Penn State wrestling notes: What will the Lions do at 149? A look at the month ahead, more

Penn State wrestling shared its first bad news of the season on Tuesday. Head coach Cael Sanderson announced that returning All-American and 149-pound undefeated starter Shayne Van Ness will miss the remainder of the year due to an undisclosed injury suffered during a practice last week. He will soon have a medical procedure to fix whatever is wrong, in all likelihood, and of course hopes to join the Lions back on the mat next year.

“He (Van Ness) came in and had to sit most of his first year with an injury,” Sanderson said, per PennLive. “He’s just a tough kid. He’s kind of wrestled through some stuff in addition to what he had repaired, so he’s just a tough kid. He comes from a strong family and he has a really good foundation and support group; obviously, we love Shayne. You just feel bad for him.

Injuries are part of the sport, a fact that has long been true even if it is unfair. The third-year Nittany Lion has overcome setbacks before. He was coming off a third-place finish at nationals last year and hoped to climb the podium this winter. At the time of the injury, Van Ness was ranked No. 2 in the country.

“When there’s an injury, it takes days, weeks before you feel normal again as a coach just because you care about the kid and feel terrible from it,” Sanderson said, per FLO. “And he’s fun to watch wrestle. I love watching Shayne wrestle. He’s moving forward all the time, he’s just really, really good and he’s just improving at a fast rate,”

“Of course you’re questioning, OK, what can we do to eliminate and prevent injuries moving forward, and how can we obviously help Shayne, mentally and physically making sure he has everything?”

Where will Penn State turn at 149?

Penn State has options. Which one it will ultimately go with remains to be seen, however. The official roster lists only redshirt freshman Connor Pierce and fifth-year senior Imran Heard as backups at 149. Freshman Tyler Kasak, a Pa., native, filled in at 149 last week against Edinboro despite being listed at 141. He won, 7-5. Junior David Evans, who is also currently listed at 141, could bump up, too.

“There’s definitely potential there,” Sanderson said, per PennLive. “He’s (Kasak) a good-sized kid and was really working hard to get his weight down to 41. He has some potential there. We have some kids that obviously can step in there and compete at 49. … (David) Evans and Connor Pierce. These are all really good kids who have worked really hard and are ready to compete.”

If Kasak A. had to work at cutting down to 141 and B. was the first next man up at 149, we’d expect him to be the Penn State starter there moving forward. And, he is the only wrestler listed on the team’s match notes for Hofstra in the probable lineup section. He was the 65-kilogram (143.3 pounds) World silver medalist back in 2022 and is a PIAA state champ.

Final word

Sanderson, on the Lions’ month ahead. After facing Hofstra this Sunday at Rec Hall (1 p.m. ET, BTN+), the full team does not compete until January. But, some members of the roster will be at Senior Nationals Dec. 15-17 in Texas. And, others could go to the annual Southern Scuffle tournament at the turn of the calendar year.

“It’s tricky,” Sanderson said. “A lot of our kids are going to the open. So, we have to make adjustments for those guys. But, wherever we’re at, we’re going to get some work done. Our kids go home for as long of a holiday as we can give them. That’s not always the best training plan. But, we feel like it’s the best long-term plan for them and their mental well-being and just being excited to compete. It’s all about being ready to go in March.”