Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1507572
4 6 O C T O B E R 2 0 2 3 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M P enn State is set to attend a pair of prestigious early-season tourna- ments in November. According to a graphic posted by Jour- neymen Wrestling, the Nittany Lions will be one of 17 programs at the Colle- giate Classic on Nov. 12 at Freedom High School in Bethlehem, Pa. Ticket informa- tion is not yet available, but competition will begin at 9 a.m. ET. Head coach Cael Sanderson first took his team to a Journeymen event, the Jour- neymen Duals, during the 2021-22 season. The Lions romped to wins over Sacred Heart, 47-3, and Oregon State, 32-7, at the Spooky Nook complex in Manheim, Pa. Teams that will be represented in the individual competition include NC State, Arizona State, Lehigh, Purdue, Long Is- land University, Lock Haven, Harvard, Franklin & Marshall College, Bloomsburg, Pitt-Johnstown, Buffalo, Sacred Heart, Army, Penn and Cornell. Penn State will also attend the Black Knight Invitational on Nov. 19 at West Point, N.Y. The Nittany Lions finished first at the event a year ago and crowned five champions, three of whom beat their own PSU teammates to take first place. In addition to Penn State, this year's field will feature Buffalo, Rutgers, Long Island, Gardner-Webb, Binghamton, Brown, Northern Colorado and Michigan State. Penn State will not release its full schedule until later this year. It is already known, however, that the Lions will host Lehigh in State College for a nonconfer- ence dual meet on Dec. 3. The team will also travel to Iowa, Michigan, Maryland and Michigan State for Big Ten matches during the 2023-24 season. It will host Rutgers, Nebraska, Indiana and Ohio State for conference duals. It is unclear how many of those will be at the Bryce Jordan Center rather than Rec Hall. Flo, InterMat Unveil Rankings Flo Wrestling and InterMat have issued their first weight class predictions ahead of the 2023- 24 season. Both outlets list Penn State as the top team in the country. Flo had a Penn State wrestler ranked in every weight class except 125 pounds. Sophomore Levi Haines (157), senior Carter Starocci (174), gradu- ate senior Aaron Brooks (197) and senior Greg Kerkvliet (heavyweight) are the top-ranked wres- tlers at their respective classes. Redshirt sophomore Shayne Van Ness and Cal Poly transfer Bernie Truax IV are second at 149 and 184 pounds, respectively. Minnesota transfer Aaron Nagao is third at 133, senior Beau Bartlett is fourth at 141, and redshirt freshman Alex Fac- undo is 12th at 165. InterMat has Haines, Brooks, Starocci and Kerkvliet first, Truax and Van Ness second, Nagao and Bartlett third, and Facundo 14th. It also has junior Robbie Howard in its rankings, placing him 19th at 125 pounds. Mesenbrink Captures Gold Medal Penn State plucked Mitchell Mesenbrink out of the transfer portal from Cal Baptist earlier this year. The Wisconsin native has been showing why the Lions were so eager to add him to their lineup. Mesenbrink won the gold medal at the U20 World Championships Aug. 14-20 at Amman City, Jordan. He beat Hossein Mohammad Aghaei of Iran in the 74-kilogram (163-pound) final, 16-5. Mesenbrink rolled through the elite international freestyle tournament. He defeated his first four opponents by a combined score of 43-1 while notching four consecutive technical fall victories and finished the tournament with a 5-0 record and a 59-6 point differential. This year's result is an improvement over his showing in 2022, when he placed second at 70 kilograms. The new Nittany Lion also won the U20 Pan-American 74-kg title earlier this year. Mesenbrink was one of two wrestlers with Penn State ties to hit the medal stand at this year's U20 event. Luke Lilledahl, a 2024 recruit, finished second in the 57-kg weight class. After winning his first three matches by a combined score of 23-6, Lilledahl pinned his semifinal opponent with just 10 seconds left in the match to complete an incredible comeback. His magical run ended in the championship bout with a 5-0 loss to Yuto Nishiu- chi of Japan. Like Mesenbrink, Lilledahl also won a U20 Pan- Am title earlier this year. Former Lions Headed To Senior Worlds Three former Nittany Lions are set to represent Team USA at the Senior World Championships Sept. 16-24, in Belgrade, Serbia. Zain Retherford is the No. 2 seed at 65 kilograms, while Olympic champion David Taylor is No. 7 in the 86-kg divi- sion. Nick Lee is unseeded at 61 kilograms. PSU Commits Split At Who's Number One Two Penn State commits competed at Flo Wrestling's Who's Number One event Sept. 2 at Somers, Wis. Pennsylvania senior Joe Sealey claimed the top spot at 160 pounds by beating William Henckel of New Jersey, 4-2. Sealey's win avenged a U20 Team Trials loss to Henckel. At 195 pounds, senior Connor Mirasola lost a 5-1 decision to Aeoden Sinclair of Wisconsin. Lions Dominate Flo's 2024 Big Board Penn State has commitments from four of the country's top 10 wrestlers in the 2024 class, ac- cording to the latest Flo Wrestling Big Board. Luke Lilledahl, a 126-pound standout from Wyo- ming Seminary in Pennsylvania, is listed as the top wrestler in the senior class, followed by Zack Ryder (182) of Minisink Valley, N.Y., at No. 5; Joe Sealey (160), also from Wyoming Seminary, at No. 6; and Connor Mirasola (195) from West Bend, Wis., at No. 10. Finally, Mason Gibson (126) from Bishop Mc- Cort in Pennsylvania is No. 13, and Cole Mirasola (220), Connor's brother, is ranked No. 21. ■ WRESTLING Tournaments Highlight Nittany Lions' November Slate G R E G P I C K E L | G R E G . P I C K E L @ O N 3 . C O M During the upcoming season, Cael Sanderson will be looking to guide his team to its 11th NCAA championship since 2011. PHOTO BY DANIEL ALTHOUSE