PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 11 Rutgers wrestling (14-5, 5-3) closed the regular season with a thrilling 18-13 win over Penn (10-6, 4-1) on Wednesday night in front of 3,261 fans at Jersey Mike’s Arena. Down 13-3 at intermission, the Scarlet Knights closed the dual with five consecutive wins from 165 through heavyweight to lock up their 14th team win of the season.
No. 10 Dylan Shawver (133), No. 16 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184) and No. 27 Jackson Turley (174) all picked up wins over ranked opponents, while No. 7 Yaraslau Slavikouski (HWT), No. 23 Anthony White (165) and PJ Casale (197) added decisions. For Slavikouski, it marked the 100th win of his collegiate career.
RU finished the regular season with its most dual wins since 2021-22, when it produced 16. Its No. 11 ranking in the NWCA Coaches Poll is its highest since the 2017-18 season, while its 5-3 mark in the Big Ten Conference is its first winning conference record since 2018-19.
Prior to the dual, the program recognized seven student-athletes as part of Senior Night – Turley, Slavikouski, Al DeSantis, John O’Donnell, John Poznanski, Michael Toranzo and Dylan Weaver.
“Tonight was pretty exciting, especially because it was looking bleak in the beginning,” said head coach Scott Goodale. “They really outwrestled us in the first half before we got it going. It was a really good team effort against a really good opponent. They’re always super competitive, but I’m super proud of our guys getting it done.”
After a tough 5-4 loss from No. 8 Dean Peterson (125) to No. 25 Max Gallagher, Shawver followed against No. 31 Ryan Miller. Shawver used landed back-to-back takedowns in the first and second periods en route to a 7-4 decision to tie the dual up at 3-3 through two bouts.
The Quakers began to take momentum from the Scarlet Knights heading into intermission, winning their next three matches before the midpoint. No. 13 Joseph Olivieri (141) lost his rematch to No. 9 CJ Composto by 4-1 decision in sudden victory, while tight losses from No. 19 Andrew Clark (149) and No. 29 Conner Harer (157) made it 13-3 Penn at the break.
Rutgers ran the table in the second half, finishing with five consecutive victories. White muscled a 3-1 decision over two-time NJSIAA state champion Andy Troczynski before Turley thrilled the crowd in his matchup with No. 13 Nick Incontrera. Turley raced out to a 10-2 lead, hitting two takedowns and four back points on the Quaker, holding on down the stretch for a 12-7 final.
“I’ve been here a very long time, and there is not many places like this building,” Turley said. “I just took advantage of the opportunity.”
Cartagena-Walsh continued the positive momentum with a 4-2 decision over No. 22 Max Hale to make it just 13-12 in favor of Penn. Casale followed with a huge decision in his first career start at Jersey Mike’s Arena, landing a takedown on the edge of the circle against Nate Taylor in the second period to highlight a 4-0 win. The decision gave Rutgers its first lead of the night at 15-13 heading into heavyweight.
Slavikouski closed out the dual with a 5-0 decision over Matt Cruise, riding out the Quaker after a takedown in the second period for the victory.
Up Next
Rutgers gets a few weeks off before it heads to the 2025 Big Ten Wrestling Championships from March 8-9 in Evanston, Illinois.
Box Score
No. 11 Rutgers 18, Penn 13
125: 25/28 Max Gallagher (PENN) over 8/8 Dean Peterson (RU) by dec., 5-4; Penn leads, 3-0
133: 10/9 Dylan Shawver (RU) over 31/23 Ryan Miller (PENN) by dec., 7-4; Match tied, 3-3
141: 9/14 CJ Composto (PENN) over 13/15 Joseph Olivieri (RU) by SV1, 4-1; PENN leads, 6-3
149: 12/16 Cross Wasilewski (PENN) over 19/24 Andrew Clark (RU) by dec., 4-2; PENN leads, 9-3
157: 20/22 Jude Swisher (PENN) over 29/25 Conner Harer (RU) by MD, 10-1; PENN leads, 13-3
165: 23/26 Anthony White (RU) over Andy Troczynski (PENN) by dec., 3-1; PENN leads, 13-6
174: 27/26 Jackson Turley (RU) over 13/13 Nick Incontrera (PENN) by dec., 12-7; PENN leads, 13-9
184: 16/15 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (RU) over 22/21 Max Hale (PENN) by dec., 4-2; PENN leads, 13-12
197: PJ Casale (RU) over Nathan Taylor (PENN) by dec., 4-0; RU leads, 15-13
HWT: 7/9 Yaraslau Slavikouski (RU) over Matt Cruise (PENN) by dec., 5-0; RU wins, 18-13
Rankings Intermat/Flo
