Penn State wrestlers win three matches in Nashville, scoring 137 points while increasing their winning streak to 62

The records fell and so did three opponents as Penn State’s top-ranked wrestling team easily cruised through the Collegiate Duals near Nashville on Sunday with wins over Binghamton, Little Rock and Missouri.

The Nittany Lions defeated Binghamton 52-0 and Little Rock 44-0 and won nine of 10 contests against Missouri in a 41-3 victory that featured Missouri’s 174-point, 1-for-2 game Top-ranked Keegan O’ Toole edged Penn State’s Levi Haines, securing a 4-1 win with a surprise takedown.

The two shutouts gave the Nittany Lions (6-0) three straight wins without giving up a point, something that had never happened before. And Sunday’s trifecta broke the school record of 60 straight wins and increased that mark to 62 straight wins.

Additionally, the Lions scored a total of 137 points on Sunday alone and have a total of 246 points this season as the team’s 10 starters suffered just two losses in six dual meets. The Lions are off until their Jan. 10 home matchup against Michigan State.

What people wanted to see on Sunday was the fight between Haines and O’Toole, and it didn’t disappoint. A 1-1 fight resulting in a sudden victory can be boring depending on the pace of the game, but this one was anything but. The hand fighting and blocking between two outstanding wrestlers was outstanding and each had a few strong takedown attempts, which had either been countered or stalled.

In sudden victory, Haines tried to force a barrel roll from a high-step shot on O’Toole, but O’Toole immediately countered, turned around and hit a single leg against Haines. He lifted Haines’ leg high in the air, but Haines took them both to the mat, threw in a Whizzer and stepped over the Whizzer to almost gain control, but O’Toole was able to come out the back and grab both of Haines’ ankles for the winning takedown.

Haines, who hadn’t lost since the 2023 NCAA Finals, wanted Penn State’s coaching staff to fight for early control of this Whizzer, but the challenge failed and the two gave each other the obligatory nod that meant, that they would see others again in March in Philadelphia.

Binghamton was outmatched in the opening match as the Lions had a 25-0 advantage in takedowns and 58-4 overall in the three matches.

The game in Little Rock had its highlights as half of the contests were hard fought. Seventh-ranked Braeden Davis of Penn State defeated No. 3 Nasir Bailey 1-0 at 133. Neither could come close to a takedown and Bailey surprisingly chose neutral in the third period and was unable to defeat Davis.

The best game was Penn State’s sixth-seeded Josh Barr’s 4-1 victory in a sudden victory over No. 5 Stephen Little at 197, where everyone fired a few solid shots but couldn’t convert them. Barr was the aggressor in overtime and scored a strong single shot with 17 seconds left.

Shayne Van Ness (149) held off Oklahoma State transfer Jordan Williams in 4:39 and Tyler Kasak got a takedown at 157 in a 4-2 win over Matty Bianchi.

“This is probably my favorite team I’ve ever played on,” Van Ness said on the Penn State Sports Network. “Levi didn’t get the result he wanted today, but this group of boys are focused and committed to their sport and the things they can do are unimaginable.”

Missouri (2-4) remained competitive in the early bouts as Penn State freshman Luke Lilledahl defeated fellow freshman Gage Walker 5-4 at 125 and Beau Bartlett needed a sudden victory at 141 to defeat Josh Edmond 4-1 . Aside from the O’Toole win, the Tigers couldn’t keep up with the Lions at the top.

PENN STATE 52, BINGHAMTON 0

125: Luke Lilledahl, PS Technicians defeat Carson Wagner 5:37 (19-4).

133: Braeden Davis, PS defeated Micah Roes 6-0.

141: Beau Bartlett, PS major defeats Nate Lucier 14-2.

149: Shayne Van Ness, PS pin Caleb Sweet 14-2.

157: Tyler Kasak, PS pin Jordan Brown 3:31.

165: Mitchell Mesenbrink, PS won by forfeit.

174: Levi Haines, PS Technician falls over Roberto Padilla 5:00 (18-0).

184: Carter Starocci, PS pin Will Ebert 5:55.

197: Josh Barr, PS technician lost to Andrew Bailey in 2:40 (19-2).

285: Greg Kerkvliet, PS pin Charlie Tibbets 1:33.

PENN STATE 44, LITTLE ROCK 0

125: Luke Lilledahl, PS defeated Jaden Carson 9-3

133: Braeden Davis, PS defeated Nasir Bailey 1-0.

141: Beau Bartlett, PS pin Cole Minnick 5:23.

149: Shayne Van Ness, PS pin Jordan Williams 4:39.

157: Tyler Kasak, PS defeated Matty Bianchi 4-2.

165: Mitchell Mesenbrink, PS Technician defeated Joey Bianchi 5:27 (17-1).

174: Levi Haines, PS Technicians fall via Kodiak Kennedy 5:33 (18-2).

184: Carter Starocci, PS Technicians defeat Tristan Wills 5:37 (17-1).

197: Josh Barr, PS-Dec. Stephen Little 4-1 SV-1.

285: Greg Kerkvliet, PS Technician falls over Keith Miley 1:40 (15-0).

PENN STATE 41, MISSOURI 3

125: Luke Lilledahl, PS defeated Gage Walker 5-4.

133: Braeden Davis, PS major defeats Kade Moore 14-3.

141: Beau Bartlett, PS Delegate Josh Edmond 4-1 SV-1.

149: Shayne Van Ness, PS pin Zeke Seltzer 1:55.

157: Tyler Kasak, PS Major defeated James Conway 11-3.

165: Mitchell Mesenbrink, PS wins by forfeit.

174: Keegan O’Toole, M dec Levi Haines 4-1 SV-1.

184: Carter Starocci, PS major defeats the Colton Hawks 10-1.

197: Josh Barr, PS pin Jesse Cassatt 1:45.

285: Greg Kerkvliet, PS Technician falls over Jarrett Stoner 5:57 (15-0).