PHILADELPHIA– The Penn State wrestling team defeated Drexel on Friday night, winning nine of 10 bouts to post a 43-3 victory at a sold-out Daskalaskis Athletic Center.

The sellout crowd watched as Penn State (2-0) won all but one but, and each for bonus points. The dual began at 125. Nittany Lion sophomore Luke Lilledahl, ranked No. 2 at 125, tallied five takedowns in a 19-7 major decision victory over Desmond Pleasant.

True freshman Marcus Blaze, ranked No. 11 at 133, followed that up by pinning Kyle Waterman at 4:33 to put Penn State up 10-0 early. With No. 8 Aaron Nagao not competing, Cael Nasdeo took to the mat at 141. Nasdeo dropped a tough 8-5 decision to Drexel’s Jordan Soriano.

Junior Shayne Van Ness, ranked No. 1 at 149, used four takedowns and a couple turns to roll to a 20-4 technical fall over Patrick Kelly at 6:52. True freshman PJ Duke, ranked No. 15 at 157, roared in his Penn State dual meet debut, notching four first period takedowns before wrapping up a cradle on the last and pinning Luke Nichter at the 1:15 mark. Penn State led 21-3 at halftime.

Junior Mitchell Mesenbrink, ranked No. 1 at 165, racked up five takedowns in the first period and dominated the action in a 19-4 tech fall at 5:13.

Senior Levi Haines, ranked No. 1 at 174, followed that up with a dominant win. Haines posted a 12-1 major decision over No. 17 Jasaiah Queen, including three takedowns and 2:20 in riding time, to put Penn State on top 30-3.

Sophomore Rocco Welsh, ranked No. 4 at 184, pressured Ethan Wilson for seven minutes, picking up a handful of stall points and notching three takedowns in a 13-3 major decision.

Redshirt freshman Connor Mirasola tallied seven takedowns on his way to a convincing 22-5 tech fall over Justin Griffith at 197. He got the tech at the 5:38 mark in the third period. Redshirt freshman Cole Mirasola, ranked No. 10 at 285, capped off the dual with a strong 10-2 major decision over Nate Schon, picking up the major clinching takedown in the final seconds.

Penn State won the takedown battle as well, 38-2. The Nittany Lions tallied 16 bonus points off two pins (Blaze, Duke), three tech falls (Van Ness, Mesenbrink, Connor Mirasola) and four majors (Lilledahl, Haines, Welsh, Cole Mirasola).

The Nittany Lions return home to host No. 13 Lehigh on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Rec Hall.

Lehigh at Penn State

Start: 1 p.m., Rec Hall, University Park, Pa.

Records: Lehigh (3-3, 0-0 EIWA), Penn State (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten)

TV: Big Ten+

Notable: There are plenty of local ties for the Mountain Hawks. Glendale’s Zeke Dubler is their starting 174-pounder. Clearfield’s Brady Collins, a 3-time PIAA state placewinner, is a backup at 174 in his first year. Brookville’s Owen Reinsel (149) and Nathan Taylor (285) are both on the team, with Taylor ranked No. 7 in the country. … Former Nittany Lion Vincenzo Joseph, a 2-time national champion, joined the Lehigh coaching staff this season. … Lehigh has wrestled in six dual meets already after participating in the National Duals in November. The Mountain Hawks went 1-2 in the tournament.

Mirror prediction: Penn State, 36-3

Mirror prediction record: 2-0

— Andy Stine