No. 1 Penn State Vs. No. 2 Iowa Wrestling: Tale of the Tape

No. 1 Penn State hosts No. 2 Iowa in college wrestling's match of the year. Here's a bout-by-bout preview.
Penn State's Mitchell Mesenbrink wrestles Iowa's Michael Caliendo during a Big Ten dual match in 2024 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Penn State's Mitchell Mesenbrink wrestles Iowa's Michael Caliendo during a Big Ten dual match in 2024 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. / Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

College wrestling's match of the year arrives Friday night in State College, where No. 1 Penn State will host No. 2 Iowa for national dual-meet supremacy. Penn State has not lost a match since falling to Iowa five years ago, and the Hawkeyes seek to restore their position atop the Big Ten by ending the Nittany Lions' 65-match win streak.

On the mat, the Penn State-Iowa match will highlight some Big Ten Tournament and NCAA championship previews. If each team rolls out its top lineup, the match will feature four wrestlers ranked No. 1 in the country, 17 ranked among the top 7 and nine who are undefeated. Three weight classes could pair unbeaten wrestlers in battles for seeding supremacy. The match already has been the object of some trash talk, merely adding to atmosphere.

"Should be a great match," Penn State coach Cael Sanderson said this week, and he's right. Here's a bout-by-bout look at Friday's Penn State-Iowa match at the Bryce Jordan Center. The action begins at 7 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network.

Potential Penn State Vs. Iowa Potential Matchups

(Penn State wrestlers listed first; rankings by InterMat)

125: No. 7 Luke Lilledahl (11-1) vs. No. 26 Joey Cruz (11-6): Sanderson said that Lilledahl will be "perfectly OK" after sustaining his first loss of the season, a 4-1 decision vs. Rutgers' Dean Paterson. Cruz, a sophomore is 3-4 vs. ranked opponents.

133: No. 7 Braeden Davis (7-2) vs. No. 3 Drake Ayala (11-1): Ayala didn't wrestle last Saturday against Ohio State, but Iowa coach Tom Brands made this prediction. "I'm not going to speak for him, but Drake Ayala is one tough son of a gun, and when he's ready, he will be in the lineup. I think he'll be in the lineup." Ayala beat Davis 4-2 in their 2024 dual on the way to placing second at NCAAs 125.

141: No. 3 Beau Bartlett (12-0) vs. Ryder Block (2-4): Penn State has a real chance at bonus points, considering Bartlett has seven bonus-points wins, including three falls, this season. Block is 0-2 in Big Ten duals this season.

149: No. 4 Shayne Van Ness (11-1) vs. No. 2 Kyle Parco (13-0): This should be a top-5 gem, with Van Ness looking to go 3-0 vs. Parco. Van Ness won their third-place match 7-2 at the 2023 NCAA Tournament (when Parco wrestled for Arizona State) and defeated him 5-1 at the 2023 NWCA All-Star Classic. Parco is 7-0 vs. ranked opponents this season.

157: No. 3 Tyler Kasak (12-0) vs. No. 1 Jacori Teemer (3-1): Teemer, who lost in the 2024 NCAA final to Penn State's Levi Haines, missed almost two months of the season after taking an injury default vs. Iowa State in late November. The Arizona State transfer returned last week with a 10-5 decision over Ohio State's Sammy Sasso. Kasak, who has wins over three top-20 opponents this season, is coming off a 4-0 decision vs. Rutgers' Conner Harer.

165: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (13-0) vs. No. 2 Michael Caliendo (13-0): This is Round 4 between the nation's top two wrestlers at the weight class. Mesenbrink won all three of their bouts last season, outscoring Caliendo by a combined total of 52-22. Mesenbrink has beaten every opponent this season by technical fall. Caliendo is 5-0 this season vs. ranked opponents.

174: No. 2 Levi Haines (11-1) vs. No. 6 Patrick Kennedy (8-1): Haines, who has allowed one takedown this season, likes to impose his will early. He has scored nine of his 15 takedowns in the first period. Kennedy is 5-0 vs. ranked opponents, winning by a combined score of 65-20.

184: No. 1 Carter Starocci (12-0) vs. No. 6 Gabe Arnold (11-1): This is the showcase bout based on the pre-match trash talking. Arnold said, "your head's mine," to which Starocci responded, "he's their starter?" Starocci has won all 12 bouts this season with bonus points. Arnold is 3-0 this season vs. ranked opponents.

197: No. 4 Josh Barr (10-0) vs. No. 1 Stephen Buchanan (13-0): Another matchup of unbeatens, this could be the night's most entertaining bout. Barr is Penn State's dual-meet takedowns leader (31), getting seven in a third-period technical fall against Rutgers last week. Buchanan holds the nation's top spot with a 6-0 record vs. ranked opponents, earning bonus points in five of those wins.

285: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet (12-0) vs. No. 11 Ben Kueter (10-2): Kerkvliet continues his march toward a Big Ten Tournament showdown with Minnesota's Gable Steveson, though he has been "battling whatever," according to Sanderson, making a vague reference to illness. Kerkvliet wrestled his first 7-minute bout of the season last week, defeating Rutgers' Yaraslau Slavikouski 2-0. Kerkvliet decisioned Kueter 9-1 in last year's dual in Iowa City.

More Penn State Wrestling

Penn State routs Rutgers for 65th consecutive win

Nittany Lions dominate first NCAA Coaches Rankings of the season


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Mark Wogenrich
MARK WOGENRICH

Mark Wogenrich is Editor and Publisher of AllPennState, the site for Penn State news on SI's FanNation Network. He has covered Penn State sports for more than two decades across three coaching staffs and three Rose Bowls.