What We Learned From Penn State Wrestling's 30-8 Win Over Iowa

The No. 1 Nittany Lions overwhelmed the second-ranked Hawkeyes before an energized, sold-out crowd at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Penn State's Tyler Kasak takes down Iowa's Jacori Teemer in the 157-pound bout of their Big Ten wrestling match at the Bryce Jordan Center. / Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

STATE COLLEGE | For Penn State wrestling coach Cael Sanderson, win streaks are for retirement. He's an unbeaten, four-time national champion and leader of a college wrestling dynasty, but Sanderson still operates on the foundational principles he learned from his father.

"It was never about winning and losing. It was about fighting," Sanderson said Friday night. "You don’t have to tell somebody you want to win. Everybody wants to win."

The byproduct of that standard is winning. Top-ranked Penn State suffocated No. 2 Iowa 30-8 on Friday night at a sold-our Bryce Jordan Center, winning its 66th consecutive dual match in the process. The Nittany Lions (10-0) made the nation's second-ranked team look pedestrian, even though the Hawkeyes have a terrific lineup.

Three Iowa wrestlers entered the match unbeaten and ranked first or second in the country. Two lost. Another top-ranked Hawkeye lost. Iowa's unbeaten, second-ranked wrestler at 165 pounds lost by technical fall. Penn State held a 24-8 advantage in takedowns (Iowa scored six of those in one bout against a backup) and scored bonus points in four bouts.

Penn State, the three-time defending NCAA champion, continues steamrolling toward a fourth straight title and eighth in nine seasons. But for Sanderson, those numbers mean nothing without their underlying purpose.

"There’s a higher standard than winning and losing," Sanderson said. "That’s a pretty low standard. Performance and our effort and our attitude is always going to be a higher standard than winning or losing."

What else did we learn from Penn State's win over Iowa? Here's a look.

Tyler Kasak has a mean streak

Kasak, the redshirt freshman who placed third at NCAAs last year, stood on the mat holding Jacori Teemer, the nation's No. 1 wrestler at 157 pounds, on one shoulder while raising the other in celebration. He was bleeding above the right eye, a gash that required stitches). He remembered none of it, though the moment served as rocket fuel for the 15,998 fans at the Bryce Jordan Center.

"I kinda just blacked out," Kasak said. "I have no idea what I really did; just enjoying the moment. They’re probably my favorite team to wrestle."

Kasak, ranked third at 157, turned a second-period takedown into a 4-0 lead and then strong-armed the weight class' defending national runnerup. Kasak accumulated more than 2 minutes of riding time and closed the match by lifting Teemer off the mat and just holding him there. It was a remarkable sight, one that signaled Kasak's readiness to contend at the weight class.

TYLER KASAK BRINGING THE ENERGY ‼️@pennstateWREST leads 15-5 at the half and Bryce Jordan Center is loving it 👏#B1GWrestling on @BigTenNetwork 📺 pic.twitter.com/MrLHBfRZs2

— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) February 1, 2025

Penn State's Levi Haines defeated Teemer for the NCAA title last year, so Kasak was asked whether Haines offered any advice.

"He just told me to go smash him," Kasak said, "and I did a pretty good job of that."

Mitchell Mesenbrink is inevitable

Iowa coach Tom Brands said after the match that "we got run out of this arena in some matches." The 165-pound bout was one of them.

Mesenbrink earned his No. 1 ranking at 165 by scoring technical falls over every opponent he has wrestled this season. But surely second-ranked and unbeaten Michael Caliendo would stop that streak, right? Well, no. Mesenbrink scored five takedowns and a reversal in humbling Caliendo 19-4. Caliendo had not allowed more than six points in his last nine bouts. Mesenbrink (14-0) made it look just as easy as he has all season.

No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink’s reaction after taking down No. 2 Mikey Caliendo with his 1️⃣2️⃣th tech fall of the season 🔥#B1GWrestling x @pennstateWREST pic.twitter.com/IpjGpMFtE0

— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) February 1, 2025

Shayne Van Ness has a short memory

Since losing 10-2 to Nebraska's Ridge Lovett, Van Ness has been exceptional. On Friday he handed second-ranked Kyle Parco his first loss of the season. Van Ness' 17-6 major at 149 pounds represented the moment Penn State siezed control of the match. It also underscored how much Van Ness, who beat Parco for third place at nationals in 2023, is delivering for the lineup.

"You've got two of the best guys in the country scrapping, and Shayne just kept pushing forward and driving and fought through it and looked great," Sanderson said. "I was really happy with Shayne."

What happened at 184?

Gabe Arnold, Iowa's unbeaten starter at 184 pounds, called the Hawkeyes' shot last week, ending a post-match press conference with this: "We've got Penn State next week and we didn’t get the job done last year and that kinda sucks. But we’re gonna get it done this year. So this time we'll be in your home dojo, and I promise, your head's mine."

Well, Arnold didn't wrestle against Carter Starocci, Penn State's four-time NCAA champ. Freshman Angelo Ferrari did and provided Starocci with a frustrating seven minutes, though Starocci won 3-1. Iowa coach Tom Brands told FloWrestling after the match that he wrestled Ferrari to give him a shot at elite competition during his redshirt season. What did Sanderson think?

"I don't think that was really a surprise," the Penn State coach said. "We kinda figured that might be the case just based on stuff that had happened and things that were said. Carter would have been ready for either opponent."

Where was Braeden Davis?

Penn State's starter at 133 pounds did not wrestle, Sanderson said, because of an injury related to his match last week against Rutgers. Senior Kurt McKenry took on third-ranked Drake Ayala, who scored a technical fall.

"[Davis was] a little banged up from a week ago," Sanderson said. "Kurt’s a little undersized but he’s got a huge heart and he’s a great wrestler and he wanted that shot, so we gave it to him."

Penn State's dominance by the numbers

How much better has Penn State been than its schedule this season? The Nittany Lions have:

• Outscored their dual-match opponents 419-27

• Outscored their ranked opponents 217-24

• Compiled a 92-8 individual record in duals

• Won 35 of 40 bouts in Big Ten duals

Did Penn State think it made a statement?

We asked. Here's what they said:

Tyler Kasak: "Yeah, I guess so. I already felt like this team was pretty special, so I think when you go against the No. 2 team in the country and you kind of handle them pretty well — and not even as far as the scoreboard but as far as the effort and just attitude — it felt like evone was pumped up. The bigger the matches, the more fun we have."

Greg Kerkvliet: "Each time you wrestle somebody, the next day it’s a new day, new person, new team. Nothing transfers over. I just think you try to keep making the same statement week in and week out."

Cael Sanderson: "We’re just trying to be at our best in the big moments. That’s a statement of consistency, and consistency is  the name of the game. But as coaches, and I’m sure as wrestlers, you’re always thinking about the next one, and the next one and the next one. ... You enjoy it and have fun with what you’re doing, but it’s more fun to keep challenging yourself to try to get better all the time."

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