Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1542734
F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 6 47 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M P enn State is now the winner of a record-setting 80 consecutive dual meets. If coach Cael Sander- son had his way, however, you wouldn't be reading these words about one of the NCAA's most impressive accomplish- ments, and no one would be talking about it. The No. 1 and now 9-0 Nittany Lions entered the 2025-26 season fully aware that history was within their reach. By winning all of their nonconference matches, Sanderson's side would close out the 2025 calendar year by surpass- ing Oklahoma State's NCAA Division I-leading mark of 76 consecutive dual meet victories, a streak that began in 1937 and didn't end until 1951. That is exactly what happened. And it came without much of a sweat. In its first six matches, Penn State outscored its foes 252-16 while rack- ing up three shutouts, including a pair at the College Wrestling Duals on Dec. 20 on the day history was made. Penn State's wins there were Nos. 76 and 77 in the streak, which moved the Lions past the Cowboys. But, in typical PSU fashion, the cele- bration was muted. A team photo on the mat was taken by the event's organizers, and that was pretty much the extent of it. Penn State's social media accounts did not acknowledge the record, nor did the program's press release mention setting an NCAA milestone. That's exactly how Sanderson prefers it, even if he did later offer some per- spective on what it means to surpass a record that had stood for 75 years. "It's a pretty cool thing," Sanderson told reporters in early January. "I'm re- ally excited for Penn State to have that now. It's something that should mean a lot to the program and our alumni and the kids. Maybe it'll stand for another 75 years. Maybe it'll stand five years. Who knows? "That's what makes sports fun and exciting, but our job is just to show up and be the best we can be on competi- tion day and help each individual do the same thing, and everything else will be fine." That is all Sanderson wanted to say on the matter. He did not elaborate in Janu- ary when his team set the record for the longest dual meet win streak in NCAA wrestling, regardless of classification. That mark fell when PSU shut out Rut- gers, 46-0, on Jan. 10 to break a tie at 77 with Division II St. Cloud State. One Nittany Lion who did want to go on the record about the streak was 157-pound freshman PJ Duke. "It's definitely pretty cool," Duke said following the win over the Scarlet Knights. "I walked into the record, ob- viously. This is my freshman year, so I wasn't a part of all the stuff prior. But it's just an amazing feeling to be a part of such a great thing. I don't even have words to describe how grateful I am to be a part of the team." It was not only the 2025-26 team that made history. Per Jeff Byers of the Lions Set Record For Consecutive Dual Meet Wins 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 Following Penn State's 46-0 shutout of Rutgers, the team's 78th dual meet win in a row, freshman 157-pounder PJ Duke said it was "an amazing feeling" to be part of the historic streak. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS