Penn State Wins First Big Ten Matchup on the Road in Wisconsin

The No. 1 Nittany Lions pulled away to a lopsided win over No. 11 Wisconsin on Friday night in Madison, 28-12. The Badgers battled through the first half of the lineup to a 12-12 tie after the 165 weight class. Then, Penn State shut them out winning the final four bouts.

Wisconsin started off strong with No. 5 Eric Barnett’s tech fall victory at 125, which No. 1 RBY and No. 4 Beau Bartlett answered with major decision wins at 133 and 141. True freshman No. 15 Shayne Van Ness put up a fight at 149 against No. 2 Austin Gomez. Gomez scored early in the first and got a stall warning during the rideout. Gomez chose down to start the second and escaped to a 3-0 lead. He took one final shot (yes, this was his second and final offensive initiation) of the match, which Van Ness fought off then turned up his offensive front. Shot after shot, Van Ness fought hard but couldn’t shake the Badger’s defense. As time ticked away, Van Ness went all out and Gomez countered one of his attempts to extend to a 5-0 lead. Van Ness rolled through for a reversal and ended the match 5-2. The next time these two meet, it’s going to be a toss-up.

True freshman Levi Haines took to the mat next at 157 making his collegiate debut against No. 16 Garrett Model and put on an absolute clinic. He wasted no time going in on a high single for a quick 2-1 lead. Throughout the rest of the bout, he tallied four more takedowns, over 2 minutes of riding time, and a 4-point roll to a 16-6 major decision win. After the half, No. 5 Dean Hamiti handled Matt Lee at 165 to tie things up at 12-12.

The returning NCAA champions at the end of the lineup continue to put up bonus-point wins leading Penn State to victory. No. 1 Aaron Brooks (184) bounced back from his loss at the Collegiate Duals to No. 4 Marcus Coleman with a tech fall over Tyler Dow. No. 4 Max Dean (197) had a major decision over No. 14 Braxton Amos. Wisconsin also lost a team point during this bout because head coach Chris Bono walked out onto the circle during a ref’s called timeout. And No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet (285) wrapped things up with a 6-2 over No. 11 Trent Hillger.

The win moves Penn State to 8-0 on the season. Next up, the Nittany Lions face another Big Ten test on Friday, January 20 hosting No. 8 Michigan in the Bryce Jordan Center at 7 p.m. The match will be televised on Big Ten Network and we’ll be looking forward to the following key matchups:

133: No. 1 RBY vs No. 5 Dylan Ragusin

149: No. 15 Shayne Van Ness vs No. 20 Chance Lamer

157: Levi Haines or No. 25 Terrell Barraclough vs No. 8 Will Lewan

165: No. 16 Alex Facundo vs No. 6 Cameron Amine

HWT: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet vs No. 2 Mason Parris

 

No. 1 Penn State - 28; No. 11 Wisconsin- 11

BOUT BY BOUT:

 

125: WIS No. 5 Eric Barnett tech fall PSU Gary Steen, 15-0 (TF; 5:11)

133: PSU No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young maj. dec. WIS No. 27 Taylor LaMont, 14-5

141: PSU No. 4 Beau Bartlett maj. dec. WIS Felix Lettini, 12-3

149: WIS No. 2 Austin Gomez dec. PSU No. 15 Shayne Van Ness, 6-2

157: PSU Levi Haines maj. dec. WIS No. 16 Garrett Model, 16-6

165: WIS No. 5 Dean Hamiti maj. dec. PSU Matt Lee, 18-6

174: PSU No. 1 Carter Starocci maj. dec. WIS Josh Otto, 22-8

184: PSU No. 1 Aaron Brooks tech fall WIS Tyler Dow, 16-0  (TF; 4:32)

197: PSU No. 4 Max Dean maj. dec. WIS No. 14 Braxton Amos, 11-2

285: PSU No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet dec. WIS No. 11 Trent Hillger, 6-2