Penn State takes down Maryland 44-3 to claim Big Ten regular season title

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA – Penn State (15-0, 8-0 B1G) took down visiting Maryland (9-8, 1-7 B1G) 44-3 on Sunday to claim the 2023 Big Ten Regular Season (dual meet) Championship. The Nittany Lions won nine of ten bouts, seven for bonus.

For the Nittany Lions, it is the ninth time they have won (or shared) the conference’s regular season title (all under head coach Cael Sanderson). Penn State’s regular season conference title list includes 2012 (co-), 2014 (co-), 2016 (co-), 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021 (co-), 2022, and now 2023. This marks the eighth time that Penn State has finished the Big Ten dual season without a loss or tie, the seventh under Sanderson.

The dual meet began at 125 where redshirt freshman Gary Steen took No. 15 Braxton Brown to the wire before losing a tough 1-0 decision. Roman Bravo-Young, ranked No. 1 at 133, put Penn State on top for good however with a rousing win at 133. Bravo-Young tallied 14 takedowns in a 28-13 technical fall over King Sandoval (6:45). Beau Bartlett, ranked No. 6 at 141, used a reversal and a takedown to post a 5-2 win over Kal Miller, giving Penn State an 8-3 lead.

Redshirt freshman Shayne Van Ness, ranked No. 13 at 149, continued Penn State’s winning ways with a dominant victory over No. 18 Ethan Miller. Van Ness turned a big lead into a rout late in the third period, using a last second six-point move (and riding time) to notch a 19-4 technical fall at the 7:00 mark. True freshman Levi Haines, ranked No. 8 at 157, sent Penn State into the halftime locker room with even more momentum, picking up the first period pin over Kevin Schork at 1:42. Haines’ fall gave Penn State a 19-3 halftime lead.

Redshirt freshman Alex Facundo, ranked No. 9 at 165, opened up the second half with Penn State’s second straight pin. Facundo turned a big lead into a third period fall, sticking Lucas Cordio at the 5:38 mark to put the Nittany Lions up 25-3. Carter Starocci, ranked No. 1 at 174, rolled up six takedowns, an escape and riding time to post a 14-6 major over Dominic Solis. Junior Donovon Ball got the call at 184 and picked up a win, notching four takedowns in a 10-3 win over Kevin Makosy.

Max Dean, ranked No. 3 at 197, won by forfeit at 197 to give the Nittany Lions a 38-3 lead. Seth Nevills got the nod at 285 and capped off a title clinching dual in fine fashion. Nevills took Jordan Gabriel down early in the first period and worked his way into a pinning position. Nevills worked for a few seconds and capped off the dual meet with a pin at the 1:56 mark. Penn State finished off an unbeaten Big Ten season with a 44-3 victory.

The Nittany Lions amassed a gaudy 39-1 takedown advantage. Penn State totaled 76 in this weekend’s two dual meet victories (including 37 against Rutgers Friday night). Winners of nine bouts in the dual, Penn State picked up 17 bonus points off three pins (Haines, Facundo, Nevills), a forfeit (Dean), two tech falls (Bravo-Young, Van Ness) and a major (Starocci)

The Nittany Lions are now 15-0 overall, 8-0 B1G. Maryland falls to 9-8, 1-7 B1G. Penn State closes out the dual meet portion of the 2023-23 season next Sunday, Feb. 19, when it hosts Clarion in Rec Hall at 1 p.m.

#1 Penn State 44, Maryland 3
February 12, 2023 – Rec Hall – University Park, Pa.
125: #15 Braxton Brown MD dec. Gary Steen PSU, 1-0 0-3
133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU tech fall King Sandoval MD, 28-13 (TF; 6:45) 5-3
141: #6 Beau Bartlett PSU dec. Kal Miller MD, 5-2 8-3
149: #13 Shayne Van Ness PSU tech fall #18 Ethan Miller MD, 19-4 (TF; 7:00) 13-3
157: #8 Levi Haines PSU pinned Kevin Schork MD, WBF (1:42) 19-3
165: #9 Alex Facundo PSU pinned Lucas Cordio MD, WBF (5:38) 25-3
174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU maj. dec. Dominic Solis MD, 14-6 29-3
184: Donovon Ball PSU dec. Kevin Makosy MD, 10-3 32-3
197: #3 Max Dean PSU win by forfeit 38-3
285: Seth Nevills PSU pinned Jordan Gabriel MD, WBF (1:56) 44-3