No. 1 Penn State wrestling (12-0, 6-0 Big Ten) steamrolled No. 29 Maryland (8-9, 3-4 Big Ten) 35-10 back in Rec Hall after back-to-back duals in the Bryce Jordan Center.

Highlighting the dual were tech falls from Luke Lilledahl, Shayne Van Ness, Mitchell Mesenbrink, Carter Starocci, and Josh Barr.

How It Happened

125 Pounds

To begin the dual, No. 7 “Lightning” Lilledahl took on Tyler Garvin. Lilledahl got the ball rolling early with three takedowns and a four-second near-fall all in the first period to shoot out to a 13-2 lead. Two more takedowns from Lilledahl in the second secured the true freshman a 20-4 tech fall at 3:42.

133 Pounds

After the tech fall, Kyison Garcia walked to the mat to take on No. 11 Braxton Brown. No points were scored in the first period as neither wrestle committed to an offensive shot. A reversal from Brown midway through the second period put the Terrapin on top 2-1 heading into the third after an escape from Garcia. A batch of near-fall points from Brown and a full third-period ride-out awarded the Maryland wrestler the 9-1 major decision victory.

141 Pounds

In action next was No. 3 Beau Bartlett staring down Dario Lemus. A pair of takedowns and a two-second near-fall from Bartlett put the Nittany Lion in front 8-1 after the first period of wrestling. An escape to start the period and a last-second takedown from Bartlett extended his lead to 12-1 headed into the final two minutes. A final takedown in the third with riding time gave Bartlett the 17-3 major decision victory.

Penn State led the dual 9-4 after the first three bouts.

149 Pounds

Looking to tally more bonus points, No. 3 Van Ness shared the mat with No. 32 Kal Miller. A takedown and four-second near-fall from Van Ness put him in front 7-1 after the first period. Starting in bottom position, Van Ness escaped early into the second to add another point to his lead, then 8-1 headed into the final two minutes. An additional takedown and four-second near-fall along with the accumulated riding time earned Van Ness the 17-2 tech fall at 7:00.

157 Pounds

In another highly anticipated match, No. 1 Tyler Kasak squared off against No. 6 Ethen Miller. Despite some decent shots from Kasak, none stuck as no points were tallied in the opening period. Kasak broke open the scoring with an escape to start the second period with a stall warning being called on Miller along the way. The bout was ended prematurely after Kasak took repeated pokes to the eye and a final blow to the head in the area where the wrestler previously received stitches following the dual against Iowa. Miller received the win via injury default.

Penn State still led the dual 14-10 into the intermission.

165 Pounds

After the intermission, No. 1 Mesenbrink took on Alex Uryniak. Three takedowns from Mesenbrink in the first period gave him an early 9-2 lead over the Terrapin. A reversal and two additional takedowns from Mesenbrink granted the Nittany Lion an 18-3 tech fall at 4:59.

174 Pounds

After the tech fall, No. 2 Levi Haines battled against Branson John. No points were scored in the first period as both wrestlers displayed strong defensive abilities. Haines rode out John for the entire middle period as the score remained 0-0. Haines escaped to start the third to eventually secure the bout-opening takedown followed by his second, awarding him the 8-1 decision victory.

184 Pounds

Next up, we saw No. 1 Starocci take on No. 11 Jaxon Smith. A pair of takedowns from Starocci put him in front 6-1 after the first period, taking bottom position to start the second. Starocci escaped and added another two takedowns in the middle period to extend his lead to 14-2. A final offensive flurry in the third period from Starocci gave the Nittany Lion the 20-3 tech fall at 6:45.

Penn State led the dual 27-10 with two bouts remaining.

197 Pounds

At 197 pounds, we saw No. 4 Barr share the mat with Chase Mielnik. Barr collected two takedowns in the opening period to put himself in front 6-1. Barr escaped to start the second and executed a crisp ankle pick to takedown Mielnik again and extend his lead to 10-2. A final take-down and four-second near-fall gave Barr the 17-2 tech fall at 4:36.

285 Pounds

Finishing off the dual were No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet and former Penn State wrestler No. 12 Seth Nevills. A lone takedown from Kerkvliet was the only point scored in the first as the Nittany Lion took a 3-0 lead into the second. An additional takedown and escape in the second period from Kerkvliet extended his lead to 7-2 entering the final two minutes. An escape from Nevills was the only point scored in the final period as Kerkvliet took the 8-3 decision victory after riding time.

Penn State won the dual 35-10.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions will be in action next when they take on Ohio State at 7 p.m. Friday, February 14, in Columbus. You can watch on the Big Ten Network.