No. 1 Penn State Wrestling Overpowers No. 22 Indiana 35-8

No. 1 Penn State wrestling (13-0, 6-0 Big Ten) rested two top-ranked starters but still had little trouble Sunday on the road at No. 22 Indiana (7-3, 3-3), pounding the Hoosiers 35-8.

The Nittany Lions won eight of 10 bouts, scoring bonus points in six. Beau Bartlett and Max Dean won by fall, Greg Kerkvliet earned a technical fall and Shayne Van Ness, Alex Facundo and Carter Starocci notched major decisions.

Bartlett pinned Indiana’s Cayden Rooks just 12 seconds into the 141-pound bout, while Dean’s fall at 197 was his second of the weekend.

Kerkvliet needed just two takedowns against Jacob Bullock in the heavyweight bout, getting three four-point turns to finish off the tech fall at the 5:59 mark.

Van Ness used six takedowns and a four-point turn to major Graham Rooks in the 149 pound bout 17-5, and Facundo put on a takedown clinic with eight in a 20-9 major decision against Robert Major at 165.

Starocci’s victory at 174 pounds avenged one of his two career losses, with Washington having won by decision in their first meeting back in 2021 in what was Starocci’s Penn State dual meet debut. (Starocci’s other loss was to Iowa’s Michael Kemerer; the Nittany Lion won their two subsequent meetings.)

Levi Haines had three takedowns for an 8-2 decision over Hoosier Derek Gilcher at 157 for his 10th consecutive win. Donovan Ball, stepping in for top-ranked Aaron Brooks at 184, won a 10-3 decision over Indiana’s Clayton Fielden.

Penns Valley native Baylor Shunk made his season dual meet debut, filling in for Roman Bravo-Young at 133 pounds. Shunk took No. 29 Henry Porter to the wire, but lost a 9-7 decision in sudden victory.

Making his second start of the season Marco Vespa lost by a 17-2 technical fall in the second period of the 125-pound bout against Indiana’s Jacob Moran.

WHAT’S NEXT

Penn State travels to New Jersey to face Rutgers at 7 p.m. on Friday before returning home to take on Maryland at 1 p.m. next Sunday in Rec Hall.