Nittany Lion Open
After a long Sunday lacking football and packed with wrestling, Penn State walked away with five championship titles in the 2014 Nittany Lion Open.
Jordan Conaway (125), Jimmy Gulibon (133), Jason Nolf (157), Matt Brown (174), and Matt McCutcheon (184) took home title-crowns after battling wrestlers from a combined 20 different teams.
Junior Jordan Conaway, ranked No.11, started the day winning his title at 125 lbs. His winnings included two tech falls and one major decision then finished the finals match with a 10-3 win over non-collegiate wrestler Dalton Macri. Disclaimer: Conaway technically finished the day with a record of 3-0 because his win over the Macri will not count towards Conaway’s record due to the fact that he is non-collegiate.
Up next, sophomore Jimmy Gulibon, ranked No. 5, took to the mat also going 3-0 and winning his finals match over Rutgers’ Anthony Giraldo in a tight 3-1 decision. The next champion title wouldn’t come until the 157 lb. weight class as true freshman Jason Nolf made his season debut.
Leading up to his finals match, Nolf tallied three pins and one tech fall to carry him into a final brawl with teammate and redshirt freshman Cody Law. Nolf beat Law in a 21-8 major decision and finished with a 5-0 record in the tournament.
In a similar series of events, junior Matt Brown, ranked No. 3, climbed his way to the top posting two pins and one major decision before his finals match. Brown also matched up with a Nittany Lion teammate in the finals– true freshman Bo Nickal. In one of the most exciting matches of the day, Brown grabbed the title with a 10-7 decision over Nickal and ended his day 3-0.
Red-shirt freshman Matt McCutcheon, ranked No. 19, finished the circle of title-winners at 184 lbs. with a pin and a tech fall to take him to the finals. He beat Virginia Tech’s Zach Zavatsky in an 8-0 major decision to win the title and finish 4-0.
The Nittany Lion Open tournament is a non-team scored open tournament, which basically means any team could register and the outcomes don’t go on any of the teams’ season records. So, Penn State still stands at 3-0 and looks to make moves in the conference this week.
Penn State finally faces a Big Ten opponent this Thursday, Dec. 11 in College Park, Md. The Nittany Lions will face Maryland starting at 6 p.m. in hopes of their first Big Ten win of the season.
(All statistics courtesy of www.gopsusports.com)
Jordan Conaway (125), Jimmy Gulibon (133), Jason Nolf (157), Matt Brown (174), and Matt McCutcheon (184) took home title-crowns after battling wrestlers from a combined 20 different teams.
Junior Jordan Conaway, ranked No.11, started the day winning his title at 125 lbs. His winnings included two tech falls and one major decision then finished the finals match with a 10-3 win over non-collegiate wrestler Dalton Macri. Disclaimer: Conaway technically finished the day with a record of 3-0 because his win over the Macri will not count towards Conaway’s record due to the fact that he is non-collegiate.
Up next, sophomore Jimmy Gulibon, ranked No. 5, took to the mat also going 3-0 and winning his finals match over Rutgers’ Anthony Giraldo in a tight 3-1 decision. The next champion title wouldn’t come until the 157 lb. weight class as true freshman Jason Nolf made his season debut.
Leading up to his finals match, Nolf tallied three pins and one tech fall to carry him into a final brawl with teammate and redshirt freshman Cody Law. Nolf beat Law in a 21-8 major decision and finished with a 5-0 record in the tournament.
In a similar series of events, junior Matt Brown, ranked No. 3, climbed his way to the top posting two pins and one major decision before his finals match. Brown also matched up with a Nittany Lion teammate in the finals– true freshman Bo Nickal. In one of the most exciting matches of the day, Brown grabbed the title with a 10-7 decision over Nickal and ended his day 3-0.
Red-shirt freshman Matt McCutcheon, ranked No. 19, finished the circle of title-winners at 184 lbs. with a pin and a tech fall to take him to the finals. He beat Virginia Tech’s Zach Zavatsky in an 8-0 major decision to win the title and finish 4-0.
The Nittany Lion Open tournament is a non-team scored open tournament, which basically means any team could register and the outcomes don’t go on any of the teams’ season records. So, Penn State still stands at 3-0 and looks to make moves in the conference this week.
Penn State finally faces a Big Ten opponent this Thursday, Dec. 11 in College Park, Md. The Nittany Lions will face Maryland starting at 6 p.m. in hopes of their first Big Ten win of the season.
(All statistics courtesy of www.gopsusports.com)
