No. 1 Penn State Ends No. 2 Iowa's Big Ten Win Streak
Defending NCAA champions Nick Lee and Carter Starocci delivered more overtime theatrics, and Max Dean provided the hammer as No. 1 Penn State quieted Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday with a 19-13 victory over No. 2 Iowa.
The wrestling season's most anticipated dual match didn't disappoint, as more than 15,000 fans watched the nation's top two teams wrestle for the first time since 2020. The Lions won six of 10 bouts, getting turning-point decisions from Lee, Starocci and Dean and a bonus-point opener from Drew Hildebrandt.
Since defeating Cornell 21-16 without a full lineup in December, Penn State (14-0, 6-0 Big Ten) has won seven consecutive matches by a combined score of 207-60.
Penn State improved to 56-1 in dual meets since 2015, with the only loss coming against Iowa in 2020. And after losing five consecutive duals to Iowa from 2008-13, Penn State has won four of the last six meetings between the teams.
Iowa had won 28 consecutive Big Ten duals before Friday. Penn State fluttered briefly mid-match, in bouts where Iowa was favored, but otherwise controlled the match, especially in overtime.
Iowa fell to 11-1, 5-1 Big Ten.
Penn State returns home to wrestle Ohio State at 7 p.m. Friday at the Bryce Jordan Center. Here's a bout-by-bout breakdown of Penn State's victory over Iowa.
125: No. 7 Drew Hildebrandt (PSU) dec. Jesse Ybarra 9-0
Drew Hildebrandt turned Ybarra late in the third period to push a simple decision into a major, something Penn State does so well. Until the last 10 seconds, Ybarra looked like he would avoid the major. But Hildebrandt (5-1) patiently waited for Ybarra to relent on defense and hit a four-point move.
133: No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young (PSU) dec. No. 3 Austin DeSanto 3-2
Bravo-Young won his fourth straight decision over DeSanto, doing so in his usual theatrical fashion. Trailing 2-0 in the second, having given up an escape and penalty point, Bravo-Young (11-0) finished the period with any aggressive takedown to tie the bout.
Bravo-Young then escaped with a lightning-quick move in the third before smartly wrestling out the period for the win. For good measure, Bravo-Young got in an offensive shot to avoid a stalling call at bout's close and score his 70th career victory.
141: No. 1 Nick Lee (PS) dec. No. 2 Jaydin Eierman 6-4 SV
Eierman and Lee have developed a riveting rivalry that could include two more meetings in the Big Ten and NCAA finals. Friday's bout was wildly entertaining.
Lee took a 4-2 lead into the waning seconds of the third period, when Eierman tied it with a takedown and erased Lee's riding-time advantage. But, as he did in the NCAA finals last March, Lee brilliantly scored a sudden-victory takedown for the win.
Eierman took a 1-0 lead in the second period and brought Carver-Hawkeye to its feet with a throw, which Lee calmly and coldly countered for a takedown. Lee capped a strong second period with a late takedown to take a 4-2 lead.
149: No. 10 Max Murin (Iowa) dec. No. 19 Beau Bartlett 3-1
Iowa briefly ended Penn State's momentum, as Murin scored a third-period counter-attack takedown for the win. Bartlett showed some serious defensive chops, however, preventing Murin from getting too much offense.
157: No. 12 Kaleb Young (Iowa) dec. Terrell Barraclough 2-0
Iowa capitalized on the soft spot in Penn State's lineup, as Young dominated the unranked Barraclough in the third period.
165: No. 5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec. No. 11 Brady Berge 10-2
Marinelli is nearly unbeatable at Carver-Hawkeye, improving to 23-1 with a decision over Berge, who lost his first bout since returning to Penn State. Marinelli dominated the bout, putting together the major in the third period. Berge still looks like he's returning to form since giving up a coaching career to wrestle one last season. Perhaps Berge can close the gap in the postseason.
174: No. 1 Carter Starocci (PSU) dec. No. 2 Michael Kemerer 2-1 TB
Starocci continued to frustrate Kemerer, riding out the Iowa veteran in the tiebreaker period for his second consecutive overtime win in this electric rivalry. The bout was superb, with Kemerer nearly winning in the sudden-victory period, though his late takedown attempt was ruled to have occurred post-buzzer.
In the tiebreaker, an exhausted Kemerer cut Starocci loose but couldn't escape in the second 30-second period. Iowa wanted a penalty called on Starocci late for lock hands, though it didn't come. Starocci now has scored a team-high 61 dual-match points for Penn State.
Starocci beat Kemerer 3-1 with a sudden-victory takedown last March to win a national championship as a freshman. Fueled by that loss, Kemerer returned to Iowa for a seventh year. It was Kemerer's first loss at home since 2017 to Penn State's Jason Nolf.
184: No. 1 Aaron Brooks (PSU) dec. No. 17 Abe Assad 8-3
Brooks continued a season of domination, though he couldn't quite complete his ninth bonus-point victory. Assad gamely fought off the major in the third period, as Penn State took a 16-13 advantage in the team score into the final two bouts.
197: No. 4 Jacob Werner (Iowa) dec. No. 2 Max Dean (PSU) 8-3
Dean rallied from a 3-0 deficit with an eight-point barrage in the third period that included a four-point nearfall to clinch the bout and the Penn State victory.
Warner made things interesting early, turning an early takedown into a 3-0 lead. The bout met brief controversy at the end of the first period, when Dean appeared to catch Warner for a reversal and/or back points. However, Penn State coach Cael Sanderson's challenge did not lead to points.
That seemed only to fuel Dean, who bounced back from an upset loss to Michigan State's Cameron Caffey last week. Dean was named the match's outstanding wrestler.
285: No. 5 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) dec. No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet 7-2
Cassioppi scored seven straight points after giving up the opening takedown to send Iowa home with a final-bout victory.