Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1532761
8 M A R C H 2 0 2 5 OPENING SHOT BLOOD AND GUTS Late in the second period of their highly an- ticipated 157-pound match Jan. 31 at the Bryce Jordan Center, Iowa's top-ranked Jacori Teemer rolled out of Tyler Kasak's grasp and suddenly found himself on top of his opponent at the edge of the mat. Teemer's escape trimmed Kasak's lead to 4-1, and even worse for the third-ranked Nittany Lion sophomore, his face was streaked with blood after the flurry of action, the apparent result of a collision with Teemer's knee. The match continued, though, and Kasak, his head bandaged by trainer Dan Monthley, held off Teemer for a 5-2 win that brought the crowd of 15,998 to its feet. Nothing had fazed the Doylestown, Pa., native during his moment in the spotlight — not the size of the crowd, not the quality of the opponent, and definitely not the gash above his right eye. "I didn't really know how bad it was or what it looked like," Kasak said. "There was a little bit of blood on me, but it's just part of the sport. I kind of like it. Makes you feel alive a little bit." The No. 1 Nittany Lions looked awfully lively against the No. 2 Hawkeyes — not just at 157 but up and down their lineup. They won eight of 10 bouts, with 2 technical falls and 2 major decisions, racked up a 24-8 edge in takedowns and handed the visitors a 30-8 loss. It was PSU's fourth consecutive victory over the Hawkeyes and its 66th dual meet win in a row. "Our guys wrestled well," coach Cael Sand- erson said. "There were a couple of situations that we can learn from and make some im- provements, but overall our guys are consis- tent. They like to compete. That's just how we wrestle. We're going to move forward and create ways to score points. People know that's what we're going to do. That makes it more fun — the challenge of continuing to do that." Even before his match had ended, Kasak was in a celebratory mood. He lifted Teemer off the mat with his right arm while pumping his left fist in the air as the final seconds elapsed. It was such an endorphin rush that he didn't even remember it afterward. "I just kind of blacked out," Kasak admitted. "I have no idea what I did. I was just enjoying the moment and was grateful for the opportunity to wrestle a team like Iowa." — Matt Herb MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS