#1 Joseph vs #3 Wick Marquee Matchup Of Wisconsin At Penn State On Sunday
#1 Joseph vs #3 Wick Marquee Matchup Of Wisconsin At Penn State On Sunday
#1 Vincenzo Joseph vs #3 Evan Wick is the marquee matchup on Sunday as Wisconsin travels to take on Penn State
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The current dynasty of college wrestling, a fiery new coaching staff, and a Top-5 matchup we've never seen before should make for an interesting Sunday afternoon.
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Sun. Jan. 13 | 1:00 PM Eastern
Three-time defending national champs Penn State open their Big Ten schedule in Evanston, IL on Friday and follow that up by hosting Wisconsin on Sunday. The dual with the Badgers features #1 Vincenzo Joseph taking on #3 Evan Wick for the first time.
Joseph is a key part of the Nittany Lions' quest to win their eighth title in nine years, and has backed up his top ranking thus far. The Pennsylvania native is halfway to being a four-time NCAA champion and has already beaten All-Americans Chance Marsteller and Josh Shields this season, and Wick will be his third opponent from last year's podium.
Last year's third placer at this weight, Wick has responded strongly to the new coaching staff, embracing his role as the face of the program under Chris Bono, Jon Reader, and Matt McDonough. His hit list this year includes Bryce Steiert (twice), CKLV champ Isaiah White, and Shields. Of his 18 victories so far, 14 of them have ended with him picking up bonus points.
Wick will have to do a better job stopping Cenzo's leg attacks than he did against Alex Marinelli to keep this one in reach. His top game is always dangerous, but it's few and far between that Cenzo gets ridden, let alone turned. If he is able to lock up a cradle, it might be the only opportunity of the day to silence the raucous Rec Hall crowd.
Just like it will be against the Wildcats on Friday, whether or not Gavin Teasdale's redshirt will be pulled will also be an item of interest on Friday against the Badgers. Either way, it will be #16 Connor Brown, coming off a fourth place finish at Midlands, standing opposite PSU's starter.
For Wisconsin, they will attempt to pick up a couple ranked upsets at 141, 149, and 285. Tristan Moran is ranked 16th and will face his biggest test of the year in undefeated Nick Lee, who has picked up bonus in every match this year except for one. Moran is a pin threat, with seven falls so far this season, but will more than likely have a hard time keeping pace with Lee offensively.
At heavyweight, Trent Hillger suffered his first loss of the year at Midlands and then defaulted out. He should be back in action for this weekend, starting with an easier (on paper) match with Christian Colucci on Friday before the big one against #4 Anthony Cassar on Sunday. For Cassar, it is a chance to pick up another ranked win and put a better anchor on his seed for Big Tens.
If they go with Brady Berge over Jarod Verkleeren, it will be Berge's first career match against a Big Ten foe. He is coming off a third place finish at the Scuffle and will get #13 Cole Martin, a two-time NCAA qualifier. Martin has only given up takedowns in his losses this year, so Berge will need to work his short offense to beat the Badger veteran.
The other ranked matchup is between #1 Mark Hall and #10 Ryan Christensen. Hall's two wins over Christensen are by 47 second pin and a 14-point major.
Penn State Projected Lineup
125: Devin Schnupp
133: #15 Roman Bravo-Young
141: #4 Nick Lee
149: #10 Brady Berge or Jarod Verkleeren
157: #1 Jason Nolf
165: #1 Vincenzo Joseph
174: #1 Mark Hall
184: #7 Shakur Rasheed
197: #1 Bo Nickal
285: #4 Anthony Cassar
Wisconsin Projected Lineup
125: #16 Connor Brown
133: Jens Lantz
141: #16 Tristan Moran
149: #13 Cole Martin
157: Zander Wick or Devin Bahr
165: #3 Evan Wick
174: #10 Ryan Christensen or Patrick Spray
184: Mason Reinhardt
197: Beau Breske
285: #9 Trent Hillger