Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics

BETHLEHEM, Pa.; Dec. 4, 2022 – The top-ranked Penn State wrestling team (3-0, 0-0 B1G) took care of homestanding Lehigh (3-3) 24-12 for a non-conference road win in Bethlehem, Pa. Redshirt freshman Shayne Van Ness sparked Penn State with a pin at 149 and Greg Kerkvliet finished off the dual with a technical fall at 285.

Redshirt freshman Gary Steen fought No. 26 Carter Bailey tough for seven minutes but dropped a 3-1 decision in the dual’s opening bout. True freshman Karl Shindledecker made his Penn State dual debut at 133 and battled No. 19 Connor McGonagle but dropped a 6-1 decision, giving Lehigh an early 6-0 lead in the dual meet.

Junior Beau Bartlett, ranked No. 9 at 141, tallied takedowns in each period as he put Penn State on the board with a strong 8-4 win over Malyke Hines. His win cut LU’s lead to 6-3. Redshirt freshman Shayne Van Ness, ranked No. 20 at 149, gave Penn State the lead by picking up a first period pin over No. 26 Manzona Bryant IV. Van Ness turned a low shot into a cradle and a pin at the 2:28 mark to give PSU a 9-6 lead. Junior Terrell Barraclough, ranked No. 30 at 157, battled No. 8 Josh Humphreys and kept the bout close with a full second period rideout. But the Mountain Hawk was able to work his way to a 6-3 win and the dual was tied 9-9 at halftime.

Redshirt freshman Alex Facundo, ranked No. 17 at 165, controlled NCAA qualifier Brian Meyer for seven minutes, using two takedowns, an escape and riding time to notch a 6-2 win and give Penn State a 12-9 lead in the dual. Junior Carter Starocci, ranked No. 1 at 174, then put on a takedown clinic against Lehigh’s Jake Logan. Starocci rolled up ten takedowns, including seven in the third period, on his way to a 22-8 major decision.

Senior Aaron Brooks, ranked No. 1 at 184, took care of No. 22 Tate Samuelson, using two three takedowns, an escape and a stall point to roll to an 8-3 win and put Penn State up 19-9 with two bouts to wrestle. Senior Max Dean, ranked No. 1 at 197, had a first period lead over No. 9 Michael Beard when two stall calls put the Hawk back into the bout and forced Dean into catch-up mode. Dean was unable to battle back and dropped a tough 11-9 decision. Junior Greg Kerkvliet, ranked No. 2 at 285, dominated No. 22 Nathan Taylor and used four near falls (three fours and a two), to post the 18-0 technical fall at the 4:01 mark.

Penn State posted a 22-12 takedown advantage in the dual. The Nittany Lions picked up six bonus points off a pin (Van Ness), a tech fall (Kerkvliet) and a major (Starocci).

Penn State is now 3-0 on the year while Lehigh falls to 3-3. Penn State then returns home to Rec Hall on Sunday, Dec. 11, for a 2 p.m. match-up with Oregon State (in an ESPNU national telecast).

The 2022-23 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by the Family Clothesline. Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.

#1 Penn State 24, Lehigh 12
December 4, 2022 – Bethlehem, Pa.

125: #26 Carter Bailey LEH dec. Gary Steen PSU, 3-1 0-3
133: #19 Connor McGonagle LEH dec. Karl Shindledecker PSU, 6-1 0-6
141: #9 Beau Bartlett PSU dec. #30 Malyke Hines LEH, 8-4 3-6
149: #20 Shayne Van Ness PSU pinned #26 Manzona Bryant IV, WBF (2:28) 9-6
157: #8 Josh Humphreys LEH dec. #30 Terrell Barraclough PSU, 6-3 9-9
165: #17 Alex Facundo PSU dec. Brian Meyer LEH, 6-2 12-9
174: #1 Carter Starocci PSU maj. dec. Jake Logan LEH, 22-8 16-9
184: #1 Aaron Brooks PSU dec. #22 Tate Samuelson LEH, 8-3 19-9
197: #9 Michael Beard LEH dec. #1 Max Dean PSU, 11-9 19-12
285: #2 Greg Kerkvliet PSU tech. fall #22 Nathan Taylor LEH, 18-0 (TF; 4:01) 24-12

Attendance: 6,032
Records: Penn State (3-0, 0-0 B1G); Lehigh (3-3)
Up Next for Penn State: home vs. Oregon State, Sunday, Dec. 11, 2 p.m. – Rec Hall

LEHIGH RELEASE: Mountain Hawks Fall 24-12 to No. 1 Penn State at Sold-Out Stabler Arena
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – In front of just the second 6,000-plus crowd at Stabler Arena in Lehigh wrestling history, the 18th-ranked Mountain Hawks won four bouts against top-ranked and defending national champion Penn State and the visiting Nittany Lions came away with a 24-12 decision Sunday afternoon.

Lehigh won three of the first five bouts to tie the dual 9-9 at the halfway point but Penn State won three straight coming out of intermission to build a 19-9 lead.

In the only bout matching top 10-ranked wrestlers, Lehigh’s ninth-ranked sophomore Michael Beard knocked off No. 1-ranked and former teammate Max Dean 11-9 at 197 for the Mountain Hawks’ fourth win of the day.

The Mountain Hawks move into the exam break at 3-3 in duals, while Penn State improves to 3-0.

“Early on we knew we were going to have to win a minimum of four of those first five matches,” Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro said. “It was tough because I thought we could win those matches.”

The dual started at 125 with first-year Carter Bailey scoring a takedown in the final seconds of the first period, which proved to be the difference in a 3-1 decision over Gary Steen. Defending national champion Roman Bravo-Young did not wrestle for Penn State so Connor McGonagle defeated Karl Shindledecker 6-1 at 133 to extend Lehigh’s lead to 6-0. McGonagle scored takedowns in the first and third periods and racked up more than three minutes of advantage time.

Penn State secured the next two bouts to take a 9-6 lead. At 141, Beau Bartlett won an 8-4 decision over sophomore Malyke Hines and then Shayne Ness followed with a first period pin over Manzona Bryant IV at 149. Bryant scored the first takedown and led 2-1 when he was caught in a cradle and eventually pinned at the 2:28 mark.

Senior Josh Humphreys scored a pair of first period takedowns and added one more in the third to defeat Terrell Barraclough 6-3 at 157, tying the dual at 9-9 at the halfway point.

“Josh did a really nice job,” Santoro said. “Barraclough usually doesn’t give up more than a takedown a match. We knew it would be a battle and we both wanted odd to have choice there. They’re both bears on top. We knew that would be a challenge, but the way Josh bounced back from the second period was really important, because that’s going to happen at NCAAs. You can’t let things bother you.”

Penn State’s Alex Facundo put the Nittany Lions back on top with a 6-2 decision over junior Brian Meyer at 165. Top-ranked and returning NCAA champions Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks both picked up victories, with Starocci earning a major decision, to extend the Nittany Lions’ lead to 19-9.

The highly-anticipated matchup at 197 lived up to the hype with Beard and Dean combining for 20 points. Beard opened the scoring with a takedown. Dean answered with one of his own and a stalling point on the Nittany Lion tied the bout at 3-3 after one period. Beard scored the first takedown of the second period, but trailed 7-6 after two periods. He escaped early in the third to tie the bout and then scored the only two takedowns of the final period and held his ground over the final 30 seconds to earn the victory.

“The fact that they know each other so well and both put so many points on the board was pretty impressive,” Santoro said. “They both enjoyed the atmosphere. That’s why you wrestle. You have to embrace these opportunities and the both wrestled really hard.”

Penn State’s Greg Kerkvliet closed the dual with a second period technical fall over first-year Nathan Taylor at 285.

A sellout crowd of 6,032 took in Sunday’s dual, making it the second-highest attendance for a Lehigh wrestling dual at Stabler Arena, behind only the 6,047 that attended the 2019 Lehigh-Penn State dual.

“It was a great atmosphere,” Santoro said. “But it’s kind of an illusion, because when you’re wrestling its no different than what you’re doing in the room every day. The only difference is someone is setting this up. They’re selling tickets. At the end of the day its two guys on a piece of Resilite. Nothing changes. Just do what you’re trained to do, so when you get to the NCAA Tournament, if you keep doing it all the time, you’re not doing anything new. It’s not a big deal. It doesn’t matter if there’s 3,000 people there or 20 people there.

“When you try to score points the whole time, it makes it a lot easier.”

The Mountain Hawks will return to action at the Collegiate Wrestling Duals, Dec. 19-20 in New Orleans. Lehigh will face Cal Poly (4 p.m. CT) and NC State (8 p.m. CT) on the first day of competition.

The 2022-23 Lehigh wrestling season is presented by the Historic Hotel Bethlehem.

DUAL MEET BOUT-BY-BOUT from PSU Athletics:

125: Redshirt freshman Gary Steen met No. 26 Carter Bailey. The duo worked the middle of the mat over the first minute of the bout, with Steen fighting off a Bailey collar tie and breaking contact as the clock hit 1:45. Steen snapped through a slick Bailey shot at 1:20 and maintained position in the mat’s center. Steen took a fast low shot that Bailey stepped away from at :45, fought off a slight Bailey shot but the Hawk continued through the move to notch a last second takedown to lead 2-0 after one. Bailey chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. The duo wrestled evenly over the next minute-plus. Bailey locked in on a low shot that Steen was able to fight off, counter the move, and keep action in neutral as the second period ended. Trailing 3-0, Steen chose down to start the third period. Steen was unable to break free of a strong Bailey ride as the clock hit the 1:30 mark but worked his way to his feet and escaped to a 3-1 score at the 1:05 mark. Steen, needing a takedown, worked to break through Bailey’s defense over the final seconds but could not find the mark and dropped a hard-fought 3-1 decision.

133: True freshman Karl Shindledecker made his Penn State dual debut at 133 and faced No. 19 Connor McGonagle. McGonagle scored quickly, taking Shindledecker down in the opening seconds for an early 2-0 lead. Shindledecker fought off a Lehigh turning effort as the clock hit 1:26, still on bottom after a reset. McGonagle forced a Shindledecker stall warning at the :15 mark and the Nittany Lion trailed 2-0 after the first period and faced 2:38 in riding time. McGonagle chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. Shindledecker used a quick throw behind to nearly notch a takedown at the 1:15 mark. McGonagle countered into a scramble that ended in a stalemate with :45 on the clock. Trailing 3-0, Shindledecker chose neutral to start the third period. Shindledecker tried once again to slide behind McGonagle, but the Mountain Hawk countered the move for a takedown and a 5-0 lead at the 1:05 mark (McGonagle had riding time clinched). Shindledecker worked for an escape at the :35 mark, cutting the lead to 5-1. Shindledecker fought off a late shot and, with riding time, dropped the 6-1 decision.

141: Beau Bartlett, ranked No. 9 at 141, met No. 30 Malyke Hines. Bartlett took a 2-1 lead with a takedown just :02 into the bout. The Lion junior used a front headlock to force Hines’ to the mat, but a stalemate stopped action at 2:02. Action continued in the center of the mat as the clock moved to 1:00. Blood time for Penn State stopped action at the :34 mark with Bartlett leading 2-1. Leading by one, Bartlett chose down to start the second period. He worked his way to his feet, grabbed Hines’ ankle and broke the Hawk’s grip for an escape and a 3-1 lead with 1:25 on the clock. Bartlett used a slick snap as the period ended to notch a second takedown and led 5-1 after two. Trailing by four, Hines chose down to start the third period. Hines escaped quickly, cutting the Bartlett lead to 5-2 and then used a double leg to take Bartlett down and cut the lead to 5-4 with 1:36 on the clock. Bartlett quickly escaped to a 6-4 lead and action resumed in neutral with 1:20 to wrestle. The Lion junior countered a low Hines shot for another takedown to lead 8-4 as the clock moved below :50. Bartlett finished the period on top and rolled to the strong 8-4 win.

149: Redshirt freshman Shayne Van Ness, ranked No. 20 at 149, battled No. 26 Manzona Bryant IV. Van Ness gave up an early takedown and trailed 2-1 at the 2:10 mark. The Lion freshman then went to work on offense, keeping action in the center of the mat as action continued in neutral. Van Ness tripped Bryant to his back, took him down and locked up a cradle. Van Ness spent the next :45 or so working the cradle to a fall. After a slick readjustment, Van Ness went chest-to-chest with his foe and flattened his shoulders at the 2:28 mark for the first period fall.

157: Terrell Barraclough, ranked No. 30 at 157, faced off against No. 8 Josh Humphreys. Barraclough circled the middle of the mat against the three-time qualifier from Lehigh, looking to set up his offense on the Lehigh logo as the clock hit the 1:33 mark. Barraclough took a low single, but Humphreys was able to counter the effort and then took a 2-0 lead of his own. Barraclough quickly escaped to a 2-1 score and action resumed in neutral. Humphreys added another late counter takedown and led 4-1 after one. Leading by three, Humphreys chose down to start the second period. Barraclough controlled the action from the top position and nearly turned the Mountain Hawk for a moment at 1:20. Barraclough continued to maintain his top position as the clock hit :40 and he broke Humphreys down to his chest at :30. Barraclough rode Humphreys out and trailed 4-1 with 1:44 in riding time to his side after two. Barraclough chose neutral to start the third. Barraclough took a low double; Humphreys countered and then scrambled his way to a takedown and a 6-1 lead. Barraclough got to his feet and escaped to a 6-2 score at :35 with riding time intact. Barraclough worked for a final takedown, but Humphreys’ defense was able to kill the clock and Barraclough dropped a hard-fought 6-3 decision.

165: Redshirt freshman Alex Facundo, ranked No. 17 at 165, took on Brian Meyer. The duo battled evenly over the first minute-plus with neither wrestler able to get off a clean shot. Facundo took a fast high double at 1:20, Meyer countered, and the Lion freshman moved out of trouble to keep the bout tied 0-0 as the clock hit 1:00. Facundo continued to shoot, taking another low single at the :40 mark as Meyer backed away. Tied 0-0, Facundo chose down to start the second period. Facundo steadily worked his way to his feet and escaped to a 1-0 lead with 1:37 on the clock. Facundo snapped down hard on Meyer’s head, turned the move into a low single and took a 3-0 lead with a takedown. Meyer escaped to a 3-1 score at :58 and Facundo went back to work on offense. Facundo fought off a Meyer shot at :20 and took a high double as the time wound down. But Meyer defended the shot and Facundo led 3-1 after two. Meyer chose down to start the third period and Facundo controlled the action on top. Facundo broke Meyer down as the clock hit 1:20, building his riding time towards 1:00. Meyer managed to escape to a 3-2 score at :57 and Facundo had only :57 in riding time. Facundo used another low single to force action to the mat and finished off the takedown at :25, taking a 5-2 lead. He finished the period on top and, with 1:22 in riding time, rolled to the 6-2 win.

174: Carter Starocci, ranked No. 1 at 174, met Jake Logan. Starocci was high tempo from the onset, forcing Logan backwards with strong offensive pressure in the opening minute. Starocci allowed Logan to move forward, rolled low into a single and took the Hawk down at the 1:44 mark to lead 2-0. Starocci cut Logan loose and went back to work on offense. He forced Logan into a stall warning as the Lehigh wrestler continued to pace the outside circle. Starocci pushed through a low double to open up a 4-1 lead at the :20 mark. He finished the period on top and led 4-1 with :47 in riding time after one. Starocci chose down to start the second and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. Logan tried to lock in on a high shot, but Starocci easily forced a stalemate with 1:22 left in the second. Starocci connected on another high double at :38 to lead 7-1 and pushed his riding time over 1:00. The Nittany Lion finished the period on top and carried that lead, with 1:19 in time, into the third period. Logan chose down to start the third period and Starocci cut him loose to a 7-2 score. He quickly worked his way in on a single leg and took the Hawk down, cutting him again to a 9-3 lead. Starocci picked up another takedown and cut at :55, then another, and led 13-4 with clinched riding time at :44. He went on to tack on four more takedowns. With 1:59 in riding time, Starocci rolled to a 22-8 major decision.

184: Aaron Brooks, ranked No. 1 at 184, wrestled No. 22 Tate Samuelson. Brooks worked the center of the mat over the opening minute plus, setting up his offense on multiple occasions. But Samuelson was able to defend each effort and keep the match scoreless as the clock moved to 1:00. Brooks finally picked up the stall warning and then finished off a takedown to lead 2-1 at the :48 mark. Brooks continued to set up his offense as the Mountain Hawk played defense for the first three minutes of the bout. Leading 2-1, Brooks chose down to start the second period. He worked his way to his feet and escaped in the first :15 to up his lead to 3-1. Brooks continued to set up the bout’s only offense as Samuelson was content to defend shots. But the Lion’s pressure eventually led to a second takedown on a low single as Brooks took a 5-2 lead with :55 on the clock after a quick LU escape. Brooks scrambled his way to a third takedown in the final seconds and led 7-2 after two. Samuelson chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 7-3 score. Brooks paced the center circle as Samuelson backed away from every Lion push and the clock moved below the :45 mark. Brooks picked up a stall point to lead 8-3 at :41. Brooks worked offense throughout the bout and settled for an 8-3 win.

197: Max Dean, ranked No. 1 at 197, faced off against No. 9 Michael Beard. Beard got in on an early single leg to open up an early 2-0 lead on the Nittany Lion. Dean worked his way to his feat on a reset and escaped to a 2-1 score as the clock hit 2:15. Action resumed in neutral with Dean fighting off a low Beard shot as time hit 1:20, keeping the score at 2-1. Dean got in on a fast low single at the :55 mark and took Beard down to lead 3-2. Dean was hit with a stall warning while trying to keep Beard under control and a reset was called at :34. Dean continued to maintain control of the Mountain Hawk and Dean inexplicably got hit with another fast stall call, handing Beard another point. Dean finished the period on top and the bout moved to the second tied 3-3. Dean chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 4-3 lead. Beard turned a low shot into a takedown and a 5-4 lead at 1:35. Dean escaped to a 5-5 tie and action resumed in the middle of the mat. Dean took a low shot at :45 that nearly connected, then rolled through a scramble for a takedown and a 7-45 lead at the :20 mark. Beard managed an escaped with :04 left and Dean led 7-6 after two. Beard chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 7-7 tie. Beard countered a slight Dean shot and took a 9-7 lead with 1:20 on the clock. The Nittany Lion worked his way to an escape and a 9-8 lead at :55. Dean took a frantic shot that Beard countered and he took an 11-9 lead. Dean, needing a takedown to tie the match, was unable to catch a backing up Beard and the Hawk was able to grab the 11-9 win.

285: Greg Kerkvliet, ranked No. 2 at 285, battled No. 22 Nathan Taylor. Kerkvliet took Taylor down right away and spent the next minute-plus working for back points. He turned Taylor for two near fall and upped his lead to 4-0 as the clock hit 1:10. Kerkvliet turned the Hawk for four more back points and finished the period on top. He led 8-0 with almost 3:00 in riding time after two. Kerkvliet chose down to start the second period and quickly reversed himself into pinning position. He added four back points and led 14-0 with 1:20 on the clock. Kerkvliet finished off the tech fall with four more back points and posted the 18-0 technical fall at the 4:01 mark.

No. 1 Penn State beats Lehigh 24-12 in front of sell-out crowd at Stabler Arena

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