Trending
From Mirror reports
ANN ABROR, Mich. -- The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team rolled over No. 5 Michigan Friday night, 27-9, in a Big Ten dual meet showdown.
The Nittany Lions improved to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the Big Ten. The Wolverines fell to 4-2 overall and 2-2 in the conference.
The Nittany Lions controlled the action throughout, forcing nine stall warnings while winning eight of 10 matches.
The dual began at 157 where sophomore Levi Haines, ranked No. 1 at 157, controlled the tempo and picked up a 2-1 win over No. 9 Will Lewan, giving the Nittany Lions an early 3-0 lead.
Redshirt freshman Mitchell Mesenbrink, ranked No. 9 at 165, dominated No. 7 Cameron Amine in the next bout. Mesenbrink forced four stalls, had two takedowns and riding time, to roll to a 12-1 major decision.
With No. 1 Carter Starocci not competing at 174, senior Terrell Barraclough moved up from 165 for Penn State. Barraclough battled Griffith tough and nearly pulled off the upset.
However, Griffith used a second period reversal to counter Barraclough's riding time point and post the hard-fought 2-1 win for Michigan.
Graduate Bernie Truax, ranked No. 5 at 184, took countless shots to grab a 4-1 win over No. 15 Jaden Bullock. Truax's final shot connected late in the third period for the win.
Senior Aaron Brooks, ranked No. 1 at 197, ripped off six takedowns in less than two periods to roll to a 20-5 technical fall over No. 32 Bobby Striggow at the 4:16 mark. Brooks' win gave Penn State a 15-3 lead.
Senior Greg Kerkvliet, ranked No. 1 at 285, kept Penn State rolling to start the second half. He notched two takedowns and added 1:36 in riding time to roll to an 8-3 win to give the Lions an 18-3 lead.
Nittany Lion true freshman Braeden Davis, ranked No. 14 at 125, returned to his home state of Michigan and posted a thrilling 5-1 win over No. 5 Michael DeAugustino.
Davis used an escape, a late takedown and riding time to down the Michigan graduate student.
Sophomore Aaron Nagao, ranked No. 4 at 133, battled No. 6 Dylan Ragusin evenly for seven minutes. Each wrestler notched a takedown and the bout moved to sudden victory tied 5-5. Nagao forced a scramble and was moving towards a takedown in extra time when a fall was called for Ragusin at the 7:28 mark.
Senior Beau Bartlett, ranked No. 2 at 141, upped Penn State's lead to 24-9 with a 7-5 win over No. 25 Sergio Lemley. With No. 12 Tyler Kasak not wrestling, junior David Evans got the call at 149.
He used five third-period points off an escape, a takedown and riding time, to notch a 5-2 win to close out the dual meet.
The Nittany Lions owned a 15-2 takedown edge.
Penn State grabbed three bonus points off a technical fall (Brooks) and a major (Mesenbrink).
Penn State is back at it when the Lions wrestle Michigan State Sunday at 1 p.m.
157: Haines, PSU, dec. Lewan, 2-1; 165: Mesenbrink, PSU, maj. dec. Amine, 12-1; 174: Griffith, M, dec. Barraclough, 2-1; 184: Truax, PSU, dec. Bullock M, 4-1; 197: Brooks, PSU, won by tech fall over Striggow, 20-5 (TF; 4:16)
285: Kerkvliet, PSU, dec. Davison, 8-3; 125: Davis, PSU, dec. DeAugustino, 5-1; 133: Ragusin, M, pinned Nagao, 7:28 (OT); 141: Bartlett, PSU, dec. Lemley, 7-5; 149: Evans, PSU, dec. Mayora, 5-2
Attendance: 6,522
Penn State at Michigan State
SUNDAY
Start: 1 p.m., Jenison Field House, East Lansing, MI
Records: Penn State (5-0 overall, 2-0 Big Ten); Michigan State (7-2 overall, 0-2 Big Ten)
TV: Big Ten-Plus
Internet: gopsusports.com
Notable: Michigan State got off to a 7-0 start in their non-conference schedule this season, but has traditionally struggled in the Big Ten slate. The Spartans lost their first meet of the season at Michigan last weekend before falling to Rutgers on Friday night. ... The Spartans have five wrestlers in the InterMat rankings, led by 10th-ranked Caleb Fish at 165 pounds. ... The Spartans made two trips to Clarion earlier this season, once for the Clarion Open and the other for a dual meet, a 25-13 win for Michigan State.
Mirror prediction: Penn State, 36-3
Mirror prediction record: 5-0
-- Andy Stine