Rutgers wrestling opened its Big Ten slate on the road against the top-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions and came away on the losing end of a 46-0 shutout Saturday in University Park.
The nation’s No. 1 squad rolled to a dominant win in front of a sellout crowd, handing Rutgers its first conference loss of the season. Despite a young Rutgers lineup — featuring four true freshmen in dual action — the Scarlet Knights battled throughout the dual.
With several starters out for the Scarlet Knights, four true
freshmen, Tahir Parkins (141), Devon Magro (149), Easton Doster (157), and Jordan Chapman (174), competed against Penn State. Chapman and Doster made their collegiate dual debuts, while eight out of ten bouts were wrestled by redshirt sophomores or younger for Rutgers.
Some of the highlights for Rutgers were #29 Ayden Smith holding #2 Luke Lilledahl to a decision in the 125 weight class to kick the dual off, and Ryan Ford landing the first takedown in his matchup with reigning national champion Mitchell Mesenbrink. Parkins also scored a takedown in the third period against 2025 NCAA All-American Braeden Davis, and Magro had an impressive ride against #1 Shayne Van Ness before losing by fall.
However, Penn State’s elite depth and technical firepower were too much, as the Nittany Lions collected pins, major decisions, and technical falls across the lineup en route to the shutout.
The loss drops Rutgers to 6-3 (0-1 Big Ten), while Penn State stays perfect at 7-0 (1-0 B1G). Here is the full box score from the match.
125: 2/2 Luke Lilledahl (PSU) over 29/33 Ayden Smith (RU) by dec., 8-3; PSU leads, 3-0
133: 5/6 Marcus Blaze (PSU) over 24/24 Dylan Shawver (RU) by MD, 12-2; PSU leads, 7-0
141: Braeden Davis (PSU) over Tahir Parkins (RU) by MD, 18-7; PSU leads, 11-0
149: 1/1 Shayne Van Ness (PSU) over Devon Magro (RU) by fall (4:54); PSU leads, 17-0
157: 4/3 PJ Duke (PSU) over Easton Doster (RU) by TF, 19-4 (3:18); PSU leads, 22-0
165: 1/1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (PSU) over Ryan Ford (RU) by fall (2:28); PSU leads, 28-0
174: 1/1 Levi Haines (PSU) over Jordan Chapman (RU) by fall (4:49); PSU leads, 34-0
184: 4/4 Rocco Welsh (PSU) over 15/18 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (RU) by MD, 13-3; PSU leads, 38-0
197: 1/1 Josh Barr (PSU) over 18/16 Remy Cotton (RU) by TF, 18-3 (7:00); PSU leads, 43-0
HWT: 15/14 Cole Mirasola (PSU) over 21/21 Hunter Catka (RU) by dec., 4-2; PSU wins, 46-0
Next up, Rutgers returns home to host No. 12 Michigan (Jan. 16) and Purdue (Jan. 18) at Jersey Mike’s Arena in back-to-back duals. The dual against the Wolverines is set for a 7 PM start, while Sunday’s dual against the Boilermakers is set for a 1 PM start. Both matches will stream on Big Ten Plus.
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