No. 1 Penn State wrestling (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) started its three-match conference road trip with a 27-9 win against No. 11 Michigan (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) in Ann Arbor.
In a dual loaded with ranked matchups and multiple All-Americans on both sides of the mat, the Nittany Lions’ win was highlighted by an upset victory from true freshman Braeden Davis over No. 5-ranked Michael DeAugustino.
How It Happened
157 Pounds
Kicking off the night’s action was No. 1 Levi Haines taking on Michigan’s No. 9-ranked Will Lewan. The first period ticked by filled with hand fighting between the two wrestlers leading to stalling warnings against each.
Haines opened the scoring early into the second period with an escape out of bottom position, taking the action back to the feet. Strong takedown defense from Lewan stopped a handful of takedown attempts from Haines, who took his 1-0 lead heading into the final two minutes.
Lewan took his turn escaping out of bottom position to start the final period, leveling the score at 1-1 with almost the entire period left to wrestle. Lewan was then hit by his second stalling warning of the match, granting Haines a single point that would prove to be enough to take the 2-1 decision victory.
165 Pounds
Next to the mat for Penn State was No. 9 Mitchell Mesenbrink battling against No. 7 Cameron Amine. The only point to come out of the first period was off a second stalling call against Amine, giving Mesenbrink a 1-0 lead. Amine’s escape out of bottom position was the only spark for the Michigan wrestler in the middle period as Mesenbrink earned a second point off another stalling call, followed by the first takedown of the night secured by the Nittany Lion wrestler.
Mesenbrink then quickly escaped from bottom to start third, extending his lead to 6-1 over Amine. A two-point stalling call and a second takedown pushed Mesenbrink to a 12-1 major decision over a sluggish Amine.
173 Pounds
Filling in for Carter Starocci in the Nittany Lion lineup, Terrell Barraclough took on No. 8 Shane Griffith. After no points were scored in the first period, Barraclough wrestled tough in top position for the majority of the second until a reversal from Griffith with under a minute left in the period gave the Wolverine a 2-0 lead. After starting the final period in neutral position, Barraclough couldn’t secure the winning takedown, dropping a 2-0 decision.
Penn State still led the dual 7-3.
184 Pounds
In action next was No. 5 Bernie Truax against Michigan’s No. 15-ranked Jaden Bullock. Despite the best efforts from both wrestlers, neither scored a point after the first three minutes of action. After an overturned takedown review, an escape from Truax to start the second was the only point of the period, taking a slim lead into the final two minutes. An escape from Bullock to start the third period wasn’t enough for the Wolverine as Truax finally connected on a takedown attempt to secure a 4-1 decision victory.
197 Pounds
No. 1 Aaron Brooks needed less than two periods to put away Michigan’s No. 32 Bobby Striggow in the 197-pound bout. A trio of takedowns from Brooks stretched out an early 9-3 lead after one period. The Nittany Lion opened the second with a reversal from the bottom position, then played catch-and-release for three more takedowns to record a 20-5 tech fall at 4:16.
Penn State led 15-3 at the intermission.
Heavyweight
After the intermission, No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet took on Michigan’s fourth-ranked Lucas Davison. A powerful takedown from Kerkvliet opened up the scoring in the bout, taking a 3-1 lead into the second. After escaping from bottom position, Kerkvliet secured his second takedown of the match to extend his lead to 7-2 heading into the final two minutes. Kerkvliet then rode out the entire third period in top position to take the 8-3 decision victory.
125 Pounds
Next to the mat was No. 14 Davis facing off against No. 5 DeAugustino. Good defense from both wrestlers kept the score locked at 0-0 after one period. Davis started the second in top position, where he remained for all but 15 seconds of the period when DeAugustino finally escaped to a 1-0 lead. Davis made a successful escape of his own midway through the third period, just fast enough to maintain his 60 seconds of riding time advantage. A dagger takedown from Davis and his riding time point secured the5-1 upset decision victory to remain undefeated in his freshman season.
Penn State led 21-3 after Davis’ dual.
133 Pounds
After the upset, No. 4-ranked Nittany Lion Aaron Nagao met No. 6 Dylan Ragusin. A scrappy exchange of takedowns kept the score locked at 4-4 heading into the middle period. After starting in top position, Ragusin stayed in control for almost the entire period until a locked-hands call against Ragusin granted Nagao a point. After Ragusin secured his riding time point, the match leveled at 5-5 heading into sudden victory. The sudden victory period was short-lived as Ragusin caught Nagao scrambling for a takedown and turned him for a pin at the 7:28 mark.
141 Pounds
Next up was Penn State’s No. 2-ranked Beau Bartlett wrestling against No. 25 Sergio Lemley. Bartlett took an early takedown for the match’s first points, remaining in top control for the rest of the period. The Nittany Lion’s escape from bottom position extended his lead to 4-0 heading into the final period. Lemley quickly leveled the score at 4-4 with a takedown of his own, however, a reverse from Bartlett and a locked hands call against Lemley gave the Nittany Lion a 7-5 decision victory.
149 Pounds
Finishing off the dual was Penn State’s David Evans taking on Michigan’s Fidel Mayora. After no points were scored in the first, Evans began the second in top position, where he would stay for the majority of the period before Mayora’s eventual escape. Evans escaped and converted a high single for the go-ahead takedown early in the third, and with a riding time point earned a decision victory 4-2.
Penn State won the dual 27-9.
What’s Next?
Penn State wrestling will continue its three-game road trip when it takes on Michigan State in East Lansing on Sunday, Jan. 21. The dual will begin at 1 p.m. and will be available to stream on BTN+.
