UPDATE: No. 1 Penn State beats Ohio State, 24-14, in sold out Bryce Jordan Center
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by Andy Elder, Special to TheMat.com
Penn State's Matt McCutcheon battles Ohio State's Kenny Courts at 184 pounds. Photo from PSU-OSU dual courtesy of GoPSUSports.com
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. —Penn State delivered a message to defending champion Ohio State on Friday in front of a sellout crowd of 15,983 in the Bryce Jordan Center and thousands more on the live Big Ten Network broadcast.
The message? The Nittany Lions want the trophy back.
In a match between the two teams who have won the past five NCAA championships — Ohio State in 2015, Penn State from 2011-14 — the difference came down to stars delivering when needed and simple conditioning.
The top-ranked Nittany Lions (13-0, 8-0 Big Ten) won six of 10 bouts, including three of five considered tossups, to turn away the Buckeyes (9-3, 6-2), 24-14.
In three of those tossup bouts — 133, 174 and 184 — Penn State’s conditioning seemed to be the difference.
“Obviously, we’ve got to get in better shape in some weight classes. We came in and thought we probably needed to win six matches to win the dual,” Ohio State coach Tom Ryan said after a long, contemplative pause.
“We were in position at 174 to win. You’re up and looking at the clock with a minute to go. Just a young freshman that has just not been in many of these wars, this kind of raucous environment. He just needs to know where he is, stay in good position and score there. They just outworked us in some critical moments in some big matches.”
Speaking in general terms, Penn State coach Cael Sanderson seemed to confirm Ryan’s observations.
“We’re confident in our conditioning. We keep wrestling and keep scoring points. That’s an attitude and conditioning comes along with that attitude. Conditioning will always be a factor for us.”
The marquee bout of the night came at 125 pounds in the first of three consecutive swing matches. Top-ranked Nathan Tomasello, the undefeated Buckeye riding a 33-match winning streak that included his run to the title as a freshman, was paired with three-time All-American and fourth-ranked Nico Megaludis.
The match delivered on its promise, but it took a while.
After a scoreless first period, Tomasello chose bottom to start the second and was up and out in four seconds. Megaludis chose bottom to start the third and escaped in eight seconds.
Neither wrestler made a full shot until, with less than 30 seconds to go, Megaludis dropped in on a low single. As he was trying to improve his position, Tomasello forced him to his hip. The Buckeye sophomore used the opening to power behind with 12 seconds to go for the counter takedown and a 3-1 win.
“Nathan’s really powerful. That’s a great match between two great wrestlers. We have the utmost respect for Megaludis. What a competitor. They have much different styles. We scored when we needed to. He had a nice shot on us. We stayed patient and he felt the pressure release a little and he kind of crunched him there,” Ryan said.
“Nathan rerouted his head and then used his power. Nathan’s a kid who can deadlift 450 pounds, so 125 doesn’t feel like much.”
The Buckeyes looked well on their way to another win in the early going at 133.
Johnni DiJulius converted a single midway through the period and turned Jordan Conaway for two nearfall points to open a 4-0 lead. Conaway, though, escaped late in the period and converted a quick high crotch for a takedown with a second to go to cut the lead to 4-3.
Conaway chose bottom to start the second, escaped, converted another takedown and went to work on DiJulius, who appeared to be tiring. The Nittany Lion figure foured the Buckeyes’ thigh, trying repeatedly to hip him over for back points. A lack of motion on bottom drew another warning for stalling and a point for Conaway, who led 7-4 after two.
DiJulius chose bottom to start the third and Conway kept him there, turning a 1:22 deficit in riding time after the first period into a 1:44 advantage at the final whistle for a riding-time point and a key 8-4 decision.
“That was huge. He was down four points early, but he’s a fighter and he’s going to keep wrestling the whole time,” Sanderson said. “That was a big match looking at it match by match going into the dual. If we don’t win that match, it’s a lot tougher.”
Conaway said the key to overcoming the 4-0 deficit was not panicking.
“Score the next point, stay composed and keep wrestling,” the fifth-ranked senior said of his thoughts after falling behind. “ The biggest thing is staying composed and looking to score points.”
In another swing bout, at 141, Penn State’s 14th-ranked Jimmy Gulibon hit a single for a takedown with 17 seconds left in the first for a 2-0 lead after one. He chose bottom to start the second but fourth-ranked Micah Jordan kept him there the entire period.
Gulibon returned the favor for most of the third, reducing his riding time deficit under a minute. Jordan escaped and emerged from a scramble with a takedown with 26 seconds left. Gulibon escaped, but Jordan took him down again for a 6-3 decision.
Ohio State led 6-3 but Ryan admitted it wasn’t enough.
“We thought we needed the first three. We knew 174 was going to be a tough one with Nickal and 184. If we get the first three …” he said.
With Penn State’s two young studs — No. 1 149-pounder Zain Retherford and No. 1 157-pounder Jason Nolf — up next, most people in the building knew the Ohio State lead wouldn’t last long.
It didn’t.
Retherford took down Buckeye backup Sal Marandino three times before turning him and getting a fall in 2:30. Then, at 157, Nolf turned an 8-4 second-period lead on Jake Ryan into a 19-6 major decision despite the match being delayed several minutes in the third for Ryan to undergo concussion protocol.
“He just got overwhelmed,” Ryan said of his son. “It’s a tough sport. He ran into somebody who loves to compete. He wasn’t going to stop. The trainer said he was OK, so get back out there.”
Sanderson vocalized what wrestling fans nationwide have come to learn about Nolf.
“Nolf’s fun to watch wrestle and he’s tough to wrestle. He likes to try all kinds of different things. When he needs to go score a point, he can go score a point,” he said.
Penn State led 13-6 at the intermission, but that lead was likely to shrink at 165 where the Buckeyes’ second-ranked Bo Jordan was paired with unranked Geno Morelli.
Morelli, who is battling Shakur Rasheed for the lineup spot, was tied with Jordan until the Buckeye All-American scored the winning takedown with 33 seconds left. Morelli escaped with 24 seconds to go but Jordan held him off for a 3-2 decision.
That set up the two remaining swing bouts, at 174 and 184. Penn State took them both.
The Nittany Lions’ top-ranked Bo Nickal trailed No. 14 Myles Martin 2-1 at the start of the third when Martin turned him for a two-point nearfall and a 4-1 lead. Nickal then turned up the intensity.
He escaped and scored a quick takedown to tie the match at 4-4. He then rode Martin until his riding time inched up over a minute and then pushed Martin away for what amounted to a tying escape. Nickal scored a takedown with 34 seconds left, turned Martin for four nearfall points and earned a riding-time point for an 11-5 decision.
At 184, ninth-ranked Matt McCutcheon avenged two losses to No. 13 Kenny Courts from a year ago, including the quarterfinals of the NCAA championships, with a dominating 4-0 win. McCutcheon used a first-period takedown, second-period escape and a point for 2:02 riding-time advantage for the win.
“It felt good. He got the better of me last year. It’s exciting to go out there and get a win,” McCutcheon said. “I thought about that (NCAA quarterfinal) loss for a long time. I’ll take the good, move on and take the bad and learn from it.”
With Penn State winning, 19-9, all that remained was a lopsided win for each team. Top-ranked Nittany Lion 197-pounder Morgan McIntosh amassed 10 takedowns in a 24-9 technical fall over Josh Fox.
At heavyweight, the Buckeyes’ second-ranked Kyle Snyder rolled up 10 takedowns in a 24-9 technical fall over Jan Johnson in just four minutes.
Even after his team had absorbed a tough loss, Ryan was able to express his appreciation for the atmosphere of the night and the rivalry between his Buckeyes and the Nittany Lions.
“I love this state. I love the fans. It’s just great for the sport,” he said. “I would go on record as saying hiring Cael was the greatest hire of any institution in the history of college sports, so we have tremendous respect for him. They’re gonna be a team that we have to beat and we're excited about it. We're excited about this environment.”
No. 1 Penn State 24
No. 9 Ohio State 14
(Friday at University Park, Pa.)
125: No. 1 Nathan Tomasello, OSU, dec. No. 4 Nico Megaludis, 3-1.
133: No. 5 Jordan Conaway, PSU, dec. No. 10 Johnni DiJulius, 8-4.
141: No. 4 Micah Jordan, OSU, dec. No. 14 Jimmy Gulibon, 6-3.
149: No. 1 Zain Retherford, PSU, pinned Sal Marandino, 2:30.
157: No. 1 Jason Nolf, PSU, maj. dec. Jake Ryan, 19-6.
165: No. 2 Bo Jordan, OSU, dec. Geno Morelli, 3-2.
174: No. 1 Bo Nickal, PSU, dec. No. 14 Myles Martin, 11-5.
184: No. 9 Matt McCutcheon, PSU, dec. No. 13 Kenny Courts, 4-0.
197: No. 1 Morgan McIntosh, PSU, won by tech. fall over Josh Fox, 24-9 (7:00).
285: No. 2 Kyle Snyder, OSU, won by tech. fall over Jan Johnson, 24-9 (4:00).
Ridge Riley Award winner: Matt McCutcheon, 184 pounds
Referees: Jeff Cooke, Gary Kessell.
Attendance: 15,983.
Takedowns: Ohio State 19; Penn State 26.
Records: Ohio State 9-3, 6-2 Big Ten; Penn State 13-0, 8-0.
Next match: Wisconsin at Ohio State, 7 p.m. Friday ; Penn State at Lehigh, 7 p.m. Friday.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. —Penn State delivered a message to defending champion Ohio State on Friday in front of a sellout crowd of 15,983 in the Bryce Jordan Center and thousands more on the live Big Ten Network broadcast.
The message? The Nittany Lions want the trophy back.
In a match between the two teams who have won the past five NCAA championships — Ohio State in 2015, Penn State from 2011-14 — the difference came down to stars delivering when needed and simple conditioning.
The top-ranked Nittany Lions (13-0, 8-0 Big Ten) won six of 10 bouts, including three of five considered tossups, to turn away the Buckeyes (9-3, 6-2), 24-14.
In three of those tossup bouts — 133, 174 and 184 — Penn State’s conditioning seemed to be the difference.
“Obviously, we’ve got to get in better shape in some weight classes. We came in and thought we probably needed to win six matches to win the dual,” Ohio State coach Tom Ryan said after a long, contemplative pause.
“We were in position at 174 to win. You’re up and looking at the clock with a minute to go. Just a young freshman that has just not been in many of these wars, this kind of raucous environment. He just needs to know where he is, stay in good position and score there. They just outworked us in some critical moments in some big matches.”
Speaking in general terms, Penn State coach Cael Sanderson seemed to confirm Ryan’s observations.
“We’re confident in our conditioning. We keep wrestling and keep scoring points. That’s an attitude and conditioning comes along with that attitude. Conditioning will always be a factor for us.”
The marquee bout of the night came at 125 pounds in the first of three consecutive swing matches. Top-ranked Nathan Tomasello, the undefeated Buckeye riding a 33-match winning streak that included his run to the title as a freshman, was paired with three-time All-American and fourth-ranked Nico Megaludis.
The match delivered on its promise, but it took a while.
After a scoreless first period, Tomasello chose bottom to start the second and was up and out in four seconds. Megaludis chose bottom to start the third and escaped in eight seconds.
Neither wrestler made a full shot until, with less than 30 seconds to go, Megaludis dropped in on a low single. As he was trying to improve his position, Tomasello forced him to his hip. The Buckeye sophomore used the opening to power behind with 12 seconds to go for the counter takedown and a 3-1 win.
“Nathan’s really powerful. That’s a great match between two great wrestlers. We have the utmost respect for Megaludis. What a competitor. They have much different styles. We scored when we needed to. He had a nice shot on us. We stayed patient and he felt the pressure release a little and he kind of crunched him there,” Ryan said.
“Nathan rerouted his head and then used his power. Nathan’s a kid who can deadlift 450 pounds, so 125 doesn’t feel like much.”
The Buckeyes looked well on their way to another win in the early going at 133.
Johnni DiJulius converted a single midway through the period and turned Jordan Conaway for two nearfall points to open a 4-0 lead. Conaway, though, escaped late in the period and converted a quick high crotch for a takedown with a second to go to cut the lead to 4-3.
Conaway chose bottom to start the second, escaped, converted another takedown and went to work on DiJulius, who appeared to be tiring. The Nittany Lion figure foured the Buckeyes’ thigh, trying repeatedly to hip him over for back points. A lack of motion on bottom drew another warning for stalling and a point for Conaway, who led 7-4 after two.
DiJulius chose bottom to start the third and Conway kept him there, turning a 1:22 deficit in riding time after the first period into a 1:44 advantage at the final whistle for a riding-time point and a key 8-4 decision.
“That was huge. He was down four points early, but he’s a fighter and he’s going to keep wrestling the whole time,” Sanderson said. “That was a big match looking at it match by match going into the dual. If we don’t win that match, it’s a lot tougher.”
Conaway said the key to overcoming the 4-0 deficit was not panicking.
“Score the next point, stay composed and keep wrestling,” the fifth-ranked senior said of his thoughts after falling behind. “ The biggest thing is staying composed and looking to score points.”
In another swing bout, at 141, Penn State’s 14th-ranked Jimmy Gulibon hit a single for a takedown with 17 seconds left in the first for a 2-0 lead after one. He chose bottom to start the second but fourth-ranked Micah Jordan kept him there the entire period.
Gulibon returned the favor for most of the third, reducing his riding time deficit under a minute. Jordan escaped and emerged from a scramble with a takedown with 26 seconds left. Gulibon escaped, but Jordan took him down again for a 6-3 decision.
Ohio State led 6-3 but Ryan admitted it wasn’t enough.
“We thought we needed the first three. We knew 174 was going to be a tough one with Nickal and 184. If we get the first three …” he said.
With Penn State’s two young studs — No. 1 149-pounder Zain Retherford and No. 1 157-pounder Jason Nolf — up next, most people in the building knew the Ohio State lead wouldn’t last long.
It didn’t.
Retherford took down Buckeye backup Sal Marandino three times before turning him and getting a fall in 2:30. Then, at 157, Nolf turned an 8-4 second-period lead on Jake Ryan into a 19-6 major decision despite the match being delayed several minutes in the third for Ryan to undergo concussion protocol.
“He just got overwhelmed,” Ryan said of his son. “It’s a tough sport. He ran into somebody who loves to compete. He wasn’t going to stop. The trainer said he was OK, so get back out there.”
Sanderson vocalized what wrestling fans nationwide have come to learn about Nolf.
“Nolf’s fun to watch wrestle and he’s tough to wrestle. He likes to try all kinds of different things. When he needs to go score a point, he can go score a point,” he said.
Penn State led 13-6 at the intermission, but that lead was likely to shrink at 165 where the Buckeyes’ second-ranked Bo Jordan was paired with unranked Geno Morelli.
Morelli, who is battling Shakur Rasheed for the lineup spot, was tied with Jordan until the Buckeye All-American scored the winning takedown with 33 seconds left. Morelli escaped with 24 seconds to go but Jordan held him off for a 3-2 decision.
That set up the two remaining swing bouts, at 174 and 184. Penn State took them both.
The Nittany Lions’ top-ranked Bo Nickal trailed No. 14 Myles Martin 2-1 at the start of the third when Martin turned him for a two-point nearfall and a 4-1 lead. Nickal then turned up the intensity.
He escaped and scored a quick takedown to tie the match at 4-4. He then rode Martin until his riding time inched up over a minute and then pushed Martin away for what amounted to a tying escape. Nickal scored a takedown with 34 seconds left, turned Martin for four nearfall points and earned a riding-time point for an 11-5 decision.
At 184, ninth-ranked Matt McCutcheon avenged two losses to No. 13 Kenny Courts from a year ago, including the quarterfinals of the NCAA championships, with a dominating 4-0 win. McCutcheon used a first-period takedown, second-period escape and a point for 2:02 riding-time advantage for the win.
“It felt good. He got the better of me last year. It’s exciting to go out there and get a win,” McCutcheon said. “I thought about that (NCAA quarterfinal) loss for a long time. I’ll take the good, move on and take the bad and learn from it.”
With Penn State winning, 19-9, all that remained was a lopsided win for each team. Top-ranked Nittany Lion 197-pounder Morgan McIntosh amassed 10 takedowns in a 24-9 technical fall over Josh Fox.
At heavyweight, the Buckeyes’ second-ranked Kyle Snyder rolled up 10 takedowns in a 24-9 technical fall over Jan Johnson in just four minutes.
Even after his team had absorbed a tough loss, Ryan was able to express his appreciation for the atmosphere of the night and the rivalry between his Buckeyes and the Nittany Lions.
“I love this state. I love the fans. It’s just great for the sport,” he said. “I would go on record as saying hiring Cael was the greatest hire of any institution in the history of college sports, so we have tremendous respect for him. They’re gonna be a team that we have to beat and we're excited about it. We're excited about this environment.”
No. 1 Penn State 24
No. 9 Ohio State 14
(Friday at University Park, Pa.)
125: No. 1 Nathan Tomasello, OSU, dec. No. 4 Nico Megaludis, 3-1.
133: No. 5 Jordan Conaway, PSU, dec. No. 10 Johnni DiJulius, 8-4.
141: No. 4 Micah Jordan, OSU, dec. No. 14 Jimmy Gulibon, 6-3.
149: No. 1 Zain Retherford, PSU, pinned Sal Marandino, 2:30.
157: No. 1 Jason Nolf, PSU, maj. dec. Jake Ryan, 19-6.
165: No. 2 Bo Jordan, OSU, dec. Geno Morelli, 3-2.
174: No. 1 Bo Nickal, PSU, dec. No. 14 Myles Martin, 11-5.
184: No. 9 Matt McCutcheon, PSU, dec. No. 13 Kenny Courts, 4-0.
197: No. 1 Morgan McIntosh, PSU, won by tech. fall over Josh Fox, 24-9 (7:00).
285: No. 2 Kyle Snyder, OSU, won by tech. fall over Jan Johnson, 24-9 (4:00).
Ridge Riley Award winner: Matt McCutcheon, 184 pounds
Referees: Jeff Cooke, Gary Kessell.
Attendance: 15,983.
Takedowns: Ohio State 19; Penn State 26.
Records: Ohio State 9-3, 6-2 Big Ten; Penn State 13-0, 8-0.
Next match: Wisconsin at Ohio State, 7 p.m. Friday ; Penn State at Lehigh, 7 p.m. Friday.
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