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UNIVERSITY PARK-- With final exams looming this week, the No. 1 Penn State wrestling aced its final home dual meet test of 2022.
The Nittany Lions (4-0) won nine of 10 bouts and accumulated a 28-3 edge in takedowns in routing Oregon State (2-2), 31-3, Sunday in front of 6,511 fans, the 63rd consecutive sellout crowd.
"I think looking at the lineups going into the dual it had the potential to be a really good duel. Our guys were able to win some close matches and separate the score a little bit," Penn State Head Coach Cael Sanderson said. "They came in here and wrestled well, I think. As I said earlier in the week, they're definitely an up-and-coming program."
Beavers coach Chris Pendleton acknowledged his team had its share of near misses, but seemed encouraged by the effort he saw.
"We lost a lot of the one-takedown battles. But we're more process driven than result driven. We wanted to come in and we wanted to wrestle the best. That's what we want to do, what we want to continue to do as long as they will keep us on the schedule," Pendleton said.
"I actually was very impressed with our two true freshmen's performances in Gabe Whisenhunt (133) and Noah Tolentino (149) against two elite level guys. I can teach a lot of technique, I can teach a lot of drills, I can teach a lot of different things. I can't teach the will to fight or the will to win. I was thinking that 65 and 97 were matches we could definitely win. We're right there with a national champion and one of the top-ranked freshmen in the country."
The Beavers' 12 th -ranked Brandon Kaylor escaped to start the third and scored the match's only takedown on his way to a 4-0 win over Gary Steen at 125 pounds to kick things off.
Top-ranked Roman Bravo-Young ceded the first takedown to Oregon State backup
Gabe Whisenhunt before rolling up seven of his own, three each in the first and second periods to post a 17-8 major decision and give the Nittany Lions the lead, 4-3.
Ninth-ranked Nittany Lion 141-pounder Beau Bartlett struck with quick low singles in the first and third periods and tacked on an escape in the second for a 5-3 win over No. 24 Cleveland Belton.
Shayne Van Ness, ranked No. 17 at 149, ran the Lions' lead to 10-3 with a deceivingly dominating 6-1 decision over Noah Tolentino. Van Ness recorded takedowns in the first and third periods and amassed 2:10 in riding time for another point.
No. 30 Terrell Barraclough closed out the first half of the meet with an 8-4 decision over Isaiah Crosby at 157. Barraclough picked up a takedown in each period and added a riding-time point in a decisive win.
Barraclough talked about the confidence he seemed to wrestle with.
"It's one of the things I've been working on with Coach Cael since the second I got here," he said. "It's the thing that I know that I need to keep practicing and constantly keep in my mind because it makes a big difference."
An escape in the third period was the difference at 165, as No. 15 Alex Facundo nipped No. 25 Matthew Olguin, 3-2. Facundo scored the only takedown of the bout in the first period.
Top-ranked Carter Starocci ran his winning streak to 32 matches with a dominating 14-3 major decision over No. 28 Aaron Olmost at 174 pounds. Starocci recorded two takedowns in each period in cruising to the win.
A pair of backups met at 184 in Penn State's Donovan Ball and Oregon State's Jackson McKinney. Ball converted on a single-leg attack with 13 seconds left in the match to pull out a 3-1 decision. Sanderson didn't disclose why Aaron Brooks didn't wrestle but did indicate that he is all right.
Fifth-ranked Max Dean bounced back from a two-match losing streak with a 6-3 decision over No. 11 Tanner Harvey. Dean used first- and second-period takedowns and a riding-time point for 1:40 in advantage.
In Greg Kerkvliet's first bout as the No. 1 wrestler at 285, he showed no signs of wanting to relinquish the position. He scored a quick takedown on J.J. Dixon and turned him twice for an 8-0 lead after one period. He added three more takedowns, a reversal and another turn for an 18-2 technical fall in 6:08.
Kerkvliet brushed aside talk of being the new face of the weight class.
"I wouldn't look at myself that way. I mean, I'm in the heavyweight division with a bunch of top wrestlers. I'm one of those, I think," he said. "I mean, hopefully Gable (Steveson) comes back and adds to that, but I think we're all just getting each other better, pushing each other and we'll see who is the NCAA champ at the end of the day."
Penn State will take a week off competition for the aforementioned finals week before heading to New Orleans on Dec. 19-20 for the Collegiate Wrestling Duals. The Nittany
Lions wrestle Central Michigan at 7 p.m. and North Carolina at 9 p.m. on the 19 th .
No. 1 Penn State 31
Oregon State 3
(Sunday at University Park)
125: No. 12 Brandon Kaylor, OSU, dec. Gary Steen, 4-0. 133: No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young, PSU, maj. dec. Gabe Whisenhunt, 17-8. 141: No. 9 Beau Bartlett, PSU, dec. No. 24 Cleveland Belton, 5-3. 149: No. 17 Shayne Van Ness, PSU, dec. Noah Tolentino, 6-1. 157: No. 30 Terrell Barraclough, PSU, dec. Isaiah Crosby, 8-4. 165: No. 15 Alex Facundo, PSU, dec. No. 25 Matthew Olguin, 3-2. 174: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU, maj. dec. No. 28 Aaron Olmos, 14-3. 184: Donovan Ball, PSU, dec. Jackson McKinney, 3-2. 197: No. 5 Max Dean, PSU, dec. No. 11 Tanner Harvey, 6-3. 285: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, won by tech. fall over J.J. Dixon, 18-2 (6:08). Ridge Riley Award winner: Max Dean. Referees: Michael Chase and Angel Rivera. Attendance: 6,511. Takedowns: Oregon State 3; Penn State 28. Records: Oregon State 2-2; Penn State 4-0.