THIS WEEK'S ACTION:
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lions (10-0, 2-0 B1G), ranked No. 1 in InterMat's tournament power index (TPI), host No. 14 Rutgers (*11-1, 1-1 B1G) on Sunday, Jan. 16, at 5 p.m. in Rec Hall. The dual is an ESPNU national telecast. *Rutgers hosts Illinois on Friday, Jan. 14, post-press.
Penn State is coming off two wins last weekend to begin Big Ten dual action. The Nittany Lions shutout Maryland in College Park 46-0 on Friday and two days later took care of visiting Indiana 29-11 in Rec Hall. Head coach Cael Sanderson's crew won 17 of 20 bouts during its first two conference battles by a combined score of 75-11. Thirteen of the 17 wins were for bonus points as well (three pins, five tech falls and five majors).
The Nittany Lions feature a talented line up that includes nine wrestlers ranked by InterMat. Senior Drew Hildebrandt is ranked No. 9 at 125 and is 2-0 after beginning his Penn State journey last weekend. Senior Roman Bravo-Young is ranked No. 1 at 133 and is 8-0 overall and senior Nick Lee is No. 1 at 141 with an identical 8-0 mark. Sophomore Beau Bartlett is ranked No. 19 at 149 with an 8-2 record. Junior Tony Negron sports a 1-4 mark at 157 while Terrell Barraclough is 5-4 and Joe Lee is 2-3.
Junior Creighton Edsell is ranked No. 24 at 165 with a 7-3 mark. Sophomore Carter Starocci is ranked No. 1 at 184 with a 10-0 overall record. Junior Aaron Brooks is 8-0 on the season and is ranked No. 1 at 184. Junior Max Dean is 10-0 on the year and is ranked No. 2 at 197 while sophomore Greg Kerkvliet is ranked No. 4 at 285 and is 8-0.
Rutgers, which hosts Illinois on Friday night before heading to Happy Valley, heads into the weekend with an 11-1 overall record, 1-1 in Big Ten action. Sebastian Rivera is ranked No. 3 at 141 for the Scarlet Knights, John Poznanski is No. 5 at 184 and Greg Bulsak is No. 7 at 197, giving RU three wrestlers ranked in the top 10. Michael VanBrill is No. 18 at 149, Joseph Olivieri is No. 20 at 133, Jackson Turley is No. 26 at 174 and Dylan Shawyer is No. 31 at 125 as well. Penn State leads the all-time series with the Scarlet Knights 21-0. The Lions won the last meeting, 36-6, on Jan. 19, 2020 in Rec Hall.
Penn State visits Michigan on Friday, Jan. 21, in its next outing. The dual starts at 6 p.m. and is a B1G Network national telecast. Two days later, Penn State visits Michigan State on Sunday, Jan. 23, at 1 p.m. for another Big Ten road dual.
All rankings listed are InterMat individual/InterMat TPI. The 2021-22 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by the Family Clothesline. 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 (10-0, 2-0 B1G)
125 #9 Drew Hildebrandt Sr.+ Granger, Ind./Penn 2-0
133 #1 Roman Bravo-Young Sr. Tucson, Ariz./Sunnyside 8-0
141 #1 Nick Lee Sr.+ Evansville, Ind./Homeschooled 8-0
149 #19 Beau Bartlett So. Tempe, Ariz./Wyoming Seminary (Pa.) 8-2
157 Tony Negron Jr. North Babylon, N.Y./North Babylon 1-4
Terrell Barraclough So. Kaysville, Utah/Layton 5-4
Joe Lee So. Evansville, Ind/Evansville 2-3
165 #24 Creighton Edsell Jr. Wyalusing, Pa./Wyalusing 7-3
174 #1 Carter Starocci So. Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep 10-0
184 #1 Aaron Brooks Jr. Hagerstown, Md./North Hagerstown 8-0
197 #2 Max Dean Jr. Lowell, Mich./Lowell 10-0
285 #4 Greg Kerkvliet So. Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley 8-0
#14 RUTGERS SCARLET KNIGHTS (*11-1, 1-1 B1G)
125 #31 Dylan Shawver Fr. Lorain, Ohio/Elyria
133 #20 Joseph Olivieri Fr. East Hanover, N.J./Hanover Park
Devon Britton Fr. Northampton, Pa./Northampton
141 #3 Sebastian Rivera Gr. Toms River, N.J./Christian Brothers Acad.
149 #19 Michael VanBrill Sr. Mullica Hill, N.J./Clearview
157 Robert Kanniard Fr. Wall, N.J./Wall Township
165 Andrew Clark Fr. Collingswood, N.J./Collingswood
174 #26 Jackson Turley So. Chester, Va./St. Christopher's
184 #5 John Poznanski Fr. Colonia, N.J./Colonia
197 #7 Greg Bulsak Gr. South Park, Pa./South Park
285 Boone McDermott So. Dubuque, Iowa/Dubuque Wahlert
Rankings listed are InterMat (as of 1/11/22)
*Rutgers hosts Illinois on Friday night, Jan. 14, post-press.
THIS WEEK
#1 Penn State (10-0, 2-0 B1G) hosts #14 Rutgers (*11-1, 1-1 B1G) on Sunday, Jan. 16, at 5 p.m. in Rec Hall. The dual is an ESPNU national telecast. *Rutgers hosts Illinois on Friday, Jan. 14, post-press.
UP NEXT
Penn State travels to the state of Michigan for two duals next weekend. The Nittany Lions visit Michigan on Friday, Jan. 21, for a 6 p.m. B1G Network national telecast. Two days later, the Lions visit Michigan State on Sunday, Jan. 23, at 1 p.m. in a B1G+ national stream.
ON THE AIR
TV - ESPNU
Radio online - Free all year via Lionvision at GoPSUsports.com
Live Web Video - None
NOTES:
#FUNSTATS
// Most Individual NCAA Titles Since 2011 -- PENN STATE 27, Cornell 10, Oklahoma State 10, Ohio State 9, Iowa 7
// Penn State National Finalists Since 2011 -- 40
// Penn State in NCAA Finals Since 2011 -- 27-13 (Penn State's winning percentage in NCAA finals is .675)
// Penn State in NCAA Semifinals Since 2011 -- 40-4 (Penn State's winning percentage in NCAA semis is .901)
// Penn State Team Championships Since 2011 -- 8 (of 10, no NCAA tournament in 2020)
// Penn State Percentage of Team Titles Won Since 2011 - .800 (no NCAA tournament in 2020)
BROOKS' MAJOR HIGHLIGHTS PSU'S WIN OVER INDIANA; NAMED B1G WRESTLER OF THE WEEK
Junior Aaron Brooks majored #8 D.J. Washington 13-4 in the marquee match-up in Penn State's 29-11 victory over Indiana. Brooks' win was one of five straight to close out the dual for the Nittany Lions in Rec Hall. Drew Hildebrandt took down #25 Jacob Moran in his Rec Hall debut at 125 as well. He was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week for th week ending Jan. 11, his second honor of the season to that date.
DREW HILDEBRANDT'S DEBUT PIN STARTS PENN STATE'S RUN IN 46-0 SHUTOUT AT MARYLAND
All-American transfer Drew Hildebrandt pinned Maryland's Zach Spence in the first period (1:38) in his debut match for Penn State at 125. Hildebrandt's initial win started a perfect run for the Nittany Lions in a 46-0 shutout victory on the road in College Park. Aaron Brooks majored #12 Kyle Cochran 19-7 at 184 and Greg Kerkvliet teched #26 Zach Schrader at 285 in bouts between ranked opponents.
LUCAS COCHRAN TAKES 4TH AT F&M OPEN
Freshman Lucas Cochran went 3-2 at the Lehman/F&M Open on Friday, Jan. 7. Cochran picked up three wins with a major and advanced to the semifinals. Gary Steen (125), Brian Borden (165) and Levko Higgins (197) all picked up solo wins at the event as well.
BEARD TAKES SECOND AT SOUTHERN SCUFFLE TO LEAD 10-MAN PENN STATE CONTINGENT
Sophomore Michael Beard was the No. 2 seed at 197 at the Southern Scuffle and took second at the two-day event. Beard began the tournament with three wins on Saturday. He posted technical falls over Duke's Kaden Russell (18-2; 2:36) and Eli Sheeren of Buffalo (17-2; 5:36) to begin the tournament and closed out Saturday with a 9-2 win over Navy's XJaxon Smith in the quarterfinals. Beard beat No. 20 Cameron Caffey of Michigan State in the semifinals and then took an injury default loss during the first period of the finals to No. 4 Rocky Elam of Missouri. Junior Brandon Meredith competed at 133 and advanced to the quarterfinals before losing his first match. He went 3-1 overall plus one loss to a non-collegiate wrestler. Sophomore Joe Lee wrested at 157 and won his first two matches to advance to the quarterfinals. He ended the tournament with a 2-2 mark overall. Junior Seth Nevills took to the mat at 285 for the first time this year. Nevills went 3-2 overall with a pin in his first action of the season.
BARTLETT'S WIN OVER #5 PARCO HIGHLIGHTS LOPSIDED 29-10 WIN OVER #3 ARIZONA STATE
Sophomore Beau Bartlett posted a thrilling 3-1 sudden victory decision over #5 Kyle Parco to spark Penn State in a 29-10 win over #3 Arizona State in the Blue Pool Final of the Collegiate Duals in Niceville, Fla. Bartlett's takedown in extra time was one of many highlights as Penn State dominated the Sun Devils, winning seven of ten bouts. Roman Bravo-Young beat #14 Michael McGee 6-2 at 133, Nick Lee majored #15 Jesse Vasquez 14-3 at 141, and Max Dean majored #8 Kordell Norfleet at 197 in other ranked victories for Penn State.
NITTANY LIONS OUTLAST #9 CORNELL IN FLORIDA
Penn State won six of ten bouts to outlast #9 Cornell 26-11 at the Collegiate Duals in Niceville, Fla. Penn State got four straight wins over ranked wrestlers to close out the dual for the victory. Carter Starocci beat #12 Chris Foca 3-2 at 174, Aaron Brooks majored #155 Jonathan Loew 15-3 at 184, Max Dean downed #19 Jacob Cardenas 4-2 at 197 and Greg Kerkvliet shutout #18 Lewis Fernandes 5-0 at 285.
BROOKS TAKES DOWN #4 KECKEISEN AS LIONS TOP UNI; NAMED B1G WRESTLER OF THE WEEK (12/29)
Junior Aaron Brooks downed #4 Parker Keckeisen to lead Penn State to a 29-9 win over #22 Northern Iowa in the first of three duals for Penn State at the Collegiate Duals in Niceville, Fla. Brooks' win was one of seven for Penn State in the win, which included Roman Bravo-Young pinning #31 Kyle Biscoglia, Nick Lee majoring #26 Cael Happel and Beau Bartlett beating #28 Triston Lara. Brooks won three matches in Florida overall and was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week (12/29).
LEE'S 100TH CAREER WIN SPARKS PENN STATE IN WIN OVER LEHIGH
Senior Nick Lee dominated Lehigh's Connor McGonagle, rolling to a 13-6 win with 3:36 in riding time to earn the 100th victory of his illustrious Nittany Lion career. Lee's win helped spark a short-handed Penn State team to a 23-16 victory over the visiting Mountain Hawks in sold out Rec Hall on Dec. 5.
EDSELL, BALL COME UP BIG IN WIN OVER LEHIGH
With multiple starters out in Penn State's dual vs. Lehigh on Dec. 5, junior Creighton Edsell and sophomore Donovon Ball came up with big wins as Penn State outlasted visiting Lehigh 23-16 in Rec Hall. Edsell used a riding time point to notch a 2-1 win over No. 27 Brian Meyer at 165 and Ball downed J.T. Burkhart 5-3 at 184 for his second win in three days.
STAROCCI AND BARTLETT GRAB RANKED WINS AS LIONS WIN AT PENN
With three starters out in Penn State's dual at Penn on Dec. 3, Sophomores Carter Starocci and Beau Bartlett notched big ranked wins to lead Penn State to a hard-fought 20-16 win in Philadelphia. Starocci dominated #21 Nick Incontrera 13-3, adding 2:53 in riding time during his major decision victory at 174. Bartlett used an escape in extra time to notch a 4-3 (TB) win over #23 Anthony Artalona at 149 as well.
BEAU BARTLETT DOWNS #20 P.J. OGUNSANYA TO LEAD LIONS TO 32-7 WIN OVER ARMY WEST POINT
Sophomore Beau Bartlett posted a thrilling 3-1 (sv) win over #20 P.J. Ogunsanya to help lead Penn State to a rousing 32-7 win over Army West Point on Nov. 18 in sold out Rec Hall. The dual meet was wrestled in front of nearly 6,500 fans in a sold-out Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions have wrestled in front of 56 straight sellouts in Rec Hall and 62 of 64 including six of eight sellouts at the 16,000-seat Bryce Jordan Center). The dual also marked the first time Penn State wrestled in front of its home fans since Feb. 23, 2020, when Penn State beat American in Rec Hall.
GREG KERKVLIET NAMED BIG TEN W.O.W. (11/16)
Sophomore Greg Kerkvliet was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week for the week ending Nov. 14, 2021. Kerkvliet went 2-0 in Penn State's season-opening action at Spooky Nook in Manheim, Pa., on Nov. 13. The Lion heavyweight picked up a pin in Penn State's 47-3 win over Sacred Heart and then dominated No. 24 Gary Traub of Oregon State, rolling to a 16-0 tech fall (4:15) in Penn State's 32-7 victory over the Beavers.
LEE, BARTLETT, KERKVLIET NOTCH RANKED WINS IN 32-7 WIN OVER OREGON STATE
Senior Nick Lee dominated #10 Grant Willits in Penn State's 32-7 win over Oregon State on Nov. 13, rolling to an 11-4 victory at 141. Lee's win was one of three ranked victories for the Lions in the win. Sophomore Beau Bartlett posted a 1-0 win over #24 Cory Crooks at 149 and sophomore Greg Kerkvliet rolled to a 16-0 tech fall (5:58) over #24 Gary Traub at 285. Penn State won eight bouts in the dual. Aaron Brooks had a pin and Max Dean had a major as well.
SHUNK, DEAN WIN PENN STATE DEBUTS IN 47-3 SEASON-OPENING WIN OVER SACRED HEART
Sophomore Baylor Shunk and junior Max Dean each won their Penn State dual meet debuts in Penn State's 47-3 win over Sacred Heart on Nov. 13, the dual opener for the Lions. Shunk posted an 18-0 tech fall (4:15) over Kyle Randall and Dean rolled to an identical 18-0 tech fall (3:00) over Dante Del Bonis. Penn State won nine of ten bouts in the victory. Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Carter Starocci, and Greg Kerkvliet all had pins; Shunk, Dean, and Aaron Brooks had tech falls; and Beau Bartlett and Creighton Edsell had majors.
BEARD GOES 3-0 AT JOURNEYMEN COLLEGIATE
Sophomore Michael Beard posted a 3-0 record to win his round-robin pool at the Journeymen Collegiate in Manheim, Pa., on Nov. 14. Beard majored JT Davis of Lehigh 22-8, teched Lock Haven's Parker McClellan 15-0 and majored #20 JT Brown of Army.
MATT LEE RUNNER-UP AT BEARCAT OPEN
Freshman Matt Lee led a contingent of seven wrestlers at the Bearcat Open in Binghamton, N.Y., on Nov. 14. Lee went 3-1 (plus one victory over a non-collegiate wrestler) with a tech fall to place second at 165. David Evans went 3-0 at 133 and placed fourth while Jack Kelly posted a 4-2 mark to finish sixth at 174. Aurelius Dunbar went 4-2 at 157, Brian Borden with 2-2 at 165 and Levko Higgins went 2-2 at 197.
EVANS TAKES 2ND AT CLARION OPEN; THREE OTHER LIONS PLACE
Eight members the Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team took part in the Clarion Open on Nov. 6 in the first open tournament of the 2021-22 season. For Penn State, the Clarion Open is the first open tournament in almost two years after last season's abbreviated campaign. Redshirt freshman David Evans led the way with a second-place finish at 133. Evans went 3-1 with a pin, advancing to the finals before dropping his first match. True freshman Alex Facundo rolled up five wins with three majors and two pins and placed fifth. The true freshman's only loss was a tie-breaker defeat. Classmate Brian Borden placed sixth at 165, going 5-1 as well with a pin and three majors. True freshman Lucas Cochran finished fifth at 197, posting a 5-1 record with two majors and a pin. True freshman Shayne Van Ness began the tournament with two wins at 149. Van Ness picked up a major and a pin in just :54 before taking a medical forfeit (not a loss) and ending his action with a 2-0 mark. True freshman Sean Wang went 2-2 with a major at 141. True freshman Jack Kelly went 1-2 at 174. True freshman Gary Steen also competed at 125.
PARKING CHANGES FOR REC HALL EVENTS
Parking for Penn State Wrestling duals in Rec Hall will be available at the following locations beginning two hours prior to the start of each event.
• Nittany Deck, West Deck (No charge with a valid Penn State parking permit; $5.50 prepaid through ParkMobile (season package available for $5 per game; Note: does not include BJC Dual) - https://psu.parkmobile.io/rec-hall; $10 day-of-event without a valid permit or prepayment (must use ground level or in-lane pay station after the event)
• Rec Hall and Lion Shrine ADA Parking; Available on a first-come, first-served basis with a valid Penn State permit, ParkMobile prepayment ($5.50) or day-of-event ParkMobile app payment ($10 – zone no. 95105); Note: The Rec Hall and Lion Shrine parking areas are not selectable prepayment options. Fans must elect Nittany Deck or West Deck.
REC HALL PARKMOBILE PREPAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS
• Visit https://psu.parkmobile.io/rec-hall; Select game or season package at the bottom of the page; Select parking area; Enter the license plate information for the vehicle being driven to the event; Note: If a different vehicle must be driven than the one registered at purchase, users must contact ParkMobile Member Support through the ParkMobile website or app (Settings – Chat Support) to request a vehicle change for that reservation.; Purchase parking for the event
• Note: Prepayment is required by 11:59 p.m. the night before each event or the day-of-event rate will apply; If the Rec Hall and Lion Shrine ADA parking areas are not available upon arrival, fans must park at the lot selected on the ParkMobile website at the time of purchase; Guests must scan their ParkMobile QR code (from mobile device or printed copy) at Nittany Deck and West Deck in-lane machines to enter and exit.; Head-in parking is required at the Nittany and West decks.
MILESTONES
Individual records and milestones that are in play as of now:
* 100 Career victories
Nick Lee, 104
* 200 Career coaching wins (overall career)
Cael Sanderson, 212
* 100 Career Big Ten coaching wins
Cael Sanderson, 90
* 175 Career coaching wins at Penn State
Cael Sanderson, 168
