No. 1 Penn State wrestling continued to dominate its dual meet schedule, winning nine of 10 bouts for a 38-3 victory against Michigan on Friday night in Ann Arbor.
Luke Lilledahl, Marcus Blaze, Mitchell Mesenbrink, Levi Haines and Josh Barr all won by technical fall, while Shayne Van Ness claimed a major decision.
Filling in for Braeden Davis at 141, Penn State freshman Nate Desmond won a sudden victory thriller with a decision over former All-American Dylan Ragusin. Fellow freshman PJ Duke also won a wild decision over Michigan’s Cameron Catrabone at 157. Rocco Welsh came up just short of bonus points with an 8-1 decision at 184.
Penn State’s only loss of the night was at heavyweight, where Cole Mirasola battled but came up on the short end of a 5-1 decision against Michigan’s fifth-ranked Taye Ghadiali.
The team victory extended Penn State’s NCAA record dual meet win streak 84. The Nittany Lions also tied Iowa and Oklahoma State for consecutive meets without a loss (the Hawkeyes and Cowboys had ties during their stretches).
It was Penn State’s final road dual of the season. The Nittany Lions will be back in action on Feb. 13 with a much-anticipated showdown against No. 2 Ohio State at 7 p.m. in the Bryce Jordan Center.
125 Pounds
No. 1 Luke Lilledahl jumped out to a 9-2 lead with three first-period takedowns of Michigan’s 23rd-ranked Diego Sotelo. The Nittany Lion sophomore continued to be aggressive on offense in the second, scoring three more takedowns and, despite allowing a reversal, was on the precipice of ending the bout with a 19-5 lead as the middle period expired. Taking the bottom position to start the third, Lilledahl quickly reversed Sotelo to secure a 21-5 technical fall at 5:06.
Penn State 5, Michigan 0
133 Pounds
After scoring the bout’s opening takedown midway through the first, No. 4 Marcus Blaze used a single leg for another takedown of Michigan’s Gauge Botero at the edge of the mat late in the period. The Nittany Lion freshman caught Botero in a cradle but ran out of time before he could get the fall, instead settling for four near fall points and 10-1 lead. Blaze escaped and quickly took down Botero to start the second. After a Botero escape, Blaze got behind the Wolverine for a final takedown and a 17-2 tech fall at 4:40.
Penn State 10, Michigan 0
141 Pounds
Freshman Nate Desmond, stepping in for No. 12 Braeden Davis, met Michigan veteran and No. 26-ranked Dylan Ragusin in a highly entertaining bout at 141. Despite some terrific action, the wrestlers battled to a scoreless tie in the first. Ragusin escaped to start the second, but Desmond hooked the Wolverine’s ankle out of a scramble for the bout’s first takedown. After a second stall against Desmond, Ragusin got a reversal to move in front 4-3 at the end of two.
Desmond answered to start the third with a reversal of his own and was close to a near fall count before the action was stopped and Ragusin escaped to tie the bout 5-5. A Ragusin shot and Desmond counter at the edge of the mat resulted in no score and the bout went into sudden victory. Ragusin quickly shot and nearly took Desmond to his back, but the Nittany Lion fought it off and powered Ragusin over for the winning takedown 20 seconds into the extra time. Desmond took an 8-5 decision in his first Big Ten bout and improved to 7-0.
Penn State 13, Michigan 0
149 Pounds
After a scoreless opening period, Michigan’s 13th-ranked Lachlan McNeil got on the board first against No. 1 Shayne Van Ness with an escape to start the second. After picking up a point to tie it when McNeil (seemingly unintentionally) slapped him in the face, Van Ness shot in on a single leg and fought through McNeil’s counter attempt to score a takedown for a 4-1 lead after two. Escaping to start the third, Van Ness got in on a single and tripped McNeil to the mat for his second takedown. The Nittany Lion stayed in control the rest of the period with a rideout. With a riding time point added, Van Ness claimed a 9-1 major decision.
Penn State 17, Michigan 0
157 Pounds
Michigan’s Cameron Catrabone, ranked No. 13, got the Wolverines’ first takedown of the night in the first period against No. 4 PJ Duke. After a Duke escape, Catrabone added another point on an escape out of a restart following an injury timeout to take a 4-1 lead into the second. Catrabone opened the middle period with an escape, but Duke converted on a low single for a takedown to narrow the deficit to 5-4. Catrabone escaped, but Duke moved in front with a single to double for a takedown and rode out the period to take a 7-6 lead into the third.
Duke chose a neutral start to the final period, and Catrabone retook the lead on a single leg for a takedown with under a minute to go. Duke, however, quickly escaped and reclaimed the lead with a late takedown out of a scramble. Catrabone escaped but got no more in the final seconds, and with a riding time point Duke won a 12-10 decision.
Penn State 20, Michigan 0
165 Pounds
No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink scored two takedowns and stayed in control for most of the first period against Michigan’s Justin Gates to take a 6-1 lead into the second. Mesenbrink reversed Gates to start the second and after an escape got his third takedown of the bout. Gates escaped again, and Mesenbrink used a single for another takedown and rode out the period with a 14-3 lead. After Gates escaped to start the third, Mesenbrink used a single for a takedown and cut Gates loose looking for the tech. Following two stoppages for blood, Mesenbrink got the final takedown for a 20-5 tech fall at 6:34.
Mesenbrink is now 17-0 on the year, with bonus points in every victory.
Penn State 25, Michigan 0
174 Pounds
No. 1 Levi Haines and Michigan’s No. 11-ranked Beau Mantanona got into an early scramble that saw both wrestlers with opportunities to score, but it was Haines who gained control for the opening takedown. Mantanona escaped, but Haines used a double for another takedown and a 6-1 lead after one. Following a Mantanona escaped to start the second, Haines got his third takedown of the night and stayed in control for the remainder of the period with a 9-2 lead. Two takedowns and a stall point put Haines ahead 16-4 as the final period wound down. With three seconds remaining, Haines got the takedown at the edge of the mat for a 19-4 tech fall at 6:57.
Penn State 30, Michigan 0
184 Pounds
No. 1 Rocco Welsh got on the board first against Michigan’s Brock Mantanona, getting a leg and tripping the Wolverine to the mat then staying on top for the final 80 seconds of the first period with a 3-0 lead. Welsh escaped for the only point of the second period and carried a 4-0 lead into the third. Mantanona escaped more than a minute into the third, but Welsh came back with a blast double for another late takedown. With riding time, Welsh took an 8-1 decision, falling just short of bonus points.
Penn State 33, Michigan 0
197 Pounds
No. 1 Josh Barr countered a good early shot from Michigan’s 20th-ranked Hayden Walters for a takedown and stayed on top for the final two minutes of the first period. Two more Barr takedowns and two Walters escapes put the Nittany Lion in front 9-2 going into the third. Out of a neutral start, Barr picked up a stall point and circled around for his fourth takedown, then went looking for the tech. After cutting Walters loose, Barr got another takedown, allowed the escape and scored the final takedown with 10 seconds remaining for a 19-4 tech fall at 6:50.
Penn State 38, Michigan 0
285 Pounds
Following a scoreless first period, No. 12 Cole Mirasola took 1:15 before escaping from the down position in the second against Michigan’s No. 5-ranked Taye Ghadiali, The Wolverine used a double for a takedown at the center of the mat and stayed in control for the final 30 seconds of the period to take a 3-1 lead with 1:42 in riding time into the third. Ghadiali escaped to a 4-1 lead with his riding time at 1:02. Mirasola worked for a takedown but couldn’t break through, and Ghadiali claimed a 5-1 decision for Michigan’s only win on the night.
Penn State 38, Michigan 3
