Penn State wrestling takes down visiting Iowa 23-14
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA – Penn State (11-0, 4-0 B1G) took care of visiting Iowa (12-1, 5-1 B1G) 23-14. The Nittany Lions gave up only two takedowns in the dual meet and remained perfect on the year.
The dual meet was wrestled in front of 15,998 fans, tied for largest crowd in NCAA wrestling history for an indoor dual meet (equaling the 15,998 mark when Penn State beat Iowa in the BJC on Feb. 10, 2018). The Nittany Lions own nine of the top 10 indoor attendance marks.
The dual meet began at 125 where Penn State sophomore Marco Vespa made his Penn State dual debut against No. 1 Spencer Lee and locked Lee up in a quick cradle off the opening whistle. Lee rebounded with a reversal and a series of near falls to post the 18-2 technical fall at the 2:14 mark. Roman Bravo-Young, ranked No. 1 at 133, answered back. Bravo-Young carried a 4-1 lead into the third period, notched another takedown and then with just seconds left, locked No. 17 Brody Teske in a cradle. Bravo-Young picked up the fall at the 6:49 mark to put Penn State on top 6-5.
Penn State’s Beau Bartlett, ranked No. 4 at 141, dropped a 4-1 decision to No. 1 Real Woods, with the Hawkeye using a first period takedown to get the win and give Iowa an 8-6 lead. Redshirt freshman Shayne Van Ness, ranked No. 13 at 149, battled senior No. 7 senior Max Murin tough for seven minutes but a late takedown and riding time allowed the Hawkeye to post a 4-1 win and give Iowa an 11-6 lead. True freshman Levi Haines, ranked No. 9 at 157, sent Penn State into the halftime break on a high note. Haines used a third period takedown as the difference in a 3-2 win over No. 15 Cobe Siebrecht. Haines’ win cut the halftime deficit to 11-9.
Redshirt freshman Alex Facundo, ranked No. 5 at 165, dropped a 2-1 (tb) decision to No. 13 Patrick Kennedy, giving Iowa a 14-9 lead with four bouts remaining. Carter Starocci, ranked No. 1 at 174, used 1:12 in riding time against No. 16 Nelson Brands to walk away with a 2-1 win over the Hawkeye. His win cut Iowa’s lead to 14-12.
Aaron Brooks, ranked No. 1 at 184, then gave Penn State a 17-14 lead (a lead it would not relinquish) with a dominant win at 184. Brooks tallied nine takedowns in a dazzling display, rolling to a 22-7 tech fall at the 5:42 mark. Max Dean, ranked No. 4 at 197, kept Penn State’s momentum going with a big victory in a rematch of last year’s NCAA title bout. Dean used a second period escape and a full third-period rideout to post a 2-0 win over No. 7 Jacob Warner. Dean’s victory pushed Penn State out to a 20-14 lead with just one match left. Greg Kerkvliet, ranked No. 2 at 285, capped off the strong team win with a 4-1 victory over No. 3 Tony Cassioppi in the dual’s final bout. Kerkvliet used a first period takedown, an escape and 2:27 in riding time to roll to the win and give Penn State the 23-14 final margin.
Penn State gave up only two takedowns and posted a 15-2 takedown edge in the dual. The Nittany Lions won six of ten bouts and picked up five bonus points off a pin (Bravo-Young) and a tech fall (Brooks).
The Nittany Lions are now 11-0 overall, 4-0 B1G. Iowa drops to 12-1, 5-1 B1G. Penn State hits the road for two dual meets next weekend. The Nittany Lions are at Ohio State on Friday, Feb. 3, in a 7 p.m. dual live on the B1G Network. Two days later, Penn State visits Indiana on Sunday, Feb. 5, for a 1 p.m. battle.
#1 Penn State 23, #2 Iowa 14
January 27, 2023 – Bryce Jordan Center – University Park, Pa.
125: #1 Spencer Lee IOWA tech fall Marco Vespa PSU, 18-2 (TF; 2:14) 0-5
133: #1 Roman Bravo-Young PSU pinned #17 Brody Teske IOWA, WBF (6:49) 6-5
141: #2 Real Woods IOWA dec. #4 Beau Bartlett PSU, 4-1 6-8
149: #7 Max Murin dec. #13 Shayne Van Ness PSU, 4-1 6-11
157: #9 Levi Haines PSU dec. #15 Cobe Siebrecht IOWA, 3-2 9-11
165: #13 Patrick Kennedy IOWA dec. #5 Alex Facundo PSU, 2-1 (tb) 9-14
174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU dec. #16 Nelson Brands IOWA, 2-1 12-14
184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU tech fall Drake Rhodes IOWA, 22-7 (TF; 5:42) 17-14
197: #4 Max Dean PSU dec. #7 Jacob Warner IOWA, 2-0 20-14
285: #2 Greg Kerkvliet PSU dec. #3 Tony Cassioppi IOWA, 4-1 23-14
Attendance: 15,998 (73rd sellout in last 75 events, including 64-straight in Rec Hall and 9 of 11 in BJC)
Records: Penn State (11-0, 4-0 B1G); Iowa (12-1, 5-1 B1G)
