Penn State Wrestling Ready To Compete Against Iowa
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The biggest dual match of the college wrestling season is upon us, folks.
On Friday night, the top-ranked Nittany Lions are set to clash with No. 2 Iowa in the Bryce Jordan Center.
Penn State has been untouchable this season with a starting lineup that boasts a 112-5 record on the season, outscoring its opponents in team points 389-19 in dual matches. Last week, Penn State wrestled against a tough opponent in No. 12 Rutgers where it won all but one match, including four technical falls.
This week brings the best competition the Nittany Lions have faced all year with seven possible top-10 matchups.
“[Iowa] is just a great program and they’re always prepared for these matches,” head coach Cael Sanderson said Monday. “They obviously have a lot of talent, a lot of just good, solid, tough wrestlers.”
Sanderson, who’s riding a streak of 65 straight dual meet victories, is no stranger to stiff competition from the Hawkeyes. Despite this, the Nittany Lions have defeated Iowa the past three seasons including last year’s dismantling victory, outscoring the rival 29-6.
“It’s that match that sold right away. It wasn’t a hard sell,” Sanderson said.
The Nittany Lions don’t just look at the dual as a head-to-head competition with a highly ranked squad but also a gauge of where the lineup needs the most improvement as they prepare for the back end of the season.
“They show you what you need to work on,” Sanderson said. “We want to wrestle great and compete well and score points, but it’s also a great opportunity for us to see where we’re at and kind of be able to make adjustments from there leading into the postseason.”
With such a monumental match, it’s important for the team to treat it like any other matchup. Mitchell Mesenbrink has won all of his dual matches by bonus point victory this season, including 11 technical falls.
“It’s just kind of like whatever’s next,” Mesenbrink said. “Someone asked me what’s my most anticipated match and I just like to say the next one. They just say go, and I go.”
In the new landscape of college sports, the transfer portal plays a massive role. This is no different in wrestling as more and more top wrestlers join bigger and better teams. This applies to some of Iowa’s biggest names such as No. 1 Stephan Buchanan at 197, No. 1 Jacori Teemer at 157, and No. 2 Kyle Parco at 149, who are all competing in their first season with the Hawkeyes.
“This is, I think, the future… The top five teams are just going to be loaded like we’re seeing now,” Sanderson said. “The transfer portal and the way things are happening and everyone’s kind of experimenting with the changes in college wrestling to see what the best way to move forward is.”
There’s no shortage of storylines in this rivalry. On the biggest stage in the regular season, Sanderson painted a clear picture of what the fans can expect on Friday.
“A lot of energy, a lot of history, two great programs,” Sanderson said. “Iowa’s gonna bring it. We’re gonna bring it. It’s going to be a lot of fun. You got two of the teams that are competing for a national title, facing off in a dual meet. It’s good stuff. That’s what we do this for. That’s why we come in here every day, is to wrestle in the most competitive matches. So we’re excited and we’re gonna have fun.”
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