Penn State Sports Magazine
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4 6 S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M P enn State sits roughly four months from its first match of the 2025-26 wrestling season. If you think that means things are quiet around head coach Cael Sanderson's program, we're here to tell you that's anything but the case. To help whet fans' appetite for the up- coming campaign, FloWrestling released its first preseason rankings over the sum- mer. Flo has a Penn State wrestler listed in all 10 weight classes. The outlet projects last year's 133-pound starter, Braeden Davis, to bump up to 141 pounds this year, while freshman Marcus Blaze will move into Davis' old role. But what the Lions will do at 133 and 141 pounds is hardly set in stone yet. At any rate, here's the list as of early August: 125 pounds: Luke Lilledahl, So., No. 3 133 pounds: Marcus Blaze, Fr., No. 12 141 pounds: Braeden Davis, Jr., No. 6 149 pounds: Shayne Van Ness, Jr., No. 2 157 pounds: Tyler Kasak, Jr., No. 3 165 pounds: Mitchell Mesenbrink, Jr., No. 1 174 pounds: Levi Haines, Sr., No. 1 184 pounds: Rocco Welsh, So., No. 3 197 pounds: Josh Barr, So., No. 1 285 pounds: Cole Mirasola, R-Fr., No. 11 As for the pound-for-pound rankings, Mesenbrink is the overall No. 1 pick. He is joined in the top 20 by Haines, who is No. 3, and also Kasak (No. 12), Van Ness (No. 14) and Barr (No. 18). Jayden James Wins World Championship Penn State is currently celebrating its first world champion of the year. Class of 2026 commit Jayden James, who hails from New Jersey, is the U17 champ at 71 kilograms (156.5 pounds). He had a perfect two-day tournament in Athens, Greece, Aug. 2-3, and finished his gold medal run by decking Arsham Mostafa of Iran, 9-2. James is one of four U17 men's free- style champions for Team USA, which stormed back to claim the team title over Iran. "He went up 2-0 by earning a passiv- ity point and a step out," Derik Schwanz wrote for USA Wrestling. "James followed with a clean takedown to extend the lead to 4-0 at the break. In the second period, James used a strong left-side underhook to run the corner and hook a leg for an- other takedown. He tacked on another takedown to seal the dominant, 9-2, vic- tory—and with it, the U17 World crown." More Title Chances Are Coming Jayden James is unlikely to be the only wrestler with a connection to the Penn State program to win a medal — gold or otherwise — before the focus switches back to folkstyle for the college season. Incoming freshmen Marcus Blaze (61 ki- lograms), PJ Duke (70 kilograms) and Wil- liam Henckel (79 kilograms), plus redshirt freshmen Connor Mirasola (92 kilograms) and Cole Mirasola (125 kilograms), are on Team USA for the U20 World Champi- onships in August. Duke (70 kilograms), senior Levi Haines (79 kilograms) and NLWC member Kyle Snyder (97 ki- lograms) will represent the U.S. at the World Wrestling Senior Championships in September. And, in October, seven of the 10 Team USA lineup spots for the U23 World Championships are filled by Nit- tany Lions The list includes: 57 kg – Lilledahl 65 kg – Blaze 70 kg – Duke 74 kg – Mitchell Mesenbrink 79 kg – Haines 86 kg – Rocco Welsh 92 kg – Josh Barr 2025-26 Schedule Taking Shape Penn State has just one competition date set in stone as of early August. The Lions will travel to Drexel for a noncon- ference match on Dec. 5. Time, TV and ticket information are not yet available We're still waiting on other schools to release their 2025-26 schedules to see if the Lions are on them since head coach Cael Sanderson's side never releases its full schedule until sometime in late Sep- tember or early October. We do know which Big Ten foes the team will face, though, without dates and times. Here's that list: Home Big Ten duals: Ohio State, Ne- braska, Indiana and Rutgers. Away Big Ten duals: Iowa, Maryland, Michigan and Northwestern. In addition to dates, times and non- conference opponents, we also await word on how many matches will be held at the Bryce Jordan Center this season. That info will not come out until some- time in the fall. However, the Big Ten has announced that Penn State will host the 2026 con- ference tournament, March 7-8. ■ WRESTLING Penn State Trio Sits Atop FloWrestling's Preseason Rankings 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 Cael Sanderson's Nittany Lions will be seeking their fifth consecutive NCAA team title in 2026. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS