NitWit wrestling.

[The Ancient Enemy]

Didn't have a real good season, surprisingly, but here's an article from Rivals. We could also talk about Pitt's wrestling but Pitt can't afford a wrestling program.

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As Penn State's season slowly swirled down the drain to an 8-12-2 record, 1-5-2 in the Big Ten, the whispers started.

"What's wrong with Penn State?"

"If the regular season was this bad, what will happen at the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments?"

Head coach Troy Sunderland and his wrestlers assured those worrisome fans that the regular season is just a small part of a season's equation. They said that teams are remembered for their performance in the postseason.

If that's the case, Penn State put a downpayment on happy memories of this season after the first day of the 2009 Big Ten Wrestling Championships at the Bryce Jordan Center.

The Nittany Lions finished the day in fifth place with two finalists, five wrestlers assured of making the NCAA Championships and three more needing wins to secure bids.

"I'm feeling pumped up. Not many people expected us to be in this position because of our dual meet record. I've been telling them all year, 'We're a better tournament team and when the time comes we're going to make sure we get it done,'" Jenkins said.

Iowa leads the team race with 110 points and four finalists. Illinois, with 85 and one finalist, is second. In third is Wisconsin with 83 and four. Michigan has 77.5 team points and three finalists.

"From the way our season went to the way we performed today, they showed a heckuva lot of heart and I'm proud of every single one of them," Nittany Lion coach Troy Sunderland said.

Jenkins and third-seeded freshman 174-pounder Quentin Wright led the charge and will wrestle for championships Sunday afternoon.

Brad Pataky (125), Jake Strayer (133), Dan Vallimont (165) and Cameron Wade (285) can all finish as high as third place. The first three have also locked up NCAA bids. Wade has to finish fifth or better to get a bid.

Frank Molinaro (141) and Tim Darling (157) will wrestle for seventh place today. A win would assure an NCAA bid for each of them.

Jack Decker (184) and Clay Steadman (197) each were knocked out of further action after going 0-2.

Jenkins went 2-0 with a pair of nondescript decisions. He beat seventh-seed Nick Walpole of Indiana, 7-3, in the quarterfinals and followed that with a 2-1 win over Andrew Nadhir of Northwestern in the semifinals on 1:06 of riding time.

The second seed, Jenkins faces defending Big Ten and NCAA champion Brent Metcalf of Iowa in today's final.

"I'm not really pacing myself. Sometimes you ahve a good game plan and you go out there, you look like the No. 2 guy in the country and everything goes perfect. Sometimes it doesn't, but at the end of the day you still have to get your hand raised," Jenkins said.

Wright, who went 3-0 on the day, pulled off the two most crowd-pleasing wins of the day. He started by pinning Purdue's Nick Corpe with a split scissors. Then, in the quarterfinals, it looked like he was beaten against Indiana's Trevor Perry. But a takedown at the final buzzer earned him a 5-4 win and a berth in the semifinals against No. 2 seed Jay Borschel of Iowa. In that match, he repeatedly hit double-leg takedowns against the Iowa junior to pull out an 11-10 upset win.

"It was a great exclamation on the final with Quentin getting the huge win. We liked the matchup with Borschel and he just took it to him," Sunderland said.

Wright deflected all of the credit.

"The coaching staff did it. We all talked, what are his strengths, what are his weaknesses? What are my strengths, what are my weaknesses?We thought that's what we had to do," Wright said.

"In those moments, I just have to look up and thank God — that he gives me the strength to finish the match. My Dad and the Penn State coaching staff instilled in me to never give up.

As long as you do your best, leave the rest up to God."

Wright faces No. 1 seed and defending NCAA runner-up Steve Luke of Michigan in the final.

"You can't say enough great things about Quentin. He has the desire and a great attitude," Sunderland said. "He pushes every day in practice like it's the last day he's ever going to step on the mat. He gets better and better every day and every time he steps on the mat."



Results from the 2009 Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Saturday at the Bryce Jordan Center:

Key to Teams: Illinois - ILL; Indiana - IND; Iowa - I; Michigan - M; Michigan State - MSU; Minnesota - MIN; Northwestern - NW; Ohio State - OSU; Penn State - PSU; Purdue - PUR; Wisconsin - W.


125 pounds

First round

(1) Brandon Precin, NW, bye; Eric Olanowski, MSU, pinned (8) Bernard Futrell, ILL, 4:01; (5) Zach Sanders, MIN, dec. Drew Hammen, W, 11-5; (4) Brad Pataky, PSU, bye; (3) Angel Escobedo, IND, bye; Matt Fields, PUR, dec. (6) Nikko Triggas, OSU, 8-3; (7) Mike Watts, M, bye; (2) Charlie Falck, I, bye.

Quarterfinals

Precin maj. dec. Olanowski, 11-0; Pataky dec. Sanders, 8-5; Escobedo maj. dec. Fields, 16-3; Falck dec. Watts, 4-2.

First-round consolations

Futrell dec. Watts, 7-2; Hammen dec. Fields, 5-4; Sanders maj. dec. Triggas, 10-2; Olanowski, bye.

Second-round consolations

Futrell pinned Hammen, 4:27; Sanders maj. dec. Olanowski, 21-10.

Semifinals

Precin pinned Pataky, 6:12;


133 pounds

First Round

(1) Daniel Dennis, I, bye; (8) Carson Beebe, PUR, bye; (5) Reece Humphrey, OSU, pinned Eric Metzler, NW, 6:21; (4) Jayson Ness, MIN, bye; (3) James Kennedy, ILL, pinned Tom Kelliher, W, 4:41; (6) Jake Strayer, PSU, bye; (7) Zac Stevens, M, bye; (2) Franklin Gomez, MSU, pinned Matt Ortega, IND, 1:43.

Quarterfinals

Dennis maj. dec. Beebe, 16-7; Humphrey dec. Ness, 11-4; Strayer dec. Kennedy, 3-2; Gomez won by tech. fall over Stevens, 19-4 (7:00).

First-round consolations

Stevens, bye; Kennedy dec. Metzler, 9-2; Ness pinned Kelliher, 1:25; Ortega dec. Beebe, 11-4.

Second-round consolations

Kennedy maj. dec. Stevens, 10-1; Ness pinned Ortega, 2:20.

Semifinals

Humphrey dec. Dennis, 5-2; Gomez dec. Strayer, 9-5.


141 pounds

First Round

(1) Zach Tanelli, W, bye; (8) Andrae Hernandez, IND, bye; (5) J Jaggers, OSU, dec. Collin Dozier, MSU, 5-1; (4) Michael Thorn, MIN, bye; (3) Alex Tsirtsis, I, bye; (6) Keith Sulzer, NW, dec. Juan Archuleta, PUR, 10-6 TB1; (7) Ryan Prater, ILL, bye; (2) Kellen Russell, M, maj. dec. Frank Molinaro, PSU, 10-2.

Quarterfinals

Tanelli pinned Hernandez, 6:17; Jaggers maj. dec. Thorn, 12-3; Tsirtsis dec. Sulzer, 5-1; Russell dec. Prater, 5-4.

First-round consolations

Prater, bye; Sulzer dec. Dozier, 5-4; Thorn dec. Archuleta, 8-3; Molinaro dec. Hernandez, 7-3.

Second-round consolations

Sulzer dec. Prater, 6-0; Thorn dec. Molinaro, 7-4.

Semifinals

Tanelli dec. Jaggers, 3-1; Russell dec. Tsirtsis 8-6 TB2.


149 pounds

First Round

(1) Brent Metcalf, I, pinned David Cheza, 2:46; (8) Eric Terrazas, ILL, bye; (5) Jake Patacsil, PUR, bye; (4) Kyle Ruschell, W, pinned Joseph Grygelko, MIN, 1:31; (3) Lance Palmer, OSU, bye; (6) Andrew Nadhir, NW, dec. Mark Beaudry, M, 12-7; (7) Nick Walpole, IND, bye; (2) Bubba Jenkins, PSU, bye.

First-round consolations

Cheza dec. Walpole, 3-2; Palmer dec. Grygelko, 5-0; Patacsil won by tech. fall over Beaudry, 17-0 (4:04); Terrazas, bye.

Second-round consolations

Palmer dec. Cheza, 6-0; Patacsil pinned Terrazas, :49.

Semifinals

Metcalf maj. dec. Ruschell, 16-4; Jenkins dec. Nadhir, 2-1.


157 pounds

First Round

(1) Michael Poeta, ILL, bye; (8) Ben Jordan, W, dec. Matt Ballweg, I, 6-2; Colton Salazar, PUR, dec. (5) Jason Johnstone, OSU, 12-10; (4) Tyler Safratowich, MIN, bye; (3) Kurt Kinser, IND, bye; (6) Aaron Hynes, M, bye; (7) Anthony Jones, MSU, bye; (2) Jason Welch, NW, dec. Tim Darling, PSU, 7-1.

Quarterfinals

Poeta won by tech. fall over Jordan, 19-4 (6:50); Safratowich pinned Salazar, 5:33; Kinser dec. Hynes, 10-4; Welch dec. Jones, 5-0.

First-round consolations

Jones dec. Ballweg, 5-4; Hynes dec. Johnstone, 5-4; Salazar, bye; Darling dec. Jordan, 6-3.

Second-round consolations

Hynes maj. dec. Jones, 11-1; Salazar dec. Darling, 6-4.

Semifinals

Poeta dec. Safratowich, 8-5; Welch dec. Kinser, 6-3.


165 pounds

First Round

(1) Andrew Howe, W, dec. Scott Glasser, MIN, 4-3; (8) Rex Kendle, MSU, bye; (5) Luke Manuel, PUR, bye; (4) Roger Smith-Bergsrud, ILL, bye; (3) Ryan Morningstar, I, bye; (6) Dan Vallimont, PSU, dec. Dominic Marella, NW, 7-2; (7) Paul Young, IND, dec. Justin Zeerip, M, 3-0; (2) Colt Sponseller, OSU, bye.

Quarterfinals

Howe dec. Kendle, 7-2; Manuel dec. Smith-Bergsrud, 2-0; Morningstar dec. Vallimont, 3-2; Sponseller dec. Young, 10-4.

First-round consolations

Young dec. Glasser, 8-3; Vallimont, bye; Smith-Bergsrud dec. Marella, 6-4; Zeerip dec. Kendle, 2-0.

Second-round consolations

Vallimont dec. Young, 8-1; Smith-Bergsrud dec. Zeerip, 4-2.

Semifinals

Howe dec. Manuel, 6-4 SV; Morningstar dec. Sponseller, 2-1 TB2.


174 pounds

First Round

(1) Steve Luke, M, bye; (8) Ian Hinton, MSU, dec. Matthew Everson, MIN, 12-7; (5) John Dergo, ILL, bye; (4) David Rella, OSU, bye; (3) Quentin Wright, PSU, pinned Nicholas Corpe, PUR, 5:18; (6) Trevor Perry, IND, bye; (7) Robert Kellogg, NW, bye; (2) Jay Borschel, I, dec. Travis Rutt, W, 6-1.

Quarterfinals

Luke maj. dec. Hinton, 12-4; Dergo dec. Rella, 3-2; Wright dec. Perry, 5-4; Borschel maj. dec. Kellogg, 13-3.

First-round consolations

Everson pinned Kellogg, 4:32; Perry, bye; Rella dec. Corpe, 3-1 SV; Hinton dec. Rutt, 3-1.

Second-round consolations

Perry dec. Everson, 8-5; Rella dec. Hinton, 4-2.

Semifinals

Luke dec. Dergo, 6-3; Wright dec. Borschel, 11-10.


184 pounds

First Round

(1) Jake Herbert, NW, bye; Eric Cameron, IND, dec. (8) Eric Bugenhagen, W, 3-1; Sonny Yohn, MIN, dec. (5) A.J. Kissel, 7-3; (4) Jordan Blanton, ILL, bye; (3) Philip Keddy, I, maj. dec. Jack Decker, PSU, 19-5; (6) Anthony Biondo, M, bye; (7) Nick Palmieri, MSU, bye; (2) Mike Pucillo, OSU, bye.

Quarterfinals

Herbert pinned Cameron, 1:18; Blanton maj. dec. Yohn, 11-3; Keddy dec. Biondo, 7-3; Pucillo pinned Palmieri, 1:21.

First-round consolations

Bugenhagen dec. Palmieri, 7-0; Biondo dec. Kissel, 5-0; Yohn dec. Decker, 2-0 TB1; Cameron, bye.

Second-round consolations

Biondo dec. Bugenhagen, 8-2; Cameron dec. Yohn, 8-3.

Semifinals

Herbert dec. Blanton, 6-1; Keddy dec. Pucillo, 5-2 TB1.


197 pounds

First Round

(1) Dallas Herbst, W, pinned Tyler Dickenson, MSU, 1:45; (8) John Schoen, NW, bye; (5) Patrick Bond, ILL, bye; (4) Gordon Bierschenk, MIN, bye; (3) Chad Beatty, I, bye; (6) Matt Powless, IND, maj. dec. Clay Steadman, PSU, 10-2; (7) Logan Brown, PUR, maj. dec. Cody Gardner, OSU, 11-3; (2) Tyrel Todd, M, bye.

Quarterfinals

Herbst dec. Schoen, 3-0; Bond dec. Bierschenk, 5-2; Beatty dec. Powless, 11-5; Todd pinned Brown, 1:37.

First-round consolations

Brown dec. Dickenson, 9-3; Powless, bye; Bierschenk maj. dec. Steadman, 13-4; Schoen dec. Gardner, 2-1.

Second-round consolations

Brown maj. dec. Powless, 12-2; Bierschenk dec. Schoen, 5-3.

Semifinals

Herbst dec. Bond, 3-1; Todd maj. dec. Beatty, 12-2.


285 pounds

First Round

(1) Daniel Erekson, I, pinned Alan ODonnell, 2:40; (8) Chris Kasten, PUR, bye; (5) Nathan Everhart, IND, bye; (4) John Wise, ILL, pinned Cameron Wade, PSU, 6:57; (3) Kyle Massey, W, bye; (6) Corey Morrison, OSU, bye; (7) Eddie Phillips, M, maj. dec. Paul Rands, NW, 9-1; (2) Ben Berhow, MIN, bye.

Quarterfinals

Erekson dec. Kasten, 6-0; Wise dec. Everhart, 4-1; Massey dec. Morrison, 6-0; Berhow dec. Phillips, 10-3.

First-round consolations

Phillips dec. ODonnell, 4-2; Wade dec. Morrison, 14-8; Everhart, bye; Kasten dec. Rands, 5-0.

Second-round consolations

Wade dec. Phillips, 5-0; Everhart dec. Kasten, 5-2.

Semifinals

Erekson dec. Wise, 6-4; Massey dec. Berhow, 4-3.


Team standings

(At the end of Session 2)

1. Iowa 110

2. Illinois 85

3. Wisconsin 83

4. Michigan 77.5

5. Penn State 71.5

6. Northwestern 69.5

7. Minnesota 64.5

8. Indiana 59.5

9. Ohio State 58

10. Purdue 41

11. Michigan State 36.5

[LionDad77]

Jenkins(149) & Wright(174) finish second, Pataky(125) & Vallimont(165) third, Strayer(133) sixth, advance to NCAA's. Molinaro(141), Darling(157) finish 8th along with Wade(285) at 6th just miss the NCAA's. Nice weekend of wrestling for Pa., Big Ten Championships & PIAA State Championships.

[vman]

Didn't have a real good season, surprisingly, but here's an article from Rivals. We could also talk about Pitt's wrestling but Pitt can't afford a wrestling program.

\
Heresy I tell you!!!! Here is photo of the seven Pitt grapplers advancing to Nationals this year:



That is Jack Sutherland (top row 2nd from right) great grandson of legendary Pitt head football coach Jock Sutherland!

[vman]

Things that make ya go hmmmmm: why would someone name their kid Jock??

[The Ancient Enemy]

Maybe he itched alot?