PSU wrestling notebook: Amid perfect season, Sanderson says ‘there’s always room for improvement’
The Nittany Lions are 13-0 following both a 29-9 win over Ohio State on Friday and a 35-8 victory against Indiana on Sunday.
Those matchups were the last time this season Penn State wrestling will have two road duals on the same weekend. The team’s last road dual is Friday against Rutgers, followed by a Rec Hall dual with Maryland on Sunday. Head coach Cael Sanderson strives for perfection with his team, and at the moment, he’s impressed with how it has responded.
“There’s always room for improvement, but we’re happy with where we’re at this point,” Sanderson said. “Obviously, (there’s) a lot of work moving forward, we have three more duals and we’re getting ready for conference (championships).”
Redshirt freshman Gary Steen (125) is one of the wrestlers looking to sharpen his skills over the next three duals. He sits with a 5-10 record and ranks No. 84 at his weight class. With a 10-15 career record, he isn’t satisfied with how his collegiate career has shaken out thus far.
Steen has worked with former Penn State wrestlers Thomas Gilman and Jordan Conaway. Tuesday’s practice was no different, with the two sharpening his skills, pointing out new moves and helping him become the best version of himself.
“(At) the beginning of the year, I was kind of worried about winning and losing because I (in high school) was coming out with only four losses,” Steen said. “You expect to just win, but college is a different level. So, now it’s just not even (being) worried about the wins and the losses, so much as growing as a wrestler trying to jump levels. Scaling confidence day-by-day, working with the best students in practice that I possibly can.”
Marco Vespa (125) saw some action, splitting time with Steen. The sophomore carries an 0-4 record on the year and fell 17-2 in 4:48 to Indiana’s Jacob Moran on Feb. 5. But Sanderson thinks that Steen has earned the spot over Vespa.
“We’ve just been throwing Vespa in there to give him some experience and to just give him a chance to compete,” Sanderson said. “Steen, he’s done well this year. He just needs a little bit of confidence, but he’s got everything that he needs.”
Alex Facundo discusses comparisons to Quentin Wright
Former Bald Eagle Area and Penn State star Quentin Wright (197) was known for his wide base. The current Tyrone wrestling head coach was a four-time All-American with the Nittany Lions, winning two national championships in 2011 and 2013, along with putting together a career record of 116-23. He went on to be named to the Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association 2022 Hall of Fame class.
Current Penn State wrestler Alex Facundo (165) bears some similarities. The redshirt freshman is 13-2 this season and holds the No. 13 ranking in his weight class with a career record of 25-5. He’s also coming off of two straight wins over the weekend against Ohio State’s Carson Kharchla in a 4-1 decision on Friday, followed by a 20-9 major decision against Indiana’s Robert Major.
In both matches, the redshirt freshman deployed a wide base and went to work against his opponents — giving some flashbacks to Wright’s time at Penn State.
“I never watched Quentin Wright, but as I was in high school I remember some of the commentary of some of my matches, they said that I resembled him a little bit,” Facundo said. “Quentin was actually in the room a couple of weeks ago and I got to talk to him. And he said, ‘You know, you remind me a lot of myself a lot.’ So yeah, I get that comparison.”
