LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The Lock Haven University wrestling team is set to travel the short distance to take on No. 1 and two-time defending NCAA-champion Penn State on Saturday, December 15.

Setting the stage:
Saturday's (Dec. 12) dual is set for 2 p.m. in Penn State's Rec Hall. The match is already sold out.

The Bald Eagles are coming off a fourth-place finish at the 70th annual PSAC Championships on Saturday (Dec. 8). All 10 Bald Eagles placed for LHU at the PSAC Championships and all of LHU's probable starters enter Saturday's dual with a winning record. Bobby Rehm (125) and Fred Garcia (184) both claimed individual titles for The Haven.

The non-conference dual with Penn State is just the third dual-match of the year for Lock Haven, who is 1-1. LHU opened the year with a, 40-4 win over Division II Shippensburg, but the Bald Eagles fell to Rider, 19-14.

Penn State, ranked No. 1 in all the major polls is 3-0 and 1-0 in Big Ten action. The Nittany Lions shutout Indiana, 52-0, in front of over 6,100 fans on Saturday at Rec Hall.  Penn State also has wins over nationally-ranked Lehigh and Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) member West Virginia. The Nittany Lions lineup features two-defending national champions and eight guys ranked among the top-20.

Lock Haven lineup:
125: So., Bobby Rehm (Lancaster, Pa/Penn Manor) 12-4
133: Fr., Matt Bryer (Cochranton, Pa./Cochranton) 14-12
OR R-Fr., Cody Wheeler (Towanda, Pa./Towanda) 7-6
141: R-Fr., Dan Neff (Quarryville, Pa./Solanco) 12-4
149: Jr., Mac Maldarelli (Merrick, N.Y./Nassau C.C.) 8-5
157: #20, R-Jr., Jake Kemerer (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) 14-6
165: So., Aaron McKinney (Imperial, Pa./West Allegheny) 16-12
OR Fr., Travis Moyer (Orwigsburg, Pa./Blue Mountain) 9-7
174: So., Zach Heffner (New Berlinville, Pa./Boyertown) 8-5
OR Fr., Tyler Wood (West Chester, Pa./West Chester-Rustin) 7-6
184: Jr., Fred Garcia (Donora, Pa./Ringgold) 10-6
197: R-Fr., Phil Sprenkle (Seven Valleys, Pa./Dallastown) 8-7
285: R-Sr., Harry Turner (Howell, N.J./Howell) 12-6

Penn State lineup:
125: #2, So., Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) 7-1
133: Fr., Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa./New Oxford) 4-2
141: Sr., Bryan Pearsall (Lititz, Pa./Warwick) 8-2
149: #5, So., Andrew Alton (Mill Hall, Pa./Central Mountain) 7-0
OR Sr., James English (York, Pa./Central York) 7-1
157: #5, So., Dylan Alton (Mill Hall, Pa./Central Mountain) 6-2
165: #2, Jr., David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio/St. Paris Graham) 8-0
174: #3, So., Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah/Cyprus) 8-0
184: #1, Jr., Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa./Susquehanna Township) 8-0
197: #3, Sr., Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa./Bald Eagle Area) 8-0
285: #15, So., Jimmy Lawson (Tom's River, N.J./Manchester Township) 7-1
OR So., Jon Gingrich (Wingate, pa./Bald Eagle Area) 9-2

LHU storylines, streaks, notes & sidebars:
- LHU has lost 10 straight to Penn State and is 4-33 all-time vs. the Nittany Lions in a series dating back to 1942. LHU has been shutout in two straight matches by Penn State including a, 50-0 loss last year in Lock Haven. Lock Haven picked up back-to-back wins over Penn State in 2001 and 2002.
- All of Lock Haven's probable starters for Saturday enter with a winning record.
- Lock Haven is coming off a strong effort at the PSAC Championships. All 10 Bald Eagles placed and LHU crowned two individual champions. Bobby Rehm defended his title at 125 and Fred Garcia won at 184.
- Lock Haven is now home to 168 individual PSAC Champions.
-Prior to this year, 2005 was the last time Lock Haven had multiple individual champions.
- Jake Kemerer, who was second at the PSAC Championships remains at No. 20 in the Gregg Henry's/WrestlingReport Division I rankings.
- Penn State is the two-time defending NCAA and Big Ten Champions. The Nittany Lion lineup features two defending national champions and eight-of-10 starters are nationally ranked including No. 1 Ed Ruth (184).

Kemerer ranked #20:
Redshirt-junior Jake Kemerer remained at No. 20 (157 pounds) in this week's edition of the Gregg Henry's/WrestlingReport Division I rankings.

Kemerer, who is 14-6 on the year, is coming off a second-place finish at Saturday's PSAC Championships. He went 2-1 on the day with a pin in his opening bout, before falling to Clarion's James Fleming (#3) in the finals.

He's set for a rematch with No. 5 Dylan Alton. Alton edged Kemerer, 3-1 in the semifinals of the Nittany Lion Open (Dec. 2). The 157-bout will be Saturday's marquee bout.

Last time out (PSAC Championships, 12/8/12):
Bobby Rehm and Fred Garcia both won individual titles and all 10 Bald Eagles placed at Saturday's PSAC Championships as LHU finished fourth overall in the team standings.
Rehm defended his title at 125 pounds, while Garica took home the title at 184.

No. 20 Jake Kemerer took second in a deep and talented 157-pound weight class.

Dan Neff, Zach Heffner and Phil Sprenkle all took third today for Lock Haven.

Mac Maldarelli and Harry Turner both placed fourth for the Bald Eagles, while Matt Bryer and Aaron McKinney both placed sixth.

No. 19 Edinboro took home the team title. The Fighting Scots were followed by Clarion and No. 25 Bloomsburg, who rounded out the top-three teams. Lock Haven was fourth overall, just nine points behind third-place Bloom.

How Waller sees it:
“Our dual with Penn State is a daunting task, but comes with great opportunity,” said LHU head coach Robbie Waller (fourth season). “This is a chance for our team to wrestle in front of a large, National Championship-like atmosphere which is great preparation for the future.  We are focused on improving the little things and hope to steal a few wins this weekend.”

Catch all the 2012-13 action:
As always, every home dual match will be streamed live on the internet at www.GoLHU.com.

The West Virginia (1/6/13) and Clarion (2/1/13) duals will be broadcast live and locally on AM 1230 WBPZ. Click here to listen.

The West Virginia, Pittsburgh (1/26/13), Clarion and Bucknell (2/8/13) matches will also be broadcast live on ESPN Williamsport (104.1 FM & 1050 AM). Click here to listen.

*Broadcast schedule to change as season goes on, please check www.GoLHU.com for all the latest news (links/times) for broadcast information.

Up next:
The Bald Eagles return to action on Saturday, December 29 when they host the second-annual Brute Invitational in Thomas Fieldhouse. The 12-team tournament features nationally-ranked Pitt, Old Dominion, Bloomsburg and Kent State. For more information on the tournament, click here.

Stay informed:
For all the latest Bald Eagle wrestling news, visit www.GoLHU.com.

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