Penn State puts 9 of 10 into the semifinals of the Big Ten wrestling championships: Session I recap
Penn State wrestling cruised to a massive lead in the team race during session one at the Big Ten Wrestling Championships. The No. 1 Nittany Lions weighed in all 10 starters as expected this morning on the campus of Northwestern University. They sent nine to tonight’s semifinals. Heaad coach Cael Sanderson’s team has 88 team points after session one, putting it 28 clear of second place Nebraska. Read how it happend below.
Penn State has nine semifinalists after session one of the Big Ten championships
03/08/2025 01:51:09 PMPenn State leads the team race and has nine semifinalists after session one at the Big Ten Championships. Only 133-pound sophomore Braeden Davis is in the consolation bracket. He lost his quarterfinal 3-1 to Rutgers’ Dylan Shawver. Otherwise, the Lions roared. Heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet pinned No. 7 Ben Kueter of Iowa in 1:53 at heavyweight and Levi Haines decked No. 8 Brody Baumann of Purdue in 5:58.
Besides those two, Luke Lilledahl (125), Beau Bartlett (141), Shayne Van Ness (149), Tyler Kasak (157), Mitchell Mesenbrink (165), Carter Starocci (184), and Josh Barr (197) are all in the semifinals. Those are at 8 p.m. ET tonight. Davis will be in consolation bracket action at 6 p.m. ET on B1G+.
Full Session One results:
125 pounds: No. 4 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State F No. 13 Caelan Riley, Illinois, 4:09 (First round)
125 pounds: No. 5 Luke Lilledahl, PSU md. No. 5 Joey Cruz, Iowa, 11-1
133 pounds: No. 4 Braeden Davis, PSU md. No. 13 Andrew Hampton of Michigan State, 11-2 (First round)
133 pounds: No. 5 Dylan Shawver, Rutgers d. No. 4 Braedan Davis, Penn State, 3-1 (quarters)
141 pounds: No. 1 Beau Bartlett, Penn State md. No. 9 Greyson Clark of Purdue, 13-3
149 pounds: No. 1 Shayne Van Ness, PSU md. No. 8 Kal Miller of Maryland, 12-2
157 pounds: No. 2 Tyler Kasak, Penn State d. No. 7 Trevor Chumley of Northwestern, 7-3
165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, PSU MDF No. 9 Paddy Gallagher of Ohio State
174 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines, Penn State F No. 8 Brody Baumann of Purdue, 5:58
184 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU TF No. 8 DJ Washington of Indiana, 19-1 (3:54)
197 pounds: No. 2 Josh Barr, Penn State TF No. 7 Camden McDaniel of Nebraska, 17-2 (4:05)
285 pounds: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU F. No. 7 Ben Kueter of Iowa 1:53
And here are the Lions’ next opponents:
125 pounds: No. 4 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State vs. No. 1 Matt Ramos, Purdue
133 pounds: No. 4 Braeden Davis, PSU vs. TBD (consolation bracket)
141 pounds: No. 1 Beau Bartlett, Penn State vs. No. 4 Vance Vombaur, Minnesota
149 pounds: No. 1 Shayne Van Ness, PSU vs. No. 5 Kannon Webster, Illinois
157 pounds: No. 2 Tyler Kasak, Penn State vs. No. 3 Antrell Taylor, Nebraska
165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, PSU vs. No. 4 Beau Mantanona, Michigan
174 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines, Penn State vs. No. 4 Patrick Kennedy, Iowa
184 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU vs. No. 5 Jaxon Smith, Maryland
197 pounds: No. 2 Josh Barr, Penn State vs. No. 3 Jacob Cardenas, Michigan
285 pounds: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU vs. No. 3 Josh Heindselman, Michigan
Kerkvliet is into the semifinals
03/08/2025 01:50:35 PMKerkvliet shoots and sores early for a quick 3-0 lead over Iowa’s Ben Kueter at heavyweight. He cuts and shoots and scores again for a 6-1 lead. he now tilts Kueter to his back and gets the fall at the 1:53 mark.
Barr is into the semifinals
03/08/2025 01:40:48 PMHe beat Nebraska’s Camden McDanel by technical fall, 17-2, in 4:05. He is the eighth Penn State wrestler to qualify for NCAAs and make the Big Ten semifinals.
Starocci is into the semifinals
03/08/2025 01:19:47 PMCarter Starocci beats DJ Washington of Indiana by technical fall, 19-1, in a 184-pound quarterfinal. He’s into the semifinals, and is the seventh Penn State wrestler to qualify for the NCAA Tournament today.
Kasak, Haines, are into the semifinals
03/08/2025 01:11:40 PMLevi Haines pinned Brody Baumann at the 5:58 mark of his 174-pound quarterfinal while Tyler Kasak beat Trevor Chumbley 7-3 at at 157 pounds. Both Penn State wrestlers are into the semifinals.
Mitchell Mesenbrink is into the semifinals
03/08/2025 01:03:41 PMMitchell Mesenbrink gets a forfeit from Ohio State’s Paddy Gallagher. So he’s into the 165-pound semifinals.
Shayne Van Ness is the Lions’ third semifinalist
03/08/2025 12:51:40 PMShayne Van Ness, the No. 1 seed at 149 pounds, beat Maryland’s Kal Miller by major decision, 12-2, with 2:34 in riding time. He is the Lions’ third semifinalist, joining Luke Lilledahl (125 pounds) and Beau Bartlett (141).
Beau Bartlett is Penn State’s second semifinalist
03/08/2025 12:40:17 PMPenn State senior Beau Bartlett, who is the No. 1 Big Ten seed at 141 pounds, beat Purdue’s Creyson Clark 13-3. He is into the semifinals.
Braeden Davis drops to the consolation bracket
03/08/2025 12:33:53 PMNo. 4 Penn State sophomore Braeden Davis gave up a late third period takedown to lose to No. 5 Dylan Shawver of Rutgers, 3-1. He will be in the consolation bracket for his next match at 133 pounds.
Penn State has its first semifinalist
03/08/2025 12:21:56 PMPenn State freshman Luke Lilledahl, the No. 4 seed at 125 pounds, beats No. 5 Joey Cruz by major decision, 11-1, in the quarters. He will face Big Ten No. 1 seed Matt Ramos of Purdue in the quarterfinals tonight.
Carter Starocci gets his first opponent
03/08/2025 11:43:48 AMCarter Starocci will face Indiana’s DJ Washington in the quarterfinals at 184 pounds. The Hoosier gave the Nittany Lion his only collegiate loss, but the Penn State star has beaten him every time since.
Levi Haines gets his first opponent
03/08/2025 11:30:38 AMThe top seed at 174 pounds, Levi Haines, will face No. 8 Brody Baumann of Purdue. He beat Lucas Condon of Wisconsin 14-7.
Tyler Kasak gets his first opponent
03/08/2025 11:21:00 AMTyler Kasak, the No. 2 seed at 157 pounds, will face No. 7 Trevor Chumbley of Northwestern in the quarterfinals.
Mitchell Mesenbrink learns his first opponent
03/08/2025 11:13:48 AMThe top seed at 165 pounds, Mitchell Mesenbrink, will face Paddy Gallagher of Ohio State in the quarterfinals. The Buckeye beat Northwestern’s Maxx Mayfield by decision, 7-2, in the first round.
Shayne Van Ness gets his first round opponent
03/08/2025 10:53:07 AMShayne Van Ness will face No. 8 Kal Miller in a 149-pound quarterfinal. The Nittany Lion is the No. 1 seed in the bracket.
Beau Bartlett gets his first round opponent
03/08/2025 10:36:31 AMPenn State senior and 141-pound No. 1 seed Beau Bartlett will face Purdue’s Greyson Clark in the quarterfinals. The Boilermaker beat Indiana’s Henry Porter by technical fall in his opener.
Braeden Davis wins his opener
03/08/2025 10:31:35 AMPenn State sophomore Braeden Davis used three takedowns, an escape, and 1:40 in riding time to beat Michigan State’s Andrew Hampton by major decision, 11-2, in his opener at 133 pounds. He’ll face Rutgers’ Dylan Shawver in the quarterfinals.
Lilledahl learns his quarterfinal opponent
03/08/2025 10:12:56 AMThe Penn State freshman will face Iowa’s Joey Cruz in the quarterfinals. The Hawkeye beat Michigan’s Christian Tanefeu 11-7 in a first round bout at 125 pounds.
Lilledahl wins by fall
03/08/2025 10:07:33 AMLeading 10-2 in the second period, Penn State 125-pound freshman Luke Lilledahl tilted Illinois’ Caelan Riley for backpoints and eventually pinned him. He’s onto the quarterfinals.
Luke Lilledahl is up first
03/08/2025 09:55:54 AMHe’ll start on mat 3.
First Penn State opponents
03/08/2025 09:18:50 AMHere’s the list:
125 pounds: No. 4 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State vs. No. 13 Caelan Riley, Illinois*
133 pounds: No. 4 Braeden Davis, PSU vs. No. 13 Andrew Hampton of Michigan State*
141 pounds: No. 1 Beau Bartlett, Penn State vs. No. 8 Henry Porter of Indiana OR No. 9 Greyson Clark of Purdue
149 pounds: No. 1 Shayne Van Ness, PSU vs. No. 8 Kal Miller of Maryland OR No. 9 Dylan Gilcher of Michigan
157 pounds: No. 2 Tyler Kasak, Penn State vs. No. 7 Trevor Chumley of Northwestern OR No. 10 Conner Harer of Rutgers
165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, PSU vs. No. 9 Paddy Gallagher of Ohio State OR No. 8 Maxx Mayfield, Northwestern
174 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines, Penn State vs. No. 8 Brody Baumann of Purdue OR No. 9 Lucas Condon of Wisconsin
184 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, PSU vs. No. 8 DJ Washington of Indiana OR No. 9 Ryder Rogotzke of Ohio State
197 pounds: No. 2 Josh Barr, Penn State vs. No. 7 Camden McDaniel of Nebraska OR No. 10 Remy Cotton of Michigan State
285 pounds: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU vs. No. 7 Ben Kueter of Iowa OR No. 10 Hayden Filipovich of Purdue
Penn State starters are weighed in
03/08/2025 09:17:28 AMAll 10 Lions are set for action in Evanston. There are only two first round matches: Luke Lilledahl at 125 pounds and Braeden Davis at 133. Then, there will be a lengthy wait until quarterfinal action starts.
