Penn State Wrestling: Revisiting the best matches of 2021-2022 season
By Chris Snyder
Match No. 2
Date: 01/28/2022
No. 1 Penn State vs. No. 3 Iowa
No. 2 Max Dean (PSU) dec over No. 4 Jacob Warner (IOWA) 8-3
Following Carter Starocci’s incredible marathon decision win against Michael Kemerer and Aaron Brooks’ easy decision against Abe Assad, the back end of the Nittany Lion lineup had done their job to stop the bleeding.
Penn State had raced out to a 10-0 lead following the first three matches, however the Hawkeyes clawed their way back and knotted the score at 10-10 in the next three. The atmosphere inside of Carver-Hawkeye Arena was absolutely bonkers.
And Starocci and Brooks’ wins tilted the lead back in favor of the Nittany Lions 16-10 with only two matches remaining. If Warner could outlast Dean then they would have a chance at extending their dual meet winning streak while at the same time halting Penn State’s.
If I were to come up with a top 10 wish list of things for people in Iowa City, I’m pretty sure beating Cael Sanderson and the Nittany Lions at home would be high on the list alongside “growing corn” and “owning the world’s largest wooden nickel”.
So needless to say, the pressure was squarely on the shoulders of Max Dean going into his match.
Oh, and this match was also taking place five days after Dean’s first loss of the season. A head scratching 3-2 decision loss to No. 15 Cam Caffey of Michigan State.
The matched didn’t start exactly how Penn State fans would have liked as Warner got on the board early with a takedown halfway through the first period. Max finished the remainder of the period in Warner’s clutches as he was racking up riding time as well as a stall warning (on Warner).
The second period started with Dean in top position, which is ideal as he’s one of the strongest riders in all of college wrestling. Max could wear down Warner and cut into his large riding time lead.
Only this isn’t what happened. Warner pulled the early escape, extended his lead to 3-0, and gave the Iowa crowd massive energy as the place went from crazy to deafening.
The second period ended with Dean trying to get to his offense, but Warner was able to defend each one. Things were looking bleak heading into the final period.
Max started the third period in the down position and quickly broke free to cut Warner’s lead to 3-1. It was time to finally go on the attack.
Dean took committed shot after shot and Warner was slapped with his second stall warning that awarded a point to Max. Warner was on the ropes clinging to a 3-2 lead and it was only a matter of time before Dean landed a shot.
Following a low shot by Dean, which gained penetration on Warner, Max worked his position and was able to ultimately earn the much-needed takedown.
The Iowa crowd was stunned, but there’s no way they were ready for what happened next.
Dean was able to get further position on Warner and he cinched in his go-to bow and arrow. Warner, clearly in pain and in a bad decision, could do nothing to prevent Max from turning his back to the mat. The referee award four additional near fall points and the clock hit triple zeros.
Max Dean had completely reversed the flow of the match. And he instantly ripped the hearts out of every single Iowa Hawkeye fan in the world, because his win locked up the dual for Penn State and it stopped Iowa’s win streak in the process.
Had Dean not pulled off the huge win, and everything else stayed the same, the dual would have ended up tied 16-16.
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