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 newcomers and veterans alike helped the Nittany Lions open conference play in style.

How It Happened

To open the dual, two-time All-American made his Nittany Lions debut at 125 pounds. He quickly got off to a 6-0 lead and capitalized on his momentum with a quick fall.

Drew Hildebrandt wasted no time turning heads as @pennstateWREST’s new 125-pound starter pic.twitter.com/KmDY1lIo4t

— Onward State (@OnwardState) January 8, 2022

Next up, No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young faced King Sandoval in the 133-pound bout. Bravo-Young opened with a swift 6-0 lead from a number of takedowns. The Penn State senior was a dominating force, leaving the score 14-0 after the first round. He posted a tech fall at the beginning of the second round to put the Nittany Lions up 11-0.

No. 1 Nick Lee saw Danny Bertoni for the 141-pound bout. Within the first minute of the match, Lee worked his way to a 10-0 lead and had the entirety of the riding time on his side. The first round finished with a takedown and a 12-1 lead for Lee. Another quick takedown got the 14-1 lead for Lee, allowing him to finish up 18-1 with another technical fall.

How did Nick Lee pull this off? #PSUwr pic.twitter.com/vH8EVaMgbz

— Penn State WRESTLING (@pennstateWREST) January 8, 2022

No. 20 Beau Bartlett saw the first competitive match of the night against fellow sophomore Michael North in the 149-pound match. A tough first round finished victorious for Bartlett after a takedown, bringing the score up to 4-3. The second round finally saw a momentum shift for the Terapins, although it was quickly taken away by Bartlett when he was able to secure the pin and walk away with another win.

Penn State’s Tony Negron was next on the mat against Maryland’s Lucas Cordio at 157 pounds. The match once again started in favor of Maryland but swiftly shifted with a 4-2 lead for Negron in the first. The first round finished with a 7-2 Penn State lead. Fighting through a number of stalemates, Negron kept a 10-2 lead until the end and earned a major decision.

Penn State maintained a 26-0 lead heading into halftime.

The second half of the matches began with the 165-pound bout of No. 24 Creighton Edsell taking on Gaven Bell. Edsell stayed strong through the first, getting the 2-0 lead from a takedown. A hard-fought match ended as a 6-1 win for Edsell — Penn State’s sixth win on the night.

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. Despite all the action, the score was 4-1 Penn State at the end of the first. The intense match was finished by decision with an 8-3 win for Penn State.

Next was the most anticipated match of the night, the 184-pound bout of No. 1 Aaron Brooks and No. 12 Kyle Cochran. Brooks immediately came out on top with a 2-1 lead. This continued through two rounds with a 10-3 lead going into the conclusion. Brooks was able to preserve and give a dazzling performance to take down Cochran 19-7 by major decision.

No. 2 Max Dean stepped in for the 197-pound match against Kevin Makosy. A strong first-round performance from Dean put up a 10-2 lead for Penn State. Dean stayed consistent throughout the third, giving the Nittany Lions another win by technical fall.

Max Dean working on top #PSUwr pic.twitter.com/G59AwawGNZ

— Penn State WRESTLING (@pennstateWREST) January 8, 2022

The final match of the night brought No. 4 Greg Kerkvliet and No. 26 Zach Schrader for the 285-pound bout. Another superior performance from Penn State came via a 14-2 first-round lead for Kerkvliet. The second round gave Kervliet the technical fall win with a final score of 18-3

What’s Next?

Penn State will face Indiana at Rec Hall on Sunday, January 9, at 2 p.m. This will be the Nittany Lions’ first home dual in conference play.