Heading into the Big Ten Conference Tournament, the talk of wrestling fans nation-wide centered around a two-way race between Penn State and Iowa. Well surprise, surprise, the Michigan Wolverines had others thoughts about those conversations and finished above the two front-runners with scoring 143 points to the Nittany Lions 141.5 points and the Hawkeyes 129.5 points to win the Big Ten Title, its first since 1973. In what many wrestling enthusiasts consider a preview to a mini NCAA National Tournament, the Big Ten is loaded with teams ranked in the top twenty along with more than its fair share of individual talented wrestlers. According to Intermat Wrestling, 93 ranked wrestlers competed in Lincoln this past weekend spanning across 10 weight classes. Seven of those wrestlers were No. 1 ranked that included Michigan’s Nick Suriano (125); followed by five Penn State Nittany Lions with Roman Bravo-Young (133), Nick Lee (141), Carter Starocci (174), Aaron Brooks (184), Max Dean (197); and closing out with Olympic Gold Medalist for the Minnesota Gopher”s Gable Steveson at (285). In addition, the field included six defending or former national champions starting with Nick Suriano competing at 125 lbs at the lowest weight and ending with Gable Steveson at 285. In between those two champions, comes four Penn State Champions in the field with.Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Carter Starocci, and Aaron Brooks. Moreover, 94 is the number of combined All-America accolades earned by the field in the past five NCAA championships with Iowa leading the Big Ten during that span with 24, and Penn State and Michigan tied for second with 14.
With the tournament still undecided heading into the championship finals and Michigan holding a slim 11.5 point lead, Penn State mathematically was the only team with an outside shot of overtaking Michigan’s lead. Even more critical regarding team scoring for the Big Ten Title, was the fact that two head-to-head matches featured Michigan versus Penn State that would most definitely determine the team title outcome. The Wolverines sent four to the finals while the Nittany Lions sent five. In order for Penn State to overtake Michigan, they would need all five finalists to win their matches and hope the Wolverines would lose at least three. After Suriano won at 125 for Michigan, the Lions clawed back getting to within 1.5 points of Michigan on the strength of wins by Bravo-Young at 133, Lee at 141 and with Starocci at 174. But when Michigan’s Myles Amine, a 2020 Olympic bronze-medalist wrestling for San Marino, defeated Penn State’s Aaron Brooks by scoring a sudden-victory take down for a 6-4 decision, that but all sealed the deal for Michigan to win the Big Ten Championships. Had Brooks won, Penn State would have taken the team lead, which Michigan would have been hard-pressed to recoup. Instead, the Wolverines increased their lead to 5.5 points with only one Penn State Wrestler left to compete with Max Dean at 197. Dean, an All-American transfer from Cornell was victorious giving the Nittany Lions 4 more team points, to cut the lead to 1.5 points, but that was the last competitor for Penn State to compete that allowed Michigan to hold on to win the tournament title. Hereto, Brooks’ loss was Penn State’s only one in the final session. The Lions went 4-1 in the finals, while the Wolverines went 2-2 to close out the tournament. Even more amazing is the fact that Penn State defeated Michigan 29-6 in a January dual. But the Wolverines got their revenge at the Big Ten Tournament. Nevertheless, Penn State has an opportunity to finish the season in a way (qualifying nine wrestlers to the NCAA’s) with which Cael Sanderson is quite familiar with. Penn State twice has won team national championships, in 2017 and ’18, when it placed second at the conference tournament.
At 125, Michigan’s Nick Suriano, a former National Champion at Rutgers at 133 dropped down a weight class this season to claim his second Big Ten Title and the 125-pound title after defeating Wisconsin’s No. 3 Eric Barnett, 12-4. Barnett a returning 2021 NCAA All-American after finishing eighth in the nation last season, was just no match for Suriano as the Wolverine was able to score in every period to dominate the bout. With Spencer Lee from Iowa out of the picture with competing this year, Suriano should win his second NCAA title. Nick Suriano, was most definitely a key transfer in for the Wolverines making them a legitimate contender for the national title as he has a chance to score a lot of team points for the Wolverines.
At 133, Roman Bravo-Young continued his mastery of Iowa’s Austin DeSanto, scoring a takedown with 31 seconds left to secure a 3-1 victory and his second Big Ten title. Bravo-Young (17-0) defeated DeSanto for the fifth consecutive time, including his second straight in a Big Ten final. Bravo-Young also won his 31st consecutive bout dating back to the 2020 Big Ten championships. The duo battled through a scoreless first period, with each wrestler connecting on single legs that led to stalemates and resets. The bout was tied 0-0 after one and DeSanto chose down to start the second. DeSanto escaped for a 1-0 lead and Bravo-Young gave up a first stall warning in the process. The Lion senior chose down to start the third and quickly escaped for a 1-1 tie. DeSanto took a low shot that Bravo-Young countered, working the Hawkeye’s back toward the mat and, after a few seconds’ work, got the takedown with :23 left in the bout. Bravo-Young finished the period on top and won his second straight Big Ten title with a 3-1 decision.
At 141, defending NCAA champ Nick Lee finally got his Big Ten title, though he still hasn’t won one on the mat. Lee claimed the title after Iowa’s Jaydin Eierman chose to take a medical forfeit. Most fans were hoping for a Lee-Eierman rematch after their last two matches against each other have gone to overtime. Lee lost to Eierman in last year’s Big Ten final, but got his revenge in the NCAA final. To make this weight very competitive, Sebastian Rivera, a transfer from Northwestern to Rutgers, and four-time All-American, as well as a two-time Big Ten champ at 133 was only the No. 3 seed. But Rivera is battling injuries and had to medically forfeit all remaining matches after opening up with two easy wins. However, the forfeit by Eierman of Iowa in the finals gave Penn State two extra team points setting up a possibility of Penn State catching Michigan in the team race.
At 149, at the conclusion of the championship finals, Austin Gomez from Wisconsin was named a Co-Outstanding Wrestler of the Championships with Michigan’s Myles Amine. That was due to Gomez earning an 8-5 decision to upset the No. 1 seed and top-ranked Sammy Sasso of Ohio State to earn the crown at 149 pounds. Most notably rewarding for Gomez, was that he returned to wrestling this season after transferring to Wisconsin after stepping away entirely from the sport due to an injury. And did the Badger ever make the most of his return to the mats. Gomez suffered an early takedown by Sasso in the first period, but managed to keep scrapping back until he finally tied the match in the second period. In the third period is when the momentum of the match finally flipped in Gomez’ favor with scoring a decisive takedown to defeat Sasso the number one ranked wrestler in the nation at 149.
At 157 pounds, top-ranked Ryan Deakin of Northwestern successfully defended his title to become a Three-Time Big Ten Champion with a relatively easy 7-2 decision against Michigan’s Will Lewan. To nobody’s surprise, top ranked Deakin picked up right where he left off a year ago, with being stingy in giving up only point in the three matches. The sixth-year senior became the 61st Three-Time Big Ten Champion when he won his title match. The Bloomfield, Colorado, native is the model of consistency with a career record of 119-18. He’s been fairly limited in action this season at 13-0. The only thing that has escaped his grasp thus far in his career is a national title, but that is very much within reach come nationals in Detroit.
Marinelli captured his fourth conference crown, winning the 165-pound title at the Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Sunday at University of Nebraska’s Pinnacle Bank Arena. He defeated Michigan’s Cameron Amine, 2-1, to become the eighth Hawkeye wrestler and the first since 1998 to accomplish the feat. Marinelli posted three decisions in his title run, including one-point decisions in the last two bouts. The 3-2 semifinal victory over Wisconsin’s third-seeded Dean Hamiti was the first of two gut-checks. He used an escape in the second and his constant pressure produced a penalty point for stalling later in the period. Amine only managed an escape in the final frame to close out the scoring.
In a battle on #1 versus #2 at 174, and the first of two head-to-head match-ups between Penn State and Michigan, featured Carter Starocci for the Nittany Lions versus Logan Massa of the Wolverines. Top-ranked Carter Starocci, Penn State’s leading points-scorer in the dual-meet season, launched the team’s comeback into hyper-drive with a 5-1 win over Michigan’s Logan Massa ranked #2. Starocci scored the first take down at the 1:15 mark with a low single leg attack that was countered with a Massa escape near the end of the first period. Starocci chose down to start the second period as Massa controlled the action until Starocci managed to escape to take a 3-1 lead. Massa chose down to start the third and Starocci dominated the period by riding out Massa for the full two minutes, while picking up a penalty point on a third caution and a riding time point to roll to a 5-1 victory. The win was Starocci’s third over Massa and second this season to garner his first Big Ten Title. Worth noting, this weight class shows just how deep and talented the Big Ten really is, with the top four seeds also the top four 174-pounders in the nation, with Starocci of Penn State, Massa of Michigan, Labriola for Nebraska and Michael Kemerer of Iowa.
In the second match-up at 184 with Michigan versus Penn State in the Finals, as predicted, a collision course occurred with Michigan’s Myles Amine stunning Aaron Brooks, by getting a pair of late take downs to win 6-4 in sudden victory and restore the Wolverines’ team lead. Brooks came out with a fast tempo picking up a takedown at the 1:20 mark to take a 2-0 lead. Amine escaped after a reset to cut Brooks’ lead in half and action continued in the neutral position. Brooks led 2-1 after one and chose down to start the second period. The Nittany Lion escaped quickly to open up a 3-1 lead and went back to work on offense. Amine got hit for stalling once as the second period ticked away and Brooks led by two after two. Amine chose down to start the third and escaped for a 3-2 score. Each wrestler took shots that ended in stalemates as the clock moved to the :40 mark. Brooks labored at the bout’s end, as Amine took advantage of the situation with scrambling to a take down with :15 left, and Brooks escaped with four seconds left to tie the match at 4-4, sending it to sudden victory. Amine ended the match with a take down early in extra time to post the 6-4 (SV) win. Brooks and Amine entered the tournament ranked 1-2 in the country and are likely to meet once more in the NCAA finals.
At 197, Max Dean, who transferred to Penn State from Cornell, defeated top-seeded Max Schultz of Nebraska 4-2 for his first Big Ten title. Dean (18-1) had a strong tournament, avenging a regular-season loss to Michigan State’s Cameron Caffey before defeating Schultz in the final. Dean set a high tempo early, forcing the action in the center of the mat. With Schultz backing up, Dean looked for an opening on offense as the clock hit its midway point. Dean’s pressure finally paid off with a low single to a takedown with :33 left on the clock. Schultz escaped with seconds left and cut the lead to 2-1 after one period. Schultz chose down to start the second period and Dean worked up over 2:00 minutes in riding time with a strong ride before Schultz managed a last second escape to tie the bout at 2-2 before the period ended. Dean chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to take a 3-2 lead with 1:55 left in regulation time. Dean ended the period on his feet in the neutral position, with 1:55 in riding time, and winning his first Big Ten title 4-2.
At 285, Gable Steveson, an Olympic Gold Medalist and NCAA Heavyweight Champion for the Minnesota Gophers is by far the best athlete in collegiate wrestling this year. His blend of speed and strength is unheard of at his weight class. So appreciative of his overall talent and personality, that wrestling fans stood up and applauded the senior as he accepted a medical forfeit in the finals from his Iowa opponent. But not before a chorus of boos erupted from fans when the PA Announcer announced the Iowa wrestler (Tony Cassioppi) was forfeiting to Steveson, since fans come to appreciate how electrifying and exciting this Gopher is when competing. But it quickly erupted into a standing ovation of applause as the Gopher stood at the center of the mat waving to the crowd for being acknowledged.
Team Scoring
1. Michigan……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..143.0 2. Penn State…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….141.5 3. Iowa…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….129.5 4. Ohio State………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………91.5 5. Northwestern………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….90.5 6. Minnesota………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………78.5 7. Nebraska………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..75.5 8. Wisconsin………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………68.0 9. Rutgers………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….41.0 10 Purdue…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..36.5 11 Illinois……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………34.5 12 Michigan State……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….33.0 13 Maryland……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….15.5 14 Indiana…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….4.0
Individual Results
125: 1st Place – Nick Suriano of Michigan
2nd Place – Eric Barnett of Wisconsin
- 3rd Place – Patrick McKee of Minnesota
- 4th Place – Michael DeAugustino of Northwestern
- 5th Place – Malik Heinselman of Ohio State
- 6th Place – Devin Schroder of Purdue
- 7th Place – Dylan Shawver of Rutgers
- 8th Place – Drake Ayala of Iowa
1st Place Match: Nick Suriano (Michigan) 11-0, MD 12-4 over Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) 14-3
3rd Place: Patrick McKee (Minnesota) 13-7, Dec 3-1 over Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) 10-4
5th Place Match: Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) 16-5, M For over Devin Schroder (Purdue) 19-6
7th Place Match: Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) 18-7, M For over Drake Ayala (Iowa) 11-6
133: 1st Place – Roman Bravo-Young of Penn State
- 2nd Place – Austin DeSanto of Iowa
- 3rd Place – Dylan Ragusin of Michigan
- 4th Place – Lucas Byrd of Illinois
- 5th Place – Chris Cannon of Northwestern
- 6th Place – RayVon Foley of Michigan State
- 7th Place – Matt Ramos of Purdue
- 8th Place – Jake Gliva of Minnesota
1st Place Match: Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) 17-0, Dec 3-1 over Austin DeSanto (Iowa) 12-3
3rd Place Match: Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) 18-6, SV-1 3-1 over Lucas Byrd (Illinois) 21-3
5th Place Match: Chris Cannon (Northwestern) 15-5, M For over RayVon Foley (Michigan State) 28-5
7th Place Match: Matt Ramos (Purdue) 18-8, Dec 3-2 over Jake Gliva (Minnesota) 8-13
141: 1st Place – Nick Lee of Penn State
- 2nd Place – Jaydin Eierman of Iowa
- 3rd Place – Jakob Bergeland of Minnesota
- 4th Place – Stevan Micic of Michigan
- 5th Place – Dylan D`Emilio of Ohio State
- 6th Place – Sebastian Rivera of Rutgers
- 7th Place – Frankie Tal Shahar of Northwestern
- 8th Place – Parker Filius of Purdue
1st Place Match: Nick Lee (Penn State) 17-0, M For over Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) 14-2
3rd Place Match: Jakob Bergeland (Minnesota) 12-6, Dec 4-0 over Stevan Micic (Michigan) 10-6
5th Place Match: Dylan D`Emilio (Ohio State) 17-9, M For over Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) 20-3
7th Place Match: Frankie Tal Shahar (Northwestern) 11-7, Dec 11-6 over Parker Filius (Purdue) 21-11
149: 1st Place – Austin Gomez of Wisconsin
- 2nd Place – Sammy Sasso of Ohio State
- 3rd Place – Max Murin of Iowa
- 4th Place – Ridge Lovett of Nebraska
- 5th Place – Michael Blockhus of Minnesota
- 6th Place – Mike Van Brill of Rutgers
- 7th Place – Beau Bartlett of Penn State
- 8th Place – Kanen Storr of Michigan
1st Place Match: Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) 18-2, Dec 8-5 over Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) 17-2
3rd Place Match: Max Murin (Iowa) 12-3, M For over Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) 15-3
5th Place Match: Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) 9-12, M For over Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) 20-5
7th Place Match: Beau Bartlett (Penn State) 14-8, Dec 3-1 over Kanen Storr (Michigan) 6-5
157: 1st Place – Ryan Deakin of Northwestern
- 2nd Place – Will Lewan of Michigan
- 3rd Place – Brady Berge of Penn State
- 4th Place – Kaleb Young of Iowa
- 5th Place – Peyton Robb of Nebraska
- 6th Place – Kendall Coleman of Purdue
- 7th Place – Garrett Model of Wisconsin
- 8th Place – Chase Saldate of Michigan State
1st Place Match: Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) 13-0, Dec 7-2 over Will Lewan (Michigan) 13-3
3rd Place Match: Brady Berge (Penn State) 9-2, SV-1 3-1 over Kaleb Young (Iowa) 3-2
5th Place Match: Peyton Robb (Nebraska) 11-7, MD 8-0 over Kendall Coleman (Purdue) 14-8
7th Place Match: Garrett Model (Wisconsin) 12-11, Dec 7-0 over Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 26-8
165: 1st Place – Alex Marinelli of Iowa
- 2nd Place – Cameron Amine of Michigan
- 3rd Place – Dean Hamiti of Wisconsin
- 4th Place – Carson Kharchla of Ohio State
- 5th Place – David Ferrante of Northwestern
- 6th Place – Clayton Wilson of Nebraska
- 7th Place – Cael Carlson of Minnesota
- 8th Place – Caleb Fish of Michigan State
1st Place Match: Alex Marinelli (Iowa) 17-1, Dec 2-1 over Cameron Amine (Michigan) 12-3
3rd Place Match: Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) 21-2, SV-1 4-2 over Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) 17-3
5th Place Match: David Ferrante (Northwestern) 10-11, M For over Clayton Wilson (Nebraska) 10-10
7th Place Match: Cael Carlson (Minnesota) 12-13, Fall over Caleb Fish (Michigan State) 22-12
174: 1st Place – Carter Starocci of Penn State
- 2nd Place – Logan Massa of Michigan
- 3rd Place – Ethan Smith of Ohio State
- 4th Place – Troy Fisher of Northwestern
- 5th Place – Mikey Labriola of Nebraska
- 6th Place – Michael Kemerer of Iowa
- 7th Place – Dominic Solis of Maryland
- 8th Place – Connor ONeill of Rutgers
1st Place Match: Carter Starocci (Penn State) 18-0, Dec 5-1 over Logan Massa (Michigan) 16-2
3rd Place Match: Ethan Smith (Ohio State) 16-5, M For over Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 16-9
5th Place Match: Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) 15-4, M For over Michael Kemerer (Iowa) 9-5
7th Place Match: Dominic Solis (Maryland) 13-15, Dec 10-4 over Connor ONeill (Rutgers) 9-14
184: 1st Place – Myles Amine of Michigan
- 2nd Place – Aaron Brooks of Penn State
- 3rd Place – Zac Braunagel of Illinois
- 4th Place – Kaleb Romero of Ohio State
- 5th Place – Taylor Venz of Nebraska
- 6th Place – Kyle Cochran of Maryland
- 7th Place – Abe Assad of Iowa
- 8th Place – Isaiah Salazar of Minnesota
1st Place Match: Myles Amine (Michigan) 16-1, SV-1 6-4 over Aaron Brooks (Penn State) 16-1
3rd Place Match: Zac Braunagel (Illinois) 15-7, SV-1 3-1 over Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) 13-3
5th Place Match: Taylor Venz (Nebraska) 13-7, Dec 6-3 over Kyle Cochran (Maryland) 23-9
7th Place Match: Abe Assad (Iowa) 11-7, M For over Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) 10-6
197: 1st Place – Max Dean of Penn State
- 2nd Place – Eric Schultz of Nebraska
- 3rd Place – Patrick Brucki of Michigan
- 4th Place – Jacob Warner of Iowa
- 5th Place – Thomas Penola of Purdue
- 6th Place – Cameron Caffey of Michigan State
- 7th Place – Greg Bulsak of Rutgers
- 8th Place – Gavin Hoffman of Ohio State
1st Place Match: Max Dean (Penn State) 18-1, Dec 4-2 over Eric Schultz (Nebraska) 12-1
3rd Place Match: Patrick Brucki (Michigan) 17-5, Dec 3-1 over Jacob Warner (Iowa) 14-5
5th Place Match: Thomas Penola (Purdue) 22-7, Dec 3-2 over Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) 27-7
7th Place Match: Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) 18-6, Dec 6-1 over Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) 10-10
285: 1st Place – Gable Steveson of Minnesota
- 2nd Place – Tony Cassioppi of Iowa
- 3rd Place – Greg Kerkvliet of Penn State
- 4th Place – Mason Parris of Michigan
- 5th Place – Lucas Davison of Northwestern
- 6th Place – Luke Luffman of Illinois
- 7th Place – Christian Lance of Nebraska
- 8th Place – Tate Orndorff of Ohio State