Brutus Hits the BJC Mats Saturday
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. –The Penn State Nittany Lions (10-2, 7-1 B1G), ranked No. 2 nationally on InterMat’s Tournament Power Index, host No. 3 Ohio State (10-3, 6-2 B1G) in the 2020 BJC Dual. The Nittany Lions and Buckeyes square off at 7:30 p.m. in the BTN national telecast.
Penn State is coming off two road wins last weekend, downing No. 4 Wisconsin 29-10 in Madison before taking care of No. 6 Minnesota 31-10 on Sunday in Minneapolis.
Penn State freshman Brandon Meredith is 12-11 at 125 while sophomore Roman Bravo-Young is 15-1 at 133 and ranked No. 2 nationally. Junior Nick Lee is 16-0 at 141 and ranked No. 2 nationally. Sophomore Jarod Verkleeren is 14-5 at 149 and ranked No. 17 by InterMat. Junior Bo Pipher sports a 9-11 record at 157 and classmate Luke Gardner, a 149-pounder, is 6-2 overall having wrestled at both 149 and 157.
Senior Vincenzo Joseph sports an 11-0 mark at 165 and is ranked No. 1 in the country while senior Mark Hall is ranked No. 2 at 174 with an 18-1 overall record. True freshman Aaron Brooks, one of two true freshmen in the Penn State line-up, is 10-1 overall and ranked No. 6 at 184. Senior Shakur Rasheed is 4-3 on the year and ranked No. 17 at 197. True freshman Seth Nevills is 12-2 overall and ranked No. 15 at 285.
Ohio State enters the dual with a 10-3 overall record, 6-2 in conference action. The Buckeyes are led by senior Luke Pletcher, who is 23-0 on the year and ranked No. 1 at 141; and senior Kollin Moore, who is 23-0 at 197 and ranked No. 1 as well. Freshman Sammy Sasso is 21-2 at 149 and ranked No. 1 as well. Sophomore Kaleb Romero is 15-4 at 174 and ranked No. 7, freshman Rocky Jordan is 25-6 and ranked No. 12 at 184, and sophomore Ethan Smith is 15-10 and ranked No. 16 at 165.
Penn State leads the all-time series with the Buckeyes 21-12, including a string of four straight. Penn State won 28-9 last year in Columbus on Feb. 8, 2019. The Lions won the last meeting in State College, a 19-18 victory on Feb. 3, 2018, in Rec Hall.
Penn State closes out its dual meet schedule next Sunday, hosting American University in Rec Hall at 2 p.m. The dual will serve as Senior Day for Penn State.
#2 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (10-2, 7-1 B1G)
WT NAME EL HT/HS REC
125 Brandon Meredith Fr. Limerick, Pa./Spring-Ford 12-11
133 #2 Roman Bravo-Young So. Tucson, Ariz./Sunny Side 15-1
141 #2 Nick Lee Jr. Evansville, Ind./Homeschool 16-0
149 #17 Jarod Verkleeren So. Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield 14-5
Luke Gardner Jr. Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville 6-2
157 Bo Pipher Jr. Paonia, Colo./Paonia 9-11
Brady Berge So. Mantorville, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville 1-0
165 #1 Vincenzo Joseph Sr. Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic 11-0
174 #2 Mark Hall Sr. Apple Valley, Minn./Apple Valley 18-1
184 #6 Aaron Brooks Fr. Hagerstown, Md./North Hagerstown 10-1
197 #17 Shakur Rasheed Sr. Coram, N.Y./Longwood 4-3
285 #15 Seth Nevills Fr. Clovis, Calif./Clovis 12-2
#3 OHIO STATE (10-3, 6-2 B1G)
WT NAME EL HT/HS REC
125 Malik Heinselman So. Castle Rock, Colo./Castle View 14-13
Dylan Koontz So. Plover, Wis./Stevens Point 12-9
133 Jordan Decatur Fr. Akron, Ohio/Cuyahoga Valley Christian 11-7
141 #1 Luke Pletcher Sr. Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe 23-0
149 #1 Sammy Sasso Fr. Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth 21-2
157 Quinn Kinner Fr. Mullica Hill, N.J./Kingsway Regional 14-5
Elijah Cleary Jr. Winter Park, Fla./Lake Highland Prep 13-10
165 #16 Ethan Smith So. Latrobe, Pa./Sparrows Point (Md.) 15-10
174 #7 Kaleb Romero So. Mechanicsburg, Ohio/Mechanicsburg 15-4
184 #12 Rocky Jordan Fr. St. Paris, Ohio/St. Paris Graham 25-6
197 #1 Kollin Moore Sr. Burbank, Ohio/Norwayne 23-0
285 Gary Traub Jr. Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore 19-6
Rankings listed are InterMat TPI/InterMat Individual as of 2/11/20
