Each time Penn State’s wrestling fans started their “We are” chants Sunday at PPL Center, Lehigh’s devoted crowd responded in kind. With booing.

The Lions, heavyweight Nick Nevills in particular, loved it.

“They were a rowdy bunch, so it was a lot of fun to compete in that kind of environment,” Nevills said. “I’d put it right up there with some of the more exciting times I’ve had in my wrestling career.”

Nevills, ranked third in the country, delivered a 2-0 victory in the final bout, lifting No. 1 Penn State to a 23-19 win over No. 5 Lehigh. It was fitting end to PPL Center’s first college wrestling match, one that drew 9,896 fans, a lot of noise and some nervous moments for Penn State and its cheering section.

“It was an event for the Lehigh Valley, and that’s what we were all hoping for,” Lehigh coach Pat Santoro said.

Penn State’s dual-meet win streak of 34 consecutive matches was in jeopardy as Nevills took the mat against Lehigh freshman Jordan Wood. The Lions, who had trailed 15-0 and 19-11, needed a win from Nevills to continue a streak that began in 2015.

Thus, before the bout, Nevills received a pep talk from teammate Jason Nolf.

“Jason said, ‘You know, it’s just like any other match, except if you lose, we lose the streak and everything else,’” said Nevills (9-0). “I was like, ‘I know. It’s pretty exciting.’”

The Mountain Hawks (4-1) brought a measure of confidence to the match, sensing advantages in some of their matchups, particularly in the lightweights. Lehigh built its lead around the exuberant jump of Lehigh Valley wrestlers Darian Cruz (Bethlehem Catholic), Scott Parker (Pennridge) and Luke Karam (Bethlehem Catholic), who won the first three bouts.

But Santoro knew that Penn State’s strength in the middle and upper weights, where it has five top-five wrestlers from 149-285, loomed over the match. Two of those wrestlers (No. 2 Mark Hall at 174 and No. 1 Bo Nickal at 184) won 3-2 decisions in bouts that had chances to go the other way.

In the finale, Nevills held off Wood, a former PIAA champ from Boyertown, by fending off Wood in the third period.

“We talk about being a trophy team; we’d love to win a national title,” Santoro said. “Wrestling a team like Penn State, and seeing how close we are, we’ve got to start hammering the nail in the coffin, so to speak. These guys are hungry.”

Penn State, which has won six of the last seven NCAA team titles, was without two injured starters, including top-ranked national champ Vincenzo Joseph (3-0). Coach Cael Sanderson decided Sunday to rest Joseph with the postseason in mind — “and we were questioning that decision as the match was going on,” he said.

Ultimately, Sanderson called the match a “dogfight,” something his team has not had in a while. The coach saw progress in the comeback victory.

“Lehigh is a very good team, which helps us go back and work on some things we need to improve on,” Sanderson said. “We got out of here by the skin of our teeth.”

After the match, three Lehigh starters, all from District 11, sat together to describe how much the environment moved them. Cruz, Lehigh’s returning national champ, said it was “hard not to smile.” Jake Jakobsen, a Stroudsburg High graduate and Monroe County’s first PIAA wrestling champ, said it was the biggest stage on which he has wrestled.

Karam, a redshirt freshman who delivered a strong 2-0 rideout victory, called that District 11 bond a distinctive factor for Lehigh that will carry the team in the future.

“Our team, for the most part, is pretty local,” Karam said. “Penn State, they’re from all over the place. I feel like we’re a lot closer than a lot of the other teams.”

PENN STATE 23, LEHIGH 19

125: No. 5 Darian Cruz (Lehigh) pin Devin Schnupp 1:13.

133: No. 3 Scott Parker (Lehigh) pin Dominic Giannangeli 4:12.

142: Luke Karam (Lehigh) dec. Jered Cortez 2-0.

149: No. 1 Zain Retherford (Penn State) pin Cortlandt Schuyler 1:27.

157: No. 1 Jason Nolf (Penn State) tech. fall Ian Brown 23-8 in 6:40.

165: No. 15 Gordon Wolf (Lehigh) dec. Bo Pipher 24-12.

174: No. 2 Mark Hall (Penn State) dec. No. 5 Jordan Kutler 3-2.

184: No. 1 Bo Nickal (Penn State) dec. No. 4 Ryan Preisch 3-2.

197: No. 11 Anthony Cassar (Penn State) dec. Jake Jakobsen 8-3

285: No. 3 Nick Nevills (Penn State) dec. No. 14 Jordan Wood 2-0.

mwogenrich@mcall.com

Twitter @MarkWogenrich

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