Penn State Vs Ohio State Preview (Friday 2-3-22)

 

A great BIG 10 dual to take place on Friday night between the #1 Penn State Nittany Lions & the #10 Ohio State Buckeyes. 

125 lbs
U.R. Gary Steen Vs #10 Malik Heinselman 

This is the only match on the card where I can see the Buckeyes possibly picking up some bonus points. I wouldn't guarantee it, but the experience of a senior who is currently 18-2 Vs a redshirt freshman who is 5-9, does propose itself as a match that could end in a major decision.  If Ohio State is going to put 4 points up at any point during this dual, this is the match where it'll happen. 

133 lbs
#1 Roman Bravo Young Vs #9 Jesse Mendez 

True freshman Jesse Mendez is having himself one Hell of a rookie season. Currently 11-1, he thus far has victories over Lucas Byrd of Illinois, Dylan Ragusin of Michigan & RayVon Foley of Michigan State. The buck...or should I say the Buckeye stops here though I'm afraid.  RBY is in a class of his own and while I do believe Mendez will hold it to a decision, RBY will show him exactly why he's the #1 ranked wrestler in the nation. 

141 lbs
#5 Beau Bartlett vs #19 Dylan D'Emilio 

Penn State goes into this one favored, but I wouldn't being chalking it up as a win quite yet. Dylan D'Emilio is a scrapper & he'll fight the entire seven minutes he's out on the mat. Bartlett's strategies and techniques should be enough to pull out the W, but I'd go into this one realizing that it could very well be a war. 

149 lbs
#13 Shayne Van Ness Vs #3 Sammy Sasso 

I'd give SVN a slight, small probability of pulling off an upset in this one. I wouldn't bet on it, but at the same time you have to acknowledge that the possibility is there. Sasso has shown to be vulnerable as susceptible in the past & furthermore SVN is the type of wrestler who could pull it off. On the same hand though, Sasso has been wrestling very well as of late. Losses to Caleb Henson of Virginia Tech & Colin Realbuto of Northern Iowa are what give SVN hope going into this match. You get Sasso at his best, he'll be difficult if not impossible to take out of his element. You get him on an off day however, then SVN is in this match. 

157 lbs
#9 Levi Haines Vs #25 Paddy Gallagher 

The last times these two youngsters met, Haines took a comfortable 8-3 decision. I think we'll see a similar outcome this time around too. 

165 lbs
#8 Alex Facundo Vs #12 Carson Kharchla 

This will be a good match.  Advantage to Penn State, I would still call this one a tossup. Kharchla is a bit of an up and down wrestler, but for a dual of this magnitude, as it will be his sole focus for the day, I say that he'll be up for it. An All American last season, he's been looking for that huge win to get himself back in the realms in which he has slipped out of. A victory over Facundo would do just that. With that said, tall order. Facundo wants to climb the ladder, not go down on it. 

174 lbs
#1 Carter Starocci Vs #7 Ethan Smith 

I don't see many points being put up in this confrontation. Matter of fact I think it'll be a very close, 1 or 2 point match. I'd be shocked if there is anything more than a 3 point separation between the two. Smith will keep it close with Starocci, but I do not see him upsetting the Nittany Lion. There are few as comfortable & as confident as Starocci when it comes to 1 or 2 point leads. Yet win by 1 point or win by 15 points, the operative word here is win.  Collecting W's is what Starocci does. By 1, by 2 or by 3, he'll most likely add another to his vast collection. 

184 lbs
#1 Aaron Brooks Vs #5 Kaleb Romero 

Here's an area where the Nittany Lions can pick up some bonus points. The last time Brooks & Romero met it was damn near a technical fall for Brooks as he won a 13-2 major decision. Do I think he'll manhandle the Buckeye like that again? It's a possibility, but I'm going to say no. Romero has gotten stronger & he's gotten better since the last time the two met. Do I think Brooks could still get the major? Yes, I do, but I think it'll be more so a takedown game, than it'll be a taking Romero to his back game. Romero could very well keep this at a decision too. 

197 lbs
#4 Max Dean Vs #17 Gavin Hoffman 

We have a slight, low probability opportunity of seeing an upset in favor of Penn State at 149 & here we have a slight, low probability opportunity of seeing an upset in favor of Ohio State.  I'm not saying it is likely, but I am saying it is possible.  I mean think about it.  Dean has already proven himself to be susceptible to upset two other times this season.  The dual is at Ohio State & Hoffman has a history over outwrestling himself in situations where a lot is on the line.  While Dean does own a 9-3 decision over the Buckeye, there other match ended in sudden victory 5-3. 

#2 Greg Kerkvliet Vs #18 Tate Orndorff

Here's where Penn State is most likely going to pick up some bonus points. In their last three meetings Kerkvliet has defeated Orndorff 10-1, 10-2 & 11-3.  This tells me, especially taking into consideration that Kerkvliet has positioned himself as a NCAA title contender that meeting #4, will most likely end in a major decision for the Nittany Lion too. It is in Ohio State territory however & I'd give that the one saving grace that may keep this match to a decision. 

JT#1's Notes, Thoughts & Observations for Week #14 of the '22-'23 College Wrestling Season

 

Focus and Attention 

10,000 things going on in the world of collegiate wrestling as usual, but this is where nearly all of the attention & focus were. Everyone, everywhere was glued to the #1 Penn State Vs #2 Iowa dual. So much is revealed about the abnormal psychology of the wrestling community in regards to a match like this.  For one I couldn't believe the number of people who believed that if Spencer Lee bumped up to 133 lbs that he could honestly get bonus points against Roman Bravo Young. There is mentally challenged, and then there is mentally defeated. I love Lee & think he'll go down as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, but there is no way he was ever going to major RBY.  We're talking a two time national champion, who hasn't lost a match since the 2019-2020 season. We're also talking 8 lbs of muscle from 125 to 133 too. The idea of Lee getting bonus points against him is preposterous.  Secondly of all, in all of the matches of Penn State's varsity Vs Iowa's varsity, I thought Iowa despite the loss, looked pretty good. It amazed me how many wrote of how Penn State put a whoopin' on the Hawkeyes. Yes, the Nittany Lions won & wrestled (as they almost always do) extremely well, but I wouldn't call three one point victories, one two point victory & one three point victory "handing someone their ass."  Even RBY's fall of Brody Teske was a pretty close match up until the fall. It was a good dual between our nation's two top teams. Penn State went in prepared & won 4 of the 7 tossup matches. RBY stepped it up for the team by getting the fall & Aaron Brooks took advantage of getting to beat up on a reserve.  I still feel Iowa went in & fought hard as they won 3 of the 7 tossup matches. The actuality of the dual was 7/10, nearly 8/10 matches being hard fought & competitive. That's reality.  Where anyone gets off saying that "Iowa sucks" is nothing more than a reflection of a sport that excepts nothing other than the very best. 

Speaking to the matches individually??? 

You gotta take your hat off to Marco Vespa. The sophomore has only one win to his name thus far & he went out and gave it everything to keep himself from getting pinned by Lee. That shows dedication and commitment to your team. He knew that there was a chance that the dual could be close & how important it was to give up 5 instead of 6.  

Already commented on the RBY Vs Teske match

Woods used experience to overcome Bartlett & I was really impressed with both Murin & Kennedy.  Both wrestled very smart matches against extremely tough opponents.  I was surprised by how close Brands was able to keep it with Starocci. Starocci's offense is so good, I figured he'd be able to penetrate Brands' defense & get in a couple of scores.  Haines wrestled a smart match against Siebrecht. Dean did what he had to do against Warner & Kerkvliet for the second time was able to overcome Cassioppi.  They say wrestling is a lot like chess & this dual was proof of that. 


There was other great wrestling that took place this weekend!  A lot of it! I tried to keep up with as much of it as I could.  

Pete Willson Invitational Proves Itself To Be Top In-Season DIII Tournament 

This was definitely a week  to pay attention to DIII wrestling as the Pete Willson Invite proved itself to be an awesome tournament. 

Ty Bisek Wins a Tough 133 lbs bracket As Andrew Perelka Becomes A Four Time Pete Willson Place-Winner 

#7 Ty Bisek stepped it up a notch with a huge 7-2 victory over last year's NCAA DIII finalist, Andrew Perelka in the finals. Bisek was one match shy of NCAA qualification last year with a 4th place finish at Regionals. This win over Perelka says that he's not only looking to make the tournament this year, but he's looking to contend for a national title. As to Perelka, he made history, becoming the only wrestler this tournament to become a four time place-winner.  His finishes were 4th-2nd-3rd-2nd. 

Ethan Harsted Keeps 141 lbs Pete Willson Title At Home

The sole champion for the Thunder, Harstead had to defeat two tough opponents in route to his title. First it was a 3-1 s.v. over 2021 All American Bradley Rosen of North Central & then it was a 2-1 victory over #10 Jake Dado of Ozarks in the finals. 

RayShawn Dixon Continues to Impress at Pete Willson Invitational

Going into this tournament I was perplexed of how Ferrum's RayShawn Dixon wasn't listed in the rankings. Now 24-1 on the season, with a Pete Willson title to his resume, he has to be ranked. A 7-4 win over #15 Ka'Ron Lewis of Ozarks, following it up by defeating Cole Fibranz of Chicago 8-6 in the finals. Impressive performance for the Panther. 

Centenary Rookie Wins Ken Oberman Memorial 

Another DIII tournament that took place this weekend was the Ken Oberman Memorial. What stood out to me most was Jack Thode of Centenary getting a fall over Jared Kuhns of York (PA) in the 125 lbs finals. Time of the fall was 6:41. 

Drake Ayala Competes at 133 lbs For Flash Flanagan Open 

I'm probably reading way too much into this, but I was surprised to see Drake Ayala at 133 lbs for the Flash Flanagan open. I would imagine it was probably nothing more than allowing him to get away from the strain of the weight cut for a while, but I can't help but wonder if there is more to it. While I personally feel that both Brody Teske & Cullan Schriever are quality 133 lbs'ers, I know that the black & gold give the word "expectation" a whole new meaning. Are they testing him out at 133 lbs? I have said for quite some time now & continue to imagine that Ayala is the replacement for Lee next season, but maybe the ink isn't as dried on the contract as I thought. Maybe there's a chance we could see him at 133 next year & see someone else at 125. 

Nick Stonecheck Upsets '22 MAC Champion 

In the dual Vs Rider, Nick Stonecheck had a very nice victory over 2022 MAC champion Quinn Kinner. Stonecheck won a 6-4 decision. 

The Ups and Downs Of Columbia 

The results of collegiate wrestling can be quite perplexing at times.  Lehigh not all that long ago gave Cornell a tough go in a 18-15 loss.  Then Columbia wrestled a great dual defeating Lehigh 18-17. I really thought the Lions would then give the Big Red a run for their money, but the final dual score was 30-3 in favor of Cornell.  Granted, there were a few matches in the Cornell dual that could have as easily gone Columbia's way that didn't. Babin lost a tight 2-1 match to Ungar, Kazimir lost a tight 5-4 match with Cornella & Alvan lost in overtime against Handlovic.  You turn those matches around & now the dual is 21-12. 

Sam Wolf Once Again Howls At The Moon 

The way Air Force's Sam Wolf wrestled against Demetrius Romero of Utah Valley, maybe we should start referring to him as Sam Werewolf. He was on a terror. Injured and all, he defeated the All American 5-3. Great win for Wolf.  Also want to point out in this dual that Dylan Martinez looked sharp too. Defeated a tough Isaiah Delgado 3-2.  The other comment about Air For wrestling from this weekend, is how easily Wyatt Hendrickson tech'd South Dakota State's A.J. Nevills. I was NOT expecting that at all. Nevills had a 5-2 win over '22 NCAA runner-up Cohlton Schultz earlier this year. I was expecting a closer confrontation, but Hendrickson just took it to him. 

Alirez Continues to Gun For National Title 

I said earlier this year that Andrew Alirez has potential to become Northern Colorado's first NCAA DI champion & week after week he makes me more and more of a believer. Clay Carlson is no slouch & Alirez nearly majored him in a 10-3 effort. 

Truly Good True Freshman 

I was very impressed with Jesse Mendez's performance this weekend. The Buckeye defeated a very tough Dylan Ragusin of Michigan & then majored Michigan State's RayVon Foley. 

Deadly But Silent 

The obsession and fixation with Penn State Vs Iowa, led to many not even being aware that Oklahoma's John Wiley scored the biggest upset of the weekend. The current redshirt made the most of a dual he got to participate in by defeating Iowa State's Paniro Johnson 6-4. I was expecting this win to blow up all over wrestling Twitter & wrestling Facebook, but ironically little to nothing was said about it. 

Liam Cronin The #2 Man At 125? 

The position still currently belongs to Princeton's Patrick Glory, but anymore the way Liam Cronin is wrestling, I think he'll give the Tiger all he can handle when it comes time to decide who makes the national finals Vs Lee. Cronin with a very impressive 7-3 win over Eric Barnett of Wisconsin. This makes the third huge win for Cronin, as he's also defeated Michael DeAugustino of Northwestern and Pat Mckee of Minnesota. 

Coach Mark Manning Gets 300th Dual Victory 

Speaking of Nebraska wrestling, I was very excited to see Mark Manning get his 300th dual meet victory.  Coach Manning is one of my absolute favorites in collegiate wrestling & I loved seeing him get this honor. 

There's Only One Wyatt Sheets 

As always there is so much more I could talk about, but I don't wanna get carried away.  Therefore I'll end by speaking on Wyatt Sheets, who has plenty of competition, but could still make a case as collegiate wrestling's most unpredictable wrestler. Many point to how the Cowboy used what I would call a flying cowcatcher or perhaps a rolling snake to pin Northern Iowa's Austin Yant at 6:24.  I was also impressed with how well he wrestled David Carr of Iowa State. It's not the first time he's kept it close with the Cyclone, but in 6 total meetings, it is one of the best matches he's given him.  Sheets is the kind of guy we could very well see in the BIG 12 finals. Then again, he's also the kind of guy that might fight for a place in the 7th place match. With him, you never know what you're going to get.

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Monroe

 

Not sure when Tribune wrestling started or when it ended, but I do know that they had a program at one point.  Here are some of there best wrestlers. 

Jim Polsinelli 

Jim Polsinelli came to Monroe from East Irondequoit East where he was a two time Section V champion.  He won an NJCAA title for the Tribunes in 1976. He finished up his wrestling career at Appalachian State. 

Mike Cronmiller 

Mike Cronmiller was an NJCAA runner-up for the Tribunes in 1987.  He later wrestled for the Ithaca Bombers where he won a NCAA DIII title in 1990. He was 3rd in the 1992 NCAA DIII championships. 

Rich Legrett

Rich Legrett came to Monroe from Canadaigua High.  His brother Steve, played collegiate baseball at Stony Brook. 

Dean Salvaggio

Dean Salvaggio earned NJCAA All American honors for the Tribunes. He later earned NCAA Division III All American honors for Buffalo. He was 5th in 1987 & 2nd in 1988. 

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Rend Lake

 

Rend Lake wrestling was an extremely short lived program that only lasted from the '06-'07 through '12-'13.   Despite only being around for 7 seasons, the Warriors had quite a bit of success.  Here are some of their best wrestlers. 

Justin Cash 

In their final season on the mat, Justin Cash won a NJCAA title for the Warriors in 2013.  A native of Tennessee, he later wrestled for King University. 

Eric Tozzi 

Another All American for the Warriors in their final season was Eric Tozzi, who later wrestled for Belmont-Abbey. 

Juan Stimpson 

The Warriors other All American in their final season was Juan Stimpson who took 5th.  He had began his wrestling career at North Carolina State before transferring to Rend Lake. He later wrestled for UNC-Pembroke. 

Tyler Holloway 

Tyler Holloway won a NJCAA title for the Warriors in 2011. He later wrestled for Missouri Baptist. 

Eric Ellington 

Ellington was a two time NJCAA All American for the Warriors earning a 3rd place finish in 2009 & a runner-up 2010.  He went 56-12 during his time with Rend Lake.  He later competed for St. Cloud. 

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Arizona Western

 

Arizona Western at one time was a powerhouse in NJCAA wrestling & on top of it, one hell of a pipeline too. Nearly all of the wrestlers that will be discussed today went on to success at the NCAA DI level. One of their head coaches, Jim Teem had wrestled at Cal Poly where he was a two time All American with finishes of 4th in 1965 & 2nd in 1965. 

Mike Barfuss 

An All American for the Matadors in 1980, Mike Barfuss would transfer to Cal Poly where he earned an 8th place All American finish in 1982. 

Mark Tracy 

Mark Tracy was a NJCAA runner-up for the Matadors in 1983.  He later competed for Cal Poly where he took back to back All American 7th place finishes in 1985 & 1986. 

Mickey Carroll 

Mickey Carroll won an NJCAA title for the Matadors in 1967.  He then went on to compete for Northern Arizona where he went 56-1.  He won an NAIA title in 1969, taking 3rd place in 1970. 

Craig Noble 

Craig Noble was an NJCAA All American for the Matadors in 1981. He went to become a two time All American for Cal State Bakersfield, earning a runner-up finish 1982 & placing 4th in 1983. 

Otis Calvin  

Otis Calvin was a two time All American for the Matadors in 1980 & 1981.  He went on to compete for Arizona State. 

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Rogers State

 

Today Rogers State is an NCAA Division II institution known as the Hillcats.  At the time they fielded wrestling they were an NJCAA program known as the Claremore College Spartans.  Here are some of their best wrestlers. 

Israel Sheppard

Sheppard won an NJCAA title in 1978, then transferring to Oklahoma where he became a two time NCAA DI All American with a 3rd place finish in 1980 & a 4th place finish in 1982. 

Mike Jones 

An High School State champion for East Central, Mike Jones competed for the Hillcats formally known as the Spartans. He then transferred to Colorado, but had to again transfer to Oklahoma State due to the Buffaloes discontinuing their wrestling program.  He was 3rd for the Cowboys at the 1982 BIG 12 championships. 

Floyd Coburn 

A two time State champion in Oklahoma for Ponca City, Floyd Coburn wrestled for the Hillcats formally known as the Spartans. He later became a pastor. 

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Northern Oklahoma College (Tonkawa)

 

Again not positive as to when NOC-Tonkawa wrestling began or when it ended. What I can tell you is that they had a wrestling program at one time & they had success at the NJCAA level. 

Rick Dawson 

A two time NJCAA All American for the Mavericks in 1972 & 1973, Rick Dawson would also earn NCAA DI All American honors of 6th place for the Colorado State Rams in 1974. 

Les Standerfer 

An NJCAA Runner-up for the Mavericks in 1976, Les Standerfer went on to Northern Colorado where he won a Mountain Intercollegiate Wrestling Association title & qualified for the NCAA DI championships in 1978. 

Bill Thornton 

Thornton was a two time NJCAA All American for the Mavericks.  He was 3rd in 1969 & 2nd in 1970. He went on to compete for Oklahoma State.