Penn State is coming off a key 22-12 dual meet win over Iowa last Sunday. The Nittany Lions reeled off seven straight wins against the Hawkeyes to roll to victory. The win improved Penn State to 8-1 overall, 4-1 in Big Ten action, and was highlighted by sophomore Ed Ruth's major decision at 174 and true freshman Morgan McIntosh's sudden victory over Iowa All-American Grant Gambrall at 197. The Nittany Lions won the statistical battle as well, winning seven of ten bouts, four with riding time and owning a lopsided 18-10 takedown advantage.
The Nittany Lions are being led by eight ranked grapplers, all of whom are in the top 12. Three-time All-American Frank Molinaro is 20-0 and ranked No. 1 at 149, All-American David Taylor is 18-0 and rnaked No. 1 at 165, All-American Ruth is 20-0 and ranked No. 2 at 174 and All-American Quentin Wright is 17-2 and ranked No. 2 at 184. Senior Cameron Wade is 17-4 at heavyweight and ranked No. 6 while true freshman Dylan Alton is ranked No. 7 at 157 with a 15-4 mark and true freshman Nico Megaludis is ranked No. 8 at 125 with a 16-5 record. True freshman McIntosh is 13-5 at 197 and ranked No. 12.
Ohio State enters the dual after its own win over Iowa on Friday, Jan. 20. The Buckeyes have nine wrestlers ranked in the top 20, including four in the top ten. Red-shirt freshman Logan Stieber is 19-1 at 133 and ranked No. 3 while his brother Hunter, a true freshman, is 18-3 at 141 and ranked No. 6. Nick Heflin is 19-2 at 174 and ranked No. 8 while C.J. Magrum is ranked No. 10 at 184 with a 14-3 record.
Penn State leads the all-time series by a slim 14-11 margin, including a 42-3 win in Rec Hall last season. Ohio State won the last meeting in Columbus the year before.
Penn State returns to action on Feb. 3 at Nebraska in an 8 p.m. (Eastern)/7 p.m. (Central) dual. The Nittany Lions next home dual is on Sunday, Feb. 5, when Michigan comes to town for a 2 p.m. battle. All seats for the Michigan dual are sold out but some standing room only tickets remain. Fans can purchase a very limited number of SRO tickets by calling 1-800-NITTANY.
Tickets are priced at $8 for adults and $5 for youth (18 and under) and can be purchased from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day or in person at the Bryce Jordan Center box office. The full season slate of live dual meet and tournament action will air locally on WRSC AM (1390 AM) with Friday evening duals being simulcast on WRSC FM (103.1 FM). Lock Haven's WBPZ (1230 AM) will also carry the entire season live and further affiliates may be added soon. WIEZ 670 AM (Huntingdon/Lewistown) will carry all Sunday duals during the regular season plus the Big Ten and NCAA Championships in March. The regular season schedule of radio broadcasts will be streamed live at www.GoPSUsports.com as part of Penn State's All-Access package, which will also feature live video streams of many home events. Ticket information is accessed easily online at www.GoPSUsports.com/tickets/m-wrestl-tickets.html . Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at www.twitter.com/pennstatepat and on Penn State Wrestling's facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling. The 2011-12 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.
POSSIBLE STARTERS
#2 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (8-1, 4-1 B1G)
125 #8 Nico Megaludis Fr. Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional 16-5
133 Frank Martellotti So. Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side 6-2
Derek Reber Jr. Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg 4-5
141 Bryan Pearsall Jr. Lititz, Pa./Warwick 10-7
149 #1 Frank Molinaro Sr. Barnegat, N.J./Southern Regional 20-0
157 #7 Dylan Alton R-Fr. Mill Hall, Pa./Central Mountain 15-4
165 #1 David Taylor So. St. Paris, Ohio/St. Paris Graham 18-0
174 #2 Ed Ruth So. Harrisburg, Pa./Susquehanna Twp. 20-0
184 #2 Quentin Wright Jr. Wingate, Pa./Bald Eagle Area 17-2
197 #12 Morgan McIntosh Fr. Santa Ana, Calif./Calvary Chapel 13-5
285 #6 Cameron Wade Sr. Twinsburg, Ohio/St. Peter Chanel 17-4
#5 OHIO STATE (9-2, 3-2 B1G)
125 #15 Johnni Dejulius Fr. Aurora, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit 13-9
133 #3 Logan Stieber R-Fr. Monroeville, Ohio/Monroeville 19-1
141 #6 Hunter Stieber Fr. Monroeville, Ohio/Monroeville 18-3
149 #14 Cam Tessari Fr. Monroeville, Ohio/Monroeville 15-5
157 #20 Josh Demas R-Fr. Columbus, Ohio/Westerville North 16-6
165 Derek Garcia Fr. Desro Woolley, Wash./Sedro Woolley 11-7
174 #8 Nick Heflin So. Massillon, Ohio/Massillon Perry 19-2
184 #10 C.J. Magrum Jr. Oak Harbor, Ohio/Oak Harbor 14-3
197 #20 Andrew Campolattano Fr. Bound Brook, N.J./Bound Brook 13-7
285 #16 Peter Capone So. Johnson City, N.Y./Johnson City 12-8
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now