EVANSTON, Ill. — There would be no lackluster start, or ho-hum pace for the defending national champions this time.
Just days after Penn State wrestlers expressed minor concerns over what they saw as a lack of pace-pushing in what turned out to be a dominant win over Michigan State, Penn State hammered Northwestern from the get go.
Wrestling in its first of a two-dual road trip, No. 3 Penn State (6-1, 2-1) won nine of 10 bouts, earned bonus points in five of those matches, won the
takedown battle 22-4 and cruised to a 38-3 win over the No. 17 Wildcats (5-2, 1-2) inside Welsh- Ryan Arena.
“We went into the match with several toss-up matches where we probably were, on paper, a little bit under-favored,” Penn State assistant coach Aaron Anspach told the Penn State Sports Network. “And I think our freshmen came out and wrestled hard and Nico (Megaludis) started off and I think it just trickled right down the lineup.”
Megaludis knew the stiffest test of his young college career awaited, as Northwestern’s 24-year-old junior Levi Mele, ranked 7th in the country would be his opponent at 125 pounds.
Coming off a disheartening disqualification loss — the Lions’ lone blemish to the Spartans last week — No. 10 Megaludis went to work quickly. In the first period, Megaludis earned two takedowns and forced the much-thicker Mele to take a stalling warning.
“I definitely tried to push the pace as much as possible. I was just trying to capitalize on those little leg attacks,” Megaludis told the CDT.
The Penn State true freshman gave up an escape to Mele to start the second period, but earned another takedown with a sideways shot midway through the period. Mele took injury time and favored his right knee as Northwestern trainers tended to him.
Megaludis chose down to start the third period and escaped to take a 7-3 lead, a score that would hold up as the final.
“The kid is like 5-foot-2, and just built like a brick and it’s hard to shoot with a straight on shot,” Megaludis said.
“So I had to work the low leg attacks. I just tried to keep scoring and it got me the victory, I guess.”
Frank Martellotti, wrestling in his second dual meet of the season for Penn State, continued his undefeated streak in dual competition for the Nittany Lions. Martellotti earned a 10-4 decision over Jameson Oster at 133.
At 141, Bryan Pearsall overcame an early cut on his right elbow and battled back from a 2-1 deficit against Northwestern freshman Colin Shober.
Pearsall chose down to start the second period and quickly popped to his feet and gained control of Shober’s back for the go-ahead takedown. But Shober’s left knee gave out on him and he couldn’t finish the match, giving Pearsall the win by injury default and the Lions the six team points.
No. 1 Frank Molinaro added to Penn State’s team lead with a 10-0 major decision over Kaleb Friedley at 149 pounds. Molinaro’s 18th win this season put Penn State ahead 16-0.
In one of the evening’s most anticipated bouts, No. 9 Dylan Alton, a redshirt freshman for Penn State, met No. 3 Jason Welch, a junior for Northwestern.
Alton took to the mat in similar fashion as his Nittany Lion counterparts did before him, attempting to gain control of Welch throughout the duration of the first period. Neither wrestler could score in the first, however, and Welch chose down to start the second. A Welsh escape would end the scoring in the second.
Alton chose bottom to start the third and Welch put together a strong ride for nearly two minutes. But Alton escaped with five seconds remaining and nearly notched what would’ve been the match-clinching takedown, but couldn’t finish his shot. Welsh won 2-1 with the riding time point.
No. 1 David Taylor continued his reign as the man to beat in the 165- pound field with a 20-5 technical fall over Marcus Shrewsbury in 6:59. Taylor’s easy win put Penn State up 21-3.
No. 2 Ed Ruth got the fastest start of any Penn State wrestler on the night, snagging No. 9 Lee Munster in a cradle just about 15 seconds into their bout at 174. Ruth couldn’t get the fall, but it didn’t stop him from staging a clinic against the country’s ninth-ranked 174-pounder. Ruth racked up 15 points through two periods and beat Munster by technical fall, 18-3 in 5:37. Ruth’s 18th win of the season guaranteed the Lions their fifth dual win in a row.
“I think we wrestled really well. (Northwestern) has some pretty good guys and I just think we’re training really good right now,” Taylor told the CDT. “A guy like Ed Ruth going out and just dominating a pretty good opponent and Nico Megaludis going out and beating a guy that’s ranked above him. That just shows that we’re doing the right things and we’ve got to move forward.”
Following Ruth’s win, No. 2 Quentin Wright made quick work of Marcus Shrewsbury by pinning the Northwestern junior in 2:41. No. 12 Morgan McIntosh and No. 6 Cameron Wade closed the dual out with 6-4 and 6-3 decisions over John Schoen and No. 19 Mike McMullan at 197 and 285 pounds, respectively.
Penn State will continue its road trip against Wisconsin at 2 p.m. on Sunday in Madison, Wis.
