Here’s where Penn State wrestling stands after Day 1 of the NCAA Championships
Everything went just about as good as Penn State could have expected it to in the opening day of the NCAA Wrestling Championships on Thursday in St. Louis.
The Nittany Lions went 8-1 in the first round of wrestling with seven bonus-point wins and one upset. In the second round on Thursday evening, Penn State sent seven wrestlers to Friday’s quarterfinals and still has one other alive in the consolation bracket. Meanwhile, one wrestler saw his tournament end.
Penn State finished the day in second place in the team race with 28 points. Iowa leads with 33.5, and Missouri is in third with 23.5.
Friday’s action will begin again at 11 a.m. with quarterfinals and consolations, and the semifinals starting at 8 p.m.
Here’s where each wrestler stands after the first day is complete:
125 Pounds: No. 23 Robbie Howard
Record after Day 1: 1-1
Current round: Consolation Second Round
Recap: Howard got Penn State off to a hot start on Thursday, earning a 6-4 upset win over Ohio State’s No. 10 Malik Heinselman, who he had previously lost to twice this season.
Howard’s win was the spark his team needed, as the Nittany Lions racked up seven bonus-point wins that round.
The freshman, however, wasn’t able to keep his run going, falling 2-1 to Utah Valley’s Taylor LaMont in his second bout.
The two wrestlers battled evenly through the first period. LaMont chose bottom in the second, and took a 1-0 lead with a quick escape. The redshirt junior proved to be too much on top for the freshman, as Howard struggled to get out from bottom. LaMont racked up 1:26 in riding time before Howard escaped.
Howard tried to get in a late attack, but LaMont fended him off for the win.
Howard will face Chattanooga’s No. 24 Fabian Gutierrez in the second round of the consolation bracket Friday morning.
133 Pounds: No. 2 Roman Bravo-Young
Record after Day 1: 2-0
Current round: Quarterfinals
Recap: Bravo-Young didn’t have much trouble with his opponents on Thursday, collecting two bonus-point wins.
He punched his ticket to Friday’s quarterfinals with an 11-3 major decision over Wisconsin’s No. 18 Kyle Burwick.
Bravo-Young picked up two takedowns in the first period against Burwick for a 4-1 lead. He chose down to start the second and hit a reversal to take a 6-1 lead. Another takedown gave Bravo-Young an 8-2 advantage after two. An escape and a late takedown in the third gave Bravo-Young the win to advance to the quarterfinals.
Bravo-Young looked like a man on a mission in his NCAA opener against Appalachian State’s Sean Carter.
RBY had three first-period takedowns to hold a 6-2 lead after one frame. He shut out Carter in the second period, but added to his lead with an escape, takedown and four near-fall points.
RBY added three more takedowns in the third period and amassed 3:45 in riding time to secure a 20-5 technical fall for Penn State.
He’ll next face Virginia Tech’s No. 10 Louie Hayes, after his 6-4 sudden victory win over Illinois’ Lucas Byrd, in Friday’s quarterfinals.
141 Pounds: No. 2 Nick Lee
Record after Day 1: 2-0
Current round: Quarterfinals
Recap: Lee was just as dominant as Bravo-Young in both of his bouts, earning a spot in Friday’s quarterfinals.
The Penn State senior controlled South Dakota State’s Clay Carlson in his second bout, rolling to a 14-3 major decision with 4:06 in riding time.
Lee started by hitting an early takedown in the first. He got another takedown and two nearfall points to end the period up 6-2. Two more takedowns, an escape, two stall points and riding time handed the senior the 14-3 win.
Lee’s first match of day didn’t take very long, as he put away Drexel’s Julian Flores with a 18-0 technical fall in 2:33.
The senior secured a takedown 21 seconds into the first period. From there, Lee showed off his turning abilities.
Lee tallied two sets of near-fall points within 28 seconds of his takedown and led 10-0. It took him just over a minute to score more near-fall points.
Lee collected his last set of near-fall points with 27 seconds remaining in the first period to end the match.
Lee will face UNC’s No. 10 Zachary Sherman, who is coming off a 14-1 major decision over Northwestern’s Colin Valdiviez, in the quarterfinals.
157 Pounds: No. 12 Brady Berge
Record after Day 1: 2-0
Current round: Quarterfinals
Recap: Berge gave Penn State its second upset of the day, and handed the Hawkeyes their first loss of the tournament when he topped the No. 5 seed Kaleb Young in his second bout to advance to the quarterfinals.
The Nittany Lion got in on an ankle pick for an early 2-0 lead. An escape by Young made it 2-1 at the end of the first.
Young chose bottom to start the second period, tying things up with an escape. Berge got an escape of his own to start the third period, and was able to fend off Young’s attacks to hang on for the 3-2 win.
Berge came out of the gates a little slow against Navy’s Andrew Cerniglia in his first bout. However, he made up for it in the end.
The duo wrestled to a 0-0 tie after one period. In the second period, Berge had an escape and two takedowns to Cerniglia’s escape to lead 5-1 to start the third period.
Berge rattled off three takedowns in the third period and added a riding time point to secure a 12-4 major decision to give the Nittany Lions a perfect first half of the first session.
Berge will face Rider’s No. 4 Jesse Dellavecchia, who beat Oregon State’s Hunter Willits in his second bout, in Friday’s quarterfinals.
165 Pounds: No. 23 Joe Lee
Record after Day 1: 0-2
Current round: Eliminated
Recap: The younger Lee’s first NCAA Championships experience was a brief one. The redshirt freshman went 0-2 to end his season.
Lee took on Chattanooga’s No. 24 Andrew Nicholson in the first round of the consolation bracket Thursday evening, falling 9-4.
Nicholson picked up a quick takedown to get things started, but a Lee reversal tied things up. Lee took a 4-3 lead with a double leg takedown. A couple of escapes put Nicholson ahead 5-4 in the second, then a takedown made it 7-4. Lee wasn’t able to get out as the period ended. Lee chose neutral in the third, and Nicholson picked up one more takedown to end Lee’s season.
It was former Nittany Lion commit Travis Wittlake, of Oklahoma State, who sent Lee into the consolations earlier in the day.
Wittlake earned an escape in the second period to score the bouts first points. Lee went to throw Wittlake, but the Cowboys’ wrestler countered and put Lee to his back. Wittlake collected a takedown and four near-fall points.
Lee escaped to end the second period, but trailed 7-1. In the third period, Wittlake rode Lee out for the entire period to secure a riding time point, and the 8-1 win.
174 Pounds: No. 3 Carter Starocci
Record after Day 1: 2-0
Current round: Quarterfinals
Recap: Starocci has been nothing but stellar in his first postseason for the Nittany Lions. The redshirt freshman made it to the Big Ten finals and continued that success in his NCAA debut, going 2-0 on Thursday.
Starocci used three takedowns to fend off Wyoming’s No. 14 Hayden Hastings in an 8-2 decision with 2:13 in riding time to punch his ticket to the quarterfinals.
In his first bout of the day, Starocci took down Virginia’s Victor Marcelli with 50 seconds remaining in the first period. Starocci scored the only points of the second period with an escape and takedown to lead 5-0.
In the final period, the Erie native kept scoring. Starocci recorded two takedowns and added a riding time point for a 10-2 major decision.
He’ll face Kent State’s Andrew McNally, who beat Campbell’s Austin Murphy 6-4 in sudden victory, in the quarterfinals.
184 Pounds: No. 1 Aaron Brooks
Record after Day 1: 2-0
Current round: Quarterfinals
Recap: After two bouts, Brooks still looks poised to claim his first NCAA title after the opportunity to do it last year was taken away due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
It wasn’t flashy, but the sophomore got the job done with a 5-0 win over Minnesota’s Owen Webster Thursday evening in his second bout. Brooks secured a takedown in the first period to take the 2-0 lead.
An escape and a stall point gave him two more in the second. The sophomore rode out the third period, racking up 2:53 in riding time to advance to the quarterfinals.
Earlier in the day, the two-time Big Ten champ was rolling early and often against Gardner-Webb’s Jhaquan Anderson. Brooks opened with an eight-point first period thanks to two takedowns and a set of near-fall points.
The No. 1 seed got a takedown early in the second period and was awarded a penalty point for Anderson’s second stall call. Brooks collected four near-fall points before the period was over to hold a 15-1 lead. Twenty-five seconds into the third period, Brooks secured a takedown for a 17-1 technical fall in 5:25.
Brooks will take on familiar foe No. 8 Taylor Venz, of Nebraska, in Friday’s quarterfinals. Brooks topped Venz in the Big Ten finals two weeks ago.
197 Pounds: No. 15 Michael Beard
Record after Day 1: 2-0
Current round: Quarterfinals
Recap: For a No. 15 seed, Beard had a pretty good day. The redshirt freshman went 2-0 with two bonus-point wins and will face a No. 26 seed in Friday’s quarterfinals.
To advance to the quarterfinals, Beard poured on the takedowns against North Dakota State’s Owen Pentz, who is the No. 31 seed and pinned the No. 2 seed in the first round. He racked up four takedowns just in the opening period. He added four more and 1:32 in riding time advantage for a 17-8 major decision.
The redshirt freshman had no problems in his first match of the day, either, taking Navy’s Jacob Koser down 16 seconds in the bout. Just about two minutes later, Beard tilt Koser to his back for near-fall points and a 6-0 lead after one period.
In the second period, Beard recorded a reversal to get the scoring going. He added a takedown to lead 10-1 after two periods. The third period saw Beard open with a takedown, but Koser also took Beard down. In the end, Beard was able to secure a 14-4 major decision.
Beard will take on Oklahoma’s Jake Woodley, who knocked off Michigan State’s Cam Caffey with a 4-3 decision, in the quarterfinals.
285 Pounds: No. 9 Greg Kerkvliet
Record after Day 1: 2-0
Current round: Quarterfinals
Recap: Kerkvliet looked like a natural in his NCAA debut, picking up two bonus-point wins to earn a trip to Friday’s quarterfinals.
In his final bout of the evening, Kerkvliet faced Lehigh’s No. 8 Jordan Wood. A takedown gave the redshirt freshman the 2-1 advantage to end the first. The Nittany Lion really got things going in the second, with an escape and two more takedowns. He piled it on in the third, turning Wood for four near-fall points and adding another takedown plus riding time for the 12-2 major.
Kerkvliet took care of his first opponent, Navy’s John Birchmeier, in a similar fashion. The redshirt freshman took 52 seconds to secure a takedown. From there, Kerkvliet went on a tilting spree.
He collected four near-fall points with 1:37 remaining in the first period. Twenty-one seconds later, Kerkvliet got another four near-fall points.
In the span of 16 seconds, Kerkvliet scored eight points off of two sets of near-fall points to secure an 18-0 technical fall in 2:17.
He’ll have a tough quarterfinal match on Friday, when he’ll face Minnesota’s No. 1 Gable Steveson.
NCAA Championships
Thursday at St. Louis
Team key: Air Force (AF), American (A), Appalachian State (APP), Arizona State (ASU), Army West Point (AWP), Binghamton (B), Bloomsburg (BB), Bucknell (BK), Buffalo (BF), Cal Poly (CP), Campbell (CB), Central Michigan (CM), Chattanooga (CT), Clarion (C), Cleveland State (CS), Cal State Bakersfield (CSB), Drexel (DX), Duke (D), Edinboro (E), Fresno State (FS), Gardner-Webb (G), Hofstra (H), Illinois (Ill.), Indiana (Ind.), Iowa (I), Iowa State (ISU), Kent State (K), Lehigh (L), Little Rock (LR), Michigan (M), Michigan State (MSU), Minnesota (Minn.), Missouri (Miss.), Navy (N), Nebraska (Neb.), North Carolina (NC), North Carolina State (NCSU), North Dakota State (NDSU), Northern Colorado (NCO), Northern Illinois (NIU), Northern Iowa (NI), Northwestern (NW), Ohio (O), Ohio State (OSU), Oklahoma (OK), Oklahoma State (OKSU), Oregon State (OSU), Penn State (PSU), Pittsburgh (PB), Purdue (P), Rider (RD), Rutgers (R), Sacred Heart (SH), SIU Edwardsville (SIUE), South Dakota State (SDSU), Stanford (S), The Citadel (TC), Utah Valley (UV), Virginia (V), Virginia Tech (VT), West Virginia (WV), Wisconsin (W), Wyoming (WY)
Team scores: 1. Iowa 33.5, 2. Penn State 28, 3. Missouri 23.5, 4. North Carolina State 21, 5. Oklahoma State 20, 6. Arizona State 19.5, 7. Minnesota 16.5, 8. Michigan 16, T9. Nebraska 14.5, T9. Virginia Tech 14.5
Second Round
125: Taylor LaMont, UV, dec. Robbie Howard, PSU, 2-1; 133: Roman Bravo-Young, PSU, major dec. Kyle Burwick, W, 11-3; 141: Nick Lee, PSU, major dec. Clay Carlson, SDSU, 14-3; 157: Brady Berge, PSU, dec. Kaleb Young, I, 3-2; 174: Carter Starocci, PSU, dec. Hayden Hastings, WY, 8-2; 184: Aaron Brooks, PSU, dec. Owen Webster, Minn., 5-0; 197: Michael Beard, PSU, major dec. Owen Pentz, NDSU, 17-8; 285: Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, major dec. Jordan Wood, L, 12-2
Consolation First Round
165: Andrew Nicholson, CT, dec. Joe Lee, PSU, 10-4
First Round
125: Howard, PSU, dec. Malik Heinselman, OSU, 6-4; 133: Bravo-Young, PSU, tech. fall Sean Carter, APP, 20-5 (7:00); 141: N. Lee, PSU, tech. fall Julian Flores, DX, 18-0 (2:33); 157: Berge, PSU, major dec. Andrew Cerniglia, N, 12-4; 165: Travis Wittlake, OKSU, dec. J. Lee, PSU, 8-1; 174: Starocci, PSU, major dec. Victor Marcelli, V, 10-2; 184: Brooks, PSU, tech. fall Jhaquan Anderson, G, 17-1 (5:25); 197: Beard, PSU, major dec. Jacob Koser, N, 14-4; 285: Kerkvliet, PSU, tech. fall John Birchmeier, N, 18-0 (2:17).
