Penn State wrestling: Watch Beau Bartlett score late, Levi Haines win by fall to secure All-American status
Penn State wrestling has swelled its lead in the team race at the NCAA Championships through the 157-pound weight class. It has done so with plenty of fireworks.
Roman Bravo-Young is a five-time All-American after beating Aaron Nagao of Minnesota 4-1 at 133 pounds. It started the Lions off on the right foot. And, for the most part, it was drama free.
The Lions’ next three quarterfinalists can’t say the same.
Let’s start with Shayne Van Ness. The 149-pound redshirt freshman overcame an early deficit to win his first match of the tournament by fall and then upset five-seed Paniro Johnson of Arizona State in round two. However, his semifinal hopes looked bleak as Indiana’s Graham Rooks led 7-3 after two periods. Van Ness was hardly deterred, though. He scored all seven third period points, including a takedown and two near-fall points late, to beat Rooks 10-7. He is an All-American and will face top-seeded Yianni Diakomihalis of Cornell in Saturday night’s semifinals.
Van Ness’ match was sandwiched between a pair of thrillers.
At 141 pounds, junior Beau Bartlett, the six seed in that weight class, faced three-seed Cole Matthews of Pittsburgh. The bout was scoreless through seven matches of regulation wrestling plus a minute of sudden victory. Bartlett chose down to start the tiebreaker period. Matthews rode him out for 30 seconds. It meant that Bartlett needed to score once the Panther took neutral for the second and final 30-second session, or he’d lose 2-1 on riding time. He, too, dug deep. The Lion shot on a single leg attempt and converted it to a double that he finished for a takedown with just one second left to win, 3-1. He’ll face two-seed Andrew Alirez of Northern Colorado in the semis. Watch the new All-American’s winning move below:
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Penn State freshman Levi Haines continues torrid run
Few wrestlers have the gas tank that Penn State freshman Levi Haines possesses. It was on display again in the 157-pound quarterfinals.
His semifinal hopes also looked bleak, too. The two-seed, he got caught by Virginia Tech’s seventh-seeded Bryce Andonian for a six-point throw, and deficit, early in the first period. But, the Nittany Lion, who only had his redshirt burned two months ago, was not phased. He diligently worked his way to just a 7-6 deficit after two. Then, after Andonian escaped for an 8-6 lead to start the third, Haines eventually shot and hiked the Hokie up in the air. Before long, he took him to the mat, locked up a turning combination, and secured a win by fall in 6:11. An All-American, he’ll face Peyton Robb of Nebraska, who he beat at the Big Ten Championships two weeks ago, in the semifinals.
Watch the pin below:
