EVANSTON, Ill.; March 9, 2025 – The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team (15-0, 8-0 B1G), winners of both the Big Ten Championship and the Big Ten Regular Season Championship, will have four top seeds, nine top-four and ten top-eight seeds at the 2025 NCAA Championships in Philadelphia, Pa. Penn State will take all ten national qualifiers to the three-day event, which runs Thursday through Saturday, March 20-22, in Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center.
This marks the 12th time in head coach Cael Sanderson’s tenure at Penn State that his team has qualified nine or more wrestlers for the tournament and the fourth time Penn State will take ten. Penn State’s four top seeds are Luke Lilledahl at 125, Tyler Kasak at 157, Mitchell Mesenbrink at 165 and Carter Starocci at 184. All ten Penn State wrestlers are seeded in the top eight.
True freshman Luke Lilledahl is the No. 1 seed at 125 and will take on the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 bout between Caleb Weiand of Michigan State and Marcello Milani of Cornell. Lilledahl won the 2025 Big Ten title at 125 this past weekend with a 4-0 run through the weight class. He is 19-2 overall and is making his first trip to the NCAA tournament. Lilledahl is 7-2 vs. the field this year, his first trip to nationals.
Sophomore Braeden Davis is the No. 3 seed at 133 and will battle No. 25 Kurt Phipps of Bucknell in the first round. Davis took fourth at 133 in the Big Ten tournament last weekend. He is 12-5 overall and making his second straight trip to the NCAA tournament. Davis is 6-4 vs. the field this year and 2-2 at the tournament all-time.
Senior+ Beau Bartlett is the No. 2 seed at 141 and will take on No. 31 Jordan Titus of West Virginia in the first round. Bartlett placed third at 141 at Big Tens last weekend. He is 21-1 overall and is heading to nationals for the fourth time. He is a two-time All-American and was national runner-up last year in Kansas City. Bartlett is 11-1 vs. the field this year and 10-4 at the tournament all-time.
Sophomore Shayne Van Ness is the No. 3 seed at 149 and will face No. 30 Gabe Willochell of Wyoming in the first round. Van Ness took third at 149 in Evanston last weekend. He is 20-2 overall and is making his second trip to NCAAs. Van Ness was an All-American as a true freshman in 2023, placing third. Van Ness is 11-2 vs. the field this year and 5-1 at the tournament all-time.
Sophomore Tyler Kasak is the No. 1 seed at 157 and will battle the winner of No. 33 Richard Fadelan of Columbia and No. 32 Landen Johson of Northern Illinois in the opening round. Kasak won the Big Ten championship at Northwestern last weekend with a 3-0 run in Evanston. He is 17-1 overall and is making his second straight trip to nationals and his first up at 157. Kasak was an All-American last year, taking third at 149. Kasak is 10-1 vs. the field this year and 7-1 at the tournament all-time.
Sophomore Mitchell Mesenbrink is the No. 1 seed at 165 and will face the winner of No. 33 Chandler Amaker of Central Michigan and No. 32 Jared Keslar of Pittsburgh. Mesenbrink won his second straight Big Ten title last weekend, one of Penn State’s five champions. Mesenbrink is 22-0 overall and is making his second straight trip to NCAAs. Mesenbrink was an All-American last season, advancing to the finals and finishing as national runner-up. Mesenbrink is 10-0 vs. the field this year and 4-1 at the tournament all-time.
Junior Levi Haines is the No. 2 seed at 174 and will battle No. 31 Avery Bassett of Lock Haven in the first round. Haines won his third straight Big Ten title last weekend in Evanston and his first up at 174. Haines is 20-1 overall and is making his third trip to the national tournament. Haines is a two-time All-American, having won the NCAA individual title at 157 last year. He was the national runner-up at 157 two years ago as well. Haines is 9-1 vs. the field this year and 9-1 at the tournament all-time.
Graduate Carter Starocci is the No. 1 seed at 184 and will take on the winner of No. 32 Caden Rogers of Lehigh and No. 33 TJ McDonnell or Oregon State in the first round. Starocci won his third Big Ten title last weekend at Northwestern and his first up at 184. Starocci is 21-0 overall and is making his fifth straight trip to the national tournament. Starocci is a four-time All-American and four-time NCAA national champion, having won the last four in a row at 174. Starocci is 9-0 vs. the field this year and 20-0 at the tournament all-time.
Redshirt freshman Josh Barr is the No. 4 seed at 197 and will face No. 29 Tucker Hogan of Lock Haven in the first round. Barr won his first bout at Big Tens last weekend before losing to the eventual champion in sudden victory in the semifinals. Barr suffered an injury default in his next match and bowed out of the tournament. Barr is 16-3 overall and is making his first trip to the national championship tournament. Barr is 7-3 vs. the field this year, his first trip to NCAAs.
Senior+ Greg Kerkvliet is the No. 3 seed at 285 and will take on No. 30 Sam Mitchell of Wyoming in the first round . Kerkvliet took second at 285 last weekend at Big Tens, losing in the title bout. Kerkvliet heads to Philadelphia with an 18-1 overall record and is making his fifth trip to NCAAs. Kerkvliet is a four-time All-American and was the NCAA national champion at 285 a year ago. Kerkvliet is 8-1 vs. the field this year and 17-4 at the tournament all-time.
The 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships are in Philadelphia, Pa., this year. The three-day event runs Thursday through Saturday, March 20-22, 2025, at the Wells Fargo Center. Thursday’s sessions are set for 12 and 7 p.m. Friday’s sessions are at 12 and 8 p.m. Saturday’s sessions are slated for 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. Penn State closed out the 2024-25 dual slate with a 15-0 mark, 8-0 in Big Ten action, claiming the B1G Regular Season Championship. The Nittany Lions won their ninth Big Ten Championship at Northwestern on March 8-9 as well.
Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via X/twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.