Penn State wrestling traveled over 2,500 miles to Corvallis, Oregon, to face the Oregon State Beavers on January 5. The team bonded between long bus rides and flights, sharing hotel rooms, and training throughout its trip out west.

The trip to Corvallis took place during Penn State’s winter break after the fall semester was completed. The athletes were in between classes and didn’t have any schoolwork to complete, giving them ample time to hang out and bond as a team.

“Road trips are fun because the team’s just all together in a hotel and not having to worry about going to class and stuff like that,” Levi Haines said. “Road trips are a great way to bond with the team and just be closer to everybody.”

Haines also shared he hasn’t had one specific roommate on the past couple of trips to away matches. Last year, he roomed with Alex Facundo. This year, there’s been a change.

“From the first trip, I had Connor Pierce, and then this one, I had Donovon Ball, so I get along with everybody pretty well,” Haines said. “I feel like I can room with anyone.”

The team previously traveled for the Journeymen Collegiate Classic in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, earlier in the season. The event was individual-focused with the round-robin format rather than the team dual the Nittany Lions had this go-around.

“This one is really cool when you have a match because the whole team is competing together and being out there,” Beau Bartlett said. “We’re all playing video games after the fact, some long flights, some long bus rides, and being together the whole time seeing these guys off the mat”

The wrestlers also have great working relationships during practice and warmups. Bartlett described how he and Aaron Nagao did drills before the trip to focus on growing each other’s skill sets and work on their craft together.

“I really like how Aaron wrestles, and we were trying to pick each other’s brains a couple of times, and he wanted to wrestle on his feet with me so he could pick up some things,” Bartlett said. “Everyone’s really good at one thing. Figuring out what it is so that everyone’s good at it and seeing what I can implement in my style and what I can share with others — Aaron’s a great example of that.”

The Nittany Lions rolled the Beavers 36-3 in their dual match before another flight home to prepare for their Big Ten opener against Indiana on Sunday, January 14, in Rec Hall.