Penn State is coming off a solid showing at the Nittany Lion Open on Sunday. Over 500 wrestlers packed Rec Hall for the 2005 Nittany Lion Open and in the end, ten talented individuals walked away with the coveted title of Nittany Lion Open Champion. Penn State claimed two individual titles in the tournament with two unattached Nittany Lions grabbing crowns at their respective weights. Head coach Troy Sunderland's squad posted over 40 wins in the tournament.
Red-shirt junior Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.), wrestling unattached, won his first four matches at 125 to advance to the finals, where he downed Franklin Gomez of Michigan State (unattached), 6-4, to claim the crown. True freshman David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio), wrestling unattached, also won his first five at 165, including a pin of Davidson's Trevor Clavette in the semis. The title bout saw Erwin down Phil Bomberger (Port Royal, Pa.) with an 11-3 major to claim the championship.
The Nittany Lions still sport four undefeated wrestlers in their line-up, plus No. ranked Eric Bradley (Plaistow, N.H.), who may see his first action of the year this coming weekend. Tim Haas (Camp Hill, Pa.) is 6-0 at 125, Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.) is 4-0 at 133, James Yonushonis (Philipsburg, Pa.) is 5-0 at 174 and Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) is 5-0 at 197.
Navy comes in 4-0 after a solid showing here in Rec Hall's Nittany Lion Open and a dual win over Rutgers. Navy sports No. 14 John Cox at 149 and No. 9 Tanner Garrett at HWT. Penn comes in 0-0 in duals, but coming off a 10th place finish at the Cliff Keen Invitational. Penn is led by 133-pounder Matt Valenti, ranked No. 6 nationally.
Penn State will return to action on Sunday, Dec. 18, at the Reno Tournament of Champions in Reno, Nev. The Nittany Lions next home dual is set for Jan. 8 vs. Cornell. Single match tickets can be purchased by visiting the BJC Ticket Center or by calling 814-865-5555 or 800-863-3336. Prices are $5 for adults and $3 for youth and senior citizens.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS - as of 12/5
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