Penn State wrestling: 4 takeaways from the Lions win over Ohio State
STATE COLLEGE — The No. 1 Penn State wrestling team won its 52nd consecutive dual meet on Friday night by taking out No. 7 Ohio State 28-9 here at Rec Hall. Head coach Cael Sanderson won his 199th match as a Nittany Lion. His team won eight of 10 bouts and never trailed at Rec Hall.
“Ohio State always has a great team and they came ready to wrestle tonight,” Sanderson said. “They pushed us pretty dang good. We’re going to keep getting better and keep looking forward to the next match and preparing for the postseason. That’s the fun stuff. It was a great match tonight. Ohio State did a great job.”
Here are our top takeaways from the victory.
1. Davis catches a break
Freshman Braeden Davis is still perfect at the college level. His first 13 wins in a blue and white singlet came mostly through domination. The 14th, while earned, was the result of a fortunate call. With the Penn State 125-pounder leading Ohio State’s Vinny Kilkeary 4-3 late in the third period thanks to a second period takedown and pair of escapes, the Buckeye shot and a wild scramble seemed to end with him in control for a takedown at the horn that would have given him a 6-4 upset win. Instead, after review, the officials did not award the points, giving Davis a one-point victory.
Sanderson said he thought the rule related to reaction time necessary for a takedown is why it wasn’t awarded. It was a call that will be debated in the wrestling community for the rest of the weekend. Regardless, it went the Nittany Lions wrestler’s way as he continues to find ways to win at the college level.
2. Penn State wins the match of the night
There was simply no question coming into Friday night that the bout of the dual meet would come at 141 pounds. It featured No. 2 Beau Bartlett (13-0) vs. No. 3 Jesse Mendez (19-1) in a battle of All-Americans. The Nittany Lions came out on top. Bartlett was energetic throughout the match, but neither wrestler found much room to work with from a shot perspective. Each earned an escape point over the first seven minutes, which sent the bout into sudden victory tied at 1-1. Mendez shot first in the extra frame, but Bartlett caught him, countered, and earned control for a match-deciding takedown that stood up upon review and led to a 4-1 victory. The two could meet again at Big Tens and/or Nationals. But, for now, Bartlett has the leg up.
3. Kasak should be locked in at 149
Penn State sent freshman and 12th-ranked Tyler Kasak to the mat, which burned his redshirt in 2023-2024, at 149 pounds. He did not disappoint. Facing No. 9 Dylan D’Emilio, Kasak was the aggressor throughout the bout. After picking up two nearfall points in the second period, Kasak earned a takedown early in the third period that gave him a 6-1 advantage. The Buckeye would later escape, but it was nullified by Kasak earning a riding time point to win 7-2.
At this point, there is no reason to think anyone other than Kasak will be the Lions’ starter at 149 pounds moving forward.
4. It wasn’t all pretty for the Lions
First-year Penn State wrestler Aaron Nagao was in more of a toss-up bout than many fans probably cared to admit prior to his 133-pound meeting with Ohio State’s Nic Bouzakis. And, the 12th-ranked Buckeye came out on top. He was active from the start and put the Nittany Lion in a 9-2 hole after three minutes of wrestling that he could not recover from. Struggling to get his offense going, Nagao nearly had a takedown in the third period that would have made it interesting. But, it was not awarded, and Bouzkakis won by decision, 12-7.
The stunner of the night came at 184 pounds. First-year Lion Bernie Truax, ranked No. 5, started out great. He led Ryder Rogotzke 6-2 after one. But, in the second, the Buckeye escaped to 6-3, but Truax quickly erased that for a takedown and 9-3 lead. It didn’t last long. Rogotzke shot and threw Truax to his back and earned the fall at the 3:59 mark of the mat. It’s safe to say no one saw that coming.
Penn State-Ohio State box score
125 pounds: No. 3 Braeden Davis, Penn State d. Vinny Kilkeary, Ohio State, 4-3 (3-0)
133 pounds: No. 12 Nic Bouzakis, OSU d. No. 5 Aaron Nagao, Penn State, 12-7 (3-3)
141 pounds: No. 2 Beau Bartlett, PSU d. No. 3 Jesse Mendez, Ohio State, 4-1 sv (6-3)
149 pounds: No. 12 Tyler Kasak PSU d. No. 19 Dylan D’Emilio, OSU, 7-1 (9-3)
157 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines, PSU md. Isaac Wilcox, Ohio State, 11-3 (13-3)
165 pounds: No. 7 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State d. No. 20 Bryce Hepner, OSU, 10-4 (16-3)
174 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, Penn State d. No. 11 Rocco Welsh, Ohio State, 4-2 (19-3)
184 pounds: Ryder Rogotzke, OSU pins No. 5 Bernie Truax, PSU, 3:59 (19-9)
197 pounds: No. 1 Aaron Brooks, Penn State tf. No. 22 Luke Geog, Ohio State, 22-6 (6:21) (24-9)
285 pounds: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU md. No. 12 Nick Feldman, OSU, 12-0 (28-9)
