Penn State wrestling: 3 thoughts, plus results, from Lions' Collegiate Wrestling Duals Day 1

Penn State has swept its way through the first day of the Collegiate Wrestling Duals in Niceville, Fla.

Head coach Cael Sanderson’s Nittany Lions blasted No. 22 Northern Iowa 29-9 in the opener before taking down Cornell 21-16 in the nightcap.

The Lions now move on to face Arizona State in the blue pool finals. That dual is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The Penn State Sports Network will be on the air at 7:40 p.m. Rofkin is live streaming the match on a pay-per-view basis, as well.

1. Penn State showed grit on Monday night

Penn State trailed after the initial bout against the University of Northern Iowa. The Lions wouldn’t fall behind again, however, after a Roman Bravo-Young win by fall gave them a 6-3 lead after two bouts. The team picked up important results along the way, as well.

Aaron Brooks won the marquee bout of the meet at 174 pounds. The nation’s No. 1 ranked wrestler topped Northern Iowa’s fourth-ranked Parker Keckeisen by decision, 3-2. The defending national champion made an early third-period escape hold up to reach the margin of victory.

In the 29-9 win, Bravo-Young (by fall in 4:34 over No. 31 Kyle Biscoglia); 141-pounder Nick Lee (by 18-4 major decision over No. 26 Cael Happer); 174-pounder Carter Starocci (by 13-4 major decision over Pat Schoenfelder); 197-pounder Max Dean (by 19-3 technical fall over Noah Glaser in 5:21); and heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet (by 12-1 major decision over Tyrell Gordon) earned bonus points.

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Against Cornell, Penn State trailed 16-8 after 165 pounds in a match that started at the 125 pound weight class. The Lions’ hammers then did what they had to do. Starocci beat No. 12 Chris Foca 3-2 thanks to a riding time point at 174 before Brooks topped No. 15 Jonathan Loew by major decision, 15-3, at 184.

With the Lions within a point in the team scoring, former Big Red wrestler Max Dean earned a hard-fought victory over No. 19 Jacob Cardenas, 4-2 at 197. Kerkvliet then secured his and the team’s second win of the night with a triumph over No. 18 Lewis Fernandes by decision, 5-0.

It was a long day for Sanderson’s side, which weighed in at 8 a.m. and then didn’t wrestle until 10 hours later. There’s a lot of room for improvement, too. But, per the usual, Penn State’s best grapplers came through when it mattered most, and that equaled a pair of wins.

2. Questions remain about the Lions’ lineup as the 2021 portion of the schedule concludes

Penn State continues to try and figure out its situation at 125 pounds while it waits for the reported arrival of former All-American Drew Hildebrandt. Head coach Cael Sanderson said two weeks ago that he couldn’t discuss the idea of the onetime Central Michigan wrestler transferring in. Hildebrandt has not commented on his future plans, either. However, if he is joining the Lions, they couldn’t discuss it until he starts classes in the spring.

Either way, 125 is currently a problem spot in the Lions’ lineup. Jake Campbell lost both bouts on Monday. He also lost against Lehigh after Baylor Shunk started the year as the first-teamer at that spot. Penn State could try somebody else there on Tuesday, but it’s likely to be one of those two. Time will tell.

At 157, Penn State wrestled Tony Negron against Northern Iowa and Joe Lee against Cornell. The latter could be moving to 165, radio broadcaster Jeff Byers said. Neither left Raider Arena victorious. Negron lost a 5-2 setback against Derek Holschlag. Lee, then, fell to No. 25 Colton Yapoujian, 4-2.

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Neither lineup decision was a total surprise on Monday night. The problem is, the outcomes were not, either.

Creighton Edsell also dropped both matches at 165 against higher-ranked opponents. He appears to be Penn State’s starter there for the long haul.

Penn State must continue to work on finding its best lineup combination. Some years, it’s easy. Other years, it takes much of the first half of the season to do, and maybe even more than that. This year, the latter situation has presented itself. The positive is that it does not matter until March. We’re a long way from the Big Ten and national tournaments.

3. Looking ahead to Tuesday

The match many were hoping for will happen on Tuesday. InterMat’s dual meet rankings call Penn State the nation’s No. 2 team. Arizona State is No. 6.

Head coach Zeke Jones’ Sun Devils earned a spot opposite the Lions by blowing out Hofstra 42-4. Then, they beat No. 9 Virginia Tech 23-13.

No. 3 Brandon Courtney is a show-stopper at 125. No. 14 Michael McGee will hope to upset No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young at 133. Same goes for No. 15 Jesse Vasquez, who faces top-ranked Nick Lee at 141. In reverse, Beau Bartlett will aim to stop No. 5 Kyle Parco at 149. ASU has a rankings advantage at 157 with No. 3 Jacori Teemer and 165 (No. 6 Anthony Valencia).

Besides those bouts, a top-10 showdown is on deck at 197 between Dean and Kordell Norfleet, while a top-five one awaits when Kerkvliet battles Cohlton Schultz.

This figures to be a real treat of a match for viewers. Bonus points will decide it, in all likelihood.

4. Penn State-UNI full results

As noted above, Penn State won its first bout in Niceville by a final score of 29-9 over the University of Northern Illinois. Here are the bout-by-bout results courtesy of Penn State Athletics:

125: #10 Brody Teske UNI wins by decision over Jake Campbell PSU, 2-0; 3-0 UNI

133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU pins #31 Kyle Biscoglia UNI in (4:34); 6-3 PSU

141: #1 Nick Lee PSU wins by major decision over #26 Cael Happel UNI, 18-4; 10-3 PSU

149: #22 Beau Bartlett PSU wins by decision over #28 Triston Lara UNI, 4-3; 13-3 PSU

157: Derek Holschlag UNI wins by decision over Tony Negron PSU, 5-2; 13-6 PSU

165: #23 Austin Yant UNI wins by decision over #26 Creighton Edsell PSU, 4-1; 13-9 PSU

174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU wins by major decision over Pat Schoenfelder UNI, 13-4; 17-9 PSU

184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU wins by decision over #4 Parker Keckeisen UNI, 3-2; 20-9 PSU

197: #3 Max Dean PSU wins by technical fall over Noah Glaser UNI, 19-3 (5:21); 25-9 PSU

285: #4 Greg Kerkvliet PSU wins by major decision over Tyrell Gordon UNI, 12-1; 29-9 PSU

Extra bouts (official NCAA contests, do not count in dual score):

125: Baylor Shunk PSU wins by decision over Sean Spidle Central Michigan, 9-5

133: Brandon Meredith PSU wins by decision over Jack Wagner UNI, 8-3

197: Michael Beard PSU wins by technical fall over Cade Dallwitz CMU, 18-3 (2:43)

5. Penn State-Cornell full results

Here are the bout-by-bout results courtesy of Penn State Athletics:

125:  #5 Vito Arujau COR pinned Jake Campbell PSU in 58 seconds; 6-0 Cornell

133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU wins by major decision on Dominic LaJoie COR, 21-9; 6-4 Cornell

141: #1 Nick Lee PSU wins by major decision over Cole Handlovic COR, 13-3; 8-6 PSU

149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis COR wins by major decision over #22 Beau Bartlett PSU, 11-3; 10-8 Cornell

157: #25 Colton Yapoujian COR wins by decision over Joe Lee PSU, 4-2; 13-8 Cornell

165: #9 Julian Ramirez COR wins by decision over #26 Creighton Edsell PSU, 7-5; 16-8 Cornell

174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU wins by decision over #12 Chris Foca COR, 3-2; 16-11 Cornell

184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU wins by major decision over #16 Jonathan Loew COR, 15-3; 16-15 Cornell

197: #3 Max Dean PSU wins by decision over #19 Jacob Cardenas COR, 4-2; 18-16 Penn State

285: #4 Greg Kerkvliet PSU wins by decision over #18 Lewis Fernandes COR, 5-0; 21-16 Penn State

Extra bouts (official NCAA contests, do not count in dual score):

125: Sheldon Seymour LEH maj. dec. Baylor Shunk PSU, 14-2

184: Donovon Ball PSU dec. Caden Wright LEH, 11-4