second period to down UM's Jack Medley 6-5 at 125. His win helped spark Penn State to an 18-13 victory in Ann Arbor.
BROOKS MAJORS #10 WEILER AND BEARD SHINES IN DEBUT AS PENN STATE WINS AT WISCONSIN
Sophomore Aaron Brooks took care of #10 Chris Weiler of Wisconsin in a marquee match-up at 184 to lead Penn State to a 34-6 win in Madison on Feb. 2. The Lions won all nine contested bouts and went 4-0 in extra matches to go 13-0 in live action and 13-1 overall (giving up a forfeit at 125). True freshman Michael Beard made his collegiate debut in fine fashion as well, posting an 18-2 technical fall over Andrew Salemme at the 4:43 mark. Beard tallied four takedowns, three two-point turns and a four-point tilt to grab the win.
NITTANY LIONS ROUT #16 NORTHWESTERN TO CLOSE OUT TRI-DUAL IN EVANSTON
Penn State won seven of ten bouts to roll through No. 16 Northwestern in the final dual at a tri-meet in Evanston on Jan. 30, grabbing a 29-13 victory. Carter Starocci picked up his first dual win as a Nittany Lion at 174 and classmate Joe Lee capped off a 2-0 debut day with another win at 165. Roman Bravo-Young notched a pin at 133 and Nick Lee grabbed a major at 141. Brady Berge notched a decision at 157. Aaron Brooks (184) and Seth Nevills (285) both picked up tech falls to close out the action.
LIONS TAKE DOWN INDIANA 24-15 IN SEASON OPENER
The Penn State Nittany Lions won six of ten bouts in the season opener against Indiana, posting a 24-15 victory in the first dual at a tri-meet hosted by Northwestern on Jan. 30. Freshman Joe Lee picked up a win at 165 in his Lion dual debut. Roman Bravo-Young notched a win at 133, Nick Lee got a tech fall at 141, Brady Berge posted a decision at 157, Aaron Brooks opened his season with a major at 184 and Seth Nevills capped off the dual with a pin at 285.
PENN STATE PICKS UP 13 WINS IN TRI-MEET EXTRA BOUTS
Head coach Cael Sanderson's squad took advantage of a day of wrestling in Evanston, Ill., as the squad totalled 13 wins in extra bouts wrestled during the Penn State/Indiana/Northwestern tri-meet on Jan. 30. Penn State went 13-3 overall during extra action, going 7-0 against Indiana and 6-3 vs. Northwestern. True freshman Beau Bartlett went 3-0 at 141 in the first action of his collegiate career. Sophomore Konner Kraeszig went 3-0 at 165 and sophomore Creighton Edsell went 3-0 at 174. Luke Gardner went 2-0 at 149 and Terrell Barraclough picked up a win at 149 as well.
MILESTONES
Individual records and milestones that are in play as of now:
* 100 Career victories
Nick Lee, 91
* 200 Career coaching wins (overall career)
Cael Sanderson, 202
* 100 Career Big Ten coaching wins
Cael Sanderson, 88
* 175 Career coaching wins at Penn State
Cael Sanderson, 158
