Nittany Lion Wrestlers Hammer Michigan State 36-6 in Big Ten Road Dual

BATTLE CREEK, Mich.; January 8, 2012 – The fourth-ranked Penn State wrestling team dominated host Michigan State to pick up a 36-6 Big Ten road win. The dual, wrestled in front of a packed house at Kellog Arena in Battle Creek, Mich., saw Penn State win nine of ten bouts, losing only once on an illegal throw disqualification.

The dual began at heavyweight, where Nittany Lion senior Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 6 nationally, gave Penn State a 3-0 lead with an 8-3 decision over Steve Andrus. Nittany Lion freshman Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 10 at 125, was crushing Spartan senior Eric Olanowski 8-3 early in the second period before being called for an illegal hold and, when Olanowski could not continue, lost the match on a disqualification, giving MSU a 6-3 lead. Lion sophomore Frank Martellotti (Pittsburgh, Pa.) made his 133-pound dual debut with a 7-5 win over Brandon Fifield to tie the dual and then Bryan Pearsall (Lititz, Pa.) put Penn State on top for good by pinning Brian Gibbs at the 4:21 mark.

No. 1 Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.) handled No. 18 Dan Osterman 9-3 at 149 to put Penn State up 15-6. With the win, Molinaro moved into 18th place on Penn State’s all-time victories list (105) and into 17th on Penn State’s all-time dual meet victory list (47). Freshman Dylan Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 9 at 157, then downed No. 14 Anthony Jones 1-0 to put the Nittany Lions up 18-6. Top-ranked David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio) then majored David Cheza 13-5 at 165.

Second-ranked Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa.) dominated Michigan State’s Curran Jacobs, posting a second period technical fall at the 6:33 mark, getting the 17-2 win. Third-ranked Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.) then fought off an early struggle to pin Michigan State’s John Rizqallah at the 5:52 mark to put Penn State up 33-6. True freshman Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 13 at 197, closed out the dominating performance with a 7-5 win to give Penn State the 36-6 victory.

Penn State won nine of ten bouts and was leading handily in the one bout it lost on the illegal throw call. The Nittany Lions posted a dominating 24-5 edge in takedowns and picked up five riding time points. Penn State picked up nine bonus points off two pins, a tech fall and a major. The Nittany Lions improve to 5-1 on the year, 1-1 in the Big Ten. Michigan State falls to 2-3, 0-2.

Penn State continues a multi-week road swing with two Big Ten road duals next weekend. Penn State is at Northwestern on Friday, Jan. 13, at 8 p.m. (Eastern) and at Wisconsin on Sunday, Jan. 15, at 2 p.m. (Eastern). Penn State’s next home dual is on Sunday, Jan. 22, when Iowa invades Rec Hall for a 2 p.m. dual that is already sold out. The Nittany Lions then host Ohio State on Sunday, Jan. 29, at 2 p.m. Fans can purchase a limited number of ‘standing room only’ tickets for the Ohio State dual by calling 814-865-5555. Tickets are priced at $8 for adults and $5 for youth (18 and under) and can be purchased from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day or in person at the Bryce Jordan Center box office. A maximum of four tickets may be purchased per person.

The full season slate of live dual meet and tournament action will air locally on WRSC AM (1390 AM) with Friday evening duals being simulcast on WRSC FM (103.1 FM). Lock Haven’s WBPZ (1230 AM) will also carry the entire season live, WIEZ (670 AM) in Huntingdon/Lewistown carries all Sunday events and further affiliates may be added soon. The regular season schedule of radio broadcasts will be streamed live at www.GoPSUsports.com as part of Penn State’s All-Access package, which will also feature live video streams of many home events. Ticket information is accessed easily online at www.GoPSUsports.com/tickets/m-wrestl-tickets.html . Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at www.twitter.com/pennstatepat and on Penn State Wrestling’s facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling. The 2011-12 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.

#4 Penn State 36, Michigan State 6
January 8, 2012 – Kellog Arena – Battle Creek, Mich.

285: #6 Cameron Wade PSU dec. Steve Andrus, 8-3 3-0

125: Eric Olanowski MSU DQ over #10 Nico Megaludis PSU

(Illegal Throw, Megaludis up 8-3 early in second period, 3:45) 3-6

133: Frank Martellotti PSU dec. Brandon Fifield MSU, 7-5 6-6

141: Bryan Pearsall PSU pinned Brian Gibbs MSU, WBF (4:21) 12-6

149: #1 Frank Molinaro PSU dec. #18 Dan Osterman MSU, 9-3 15-6

157: #9 Dylan Alton PSU dec. #14 Anthony Jones MSU, 1-0 18-6

165: #1 David Taylor PSU maj. dec. David Cheza MSU, 13-5 22-6

174: #2 Ed Ruth PSU tech fall Curran Jacobs MSU, 17-2 (TF; 6:33) 27-6

184: #3 Quentin Wright PSU pinned John Rizqallah MSU, WBF (5:52) 33-6

197: #13 Morgan McIntosh PSU dec. Nick McDiarmid MSU, 7-5 36-6