TAKEAWAYS: Penn State wrestling hands Michigan first shutout in 15 years

No. 1 Penn State wrestling extended the program’s record-setting dual winning streak to 67 after taking down No. 19 Michigan 39-0 inside the Bryce Jordan Center Friday night. The Nittany Lions improved to 11-0 (5-0 Big Ten) on the season and continue to push towards their fourth consecutive national championship.

After shutting out the Wolverines for the first time since 2010, what are we taking away from yet another dominant performance against a ranked team?

Josh Barr becomes a title contender

The reality heading into Friday was that Penn State would be favored heavily over Michigan in nine of ten matches. Only at 197 pounds did No. 4 Josh Barr enter as an underdog to No. 2 Jacob Cardenas.

After suffering his first loss of the season against top-ranked Stephen Buchanan of Iowa last week, Barr was given another opportunity to prove he is a national title contender. It took a reversal with five seconds remaining in the tiebreaker period, but Barr managed to pull off the 3-2 upset. Blowing the top off the BJC, the win proved that Barr proved that Barr can contend with the top tier of his weight class.

Cael Sanderson wrestlers tend to get better as the season progresses, often wrestling their best by the postseason. Barr is now 13-1 on the year with a 78.57% bonus. In addition to Cardenas, he also has wins over No. 5 Stephen Little (Little Rock) and No. 6 Michael Beard (Lehigh). The redshirt freshman is building an impressive resume, and a strong performance at the Big Ten Championships could potentially earn him the No. 1 overall seed at NCAAs.

Freshman shines in Penn State wrestling dual debut

When an opportunity to crack the starting lineup at Penn State presents itself, young wrestlers must take advantage. That is exactly what Kyison Garcia did on Friday night, picking up the first dual win of his career in the 4-1 decision over Michigan’s Nolan Wertanen.

Garcia is 3-2 this season and now 7-5 for his career after the victory. Even if he never becomes a full-time starter for the Nittany Lions, the win in front of the 14,000-strong BJC crowd will be one to remember. Sanderson’s decision was a great way to reward a young wrestler for putting in the work behind the scenes.

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“I thought Garcia did a really good job,” Sanderson said afterward. “He hasn’t wrestled since November, I don’t think. And so, that’s a big match for your first match, and the first time he’s wrestling in a dual meet, so I think he did a nice job.

“He scored his points and, and I think he probably learned a lot, and hopefully he can just continue to build off of that.”

Garcia got the start because Braeden Davis missed his second consecutive match with an undisclosed injury. The sophomore is questionable heading into Sunday’s dual against Maryland.

“I don’t actually know the answer to that,” Sanderson said when asked if Davis will return to the mat on Sunday. “I mean, that’ll be a Sunday or tomorrow night, we’ll make a decision.”

Beau Bartlett grinds out a win

With all of the flash that this Penn State wrestling lineup produces, Beau Bartlett is certainly a change of pace. Friday’s match against No. 12 Sergio Lemley was another “boring” performance, edging out a 3-2 victory. The win is now the fourth straight decision for the No. 3 ranked wrestler at 141 pounds.

Looking closer, the match with Lemley showed how patient and relaxed Bartlett is in every situation. He didn’t panic at any point in the match, even when trailing 1-0 heading into the third period. The senior waited for his opportunity, pulled off the reversal, got his riding time, and walked away with the victory.

Bartlett isn’t going to light up the scoreboard like Luke Lilledahl, Shayne Van Ness, or Mitchell Mesenbrink. But ultimately, the senior finds a way to win.

In a few days, we will see where Bartlett is on the national stage, with a big-time matchup against No. 1 Jesse Mendez of Ohio State next Friday night.

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