Penn State @ Rutgers

Penn State Men's Wrestling beat Rutgers Men's Wrestling 35-3 at the Scarlet Knights in Piscataway, NJ on January 24, 2025. The dual was controlled by Penn State's bonus-point production, which created a gap Rutgers could not close in Piscataway.

The decisive factor was a string of technical falls in the middle weights. At 149 pounds, Shayne Van Ness rolled to a 17-2 technical fall for five team points. Mitchell Mesenbrink followed with a 19-3 technical fall at 165 pounds, and Carter Starocci recorded a 17-2 technical fall at 184 pounds, each worth five points. Josh Barr added another major swing with a 22-6 technical fall at 197 pounds. Those four bonus victories provided 20 team points and anchored Penn State’s margin.

Beyond the tech falls, Penn State’s depth across the middle weights proved costly for Rutgers. The cumulative effect of multiple bonus wins left Rutgers with limited opportunities to chip away at the scoreboard, and Penn State closed out a 32-point dual victory. The meet highlighted Penn State’s ability to finish bouts decisively in key matchups and turn bonus-point production into a lopsided final score.