NCAA Wrestling Championships: Penn State Grabs Early Lead in Detroit

Six Nittany Lions advance to the quarterfinals. Lions look to some intriguing matchups Friday.

Six Penn State wrestlers advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2022 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, giving the Nittany Lions the early lead in Detroit.

Penn State finished Day 1 with 27.5 points, leading Arizona State, Michigan and Iowa in the team standings. The quarterfinals begin at 11 a.m. EST Friday at Little Caesars Arena. The semifinals are scheduled for 8 p.m.

Penn State's four returning NCAA champions (Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks) combined for six bonus-point decisions to advance. In addition, Max Dean (197 pounds) gritted out a 4-2 decision in the second round, scoring the decisive takedown with 30 seconds left in the third period. Heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet was fairly dominant, advancing with a pin and a major decision.

All nine of Penn State's NCAA qualifiers remain in medal contention. Drew Hildebrandt (125) rebounded from a first-round loss to win 3-1 in the consolations, and Beau Bartlett (149) moved into the wrestlebacks after a 15-9 loss to Ohio State's Sammy Sasso. Brady Berge (157) shook off a 2-1 loss in the first round to score a major decision in the consolations.

In all, Penn State wrestlers went 15-3 during Thursday's two sessions. The Lions scored 13.5 bonus team points via six major decisions, three pins and a technical fall.

Several Lions face unique matchups in the quarterfinals. Starocci, the top seed at 174, meets Nebraska's Mikey Labriola, a two-time NCAA medalist. The two have not met this season, but Labriola took Starocci to sudden victory last year at the Big Ten tournament. Starocci eventually won 3-1.

Kerkvleit, meanwhile, must beat Nebraska's Christian Lance for the third time this season to reach the semifinals, where defending NCAA and Olympic champion Gable Steveson likely waits. Kerkvleit defeated Lance 8-2 in a February dual and 7-1 at the Big Ten tournament.

NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships

Schedule

Friday, March 18

• 11 a.m.: Session 3 (ESPNU)
• 8 pm.: Session 4 Semifinals (ESPN)

Saturday, March 19

• 11 a.m.: Session 5 (ESPN2)
• 7 p.m.: Session 6 Finals (ESPN)

Read more

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