Penn State Continues Its Big Ten Wrestling Supremacy, Routing Ohio State
The top-ranked Penn State wrestling team dominated No. 5 Ohio State on Friday, winning eight of 10 bouts for a 29-9 Big Ten victory that solidified it standing as the nation's No. 1 dual-meet program.
Penn State's standout heavyweights won six consecutive bouts, getting bonus points from Levi Haines, Max Dean and Greg Kerkvliet in that stretch, to won its 40th consecutive dual match. The Lions held a 19-3 takedown advantage, continuing a dominant stretch in its last two matches. Against second-ranked Iowa and Ohio State, Penn State (12-0, 5-0) allowed a combined five takedowns.
Penn State, which has won 40 consecutive matches, continues its road trip Sunday at Indiana for a 1 p.m. Big Ten match.
Here's a recap of Penn State's 29-9 victory over Ohio State.
125: No. 10 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) pin Gary Steen 1:56
Heinselman jumped out front quickly, turning a takedown into back points before finishing the fall.
133: No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) dec. No. 9 Jesse Mendez 8-2
Bravo-Young dominated the top-10 matchup of the Big Ten co-wrestlers of the week. Bravo-Young worked his mastery of the counter jshot, turning a Mendez move into the first takedown. Bravo-Young nearly finished the bout with a throw but settled for the win with 1:04 of riding time.
141: No. 5 Beau Bartlett (Penn State) dec. No. 19 Dylan D'Emilio 4-2
Bartlett's aggressive start led to the first takedown, a critical moment of his decision. After that, Bartlett defended a few D'Emilio shots, escaped in the third and added a riding-time point.
149: No. 3 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) dec. No. 13 Shayne Van Ness 6-3
Van Ness scored the first takedown, briefly putting Sasso on the defensive. But the Ohio State wrestler scored with 15 seconds left in the period and didn't relinquish the lead.
157: No. 9 Levi Haines (Penn State) dec. Paddy Gallagher 14-2
Haines (14-1) is proving to be among the most exciting freshmen in the Big Ten. He dominated Gallagher, twice scoring back points and pressing hard for the technical fall late. It was Haines' sixth bonus-point victory of the season.
165: No. 8 Alex Facundo (Penn State) dec. No. 12 Carson Kharchla 4-1
Penn State coach Cael Sanderson and his staff have trained the Lions well in counter offense. Facundo worked one of those moves expertly, spinning a late Kharchla shot into a third-period takedown for the 4-1 victory. Facundo improved to 12-2 after falling in overtime against Iowa's Patrick Kennedy.
174: No. 1 Carter Starocci (Penn State) dec. No. 7 Ethan Smith 11-5
After a 2-1 win vs. Iowa's Nelson Brands, Starocci got back to his offense. He took rapid-fire shots at Smith, scoring four takedowns and finishing with 1:32 of riding time. Starocci (12-0) still has yet to allow a takedown this season.
184: No. 1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) dec. No. 5 Kaleb Romero 3-2
Brooks tried to set an offensive pace, but Romero methodically stayed away, leading to a 1-1 tie in the third. Brooks finally connected with 1:10 left in the third period for the winning takedown.
197: No. 4 Max Dean (Penn State) pin No. 17 Gavin Hoffman 4:17
Dean secured his fifth pin this season after Hoffman took down to start the second period. Dean, who demonstrated his riding strength last week against Iowa's Jacob Warner, expanded on that against Hoffman, getting the turn to the takedown. Dean has been on a tear since losing twice in December, winning his last nine bouts.
285: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) dec. No. 18 Tate Orndorff 9-0
Kerkvliet (14-2) overwhelmed Orndorff for the major from the outset, getting his first takedown within the opening seconds of the first period. He began the second period with an escape/takedown sequence and added a third takedown in the final period. Kerkvliet finished with nearly 5 minutes of riding time in a dominant bout.
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