The victory was vintage Vallimont. He methodically controlled Bounds, earning the decisive points by whirling around Bounds after grabbing a leg with 16 seconds left in the first period. Vallimont added an escape in the second and spent the final four minutes preventing Bounds from gaining favorable position. “I feel like I might have wrestled a little defensively,” he said. “I don’t know if in the back of my head with it being my last match and the 100th win thing that played into it. I feel like I could have opened up more than I did.” Coach Cael Sanderson noticed some of the same things. “He can score points in a hurry, but he has to enjoy himself a little bit out there,” Sanderson said. “That was a big match for him. He felt a little pressure. He was maybe focusing more on the win.”
The other three seniors in the lineup also contributed to the victory. Cyler Sanderson, who transferred to Penn State from Iowa State before last summer, gave Penn State (13-5-1, 5-2 Big Ten) a 17-6 lead by locking a cradle and pinning Anthony Jones in 2:28 at 157. David Erwin added to the lead by edging Nick Palmieri 2-1 at 184. Adam Lynch’s memorable senior season continued with another stirring victory at 141. Trailing 6-3 after a controversial take-down at the end of the second period, Lynch rallied to defeat freshman Dan Osterman 7-6. Lynch earned the victory the hard way, tilting Osterman for two nearfall points and adding 1:41 of riding time in the third period. “I made the match more exciting than it should have been,” he said. The victory was the fifth straight for Lynch, a Mifflinburg native who entered the Big Ten schedule 5-8. Lynch went 4-0 at Rec Hall. Lynch has another year of eligibility remaining, meaning he could return to excite the crowd further next season. He has experienced a month that would sway many athletes to return. But Lynch, a kinesiology major planning to pursue a medical career, isn’t thinking beyond next week’s meet at Minnesota and next month’s Big Ten Championships. “At the end of the season I’m going to sit down and reevaluate everything,” he said. “Right now, I just want to focus on wrestling. When the season is over, I will rethink things and go from there.”
The wrestler who started Penn State’s victory could have been honored with the other seniors Friday. But Brad Pataky, who earned a 21-6 technical fall over Brenan Lyon at 125, will return to Penn State’s lineup next season after taking two straight redshirt years, including one to train for the Olympic Trials in 2007-08. Pataky is a dynamic leadoff hitter at home. He has scored 49 points in the past three meets. The stretch included a technical fall against Northwestern’s Levi Mele and major against Michigan’s Sean Boyle. The Michigan State meet resembled the Michigan one. Pataky’s start quickly energized the crowd, but the momentum faded by the meet’s second half. The Spartans (8-6-1, 2-4) took two of Friday’s final four bouts. Michigan also won two of the final four bouts last weekend. “It’s more the attitude of the individual when they come out there,” Cael Sanderson said. “You have to go out there with fire, enjoy the crowd, enjoy the opportunity. We are not doing that as much obviously in the second half as we are in the first half.”
Michigan State led 6-5 after two bouts because national champion Franklin Gomez pinned Bryan Pearsall at 133. But the Spartans’ upset bid slid away when Lynch edged Osterman and fourth-ranked Frank Molinaro defeated 12th-ranked David Cheza at 149. Cheza cut the lead to 7-6 by taking Molinaro down with 19 seconds remaining. But Molinaro scored the final four points, including one by accumulating 2:23 of riding time. “Molinaro impressed me,” Michigan State coach Tom Minkel said. “From last year to this year, he has made just enormous strides. What made the difference is that he’s a little tougher on top than we are.”
Thanks to Guy Cipriano and the "Centre Daily Times" (State College, Pa.) for the article