Four Penn State wrestling-affiliated wrestlers made their way back to the Bryce Jordan Center Saturday night in the RAF 02 event. Real American Freestyle, an up-and-coming wrestling league, is an organization that brings the entertainment of modern combat sports to the sport of freestyle wrestling.

The league has a number of Penn State wrestling affiliates within its ranks. Excluding Kyle Dake, Jake Varner, Carter Starocci, and Nico Megaludis, who competed tonight, some familiar faces, such as Bo Nickal, Roman Bravo-Young, Aaron Brooks, Kyle Snyder, and Beau Bartlett, are amongst the Nittany Lions on the roster.

Megaludis, Penn State’s only 125-pound national champion, made his RAF debut on Saturday. The 32-year-old went up against four-time All-American and former Iowa Hawkeye Austin DeSanto in a Bantamweight matchup to kick off the event.

Starocci, one of the best wrestlers to ever compete in the NCAA, also made his RAF debut on Saturday night, against Nate Jackson. Starocci’s collegiate resume is unheard of, with five consecutive national championships and a 119-2 record as a Nittany Lion. Jackson, a two-time All-American at Indiana, has never failed to medal in a major international competition, most notably taking home a gold medal at the 2024 Pan-American Championships.

The head of the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, Jake Varner, made his return to competition on Saturday. Varner is an Olympic gold medalist, world silver medalist, and two-time NCAA champion. Varner served as an assistant coach for the Penn State wrestling team from 2016 to 2021 before being promoted to lead the program’s regional training center. Varner faced off against a former U.S. Open champion, junior world silver medalist, and NCAA All-American in Pat Downey.

In the main event, Dake took on former world silver medalist Boris Makoev of Slovakia. Dake’s resume makes for one of the best in American history. The former collegiate star at Cornell won a national championship in four different weight classes, a feat that’s never been matched. As a member of the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, he also brings a long list of international successes with four world championships and two Olympic bronze medals. Dake beat Dean Hamiti in August at the RAF 01 event to become the inaugural RAF Cruiserweight world champion. Nickal also holds the Light Heavyweight title, but did not defend it in this event.

How It Happened

Nico Megaludis (Bantamweight)

It was all hand fighting at first, with neither wrestler getting a good shot off. DeSanto was awarded a point after the first period for Megaludis’ passivity. In the second period, DeSanto reversed a deep shot from the Nittany Lion and extended the lead to 5-0. Early in the third period, DeSanto scored a second takedown to make it 7-0. After another takedown, DeSanto would go up 10-0 and win by technical fall.

Carter Starocci (Cruiserweight)

The match started with fast-paced motion, with Jackson hitting Starocci with a four-point move early in the first period. Starocci would then get pushed out for an additional point to Jackson’s total. The Nittany Lion was close to scoring a single-leg takedown but failed to do so before time ran out on the first period.

As no points were scored in the second, Jackson still led Starocci 5-0 going into the final two minutes. The Nittany Lion secured his first point by pushing Jackson out, limiting his deficit to four. Starocci would gain another point but would then get taken down for the second time, killing his chances of a comeback. Starocci would fall to Jackson 7-2 in his RAF debut.

Jake Varner (Unlimited)

Varner scored the first point near the back half of the period, being awarded for Downey’s passivity. The second period went similarly to the first, with both wrestlers fighting for position in neutral position. Downey tied the match at 1-1 with Varner’s passivity. Soon after, Varner would snag Downey with a slick ankle pick takedown, taking a commanding 5-1 lead heading into the third period. The score would not change after the third, leaving Varner with a solid victory in his RAF debut.

Kyle Dake (Cruiserweight Championship)

The first period started with fast motion and hand fighting, but Dake scored first with a push-out on Makoev. The Nittany Lion then received a point for his opponent’s passivity. After the first period, Dake led 2-0 without a considerable shot attempt occurring on either side.

Dake received a second passivity point and forced a second push-out to double his lead after the second period. Makeov scored a point, but it was answered back with a third push-out by the Nittany Lion. Dake then hit a takedown with exposure to extend the lead to six. The Nittany Lion would win 7-1 in his first cruiserweight title defense.

What’s Next?

Real American Freestyle will hold its next event on November 29, 2025, in Chicago, Illinois. The card is not yet finalized.