PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 17 Rutgers wrestling (5-2) hits the road for its next three matches, beginning with a dual at Clarion on Friday night (7 p.m.) in Clarion, Pennsylvania. The Scarlet Knights then wrestle Gardner-Webb (12 p.m.) and Kent State (2 p.m.) on Saturday in Kent, Ohio.
Friday night's match with the Golden Eagles will stream on
FloWrestling. Kent State will provide a stream of both matches on Saturday.
Ohio's Shawver Thrives at Rutgers
By Bradly Derechailo
Rutgers wrestling head coach
Scott Goodale yells two words from his corner nearly every match of every tournament and dual the Scarlet Knights compete in.
"Just wrestle."
No one takes this brief plea more seriously than
Dylan Shawver, who has wanted to 'just wrestle' since he stepped foot on campus in 2020.
"Even when he was a true freshman, he begged us to give him a wrestle off with [Nicolas] Aguilar, who was a returning All-American," Goodale said. "He just thinks he's the best guy. It doesn't matter who he's wrestling. He always thinks he's going to win, and that's refreshing. Some guys shy away from competition. Dylan doesn't. Ever."
His eagerness to prove himself has transformed Shawver from a rookie full of potential into one of the top lightweights in the country.
Shawver put together arguably one of the top individual seasons in program history last year, finishing with a team-high 27 victories en route to All-America laurels and a seventh-place finish in Kansas City. Prior to his run to the podium, Shawver downed Michigan's Dylan Ragusin by 23-8 tech fall to secure RU's fifth individual Big Ten title and first since Anthony Ashnault and Nick Suriano accomplished the feat in 2019.
This season, Shawver owns a 5-1 record and is ranked as high as No. 8 in the country with two tech falls and a pin through the first month of action. His lone loss came to Lock Haven's Anthony Noto this past weekend. Noto finished third in the country last season and became an All-American for the second time in as many seasons.
The moments that allow him to prove himself – win or lose – are what fuel his desire to be the best.
"I've enjoyed this journey a lot," Shawver said. "Not many people get to be in the position I'm in. I'm grateful to be here and just try to prove myself and become a better wrestler and person each day."
Ranked as high as No. 9 in the country this week, Dylan Shawver is 5-1 through the first month of the season.
Shawver gets an opportunity to wrestle in front of his family and friends on Saturday when the Scarlet Knights face Gardner-Webb and Kent State in Kent, Ohio. The Golden Flashes' campus is just over an hour away from Shawver's hometown of Lorain – located 25 miles west of Cleveland on Lake Erie.
Saturday will be just the second time Shawver competes in his home state since he left for college, having wrestled an extra match at Ohio State as a true freshman during the Covid-19 Pandemic season.
"I'm grateful to compete back home," Shawver said. "We have a great squad heading out there this weekend and I'm looking forward to putting on a show. My family gets to come watch me, as well as friends who I haven't seen in a while. It means a lot to me. They've backed me since I started wrestling and didn't let me quit. Without them, I wouldn't be where I am right now."
Shawver put together a standout scholastic career at Elyria High School, where he was a three-time state place winner. As a senior, Shawver finished 46-3 and delivered region and sectional titles before the Ohio state tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Ranked as high as No. 8 in his weight class nationally by
FloWrestling, Shawver arrived in Piscataway wanting to contribute right away. Despite Aguilar ahead of him on the depth chart as a reigning All-American at 125 pounds, Shawver showed up every practice looking for an opportunity.
When Aguilar was unable to compete in the postseason, Shawver saw his chance. Goodale tabbed Shawver as the program's 125-pound entrant at the 2021 Big Ten Wrestling Championships at Penn State and Shawver responded with two victories, including a 6-5 decision over then-No. 13 Patrick Mckee of Minnesota – a two-time All-American who finished third in the country that season.
Dylan Shawver was a three-time Ohio state place winner and posted a 46-3 mark as a senior at Elyria.
Shawver followed his rookie campaign with 23 victories as a sophomore, finishing seventh at Big Tens to earn his first trip to the national tournament. He burst out to a 12-5 record in 2022-23 before suffering an injury that shut him down midway through his junior year.
Despite the setback, Shawver continued to 'just wrestle' and develop. He credits the coaching staff for helping him stay focused on achieving his goals both on and off the mat.
"I've just had great dialogue with the staff," Shawver said. "They laid the foundation, and I just worked on myself and believed in myself. I'm lucky enough to have the coaches believe in me."
His relentless effort, Goodale says, is a huge reason why Shawver has turned himself into one of the best in the country.
"He loves the spotlight and loves to wrestle all of the time," Goodale said. "He trains and competes when he's a little dinged up or if things aren't always right. He's the poster child for the type of student-athlete you want in your program. He stuck it out and wants to compete every single day. He never wants a day off. He's the absolute spark of this program right now."
No. 17 Rutgers (5-2)
125: 18/14
Dean Peterson (3-2) -OR-
Ayden Smith (2-2)
133: 9/10
Dylan Shawver (5-1)
141: 24/33
Joseph Olivieri (5-2)
149: 33/27
Andrew Clark (10-3) -OR-
Joe Fongaro (1-2)
157: 33/NR
Conner Harer (5-2) -OR-
Dylan Weaver (3-2)
165: 26/27
Anthony White (7-2) -OR-
Ryan Ford (1-2)
174: 21/19
Jackson Turley (4-2) -OR-
Eric Freeman (3-2)
184: NR/18
Brian Soldano (7-4) -OR- 29/NR
Shane Cartagena-Walsh (9-4)
197: 15/18
John Poznanski (4-1) -OR-
PJ Casale (3-4)
Rankings Intermat/Flo
Clarion (0-3)
125: Weston Pisarchick (4-4) -OR- Travis Clawson (2-3)
133: Scott Johnson (5-4)
141: Gianni Silvestri (4-5) -OR- David McClelland (0-3)
149: Kyle Schickel (5-4)
157: John Altieri (2-4)
165: Wesley Barnes (6-3)
174: John Worthing (5-1)
184: Adrian Gacek (3-8) -OR- Patrick Cutchember (4-3)
197: Ethan Wiant (5-2)
HWT: Austin Chapman (6-4)
Gardner-Webb (0-2)
125: Jeffery Jacome (4-5) -OR- Tyson Lane (1-6)
133: TK Davis (5-3)
141: 25/22 Todd Carter (5-1) -OR- Ty Edwards (6-5)
149: Joseph Giordano (5-6)
157: Drew Pepin (6-4)
165: Tyler Brignola (1-6) -OR- Grant Kress (2-3)
174: Andrew Wilson (2-6) -OR- Jackson Potts (4-4)
184: Edison Flores (2-5)
197: Josh McCutchen (4-5)
HWT: Mason Blue (2-5)
Rankings Intermat/Flo
Kent State (1-3)
125: Nico Callelo (9-5) -OR- Tyeler Hagensen (1-6)
133: Adan Benevidez (2-4)
141: Jordan Decatur (4-2)
157: Billy Meiszner (7-4) -OR- Nathan Roth (11-7)
157: Aaron Ferguson (2-5)
165: Carson Miller (4-4) -OR- Ethan Barr (3-8)
174: Waylon Wehler (4-6) -OR- Hunter Andel (5-8)
184: Trent Thomas (4-6) -OR- Holden Martin (5-5)
197: Blake Schaffer (2-2) -OR- Corey Boerio (1-6)
HWT: Brentan Simmerman (7-2) -OR- Josh Boggan (1-4)
- Rutgers won both of its matches last weekend, defeating Lock Haven, 34-6, on Friday at Jersey Mike's Arena before downing in-state rival Princeton, 32-7, on Sunday at Jadwin Gymnasium. It total, the Scarlet Knights won 16 out of 20 matches in their two dual victories.
- RU worked an 8-2 match split over the Bald Eagles, which included ranked decisions from No. 20 Jackson Turley (174), Conner Harer (157) and Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184). No. 22 Brian Soldano wrestled up a weight to deliver a fall at 197 pounds, No. 9 Yaraslau Slavikouski (HWT) added a pin and No. 19 Dean Peterson (125) and No. 24 Joseph Olivieri (141) both teched their opponents.
- Rutgers won eight out of 10 matches against the Tigers, as Harer, Slavikouski, Soldano and Turley all earned bonus-point victories.
- "My ultimate goal is to win NCAAs, and that's what I'm aiming for." – Dylan Shawver (133)
- Rutgers remained No. 17 in this week's NWCA Coaches poll, joining fellow Big Ten programs No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Iowa, No. 4 Nebraska, No. 5 Ohio State, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 9 Michigan, No. 11 Illinois and No. 25 Maryland in the rankings.
- Eleven Scarlet Knights appeared in the national rankings this week. Cartagena-Walsh and Harer earned the first individual rankings of their respective careers, checking in at No. 29 and No. 33, respectively, by Intermat.
- Thanks to a three-match winning streak, Slavikouski is RU's highest-ranked individual, appearing as high as No. 6 (Intermat/FloWrestling/TheOpenMat) with a 5-1 record at heavyweight. Shawver is ranked as high as No. 8 (The Open Mat) at 133 pounds, while Peterson and Poznanski are ranked as high as No. 12.
- Rutgers is 6-0 all-time against Clarion, with all meetings occurring with Goodale as head coach.
- The Scarlet Knights defeated the Golden Eagles, 29-4, on November 11, 2022 at College Ave. Gym in their last meeting. Peterson, Soldano, Turley, Andrew Clark and Anthony White all earned wins in the last meeting.
- Greg Bulsak, who was an All-American for Rutgers as a graduate transfer in 2022, was a four-time NCAA qualifier for Clarion.
- This will be the first meeting all-time between the two programs.
- This will be the second meeting all-time between Rutgers and Kent State. The Scarlet Knights lost to the Golden Flashes, 19-13, on February 11, 2012 at the College Ave. Gym.
- Rutgers sends its full squad to the Ken Kraft Midlands Championship, held December 29-30 in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.
