Penn State wrestling crowns 4 champions, places 2nd in the team race at the NCAA Championships
The team race was over before the finals began on Saturday night — with Iowa winning its first team title since 2010.
For Penn State, it was just a matter of seeing how many champions it could crown. The number for the Nittany Lions was four.
Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks were those champs. This marks the third time in Penn State’s history that it has had at least four champions.
“Our guys did a really nice job. They just believed and found a way to win,” Nittany Lions coach Cael Sanderson said. “It’s great to see the toughness out of the guys.”
In the end, Penn State’s 113.5 points were 15.5 points behind the champions in Iowa. Oklahoma State finished third with 99.5 points. Arizona State and Michigan round out the top five in that order.
Here’s where each wrestler finished the NCAA championships:
133 Pounds: No. 2 Roman Bravo-Young
Finish: Champion
Recap: RBY talked about how he wrote down national champion “50 times in a row” and signed it before his finals match with Oklahoma State’s Daton Fix.
It was reminiscent of former Penn State wrestler Nico Megaludis, who did a similar thing before winning his national title in 2016. The result was the same for Bravo-Young, getting his hand raised as a championship.
The junior became the Nittany Lions’ first 133-pound champion in program history.
“It was a lot of ups and downs, especially this season,” Bravo-Young said in a Zoom press conference. “I’ve been training my whole life for this. It was a long time coming. It feels great. I don’t really know how to explain. It was a lot of hard work.”
Neither wrestler scored in the first period. In the second period, RBY put together a full-period ride, but was called for stalling.
In the third period, RBY escaped rather quickly, but the official called him for two more stall calls. Those were the lone points scored by Fix. Bravo-Young had 1:58 in riding time built up, which sent the bout to sudden victory, 2-2.
RBY got the winning takedown with 20 seconds in the period for the title.
“He’s tough. I knew he was going to be a great match,” Bravo-Young said. “I just had to stay focused and get that takedown. I got pretty tired.”
141 Pounds: No. 2 Nick Lee
Finish: Champion
Recap: Lee like RBY set some program history for the Nittany Lions.
The senior became Penn State’s first 141-pound champion.
“It feels good, what can I say. I think everyone else says the same thing,” Lee said via a Zoom press conference. “I’m really happy because my teammate won right before me, that was freaking awesome.”
Lee took on a familiar foe in Iowa’s Jaydin Eierman, who beat him in the Big Ten finals two weeks ago.
There was no scoring the in the first period, and Eierman’s escape in the second period gave him a 1-0 lead. Lee started on his feet in the third period.
The choice paid off as he took Eierman down 12 seconds into the period. The Hawkeyes’ wrestler escaped roughly 20 seconds later. Neither wrestler was able to score and the bout went to sudden victory tied 2-2.
Seventeen seconds into the extra frame, Lee used a slick inside trip to take Eierman down for the 4-2 win.
“It feels good. I’m going to enjoy it,” Lee said. “Tomorrow it’s back to grind. I’ve got some homework that’s overdue.”
174 Pounds: No. 3 Carter Starocci
Finish: Champion
Recap: Starocci said he took things that he learned in his Big Ten finals match with Iowa’s Michael Kemerer and used it in their NCAA finals match on Saturday night.
In fact, the redshirt freshman said he’s learning all the time, including during that match. Even after getting the win, he said he learned that there are still things to improve on.
After a scoreless first period, Starocci’s escape in the second period was the lone point. The Erie native held a 1-0 lead to start the third period.
Kemerer used an escape nine seconds into the third period to tie it up. Starocci was close on a takedown before the bout’s end, but couldn’t get it.
In sudden victory, Starocci secured a takedown 14 seconds in for a 3-1 win and the title.
“It was awesome. When you put God first, everything is possible,” Starocci said during a Zoom press conference. “Like I said yesterday, I’m the best, because I am and that’s what I believe.”
Starocci was asked if he felt he was part of the next chapter for the Nittany Lions. His answer was simple.
“Yeah, I mean, I’m here. We have a good team,” Starocci said. “We had a good showing and it’s going to be better next year. We’re all going to get better and win team titles.”
184 Pounds: No. 1 Aaron Brooks
Finish: Champion
Recap: Brooks took on probably the toughest opponent he’s seen all year in North Carolina State’s Trent Hidlay.
Hidlay, who is a graduate of Mifflin County High School, is built very similar to Brooks in stature. It showed as neither wrestler scored in the first period, and Hidlay was hit with a stall call.
The Penn State wrestler earned a reversal in the second period. Hidlay escaped to make it 2-1 to start the third period.
Brooks was in a battle in the third period. Hidlay escaped 13 seconds in and the bout was tied 2-2.
Hidlay looked to have a takedown on Brooks late, but review by official said no. Brooks was able to pick up a stall point from Hidlay for the 3-2 win.
“This is something that I’ve dreamed of as a kid. Its a long time, a long, long time,” Brooks said.
197 Pounds: No. 15 Michael Beard
Finish: 7th
Recap: Beard took on Wyoming’s Stephen Buchanan for seventh Saturday afternoon.
The redshirt freshman came out collecting a takedown and two near-fall points, but Buchanan reversed Beard. Beard escaped before the period ended to hold a 5-2 lead.
In the second period, Buchanan tied the bout up at 5-5 midway through. Beard collected a reversal with just under 40 seconds left, but a Buchanan escape made it 7-6 to start the third.
Beard opened the third period with an escape, but gave up a takedown with two seconds remaining to head to sudden victory. Twenty seconds into the sudden victory period, Beard tallied the winning takedown for a 10-8 win.
285 Pounds: No. 9 Greg Kerkvliet
Finish: 7th
Recap: Kerkvliet had no problems with Ohio State’s Tate Orndorff in their seventh-place match.
The redshirt freshman took just 10 seconds to secure the bout’s first points with a takedown. In the second period, Kerkvliet used a reversal, an escape and picked up a stall point from Orndorff for a 7-1 lead.
Kerkvliet forced two more stall calls on Orndorff in the third period, nearly earning a disqualification win. Instead, a takedown, three stall points and a riding time point secured a 13-1 major decision for Kerkvliet.
He was so dominant that he amassed 6:10 of riding time.
NCAA Championships
Saturday 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 129, 2. Penn State 113.5, 3. Oklahoma State 99.5, 4. Arizona State 74, 5. Michigan 69, 6. North Carolina State 68, T7. Minnesota 64, T7. Missouri 64, 9. Ohio State 46.5, 10. Northwestern 45
Finals
133: Roman Bravo-Young, PSU, dec. Daton Fix, OKSU, 4-2 (SV); 141: Nick Lee, PSU, dec. Jaydin Eierman, I, 4-2 (SV); 149: Austin O’Connor, NC, dec. Sammy Sasso, OSU, 3-2; 157: David Carr, ISU, dec. Jesse Dellavecchia, RD, 4-0; 165: Shane Griffith, S, dec. Jake Wentzel, PB, 6-2; 174: Carter Starocci, PSU, dec. Michael Kemerer, I, 3-1 (SV); 184: Aaron Brooks, PSU, dec. Trent Hidlay, NCSU, 3-1; 197: AJ Ferrari, OKSU, dec. Nino Bonaccorsi, PB, 4-2; 285: Gable Steveson, Minn., dec. Mason Parris, M, 8-4; 125: Spencer Lee, I, dec. Brandon Courtney, ASU, 7-0
Seventh-Place Match
197: Michael Beard, PSU, dec. Stephen Buchanan, WY, 10-8 (SV); 285: Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, major dec. Tate Orndorff, OSU, 13-1
This story was originally published March 20, 2021 at 11:00 PM.
