Big Ten Wrestling: Session Two Recap and Session 4 Finals Open Thread

With a 19.5-point lead, Penn State prepares to clinch its first Big Ten Tournament championship since 2016.

Team Race

125

What We Learned

• Devin Schnupp’s season is over, after going 0-3
• Sebastian Rivera and Spencer Lee remain the class of this weight

Media

Remaining Questions

• Can Seabass dominate Spencer like he did in the Midlands Finals?
• Can Penn State reasonably hope to score points at this weight at Nationals next year?

133

What We Learned

• Luke Pletcher remains very dangerous
• Roman Bravo-Young’s inexperience makes him vulnerable in this tough weight class, but his talent and ceiling remain sky-high
• Nick Suriano really wants to fight. Actually fight.

Media

Remaining Questions

• Can Pletcher solve Suriano?
• Can Micic get healthy enough to be a factor in this deep weight in Pittsburgh?
• What the heck will an RBY - Desanto bout look like?

141

What We Learned

• Joey McKenna - Nick Lee battles will always be fierce
• Seeding Mike Carr #1 was consistent with rewarding undefeated wrestlers at other weights, but ended up a disservice to this class

Media

Remaining Questions

• How many Bonus Points will Nick Lee earn on his way to 3rd?
• Can surprise Husker finalist Chad Red give anything to McKenna?

149

What We Learned

• Brady Berge is a long way away from Micah Jordan
• This is ok, because Micah Jordan looks like a National Finalist right now

Media

Remaining Questions

• What seed can Bardy hope to earn for Nationals, after medically defaulting today?
• Can Micah avenge his CKLV loss to Anthony Ashnault?

157

What We Learned

• Alec Pantaleo loves to tap Jason Nolf’s head
• Jason Nolf did not love the Alec Pantaleo head taps, but he eventually settled down, ignored them, and advanced past Pantaleo once again

Media

Remaining Questions

• Did Tyler Berger acknowledge his impending loss to Nolf today, in the Big Ten Tournament, when he tweeted this in February?

165

What We Learned

• Cenzo may appear relaxed in tight, tight bouts, but he’s still dangerous as all hell
• Alex Marinelli beat Evan Wick for a third time this season

Media

Remaining Questions

• Which stud wrestler’s undefeated record will get sullied today?

174

What We Learned

• Mark Hall remains undefeated
• Myles Amine earned another opportunity to try to solve Hall

Media

Remaining Questions

• Can Myles Amine finally solve Mark Hall?
• Can Mikey Labriola battle back to place 3rd, after getting decked in sudden victory by Devin Skatzka in the Quarterfinals?

184

What We Learned

• Skakur Rasheed, in current level of health, is too much for Taylor Venz
• Taylor Venz remains dangerous: his tightly-locked cradle came as time ran out
• Venz interpreted that final development as worthy of a last-second face smush
• Myles Martin continued his Bo-Nickal-less Dominance

Media

Remaining Questions

• How close can Rasheed keep it with Martin?

197

What We Learned

• Bo Nickal is patient, and still clutch with the Bonus
• Eric Schultz wrestles Nickal more smartly than anybody else

Media

Remaining Questions

• Kollin Moore won’t let Bo pin him again, will he?

285

What We Learned

• The seeds are accurate, and Steveson & Cassar are the two best guys in this tourney

Media

Remaining Questions

• Can Antknee hang?
• Will Steveson dance?
• Will the fans win?

Today’s Schedule

Sunday, March 9

Session III, 1 p.m. EST, BTN+ / Flo$

• Consolation Semifinals (.5 Adv. 3 Placement, 2 Bonus)
• 7th Place (1 Placement, 2 Bonus)
• Any 9-12 mini-tourneys, as needed to fill out conference auto-qualifier spots (No team points available)

Session IV, 4 p.m. EST, BTN TV

• Championship Finals (4 Placement, 2 Bonus)
• 3rd & 5th Place (1 Placement, 2 Bonus)

Wrestling Consumption Links

• Free live updating brackets, with mat assignments, on Flo Arena here.
• Pasted pre-Session brackets from TrackWrestling below.
• Dulcent Tones of Jeff Byers (free audio) here.

Penn State Session 3 Consolation Matchups

May we recommend Wrestle Stat’s excellent and helpful, free, comparison tool.

133 — #4 Roman Bravo-Young vs #2 Austin DeSanto (IOWA) – Mat TBD (Cons Semis)

141 — #2 Nick Lee vs #4 Tristan Moran (WISC) – Mat TBD (Cons Semis)

149 — #6 Brady Berge vs #5 Cole Martin (WISC) – Mat TBD (Cons Semis)

Everyone in the Consolation Semis will have either a 3rd or 5th place match during Session 4, depending on whether they win or lose in Session 3.

All Team Session 4 Finals Matchups

125 — #1 Sebastian Rivera (NW) vs #2 Spencer Lee (IOWA) – Mat TBD (Championship)

133 — #3 Nick Suriano (RUTG) vs #5 Luke Pletcher (OSU) – Mat TBD (Championship)

141 — #3 Joey McKenna (OSU) vs #8 Chad Red (NEB) – Mat TBD (Championship)

149 — #1 Anthony Ashnault (RUTG) vs #2 Micah Jordan (OSU) – Mat TBD (Championship)

157 — #1 Jason Nolf (PSU) vs #2 Tyler Berger (NEB) – Mat TBD (Championship)

165 — #1 Vincenzo Joseph (PSU) vs #2 Alex Marinelli (IOWA) – Mat TBD (Championship)

174 — #1 Mark Hall (PSU) vs #2 Myles Amine (MICH) – Mat TBD (Championship)

184 — #2 Shakur Rasheed (PSU) vs #1 Myles Martin (OSU) – Mat TBD (Championship)

197 — #1 Bo Nickal (PSU) vs #2 Kollin Moore (OSU) – Mat TBD (Championship)

285 — #2 Anthony Cassar (PSU) vs #1 Gable Steveson (MINN) – Mat TBD (Championship)