Last Friday nightโs dual meet between No. 1 Penn State and No. 2 Iowa was as big as it gets in college wrestling.
This Fridayโs dual meet between No. 1 Penn State and No. 4 Ohio State wonโt be quite as big.
But make no mistake, itโs still a showdown.
Itโs still a chance for Penn State (11-0, 4-0 Big Ten) to get a win against a top five Big Ten opponent and stay unbeaten in dual meets this season.
Beating Ohio State (11-1, 5-0 Big Ten) wonโt be easy, especially on the road after consecutive duel meets against top five teams. The week before beating Iowa, Penn State beat No. 3 Michiganย at the Bryce Jordan Center. Ohio State is 11-1 in dual meets this year and ranks behind only Penn State, Iowa and Iowa State nationally. Ohio Stateโs lone loss of the season came against Northern Iowa Dec. 19 at the Collegiate Duals in New Orleans.
Ohio State is 5-0 in Big Ten dual meets with wins over Indiana, Rutgers, Maryland, Michigan State and, most significantly, Michigan, which it beat in Ann Arbor 23-15 the same night Penn State beat Iowa. There are several compelling matchups to watch, but one of which is in the 133-pound class.
Ohio Stateโs Jesse Mendez is ranked ninth and will likely go against Penn Stateโs Roman Bravo-Young.
RBY is a two-time national champion and has won 46 straight matches, the most recent being a pin over former Penn State teammate Brody Teske last Friday. Youngโs winning streak is the second-longest in the country behind Iowaโs 125-pound beast Spencer Lee, who has won 49 straight and got No. 49 over Penn Stateโs Marco Vespa last Friday.
Itโs another winter Friday night of Big Ten wrestling. Here are the projected matchups, with rankings courtesy of InterMat.
125: Gary Steen (PSU) vs. No. 10 Malik Heinselman (OSU)
133: No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young (PSU) vs. No. 9 Jesse Mendez (OSU)
141: No. 5 Beau Bartlett (PSU) vs. No. 19 Dylan DโEmilio (OSU)
149: No. 13 Shane Van Ness (PSU) vs. No. 3 Sammy Sasso (OSU)
157: No. 9 Levi Haines (PSU) vs. No. 25 Paddy Gallagher (OSU)
165: No. 8 Alex Facundo (PSU) vs. No. 12 Carter Kharchla (OSU)
174: No. 1 Carter Starocci (PSU) vs. No. 7 Ethan Smith (OSU)
184: No. 1 Aaron Brooks (PSU) vs. No. 5 Caleb Romero (OSU)
197: No. 4 Max Dean (PSU) vs. No. 17 Gavin Hoffman (OSU)
285: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet (PSU) vs. No. 18 Tate Orndorff (OSU)
