"Sucks to see my guy bounce"- Carter Starocci pens a heartfelt message as Roman Bravo Young leaves Penn State University for Cowboy RTC

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Aug 19, 2024 04:00 GMT

Freestyle wrestler Carter Starocci wasn't happy with Roman Bravo-Young leaving Penn State University for Cowboy RTC Wrestling Club. The American-born Mexican freestyle wrestler, who recently participated in the Paris Olympics, announced his decision to quit Pennsylvania State University's Nittany Lion Wrestling Club [which he earlier represented] through his X account [formerly Twitter].

Carter Starocci, who also represents PSU's Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, recently shared his feelings about Bravo-Young leaving PSU on his X account. He wished Roman good luck for his future endeavors.

Starocci's wrote,

"Roman,

Sucks to see my guy bounce. You brought me in from day 1 and put me on. We racked up alotta gold and dominated college. A legend at PSU, in wrestling, and much more. Good luck brother, as you know luck don't got nothing to do with hard work. Go get it. Much love."

Roman Bravo-Young, who had joined Penn State University in 2018, recently posted the following on his X account:

"Something new."

Roman Bravo-Young, who represented the USA from 2016 to 2023, had recently represented Mexico in freestyle wrestling at the Paris Olympics in 2024, in the 57kg category. However, he couldn't proceed beyond the Round of 16, losing to Arsen Harutyunyan of Armenia by 3-13.

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Carter Starocci's career as an NCAA wrestler at Penn State University

Carter Starocci after winning his bout against Rocco Welsh at the 2024 NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championships [Image Source: Getty]

Born and raised in Erie, Pennsylvania, Carter Starocci took to wrestling at the tender age of three. During his high school years, Starocci showed promise in freestyle wrestling, committing himself to PSU's Nittany Lions Wrestling Club. Before he officially entered PSU for higher studies, he already had an impressive high school record of 172-10.

At PSU, the American wrestler participated in several championships, including the Big Ten Championships, where he stood second overall in 2021, losing to Michael Kemerer from Iowa.

However, the same year, Carter Starocci also won the NCAA Division I Championships in the 174lbs category (almost 79kg), held at St Louis. Since then, Starocci never looked back, becoming only the sixth freestyle wrestler in the USA to win the NCAA championships four times in a row.

Apart from winning the NCAA Division I Championships four times in a row from 2021 to 2024, Starocci has also won the Big Ten Championships two times in a row in 2022 and 2023 respectively. In 2022, he also won a bronze medal in the men's 79kg freestyle category at the Under 23 World Championships.

Starocci once again increased his weight to 86 kilograms as he did for the Paris Olympics' trials, where he defeated Pat Downey, the national champion in that category. However, he was defeated by Trent Hidlay, who had won a silver medal in the same category at the 2022 Junior World Championships, ending his dreams for an Olympic debut.