Penn State Sports Magazine
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O C T O B E R 2 0 2 5 47 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M First InterMat Rankings Are Out Flo was first to market with 2025-26 preseason college wrestling rankings. Those were posted over the summer. Now, InterMat is joining the party. The long-running website put out its early look at all 10 weight classes plus the team rankings in September. Penn State is the No.1 team in the country in both its dual-meet and tournament rankings. As for the weight-by-weight break- down that follows, it came with this disclaimer from InterMat: "These rank- ings will be updated at least once, per- haps twice, before the first matches. There are plenty of coaches I've spoken with who are uncertain about weight changes and have multiple rankable wrestlers vying for the starting role. So, there could be a lot of movement before November." 125 pounds: Luke Lilledahl, So., No. 3 133 pounds: No Penn State wrestler 141 pounds: Braeden Davis, Jr., No. 9 149 pounds: Shayne Van Ness, Jr., No. 2 157 pounds: Tyler Kasak, Jr., No. 2 165 pounds: Mitchell Mesenbrink, Jr., No. 1 174 pounds: Levi Haines, Sr., No. 1 184 pounds: Rocco Welsh, R-So., No. 2 197 pounds: Josh Barr, So., No. 1 285 pounds: Cole Mirasola, R-Fr., No. 12 And, as a reminder, here is how Flo ranked the Lions: 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, R-So., No. 3 197 pounds: Josh Barr, So., No. 1 285 pounds: Cole Mirasola, R-Fr., No. 11 Latest Schedule Update Penn State has not yet put out its 2025- 26 schedule, but some dates are known already. The Nittany Lions will play host to Oklahoma on Nov. 14 and will travel to Drexel on Dec. 5. They will also complete a two-year home-and-home series with a trip to Wyoming on Dec. 13 after the Cowboys came to the Bryce Jordan Cen- ter a year ago. Penn State is also likely to return to the Army Black Knight Invitational. That is set for Nov. 23 in West Point, N.Y. The Big Ten schedule with specific match dates had not been released as of mid-September. But head coach Cael Sanderson's team will face these league foes in dual action: Home — Ohio State, Nebraska, Indi- ana and Rutgers. Away — Iowa, Maryland, Michigan and Northwestern. RAF 02 Is Coming To Penn State Real American Freestyle, the startup professional league that bills itself as the "first unscripted pro wrestling league for the best athletes in the world," is coming to Penn State. After the company held its inaugural event in Cleveland in late Au- gust, it announced that its second meet will take place at Rec Hall. The card, which is sure to feature former Nittany Lions but has not yet been announced, will take place on Oct. 25. Information about the start time and ticket availabil- ity is also not yet available. FOX Nation will stream the event live from State Col- lege. "After the love we felt in Cleveland, we knew we had to raise the bar," RAF co- founder and CEO Chad Bronstein said in a statement to The Associated Press. "Penn State is more than just a wrestling school, it's a proving ground. The in- tensity, the fans and the tradition show there is no better place for RAF 02 than the famous Rec Hall." On RAF's first card, Penn State great Bo Nickal beat Michigan's Jacob Carde- nas to become the league's first world light heavyweight champion. Fellow for- mer Nittany Lion Jason Nolf lost in the middleweight world title match to Cal Poly's Evan Wick, while Nittany Lion Wrestling Club member Kyle Dake won the world cruiserweight title. Fans can visit RAF's website — real- americanfreestyle.com — to input their email address and receive information about tickets, including pricing and when they will go on sale. Two PSU Wrestlers Claim Pan-Am Gold Reigning NCAA champ Mitchell Mesenbrink and newcomer Rocco Welsh won gold at the 2025 Junior Pan-Ameri- can Games Aug. 21-23 in Paraguay. Both wrestlers were in eight-man brackets, with Mesenbrink competing at 74 kg (163.1 pounds) and Welsh at 86 kg (189.5 pounds). Mesenbrink defeated Orislandy Perdomo Brooks of Cuba in the final, scoring a 10-0 win by technical fall early in the first period. Welsh beat Geannis Garzon Tamayo of Cuba by 5-2 decision to earn his title. ■ Nittany Lions Dominate At U20s Penn State freshman Marcus Blaze is a U20 world champ. The new Nittany Lion was dominant at U20 Worlds, which took place in Bulgaria Aug. 17-24. He captured the 61-kg (134.4-pound) men's freestyle division title by scoring a 10-0 technical fall over Iran's Ahora Khateri in the gold medal match. A Perrysburg, Ohio, native, Blaze scored first and then built a 5-0 lead by the end of the first period. He then quickly netted 5 points in the second period to stop the match and earn his second world title. His first came a year ago at U17 Worlds, where he won gold before taking bronze at last year's U20 tournament. Blaze is one of five Penn State wrestlers who hit the medal stand at this year's U20s. Fellow freshman PJ Duke won 70-kg gold, while classmate William Henckel took silver at 74 kg, and redshirt freshmen Connor and Cole Mirasola claimed bronze at 92 and 125 kg, respectively. Penn State's contingent made up half of the 10-man Team USA roster, which scored a championship-record point total to take the U20 team title. — Greg Pickel