No. 1 Penn State Wrestling Downs No. 5 Ohio State 29-9

Another Friday night, another top-five win for Penn State wrestling.

After knocking off then-No. 4 Michigan and No. 2 Iowa the past two weeks at home, the top-ranked Nittany Lions (12-0, 5-0 Big Ten) traveled to Columbus on Friday and handled No. 5 Ohio State (11-2, 5-1) 29-9 for their 40th consecutive dual meet victory.

Penn State won eight of 10 bouts and scored bonus points in three, getting a pin from fourth-ranked 197-pounder Max Dean and impressive major decisions from Levi Haines at 157 and Greg Kerkvliet at heavyweight.

The Nittany Lions once again dominated the takedown margin with 19 to the Buckeyes’ three.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Starting the meet at 125 pounds, 10th-ranked Buckeye Malik Heinselman dealt Penn State freshman Gary Steen another tough night. Heinselman got a swift takedown, turned Steen for four back points, then turned him again for the pin at the 1:56 mark as Ohio State jumped out to a 6-0 lead.

No. 1-ranked Roman Bravo-Young faced a challenge in Ohio State’s ninth-ranked freshman sensation Jesse Mendez at 133 pounds, but the Nittany Lion veteran controlled the action. Bravo-Young took a 2-0 first-period lead with a high single for a takedown and a rideout. The defending national champion built up his riding time to open the second before Mendez escaped, then had the Buckeye on the defensive and scored another takedown out of a scramble as the period neared its end. With an escape and another takedown in the third, Bravo-Young looked for bonus points but couldn’t tack on more. A riding time point gave him an 8-2 decision and cut the Buckeye lead to 6-3.

At 141, No. 5 Beau Bartlett turned on the offensive pressure early against Ohio State’s 19th-ranked Dylan D’Emilio and got the bout’s first takedown midway through the first, finishing the period on top. D’Emilio and Bartlett traded escapes in the second and third periods in what would be a series of attacks and counters. Bartlett gave up a stall point in the third but added a riding time point to secure a 4-2 victory and knot the dual at 6-6.

No. 13-ranked freshman Shayne Van Ness struck first in the 149-pound bout against Ohio State’s two-time All-American and third-ranked Sammy Sasso. Van Ness countered a Sasso shot and rolled through for the takedown midway through the first. Sasso, though, escaped and got a takedown out of a scramble late in the period to carry a 3-2 lead into the second. The Buckeye extended the lead with a reversal to open the second followed by a Van Ness escape to make it 5-3. Van Ness chose down to start third but couldn’t escape a strong Sasso ride, and a riding time point gave the Buckeye a 6-3 decision. Ohio State moved in front 9-6, but it would be the home team’s last lead of the night.

True freshman Levi Haines turned in a dominant showing against Ohio State’s Paddy Gallagher, ranked No. 25, in the 157-pound bout. Haines scored three takedowns and built up more than two minutes in riding time through the first two periods. After escaping to a 7-2 lead and clinching the riding time point in the third, Haines poured on the offense, taking Gallagher down and turning him for four back points. The Nittany Lion worked for another turn that would have secured the tech fall, but ran out of time and settled for a 14-2 major decision. The Nittany Lions retook the lead for good at 10-9.

Out of the break, eighth-ranked freshman Alex Facundo faced Ohio State’s No. 12 Carson Kharchla at 165. Despite strong shots from both wrestlers, the first period ended scoreless. Facundo escaped to start the second with a 1-0 lead and extended it to 2-0 when Kharchla was hit with a penalty point for an illegal move. After Kharchla escaped in the second to make it 2-1, Facundo continued to be aggressive and scored the bout’s first takedown in the waning seconds for a 4-1 decision and a 13-9 Penn State advantage.

At 174 pounds, No. 1-ranked Carter Starocci battled the Buckeyes’ No. 7-ranked Ethan Smith. Starocci countered a Smith shot for one takedown and used a high single for another to take a 4-2 first-period lead. After Smith escaped to start the second, Starocci took multiple shots before connecting for a third takedown and finishing the period on top with a 6-3 lead. The Nittany Lion escaped to start the third, and though Smith used a low double for his first takedown of the bout, Starocci responded with an escape and a final takedown of his own. The defending national champion again finished the period on top, and with a riding time point claimed an 11-5 decision. Penn State extended its lead to 16-9.

Top-ranked Aaron Brooks and No.5-ranked Buckeye Kaleb Romero were scoreless after the first period of the 184-pound bout. Brooks escaped to a 1-0 lead to start the second and, much like in the first period, kept Romero on the defensive but was unable to connect for takedown. Romero escaped to tie it in the third, but Brooks finally broke through as he pulled Romero back from the edge of the mat for a takedown that would be the difference. The Buckeye escaped, but the defending champ took the 3-2 decision as the Nittany Lions lead grew to 19-9.

At 197, No. 4 Max Dean scored a takedown against 17th-ranked Buckeye Gavin Hoffman late in the first period for a 2-0 lead. Hoffman took down to start second and Dean broke him down, eventually working a bow and arrow for a four-point turn and finally the pin at the 4:28 mark. The fall sealed the victory for Penn State with a 25-9 lead heading into the final bout.

No. 2-ranked heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet dominated Ohio State’s 18th-ranked Tate Orndorff to close out the night. Kerkvliet took down the Buckeye early in the first then rode out the period. He opened the second with an escape, used a high single for a takedown and finished the period another rideout and a 5-0 lead. Orndorff wisely chose neutral to start the third, but Kerkvliet connected on a high shot, lifted the Buckeye up and took him to the mat for the takedown. Kerkvliet again stayed in control the rest of the way, picking up a stall point and a riding time point for a 9-0 major decision to finish off the Nittany Lions’ 29-9 win.

WHAT’S NEXT

Penn State travels to Indiana (7-2, 3-2) for a 2 p.m. start on Sunday.