Seven Penn State wrestlers advanced to the Big Ten Championships semifinals and three others are still looking to stay alive in consolations after session one of the conference tournament on Saturday at Michigan’s Crisler Center.
In the team standings, the Nittany Lions are tied with Iowa for first place with 63.5 points each. Minnesota trails in third with 52, followed by Ohio State with 45.5 and Nebraska with 45 to round out the top five.
Roman Bravo Young (133), Beau Bartlett (141), Levi Haines (157), Carter Starocci (174), Aaron Brooks (184), Max Dean (197) and Greg Kerkvliet (285) will each wrestle on Saturday night with a spot in Sunday’s championship finals on the line after winning their quarterfinal bouts. All seven are now automatic NCAA qualifiers.
Redshirt freshmen Shayne Van Ness (149) and Alex Facundo (165) will be looking to battle back in the consolation round after dropping close decisions in the quarterfinals. Gary Steen (125) lost his opening round matchup and faces an elimination bout in the second round of wrestlebacks early Saturday evening.
Penn State went 9-3 in the first session, with 4 major decisions, a technical fall and four decisions.
125: Nittany Lion redshirt freshman Gary Steen, the No. 10 seed, fell behind quickly and couldn’t keep up with Maryland’s No. 7 seed Braxton Brown, losing a 14-0 major decision. Steen gets a bye into the second round of wrestlebacks and will face No. 9 seed Jack Medley of Michigan on Saturday night.
133: Top-seeded Roman Bravo-Young got a bye into the quarterfinals where he took on No. 9 seed and former Nittany Lion Brody Teske. Bravo-Young dominated Teske, getting four takedowns and a pair of two-point turns while building up 5:06 in riding time for a 13-3 major decision. Seeking his third Big Ten title, RBY will face Michigan’s No. 6 seed Dylan Ragusin in Saturday night’s semifinals. Bravo-Young won their dual meet bout in January with a 4-2 decision.
141: No. 2 seed Beau Bartlett also had a first round bye and took on No. 10 seed Cole Mattin of Michigan in the quarterfinals. After a scoreless first period, Bartlett got on the board with an escape and a stall point for a 2-0 lead. A third period takedown was enough to secure a 4-2 decision and a trip to the semis, where Bartlett will battle Nebraska’s No. 3 seed Brock Hardy.
149: Nittany Lion redshirt freshman Shayne Van Ness, the No. 5 seed, earned a 16-4 major decision in the first round against No. 12 seed Jake Harrier of Illinois to advance to the quarterfinals against Iowa’s No. 4 seed Max Murin. The Hawkeye took a 2-1 lead after one and Van Ness opened the second with an escape to tie it. Murin escaped to start the third and locked up the riding time point. Van Ness couldn’t get the tying takedown, and Murin won a 4-2 decision. Van Ness will meet No. 14 seed Jaden Reynolds of Purdue in the second round of wrestlebacks as he looks to place and secure an automatic NCAA bid.
157: True freshman Levi Haines, the No. 2 seed, got a bye into the quarterfinals and took on No. 10 seed Derek Gilcher of Indiana. Haines got a takedown and rode out Gilcher to take a 2-0 lead after one period, then escaped to start the second for a 3-0 advantage. The Nittany Lion dominated the third with a two-point turn and added a riding time point for a 6-0 decision. Haines will face No. 3 seed Kendall Coleman of Purdue in the semifinals.
165: Redshirt freshman Alex Facundo, the No. 4 seed, downed Purdue’s Stony Buell in the opening round with a 7-2 decision on the strength of three takedowns. In the semifinals, Facundo struggled to break through on offense against Ohio State’s No. 5 seed Carson Kharchla, who used a first period takedown and second period escape to take a 3-0 lead. Facundo escaped to narrow the deficit to 3-1, but couldn’t get to Kharchla for the pivotal takedown. He’ll take on No. 11 seed Nick South of Indiana in the second round of consolation bouts.
174: No. 1 seed Carter Starocci had little trouble with Northwestern’s No. 15 seed Troy Fisher in the quarterfinals after getting an opening round bye. Starocci used two quick takedowns for a 4-1 lead after the first period, then escaped and got another takedown in the second. Another takedown in the third and 2:04 in riding time secured a 10-2 major decision for the Nittany Lion. Starocci, who is seeking his second Big Ten title, will meet No. 4 seed Bailee O’Reilly of Minnesota in the semifinals.
184: Top-seeded Aaron Brooks turned in the most dominant performance of the first session for the Nittany Lions as he made easy work of Rutgers’ No. 8 seed Brian Soldano in the quarterfinals. Brooks score two quick takedowns and added another before the end of the first period for a 6-2 lead. He extended that in the second with another takedown, then put it away in the third. Brooks got another quick takedown and turned Soldano twice for two and four near fall points to finish off an 18-2 technical fall at 5:57. Seeking his third Big Ten title, Brooks will take on Michigan’s No. 4 seed Matt Finesilver in the semifinals.
197: Max Dean, the No. 1 seed, got a first-round bye and faced No. 9 seed Michial Foy of Minnesota in the quarterfinals. After a scoreless first period, Foy took down to start the second and Dean was strong on top, riding out the period to build up a critical two minutes in riding time. Dean took down to start the third and managed to escape after 50 seconds for a 1-0 lead, keeping his riding time at 1:10. Neither wrestler could break through for a takedown and with a riding time point Dean claimed a 2-0 decision. Looking for his second Big Ten title, Dean will meet No. 5 seed Jacob Warner of Iowa. Dean is 3-0 in his career against Warner, including a victory in last year’s NCAA championship final.
285: No. 2 seed Greg Kerkvliet also got a first-round bye and took on No. 7 seed Tate Orndorff of Iowa in the quarterfinals. Kerkvliet scored an early takedown and rode out Orndorff for the rest of the first period. Taking down to start the second, Kerkvliet got a quick reversal then added a takedown and rideout for a 6-1 lead after two. Another takedown in the third and a whopping 5:55 in riding time sealed a 9-1 major decision for the Nittany Lion. He’ll face Iowa’s No. 3 seed Tony Cassioppi in the semifinals. Kerkvliet is 1-3 all-time against the Hawkeye, but won their most recent meeting in January with a 3-1 decision.
The Big Ten Championships continue with wrestlebacks starting at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday. The semifinals will begin at 7:30 p.m. live on the Big Ten Network.
