No. 6 Huskers Fall to No. 1 Penn State

Despite three bout victories and a pin from Brock Hardy, the No. 6 Nebraska wrestling team (9-6, 2-3 Big Ten) fell to No. 1 Penn State (12-0, 6-0 Big Ten), 26-12, on Friday night at the Bryce Jordan Center in University Park, Pa. 

The conference dual began at 125, where Alan Koehler took the mat against No. 1 Luke Lilledahl. Lilledahl controlled the bout from the start, recording six takedowns on his way to a 20-4 technical fall to give the Nittany Lions an early 5-0 lead. After dropping two tough matches last weekend, No. 10 Jacob Van Dee faced Penn State’s No. 4 Marcus Blaze at 133. In the top-10 matchup, Blaze secured a 5-1 decision to extend Penn State’s lead. 

At 141, No. 4 Brock Hardy delivered a comeback performance against No. 12 Braeden Davis. Davis jumped out to an early lead with two first-period takedowns, but Hardy responded and found a third-period pin at 5:55, his fourth of the season. Following a Penn State team point deduction, NU cut the deficit to 7-6. 

The dual continued at 149, where No. 18 Chance Lamer battled No. 1 Shayne Van Ness. Lamer showed early fight, but Van Ness pulled away late to earn a 12-5 decision. 

At 157, No. 5 Antrell Taylor and undefeated No. 3 PJ Duke went scoreless through the opening period before each wrestler recorded an escape, sending the bout to overtime. In the tiebreaker, Taylor secured the deciding escape and held off Duke for a 2-1 decision, marking his 10th consecutive victory. 

After the intermission, No. 7 LJ Araujo faced undefeated No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink at 165.  Mesenbrink delivered a dominant performance, scoring a 20-5 technical fall to push Penn State’s lead to 15-9. At 174, No. 4 Christopher Minto and No. 1 Levi Haines were tied 5-5 midway through the third-period before Haines scored a late takedown. Minto added an escape, but it wasn't enough as the undefeated senior earned an 8-6 decision. 

At 184, No. 6 Silas Allred fell to No. 1 Rocco Welsh by major decision, 13-5. No. 9 Camden McDanel followed at 197, tallying nine points against No. 1 Josh Barr, but the undefeated Barr secured a 21-9 major decision. At heavyweight, both wrestlers recorded an escape before No. 4 AJ Ferrari used riding time to claim a 2-1 decision over No. 12 Cole Mirasola to close out the night. 

Up Next
The Huskers return home for their final home matchup of the season against Northwestern on Sunday, Feb. 8 at 1 p.m. (CT). The dual will feature senior day celebrations and will be streamed on B1G+.  

No. 1 Penn State 26, No. 6 Nebraska 12
125: #1 Luke Lilledahl tech. fall Alan Koehler 20-4 (5:36) (PSU 5, NEB 0)
133: #4 Marcus Blaze dec. #10 Jacob Van Dee 5-1 (PSU 8, NEB 0)
141: #4 Brock Hardy pinned #12 Braeden Davis 5:55 ; PSU Deduction Team Point (Unsportsmanlike) (PENN 7, NEB 6)
149: #1 Shayne Van Ness dec. #18 Chance Lamer 12-5 (PSU 10, NEB 6)
157:  #5 Antrell Taylor dec. #3 PJ Duke 2-1 TB-1 (PSU 10, NEB 9)
165: #1 Mitchell Mesenbrink tech. fall #7 LJ Araujo 20-5 (7:00) (PSU 15, NEB 9)
174: #1 Levi Haines dec. #4 Christopher Minto 8-6 (PSU 18, NEB 9)
184: #1 Rocco Welsh major dec. #6 Silas Allred 13-5 (PSU 22, NEB 9)
197: #1 Josh Barr major dec. #9 Camden McDanel 21-9 (PSU 26, NEB 9)
HWT: #4 AJ Ferrari dec. #12 Cole Mirasola 2-1 (PSU 26, NEB 12)