Penn State wrestling has 3 finalists and 10 All-Americans; what's the team race score after Friday?

Penn State leads in the team race; first Saturday bouts for each Nittany Lion

Penn State and Nebraska are the only two teams still mathematically capable of winning the NCAA Championship. The Lions are still the heavy favorite to win their fourth. They start Saturday in first with 135.5 points. Nebraska is in second with 101.5.

Here’s who each Nittany Lion faces first Saturday (a * indicates a consolation bracket match):

125 pounds: No. 1 Luke Lilledahl, PSU vs. No. 3 Eddie Ventresca, Virginia Tech*

133 pounds: No. 8 Braeden Davis, Penn State vs. No. 14 Zan Fuggit, Wisconsin*

141 pounds: No. 2 Beau Bartlett, PSU vs. No. 4 Josh Koderhandt, Navy*

149 pounds: No. 3 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State vs No. 12 Ethan Stiles, Oregon State*

157 pounds: No. 1 Tyler Kasak, PSU vs. No. 2 Meyer Shapiro, Cornell*

165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State vs. No. 3 Mikey Caliendo, Iowa

174 pounds: No. 2 Levi Haines, PSU vs. No. 5 Simon Ruiz, Cornell*

184 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, Penn State vs. No. 2 Parker Keckeisen, Northern Iowa

197 pounds: No. 4 Josh Barr, PSU vs. No. 2 Stephen Buchanan, Iowa

285 pounds: No. 3 Greg Kerkvliet, Penn State vs. No. 9 Cohlton Schultz, Arizona State*

Penn State session four semifinal results

141 pounds: No. 3 Jesse Mendez, Ohio State d. No. 2 Beau Bartlett, PSU 2-1 (TB)

149 pounds:  No. 2 Ridge Lovett, Nebraska d. No. 3 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State, 14-8

165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State md. No. 12 Christopher Minto, Nebraska, 13-2

174 pounds: No. 2 Levi Haines, PSU d. No. 3 Dean Hamiti, Oklahoma State, 4-2

184 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, Penn State d.. No. 4 Dustin Plott, Oklahoma State, 9-3

197 pounds: No. 4 Josh Barr, PSU d.. No. 1 Jacob Cardenas, Michigan, 5-3

285 pounds: No. 3 Greg Kerkvliet, Penn State vs. No. 2 Wyatt Hendrickson, Oklahoma State

Nittany Lion session four consolation bracket results

125 pounds: No. 1 Luke Lilledahl, PSU d. No. 11 Nicolar Rivera, Wisconsin*, 7-3
125 pounds: No. 1 Luke Lilledahl, PSU d. No. 10 Steveo Poulin, Northern Colorado*, 3-0

133 pounds: No. 8 Braeden Davis, Penn State d.  No. 11 Evan Frost, Iowa State*, 4-2
133 pounds: No. 8 Braeden Davis, Penn State d.  No. 17 Jacob Van Dee, Nebraska, 4-2

157 pounds: No. 1 Tyler Kasak, PSU d  No. 14 Jude Swisher, Penn*, 5-4
157 pounds: No. 1 Tyler Kasak, PSU F. No. 12 Caleb Fish, Oklahoma State, 4:19

Greg Kerkvliet drops his semifinal bout

Penn State heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet lost to Oklahoma State’s Wyatt Hendrickson 8-2 in the semifinals.

Watch: Carter Starocci’s post-semi news conference

Carter Starocci talks quest for fifth NCAA titles, Penn State having 10 All-Americans, and more

Josh Barr is headed to the finals

Penn State redshirt freshman Josh Barr is headed to the finals. He took out Michigan’s Jacob Cardenas 5-3 after the two split earlier this year. He is the Lions’ third finalist, joining Mitchell Mesenbrink (165) and Carter Starocci (184).

Carter Starocci is Penn State’s second finalist

Carter Starocci takes out No. 4 Dustin Plott of Oklahoma State by decision, 9-3, in a 184-pound semifinal. He is officially going to wrestle for a historic fifth NCAA title Saturday night.

Penn State is perfect on the backside

Tyler Kasak picks up a fall at the 4:19 mark of his second consolation bracket match of the night. Penn State goes six for six on the back side. Kasak, Luke Lilledahl, and Braeden Davis can finish as high as third, and all are done for tonight.

Watch Mitchell Mesenbrink’s post-semifinal news conference:

Braeden Davis wins again

Braeden Davis, the Nittany Lion 133-pounder, is two-for-two in consolation bracket action tonight. He’ll be alive for as high as third tomorrow.

Luke Lilledahl wins again

Luke Lilledahl has won his second consolation bracket match of the night. He can still finish as high as third.

Levi Haines falls 4-2

Dean Hamiti of Oklahoma State takes out Penn State’s Levi Haines 4-2 in a semifinal at 174 pounds. Haines will wrestle next in the medal round tomorrow. Mitchell Mesenbrink is currently the Lions’ lone finalist with three still to go.

Mitchell Mesenbrink is Penn State’s first finalist

Mitchell Mesenbrink beat Nebraska’s Christopher Minto 13-2 in a 165-pound semifinal. He is the first Penn State finalist of the tournament. And, it’s a big win for the team race, which the Lions continue to lead as the action shifts to 174. He’ll face Mikey Caliendo. It’s a rematch of the Big Ten finals.

The team race tightens

Antrell Taylor just shocked Meyer Shapiro of Cornell in a 157-pound semifinal. That pulls Nebraska up to 98 points. Penn State currently has 101 as it prepares to have four straight semifinalists.

The Lions are still heavily favored to win the team title. But, the Cornhuskers’ success will delay when they clinch it.

Friday night update

We have a bit of a breather now as Mitchell Mesenbrink will be on the mat next in a 165-pound semifinal. First, though, they have to wrestle those at 157. Penn State’s first two semifinalists, Beau Bartlett and Shayne Van Ness, both lost at 141 and 149, respectively. But, the Lions now have 10 All-Americans, as all three wrestlers in the consolation bracket won their first match.

In the team race, Penn State leads with 101 points. Nebraska is in second with 87.5. And, Oklahoma State is in third with 77. No other team has more than 50.

Here’s a look at the results so far and what’s to come as of 9:23 p.m. ET:

*Indicates a consolation round bout. All other semifinals. 
125 pounds: No. 1 Luke Lilledahl, PSU d. No. 11 Nicolar Rivera, Wisconsin*, 7-3
125 pounds: No. 1 Luke Lilledahl, PSU vs. No. 10 Steveo Poulin, Northern Colorado*

133 pounds: No. 8 Braeden Davis, Penn State d.  No. 11 Evan Frost, Iowa State*, 4-2
133 pounds: No. 8 Braeden Davis, Penn State vs. No. 17 Jacob Van Dee, Nebraska*

141 pounds: No. 3 Jesse Mendez, Ohio State d. No. 2 Beau Bartlett, PSU 2-1 (TB)

149 pounds:  No. 2 Ridge Lovett, Nebraska d. No. 3 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State, 14-8

157 pounds: No. 1 Tyler Kasak, PSU d  No. 14 Jude Swisher, Penn*, 5-4
157 pounds: No. 1 Tyler Kasak, PSU vs. No. 12 Caleb Fish, Oklahoma State*

165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State vs. No. 12 Christopher Minto, Nebraska

174 pounds: No. 2 Levi Haines, PSU vs. No. 3 Dean Hamiti, Oklahoma State

184 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, Penn State vs. No. 4 Dustin Plott, Oklahoma State

197 pounds: No. 4 Josh Barr, PSU vs. No. 1 Jacob Cardenas, Michigan

285 pounds: No. 3 Greg Kerkvliet, Penn State vs. No. 2 Wyatt Hendrickson, Oklahoma State

Shayne Van Ness falls to Ridge Lovett

Ridge Lovett of Nebraska beats Shayne Van Ness of Penn State 14-8 at 149 pounds. The Lions are now 0 for 2 in the semifinals with five more to go tonight.

Beau Bartlett loses to Jesse Mendez

Penn State senior Beau Bartlett loses his semifinal at 141 pounds to Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez, 2-1, in tiebreaker. He’ll wrestle for a medal tomorrow.

Tyler Kasak is Penn State’s 10th All-American

Tyler Kasak beats Swisher of Penn 5-4 to become Penn State’s 10th All-American. The Lions are just the second program to accomplish that feat in college wrestling history.

It’s about to be Beau Bartlett time

He takes on Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez in one 141-pound quarterfinal. Brock Hardy of Nebraska and Cael Happel of Northern Iowa meet in the other.

So far, Penn State has picked up wins from Luke Lilledahl and Braeden Davis. Both are now All-Americans and wrestle for placing tonight and tomorrow. Bartlett is the first of seven Nittany Lion semifinalists. And, Tyler Kasak has his own consolation round bout at 157 pounds in a bit.

Braeden Davis is an All-American

Penn State sophomore Braeden Davis is an All-American at 133 pounds. He beats Evan Frost of Iowa State by decision, 4-2, to earn his spot on the podium. The Lions now have nine All-Americans and can go 10-for-10 if Tyler Kasak wins his consolation bout later tonight. Davis will face No. 17 Jacob Van Dee of Nebraska later tonight.

Luke Lilledahl is an All-American

Penn State 125-pound freshman Luke Lilledahl is an All-American. He beats No. 11 Nicolar Rivera by decision, 7-3, in his blood round bout. The Nittany Lion will wrestle a consolation semifinal tonight and for a medal tomorrow. Lilledahl’s next match will be against No. 10 Steve Poulin of Northern Colorado.

The action starts now

Luke Lilledahl tries to keep his tournament alive in a 125-pound consolation round bout. On the championship side of things, these two matchups are on deck:

No. 4 Vince Robinson (NC State) vs. No. 8 Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh)
No. 3 Eddie Ventresca (Virginia Tech) vs. No. 7 Troy Spratley (Oklahoma State)

First mat assignments are in

Penn State 125-pound Luke Lilledahl will face Nicolar Rivera of Wisconsin in the first consolation match on mat two once the action begins at 8 p.m. ET. Braeden Davis will follow him on mat two in his own consolation bracket match, which is at 133 pounds, opposite Evan Frost of Iowa State.

Here is the rundown of matches tonight

Each Penn State wrestler will compete this evening on ESPN and ESPN+. Seven Nittany Lions are in the championship bracket. And, three are in win-or-go home matches. That trio needs to win not just to keep their tournaments alive but also to earn All-American status. If they win, they’ll wrestle a consolation semifinal bout tonight and placing match tomorrow. Find the match rundown by weight below. An * indicates a consolation bracket match.

125 pounds: No. 1 Luke Lilledahl, PSU vs. No. 11 Nicolar Rivera, Wisconsin*

133 pounds: No. 8 Braeden Davis, Penn State vs. No. 11 Evan Frost, Iowa State*

141 pounds: No. 2 Beau Bartlett, PSU vs. No. 3 Jesse Mendez, Ohio State

149 pounds: No. 3 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State vs. No. 2 Ridge Lovett, Nebraska

157 pounds: No. 1 Tyler Kasak, PSU vs. No. 14 Jude Swisher, Penn*

165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State vs. No. 12 Christopher Minto, Nebraska

174 pounds: No. 2 Levi Haines, PSU vs. No. 3 Dean Hamiti, Oklahoma State

184 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci, Penn State vs. No. 4 Dustin Plott, Oklahoma State

197 pounds: No. 4 Josh Barr, PSU vs. No. 1 Jacob Cardenas, Michigan

285 pounds: No. 3 Greg Kerkvliet, Penn State vs. No. 2 Wyatt Hendrickson, Oklahoma State