Wrestling: Two Nittany Lions claim Big Ten crowns as Iowa wins team title

Roman Bravo-Young and Aaron Brooks added some hardware to their collections Sunday night, as they claimed individual Big Ten titles on their home turf at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Those victories headlined an up-and-down second day of the competition for the Nittany Lions. Nick Lee and Carter Starocci lost their matchups in the final, and Iowa claimed the team title for the second season in a row, with 159.5 points to Penn State's 124 as the Nittany Lions took second place.

"We had some guys wrestle well, we had some guys wrestle not-so-well," Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson said. "More than anything, to me, I want to see great effort. I'm not sure we saw great effort all the time which is probably the hardest thing as a coach.

"We have time to regroup and figure some things out and be better at the nationals."

Roman Bravo-Young got the Nittany Lions off to a straightforward start.

With fancy footwork and a calmness that bordered on the nonchalant, Bravo-Young earned a 5-2 win over Iowa's Austin DeSanto to claim his first Big Ten title.

"I think he wrestled well," Sanderson said of Bravo-Young. "I think it's a tough opponent...That's a very possible semifinal matchup at the nationals so Roman's got to keep getting better and find a way to score in that match.

"I thought Roman had a good tournament, and I think he'll wrestle better at nationals."

Bravo-Young said he felt like he was three steps ahead of DeSanto for the entire match, and the results back him up.

Bravo-Young used unorthodox angles to score takedowns in the first two periods, and played out the third period without ever looking vulnerable.

"It's good confidence," Bravo-Young said when asked how this impacts his outlook for nationals. "But obviously it's not the main focus. It's good to win. I'm feeling good."

It came down to riding time, but Iowa's Jaydin Eierman — the top seed — bested Nick Lee by a 6-5 score to deny Lee in the Big Ten finals for the second year in a row.

Lee opened the match with a takedown, but Eierman earned a quick escape and a takedown of his own. Lee was unable to come up with an escape, with Eierman finishing the first period with 1:59 in riding time that would prove crucial.

Lee earned a second takedown in the third period after an Eierman escape provided the only scoring of the second period. After an Eierman stalling penalty, the score sat at 5-5, but the riding time made the difference.

Redshirt freshman Carter Starocci was unable to turn a run to the finals in his first Big Ten Tournament into any hardware.

Facing off with top-seeded Michael Kemerer of Iowa — a veteran currently in his sixth year in Iowa City — Starocci met his match.

Kemerer earned a straightforward 7-2 victory, taking the early lead with a first-period takedown. Another takedown late in the second period and two nearfall points put the result beyond doubt, as Kemerer held Starocci without a takedown in the bout.

Sophomore Aaron Brooks claimed his second Big Ten title, and perhaps a bit of revenge, too.

Facing off with Nebraska's Taylor Venz — the only wrestler to beat Brooks at the college level — Brooks earned a 10-5 win.

Venz scored the first takedown of the match, but Brooks quickly escaped and answered with a takedown of his own, riding out the period to establish an early lead.

From that point, Brooks asserted his dominance. He scored a reversal and a takedown in the second period, and added another takedown in the third to seal the win.

He did so with a bit of an injury issue after having a problem with his ankle during Saturday's action, but Brooks said he felt "amazing" Sunday.

"A little adversity, but bouncing back is a true test of your own self and your own grit," Brooks said. "It was a great mental test for me that I could compete through whatever adversity comes."

Like Bravo-Young, Brooks will take an unbeaten record into the NCAA Tournament.

"it's a great feeling knowing that your hard work is paying off, and that you're at the right place with the right coaches and the right people," Brooks said.

125 Pounds — Robert Howard began his Sunday with a consolation semifinal loss to third-seeded Malik Heinselman of Ohio State, 5-2, before falling in the fifth-place bout to eighth seeded Michael DeAugustino, 4-2. He finished sixth after entering as the No. 11 seed.

149 Pounds — Beau Bartlett did not wrestle on Sunday after losing his second consolation bout to Yayha Thomas of Northwestern Saturday.

157 Pounds — Brady Berge lost a tough 3-1 decision in sudden victory to third-seeded Drayton Lee of Minnesota in the consolation semifinals. He then was forced to take a medical forfeit in the fifth-place bout, finishing in sixth as the fifth seed.

165 Pounds — Joe Lee fell by 10-6 decision to 12th-seeded David Ferrante of Northwestern in the seventh-place match to seal an eight-place finish after coming in as the No. 6 seed.

197 Pounds — Chris Beard started off his day with a 12-6 defeat to fourth-seeded Cameron Caffey of Michigan State, sending him to the fifth-place bout, where he fell to No. 5 seed Lucas Davison of Northwestern, 6-4, locking in a sixth-place finish as the seventh seed.

285 Pounds — Greg Kerkvliet began his day with a 10-2 major decision over fifth-seeded Christian Lance of Nebraska, before falling in the third-place bout in a 9-0 major decision to Tony Cassioppi of Iowa, finishing the tournament in fourth place as the No. 7 seed.

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