Penn State wrestling clinches third straight Big Ten title
Penn State wrestling has clinched its third straight Big Ten championship. It marks the ninth in program history. All have come under the direction of legendary head coach Cael Sanderson. The No. 1 Nittany Lions were heavy favorites to win coming into the event. From a mathematical standpoint, they almost could not lose at the start of the second and final day of the tournament on Sunday. But, Nebraska and Iowa still had a chance. That is no longer the case, however. The Lions are now officially the champions.
Penn State clinched the title during the final session. Luke Lilledahl and Tyler Kasak are conference champs at 125 and 157 pounds, respectively. Braeden Davis is fourth at 133. And Beau Bartlett and Shayne Van Ness finished third at 141 and 149, respectively. As of the time of this post (7:05 p.m. ET), four finalists will still be in action for the Lions. Josh Barr will injury default out of his fifth place match at 197. He was hurt in his consolation semifinal.
All told, the Lions will send all 10 starters to the NCAA Tournament. That starts on Thur., March 20 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. It runs through Sat., March 22, when the finals will be contested.
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Recapping the Penn State Big Ten tournament so far
Penn State had a good, but not perfect, first day in Evanston. The Nittany Lions sent nine wrestlers to the semifinals, with only Braeden Davis, a sophomore who starts at 133 pounds, losing in the quarterfinals. However, the semifinal round was turbulent for the Nittany Lions. Senior Beau Bartlett and junior Shayne Van Ness were both upset at 141 and 149 pounds, respectively. And, redshirt freshman Josh Barr technically suffered a seeding upset, though he and the opponent who beat him, Michigan’s Jacob Cardenas, were the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds, respectively, and only because the Nittany Lion beat the Wolverine in tiebreaker two during the dual meet season.
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The Lions’ six finalists are Luke Lilledahl (125 pounds), Tyler Kasak (157), Mitchell Mesenbrink (165), Levi Haines (174), Carter Starocci (184), and Greg Kerkvliet (285). Check the Blue-White Illustrated home page for more live updates as the final session unfolds.
What’s next for the Lions?
Once Big Tens are over, Penn State turns its attention to the NCAA Tournament. Seeds for that event will come out this Wednesday, March 12. Then, the action will start exactly one week after that. The Lions should have numerous top seeds and all wrestlers should land in the top 10. BWI will have continuing coverage leading up to nationals in Philadelphia.
