Penn State went 4-1 Saturday night at Rec Hall in the NWCA All-Star Classic, a lineup of high-profile exhibition matches featuring some of the nation’s best collegiate wrestlers.
Shayne Van Ness, Tyler Kasak, Levi Haines and Carter Starocci each captured victories, while Beau Bartlett dropped his bout with rival Jesse Mendez.
Penn State’s night was highlighted by Van Ness dominating in his return to the mat and Starocci beating last year’s 184-pound national champion, Parker Keckeisen.
141 Pounds
The first Penn State wrestler up was No. 3 Bartlett, who took on Ohio State rival No. 2 Jesse Mendez. The Buckeye beat Bartlett in the Big Ten and NCAA Championships last season. Bartlett started quickly, putting Mendez in a headlock before the referee separated them. The two wrestlers continued working in the neutral position for most of the first period.
Before the end of the period, Mendez got in on a single-leg shot, scoring the match’s first points. Bartlett started in the bottom position to start the period, escaping after 30 seconds. The second period came to an end, Mendez still in the lead 3-1. Mendez started the third period on bottom and escaped after an intentional release by Bartlett. Mendez got to another shot but couldn’t finish for points. Nevertheless, the Buckeye picked up the win, beating Bartlett 4-1.
149 Pounds
Next, No. 2 Van Ness took on No. 3 Ty Watters of West Virginia. The match was the first of Van Ness’ return from an injury that sidelined him for the entirety of last season. Van Ness quickly got to his offense, narrowly missing out on two takedowns.
The two wrestlers scrambled for position before Van Ness scored a takedown and near-fall points, taking the lead 6-0. Watters escaped from bottom quickly to get on the scoreboard. Watters chose to start from bottom, escaping quickly. The Nittany Lion pursued Watters, scoring his second takedown of the match. Watters escaped again, making the score 9-3.
The Mountaineer got penalized for stalling at the end of the second period. Van Ness started from bottom, eventually reversing Watters to stretch the lead to 16-3. Watters escaped once more before the end of the match. Van Ness won the match 16-4, a major victory, sending a strong message to the rest of the 149-pound field.
157 Pounds
Up next for the Nittany Lions, No. 5 Kasak faced No. 3 Peyten Kellar of Ohio. It wasn’t long before Kasak got to his offense, connecting on a shot to take an early 3-0 lead. Kellar escaped after close to 1:30 of riding time was amassed by Kasak.
The two wrestlers ended the period in neutral position. The Bobcat chose bottom to start the second period. Kasak didn’t give up the position until the end of the period, his riding time over three minutes, guaranteeing an extra point at the end of the match. Kasak decided to start from bottom for the third period. The Nittany Lion failed to escape during the period but won a close 4-2 decision with the riding time point.
174 Pounds
After the 165-pound match, Penn State’s No. 2 ranked Haines faced No. 3 Cade DeVos from South Dakota State. The bout would represent Haines’ first time back in Rec Hall after winning his first national title at 165 pounds in March.
The two wrestlers remained in neutral position for the entire first period. Haines started from the bottom position to start the second, escaping after just 15 seconds. After awhile, DeVos was called for stalling, adding to Haines’ slim lead before the third. The Jackrabbit started from bottom to start the last period. Haines kept DeVos on bottom for the entirety of the period, picking up four near-fall points and a riding time point to win 7-0.
184 Pounds
In Penn State’s final match of the night, top-ranked Starocci, up a weight class from last year, faced No. 2 Parker Keckeisen out of Northern Iowa. The match marked the first meeting between the two national champions. The two wrestlers remained in neutral position for the entirety of the first period. Starocci chose the bottom position to start the second, escaping in less than 10 seconds. Starocci got in on a single leg shot but didn’t score points before the referee called for a potentially dangerous position, forcing a restart.
The two met again in neutral position for the remainder of the period. Keckeisen chose to start from bottom for the third period. Keckeisen escaped to tie the match with just over a minute left. The third period ended tied, leading to sudden victory overtime. The Nittany Lion got in on a double-leg shot to end the match and Keckeisen’s 31-bout win streak.
What’s Next?
The Nittany Lions will open their regular season against the Drexel Dragons at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 17, in Rec Hall.
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