Wrestling Welcomes No. 12 Pitt to Davis Gym in Keystone State Showdown

Bucknell (4-4) vs. #12 Pitt (7-2)
When: Friday, Jan. 17 – 6 p.m.
Where: Davis Gym – Lewisburg, Pa.
Watch: ESPN+
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_WRST

Projected Bucknell Lineup:
125 - Christopher Nucifora (0-0)
133 - #30 Kurt Phipps (11-7)
141 - #17 Dylan Chappell (14-4)
149 - Aiden Davis (6-2) or Braden Bower (3-7) or Kolby DePron (0-0)
157 - Cade Wirnsberger (9-10)
165 - #20 Noah Mulvaney (2-2)
174 - #27 Myles Takats (14-4)
184 - Logan Deacetis (6-7) or Mikey Bartush (0-3)
197 - #28 Dillon Bechtold (12-5)
285 - Nolan Springer (7-5) or Logan Shephard (6-9)

Rankings Intermat

Bucknell at a Glance:

• Bucknell seeks to improve its record above .500 and earn its first ranked win of the 2024-25 campaign.
• Pitt is the first and only scheduled ACC foe that the Bison will wrestle in 2024-25
• The Bison picked up a 23-15 win over Rider at the Virginia Duals on Saturday but fell 28-12 to No. 13 Iowa State.
• Myles Takats (174) won his second EIWA Wrestler of the Week award on Jan. 14 for his 2-0 weekend at the Virginia Duals. His headlining win was against Iowa State's No. 11 MJ Gaitan.
• Five Bucknell wrestlers are ranked by Intermat with Dylan Chappell clocking the highest at #17. Takats moved up from #32 to #27 after his high-octane weekend at the Virginia Duals.
• Bucknell had the No. 25 recruiting class in the country by Intermat.
• Head coach Dan Wirnsberger is in his 19th season with the Bison and his 20th year leading the program since its revival in 2005.

A Look Back at the Virginia Duals

• Bucknell split the weekend 1-1 moving to 12-26 all-time at the prestigious competition.
• The Orange & Blue defeated Rider 23-15 thanks to winning six matches against the potent MAC school. The Bison overcome the six-point forfeit at the 125-ound position.
• The Bison dueled hard against No. 13 Iowa State but fell behind 21-0 before Noah Mulvaney recorded a pin.
• Takats followed up the pin with his upset win over Gaitan in a 9-6 decision.
• Dillon Bechtold, Takats, and Mulvaney each went 2-0 on the day.

Scouting Pitt/Series History

• The Panthers are 7-2 overall and 1-0 in ACC play. They are ranked No. 12 by FloWrestling and No. 16 by the NWCA.
• Pitt has played a brutal schedule with six ranked teams so far on the docket. The Panthers have gone 4-2 against that gauntlet including wins over ACC foe Stanford, EIWA member Lehigh, and rival West Virginia. They also defeated Rider 28-12.
• The Panthers competed at the Midlands Championships and finished tied for fourth. Bucknell placed seventh.
• Pitt went 10-8 overall and 2-3 in ACC play during the 2023-24 season. They placed fourth at the ACC Championships and 26th at the NCAA Championships.
• Bucknell and Pitt are meeting for the fifth time. The Panthers own the series record 4-1. The sole win came on Dec. 17, 2017 in a 20-16 win.

A Look Ahead

• Bucknell resumes EIWA play with a match against Drexel on Jan. 24 in Davis Gym.

Wrestling Welcomes No. 12 Pitt to Davis Gym in Keystone State Showdown

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Players Mentioned

Mikey Bartush

Dillon Bechtold

Braden Bower

Dylan Chappell

Aiden Davis

Logan Deacetis

Kolby DePron

Noah Mulvaney

Kurt Phipps

Logan Shephard

Nolan Springer

Myles Takats

Cade Wirnsberger