Nittany Lions Dominate Wolverines 35-7

UNIVERSITY PARK – No. 1 Penn State (12-0, 7-0 B1G) dominated No. 10 Michigan (10-2, 5-1 B1G) in front of a sold out Rec Hall crowd on Sunday, rolling to a 35-7 victory.  The Nittany Lions won eight of ten bouts in front of a crowd of over 6,500, handing Michigan its first conference loss of the year.

The dual began at 125 where senior Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 4 nationally, dominated Conor Youtsey, rolling to a 10-4 win with 1:58 in riding time.  Classmate Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 133, controlled No. 17 Rossi Bruno on his way to a 9-4 win with 2:27 in riding time to put Penn State up 6-0.  Junior Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 141, kept Penn State rolling with a 9-4 win over George Fisher, including 2:30 in riding time.

Sophomore Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 149, continued to excel against the nation’s best.  The Lion sophomore rolled up a big lead over No. 6 Alex Pantaleo before pinning the Wolverine at the 6:35 mark to put Penn State up 15-0.  It was Retherford’s ninth fall of the year and improved the Lion to 21-0.  Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 157, stayed perfect on the year as well (22-0), rolling to a lop-sided 22-6 win over No. 9 Brian Murphy.  Penn State carried a 20-0 lead into the mid-dual intermission.

Red-shirt freshman Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), ranked No. 17 at 165, posted a hard-fought 6-5 win over Garrett Sutton to keep Penn State’s shut-out alive.  Red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 1 at 174, took an early lead on No. 13 Davonte Mahomes before the Wolverine had to injury default, giving Penn State a 29-0 lead.  With No. 9 Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.) held out with an injury, junior Brian Brill (Lock Haven, Pa.) stepped in at 184 and dropped a 9-2 decision to No. 8 Domenic Abounader. (See below for details on Brill match).

Senior Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, received a forfeit victory at 197 to remain unbeaten on the year (20-0).  True freshman Jan Johnson (Mohnton, Pa.) was game against No. 4 Adam Coon at 285, losing a 15-5 major to the Michigan All-American.  The final bout sent Penn State home with a lop-sided 35-7 victory, remaining unbeaten on the year.

The Nittany Lions are now 12-0, 7-0 in the Big Ten, while Michigan falls to 10-2, 5-1 (suffering its first conference loss of the year).  Penn State posted a 22-14 takedown advantage and picked up 11 bonus points off a pin (Retherford), a tech fall (Nolf) and two forfeits (Nickal inj. def.; McIntosh forfeit).

Penn State hosts No. 4 Ohio State on Friday, Feb. 5, at 6 p.m. in an already sold out Bryce Jordan Center.  The dual will air live on the Big Ten Network.

#1 Penn State 35, #10 Michigan 7

January 31, 2016 – Rec Hall – University Park, Pa.

 

125: #4 Nico Megaludis PSU dec. Conor Youtsey MICH, 10-4                                          3-0

133: #5 Jordan Conaway PSU dec. #17 Rossi Bruno MICH, 9-4                                       6-0

141: #14 Jimmy Gulibon PSU dec. George Fisher MICH, 9-4                                            9-0

149: #1 Zain Retherford PSU pinned #6 Alex Pantaleo MICH, WBF (6:35)             15-0

157: #1 Jason Nolf PSU tech fall #9 Brian Murphy MICH, 22-6 (TF; 6:14)                          20-0

165: #17 Shakur Rasheed PSU dec. Garrett Sutton MICH, 6-5                                          23-0

174: #1 Bo Nickal PSU inj. def. #13 Davonte Mahomes MICH, Inj.Def (1:34)                     29-0

184: #8 Domenic Abounader MICH dec. Brian Brill PSU, 9-2                                            29-3

197: #1 Morgan McIntosh PSU win by forfeit                                                                  35-3

285: #4 Adam Coon MICH maj. dec. Jan Johnson PSU, 15-5                                           35-7

Attendance: 6,557 (sold out)

Records: Penn State 12-0, 7-0 B1G; Michigan 10-2, 5-1 B1G

Up Next for Penn State: Friday, Feb. 5, 6 p.m. – HOME vs. Ohio State, SOLD OUT BJC DUAL

184: Junior Brian Brill (Lock Haven, Pa.) got the call at 184 for Penn State and took on No. 8 Domenic Abounader. Abounader took Brill down on the edge of the mat, locking up a brief cradle to open up the early 4-0 lead.  . Brill escaped to a 4-1 score before the period ended, however, and Abounader chose down to start the second stanza. Abounader scrambled his way to a reversal and a 6-1 lead.  Brill escaped again as the period ended and trailed 6-2 after two. With Abounader owning over 2:00 in time,  Brill chose neutral to start the third period.  The Lion junior took a solid shot at the 1:10 mark but Abounader countered, worked his way behind Brill, and picked up another takedown to up his lead to 8-2 with a clinched riding time point.  Abounader worked for a turning combination in the hopes of picking up bonus points but Brill fought off each attempt and kept the bout to a regular decision, a hard-fought 9-2 loss to the ranked Wolverine.