If there was ever a time when the No. 1 Penn State wrestling team might have been excused for not being at its very best, last weekend might have been it.
Fresh off a conquest of its fiercest rival, Iowa, and traveling the Midwest on a two-dual road trip, the Nittany Lions might have been expected to possibly slip a bit at No. 4 Ohio State or No. 22 Indiana.
Nope. Never. Not gonna happen.
As consistent as a metronome, Penn State first cracked the Buckeyes, 29-9, Feb. 3 at the sold-out Covelli Center in Columbus, Ohio, in front of 4,585 fans. Then, on Feb. 5, the Nittany Lions housed the Hoosiers, 35-8, at Wilkinson Hall in Bloomington, Indiana.
In the two matches combined, 13 Penn State wrestlers won 16 of 20 bouts and piled up a 46-13 edge in takedowns.
The Nittany Lions are 13-0 overall, the only undefeated Division I team in the country, and 6-0 in the Big Ten. Three dual meets remain — at Rutgers on Feb. 10, home with Maryland on Feb. 12 and home against Clarion on Feb. 19 — as Penn State marches toward the postseason.
Penn State 35, Indiana 8
Three of the Nittany Lions’ 10 starters were backups against the Hoosiers, but Penn State still extended its dual meet win streak to 41 matches.
Indiana took advantage of the two backups Penn State sent out at 125 and 133 to grab an early 8-0 lead. The Hoosiers’ Jacob Moran rolled up a 17-2 technical fall over Marco Vespa, who took the place of Gary Steen.
And, at 133, Roman Bravo-Young had the day off and his replacement, Baylor Shunk, nearly pulled off an upset of No. 29 Henry Porter. Porter scored a takedown in the sudden victory period in a 9-7 decision.
After that, Penn State reeled off eight straight wins — two falls, a technical fall, three major decisions and two decisions. Beau Bartlett (141) needed just 12 seconds to deck his opponent, while 197-pounder Max Dean needed a minute and change more to score a fall in 1:29.
Greg Kerkvliet blanked his opponent 17-0 in 3:59 to cap the match. Shayne Van Ness (17-5 at 149), Alex Facundo (20-9 at 165) and Carter Starocci (11-3 at 174) notched major decisions.
Starocci and his opponent, No. 15 D.J. Washington, had to be separated after their match ended. Starocci had told reporters earlier in the week and shared on social media that he had plans to “whoop” Washington and avenge one of Starocci’s two collegiate losses, which came in his first collegiate dual meet.
Levi Haines (157) and Donovan Ball, who subbed in for Aaron Brooks at 184, each recorded a decision.
Penn State 29, Ohio State 9
On paper, this dual had the makings of a close, down-to-the-wire battle. The Buckeyes featured a lineup of 10 ranked wrestlers against only nine for the Nittany Lions.
Upon closer examination, however, most of Ohio State’s highest-ranked wrestlers were paired with even higher ranked Penn State opponents. The Buckeyes could muster just two wins. And of the nine bouts that featured ranked wrestlers, all nine wrestlers ranked higher won. That was bad news for Ohio State as Penn State had higher ranked wrestlers at eight weights.
Ohio State’s 10th-ranked Malik Heinselman pinned Gary Steen in 1:22 at 125. And, at 149, third-ranked Sammy Sasso shrugged off an initial takedown by Van Ness and rallied for a 6-3 decision.
Penn State’s eight wins consisted of a pin, two major decisions and five decisions.
Dean hooked up his patented bow-and-arrow move from top and decked No. 17 Gavin Hoffman in 4:28. Kerkvliet won 9-0 and Haines was dominant in a 14-2 major decision.
Bravo-Young (8-2), Bartlett (4-2), Facundo (4-1), Starocci (11-5) and Brooks (3-2) won decisions. Of note, Bartlett told the Penn State Sports Network that until Friday night, he had 0-8 against Dylan D’Emilio in pre-collegiate matches going back as far as elementary school. Starocci was taken down for the first time this season in his win over No. 7 Ethan Smith.
No. 1 Penn State 35
No. 22 Indiana 8
(Sunday at Bloomington, Ind.)
125: Jacob Moran, IU, won by tech. fall over Marco Vespa, 17-2 (4:48).
133: No. 29 Henry Porter, dec. Baylor Shunk, 9-7 SV.
141: No. 5 Beau Bartlett, PSU, pinned Joey Showalter, :12.
149: No. 13 Shayne Van Ness, PSU, maj. dec. No. 30 Graham Rooks, 17-5.
157: No. 9 Levi Haines, PSU, dec. No. 21 Derek Gilcher, 8-2.
165: No. 8 Alex Facundo, PSU, maj. dec. Nick South, 20-9.
174: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU, maj. dec. No. 15 D.J. Washington, 11-3.
184: Donovan Ball, PSU, dec. Clayton Fielden, 10-3.
197: No. 4 Max Dean, PSU, pinned Drayton Harris, 1:29.
285: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, won by tech. fall over No. 28 Jacob Bullock, 16-0 (3:59).
Extra matches
157: David Evans, PSU, dec. Luke Baughman, 6-2.
157: Terrell Barraclough, PSU, maj. dec. Mason Alley, 17-4.
Ernie Lucas Award winner: Donovan Ball.
Referee: Jamie George.
Takedowns: Penn State 27; Indiana 10.
Records: Penn State 13-0, 6-0 B1G; Indiana 7-3, 3-3.
Next match: Penn State at Rutgers, 7 p.m. Feb. 10.
No. 1 Penn State 29
No. 4 Ohio State 9
(Friday at Columbus, Ohio)
125: No. 10 Malik Heinselman, OSU, pinned Gary Steen, 1:22.
133: No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young, PSU, dec. No. 9 Jesse Mendez, 8-2.
141: No. 5 Beau Bartlett, PSU, dec. No. 19 Dylan D’Emilio, 4-2.
149: No. 3 Sammy Sasso, OSU, dec. No. 13 Shayne Van Ness, 6-3.
157: No. 9 Levi Haines, PSU, maj. dec. No. 25 Paddy Gallagher, 14-2.
165: No. 8 Alex Facundo, PSU, dec. No. 12 Carson Kharchla, 4-1.
174: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU, dec. No. 7 Ethan Smith, 11-5.
184: No. 1 Aaron Brooks, PSU, dec. No. 5 Kaleb Romero, 3-2.
197: No. 4 Max Dean, PSU, pinned No. 17 Gavin Hoffman, 4:28.
285: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, maj. dec. No. 18 Tate Orndorff, 9-0.
Ernie Lucas Award winner: Carter Starocci.
Referee: Curt Frost.
Attendance: 4,585.
Takedowns: Penn State 19; Ohio State 3.
Records: Penn State 12-0, 5-0 B1G; Ohio State 11-2, 5-1.
