Starocci Injured as Penn State Rolls Past Edinboro 55-0 in Regular Season Finale

Penn State wrestling finished off the regular season at 12-0 with a thumping of Edinboro on Sunday afternoon at Rec Hall as the Nittany Lions shutout the visitors 55-0 to complete a perfect regular season campaign. However, the otherwise routine afternoon did come with an asterisk as Carter Starocci, the No. 1 ranked wrestler at 174 pounds, picked up an apparent knee injury at the end of his bout needing help from Penn State coach Cael Sanderson to leave the mat.

Braeden Davis opened up the afternoon with a 125 pound bout winning with a 19-3 tech fall over Caleb Edwards at the 4:02 mark to set the dominate tone for the Nittany Lions looking to finish off the regular season in good form. Aaron Nagao followed up Davis with a tech fall of his own at 133 with an 18-3 showing over Eamonn Jimenez to put Penn State ahead 10-0 in the team score.

On what would turn out to be a pin-heavy afternoon senior Beau Bartlett made good on his No. 1 ranking in the 141 pound weight class with the first pin of the day, this one coming at the 4:11 mark of the second period against Jacob Brenneman.

From senior to true freshman, Tyler Kasak followed up Bartlett’s pin with a fall of his own at 149 in the second period against Colin Roberts to continue to push the Nittany Lions even further ahead. Sophomore Levi Haines kept the momentum going as the nation’s No. 1 wrestler at 157 with a third-straight Nittany Lion pin, this one coming in the second period to give Penn State a 28-0 led at the break.

Heading back from the intermission Mitchell Messenbrink improved his record due to a medical forfeit at 165 opening the door for senior Carter Starocci to boost his already impressive resume with six takedowns and a near fall to pick up a 22-5 tech fall at 2:45 mark of the first period against Joey Arnold. Penn State would go up 39-0 following yet another impressive victory.

But all eyes were on Starocci who was bent awkwardly in the final moments of his victory, grabbing at his right knee and needing significant assistance to walk off the mat and back to the locker room. Starocci is looking to win his fourth-straight NCAA Championship and is the favorite to do so in Kansas City next month if healthy.

Bernie Truax tried to get the Rec Hall crowd back into it at 184 with a win over Brody Evans in a 21-3 tech fall victory as the Nittany Lions went ahead 44-0. Senior Aaron Brooks showcased another national title favorite, ranked No. 1 at 197 pounds, with a 19-4 victory over Jack Kilner. Fellow senior Greg Kerkvliet made good on the pin-happy afternoon in the 285 pound bout with one final high note for the Nittany Lions, pinning Nick Lodato in the first period as Penn State went on to post the 55-0 shutout final.

The Nittany Lions will head next to the 2024 Big Ten Championships on March 9-10 at the University of Maryland. The two-day event begins on Saturday, March 9, with session 1 at 10 a.m. and session 2 at 5 p.m. Sunday’s sessions 3 and 4 begin at noon with the Big Ten finals slated for 4:30 p.m. The entire tournament will be featured on B1G+ and/or the Big Ten Network.