No. 2 Penn State wrestling (9-0, 1-0 Big Ten) made light work of Maryland (3-3, 0-1 Big Ten) with a 46-0 win Friday night in College Park. Dominant performances from veterans and newcomers alike — including two-time All-American Drew Hildebrandt making his debut in a Penn State singlet — helped the Nittany Lions open conference action with their second consecutive shutout of the Terrapins.
How It Happened
Making his first dual appearance since transferring to Penn State from Central Michigan, two-time All-American Drew Hildebrandt wasted no time making a statement at 125 pounds. He quickly got a takedown and back points before pinning Maryland’s Zach Spence at the 1:38 mark.
At 133, No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young opened up 14-0 lead after the first period against Maryland’s King Sandoval. A second period takedown ended the bout with a 16-1 technical fall for the Nittany Lion and stretched Penn State’s early lead to 11-0.
No. 1 Nick Lee followed up at 141 pounds with another dominating performance. Lee opened up a 10-0 lead in the first minute of his bout against Terrapin Danny Bertoni and took a 12-1 advantage into the second period. After a quick takedown to open the second, Lee worked a tilt for back points and an 18-1 tech fall at 4:14.
No. 20 Beau Bartlett battled a competitive first round against Maryland’s Michael North in the 149-pound match, emerging with 4-3 lead. Leading 6-5 with 12 seconds left in the second period, Bartlett turned North for the Nittany Lions’ second pin of the night and a 22-0 team lead.
Penn State junior Tony Negron earned his first dual win as a Nittany Lion in the 157-pound bout against Maryland’s Lucas Cordio. After going down 2-0 early, Negron took a 7-2 lead in the first on a takedown and nearfall points. Negron rode out Cordio for the second period. The Nittany Lion added an escape and a takedown in the third and with the riding time point earned an 11-2 major decision.
Penn State maintained a 26-0 lead heading into the break.
The second half of the night opened with No. 24 Creighton Edsell in control of the 165-pound bout against Maryland’s Gaven Bell. Edsell racked up 5:07 in riding time en route to a 6-1 decision.
No. 1 Carter Starocci was next to the mat against Maryland’s Dominic Solis at 174 pounds. The first round saw a number of quick maneuvers from both wrestlers and a number of close calls as Starocci took a 4-1 first period lead. Starocci added another takedown and two escapes for an 8-3 decision and a 32-0 team lead.
In the most anticipated matchup of the night, No. 1 Aaron Brooks took on Maryland’s No. 12 Kyle Cochran at 184. Brooks used three first-period takedowns for a 6-2 lead while rolling up 1:27 in riding time. Brooks continued his aggressive attack through the second and third, adding five more takedowns and a riding time point for a 19-7 major decision.
No. 2 Max Dean added more bonus points for Penn State in his 197-pound match against Kevin Makosy. Three takedowns and nearfall points gave Dean a 10-2 lead after one and the Nittany Lion continued his dominance through the remainder of the bout. Dean got an escape and four more takedowns and with a riding time point ended the bout with a 20-5 tech fall.
The final match of the night brought No. 4 Greg Kerkvliet and Maryland’s Zach Schrader, ranked No. 26, for the 285-pound bout. Kerkvliet took a commanding 14-2 lead after the period behind three takedowns and eight nearfall points. While Schrader took down to start the second, Kerkvliet quickly picked up two more back points. After a Schrader escape, Kerkvliet got in on another takedown for the 18-3 tech fall at the 4:42 mark and a final team score of 46-0
What’s Next?
Penn State will face Indiana (2-1, 0-1) at 2 p.m. on Sunday in Rec Hall for the Nittany Lions’ first home dual of the conference slate.
StateCollege.com’s Geoff Rushton contributed to this story.
