Takeaways from Penn State wrestling’s 27-13 road dual victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes
Penn State wrestling remained undefeated with a 27-13 win over the Ohio State Buckeyes Friday night.
Here are three takeaways from the dual.
Lower weights are a mixed bag
There was plenty of excitement in Friday night’s dual, but the 141-pound bout between Beau Bartlett and Jesse Mendez — two of the best in the weight class in the country — was the most anticipated matchup of the night. Bartlett was able to get a first period takedown that proved to be enough for his 4-2 win over Mendez. Bartlett and Braeden Davis, who made his return at 133 pounds after missing a few duals with an injury, were able to get wins for Penn State, but 125-pounder Luke Lilledahl’s loss to open the dual made this matchup closer than it was expected to be. Lilledahl was pinned by Brendan McCrone when the Nittany Lion had a lead and was heading toward a potential win. That — and Tyler Kasak’s absence at 157 pounds due to injury — allowed the Buckeyes to keep things close.
Penn State weathers the storm
There were moments where it looked like it was possible — albeit unlikely — that the Nittany Lions could lose their first dual in over five years, but at the end of the day the team’s best carried it down the stretch. Ohio State led the match 10-9 at the halfway point, but PSU took over from there. Mitchell Mesenbrink, who leads the country in technical falls this season, earned yet another at 165 pounds and gave the Nittany Lions the lead. Levi Haines fought through an early deficit to Carson Kharchla to earn a major and it was essentially over from there, with Carter Starocci and Josh Barr winning convincingly at 184 pounds and 197 pounds, respectively. This is one of the deepest and best teams in Penn State history, and that’s largely because the team’s best upper weights can carry the group even if it’s not at full strength, or if the lower weights get upset.
Nittany Lions rounding into form heading into postseason
Penn State only has two duals remaining on its schedule this season with a road matchup with Illinois Sunday and a non-conference dual with American on Feb. 21. Once those wrap up, it will be on to Big Tens for the Nittany Lions and they’re primed to be competitive at all 10 weights there and at NCAAs. Despite Kasak not going against the Buckeyes, he remains one of the favorites at 149 pounds, while Starocci and Mesenbrink are far and away the favorites at their weights in their conference. Levi Haines and Shayve Van Ness should also be favored at 174 and 149 pounds, respectively, and all four of those wrestlers earned wins against the Buckeyes. Penn State is once again primed to win another team title at Big Tens and NCAAs. It’s just a matter of how many add individual championships to go with them — as long as those who missed the dual, like Kasak and heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet, are ready to go in a few weeks.
