All six of Penn State's ranked wrestlers won, sparked by Bomberger's victory at 184. No. 6 Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.) got things started with a major decision at 125 and the Nittany Lions never looked back. Heavyweight John Laboranti (Pittston, Pa.) got his first dual match win as a Nittany Lion with a 12-5 victory at HWT and freshman Mike Eagen (Wharton, N.J.) got his first Penn State dual match victory with a come-from behind 4-3 win at 133. No. 1 Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) posted a technical fall at 197 for Penn State's most lop-sided victory.
The Nittany Lions won the battle of takedowns by a whopping 26-4 margin and got the bouts only three bonus points (McKnight's major and Davis' tech fall). The victory is Penn State's first shut-out since posting a 41-0 win over Rider in last year's Virginia Duals. The shut-out of intra-state rival Lehigh is the second in the long history of this Eastern wrestling rivalry. Penn State also shut out the Mountain Hawks 39-0 on Feb. 13, 1993, in a dual also wrestled in Bethlehem. The Nittany Lions are off to a 3-0 start by a combined score of 95-14 and have won 26 of the 30 bouts wrestled.
Things will get markedly tougher for Penn State (3-0) as the Nittany Lions will trek to Stillwater, Okla., to face No. 3 Oklahoma State on Sunday at 3 p.m. Eastern (2 p.m. Central). This weekend's action can be heard live locally on WBLF AM (970) and WKVA (920 AM). The Nittany Lions' next home dual is Jan. 4 when Penn State welcomes No. 16 Cornell to Rec Hall for a 7 p.m. dual. Tickets for all regular season duals are on sale now at the athletic department ticket office in the Bryce Jordan Center. Single-dual tickets are $5 for adults and seniors and $3 for students 18 and under. Penn State students with a proper student ID are admitted free! Fans can call 814-863-1000 or 800-833-5533 to order single-dual tickets.
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
125: Nittany Lion senior Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.) took on Lehigh's Mitch Berger in the dual's first bout. McKnight, ranked No. 6 nationally, got on top early, lifting Berger on the edge of the mat and putting him to his back for a two-point takedown and two back points just under a minute into the bout. Berger escaped at the 1:30 mark to cut McKnight's lead to 4-1. McKnight countered a Berger shot at the :30 mark and turned it into a 6-1 lead. A strong ride out to end the period sent McKnight into the second stanza with a 6-1 lead and 1:25 in riding time. McKnight chose bottom to begin the second period and quickly escaped to a 7-1 lead. The senior added a third takedown to up his lead to 9-1. Berger would escape for a point before the period ended. Trailing 9-2, Berger chose down to begin third period and was allowed up to a 9-3 deficit. Looking for bonus points, McKnight quickly took Berger down to up his lead to 11-3. After nearly taking Berger to his back, McKnight allowed his foe up after a restart and then added a fifth takedown to open up a 13-4 lead with just :35 left. The Lion senior cut Berger loose again and quickly nearly added a sixth takedown. Still, the riding time point gave McKnight a 14-5 win and a major decision to give Penn State an early 4-0 lead.
174: Penn State's David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio) carried a 15-1 overall record into his bout with Lehigh freshman Alex Caruso in the dual's second bout. Caruso got in on Erwin's left leg right out of the blocks, but the Nittany Lion sophomore fought the move off and forced a reset thirty seconds into the bout. Caruso was the aggressor early on and forced Erwin into an early stall warning. Still, the Mountain Hawk freshman continued to get in low on Erwin, but each time the Lion sophomore fought through the moves and sent the bout to the second period in a scoreless tie. Caruso chose down to start the middle stanza and escaped after a :30 Erwin ride. Caruso got the first takedown with :20 left in the period but Erwin reversed the Mountain Hawk just before the buzzer sounded to cut the Lehigh lead to 3-2 heading into the third. Erwin chose down to begin the final period and escaped to a 3-3 tie. Erwin picked his offense up in the third period, taking a number of shots but not managing to finish on any of them. Still, his pressure forced the bout into a sudden victory period. Erwin nearly stuck the Mountain Hawk :30 into the extra period but Caruso scrambled out. Still, Erwin continued through the scramble to get winning takedown midway through the extra period. The 5-3 (sv) win put Penn State up 7-0.
HWT: Nittany Lion head coach Troy Sunderland chose heavyweight as the next weight, allowing junior John Laboranti (Pittston, Pa.) to make his Nittany Lion dual match debut, meeting Lehigh's Justin Allen. Laboranti got his first dual takedown with a solid double-leg takedown at the 1:21 mark, taking an early 2-1 lead. The Nittany Lion junior added a second takedown to up his lead to 4-1 with :40 left to wrestle. Laboranti rode Allen out to take a 4-1 lead into the second period. Allen chose down to begin the middle period and quickly escaped to a 4-2 deficit. Laboranti used a nice lower single to get his third takedown and let the Mountain Hawk big man up as he began working for a major decision or more. Allen managed to fight off numerous Laboranti shots to keep the score close, 6-3, heading into the third period. Laboranti chose down to begin the third period and escaped to a 7-3 lead. Forcing Allen back to the edge of the mat, Allen got hit with a stall warning and Laboranti finished a fine double leg to take a 9-4 lead (after an Allen escape) with :45 left. Laboranti added one more takedown for a 12-5 win, putting Penn State up 10-0 and giving Laboranti his first Nittany Lion dual match win.
149: Lehigh head coach Greg Stroebel chose the next weight, sending Penn State sophomore Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.), ranked No. 4 nationally, to the mat against Mountain Hawk senior Trevor Chinn at 149. Jenkins wasted no time, getting a double-leg take down just ten seconds in to take an early 2-1 lead. The Nittany Lion true sophomore set the offensive tone throughout the first period, keeping the Mountain Hawk junior on his heels throughout the first three minutes. Chinn's defense kept the bout close early, with Jenkins leading 2-1 after one period. Chinn chose down to begin the second period and escaped to a 2-2 tie. But Jenkins quickly took the lead again with a swift ankle pick on the edge of the mat with 1:24 left, leading 4-3 after the Chinn escape. While Chinn kept things close with his solid defense, the Mountain Hawk had no scoring opportunities and Jenkins carried that one point lead into the final period. Jenkins chose down to start the final stanza and quickly escaped to a 5-3 lead. Chinn got in on Jenkins' right knee for his first real scoring shot, but Jenkins fought off the Lehigh junior to keep his two point lead. Neither wrestler broke through for any scoring as the bout's final seconds ticked away. Jenkins did give up a stall point but the sophomore hung on for a 5-4 win, giving Penn State a 13-0 lead after four bouts.
197: Penn State senior Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.), now carrying a No. 1 national ranking at 197, met Lehigh's Alex Iacocca. The three-time All-American quickly opened up a 2-0 lead just :30 into the bout and began looking for an early pin. Davis turned Iacocca for two back points, allowed him back to his stomach and began working to turn him again. Up 4-0 with 1:00 left, Davis finished his cradle and turned Iacocca for a three-point near fall and led 7-0 with :38 left. Davis added two more near fall points as the first period ended and led 9-0 after the first stanza. Davis chose down to begin the second and quickly escaped to a 10-0 lead. The Harrisburg-native finished a solid double leg on the edge of the mat to lead 12-0. Davis got two near fall points, was surprisingly reserved by Iacocca but then reversed the Mountain Hawk wrestlers again to lead 16-2. Iacocca chose down to begin the final period. Another cradle led to back points that nearly led to a pin but did lead to three back points and a 19-2 technical fall at the 6:19 mark. The five team points gave the Nittany Lions an 18-0 lead.
165: Penn State sophomore Dave Rella (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) met Lehigh's Mike Galante in the next bout as each coach continued to choose the order in the unusual format. Rella got the match-ups first takedown a minute in and took an early 2-1 lead on Galante used a nice hip toss as the period ended, taking a 3-2 lead into the middle stanza. Rella actually did well to avoid giving up any back points and kept the Mountain Hawk within striking distance. Galante chose bottom to start the second period and escaped to a 4-2 lead. After a reset with :50 left, Rella finished off a solid takedown to tie the bout at 4-4. Galante escaped to lead 5-4 with :20 left and carried that one point lead into the final period. Rella chose down to begin the final period. Galante put together a strong ride, however, and ate away all of Rella's riding time edge. Rella escaped to tie the bout at 5-5 with 1:10 left to wrestle and began looking for the winning takedown. The third period ended with no further scoring, sending a second bout to a sudden victory period. Galante tried another throw, only this time Rella was ready for the move and the Nittany Lion sophomore tossed the Mountain Hawk to his back for a five point move (two point takedown and three near fall points). The swift offensive flurry gave Rella a thrilling 10-5 (sv) win and put Penn State up 21-0.
141: Junior All-American Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.) carried a No. 3 national ranking into his bout with Lehigh's Jeff Santo. Strayer quickly opened up a 2-0 lead with a takedown at the 2:44 mark and built up a 1:58 riding time advantage before Santo escaped. Trailing by one, Santo chose down to begin the second period. Continuing his dominance on top, Strayer turned Santo to his back and picked up a two-point near fall to up his lead to 4-1. Santo, however, reversed Strayer before the period ended, nearly picking up back points in the process. The move cut Strayer's lead to 4-3 heading into the final period, although Strayer had over 3:00 in riding time to guarantee the extra point. The Lion All-American chose down to begin the third period and Strayer escaped to a 5-3 lead and quickly took the Lehigh senior down to up his lead to 7-4 (after cutting Santo loose). Santo got his first takedown to cut into the Nittany Lion's lead but that would be all the scoring the bout would see as Strayer posted an 8-6 win. The victory put Penn State up 24-0 and clinched the dual meet victory.
184: In the only bout featuring two ranked wrestlers, Penn State junior Phil Bomberger (Port Royal, Pa.) put his No. 19 ranking to the test against No. 17 David Craig of Lehigh at 184. The two ranked grapplers spent the first half of the first period looking for openings. Craig took a shot with :10 left, but Bomberger countered and threw the ranked Lehigh grappler to his back for a five point move, nearly pinning Craig in the process. Leading 5-0, Bomberger chose down to begin the second stanza. A scramble as Bomberger looked to escaped resulted in a locked hand call on Craig. Bomberger then escaped after the reset and led 7-0 with 1:05 left in the second period. Not looking to rest on the lead, Bomberger shot quick off a reset and nearly got another takedown, but a Craig fought off the effort and forced a reset. Down by seven, Craig chose down to start the final period. Bomberger tried to turn Craig right off the whistle, but the Lehigh grappler reversed the Nittany Lion to cut Bomberger's lead to 7-2. Bomberger got called for two stall warnings, giving up a point but still leading 7-3. Craig, however, locked up a riding time point with his strong work on top. Another Bomberger stall cut the lead 7-4 but as time expired, the Nittany Lion junior put the exclamation point on a superb win over No. 17 Craig with a reversal. Craig's riding time point made the final 9-5, but the decision for Bomberger put Penn State up 27-0.
133: Penn State freshman Mike Eagen (Wharton, N.J.) took on Lehigh's Kevin Vinh at 133. Eagen and Vinh traded scoring opportunities throughout the first period, with neither wrestler breaking through. Eagen had a takedown waved off at the :40 mark, nearly taking a lead on the Lehigh junior. Tied 0-0, Eagen chose bottom to start the second period. Vinh was called for an illegal hold, giving Eagen a brief one point lead. But Vinh turned Eagen to his back for a two-point near fall, however Eagen nearly pinned Vinh in the process. Vinh rode Eagen out for the entire period and carried a 2-1 lead with 2:00 in riding time into the final period. Vinh chose top to start the final period and put forth another strong ride. Eagen got his escape with :55 left to tie the bout at 2-2, but Vinh had clinched the riding time point. Eagen took Vinh down to take a 4-2 lead with :40 seconds left, however and nearly turned Vinh to his back for near fall points. Still, Eagen remained strong on top to close out the period and grab a 4-3 victory, keeping Penn State's shut-out hopes intact and upping the PSU lead to 30-0.
157: Tenth-ranked Nittany Lion Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) took on Lehigh senior Dave Nakasone at 157 in the dual's final bout. Vallimont got on top early with a quick takedown and added a second at the 1:22 mark to move up 4-1. The Nittany Lion sophomore was strong on top, riding Nakasone out to carry that lead and 1:26 in riding time into the final period. Nakasone chose down to start the second and escaped to a 4-2 deficit. Nakasone got in on Vallimont's left knee but could not finish the move as the Nittany Lion sophomore deftly fought off the attempt. Vallimont then answered with his own shot and turned it into a 6-2 lead with the solid takedown. Up 6-2, Vallimont chose down to start the dual's final period and quickly escaped to a 7-2 lead. Nakasone got a takedown with :52 left to cut into Vallimont's lead. But a quick escape moved Vallimont up 8-4 and a swift takedown following that escape gave the Lion sophomore a 10-4 lead (with a guaranteed riding time point). Vallimont would ride Nakasone out and post a convincing 11-4 decision, giving Penn State the 33-0 shut-out.
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