Maryland wrestling shut out by No. 1 Penn State, 51-0

Photo courtesy of Grayson Belanger/Maryland Athletics.

Adversity has been the theme of the season for Maryland wrestling. From key players missing time to streaky results, coach Alex Clemsen’s men have gone through some hurdles this year. 

No task this season was bigger than taking on the No. 1 team in the nation – Penn State.  The Nittany Lions (11-0, 5-0 B1G) have been historically dominant this season – they had only given up 19 team points in their first ten dual matches. The Terps (4-6, 0-5 B1G) had NEVER beaten Penn State in the history of the two programs.  

That didn’t change on Saturday. The Nittany Lions took this one in a rout of 51-0 – its third straight shutout win.

With a sold out Xfinity Center, Maryland looked to start fast at 125 pounds. Abram Cline opened for the Terps against No. 1 Luke Lilledahl. The first period was tightly contested, with Lilledahl landing a takedown to take the first period. He exploded in the second, landing two takedowns to give him a 11-3 lead after two. The Penn State sophomore rode that momentum, coming away with a 19-4 victory. 

At 133 pounds, No. 15 Braxton Brown took the mat against No. 4 Marcus Blaze in a highly anticipated ranked matchup. Blaze landed a takedown late in the first, putting Brown in an early 3-0 hole.  Another takedown followed from Blaze,  putting Brown down 7-1 heading into the third period. A pair of takedowns in the round gave Blaze a convincing 14-3. 

Dario Lemus looked to reignite a now silenced Xfinity Center crowd against No. 11 Braeden Davis at 141 pounds.  Davis came out with a 6-1 lead after one, landing two takedowns in the first. The Nittany Lions junior was simply relentless in this one, landing five total takedowns and walking away with a 17-4 victory.

With the Penn State faithful beginning to break out into several “We Are’s” , mid-year transfer No. 7 Carter Young took the stage for the Terps at 149 pounds. Young has been fantastic since dawning the red and black as the first ever mid year addition under Clemsen, but he faced his toughest test against No. 1 Shayne Van Ness in the most anticipated match of the night. 

Young came out swinging from the first bell, landing a takedown and nearly pinning Van Ness,  leading 7-1 after one. 

The crowd had definitely woken up, but Van Ness wasn’t going down without a fight. He ripped off five straight takedowns in the second, taking a 17-11 lead to the third. Young seemed to tire as the match wore on and Van Ness made no mistake in capitalizing, piling on the points and eventually winning by technical fall to give Penn State an 18-0 lead.

157 pounds gave us a bout between Mekhi Neal and No. 3 PJ Duke. Duke had three early takedowns in round one and landed a huge pin, generating an eruption from the Nittany Lion faithful and giving Penn State a 24-0 lead.

Following intermission, AJ Rodriguez hit the mat at 165 pounds for the Terps against No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink. Mesenbrink was absolutely dominant, taking a 14-0 lead with three separate takedowns after one. He would finish up his work early in the second, earning a tech fall win after a quick escape. 

174 pounds was Seth Digby for Maryland against No. 1 Levi Haines.  Digby held his own early on, but trailed 6-1 after one. Another dominant round gave Haines a 13-2 lead going into the final period. Digby landed a takedown early in the third, but Haines responded with three quick takedowns to win by technical fall, 24-8. 

184 pounds saw freshman Sepanta Ahang-Elias vs the Nittany Lions’ No. 1 Rocco Welsh. Welsh landed two takedowns, but Ahang-Elias made him work in the first. Welsh turned it up a notch in the second period, landing a takedown and proceeding to pin Ahang-Elias, securing a 40-0 lead for Penn State. 

The dual’s final ranked matchup was at 197 pounds, with No. 13 Branson John taking on No. 1 Josh Barr. A very calculated first round from both men eventually resulted in a late takedown by Barr, giving him a 3-0 lead after one. More of the same followed, with Barr leading 7-0 after two. He caught a second wind in the third period, landing three straight takedowns and picking up the 19-4 tech fall victory. 

Heavyweight featured a matchup of Joey Schneck and No. 12 Cole Mirasola. Mirasola had three first round takedowns and put an exclamation point on the night for the Nittany Lions with a pin. 

The Terps are currently reeling, with six straight losses and the recent news of a season ending injury for star 184-pounder Jaxon Smith. They will have another chance to overcome this adversity on the road at Rutgers on Jan. 30.