Penn State wrestling: Takeaways from the Lions' win over Wisconsin

Penn State kicked off the 2023 portion of its wrestling schedule with a 28-11 win over Wisconsin. Head coach Cael Sanderson’s team won seven of 10 bouts to clinch their eighth victory of the season. It was both schools’ Big Ten opener.

Here are our top takeaways from the match.

Is Penn State ready to pull Levi Haines’ redshirt?

The Lions and Badgers were tied 8-8 when the dual reached the 157-pound matchup. It’s unclear whether or not Terrell Barraclough is still injured. But, whether he is or not, the fact that freshman phenom Levi Haines was on the mat for his fourth event this year means that he can only compete one more time before Penn State faces a decision about whether to burn his redshirt or not.

Haines dominated No. 16 Garrett Model. He scored first and last en route to a 16-6 major decision that included 2:31 in riding time. The Nittany Lion was not ranked in last week’s Intermat rankings but figures to be when the new top 30 is released on Monday. And, from this point of view, the decision is clear: Penn State should burn Haines’ redshirt and insert him into the nation’s top-ranked lineup on a full-time basis.

Lions’ roll in second half

Redshirt freshman Alex Facundo did not wrestle at 165 pounds. Matt Lee stepped in and dropped a 18-6 major decision to No. 5 Dean Hamiti. That tied the bout at 12. But, Penn State rolled from there as the strength of its lineup took over in impressive fashion.

The Lions won four straight matches to beat the Badgers for the fourth time since 2018. Top-ranked Carter Starocci scored a dominating 22-8 major decision over Josh Otto at 174 pounds. Then, at 184 pounds, No. 1 Aaron Brooks beat Tyler Dow by technical fall, 16-0, in 4:32. Penn State led 21-12 at that point, and the team reached the margin of victory thanks to a Max Dean major decision at 197 pounds before Greg Kerkvliet won by decison at heavyweight.

For years, the second half of the Penn State lineup has dominated foes and led the team to victory. That was the case again on this night.

Full Penn State-Wisconsin results

Courtesy of Penn State Athletics:

#1 Penn State 28, #11 Wisconsin 11

January 6, 2023 – Madison, Wis.

125: #5 Eric Barnett WIS tech fall Gary Steen PSU, 15-0 (TF; 5:11)                                0-5

133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU maj. dec. #27 Taylor LaMont WIS, 14-5                 4-5

141: #4 Beau Bartlett PSU maj. dec. Felix Lettini WIS, 12-3                                              8-5

149: #2 Austin Gomez WIS dec. #15 Shayne Van Ness PSU, 6-2                                     8-8

157: Levi Haines PSU maj. dec. #16 Garrett Model WIS, 16-6                                         12-8

165: #5 Dean Hamiti WIS maj. dec. Matt Lee PSU, 18-6                                                    12-12

174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU maj. dec. Josh Otto WIS, 22-8                                               16-12

184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU tech fall Tyler Dow WIS, 16-0  (TF; 4:32)                             21-12

197: #4 Max Dean PSU maj. dec. #14 Braxton Amos WIS, 11-2                                      25-11*

285: #1 Greg Kerkvliet PSU dec. #11 Trent Hillger WIS, 6-2                                             28-11

* Wisconsin deducted team point

Attendance: 2,501

Records: Penn State (8-0, 1-0 B1G); Wisconsin (6-2, 0-1 B1G)