Although Penn State wrestling sent seven wrestlers to the Big Ten Championship finals in session two, Aaron Nagao and Tyler Kasak suffered losses and moved on to the consolation bracket.

The pair each punched their tickets Sunday morning to the third-place bout in session four with wins against Maryland’s Braxton Brown and Iowa’s Caleb Rathjen.

How It Happened

133 pounds

No. 5 Aaron Nagao started the day against No. 7 Braxton Brown from Maryland.

The bout started slow tied 0-0, but Nagao got on the board with a takedown at the end of the first period to lead 3-0. The Nittany Lion added on to the score with four near-fall points in the second period. Brown had one point from an escape but Nagao still led 7-1.

Brown escaped again, but Nagao still held the 7-2 lead going into the third period. The Terrapin earned a takedown of his own to close the gap 8-5, but Nagao clinched the riding time bonus.

Nagao held on and earned the 9-5 win and a spot in the third-place bout in session four.

9-5 win for Aaron! #PSUwr pic.twitter.com/VMBY06AuiX

— Penn State WRESTLING (@pennstateWREST) March 10, 2024

149 pounds

The second matchup of the morning had No. 4 Tyler Kasak wrestle No. 3 Caleb Rathjen from Iowa.

Kasak went on offense to start and had a quick takedown in the first to lead 3-0. He added on 1:47 of riding time but was also given a stall warning in the first period.

Iowa’s Rathjen started the second period with an escape to make the score 3-1. Kasak did not score again but extended his riding time to 2:14 by the end of the period.

The final period had an escape for Kasak to make the score 4-1. The Nittany Lion had another takedown later in the third period and secured his spot in the third-place bout with an 8-1 victory.

What’s Next?

Nine Penn State wrestlers will compete in the final session of the Big Ten Championship at 4:30 p.m. in College Park, Maryland. Session four will be streamed on the Big Ten Network.