Four Nittany Lions Top Latest InterMat Rankings
UNIVERSITY PARK – The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team (11-0, 6-0 B1G) remains the top-ranked team in the country in the Jan. 26 release of InterMat Wrestling’s Tournament Power Index (TPI). Head coach Cael Sanderson’s squad also tops InterMat’s Dual Meet Rankings. This marks the 14th straight week that Penn State, with nine ranked individuals, holds the No. 1 spot in the TPI.
Four of Penn State’s nine ranked wrestlers are ranked No. 1 at their respective weights. As a team, Penn State holds the top spot on InterMat’s TPI with 122.5 points while Oklahoma State is second with 101.0. Iowa (94.5) and Ohio State (83.5) follow in third and fourth while Virginia Tech is fifth (76.0).
The four Nittany Lions who hold top spots at their weight classes are senior Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), 19-0 at 197; sophomore Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), 20-0 at 149; red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), 21-1 at 174; and red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), 21-0 at 157.
Senior Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.) is ranked No. 4 at 125 with a 20-1 record. Senior All-American Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.) is ranked No. 5 at 133 with a 17-3 record, giving Penn State six individuals ranked in the top five at their respective weights.
Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.) is No. 9 at 184 with a 12-2 record while junior Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.) is No. 14 at 141 with a 9-4 mark. Red-shirt freshman Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.) is No. 17 at 165 with a 13-6 record. Penn State is now 11-0 on the year, 6-0 in Big Ten dual meets. Penn State is coming off a 30-15 win at Illinois last Saturday in a dual that saw Nolf and Nickal pin unbeaten Illini.
Penn State returns to action on Sunday, Jan. 31, when it hosts No. 10 Michigan at 2 p.m. in Rec Hall. The dual has been declared a white out with fans encouraged to wear their white gear to the event.
