Penn State wrestling live blog: Big Ten Championships Finals

Penn State wrestling is looking to lock up its third Big Ten Championship in as many years on Sunday evening in Evanston. While this year’s conference tournament has included some unexpected twists and turns, one constant has been the continued dominance of the Nittany Lions.

Nittany Lion wrestlers went 19-4 during Saturday’s first two sessions, sending six competitors to Sunday’s Finals. Two top seeds suffered upsets in Saturday night’s Semifinals, with Beau Bartlett (141) and Shayne Van Ness (149) both taking surprising losses. However, Penn State delivered an upset of its own after freshman phenom Luke Lilledahl defeated No. 1 Matt Ramos to advance to his first Big Ten Finals appearance.

Bartlett, Van Ness, and Braeden Davis will all wrestle for third place Sunday evening. Nittany Lion 197-pounder Josh Barr was forced to injury default out of his consolation match earlier in the day.

Penn State wrestling Big Ten Finals live blog

Match-by-match results can be found below. Please note, this page will not update automatically. to see the latest results, please refresh your browser.

Final Team Standings

#1 Penn State – 181.5

#2 Nebraska – 137

#3 Iowa – 112

#4 Minnesota – 108.5

#5 Illinois – 105.5

#6 Ohio State – 95.5

125: No. 8 Luke Lilledahl (PSU) def No. 7 Caleb Smith (NEB) by 4-3 decision

Lilledahl got things going with a nice ankle pick on Smith’s left ankle to take the 3-0 in the final minute of the first period. He was then able to ride out Caleb Smith to finish the period with 40 seconds of riding time. Smith was able to get out from the down position in 11 seconds and cut the score to 3-1 top open the 2nd period.

Neither wrestler go on the board offensively in the 2nd period and the score remained 3-1 heading into the final period. Lilledahl picked up the escape 17 seconds into the final period to extend his lead to 4-1. Smith ramped up the pressure and the result ended up being a stalling call on Lilledahl to cut the lead to 4-2. Another stall call on Lilledahl with 10 seconds remaining gave Smith another point but it wasn’t enough as true freshman Luke Lilledahl brought home the Big Ten Title.

157: No. 1 Tyler Kasak (PSU) def No. 11 Brandon Cannon (OSU) by 12-2 major decision

Cannon went right to his offense in the opening seconds but Kasak was able to fight it off and get a stalemate. Kasak was able to get on the board first after an excellent counter attack during a scramble to lead 3-0 at the end of the first period. The sophomore cut Cannon lose to begin the second to make the score 3-1.

Kasak got hit with a stall warning about the middle of the 2nd period as Cannon went on the offensive. There were no more points scored in the period and it remained 3-1 heading into the 3rd with Kasak starting on bottom. A quick escape by Kasak to begin the period though pushed the score back to 4-1. Cannon continued to push Kasak to the edge of the mat and the result is a stall call on Kasak to make it 4-2.

The continued shots by Cannon resulted in a strong counter by Kasak and a takedown and four near fall points made it 11-2. Both wrestlers were bleeding pretty significantly resulting in a blood time. After the break Kasak rode him out for the major decision.

165: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (PSU) def No. 2 Mikey Caliendo (IOWA) by 4-1 decision

A fast paced first period saw Mesenbrink constantly on the attack and finally breaking through for the takedown with 15 seconds remaining to take a 3-0 lead into the 2nd period. Caliendo opened the 2nd with an escape to cut the lead to 3-1. Caliendo was terrific in his defense during the period as Mesenbrink continued to pepper the Hawkeye with shots.

Mesenbrink opened the final period with the escape to push the lead to 4-1. There was no more scoring in the period and Mesenbrink had his closest match of the season in a one score decision. Mesenbrink made sure to mention in his post match interview that he appreciates how much Caliendo fought and that it makes the match fun. The two will certainly be on a collision course to meet again in the NCAA finals.

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174: No. 2 Levi Haines (PSU) def  No. 8 Lenny Pinto (NEB) by 12-1 major decision

Lenny Pinto got deep on a single leg about halfway through the first period but Levi Haines was able to fight it off to keep the match scoreless. Haines went on the attack late on a single leg and got the takedown with just 6 seconds remaining in the period to take a 3-0 lead. After a quick escape by Haines he once again took down Pinto and turned him to his back for Near Fall points to take a commanding 11-0 lead. Haines started on top to begin the 3rd period and was able to ride out Pinto for the entire period on hi s way to the 12-1 major decision.

184: No. 1 Carter Starocci (PSU) def No. 4 Max McEnelly (MINN) by 8-5 decision in SV

A shocking start to the match as McEnelly takes down Starocci to take a 3-1 lead into the 2nd period. An escape to begin the period and a takedown along the edge of the mat gave Starocci a 5-3 lead late in the 2nd period. McEnelly was able to get the escape with under 5 seconds remaining to cut the lead to one heading into the final period.

An escape by McEnelly to start the 3rd period and the score was tied 5-5. A stall warning was called on McEnelly as Starocci continued to push him towards the edge of the circle. Nobody could find a way to score the winner and the match headed to sudden victory. Starocci showed terrific patience in sudden victory and waited for a shot by McEnelly before flying in with the counter attack to take home another Big Ten title.

285: No. 1 Gable Steveson (MINN) def No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet (PSU) by 10-3 decision

Gable Steveson opened up the scoring with about 30 seconds remaining in the period to take the 3-0 lead and finish the period riding out Greg Kerkvliet. The Penn State wrestler was able to get the escape before the riding time reached one minute to cut the lead to 3-1. Steveson used pure power to once again throw Kerkvliet to the mat and extend his lead to 6-1. Kerkvliet escaped with 32 seconds remaining in the period to cut the lead to 6-2.

Kerkvliet chose neutral to start the 3rd in hopes of picking up a takedown. He was unable to get it going as Steveson once again took down Kerkvliet to extend his lead to 9-3 with the escape. It was the first time in two years that Kerkvliet had gone up against an opponent that he couldn’t outmuscle. The two are heavy favorites to meet again in the NCAA Finals in two weeks.

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