Penn State wrestling U20 Worlds results from Day 1: Lions put a pair in Saturday's gold medal matches
Day one is in the books at the U20 Men’s Freestyle World Wrestling Championships in Spain. It was a fine day for Team USA. But, it was a better one for Penn State. Three grapplers with ties to the Nittany Lions were in action on Friday. Two are going for gold Saturday, and one is still alive for bronze.
Luke Lilledahl, an incoming freshman and top Class of 2024 recruit who could very well man the 125-pound spot for head coach Cael Sanderson’s team this winter, is going back to the 57-kilogram U20 finals for the second time in as many years. After finishing second at the event a year ago, he opened this year’s tournament on a tear.
Following a 10-0 opening-round win over Kabe Matjanov of Turkmenistan, he beat Ankush Ankush of India 4-3 in a match that was not quite as close as the final score indicated. Then, in the semifinals, he used a second half single-leg takedown to build a 3-1 lead and ultimately topped Hayko Gasparyan of Armenia 4-1 to return to the gold medal match. He will face Lev Pavlov of the Independent Neutral Athletes Team on Saturday. INA is made up of competitors from Russia and Belarus. Lilledahl beat Pavlov 9-2 in the first round of U20 Worlds a year ago.
Moving on to 70 kilograms, Penn State Class of 2025 commit PJ Duke is alive for third after dropping his semifinal match. He lost it to U20 bronze medalist Magomed Baitukaev of INA on criteria. Duke was the aggressor throughout but could not break a 5-5 tie before time expired. He reached the semifinals by beating his first three opponents by a combined score of 32-1. His bronze medal match opponent is to be determined.
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At 79 kilograms, Zack Ryder is joining Lilledahl in the finals. In his semifinal, he beat Said Saidulov, the 2024 U20 European Champ of INA, by decision, 6-3. A late blast double score was the difference. The incoming Nittany Lion freshman reached the semis by beating his first three opponents by a combined score of 32-0. Ryder will face Alp Arslan Begenjov of Turkmenistan in the finals. He was fifth at U17 Worlds last year and is this year’s U20 Asian champion.
All five Team USA competitors on Friday are alive for medals after day one. In addition to the competitors from today returning to the mat tomorrow, three other Penn State connections will start their tournament on Saturday. Nittany Lion redshirt freshman Joshua Barr will compete in the 86 kg/189.5 pounds division. And, incoming freshman Connor Mirasola will wrestle in the 92 kg/202-pound bracket.
Full Day 1 results for Penn State connections at U20 Worlds
Luke Lilledahl, 57 kilograms:
R1: Beats Kabe Matjanov of Turkmenistan 10-0 in 1:05
Quarters: Beats Ankush Ankush of India 4-3
Semis: Beats beats Hayko Gasparyan of Armenia 4-1.
Finals: Faces Lev Pavlov of the Independent Neutral Athletes Team
PJ Duke, 70 kilograms:
R1: Beats Aden Sakybaev of Kyrgyzstan 10-0 in 4:16
R2: Beats Zelimkhan Mutsukhaev of Poland 10-0 in 0:47
Quarters: Beats Ankh Altangerel of Mongolia 12-1 in 4:39
Semis: Loses 5-5 on criteria to Magomed Baitukaev of INA
Third place: TBD
Zack Ryder, 79 kilograms:
R1: Beats Jinju Li of China 10-0 in 2:28
R2: Beats Leandro Jordan araujo of Brazil 11-0 in 3:40
Quarters: Beats Paulius Lescauskas of Lithuania 11-0 in 2:31
Semis: Beats Said Saidulov of INA by decision, 6-3
Finals: Faces Alp Arslan Begenjov of Turkmenistan
