The biggest dual meet of the season for Penn State and No. 3 Iowa took place at the Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa. In this highly anticipated dual wrestling match, Iowa had to face a staggering loss against the arch-rivals, Penn State, who commanded a 29-6 victory. Even though the Hawkeyes had a good start, Penn State took to win over with eight out of ten bouts.

However, despite the loss, Caleb Rathjen’s performance in the 149-pound bout against Tyler Kasak was notable. Rathjen took to secure an 11-8 sudden victory in overtime over Kasak, which took to impress fans with his athletic proficiency during the squad off.

Caleb Rathjen’s stellar performance against Kasak

The official Twitter handle of Iowa Hawkeyes Wrestling, @Hawks_Wrestling, took to highlight the remarkable performance of No. 12 Caleb Rathjen. The caption to the post reads, “CALEB RATHJEN!!! 149 – #12 Caleb Rathjen (I) vs. #10 Tyler Kasak, 11-8 SV1. Penn State 7, Iowa 6.”

Rathjen put up a formidable competition against Penn State’s Tyler Kasak. He took a dominant stride in the first period, executing an ankle pick just before the end of the period, concluding it with a takedown. Ahead of the second period, he had a lead of 3-0.

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The next period was a tough round, however, Rathjen sized up to secure another takedown with a high-crotch move. He was leading by 6-2 as the period concluded. The third period marked strong competition, wherein Rathjen took the lead (8-5). But Kasak scored to bring it to an 8-8 tie, sending the crowd at Carver-Hawkeye Arena to a frenzy.

However, the point of sudden victory took to change the course of events over time. With Rathjen scoring a takedown, the dynamics once again were in his realm at a score of 11-8, earning crucial points for Iowa. With this win, Rathjen again proved his worth after his Soldier Salute outing that caught the eyes of Iowa’s coach Tom Brands.

Rathjen lives up to Iowa coach’s praises

Caleb Rathjen was indeed in a high-pressure situation during the duel against Penn State. But, Tom Brands, Iowa coach always had faith in his abilities. At the Soldier Salute, when Rathjen had a promising victory over Anthony Ferrari, he remarked, “He’s letting it be known what he believes himself about,” Brands said about Rathjen. “That’s a good thing,” he added. Probably this faith led Brands to overcome his dilemma before the match.

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Tom Brands indicated that the starting spot at 149 pounds was still undecided before the match, but Caleb Rathjen’s performance helped him earn the spot. Rathjen’s impressive win over Tyler Kasak, which was just Kasak’s second loss of this season, gave Penn State just a single-point lead (7-6) over Iowa. These indicate Rathjen’s potential as a consistent starter, with domineering potential.

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