No. 1 Penn State Wrestling grades, MVP from throttling of No. 3 Iowa
By Chris Snyder
Penn State Wrestling’s MVP vs. Iowa
No. 1 Carter Starocci 2-1 decision over No. 2 Michael Kemerer
Grade: A++++++++
With four matches remaining in the dual meet in Iowa City, Carter Starocci took to the mat with the team score knotted at 10 points each. Penn State Wrestling raced out to a 10-0 lead and Iowa clawed their way back to tie it up thanks in large part to Alex Marinelli’s major decision in the prior match.
All the momentum was in favor of the Hawkeyes.
The crowd was riled up.
Tom Brands was doing his typical Tom Brands things on the sidelines, the Iowa team was on their feet, and Starocci was faced with the No. 2 ranked wrestler in the nation which he hadn’t faced since the NCAA Finals last year at 174.
And in the end, the match between Starocci and Kemerer was one for the ages.
The action was heavy and it was intense throughout. Time after time Carter was able to defend from some almost impossible positions to not allow Kemerer to score. And with only 11 seconds left in the third period with the match tied 1-1, Starocci once again defended a Kemerer shot to force sudden victory.
Late in sudden victory, both grapplers were tied up on the left side of the mat when Angel Rivera signaled two points for green just before time had expired. After the third video review of the match (yes, third!!), it was determined the takedown was awarded after time had expired in sudden victory.
Starocci started out on the bottom position for TB-1 and he wriggled free of Kemerer’s grip to earn the escape and take the lead 2-1. TB-1 then ended with both wrestlers on their feet.
If Carter could ride Kermerer for a final 30 seconds in TB-2 then he would win the match and tilt the momentum squarely back to the Nittany Lions.
With only five seconds left in TB-2 and Starocci still in control, Rivera once again makes his appearance in the article as he called a locked hands call against Carter which would have given Kemerer an automatic one point.
A FOURTH video review confirmed there were no locked hands and the match reset with Starocci on top with five seconds to go up 2-1. Which is exactly where the match ended.
So not only did Carter Starocci hold onto the 2-1 win over Michael Kemerer, he outlasted an elite wrestler who has almost three times the number of matches under his belt, he tuned out the raucous Iowa crowd, he focused through the endless video reviews, and he prevailed at the end of a match which lasted an astonishing 18 minutes and 18 seconds of real-time.
MVP.