Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1509432
N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 3 4 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M P enn State landed the nation's top 2025 recruit on Sept. 25 when PJ Duke of Minisink Valley, N.Y., an- nounced that he had chosen the Nittany Lions. Duke, who sits atop the rankings at both FloWrestling and MatScouts, projects as a middleweight at the college level, possibly slotting in at 157 pounds. He is currently the nation's No. 1 wrestler at 152 pounds at the prep level. Duke said in an interview with the "Baschamania" podcast that he picked Penn State because of its continual suc- cess under coach Cael Sanderson. "They've proven they can win," he said. "I want to be able to win at the world level, and I think the chances of doing that there are higher than anywhere else. They build champions, and I want to be a champion." Duke visited Penn State in September and attended the football team's White Out game against Iowa. But more than the atmosphere he saw that night, Duke was swayed by the Lions' 10 NCAA team championships under Sanderson and their success at developing wrestlers into the kind of international competitors who are capable of winning Olympic medals and world titles. Those accomplishments spoke volumes to the junior about what he could accomplish in a PSU singlet. Duke was a state champion as a fresh- man before an injury ended his sopho- more season prematurely. He is still re- garded as the best junior in the country regardless of weight class. "There are a lot of things I'm looking forward to, but the next-level partners and being able to wrestle with them, I think that's where I'm going to be able to jump levels," Duke said. "The coaching staff is amazing. The coaching staff and the part- ners are going to change my abilities. "I'm going to set my standards high and shoot for the stars. If there are some bumps in the road, and it doesn't happen, so be it. But there are a lot of good people in the room that can teach me about life and wrestling." Central Mountain (Pa.) standout Dalton Perry is also committed in the class of 2025. Perry is the No. 25 junior nation- ally and the No. 10 138-pounder in the country. State College's Asher Cunningham, who finished fourth in the state last year at 145 pounds and is the son of PSU as- sistant head coach Casey Cunningham, is listed at No. 92 overall in the junior class by FloWrestling and is committed in that cycle, as well. Penn State also has another Minisink Valley prospect set to join in Zack Ryder, a 2024 recruit. The 182-pounder is rated as the No. 1 pound-for-pound high school wrestler in the nation by FloWrestling. Duke is listed at No. 9. Nittany Lions' Schedule Released Penn State released its full 2023-24 schedule in early October. The Nittany Lions will open their sea- son at the Journeymen Classic on Nov. 12 in Bethlehem, Pa., along with wrestlers from NC State, Arizona State, Lehigh, Purdue, Long Island University, Lock Ha- ven, Harvard, Franklin & Marshall College, Bloomsburg, Pitt-Johnstown, Buffalo, Sa- cred Heart, Army, Penn and Cornell. Penn State will also compete at Army's Black Knight Invitational on Nov. 19. On Nov. 21, Rec Hall will be the site of the 2023 National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic, an exhibi- tion event that does not count toward any wrestler's official NCAA record. Penn State resumes its schedule with nonconference dual meets against Lehigh (Dec. 3), Hofstra (Dec. 10) and at Oregon State (Jan. 5). Last December, Penn State defeated Oregon State 31-3 at Rec Hall. The Beavers went on to win their 24th Pac-12 championship and qualified seven wrestlers for the NCAA Tournament. The Big Ten season begins Jan. 14 when PSU hosts Indiana. The conference slate also features home matches with Ohio State (Feb. 2), Rutgers (Feb. 12 at the BJC) and Nebraska (Feb. 18), along with trips to Michigan (Jan. 19), Michigan State (Jan. 21), Maryland (Jan. 28) and the annual clash with Iowa (Feb. 9). The Nittany Lions will close out their regular season Feb. 25 with a dual meet at home against in-state foe Edinboro. Taylor, Retherford Claim World Titles Two former Penn State wrestlers won titles at the World Championships Sept. 16-24 in Belgrade, Serbia. Zain Retherford claimed his first in- ternational freestyle gold medal by tak- ing the 70-kilogram (154-pound) weight class. Retherford, a three-time NCAA champ during his tenure at Penn State, went 4-0 at the event, beating Iran's Amirmohammad Yazdani 8-5 in the final. David Taylor won his fourth gold at the World Championships by posting a 5-0 mark. He pinned Iran's Hassan Yazdani in the 86-kilogram (190-pound) final after building a 9-3 lead. ■ WRESTLING Top 2025 Recruit PJ Duke Chooses Nittany Lions G R E G P I C K E L | G R E G . P I C K E L @ O N 3 . C O M Penn State 2023-24 Wrestling Schedule Date Opponent Time Nov. 12 Journeymen Collegiate Classic* 9 a.m. Nov. 19 Army Black Knight Invite** All Day Nov. 21 NWCA ALL-STAR CLASSIC (exhib.) 7 p.m. Dec. 3 LEHIGH 2 p.m. Dec. 10 HOFSTRA 1 p.m. Jan. 5 at Oregon State TBA Jan. 14 INDIANA TBA Jan. 19 at Michigan TBA Jan. 21 at Michigan State TBA Jan. 28 at Maryland TBA Feb. 2 OHIO STATE TBA Feb. 9 at Iowa TBA Feb. 12 RUTGERS^ TBA Feb. 18 NEBRASKA TBA Feb. 25 EDINBORO 2 p.m. Mar. 9-10 Big Ten Championships% TBA Mar. 21-23 NCAA Championships# TBA * at Bethlehem, Pa. ** at West Point, N.Y. ^ at Bryce Jordan Center % at College Park, Md. # at Kansas City, Mo.