Six Penn State wrestlers advanced to the Big Ten finals and the Nittany Lions took the lead in the team race as day one of the conference championships came to a close on Saturday night at Michigan’s Crisler Center.
In total, nine Nittany Lions finished the day as NCAA qualifiers.
Seeking its first Big Ten team title since 2019, Penn State sits atop the leaderboard with 120 points. Iowa is in second with 105.5, followed by surging Nebraska with 98.5, Ohio State with 77 and Minnesota with 73 to round out the top five.
Roman Bravo-Young (133), Levi Haines (157), Carter Starocci (174), Aaron Brooks (184), Max Dean (197) and Greg Kerkvliet (285) each won their semifinal bouts. Beau Bartlett (141) was Penn State’s lone miss in the semis, and he’ll wrestle in Sunday afternoon’s consolation semifinals with a chance to finish as high as third.
Shayne Van Ness (149) battled back from a quarterfinal loss to advance to the consolation semifinals as well. Alex Facundo (165) will wrestle for seventh place.
Gary Steen (125) moved to the 9/10 placer bracket after his second loss of the day and missed out on an automatic bid. The ninth-place bout does not count toward team points.
Here’s a brief look at how each Penn State wrestler fared on Saturday night and what’s next.
125: Redshirt freshman Gary Steen, the No. 10 seed, battled hard against Michigan’s No. 9 seed Jack Medley in the second round of consolations but couldn’t overcome two first period takedowns. From there until late in the third, Steen held Medley to an escape and was aggressive on offense but could only muster an escape of his own. Medley connected on a late takedown to put away a 7-2 decision.
133: Fresh off his 50th consecutive victory in the quarterfinal round, No. 1 seed Roman Bravo-Young took control early in the semifinals against No. 6 seed Dylan Ragusin of Michigan. Bravo-Young struck with a quick takedown and, after a Ragusin escape, powered through on a low shot to open up a 4-1 lead. After an escape to start the second, RBY fought off a persistent Ragusin attempt over the final 20 seconds of the period to hold onto a 5-1 lead. The Nittany Lion built up over a minute in riding time to start the third before cutting Ragusin loose, then finished it off with a late takedown and riding time point for an 8-2 decision.
Seeking his third conference title, Bravo-Young will take on No. 6 seed Aaron Nagao of Minnesota in the final. Nagao upset Ohio State’s second-seeded freshman standout Jesse Mendez with a sudden victory decision in the other semifinal.
141: No. 2 seed Beau Bartlett started off strong in his semifinal bout against No. 3 seed Brock Hardy of Nebraska, executing a spectacular counter to a Hardy shot by rolling under and getting behind him for a first-period takedown. After a Hardy escape, Bartlett led 2-1 at the end of the first, but the Husker would take control from there. Hardy escaped to start the second, countered a Bartlett attempt with a double leg for a takedown and rode out the period. Bartlett escaped to start the third and pull within 4-3, but Hardy got in on another takedown and secured the riding time point for a 7-3 victory.
Bartlett can still finish as high as third and as low as sixth. He’ll face No. 8 seed Parker Filius of Purdue in the consolation semifinals on Sunday afternoon.
149: After a quarterfinal loss earlier in the day, No. 5 seed Shayne Van Ness had a successful night in the consolation bracket. The redshirt sophomore scored early and often while building up three minutes of riding time for a 19-7 major decision in his first conso bout against Purdue’s Jaden Reynolds. In the next round, Van Ness took control quickly against Michigan’s Chance Lamer, getting out to a 13-4 lead before Lamer took an injury default at the 5:50 mark.
Van Ness will meet No. 7 seed Graham Rooks of Indiana in the consolation semifinals, and, like Bartlett, can finish as high as third.
157: No. 2 seed Levi Haines continued his phenomenal true freshman campaign in the semifinal bout against No. 3 seed Kendall Coleman of Purdue. After a scoreless first, Haines escaped quickly to start the second then worked a low single into a takedown to open up a 3-0 lead over the Boilermakers’ fifth-year senior. Coleman escaped, then escaped again to start the third, but Haines kept him at bay and advanced to the finals with a 3-2 decision.
Haines will take on No. 1 seed Peyton Robb of Nebraska in the title bout. Robb narrowly defeated Michigan State’s fourth-seeded Chase Saldate 4-3 in the other semifinal.
165: No. 4 seed Alex Facundo rebounded from his quarterfinal loss in his first consolation bout against Indiana’s No. 11 seed Nick South. A takedown out of a scramble late in the first period and a second period escape put the Nittany Lion in front 3-0. South escaped to start the third, but Facundo held tough for a 3-1 decision. Facundo then faced No. 10 seed Bubba Wilson of Nebraska in the next conso round and took a 1-0 lead with an escape to start the second period. Wilson escaped to start the third then got a quick takedown for the lead. Facundo escaped and worked for a decisive takedown, but the Husker held him off for a 3-2 decision.
Facundo heads to the seventh-place bout, where he will battle No. 8 seed Dan Braunagel of Illinois.
174: Top seed Carter Starocci used a double leg for a takedown at the edge of the mat and an early lead in the opening period of his semifinal matchup with No. 4 seed Bailee O’Reilly of Minnesota. The undefeated Nittany Lion then worked a head outside single for another takedown late in the first and a 4-1 lead. O’Reilly got an escape in the second only after Starocci built his riding time over a minute. Starocci escaped to start the third and added another takedown late in the period. With the riding time point, Starocci earned an 8-2 decision.
Going for his second Big Ten championship, Starocci will face Nebraska’s No. 2 seed Mikey Labriola in the title bout on Sunday. Labriola won a 3-2 decision over No. 3 seed Ethan Smith of Ohio State in the other semi. Starocci is 2-0 in his career against Labriola, with a 6-1 decision in last year’s NCAA quarterfinals and a 3-1 sudden victory win in the 2021 Big Ten semifinals.
184: No. 1 seed Aaron Brooks controlled the action against No. 4 seed Matt Finesilver of Michigan in their semifinal bout. Brooks used a high double for the bout’s first takedown, then added two more before the end of the first for a 6-2 lead. Three more takedowns and a stall point against Finesilver pushed Brooks’ margin to 13-5 after two periods. It was more of the same in the third, as Brooks notched his seventh and eighth takedowns, and with a riding time point claimed an 18-6 major decision.
Brooks will aim for a third Big Ten title when he takes on No. 2 seed Kaleb Romero of Ohio State in the championship bout. Brooks won both their previous meetings: a 3-2 decision in January and a 13-2 major in last year’s NCAA quarterfinals.
197: No. 1 seed Max Dean and Iowa’s fifth-seeded Jacob Warner battled to a scoreless first period of their semifinal bout. Dean chose down to start the second and Warner initially managed a strong ride, but the Nittany Lion senior escaped at the 1:25 mark then used a fast shot for a takedown and a 3-0 lead. Warner escaped to start the third, but that was all he would get as Dean earned the 3-1 decision, his 100th career victory.
Dean will wrestle for his second Big Ten title when he faces No. 2 seed Silas Allred of Nebraska in the final.
285: No. 2 seed Greg Kerkvliet used a fast double leg for a takedown and then rode out the first period of his semifinal bout against Iowa’s third-seeded Tony Cassioppi. Kerkvliet took down to start the second and worked for a reversal to double his lead to 4-0. The Nittany Lion finished it off with a full period rideout in the third and a riding time point for the 5-0 decision.
In Sunday’s championship bout, Kerkvliet will take on No. 1 seed Mason Parris of Michigan, who won a 9-3 decision over Wisconsin’s No. 5 seed Trent Hillger in the other semifinal. Kerkvliet is 3-2 all time against Parris, including victories in the consolation rounds of last year’s Big Ten and NCAA tournaments, but the Wolverine won their most recent meeting with a 3-1 decision in January.
Consolation semifinals and seventh-place matches get underway at 1 p.m. on Sunday and will be streamed on Big Ten Plus. Championship bouts and third- and fifth-place matches begin at 4:30 p.m. live on the Big Ten Network.
