Penn State wrestling crushes Lock Haven in a season-opening blowout: Takeaways

Penn State wrestling easily started its NCAA title defense. The Nittany Lions blasted Lock Haven 44-3 in front of a sold-out Rec Hall crowd.

The Nittany Lions were relentless in dominating the Bald Eagles. They won nine of 10 matches en route to an easy win. Head coach Cael Sanderson’s team followed through on his plan to always attack and score points. Penn State mounted a 56-6 takedowns advantage in the win.

Here are our takeaways from the first win of the season.

Barraclough shines at 157

Many fans were waiting to see how Terrell Barraclough would perform as the starter at 157 pounds. He did not disappoint. He led No. 28 Ashton Eyler 2-1 after two and then rode out the Bald Eagle for the entirety of the two-minute third period to win 3-1. Barraclough even overcame the fact that what appeared to be a clear takedown at the end of the first period was overturned. Head coach Cael Sanderson said back on Monday that he had a terrific offseason. And, the fruits of that labor showed up in a big way on Friday night.

The redshirt freshmen are for real

Is it too early to say that Shayne Van Ness and Alex Facundo are both the real deal and All-American candidates as redshirt freshmen? Of course it is. But, both were terrific in their Rec Hall debut. Van Ness was up handily on Lock Haven 149-pounder Connor Eck late in the third period. He could have easily won by technical fall. But, not satisfied with a 16-2 lead, he rolled Eck over and pinned his shoulders on the mat with 28 seconds left in the third period to send the crowd into a frenzy. Then, after Barraclough’s win, Facundo came out after intermission and put on a clinic against Lock Haven’s Aiden Gaugler. Takedown after takedown resulted in a 27-12 technical fall in 5:35. It was a terrific start for both newcomers in the Nittany Lions lineup.

Stay cool at 125

Gary Steen was the starter for Penn State at 125 pounds. Many believed he would upset No. 13 Anthony Noto. But, it was not meant to be. The Bald Eagle scored early and often en route to a 14-4 major decision that included 2:07 in riding time. It’s not time to panic over 125 pounds yet, though, Lions fans. That was a tough first test out of the gate for Steen, and we expect he’ll be both better and score more points moving forward.

Full Penn State-Lock Haven recap

Courtesy of Penn State Athletics:

#1 Penn State 44, Lock Haven 3
November 11, 2022 – Rec Hall – University Park, Pa.
 
125: #13 Anthony Noto LHU maj. dec. Gary Steen PSU, 14-4                                       0-4
133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU tech fall Gable Strickland LHU, 23-8 (TF; 6:55)    5-4
141: #16 Beau Bartlett PSU maj. dec. Ty Linsenbigler LHU, 10-0                                  9-4
149: #27 Shayne Van Ness PSU pinned Connor Eck LHU, WBF (6:32)                         15-4
*157: Terrell Barraclough PSU dec. #28 Ashton Eyler LHU, 3-1                                    18-3
165: #23 Alex Facundo PSU tech fall Aiden Gaugler LHU, 27-12 (5:35)                       23-3
174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU maj. dec. Tyler Stoltzfus LHU, 19-5                                   27-3
184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU tech fall Colin Fegley, 24-9 (TF; 6:32)                                 32-3
197: #1 Max Dean PSU pinned Brad Morrison LHU, WBF (2:03)                                   38-3
285: #2 Greg Kerkvliet PSU pinned Ethan Miller LHU, WBF (1:21)                               44-3
* Lock Haven Loses Team Point in 157-bout, unsportsmanlike on bench**