Penn State wrestling newcomers making presence felt through first six duals

Three transfers are starters for the Penn State wrestling team. One first-year freshman is, too, and the likelihood of that number growing to two this weekend is high. It means this year’s Nittany Lions lineup is a bit different than the ones that came before it. Sure, there are still returning national champions and All-Americans up and down it. But, due to graduations and the pending Olympic schedule, head coach Cael Sanderson and his staff had the chance to build things a bit differently this year. It’s been so far, so good.

The stats tell the story through six dual meets. Mitchell Mesenbrink, the 165-pound starter who joined the Lions off a redshirt year at Cal Baptist following a terrific prep career in Wisconsin, leads the Lions in wins with 13, technical falls with six, and dual meet points with 30 so far in 2023-2024. Aaron Nagao, a former Minnesota All-American at 133 pounds, is tracking toward a return to that level. He has the team’s fastest fall this season in 57 seconds and has five technical falls on the year. The team’s third offseason transfer addition, Bernie Truax, is not a stats hoarder but is still 7-1 and No. 5 at 184 pounds. And that’s all just their impact on the mat.

Off it, Truax’s arrival allowed Aaron Brooks to bump up to 197 pounds. Mesenbrink’s talent allowed 2022-2023 starter Alex Facundo to take an Olympic redshirt year. And, Nagao plugged a hole in the Lions’ lineup that needed to be filled.

Mesenbrink leads Penn State transfer class

Mesenbrink has been the star of the transfer class to date. All have been good as outlined above, of course. But, his tenacious style of wrestling is leading to a bundle of bonus points and national attention. And it’s impressed Penn State fans. They see a lot of the past and present in the newcomer.

“I don’t think matches need to be as close as they are in college,” Mesenbrink said this week. “It’s not a downplay on anybody; everybody’s journey is different. My journey has just been really focused on the pace. And, just going out and getting points.

“Here (at Penn State), you like to surround yourself with like-minded people, and I think everybody in this room is like that. And you’ve seen it from the dynasty that has been Penn State wrestling and the prowess that it exudes. From David Taylor and Ed Ruth on, those people went out there and crushed people.”

Added teammate David Evans:

“Mitch is an animal and just these new guys coming in, and even like Bernie, was just a blessing,” junior David Evans told the Penn State Sports Network last weekend. “They bring some new personalities to the program and some different types of wrestle. So it’s really cool and I love watching them wrestle. It’s awesome.”

Don’t forget about the freshman

Braeden Davis is now the team’s starter at 125 pounds. The four-time Michigan state champ worked his way into the role as the season progressed. He is now 12-0 and No. 4 in the country.

“It was just kind of like, we’re pulling his redshirt, he’s ready to go,” Sanderson said this week. “It makes sense timing-wise with our team, and just him and where he’s probably going to grow [into a bigger weight class in the future]. He’s had to eat disciplined to keep his weight down. And, just who we have on our team and coming in, the lineup we’ll have. So yeah, I think he showed that he was ready to go the first half of the season and that kind of has been the plan.”

The first-year Lion should be joined soon in the starting lineup by classmate Tyler Kasak. He’s now 6-1, with his only loss coming to teammate Beau Bartlett in a tournament, and up to No. 12 at 149 pounds in place of injured All-American Shayne Van Ness. Assuming he takes the mat for the Lions at Maryland, half of the team’s projected starters will be newcomers. And they, along with the returners, are powering Penn State to new heights in 2023-2024.