Below is a weight-by-weight breakdown of the dual meet.
125: No. 12 Brad Pataky (Penn State) vs. No. 19 Nikko Triggas (Ohio State)
Pataky, an NCAA qualifier last season, is 18-5 in this season. He has split matches with both Eric Morrill of Edinboro, who is ranked No. 8, and Jarrod Garnett of Virginia Tech, who is ranked No. 15. Pataky was fifth at the Reno tournament of Champions. Triggas, a two-time NCAA qualifier, has battled inconsistency this season. He is dangerous with his upper body attacks, but seems to struggle against wrestlers with solid leg attacks. He has lost three of his last four matches, but all three of those losses have come to wrestlers ranked in the top six.
Bottom Line: Pataky won by major decision, 14-3, against Triggas in their last meeting, which occurred last February. If Pataky stays out of dangerous positions and keeps it basic, he should win this match.
Prediction: Pataky (Penn State) dec. Triggas (Ohio State)
133: Bryan Pearsall (Penn State) vs. Ian Paddock (Ohio State)
This is one of only two matchups that does not include a ranked wrestler. Paddock, a true freshman, is 15-6, has battled four ranked opponents and lost each of those matches. His most notable win came against Ben Ashmore of Arizona State at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. Pearsall has struggled mightily this season, going 3-14. He is coming off a win against Illinois, but had lost six straight matches prior to that victory.
Bottom Line: Paddock has done very well against unranked opponents, so he should be able to handle Pearsall.
Prediction: Paddock (Ohio State) major dec. Pearsall (Penn State)
141: Adam Lynch (Penn State) vs. No. 3 Reece Humphrey (Ohio State)
Humphrey, an NCAA runner-up at 133 pounds last March, began the season ranked No. 1 in his new weight class. He was undefeated up until the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, where he lost back-to-back matches to returning All-American Chris Drouin of Arizona State and talented true freshman Kyle Dake of Cornell. Humphrey bounced back on Day 2 of the event to beat a couple of red-hot wrestlers in Dalton Jensen of Iowa State and Mike Thorn of Minnesota. Lynch is 6-8 on the season, but has had some big pins this season, including one on Friday night against No. 11 Ryan Prater of Illinois.
Bottom Line: Humphrey is the superior and should dominate Lynch.
Prediction: Humphrey (Ohio State) major dec. Lynch (Penn State)
149: No. 5 Frank Molinaro (Penn State) vs. No. 3 Lance Palmer (Ohio State)
This is perhaps the most anticipated matchup of the dual meet. Both are returning All-Americans. Palmer, a three-time All-American, was fourth at the NCAA Championships last season, while Molinaro was eighth at 141 pounds. Palmer comes in with a 17-1 record. His only official loss came to Wisconsin's second-ranked Kyle Ruschell, 3-1, in the finals of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Molinaro won his first 21 matches to start the season before dropping a match at the Virginia Duals to No. 4 Kyle Terry of Oklahoma.
Bottom Line: Expect this to be a tight, low scoring battle. Both wrestlers are very strong and tough to score on. Palmer is one of the best wrestlers in the country from the top position. Molinaro's lone loss came against a wrestler Palmer beat this season.
Prediction: Palmer (Ohio State) dec. Molinaro (Penn State)
157: No. 5 Cyler Sanderson (Penn State) vs. Tony Jameson (Ohio State)
Sanderson, a 2008 All-American, finished his junior season on a sour note, failing to earn All-American honors after being ranked inside the top eight most of the season. His decision to transfer to Penn State from Iowa State came under scrutiny, but he has thrived in his new environment. He is currently 20-2 and ranked No. 5. His losses have come to No. 1 J.P. O'Connor of Harvard and No. 4 Jesse Dong of Virginia Tech. Jameson, a four-time Ohio state champion, is 3-2 this season in official matches. He had a key pin against Cornell at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals.
Bottom Line: Sanderson is wrestling at a high level and should contend for an NCAA title this season, while Jameson is still getting his feet wet in Division I college wrestling. This is by far Jameson's toughest match of his young career. Penn State will be looking for bonus points here.
Prediction: Sanderson (Penn State) major dec. Jameson (Ohio State)
165: No. 8 Dan Vallimont (Penn State) vs. No. 7 Colt Sponseller (Ohio State)
If the match at 149 pounds is the most anticipated matchup of the dual meet, this matchup is a close second. Vallimont was an All-American in 2008, finishing third at 157 pounds. He moved up to 165 pounds midway through last season, but failed to earn All-American honors, losing in the round of 12. Sponseller, a junior, compiled an impressive 48-12 record through his first two season, but only has one NCAA appearance and no All-American honors to show for it. Last season, he climbed to as high as No. 2 in the country, but finished fourth at the Big Ten Championships and failed to place at the NCAA Championships as the No. 6 seed.
Bottom Line: This match is a tossup. The two split matches last season. Sponseller won the first in early February, but Vallimont came back to win the second at the Big Ten Championships. Both have close losses to Edinboro's Jarrod King this season. Should be tight one.
Prediction: Vallimont (Penn State) dec. Sponseller (Ohio State)
174: Justin Ortega (Penn State) vs. No. 12 Dave Rella (Ohio State)
Rella, an NCAA qualifier last season, comes into today's match with a 15-6 mark. His most notable win came against then-No. 10 Ryan Patrovich of Hostra. He placed seventh at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Ortega has lost four straight matches and comes in with a 6-11 record.
Bottom Line: Rella should win this match. Ortega has been competitive against several ranked opponents this season, but is coming off a technical loss to No. 14 Jordan Blanton of Illinois. Look for Ortega to try to slow the pace of the match. If he can do that, he might be able to avoid giving up bonus points against Rella.
Prediction: Rella (Ohio State) dec. Ortega (Penn State)
184: No. 12 David Erwin (Penn State) vs. No. 10 Mike Pucillo (Ohio State)
Coming into the season, most would have considered Pucillo a virtual lock to win this match.
After all, Pucillo is a three-time All-American and 2008 NCAA champion, while Erwin has had an injuring-plagued career and has never qualified for the NCAA Championships. Due to the fact that Pucillo is having the most frustrating season of his career and Erwin is having his most impressive season makes this match somewhat of a tossup. Pucillo has more losses this season (four) than he has had the past two seasons combined (three). Erwin began the season unranked and made his first appearance in the rankings on December 8. He has steadily climbed in the rankings since then. He is coming off a 6-4 sudden victory loss to No. 2 John Dergo of Illinois, a wrestler who has also beaten Pucillo.
Bottom Line: Pucillo may not be at the top of his game right now, but he is still as as tough to beat as anyone in the weight class. Erwin has been solid for the Nittany Lions, but look for a determined Pucillo to win this one in front of the Buckeye faithful.
Prediction: Pucillo (Ohio State) dec. Erwin (Penn State)
197: Clay Steadman/David Crowell (Penn State) vs. C.J. Magrum (Ohio State)
Magrum comes in with a 17-6 record on the season. He has quality wins over Joe Kennedy of Lehigh and Riley Orozco of Cal State Bakersfield. Steadman is 8-8, while Crowell is 17-9.
Bottom Line: Magrum will be favored against whoever Penn State puts out on the mat. Don't expect bonus points in this one.
Prediction: Magrum (Ohio State) dec. Steadman (Penn State)
285: No. 11 Cameron Wade (Penn State) vs. No. 20 Corey Morrison (Ohio State)
Wade has been solid all season, compiling a record of 13-5 … with four of those losses to wrestlers ranked inside the top 10. Morrison got off to a slow start this season, losing three of his first six matches. But he is now starting to come into his own. At the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, Morrison went 3-1, which included victories over No. 17 Eric Nye of Arizona State, 2007 All-American Josh Arnone of Cornell, and NCAA qualifier Ben Berhow of Minnesota.
Bottom Line: Wade is certainly the favorite in this match based on the fact that he beat Morrison in a head-to-head meeting last season, 14-8, and has wins over two opponents Morrison lost to this season.
Prediction: Wade (Penn State) dec. Morrison (Ohio State)
Dual Meet Prediction: Ohio State 20, Penn State 13
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