Scarlet Sunrise: Buckeyes wrestler Jesse Mendez captures second National Championship

COLUMBUS – Ohio State head wrestling coach Tom Ryan has another multi-time National Champion in Columbus.

Jesse Mendez, the No. 3 seed, beat top-seeded Brock Hardy of Nebraska to win back-to-back national titles at 141 pounds. He went down 5-0 in the first period but battled back with an escape and a takedown of his own to make it 5-4 heading into the second period.

Hardy then got an escape at the start of the second to make it 6-4 and from there it was all Mendez. He got a takedown then four near fall to take a 11-6 lead. Mendez then got an escape in the third period and Hardy got a late takedown to make it 11-9 but that wasn’t enough. With a point for riding time, Mendez won the 2025 National Championship with a 12-9 win by decision.

The win also avenged Mendez loss to Hardy in the semifinals of the Big Ten Championships earlier this month.

Mendez becomes the most recent Ohio State wrestler to win multiple National Championships. Kyle Snyder, who won three titles at heavyweight in 2016-17-18, was the last Buckeye to accomplish the rare feat.

Dylan D’Emilio was the only other Ohio State wrestler to earn All-American honors at the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Tournament. D’Emilio finished fourth at 149 pounds. He beat Lachlan McNeil of North Carolina, 7-1, in consolation semifinals before falling to Shayne Van Ness of Penn State, 15-4, in the third place match.

Ohio State finished tied for fifth as a team. The Buckeyes tied Minnesota with 51.5 team points. Penn State won the team national championship with 177 points. Nebraska finished second with 117 points while Oklahoma State (102.5) and Iowa (81) finished third and fourth, respectively.

Mendez will look to win his third national title as a senior next season. Additionally, he’ll get to do it in Ohio as Cleveland will host the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Tournament.

Counting down

Ohio State vs. Texas: 160 days away
Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 251 days away

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