No. 1 Penn State wrestling (4-0, 0-0 Big Ten) dominated No. 18 Wyoming (2-2, 1-0 Big 12) 40-7 on the road Saturday night. They are now one win away from tying the record for consecutive dual meet wins at 76.

The Nittany Lions won the first eight bouts and earned four pins. Freshmen PJ Duke and Marcus Blaze both won by fall.

How It Happened

125 Pounds

No. 2 Luke Lilledahl took on Stefon Douglass to kick off the dual. Lilledahl was quick to secure a takedown to gain a 3-0 advantage early on. Douglass got on the board with an escape to make it 3-1. Lilledahl was able to get another takedown before the end of the first period to make it 6-1.

There was more dominance in the second period for Lilledahl, securing a takedown early again. While Douglass was able to get an escape, Lilledahl was quickly awarded three more takedowns to win the match 18-3 by tech fall at 3:26.

133 Pounds

No. 10 Marcus Blaze stepped into the circle against No. 22 Luke Willochell next. Willochell struck first with a takedown that wasn’t initially awarded to him, but after review, it was confirmed, and Blaze got the escape, making it 3-1 early on. Blaze struck next with a takedown, and with another Willochell, the match was tied 4-4 late in the first period. Blaze worked for an ankle pick takedown to take a 7-4 lead to end the first period.

An escape by Willochell kicked off the second period, but Blaze managed to get the pin to end the bout prematurely.

141 Pounds

Next up for the Nittany Lions was Nate Desmond, making his dual meet debut against John Alden. Desmond started his debut with an early takedown. No further points were awarded in the first period.

Desmond was awarded a reversal to begin the second period, but let up an escape to make it 5-1. With time winding down in the second, Desmond attempted an ankle pick takedown but was unsuccessful. Desmond was caught looking at the clock as time was running low, and Alden capitalized with a blast double takedown to shorten Desmond’s lead to one.

Alden chose the neutral position to start the third period. Desmond worked his way to a takedown to take an 8-4 lead. Desmond was awarded two near-fall points and won the match 11-4 to give Penn State a 14-0 lead through three bouts.

149 Pounds

No. 1 Shayne Van Ness went up against No. 30 Gabe Willochell in the fourth bout. Willochell got hold of both of Van Ness’s legs and worked his way for a takedown. Van Ness escaped quickly and countered with a near-side cradle takedown. Van Ness kept applying pressure and pinned Willochell at 2:54 for the fall.

157 Pounds

No. 8 PJ Duke faced off against Jared Hill for the final bout before the half. Duke was awarded a takedown to start the match. While Hill escaped to get on the board, Duke got another takedown and finished the period with almost a full minute of riding time.

In the second, Duke earned another takedown and was able to get the pin soon after to get the fall at 4:09. Penn State would head into the half up 26-0

165 Pounds

No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink versus Sloan Swan kicked off the second half. Mesenbrink gained a takedown immediately to get a 3-0 lead. After some struggle, Swan eventually worked his way out of the escape. Mesenbrink struck again with a takedown and almost got the pin, but had to settle for four near-fall points. Mesenbrink wasn’t satisfied with that and worked for the pin to get the fall at 2:00.

174 Pounds

No. 1 Levi Haines matched up against No. 28 Riley Davis next. Haines struck early with a takedown. Davis managed to escape before being taken down by Haines again. Haines went into the second up 6-1.

After an escape, Haines gained his third takedown to go up 10-1. Haines was awarded four near-fall points soon after. Another four near-fall points gave Haines the win with an 18-1 tech fall at 4:50.

184 Pounds

No. 4 Rocco Welsh was next up for the Nittany Lions; he was opposed by No. 12 Neithenback. It was a slow start as both wrestlers were feeling each other out. In the final minute of the opening period, Welsh gained a takedown. Neithenback wasn’t able to escape before the end of the period, so Welsh was up 3-0 after one.

Welsh chose the bottom position to start the second period. He quickly escaped to go up 4-0. A lack of offense followed, and Neithenback was given a warning for stalling to end the second.

Neithenback got on the board with an escape to begin to final period. Welsh tried a single-leg takedown late, but couldn’t finish before the clock expired. He won the bout 4-1 to extend Penn State’s lead to 40-0.

197 Pounds

No. 8 Connor Mirasola faced No. 4 Joey Novak in a highly anticipated matchup. Mirasola attempted a single-leg takedown, but Novak kicked his way out of it. Both wrestlers continued to size the other up, and no score was awarded after one.

A stallmate occurred with just over a minute left in the second. Again, not much offense for either wrestler, and they headed into the third scoreless.

Mirasola started in the top position and allowed Novak to escape for the first points of the match. Mirasola’s leg buckled in as he was trying to strike, and Novak capitalized with a takedown to go up 4-0. Mirasola called for injury time soon after. Mirasola continued the bout. Novak was able to close this one out with a 10-4 major decision after it was clear Mirasola’s leg was still bothering him. Penn State’s lead shrank to 36 heading into the final match.

Heavyweight

No. 11 Cole Mirasola took on No. 10 Christian Carroll for the final match. With just under two minutes left in the first, a stalemate was called. The period ended with no score.

Mirasola took the bottom position to start the second. He opened scoring with an escape. Carroll earned the first takedown of the bout, and after another Mirasola escape, it was 3-2 after two.

Mirasola let up an escape to begin the final period of the dual. Carroll struck again with his second takedown to expand his lead to 7-2. Mirasola managed his third escape, and Carroll earned his third takedown to set the final score at 10-2 and make the final for the dual 40-7 Penn State.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions will go against North Dakota State in their next dual. It will take place on Saturday, December 20, starting at 5 p.m. in Nashville, Tennessee. The match will be broadcast on FloWrestling.