Penn State wrestling starts season with two victories: 3 things we learned

Penn State wrestling started the 2021-2022 season with a bang on Saturday night.

The Nittany Lions rolled to a pair of decisive victories at the Journeymen Duals. After dispatching Sacred Heart 47-3 in the opener at Spooky Nook Sports Complex in Manheim, Pa., head coach Cael Sanderson’s team blasted Oregon State 32-7.

Here are three things we learned from the pair of wins on Saturday night.

1. Shunk first up for Penn State at 125

Baylor Shunk rose to the top of a crowded field at 125 pounds to start both matches.

The third-year Nittany Lion wrestled well. He needed just 4:15 to topple Sacred Heart’s Kyle Randall by technical fall, 18-0, in his first match of the day. Against the Beavers, Shunk drew Intermat’s No. 29-ranked 125-pounder and lost by decision, 16-9. Shunk did score first, and he fought off both a major and a technical fall despite a pair of four-point turns for the Oregon State grappler early on. It will be interesting to see if the Centre Hall, Pa., native is up again when the Lions open Rec Hall on Thursday opposite Army, but it feels like a safe bet that he will be.

By the way, since the rumor mill is churning, we’ll just note here that there is still nothing confirmed as it relates to the possibility of former Central Michigan All-American Drew Hildebrandt transferring in to compete for the Lions this season. Obviously, it would be a major boon for Penn State if so, but Shunk put on a fine showing in Manheim.

2. Dean gets the nod at 197

Penn State is fortunate to have two very good options at 197 pounds. But, only one of them can wrestle on match day, of course.

Offseason competition led the coaching staff to give Cornell transfer Max Dean the initial crack at 197 over returning All-American Michael Beard.

Dean, who Intermat ranks at No. 4 in the weight class, is a two-time All-American himself. The Lowell, Mich., native got off to a hot start in blue and white, as he beat Sacred Heart’s Dante Del Bonis by technical fall, 18-0, in three minutes. He then won by major decision, 16-3, over Oregon State’s J.J. Dixon.

3. Odds and ends

–Sanderson said at team media day last week that things were up in the air at 157 and 165 pounds, and that certainly was true. Instead of Joe Lee at the former weight class, Joey Blumer bumped up from 149 to fill the spot. He surrendered only a 19-7 major decision to Oregon State’s Hunter Willits, who is No. 15 in the country. Blumer also fell to Sacred Heart’s Nick Palumbo 8-3 at the bigger weight.

At 165, freshman Alex Facundo did not take the mat. Instead, Creighton Edsell did. He beat his Sacred Heart opponent, Scotty Jarosz, 11-3, before taking down Oregon State’s Matthew Olguin 7-3.

–It was a bonus point clinic for the Nittany Lions’ studs in the opener. Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Carter Starocci, and Greg Kerkvliet had pins against Sacred Heart, while Aaron Brooks and Dean won by technical falls.

–In the only bout of the night between ranked wrestlers, No. 2 Nick Lee beat Oregon State’s No. 10 Grant Willits by decision, 11-4, at 141 pounds.

–At 149 pounds, Beau Bartlett upset Oregon State’s No. 24 Cory Crooks in a 1-0 decision.

Penn State and Army meet at 7 p.m. Thursday in State College. The match will be streamed on BTN+ and also carried on the LionVision, which is part of the Penn State Sports Network.

Here are the bout-by-bout results courtesy of GoPSUSports:

#2 Penn State 47, Sacred Heart 3

125: Baylor Shunk PSU tech fall Kyle Randall SHU, 18-0 (TF; 4:15)                    

133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU pinned Anthony Petrillo SHU, WBF (3:40)  

141: #2 Nick Lee PSU pinned Jordan Carlucci  SHU, WBF (0:54)

149: Beau Bartlett PSU maj. Dec. Shaun Williams SHU, 12-3

157: Nick Palumbo SHU dec. Joey Blumer PSU, 8-3

165: Creighton Edsell PSU maj. Dec. Scotty Jarosz SHU, 11-3 

174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU pinned Alex Marciniak SHU, WBF (2:12)

184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU tech fall Joe Accousti SHU, 23-8 (TF; 7:00)

197: #4 Max Dean PSU tech fall Dante Del Bonis SHU, 18-0 (TF; 3:00)

285: #5 Greg Kerkvliet PSU pinned Mark Blokh, WBF (3:57)

Attendance: 1,200 (sold out)

#2 Penn State 32, Oregon State 7

25: Brandon Kaylor ORST dec. Baylor Shunk PSU, 16-9

133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU dec. Jason Shaner ORST, 8-3

141: #2 Nick Lee PSU dec. #10 Grant Willits ORST, 11-4 

149: Beau Bartlett PSU dec. #24 Cory Crooks ORST, 1-0

157: #15 Hunter Willits ORST maj. Dec. Joey Blumer PSU, 19-6                          9-7

165: Creighton Edsell PSU dec. Matthew Olguin ORST, 7-3                                12-7

174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU 17-2 tech fall Mateo Olmos ORST, 17-2 (TF; 4:49)

184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU pinned Jackson McKinney ORST, WBF (1:03)

197: #4 Max Dean PSU maj. Dec. J.J. Dixon ORST, 16-3 

285: #5 Greg Kerkvliet PSU tech fall #24 Gary Traub ORST, 16-0 (TF; 5:58) 

Attendance: 1,350 (sold out)