Penn State Grabs 21-15 Victory over Hokies
BLACKSBURG, Va. – The top-ranked Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team (2-0, 0-0 B10) won six of ten bouts and grabbed a 21-15 win at No. 7 Virginia Tech (1-1 0-0 ACC) in Penn State’s first road dual of the year. In a dual meet featuring 15 ranked grapplers, head coach Cael Sanderson’s crew took control late with three straight victories.
The Nittany Lions rode the strong performances of red-shirt freshmen Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.) and Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), both of whom downed third-ranked opponents, to the road win. The dual was wrestled in front of 5,097 fans, a new Virginia Tech attendance record for wrestling.
The dual began at 125 where All-American Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 2 nationally, suffered a 4-3 (tb) loss to No. 6 Joey Dance. All-American Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, handled No. 18 Kevin Norstrem 4-1 with 3:17 riding time, tying the bout at 3-3. All-American Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at his new weight of 141, was upset with a late second takedown in a 3-1 loss to Solomon Chishko. All-American Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 2 at his new weight of 149, put Penn State on top with a 15-0 technical fall over No. 13 Sal Mastriani, giving the Nittany Lions an 8-6 lead.
Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 6 at 157, dominated No. 3 Nick Brascetta, posting a 4-1 win with a solid 2:03 in riding time. The win put Penn State up 11-6 midway through the bout. Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) suffered a tough loss at 165, losing a 10-8 (sv) decision to Dave McFadden after a furious late McFadden comeback. Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 14 at 174, silenced the record Hokie crowd, however, by dominating No. 3 Zach Epperly on his way to a 6-2 decision. The win put Penn State up 14-9 with three bouts left.
Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 184, increased Penn State’s lead to 18-9 with a resounding 18-4 major decision over Virginia Tech’s Zack Zavatsky. All-American Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, then clinched the dual with a 9-2 win over No. 17 Jared Haught. The win put Penn State up 21-9. No. 2 Ty Walz of Virginia Tech received a forfeit victory at 285 and Penn State left a raucous Cassell Coliseum with the 21-15 win.
Penn State held a 10-7 edge in takedowns in the hotly contested dual. Sanderson’s squad picked up three bonus points off a tech fall and a major. The Nittany Lions are now 2-0 on the year while Virginia Tech falls to 1-1.
Penn State heads west next weekend for two dual meets in California. The Nittany Lions visit Cal-Bakersfield on Friday, Nov. 20, at 10 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Pacific. Penn State then visits Stanford on Sunday, Nov. 22, at 4 p.m. Eastern/1 p.m. Pacific.
#1 Penn State 21, #7 Virginia Tech 15
November 15, 2015 – Blacksburg, Va.
125: #6 Joey Dance VT dec. #2 Nico Megaludis PSU, 4-3 (TB) 0-3
133: #8 Jordan Conaway PSU dec. #18 Kevin Norstrem VT, 4-1 3-3
141: Solomon Chishko VT dec. #2 Jimmy Gulibon PSU, 3-1 3-6
149: #2 Zain Retherford PSU tech fall #13 Sal Mastriani VT, 15-0 (TF; 4:25) 8-6
157: #6 Jason Nolf PSU dec. #3 Nick Brascetta VT, 4-1 11-6
165: Dave McFadden VT dec. (sv) Shakur Rasheed PSU, 10-8 (sv) 11-9
174: #14 Bo Nickal PSU dec. #3 Zach Epperly VT, 6-2 14-9
184: #14 Matt McCutcheon PSU maj. dec. Zack Zavatsky VT, 18-4 18-9
197: #1 Morgan McIntosh PSU dec. #17 Jared Haught VT, 9-2 21-9
285: #2 Ty Walz VT win by forfeit
Attendance: 5,097 (new Virginia Tech attendance record)
Records: Penn State 2-0, 0-0 B1G; Virginia Tech 1-1, 0-0 ACC
Up Next for Penn State: at CS-Bakersfield, Friday, Nov. 20, 10 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Pacific.
