A school-record seven Nittany Lion wrestlers advanced to the conference finals and Penn State increased its lead in the team race during the second session of the Big Ten Championships Saturday night at the University of Maryland’s Xfinity Center.
Braeden Davis, Beau Bartlett, Levi Haines, Mitchell Mesenbrink, Bernie Truax, Aaron Brooks and Greg Kerkvliet won their semifinal bouts and will wrestle for Big Ten championships on Sunday. Mesenbrink won by tech fall and Brooks and Kerkvliet claimed major decisions to earn bonus points for the Nittany Lions.
Aaron Nagao and Tyler Kasak dropped into the consolation bracket and can still finish as high as third or as low as sixth. All nine wrestlers have automatically qualified for the NCAA Championships in two weeks.
Penn State sits atop the team standings with 136 points, trailed by Michigan with 105.5. Nebraska (89), Iowa (88.5) and Ohio State (78.5) round out the top five.
In the consolation round on Saturday night, top-ranked 174-pounder Carter Starocci, as expected, chose to take his second injury default to bow out of the tournament as he continues to recover from a leg injury suffered during the regular season finale against Edinboro on Feb. 25. Starocci, who saw his 64-bout win streak come to an end with the injury-default losses, will receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships and will be seeking his fourth national title.
Consolation round action will begin at noon on Sunday, with live streaming available on BTN+. Championship finals and placing bouts are scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m. and will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
125 – Braeden Davis
After winning his quarterfinal bout in sudden victory, No. 6 seed Davis had another overtime thriller in the semifinals against No. 7 seed Michael DeAugustino of Michigan. A scoreless first period was followed by an exchange of escapes to send the bout to the first sudden victory period tied 1-1. Neither wrestler could get the decisive score, so the bout went to tiebreakers.
DeAugustino and Davis both escaped in under five seconds in the two tiebreaker rounds, making riding time a non-factor and setting up another sudden victory period. Davis fought off an inside trip and countered to take DeAugustino to the mat for the winning takedown. The call was confirmed on review and the Nittany Lion true freshman claimed a 5-2 decision to advance to the championship final.
Davis will battle No. 4 seed Patrick McKee of Minnesota for the conference title on Sunday.
133 – Aaron Nagao
No. 1 seed Dylan Ragusin took the early lead with a first-period takedown of fifth-seeded Nagao in their semifinal bout. Ragusin built up more than 90 seconds of riding time until Nagao answered with a reversal to narrow the gap. The Wolverine escaped to take a 4-2 lead into the second. Nagao quickly escaped for the only scoring of the middle period to narrow Ragusin’s lead to 4-3.
Ragusin escaped at the start of the third for a 5-3 lead and kept his riding time above one minute. Nagao had two good deep shots that Ragusin defended. Out of a restart with six seconds remaining, Nagao chased down Ragusin and nearly had a takedown but time expired before he could finish. Ragusin took a 6-3 decision to advance to the final.
Nagao will face No. 7 seed Braxton Brown of Maryland in his first consolation bout on Sunday.
141 – Beau Bartlett
Following a scoreless first period, top-seeded Bartlett escaped to a 1-0 lead to start the second in his semifinal bout against No. 5 seed Sergio Lemley of Michigan. With under a minute left in the period, Bartlett converted on a single leg for a takedown and stayed on top to take a 4-0 advantage into the final period.
Lemley escaped to start the third. Then after Bartlett nearly scored his second takedown, Lemley scrambled for a takedown of his own to tie the bout at 4-4. Bartlett escaped and kept Lemley at bay the rest of the way for a 5-4 decision.
Bartlett will seek his first Big Ten title when he meets No. 2 seed Jesse Mendez of Ohio State in the final.
149 – Tyler Kasak
True freshman Kasak, the No. 4 seed, battled top-seeded Ridge Lovett of Nebraska to a scoreless first period in their semifinal bout. Lovett quickly escaped to start the second and took a 1-0 lead into the third. Kasak chose neutral to start the third and worked for a shot, but after a long scramble on the mat Lovett came out on top for the takedown. The Husker stayed in control for the remaining seconds to take a 4-0 decision and move on to the final.
Kasak will take on No. 3 seed Caleb Rathjen of Iowa in his first consolation bout.
157 – Levi Haines
No. 1 seed Haines took control in the second period of his semifinal bout against No. 4 seed Jared Franek of Iowa. The Nittany Lion sophomore escaped to a 1-0 lead then scored the bout’s first takedown with 19 seconds remaining to take a 4-0 advantage in the final period. Franek chose down to start the third and Haines stated in control the entire time, executing a full period rideout and adding a riding time point for a 5-0 decision.
Haines will wrestle for his second Big Ten championship when he faces No. 7 seed Will Lewan of Michigan in the final.
165 – Mitchell Mesenbrink
Keeping up the high-energy pace he’s displayed all season No. 2 seed Mesenbrink was an offensive juggernaut in his semifinal bout against No. 3 seed Michael Caliendo of Iowa. Mesenbrink score a fast takedown in the first 30 seconds and added two more before the first period ended to open up a 9-3 lead.
It was more of the same in the second after Caliendo escaped to start the period. Mesenbrink added his fifth and sixth takedowns and picked up another point on a second stall call against the Hawkeye for a 16-6 lead heading into the final period. The Nittany Lion sophomore escaped to start the third, then used a leg attack for another takedown. After cutting Caliendo loose, Mesenbrink ended the bout with a double leg for a final takedown and a 23-7 tech fall at the 6:47 mark.
Mesenbrink will seek his first Big Ten title against No. 1 seed Dean Hamiti of Wisconsin.
184 – Bernie Truax
Truax, the No. 3 seed, quickly escaped to start the second period and take a 1-0 lead in his semifinal matchup with No. 2 seed Lenny Pinto of Nebraska. Pinto answered with a quick escape of his own to start the third and tie the bout at 1-1. With just over a minute left in the match, Truax caught Pinto at the edge of the mat for a takedown. Pinto escaped, but Truax held on for the 4-2 decision, avenging a loss to the Husker earlier this season and advancing to the title bout in his first and only Big Ten season.
Truax, a graduate transfer this season, will take on No. 1 seed Isaiah Salazar of Minnesota for the championship.
197 – Aaron Brooks
No. 1 seed Brooks got off to a fast start with an early takedown of Nebraska’s fourth-seeded Silas Allred. The Husker escaped, but Brooks worked his way to another takedown for a 6-1 lead and 1:51 in riding time at the end of the first period.
Allred chose down to start the second and Brooks methodically maneuvered him into a cradle. Allred fought off the pin, but Brooks scored four nearfall points to expand his lead to 10-1 and rode out the period to lock up the riding time point. Brooks chose neutral to start the third, and without about a minute left used a single leg for another takedown and a 13-1 lead. He cut Allred loose but couldn’t connect on another takedown for a tech fall, instead claiming a 14-2 major decision and his fifth trip to the conference finals.
Brooks will seek his fourth Big Ten championship when he meets No. 3 seed Zach Glazier of Iowa on Sunday.
285 – Greg Kerkvliet
Top-seeded Kerkvliet needed only seven seconds to score a takedown in the semifinals against No. 4 seed Yaraslau Slavikouski of Rutgers. Kerkvliet stayed in control the rest of the period and picked up another point on a second stall call against Slavikouski to take a 4-0 lead into the second.
Kerkvliet quickly escaped to start the middle period and converted on a single leg for a takedown with a minute left to increase his advantage to 8-0. Slavikouski chose neutral to start the third and neither wrestler could break through for a score. With a riding time point, Kerkvliet took a 9-0 major decision and advanced to the Big Ten final for the second consecutive year.
He will look for his first conference championship when he takes on No. 2 seed Nick Feldman of Ohio State on Sunday.
