Freshmen upsets highlight Penn State wrestling’s victory over Oregon State
For the first time in program history, Penn State made a cross-country trek to Corvallis, Ore., on Friday to take on No. 17 Oregon State.
The Nittany Lions left Thursday morning and traveled over three different time zones, but it didn’t seem to slow down the No. 1 team in the country.
They came away with a 36-3 win over the Beavers, which was highlighted by top-15 upsets from a pair of freshman in Braeden Davis and Tyler Kasak.
The win was the 993rd for Penn State as it moved closer to hitting a monumental milestone.
“I can sleep anywhere, anytime. The time change doesn’t do anything to me. I think it was just cool. I got a lot closer with with these guys,” Kasak said to the Penn State Sports Network. “You have so much going on back home all the time, family things to practices to school. You don’t always get to have quality time with these guys. I feel like this was a great experience that I’ll never forget. The first away match and the first time I got to really spend quality time with these guys.”
According to Kasak, he and Davis are roommates, so he does get to spend a lot of time with his fellow freshman. It was fitting the duo earned the huge victories in their first road dual.
Davis kicked the dual off with a bang as he took on No. 15 Brandon Kaylor, who was a 2022 All-American and a two-time NCAA qualifier.
The Nittany Lions wrestler jumped out to an early lead thanks to a pair of first period double-leg takedowns. The second period saw Kaylor escape, but it was still 6-2 Davis after two periods.
The third period saw Davis collect an escape and a takedown. He did give up a late takedown looking for bonus points, but still came away with an 11-6 victory.
Kasak kept things rolling for Penn State, which led 10-0, when he stepped on the mat.
He took on No. 12 Nash Singleton with neither wrestler scoring in the first period. The second period saw Kasak’s escape as the lone point scored.
Singleton was able to tie the bout up early in the third period with an escape of his own. However, with 30 seconds remaining in the match, Kasak was able to secure the match winning takedown to secure a 4-1 win.
“Braeden is like a brother to me. Him going out there first, just gives me confidence. Braeden doesn’t lose, I can’t lose, you know what I mean?,” Kasak said. “Like there’s just no way it’s going to happen. He does a great job getting us started. I love the fact it’s just two of us going out there, kind of creates a cool environment just for us, this doesn’t happen a lot. It’s exciting to work hard and let this unfold. It’s really cool.”
In between the freshmen’s victories, Aaron Nagao had no problems with No. 26 Gabe Whisenhunt in a 9-0 major decision at 133 pounds.
The same couldn’t be said for Beau Bartlett at 141 pounds against No. 25 Cleveland Belton, who provided quite the challenge with his height and reach.
The pair traded a pair of escapes and a takedown a piece and were tied 5-5 after three periods of wrestling. In the sudden victory period, Belton went for the upset-winning takedown. But, Bartlett had other plans with a counter takedown and the winning score with 8 seconds left.
Bartlett wasn’t the only wrestler to have some problems.
Levi Haines saw himself down 6-2 after one period against unranked Isaiah Crosby. Crosby snapped off two counter takedowns of Haines, who was able to get within 6-3 after two periods, then it all clicked for the No. 1 wrestler in the country.
Haines went into takedown mode as he recorded a pair in the third period and built up enough riding time for another point in a 10-8 come-from-behind win. The Nittany Lions led 16-0 at the half.
The second half of the dual saw Penn State go 4-1, and secured technical falls in all four victories.
Mitchell Messenbrink got things underway at 165 pounds against No. 10 Matthew Olguin, who is a two-time NCAA qualifier. Messenbrink raced out to a 10-1 lead after one period thanks to a pair of takedowns and four nearfall points.
He went on to rack up a 17-2 major decision in 3:44 with two more takedowns and an escape in the second period.
Carter Starocci continued his dominance on the season by using six takedowns in a 19-3 technical fall in 6:32 over No. 7 Travis Wittlake, who initially committed to the Nittany Lions before changing his mind to Oklahoma State.
Penn State’s victory was secured at 26-0 and three bouts left.
Bernie Truax faced a familiar foe in No. 6 Trey Munoz, who last pinned Truax in their last meeting, which was the 2022 NCAA Championships. On Friday night, Munoz got Truax again, 4-2, using a first-period takedown in the win.
Aaron Brooks and Greg Kerkvliet put on a takedown clinic in their bouts to close out the dual. They combined for 13 takedowns.
Brooks had six in his 19-4 technical fall over No. 30 Justin Rademacher in 4:53 of wrestling. Kerkvliet recorded three takedowns in the first and second periods, and tacked on one more in the third for a 21-5 technical fall in 5:17 over No. 12 Boone McDermott.
The Nittany Lions are off until Jan. 14. They will open up the Big 10 part of their season hosting Indiana inside Rec Hall at 1 p.m.
“Stay in your stance, move your feet, finish out periods on top, and don’t stop wrestling,” said Kasak, when asked what he’ll be focusing on in preparation for his first Big 10 wrestling season.
No. 1 Penn State 36, No. 17 Oregon State 3
Friday at Corvallis, Ore.
125: Braeden Davis, PSU, dec. No. 15 Brandon Kaylor, 11-6
133: No. 4 Aaron Nagao, PSU, major dec. No. 26 Gabe Whisenhunt, 9-0
141: No. 2 Beau Bartlett, PSU, dec. No. 25 Cleveland Belton, 8-5 (SV)
149: Tyler Kasak, PSU, dec. No. 12 Nash Singleton, 4-1
157: No. 1 Levi Haines, PSU, dec. Isaiah Crosby, 10-8
165: No. 14 Mitchell Messenbrink, PSU, tech. fall No. 10 Matthew Olguin, 17-2 (3:44)
174: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU, tech. fall No. 7 Travis Wittlake, 19-3 (6:32)
184: No. 6 Trey Munoz, OSU, dec. No. 2 Bernie Truax, 5-2
197: No. 1 Aaron Brooks, PSU, tech. fall No. 30 Justin Rademacher, 19-4 (4:53)
285: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, tech. fall No. 12 Boone McDermott, 21-5 (5:17)
Takedowns: PSU 32, OSU 5
Records: Penn State (3-0), Oregon State (4-2)
Next match: No. 22 Indiana at No. 1 Penn State, Jan. 14, 1 p.m.
This story was originally published January 5, 2024 at 11:02 PM.
