×

PSU matmen drop Iowa

UNIVERSITY PARK — The top-ranked Penn State wrestling team showed Friday night that the gulf between No. 1 and 2 in the 2025 dual rankings is as wide as it was at the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships –a veritable Grand Canyon.

The Nittany Lions (10-0, 4-0 B1G) dominated No. 2 Iowa (9-1, 3-1 B1G) 30-8, winning 8 of 10 bouts in front of a Bryce Jordan Center sell-out crowd of 15,998, which tied Penn State and NCAA indoor records. The Nittany Lions won six bouts involving pairs of ranked wrestlers and two upsets over higher ranked opponents.

The rout extended Penn State’s winning streak to 66 matches and was the Nittany Lions’ fourth victory in a row over the Hawkeyes. Penn State and Iowa have met five times when the teams were ranked 1 and 2. Penn State is 3-2 in those meetings.

In a majority of Friday’s matches, the Nittany Lion was the clear aggressor, which manifested itself in a 24-8 edge in takedowns. Only three Hawkeyes were able to score a takedown. Penn State hasn’t lost a dual meet in five years, the last coming exactly five years ago Friday, 19-17 at then-No.1 Iowa.

“You know, this team’s not worried about anything that happened in previous years, right? They’re just doing what they do and just competing hard, and they wrestled pretty dang good,” coach Cael Sanderson said. “You know, that’s a really good team. We saw it tonight. So proud of them.”

No. 7 Luke Lilledahl (125) and No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (165) rolled to technical fall wins. No. 4 Shayne Van Ness (149) and No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet (285) posted major decisions. No. 3 Beau Bartlett, No. 3 Tyler Kasak (157), No. 2 Levi Haines (174) and No. 1 Carter Starocci (184) earned decisions.

From the start, Penn State took the fight to the Hawkeyes, often scoring the first points of the match and then, almost to a man, dominating in the third period and outscoring their Iowa opponent.

“I saw that, and I saw Penn State score the first points,” Iowa coach Tom Brands said. “You’ve got to be ready to go. And you’ve got to be ready to go when things don’t go your way. You’ve got to be ready to go if things

aren’t going your way. And then all of a sudden, there’s a shift. We did not handle those shifts very well.”

Lilledahl got the Nittany Lions off to a rousing start at 125 with a 22-6 domination of No. 26 Joey Cruze. Scoring a takedown in each of the first two periods to go with an escape, Lilledahl led 7-1 heading into the final period. From there he shifted into another gear, scoring five takedowns in rapid succession to close out the technical fall in 6:43.

Iowa tied the match at 5-5 when No. 3 Drake Ayala rolled past backup Kurt McHenry, subbing for Braeden Davis. Ayala used six takedowns and an escape to end the match in 3:42.

“Davis was just a little banged up from last week, so we figured it would be in his best interest to kind of let him rest a little,” Sanderson said.

Bartlett helped Penn State reclaim the lead with a decision over Cullan Schriever at 141. Bartlett used two first-period takedowns and an escape in the third, sandwiched around multiple timeouts for a bloody nose in the 7-3 win.

Van Ness expanded the Nittany Lion lead to 12-5 with a dominating major decision at 149 in a battle of Top 4 wrestlers. After No. 2 Kyle Parco reversed No. 4 Van Ness to take a 6-4 lead early in the second, Van Ness escaped, scored a takedown and turned Parco for four points to open a 12-6 lead. In the third he escaped, scored another takedown and worked a series of pinning combinations from the top to ride out the period and a post a resounding 17-6 win.

For the second match in a row, Penn State scored what would be considered an upset win over a higher ranked opponent. After a scoreless first, third-ranked Kasak escaped and took down top-ranked Jacori Teemer. In a scramble late in the period, Kasak and Teemer went out of bounds and, in the exchange, Kasak hit his head and opened a gash. After getting a pressure bandage and head wrap, he proceeded and the period ended with the Nittany Lion in the lead, 4-1.

Teemer escaped to start the third but couldn’t get any offense going. Twice Kasak was in deep but couldn’t convert. On the last, he slipped behind Teemer while they were on their feet and, as time ticked away in the match, He held Teemer in the air with one arm and pumped his fist in the air as time expired. He ripped off his head gear, pumped his first in the air and flexed as the crowd roared after his 5-2 win and Penn State’s 15-5 lead at the intermission.

“As far as the celebration and that stuff, I mean I kind of just blacked out. I have no idea what I really did, so just enjoying the moment and grateful for the opportunities to wrestle a team like Iowa. I mean, they’re probably my favorite team to wrestle,” Kasak said.

As he has done all season, Mesenbrink rolled to yet another technical fall, this time over No. 2 Mikey Caliendo. Mesenbrink rolled up five takedowns, in a variety of shots and counters, added two stall points and an escape to end the match 19-4 in 6:24 as the crowd roared its approval.

Penn State rolled to its fifth straight win at 174 when second-ranked Levi Haines built momentum as the match wore on, scoring a takedown in the second and two more in the third for a 10-3 decision over No. 6 Patrick Kennedy.

Top-ranked and four-time NCAA champion Starocci locked up the win for Penn State with a tense, tactical 3-1 win over Angelo Ferrari. It wasn’t the anticipated matchup with Hawkeye redshirt freshman Gabe Arnold, who made headlines a week ago when he predicted an Iowa win and a promise of ‘his head is mine.”

Brands said that the decision to wrestle Ferrari was an attempt at “load management for Arnold,” who the coach said would be their full-time starter.

“People don’t like Gabe Arnold,” he said. “We need to make sure that he’s feeling pretty doggone good down this stretch. He’s going to be our guy at 84.”

So, Arnold will have to wait until the postseason for a possible showdown with Starocci.

Iowa scored its only other win in another battle of Top 4 wrestlers at 197. No. 1 Stephen Buchanan scored a takedown in the latter stages of the third and added a point for riding time in a 5-1 win over No. 4 Josh Barr.

4 / 4

Finally, at 285, Kerkvliet dominated No. 11 Ben Kueter 12-2, demonstrating superiority both on his feet and on the mat. The defending NCAA champion scored three takedowns and piled up 3:32 in riding time.

For most observers, a 30-8 win of No. 1 over No. 2 is clearly a statement. Sanderson, however, wasn’t buying into that narrative.

“We’re just trying to be at our best in the big moments. That’s a statement of just consistency,” he said. “Consistency is kind of the name of the game.”

Penn State returns to the BJC at 6 p.m. Friday as Michigan comes to town.

No. 1 Penn State 30

No. 2 Iowa 8

(Friday at University Park, Pa.)

125: No. 7 Luke Lilledahl, PSU, won by tech. fall over No. 26 Joey Cruze, 22-6 (6:43).

133: No. 3 Drake Ayala, I, won by tech. fall over Kurt McHenry, 19-4 (3:42).

141: No. 3 Beau Bartlett, PSU, dec. Cullan Schriever, 7-3.

149: No. 4 Shayne Van Ness, PSU, maj. Dec. No. 2 Kyle Parco, 17-6.

157: No. 3 Tyler Kasak, PSU, dec. No. 1 Jacori Teemer, 5-2.

165: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, PSU, won by tech. fall over No. 2 Mikey Caliendo, 19-4 (6:24).

174: No. 2 Levi Haines, PSU, dec. No. 6 Patrick Kennedy, 10-3.

184: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU, dec. Angelo Ferrari, 3-1.

197: No. 1 Stephen Buchanan, I, No. 4 Josh Barr,

285: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, maj. dec. No. 11 Ben Kueter, 12-2.

Referee: Matt Sorochinsky.

Attendance: 15,998

Takedowns: Iowa 8; Penn State 24.

Records: Iowa 9-1, 3-1 B1G; Penn State 10-0, 4-0 B1G.

Next match: Michigan at Penn State, 6 p.m. Friday at Bryce Jordan Center.

Starting at $2.99/week.

Subscribe Today