Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1534903
M A Y 2 0 2 5 3 7 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M suffered a shoulder injury as a junior last fall and took a medical redshirt, returns, but after a long layoff can he still make 133? In one of the season's surprise devel- opments, Masanosuke Ono of Japan, the 2024 freestyle world champion at both the U20 and senior level and the No. 7 pound-for-pound wrestler in the world, committed to the Penn State program. He trained with the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club to prepare for a February all-star match in Iowa in which he defeated for- mer Iowa stud Spencer Lee. If he meets all of the eligibility requirements and adjusts to folkstyle, the letters O-n-o could be penciled onto the Lions' lineup sheet. 141 pounds: All-American Beau Bartlett's departure opens the door for incoming freshman Marcus Blaze of Per- rysburg, Ohio. Blaze, who finished third at the 2024 Olympic Trials and second at the World Team Trials as a high school junior, is the No. 1 recruit in the 2025 class. He was the No. 1 seed at 61 kg at the U.S. Open on the senior freestyle level. He won his fourth Ohio State title at 150 pounds, moving up because of a teammate's injury. Blaze growing into 141 seems like a natural fit, and it's possible PSU could have Davis and Nagao at the weight as well. 149 pounds: Shayne Van Ness (25-3) has two years remaining, and he has two third-place NCAA finishes (2023 and '25), winning 49 of 59 matches. He handles his weight well and recovered nicely from a 2024 knee injury. Staying healthy is vital. 157 pounds: It would be tough to name someone who enjoys wrestling more than Tyler Kasak (23-2), who placed third as a freshman and third this past season after being seeded No. 1. He has yet to redshirt, and that comes into play only because the nation's No. 2 recruit, P.J. Duke, is headed to Penn State at this weight class. An in- teresting decision looms for the coaching staff. 165 pounds: Mitchell Mesenbrink is 53-1 in two seasons, and the loss was by one point to Iowa State's David Carr in the 2024 NCAA finals. He was untouch- able this past season, recording a nation- leading 18 technical falls among his 27 victories. He'll be a heavy title favorite once again as a redshirt junior. 174 pounds: Levi Haines (25-2) has one season remaining after finishing sec- ond, first and third in three NCAA tries. His name will be at the top of the pre- season rankings in November. 184 pounds: The departure of five- time NCAA champion Carter Starocci opened the gates for freshman Zack Ry- der. But when former Waynesburg (Pa.) High star Rocco Welsh transferred to Penn State from Ohio State, Ryder left for Oklahoma State. Welsh finished second to Starocci in the 2024 NCAA Tournament at 174. He was 15-0 last season compet- ing unattached and looks to step into the Lions' lineup. 197 pounds: This is another weight class with two potential starters. If Josh Barr (20-4), the NCAA runner-up, would make the unlikely but not impossible decision to drop to 184 for his redshirt sophomore year, redshirt freshman Con- nor Mirasola is ready. If not, those two will wage quite the battle for the spot. 285 pounds: Greg Kerkvliet was a five-time All-American, placing seventh, fourth, second, first and sixth in a marvel- ous career. Cole Mirasola, Connor's twin brother, will look to start a solid career of his own. The nation's No. 15 recruit in 2024 will need to add some bulk to com- pete with much heavier and equally agile heavyweights. While it's speculation at this point, think about an opening five of Lilledahl, Ono, Blaze, Van Ness and Kasak. Follow that with Mesenbrink, Haines, Welsh, Barr and Cole Mirasola, and it's a lineup that could have other teams looking up at Penn State in November and, more im- portant, in Cleveland next March. ■ Rocco Welsh Transfers To Penn State Penn State picked up a big transfer portal addition in April when former Ohio State wrestler Rocco Welsh picked the Lions. The one-time Buckeye, who lost in 2024 to now-graduated Nittany Lion Carter Starocci in the 174-pound NCAA Tournament final, took a redshirt season in 2024-25 to add weight, with plans of competing next at 184 pounds. That's the weight class Starocci vacates. Welsh, a Waynesburg, Pa., native, will have three years of eligibility remaining. His main competition for the 184-pound spot, redshirt freshman Zack Ryder, hit the portal and is now at Oklahoma State. As of late April, Welsh was the only transfer portal addition for the Nittany Lions. Ryder, however, is not the only member of the 2024-25 team to leave. Gary Steen, who competes at 133 pounds, and Alex Fac- undo, who can go at 157 or 165 pounds, joined Ryder in moving on to the Cowboys. PSU Adds To 2025, '26 Classes News started swirling at the NCAA Tournment that Japanese standout Masanosuke Ono was coming to Penn State. The reigning 61-kilogram (134.5-pound) senior- and U20-level world champ made it official in March. He will compete at either 133 or 141 pounds at the collegiate level. In other recruiting news, PSU flipped top 2026 recruit Jayden James from Virginia Tech in March. The reigning New Jersey 150-pound champ from Delbarton is the nation's No. 2 150-pounder in MatScout's most recent high school rankings. Lions Shine at U.S. Open Penn State and the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club kicked off the freestyle season with a successful week- end at the U.S. Open April 26-27 in Las Vegas. After crowning two champions at the senior level on Day 1 of the tournament, current and future Nittany Lions added five more gold-medal finishes at the U20 and U17 levels on Day 2. Rising sophomore Luke Lilledahl and redshirt junior Mitchell Mesenbrink crushed their competition to win the 57- and 74-kilogram brackets, respectively. They combined to go 8-0, outscoring their opponents 98-11. In the final, Mesenbrink defeated David Carr — who gave him his only college loss at the 2024 NCAA Championships — by tech fall, 16-6. Both wrestlers are now off to Final X, which is set for June in New Jersey and will set the senior-level Team USA for the World Championships. In the U20 competition, class of 2025 signee PJ Duke took the 70-kg crown, and classmate William Henckel was first at 79 kg. Rising redshirt freshmen Connor and Cole Mirasola were champs at 92 and 125 kg, respectively. Another redshirt freshman, Joe Sealey, finished second at 74 kg, while 2026 commit Sam Herring was second at 61 kg. Jayden James, a 2026 commit, will represent Team USA at the U17 level. He won the 71-kg weight class title. — Greg Pickel