Devin Schnupp earns first Big Ten dual win in Penn State wrestling’s victory
Maybe Penn State should consider not starting at 125 pounds during duals the rest of the year.
The Nittany Lions won eight of Sunday’s nine contested bouts with 125-pound wrestler Devin Schnupp securing his first Big Ten dual win in a 35-9 rout of Indiana in Bloomington. Schnupp earned a 5-2 decision over the Hoosiers’ Liam Cronin.
“I just trust what my coaches want me to do, and I do it as best as I can,” Schnupp told the Penn State Sports Network.
But that wasn’t the only notable highlight. Coach Cael Sanderson also collected his 70th Big Ten win and, as a team, Penn State earned its 54th consecutive dual win and 32nd straight in Big Ten action.
Maybe the only lowlight was the fact the Nittany Lions were forced to forfeit at 133 pounds.
Roman Bravo-Young was out of Penn State’s lineup after injuring his right knee against Purdue on Friday night. According to Penn State Sports Network’s Jeff Byers, the injury is not season-ending, and Bravo-Young will be considered week-to-week. Byers went on to say that the true freshman wasn’t technically ruled out of this Friday’s dual with Michigan but could still miss an estimated 3-4 weeks.
Sunday’s dual with Indiana began at 184 pounds with Francisco Bisono filling in again for injured All-American Shakur Rasheed. Bisono dropped a 5-1 decision to Norman Conley.
Bo Nickal followed with a 58-second fall of Jake Kleimola. It was Nickal’s 55th straight victory, 52nd career pin and team-leading 11th fall of the year. Anthony Cassar kept the momentum going by hitting double-leg after double-leg takedown on Fletcher Miller in an 11-5 win. The Nittany Lions led 9-3 and didn’t look back.
It was then Schnupp’s turn to get into the winning column for the first time in a Big Ten dual. Schnupp and Cronin danced around in the first period with neither wrestler scoring.
“I wasn’t sure exactly who I was going to get today,” Schnupp said. “I was just going to keep it simple, the basic stuff I do every day. It was just another match on the road. I’m not really doing anything different. I’m just wrestling out there.”
Schnupp continued to wrestle in the second period with a reversal and some help from Cronin with an interlocking point. He led 3-0 after two periods. In the third period, Schnupp was able to snap off the lone takedown of the bout on the edge of the mat. He held off a fiery Cronin for a 5-2 win, and got a much-needed confidence booster.
“My confidence is always growing. It is hard to see within yourself,” Schnupp said. “Looking back from last year and where I was in high school, I’m definitely a lot better. I try to keep that in perspective and know that if I put in the work every day, I’m going to get the results.”
Penn State handed a forfeit to Indiana at 133 to lead 12-9 at the break. It was the final win for the Hoosiers and the closest they were to the Nittany Lions since holding a 3-0 lead at the beginning.
Nick Lee took on former high school teammate in Kyle Luigs at 141 pounds and dominated from the first whistle. Lee amassed four takedowns and one set of near-fall points. He tacked on a reversal and a riding time point, thanks to 4:45 in riding time, for a 13-3 major decision.
Jarod Verkleeren again got the nod at 149 pounds and came up with a 6-4 win over Fernie Silva. Penn State led 19-9.
The lead quickly changed to 22 points with Jason Nolf and Vincenzo Joseph each collecting first-period pins. Nolf earned his 25th straight victory and 56th career pin in 2:46.
Joseph’s 10th fall of the season came in 1:23. Mark Hall closed out the dual with another bonus-point victory for the Nittany Lions by snapping off five takedowns, three alone in the third period, to beat Jake Covaciu 12-4.
Penn State doesn’t compete again until the Wolverines come to town Friday for a dual inside the Bryce Jordan Center. Michigan will be coming in fresh off last Friday’s 19-17 upset of No. 2 Ohio State.
No. 1 Penn State 35, Indiana 9
Sunday at Bloomington, Ind.
184: Norman Conley, I, dec. Francisco Bisono, 5-1
197: No. 1 Bo Nickal, PSU, pinned Jake Kleimola, :58
285: No. 4 Anthony Cassar, PSU, dec. Fletcher Miller, 11-5
125: Devin Schnupp, PSU, dec. Liam Cronin, 5-2
133: Garrett Pepple, I, won by forfeit
141: No. 7 Nick Lee, PSU, major dec. Kyle Luigs, 13-3
149: Jarod Verkleeren, PSU, dec. Fernie Silva, 6-4
157: No. 1 Jason Nolf, PSU, pinned Breyden Bailey, 2:46
165: No. 1 Vincenzo Joseph, PSU, pinned Bryce Martin, 1:23
174: No. 1 Mark Hall, PSU, major dec. Jake Covaciu, 12-4
Takedowns: Penn State 21, Indiana 4
Records: Penn State (9-0, 5-0 Big Ten); Indiana (4-9, 1-5 Big Ten)
Next match: Michigan at Penn State (Bryce Jordan Center), Friday, 7 p.m.
