Penn State wrestling went a perfect 10-0 in second-round bouts at the NCAA Championships on Thursday night in Philadelphia, advancing all 10 wrestlers to Friday’s quarterfinals and completing the first day of the national tournament with a perfect 20-0 record.
The Nittany Lions remain atop team standing with a total of 39.5 points, ahead of second-place Nebraska with 29 and third-place Oklahoma State with 27.
Highlighting session 2 action for Penn State were tech falls from Luke Lilledahl, Mitchell Mesenbrink and Carter Starocci, winning by a combined point margin of 56-9.
The Nittany Lions scored bonus points in 13 of 20 bouts and surrendered just one takedown across the first two sessions.
How It Happened
125 pounds
Kicking off the first of 10 second-round championship bouts was No. 1 Lilledahl taking on No. 16 Blake West of Northern Illinois. After a handful of decent shots from both wrestlers, Lilledahl snagged the bout’s first takedown with just under 20 seconds remaining in the first period, carrying a 3-0 lead into the second. A second takedown from Lilledahl late in the middle period increased his lead to 6-1 moving into the final period of action. Another pair of takedowns and a four-second near-fall for the true freshman awarded the Nittany Lion a 19-3 tech fall victory at 6:52.
Lilledahl will meet No. 8 seed Sheldon Seymour of Lehigh in the quarterfinals.
133 pounds
Next up was No. 8 Braeden Davis facing off against No. 9 Braxton Brown of Maryland. Davis struck first with an ankle-pick inside the first 60 seconds to jump in front 3-0. An escape from Brown was the only point scored in the remainder of the period with Davis still in front 3-1 heading into the second. Similarly, a quick escape from Davis out of bottom position was the only point scored in the second, extending his lead to 4-1 entering the final two minutes. After giving up a reversal to start the third, Davis escaped to put his lead back at two points, now 5-3 with 60 seconds remaining in the bout. Davis held on for the remainder of the third to win via a 5-3 decision.
Davis will take on No. 1 seed Lucas Byrd of Illinois in the quarterfinals.
141 pounds
The next Nittany Lion in action was No. 2 Beau Bartlett battling against No. 18 Julian Tagg of South Dakota State. No points were scored in the first period as Tagg took bottom position to start the second. After an escape from Tagg, an impressive scramble and roll-through from Bartlett saw the Nittany Lion secure the bout’s first takedown to take a 3-1 lead with just over 60 seconds of riding time into the final period. With no more action tallying points in the third, Bartlett took the 4-1 decision victory after riding time.
Bartlett will face No. 10 seed CJ Composto of Penn in the quarterfinals.
149 pounds
Moments later, No. 3 Shayne Van Ness took on No. 19 Andrew Clark of Rutgers. After a tugging match on the edge of the mat, Van Ness finally hauled his first takedown to take a 3-0 lead with just under 120 seconds left in the first. A second takedown from Van Ness to end the first period extended his lead to 6-1 entering the second. Van Ness rode out Clark for the entire second period, amassing over 180 seconds of riding time as the score remained 6-1 heading into the third. After a third takedown and stalling call against Clark, Van Ness took the 12-1 major decision victory after riding time.
Up next for Van Ness is No. 6 seed Lachlan McNeil of North Carolina in the quarterfinals.
157 pounds
No. 1 Tyler Kasak got the opening takedown just seconds into the bout against No. 16 Cody Chittum of Iowa State to take an early 3-1 lead after an escape from the Cyclone. After a brief headgear issue, the bout resumed and the first period concluded with Kasak remaining in front by two. A quick reversal from Kasak then an eventual escape from Chittum pushed the bout score to 5-2 midway through the second. Kasak fought hard for his second takedown of the bout to extend his lead to 8-2 heading into the final period. A Chittum escape was the only scoring in the third, Kasak took home the 8-3 decision victory.
Kasak gets No. 8 seed Joey Blaze of Purdue in the quarterfinals.
165 pounds
No. 1 Mesenbrink struck first with an early takedown against No. 16 Kyle Mosher of Hofstra, though a fall opportunity was thwarted after a potentially dangerous stoppage. A second takedown and four near fall points helped Mesenbrink increase his lead to 12-2 after one. Endless offensive pressure in the second period gave Mesenbrink the 22-6 tech fall at 4:15.
Mesenbrink next faces No. 8 seed Cameron Amine of Oklahoma State in the quarterfinals.
174 pounds
No. 2 Levi Haines used a deep shot for the bout’s first takedown against No. 18 Gavin Sax of Oklahoma, and the Nittany Lion carried a 3-0 lead with just over 60 seconds of riding time into the middle period. After starting the second in top position, Haines escaped midway through the period to increase his lead to 4-0, which would hold for the remainder of the second. No more points were scored in the final period, giving Haines the 4-0 decision victory.
Haines takes on No. 7 seed Danny Wask of Navy in the quarterfinals.
184 pounds
Simultaneously, No. 1 Starocci faced off against Shane Cartegena-Walsh of Rutgers. Starocci scored an immediate takedown and followed with two four-point turns to extend his lead to 11-0 after one. A second takedown and stalling point gave Starocci the 15-0 tech fall at 4:23.
Next for Starocci is No. 8 seed Jaxon Smith of Maryland in the quarterfinals.
197 pounds
No. 4 Josh Barr and No. 13 Trey Munoz of Oregon State were scoreless through the first period before Munoz scored a quick reversal to start the second. After Barr’s escape, Munoz led 2-1 entering the third period. Barr started the third in bottom position and quickly escaped to tie the bout 2-2, where the score remained through the end of regulation to send the bout to sudden victory.
In the extra period, Barr fought hard to finish a double leg, marking the first takedown of the bout and granting the Nittany Lion the 5-2 decision.
Barr will take on former Nittany Lion and No. 5 seed Michael Beard of Lehigh in the quarterfinals.
285 pounds
Finishing up the night for the Nittany Lions was No. 3 Greg Kerkvliet taking on No. 14 Gavin Hoffman of Lock Haven. Kerkvliet perfectly executed a trip to wrap up his first takedown and a 3-0 lead heading into the second period. Kerkvliet began the middle period in top position, riding out Hoffman for the entire two minutes. No more points were scored in the third as Kerkvliet took the 4-0 decision victory after riding time.
Kerkvliet meets No. 6 seed Joshua Heindselman of Michigan in the quarterfinals.
Centre County Wrestlers
Two Centre County products were also in action on Friday.
Bellefonte alum Jude Swisher of Penn, the No. 14 seed at 157 pounds, recorded a first-period pin against Cobe Siebrecht of South Dakota State in the opening round before falling to the same fate against No. 3 seed Antrell Taylor of Nebraska in the second round. He’ll wrestle in the consolation bracket on Friday.
Penns Valley grad Malachi DuVall of George Mason, the No. 21 seed at 184 pounds, lost to Nebraska’s 12th-seeded Silas Allred by third-period fall in the first round before winning a 13-0 major decision over No. 28 seed Dennis Robin of West Virginia in the first round of wrestlebacks. DuVall will return to consolation action on Friday against Iowa’s Gabe Arnold.
What’s Next?
The NCAA Championships resume at noon Friday with session III. All bouts will be broadcast on ESPNU and ESPN +.
Geoff Rushton contributed to this report.
