Penn State made short work of Bucknell Sunday afternoon and ran its dual winning streak to 33 with a 36-6 win over the Bison. After trailing 3-0, the Nittany Lions won eight of the last nine bouts, including two pins and two tech falls. In a dual where the Bison only sent four of their listed starters onto the mat, Penn State recorded 46 takedowns and, compared to Bucknell’s five.

How It Happened

125 lbs.
Jake Campbell dec. Devon Schnupp (3-1)

The two freshmen, each looking for his college win, kicked the dual off with a slow-moving, conservative match with a lot of hand-fighting. Campbell scored a late takedown to end the first period and rode Schnupp out for the last 45 seconds to take a lead that he wouldn’t relinquish.

Once again, Schnupp, who is now 0-2, dropped a close decision and was a big move during the last minute away from changing the bout’s outcome.

133 lbs.
No. 15 Corey Keener maj. David Campbell (12-4)

Coming off a memorable Penn State debut, Keener picked up right where he left off Thursday night, taking down Campbell in the first seconds of the bout. Keener ran the score up to 12-4 with five takedowns and a riding time point, handling a passively wrestling Campbell with ease.

141 lbs.
Jered Cortez dec. Matt Kolonia (10-4)

The Jered Cortez Comeback Tour hit its second stop in Happy Valley Sunday afternoon when the junior handily beat Kolonia, who did just enough to avoid allowing any bonus points.

149 lbs.
No. 1 Zain Retherford pin Seth Hogue (4:14)

The reigning Hodge Trophy winner opened up a 12-3 lead and put Hogue on his back multiple points before securing his first pin of the season to extend the Nittany Lions’ lead to 13-3.

157 lbs.
No. 1 Jason Nolf pin Christian Bassolino (3:33)

Nolf attacked Bassolino with his usual aggressive style and jumped out to a 15-7 lead off of seven takedowns before pinning him :33 seconds into the second period.

165 lbs.
Vincenzo Joseph TF DJ Hollingshead (6:30, 23-8)

For six and a half minutes, Joseph had his way with Hollingshead, taking him down seven times. He sealed the tech fall with a third period takedown.

174 lbs.
Mark Hall TF Nick Stephani (6:50, 21-6)

Hall followed suit and tacked on five points of his own to Penn State’s team total with a 21-6 technical fall win over Stephani.

184 lbs.
Bo Nickal maj. Drew Phipps (16-6)

Phipps seemed to be the only Bucknell wrestler to successfully execute the Bison’s conservative strategy. Bo Nickal, who won via pin or tech fall in 17 of his 27 matches a year ago, beat the unranked Phipps in a relatively unexciting 16-6 major decision.

197 lbs.
Garrett Hoffman dec. Anthony Cassar (11-8)

Hoffman led by as much as 7-2 before Cassar launched a comeback, aided by a pair of stalling points against Bucknell’s 197-pounder. Four takedowns by Cassar in the second and third periods, including one coming after an overturned call on the mat, injected some intrigue into the bout. In the closing seconds, Cassar was on the offensive, nearly tying the score with a takedown, but couldn’t finish. Even in the loss, Cassar’s performance Sunday afternoon, like Schnupp’s, should be taken as a positive, given the signs of resilience both have shown through two duals.

HWT
Nick Nevills dec. Eric Chakonis (11-4)

After riding out Chakonis for the second period and entering the third period leading 3-2, Nevills opened up the score with a big third period that saw him record three takedowns, an escape, and a riding time point, as he finished with an 11-4 decision.

Wrestler of the Dual

Mark Hall, 174 lbs., Sophomore

Hall wracked up eight takedowns and four back points in his thrilling technical fall win over Nick Stephani, demonstrating that his new, aggressive style is here to stay.

What’s Next

Penn State takes its first road trip Friday night to Binghamton University for a dual against the Bearcats at 7:00 p.m.