Penn State wrestling vs. Rider: Preview, how to watch, predictions, starting lineups, and more

Penn State wrestling has its second and third dual meets of the year this Friday and Sunday. The action begins tonight when the Lions battle Rider in Trenton, N.J. They then take on Lehigh two days later at a sold-out Stabler Arena.

Head coach Cael Sanderson’s team beat Lock Haven 44-3 at Rec Hall to open the year. It then crowned numerous champions at the Black Knight Invitational at Army West Point before three of its stars, Carter Starocci, Aaron Brooks, and Greg Kerkvliet, won exhibition matches against top rivals at the NWCA All-Star Classic in Austin, Tex., before Thanksgiving.

Now that the holidays are over and December is here, the team is back together and ready to hit the road. It will be a heavy favorite in both matchups, starting with Friday evening’s showdown opposite the Broncs.

“I think they’re competitors,” Sanderson said of the upcoming matchups. “They’ve wrestled in big matches their whole lives. So, I wouldn’t expect them to be anything other than themselves. And that’s all we would ever hope or ask for from anybody: Just be yourself.

“It should be a great environment both Friday and Sunday against some tough teams and a lot of tough kids. We’ll just see how we do.”

Get ready for Penn State-Rider with our preview below.

Penn State vs. Rider wrestling: How to watch, follow

There are three ways to follow Friday night’s match if you are not inside of CURE Arena.

The first is a Flowrestling subscription. It will stream both Penn State matches this weekend, starting with Lions-Broncs at 7:30 p.m. Friday night. Click here to learn more.

Longtime Lions radio announcer Jeff Byers will also be on hand both nights to call the action from matside. You can find the Rider stream by clicking here. The same link will work for Sunday’s Lehigh match.

Last but certainly not least, you can follow along live and chat with other Penn State wrestling fans on Blue-White Illustrated’s The Wrestling Room forum. Access it by clicking here.

Projected starting lineups and matches

As always, these are subject to change for any number of reasons. But, here are the projected starting lines and matches for Penn State-Rider based on the Lions’ prematch notes:

125 pounds: Gary Steen (Penn State) vs. Tyler Klinsky (Rider)

133 pounds: No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young (PSU) vs. Richie Koehler (RU)

141 pounds: No. 16 Beau Bartlett (Penn State) vs.  McKenzie Bell  (Rider)

149 pounds: No. 20 Shayne Van Ness (PSU) vs.  #24 Quinn Kinner (RU)

157 pounds: Terrell Barraclough (Penn State) vs. Jake Silverstein OR Colton Washleski  (Rider)

165 pounds: No. 23 Alex Facundo (PSU) vs. Hunter Mays (RU)

174 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci (Penn State) vs. Michael Wilson (Rider)

184 pounds: No. 1 Aaron Brooks (PSU) vs. Asa Terrell (RU)

197 pounds: No. 1 Max Dean (Penn State) vs. #12 Ethan Laird  (Rider)

285 pounds: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet (PSU) vs. Davis Szuba (RU)

What will the match of the bout be?

Let’s focus on the 149-pound projected matchup.

Redshirt freshman Shayne Van Ness has been terrific throughout the season’s first month. He has been everything Lions fans hoped he would be and more. Now, the Nittany Lion has a ranked battle on his hands, opposite No. 24 Broncs junior Quinn Kiner, who is 9-2 on the year. The top-20 showdown will be another chance for ‘SNV’ to impress early in the season. Kiner, meanwhile, will look to pull off the upset and boost his own stock as the 2022 portion of the schedule winds to a close. This figures to be a doozy, but Van Ness should leave it victorious.

Other Penn State thoughts and predictions for the weekend

–Max Dean is on a mission this year. That will lead to a win and bonus points in his own ranked matchup opposite No. 12 Ethan Laird of Rider.

–Don’t forget that Michael Beard is with Lehigh now. The former Nittany Lion changed schools when Dean decided to return for a final season in blue and white. They know each other well, of course, and Beard is No. 9 in the InterMat rankings at 197 pounds. It should be a great match.

–Lehigh has a few other ranked wrestlers besides Dean. Carter Bailey is No. 26 at 125, and Connor McGonagle is No. 19 at 133. Malyke Hines is No. 30 at 141, while Josh Humphreys is No. 8 at 157. Tate Samuelson is No. 22 at 184, Bears is No. 9 at 197, of course, and Nathan Taylor is the 22nd-ranked heavyweight.