Cael Sanderson Says Penn State Wrestling Looked 'a Little Tired' in Win at Nebraska

The top-ranked Nittany Lions defeated the No. 6 Cornhuskers 31-7. Sanderson said Penn State "wrestled well enough" to win.

Penn State wrestling coach Cael Sanderson gives instructions during a Nittany Lions match. / Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

Penn State wrestling’s quest for a four-peat ran into its first potential roadblock last Friday when the team faced No. 6 Nebraska on the road. The top-ranked Nittany Lions took care of the Cornhuskers with a 31-7 win to improve to 8-0, but Penn State coach Cael Sanderson said his guys “didn’t wrestle great” but “wrestled well enough” to get the dual victory. 

“I think we look like maybe we were a little tired, but there were a lot of different factors too. You’re on the road. Obviously when you wrestle a really good team, they have the ability to make you feel like you didn’t wrestle great too,” Sanderson said Monday. “It’s late at night, all those different things you’re trying to factor in as we’re thinking about the future and then training and what adjustments we need to make.” 

Penn State ostensibly dominated Nebraska for its 64th consecutive dual victory. The Nittany Lions won eight of 10 bouts, scored three technical falls and held a 20-4 edge in takedowns. Still, Sanderson wasn’t completely impressed. The Penn State coach added that he doesn’t want the team to be at its absolute best in January, as it's still building toward the Big Ten and NCAA Championships in March. While there’s still another month and change of wrestling before then, Friday’s meet provided several potential championship previews at different weight classes. 

At 125, true freshman Luke Lilledahl, ranked No. 12, scored an upset over No. 6 Caleb Smith to continue his unbeaten season. At 141, No. 3 Beau Bartlett pulled off a thrilling 8-7 win over No. 6 Brock Hardy after a late reversal. It was Bartlett’s first top-10 win of the season as he chases his first NCAA championship. 

“You just gotta dig deep,” Bartlett said. “You just gotta really want it, get after it, have confidence that I can always make things happen. I put myself in good positions to seal the deal often.” 

Another Nittany Lion chasing his first championship, No. 2 Shayne Van Ness, lost to No. 4 Ridge Lovett in a 10-2 major at 149. It was Van Ness’ most lopsided loss in his collegiate career, but Sanderson said he’s not worried about him moving forward. 

“That can be an NCAA final match there, and Shayne’s a guy who just keeps getting better and better,” Sanderson said. “So I think some little things that he can pick up from the match, but I think he’s still got it, he’s just gonna continue to get better at a faster rate just because he hasn’t had that many matches in his career and those types of opportunities.” 

For Carter Starocci, it was business as usual as he majored No. 17 Silas Allred to continue his undefeated season. The four-time NCAA champion at 174 pounds moved up to 184 this year but hasn’t skipped a beat. He said he’s “feeling really good” going into the thick of the Big Ten season. 

Starocci said he was pleased with how his teammates responded to the road environment in Lincoln and how they took care of business. 

“I think those Nebraska guys are deceiving. They have a good crowd and the coaches get all fired up. When you look at their bench, everyone's standing up, and I'm just like, ‘this is not going to be a good match at all,’” Starocci said. “They try to make it a big deal, but for us, it's really not, just it's go in there, take care of business and leave.” 

Up Next

Penn State remains on the road for a Big Ten dual Friday at No. 3 Rutgers. The match begins at 8 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network.

More Penn State Wrestling

Four Nittany Lions win tournament titles in January

Penn State dominates the Journeymen Collegiate Duals

Carter Starocci scores statement win at NWCA All-Star Classic

Sam Woloson has covered Penn State Athletics for the past three years and is currently the managing editor of The Daily Collegian. His work has also appeared in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Huntingdon Daily News and Rivals. Follow him on X @sam_woloson