THIS WEEK’S ACTION:
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; March 8, 2026 – The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team (15-0, 8-0 B1G) will have seven top seeds at the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships on March 19-21 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Nittany Lions, under the direction of head coach Cael Sanderson, have qualified all ten wrestlers for the three-day event.
Penn State has already claimed the 2026 Big Ten Championship and 2026 Big Ten Regular Season title. This is also the 13th-time in Sanderson’s tenure that Penn State has qualified nine or more competitors for the national tournament.
Sophomore Luke Lilledahl is the No. 1 seed at 125 and will take on the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 bout between Jace Schafer of Bloomsburg and Mack Mauger of Missouri. Lilledahl won his second Big Ten title in the Jordan Center with a 3-0 run through the field. He is 17-0 overall and his making his second trip to the NCAA tournament after earning All-America laurels last year with a third place finish. Lilledahl is 14-0 vs. the field this year and 6-1 all-time at NCAAs.
True freshman Marcus Blaze is the No. 3 seed at 133 and will battle No. 30 Gabe Whisenhunt of Oregon State in the first round. Blaze was the 2026 Big Ten runner-up at his first Big Ten tourney. He is 21-1 overall and is making his first trip to the NCAA tournament. Blaze is 11-1 vs. the field this season.
Junior Braeden Davis is the No. 14 seed at 141 and will meet No. 19 Haiden Drury of Utah Valley in the first round. Davis placed seventh at the Big Ten tournament this past weekend, wrestling at 141 (his third weight in as many seasons). He is a returning All-American having placed fifth at 133 last season and is making his third trip to nationals. Davis is 5-5 vs. the field and 7-4 all-time at NCAAs.
Junior Shayne Van Ness is the No. 1 seed at 149 and will battle the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 bout between Austin McBurney of Brown and Clayton Jones of Michigan State. Van Ness won his first Big Ten title at Big Tens in the Jordan Center, going 3-0 including a pin in the finals. He is 21-0 overall this year and is already a two-time All-American, having placed third in 2023 and 2025. Van Ness is 10-0 vs. the field and 10-2 all-time at nationals.
True freshman PJ Duke is the No. 1 seed at 157 and will take on the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 bout between Yannis Charles of Morgan State and Jeb Pretchtel of Bellarmine. Duke just won the 2026 Big Ten title at 157 and was named the Championship Outstanding Wrestler. He is making his first trip to nationals. Duke is 9-1 vs. the field this season.
Junior Mitchell Mesenbrink is the No. 1 seed at 165 and will battle the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 bout between Ryan Vigil of VMI and Cody Walsh of Drexel. Mesenbrink just won his third Big Ten Championship in the Jordan Center by going 3-0 with two majors and a tech fall. Mesenbrink is a two-time All-American and national finalist and won the NCAA title last season. Making his third trip to NCAAs, Mesenbrink is 12-0 vs. the field and 9-1 all-time at nationals.
Senior Levi Haines is the No. 1 seed at 174 and will take on the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 match between Grant O’Dell of Bellarmine and Luke Condon of Wisconsin. Haines claimed his fourth Big Ten title in the Jordan Center at the conference tournament with a 3-0 run. He is a three-time All-American, two-time NCAA finalist and own the NCAA title in 2024. Haines, making his fourth trip to NCAAs, is 7-0 vs. the field and 14-2 all-time at nationals.
Sophomore Rocco Welsh is the No. 1 seed at 184 and will wrestle the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 match between Sam Goin of Indiana and Caleb Uhlenhopp of Utah Valley. Welsh won his first conference title at the Big Ten tournament with a 3-0 performance in the Jordan Center. He is a one-time All-American, having been a national finalist at 174 in 2024. Welsh is making his second trip to NCAAs. He is 13-0 vs. the field and 4-1 all-time at nationals.
Sophomore Josh Barr is No. 1 seed at 197 and will face the winner of the No. 32 vs. No. 33 match-up between Karson Thompkins of Air Force and Blake Schaffer of Kent State. Barr claimed his first Big Ten title with a 3-0 run in the Jordan Center, all by technical fall. Barr is a returning All-American as the national runner-up at 197 last season. He is making his second trip to NCAAs. Barr is 12-0 vs. the field and 4-1 all-time at nationals.
Redshirt freshman Cole Mirasola is the No. 9 seed at 285 and will take on Connor Barket of Duke in the first round. Mirasola placed fifth at his first Big Ten tournament in the Jordan Center and will be making his first trip to the national championships. Mirasola is 8-6 vs. the field this season.
Penn State heads to Cleveland looking to win the school’s 13th NCAA Championship under Sanderson and 14th overall. Penn State has won the last four NCAA team titles.
The 2026 NCAA Championships will take place in Cleveland’s Rocket Arena on Thursday through Saturday, March 19-21. The three-day event begins on Thursday with sessions at 12 and 7 p.m. Friday’s sessions are set for 12 and 8 p.m.. Saturday’s sessions will begin at 11 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.
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. The Family Clothesline is the presenting sponsor for the 2025-26 Nittany Lion wrestling season. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.
#1 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (15-0, 8-0 B1G)
2026 B1G CHAMPIONS // B1G REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS
WT NAME EL HT/HS REC
125 #1 Luke Lilledahl So. Weldon Spring, Mo./Wyoming Seminary 20-0
(vs. the 2026 Field: 14-0 // Career in NCAA tournament: 6-1)
1X All-American (3rd in 2025)
133 #3 Marcus Blaze Fr. Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg 21-1
(vs. the 2026 Field: 11-1 // Career in NCAA tournament: 0-0)
First time at NCAA tournament
141 #14 Braeden Davis Jr. Belleville, Mich./Dundee 12-5
(vs. the 2026 Field: 5-5 // Career in NCAA tournament: 7-4)
1X All-American (5th in 2025)
149 #1 Shayne Van Ness Jr. Somerville, N.J./Blair Academy 21-0
(vs. the 2026 Field: 10-0 // Career in NCAA tournament: 10-2)
2X All-American (3rd in 2023, 3rd in 2025)
157 #1 PJ Duke Fr. State Hill, N.Y./Minisink Valley 19-1
(vs. the 2026 Field: 9-1 // Career in NCAA tournament: 0-0)
First time at NCAA tournament
165 #1 Mitchell Mesenbrink Jr. Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead 22-0
(vs. the 2026 Field: 12-0 // Career in NCAA tournament: 9-1)
2X All-American (2nd in 2024, 1st in 2025); 1X NCAA Champion (2025)
174 #1 Levi Haines Sr. Arendtsville, Pa./Biglerville 21-0
(vs. the 2026 Field: 7-0 // Career in NCAA tournament: 14-2)
3X All-American (2nd in 2023, 1st in 2024, 3rd in 2025); 1X NCAA Champion (2024)
184 #1 Rocco Welsh So. Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg Central 20-0
(vs. the 2026 Field: 13-0 // Career in NCAA tournament: 4-1)
1X All-American (2nd in 2024)
197 #1 Josh Barr So. Davison, Mich./Davison 19-0
(vs. the 2026 Field: 12-0 // Career in NCAA tournament: 4-1)
1X All-American (2nd in 2025)
285 #9 Cole Mirasola R-Fr. Jackson, Wis./West Bend 17-6
(vs. the 2026 Field: 8-6 // Career in NCAA tournament: 0-0)
First time at NCAA tournament
Individual rankings listed are tournament seed/Team InterMat TPI (as of 3/10/26)
PENN STATE ROLLS TO 2026 big ten championship
The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team rolled through the field to win 2026 Big Ten Championship. Penn State crowned seven individual championships as well. The Nittany Lions won the team race with 184.0 points, a new school record. The Nittany Lions were nearly 40 points ahead of second place Ohio State, which had 148.5 points. The Championships is the 10th for Penn State, all under head coach
Cael Sanderson. This is Penn State’s tenth conference championship, having also won in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2019, 2023, 2024, 2025 and now 2026. Penn State now has 76 Big Ten Champions spread among 41 individuals. Penn State’s seven champions is a new school record, set in 2024 and 2011.
PENN STATE CROWNS SCHOOL RECORD 7 BIG TEN CHAMPS
Penn State crowned seven Big Ten Champions and had another Big Ten Runner-Up at the 2026 Big Ten Championships, also setting a school record with eight finalists. Sophomore
Luke Lilledahl won his second straight Big Ten title at 125,
Shayne Van Ness claimed his first title at 149,
PJ Duke won his first at 157,
Mitchell Mesenbrink claimed his third at 165,
Levi Haines earned his fourth at 174,
Rocco Welsh won his first at 184 and
Josh Barr claimed his first at 197.
Marcus Blaze earned Big Ten runner-up status at 133. All eight earned auto-bids to the NCAA Championship. Penn State’s seven champions were named first team All-Big Ten while its runner-up was second team All-Big Ten.
MIRASOLA AND DAVIS MAKE IT 10 QUALIFIERS FOR PSU
Heavyweight
Cole Mirasola went 3-2 at 285 to place fifth and earn Penn State’s ninth automatic bid to NCAAs. Junior
Braeden Davis went 3-2, including a win in the seventh place bout, to earn the Nittany Lions’ 10th spot at nationals. This marks the third straight year Penn State has qualified all ten wrestlers for the national championship.
PJ DUKE NAMED 2026 BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP
OUTSTANDING WRESTLER
PJ Duke rolled the 157 pound title with a perfect run in Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center. Duke opened the tourney with a 20-7 major decision over #1 Brandon Cannon of Ohio State in the quarterfinals. He beat #9 Kannon Webster of Illinois 4-2 in the semifinals. In the title bout, Duke downed defending NCAA Champion Antrell Taylor, rolling to a 12-4 major decision to earn his first Big Ten crown. Duke was named the 2026 Big Ten Championship Outstanding Wrestler for his performance.
4X BIG TEN CHAMPION
Levi Haines won the 174 pound title at Big Tens in State College, going 3-0 with a tech fall to claim his fourth Big Ten Championship. Haines became the fourth Nittany Lion ever to win four Big Ten individual titles. He joins
Ed Ruth, Davit Taylor and
Aaron Brooks as Penn State’s four-timers.
RECORDS FALL AS PENN STATE TALLIES GAUDY
NUMBERS AT BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Penn State set numerous school records as it rolled to its tenth conference championship, all under head coach
Cael Sanderson. Penn State set school record for points scored (184.0), finalists (8) and champions (7). The Nittany Lions ended the tournament with a gaudy 29-5 overall record for an .853 win percentage. Penn State collected 20.0 bonus points off five majors, four tech falls, three pins and a forfeit victory.
#FUNSTATS HEADING INTO THE 2026 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
// Most Individual NCAA Titles Since 2011 -- PENN STATE 40, Cornell 14, Oklahoma State 12, Ohio State 11, Iowa 8
// Penn State National Finalists Since 2011 -- 59
// Penn State in NCAA Finals Since 2011 -- 40-19 (Since 2011, winning percentage in NCAA finals is .678)
// Penn State in NCAA Semifinals Since 2011 -- 59-12 (Since 2011, winning percentage in NCAA semis is .831)
// Penn State Team Championships Since 2011 -- 12 (of 14, no NCAA tournament in 2020)
// Penn State Percentage of Team Titles Won Since 2011 - .857 (no NCAA tournament in 2020)
// Penn State has 13 NCAA Championships (12 under Sanderson), third most in NCAA history
// Penn State is the only team in the nation to win at least one individual title at EACH WEIGHT in the last decade
// Penn State is one of only two teams in NCAA history to have five individual champions in one year TWICE.
// Penn State is one of only two teams in NCAA history to have 10 All-Americans in one year.
// Penn State’s
Cael Sanderson has won 12 NCAA titles as a coach, second most in NCAA history.
PENN STATE’S DUAL SEASON / inside the numbers
(FINAL THROUGH FEB. 22, 2026)
* Record: 15-0 // Big Ten: 8-0
* Bout record in duals: 139-11 // Big Ten: 74-6
* Dual Pts for/against: 630-39 // Big Ten: 328-23
* Average points per dual: 42.0 // Big Ten: 41.0
* Margin of victory: +39.4 // Big Ten: +38.1
* Shutouts: 8 // Big Ten: 4
* Penn State in dual meets:
108 of its 139 dual wins are for bonus points
(29-1 by FALL, 46-1 by TF, 30-1 by MD, 3-0 by FF/DQ, 31-8 by DEC)
Owns a 123-16 edge in stall warnings forced
Has a 33-4 edge in riding time points earned
Has amassed a 486-42 advantage in takedowns
PENN STATE SHUTS OUT PRINCETON 50-0 IN DUAL FINALE
The Penn State Nittany Lions closed out the 2025-26 dual meet season in style, shutting out Princeton 50-0 in Rec Hall on Feb. 20. Senior
Levi Haines pinned Tiger Cody Tavoso at 4:05 in his final appearance in Rec Hall. His pin was one of three for Penn State (
Mitchell Mesenbrink and
Josh Barr). The shutout was the eighth of the year for the Nittany Lions and allowed Penn State to close out the season with an unblemished 15-0 record. Penn State ends the regular season having won 86 straight dual meets. Penn State has now posted six straight unbeaten seasons.
GARCIA WINS PATRIOT OPEN AT GEORGE MASON
Nittany Lion
Kyison Garcia went 2-0 plus a third win against a non-collegiate at the Patriot Last Chance Open at George Mason on Sunday, Feb. 22. Garcia’s run earned him the 141-pound title at the event.
Penn STATE WINS SIXTH STRAIGHT B1G
REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONSHIPS; 12TH OVERALL
With a 36-5 rout of Ohio State as the capstone to the 2026 Big Ten dual meet season, the Penn State Nittany Lions won their sixth straight B1G Regular Season Championship, closing out the dual slate with an 8-0 record. The title is also the 12th overall (including co-titles in ‘12, ‘14, ;16 and ‘21). All 12 titles have been won since head coach
Cael Sanderson’s arrival in 2009-10.
NITTANY LIONS SET NEW NCAA/PENN STATE ATTENDANCE RECORD IN BJC DUAL WIN OVER OHIO STATE
A new NCAA and Penn State all-time record for indoor dual meet attendance was set when Penn State crushed visiting Ohio State 36-5 on Feb. 13, 2026, in the Bryce Jordan Center. A sell-out crowd of 16,006 filled the BJC for the event, breaking the old mark of 15,998. Penn State owned that mark as well, setting it on three different occasions (the most recent being last year’s BJC Dual win over Iowa on Jan. 31, 2025. Penn State now owns all ten of the top ten NCAA indoor dual meet attendance marks.
True freshman
Dalton Perry went 4-0 overall to win the Lock Haven Open on Feb. 15 in Thomas Fieldhouse. Perry was one of five Nittany Lions to compete in the open event.
Hayden Cunningham went 2-1 to take fifth at 141,
Ty Watson went 2-2 to place sixth at 157,
Mason Ellis went 1-1 at 197 and
Sean Degl competed at 174.
PENN STATE WINS 9 OF 10 TO ROUT
#2 OHIO STATE IN BJC DUAL VICTORY
Penn State won nine of ten bouts, including five for bonus points, against #2 Ohio State in a 36-5 rout of the Buckeyes on Feb. 13, 2026. The win clinched the 2026 Big Ten Regular Season Championship for Penn State and was wrestled in front of a sellout crowd of 16,006, a new NCAA and Penn State record for indoor wrestling dual meet attendance. The win was highlighted by
Luke Lilledahl’s 4-1 (sv) win over #2 Nic Bouzakis, at 125
Marcus Blaze’s 3-2 (tb) win over #2 Ben Davino at 133,
Rocco Welsh’s 7-6 come-from-behind win over #8 Dylan Fishback at 184 and
Cole Mirasola’s 4-1 (sv) win over #3 Nick Feldman at 285.
Shayne Van Ness (149),
PJ Duke (157),
Mitchell Mesenbrink (165),
Levi Haines (174) and
Josh Barr (197) also posted impressive wins (all five for bonus points).
NITTANY LIONS ROUT MICHIGAN 38-3 IN ANN ARBOR
The Penn State Nittany Lions rolled into Ann Arbor, Mich., on Friday, Feb. 6, and routed the homestanding Wolverines 38-3 in Big Ten action. Penn State won nine of ten bouts, including five technical falls. Seven of Penn State’s nine victories were over ranked grapplers. True freshman 125-pounder
Nate Desmond once again moved up to 141 and posted a thrilling 8-5 (sv) win over #26 Dylan Ragusin to highlight a dominant first half.
Levi Haines then used six takedowns to roll to a 19-4 tech fall (6:58) over #11 Beau Mantanona and
Rocco Welsh downed #7 Brock Mantanona 8-1 to highlight the second half.
PENN STATE ROLLS OVER #5 NEBRASKA IN BJC DUAL
The Penn State Nittany Lions won seven of ten bouts in rolling to a 26-12 victory over Nebraska in a BJC Dual on Jan. 30. Penn State picked up tech falls from
Luke Lilledahl at 125 (20-4 over Alan Koehler) and
Mitchell Mesenbrink at 165 (20-5 over #7 LJ Araujo) and two majors from
Rocco Welsh at 184 (14-5 over #6 Silas Allred) and
Josh Barr at 197 (21-9 over #9 Camden McDanel) as well as three decisions from
Marcus Blaze at 133,
Shayne Van Ness at 149 and
Levi Haines at 174.
NITTANY LIONS POST 51-0 SHUTOUT WIN AT MARYLAND
Less than 24 hours after shutting out Indiana 48-0, Penn State rolled into College Park, Md., and throttled the homestanding Terrapins 51-0 on Saturday, Jan. 24. The dual was moved up a day due to an incoming winter storm. Penn State picked up bonus point wins in all 10 victories.
Marcus Blaze majored #15 Braxton Brown 15-3 at 133,
Shayne Van Ness picked up nine takedowns in a 31-10 tech fall over #7 Carter Young at 149 (6:41) and
Josh Barr posted a 19-4 tech fall over #13 Branson John at 197 (6:51).
PENN STATE SHUTS OUT INDIANA 48-0
Penn State shut out the visiting Indiana Hoosiers in Rec Hall on Friday, Jan. 24, with nine of its ten victories coming with bonus points.
Luke Lilledahl pinned #11 Jacob Moran at 5:20 at 125, and
Mitchell Mesenbrink pinned #19 Tyler Lillard at 4:01 at 165 to highlight the lopsided win.
Braeden Davis majored #25 Henry Porter 24-10 at 141,
Rocco Welsh downed #15 Sam Goin 15-9 at 184 and
Josh Barr majored #14 Gabe Sollars 14-6 at 197 for other ranked victories.
5 NITTANY LIONS COMPETE AT BLOOMSBURG OPEN
Five Nittany Lion wrestlers competed at the Bloomsburg Open on Saturday, Jan. 24.
Dalton Perry went 2-1 with a pin and a major to take second at 149.
Hayden Cunningham went 2-2 with a major for fourth at 141.
Sam Beckett went 2-2 with a tech fall for fourth at 174.
Dawson Bundy was 2-0 and 1-2 vs. non-collegiates to place fourth at 285.
Sean Degl went 2-2 at 174.
PENN STATE TALLIES TEN BONUS POINT WINS IN
51-0 SHUTOUT VICTORY AT NORTHWESTERN
nittany lions roll to historic 32-3 win at #3 iowa
Penn State rolled into Iowa City, Iowa, on Jan. 16, 2026 and rolled out with an historic 32-3 win. The Nittany Lions won nine of ten bouts on the Hawkeyes’ mat and handed Iowa its worst home defeat in 60 years. Penn State’s margin of victory (29) was also the largest for the Lions in series history. Then #4
Rocco Welsh downed #1 Angelo Ferrari 2-1 (tb) at 184 and then #13
Cole Mirasola took down #5 Ben Kueter 4-3 at 285 for two notable wins for Penn State.
PENN STATE BLANKS #19 RUTGERS 46-0 IN REC HALL
A REMINDER PER NCAA RULES: TOURNAMENT RESULTS
AGAINST TEAMMATES DO NOT COUNT TOWARDS RECORD
When two wrestlers from the same team meet in a tournament, the result is not official. It does not count as a win or a loss. Please see rule 9, section 6, article 4, found on page 79 of the official 2025-26 NCAA Wrestling rule book.
“Art. 4. Non-Allowable ISRF Matches. Matches between teammates, against opponents who are not listed on an institutional roster, a club-level wrestler, a prospective student-athlete or an armed services student-athlete shall not be counted.”
PIERCE, SEALEY, HENCKEL, CUNNINGHAM AND BARR
CLAIM SOUTHERN SCUFFLE TITLES; BARR B1G W.O.W.
Penn State sent 13 wrestlers to the 2026 Southern Scuffle and five came home with individual titles.
Connor Pierce went 6-0 with a major to win at 149.
Joe Sealey went 6-0 with a major and two techs to win at 157.
William Henckel went 6-0 with two majors and a tech to win at 174.
Asher Cunningham went 5-0 with two majors and two pins to win at 184.
Josh Barr went 5-0 with a major, two techs and a pin (including a 9-1 major over #3 Stephen Little of Little Rock in the finals) to win at 197. The Nittany Lions came away with the team title as well, while not entering wrestlers at two weights. Barr was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week for his efforts.
Penn State sent three wrestlers to Edinboro’s Kauffman Open on Jan. 4, each wrestling unattached.
Braeden Davis went 4-0 at 141 to win the title. Davis had two majors and two pins on the day.
Hayden Cunningham went 3-1 with a pin to take third at 141.
Brock Weiss was 3-2 with a major and a tech at 149.
van ness and blaze sweep b1g weekly honors
for week ending dec. 21, 2025
Nittany Lion junior
Shayne Van Ness was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week and true freshman
Marcus Blaze was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for the week ending Dec. 21, 2025. The duo earned the honors for their performances in Penn State’s 2-0 run at the Collegiate Duals in Nashville on Dec. 20. Van Ness picked up two ranked wins, posting a 19-2 tech fall (5:16) over #24 Max Petersen of North Dakota State and downing #14 Aden Valencia of Stanford 10-4. Blaze also had two ranked victories, majoring #29 Tristan Daugherty of NDSU 11-3 and pinning #6 Tyler Knox of Stanford at the 6:44 mark (while leading 16-2 at the time). Penn State shut out the Bison 46-0 and blanked the Cardinal 42-0.
penn state shuts out #9 stanford 42-0
TO BREAK d1 all-time win streak record
Penn State dominated #9 Stanford to close out the Collegiate Duals in Nashville on Dec. 20, shutting out the Cardinal 42-0. Penn State got pins from
Marcus Blaze and
Mitchell Mesenbrink; tech falls from
Josh Barr and
Cole Mirasola; majors from
Nate Desmond and
Levi Haines; and decisions from
Luke Lilledahl,
Shayne Van Ness,
PJ Duke and
Rocco Welsh. Penn State set a new NCAA Division I dual meet win streak record with the victory, having won its 77th-straight. The old mark was 76 set by Oklahoma St. from 1937 to 1951. Ranked wins in the dual included Lilledahl’s 4-2 win over #12 Nicco Provo at 125, Blaze pinning #6 Tyler Knox at 133, Van Ness’ 10-4 win over #14 Aden Valencia, Duke’s 5-2 win over #5 Daniel Cardenas at 157 and
Josh Barr’s 19-3 tech fall over #19 Angelo Posada at 197.
NITTANY LIONS SHUT OUT NORTH DAKOTA STATE 46-0
AT COLLEGIATE DUALS
Penn State won all ten bouts in a rousing 46-0 shutout win over North Dakota State on Dec. 20 in Nashville, opening up the Collegiate Duals with a victory. The Lions got pins from
Levi Haines and
Cole Mirasola; techs from
Shayne Van Ness,
Mitchell Mesenbrink,
Rocco Welsh and
Josh Barr; majors from
Marcus Blaze and
PJ Duke; and decisions from
Luke Lilledahl and
Nate Desmond. Ranked wins in the dual included Lilledahl’s 6-4 win over #31 Ezekial Witt at 125, Blaze’s 11-3 major over #29 Tristan Daugherty at 133, Van Ness’ 19-2 tech over #24 Max Petersen at 149, and Duke’s 16-5 major over #21 Gavin Drexler at 157.
Duke named b1g freshman of the week
Nittany Lion freshman
PJ Duke was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for the week ending Dec. 14, 2025. Duke pinned #23 Jared Hill of Wyoming to help lead Penn State to a 40-7 win at Wyoming in Laramie on Dec. 13.
LIONS TALLY 6 PINS, 2 TECHS, FIVE RANKED WINS
IN 40-7 VICTORY OVER WYOMING IN LARAMIE
Penn State rolled into Laramie, Wyo., on Dec. 13 and walked away with a dominant 40-7 victory over #18 Wyoming. The Nittany Lions picked up four pins, two tech falls and notched five wins over ranked opponents to secure the victory.
Marcus Blaze pinned #22 Luke Willochell at 133,
Shayne Van Ness pinned #30 Gabe Willochell at 149,
PJ Duke pinned #23 Jared Hill at 157 and
Mitchell Mesenbrink picked up a pin at 165.
Luke Lilledahl had a tech fall win at 125 and
Levi Haines posted an 18-1 tech fall over #28 Riley Davis at 174.
Rocco Welsh picked up Penn State’s other ranked win, a 4-1 victory over #12 Eddie Neitenbach at 184. True freshman
Nate Desmond also moved up two weights to 141 and grabbed his first dual win as a Nittany Lion.
MESENBRINK DOWNS #7 MAX BRIGNOLA AS
NITTANY LIONS ROLL OVER LEHIGH 36-6 IN REC HALL
Junior
Mitchell Mesenbrink took care of #7 Max Brignola, posting a 15-7 major over the Mountain Hawk in Rec Hall on Sunday, Dec. 7. Mesenbrink’s victory highlighted Penn State’s 36-6 victory over Lehigh in front of yet another Rec Hall sellout crowd. Mesenbrink had four takedowns in the top-10 win. Penn State won eight of ten bouts against Lehigh, including
PJ Duke’s win over #10 Logan Rozynski at 157 (Duke was up 14-3 when Rozynski injury defaulted at 5:41) and
Rocco Welsh’s 4-2 win over #23 Rylan Rogers at 184.
HAINES DOMINATES #17 JASAIAH QUEEN TO
LEAD PENN STATE TO 43-3 WIN AT DREXEL
PENN STATE DOMINATES BLACK KNIGHT INVITATIONAL
NINE LIONS WIN INDIVIDUAL TITLES, SIX TAKE SECOND
Penn State sent 20 wrestlers to the Black Knight Invitational at Army West Point on Sunday, Nov. 23. Nineteen of those wrestlers placed (one suffered an injury in his second match). Penn State came away with nine of the ten individual champions and six second place finishers.
Nate Desmond (125),
Marcus Blaze (133),
Shayne Van Ness (149),
PJ Duke (157),
Mitchell Mesenbrink (165),
Levi Haines (174),
Rocco Welsh (184),
Connor Mirasola (197) and
Cole Mirasola (285) all won their weight classes.
Luke Lilledahl (125),
Aaron Nagao (133, injured in finals),
Connor Pierce (149),
Joe Sealey (157),
William Henckel (174) and
Asher Cunningham (184) placed second.
NITTANY LIONS SHUT OUT #22 OKLAHOMA 45-0
IN BJC TO OPEN UP SEASON
Penn State rolled to a 45-0 shutout win over visiting Oklahoma in the Bryce Jordan Center on Friday, Nov. 14, in the season opener for the Nittany Lions. Penn State tallied eight bonus point wins in the victory, the teams third shutout win in its last four duals in the Jordan Center. The Lions had a pin (Levi Hines), five technical falls (
Marcus Blaze,
Shayne Van Ness,
Joe Sealey,
Mitchell Mesenbrink,
Rocco Welsh) and two majors (
Luke Lilledahl,
Connor Mirasola) as well as two decisions (
Aaron Nagao,
Cole Mirasola) to round out the shutout.
Connor Mirasola majored #8 DJ Parker 13-3 at 197,
Cole Mirasola downed #24 Juan Mora at 285 and Haines pinned #33 Carter Schubert (4:15) for three ranked victories.
Four members of the Penn State wrestling team competed in the Floyd ‘Shorty’ Hitchcock Invitational at Millersville University on Sunday, Nov. 15.
Lucas Cochran won the 285 pound title, going 3-0 with another win over a non-collegiate wrestler.
Hayden Cunningham went 3-0 and 1-1 vs. non-collegiates to take third place at 141. Sam Becket went 3-1 and 1-1 vs. non-collegiates to take sixth at 165 and
Brock Weiss went 2-2 at 149.
PENN STATE CONCLUDES OUTSTANDING
FREESTYLE SEASON with four u23 medals
Seven Penn State wrestlers took part in the United World Wrestling U23 World Championships in Novi Sad, Serbia, this weekend. Four of those seven Nittany Lions brought home U23 World Championships and Gold Medals while another won Bronze. The United States U23 World Team featured ten wrestlers, seven of whom were current Nittany Lions. Junior
Mitchell Mesenbrink won the Gold Medal at 74 kg, sophomore
Luke Lilledahl won the Gold Medal 57 kg, senior
Levi Haines won the Gold Medal 79 kg, true freshman
PJ Duke won a Bronze Medal at 70 kg, sophomore
Rocco Welsh went 2-1 at 86 kg, sophomore
Josh Barr went 1-1 at 92 kg before bowing out with an injury and true freshman
Marcus Blaze competed at 65 kg. Penn State and the Penn State Olympic Regional Training Center had a very successful freestyle season winning a combined 11 world medals at the Senior World Championships, U20 World Championships and these U23 World Championships. Haines won Silver at Senior Worlds while RTC wrestler Kyle Snyder won Gold. Blaze and Duke had already won U20 Gold while
William Henckel won U20 Silver and Connor and
Cole Mirasola won U20 Bronze. Mesenbrink, Lilledahl and Haines won Gold while Duke won Bronze at U23s.
FOUR NITTANY LIONS COMPETE IN JOURNEYMEN
COLLEGIATE ROUND ROBIN EVENT
Four members of the Penn State wrestling team opened up the 2025-26 season by competing in the round robin portion of the Journeymen Collegiate on Sunday, Nov. 9.
Connor Pierce went 2-1 with two technical falls at 149,
Joe Sealey went 2-1 with a pin at 157,
Sam Beckett went 2-1 at 165 and
Dawson Bundy went 1-2 with a major at 285.
HAINES AND MESENBRINK NAMED TO
B1G PRESEASON WRESTLER TO WATCH LIST
The Big Ten released, for the first time, a pre-season Wrestler to Watch list that featured a maximum of two wrestlers per school. Penn State Nittany Lion National Champions
Levi Haines (2024) and
Mitchell Mesenbrink (2025) were included on the list.
