Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547542
4 6 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 6 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M I t isn't often that Penn State leadoff wrestler Luke Lilledahl doesn't keep the scoreboard operator busy by rack- ing up multiple points in less than the standard seven minutes. The defending 125-pound NCAA champion, who is entering his junior season, has 50 collegiate victories, and 31 of them are of the bonus-point va- riety. That number is lofty enough to al- low fans to expect double-figure scoring each time Lilledahl takes the mat, but such is not the reality of college wres- tling. Sometimes, you just have to win by whatever means necessary. And sometimes, when matches have been close or in the aftermath of one of his three collegiate losses, the online analysts emerge and offer unsolicited opinions. "I see everything on social media," Lilledahl said in late October at Penn State's preseason media gathering. "And I don't really care what people say about me because I know that I'm just going to go out and compete hard and have fun and try to score as many points as possible. "If guys are trying to shut me down, then I just have to figure out how to make them react and make them move their feet and pressure snap and just go out and try to score as many points as I can." That strategy didn't materialize at the U-23 World Championships in Las Vegas in mid-October. He went 1-2 and fin- ished fifth, despite winning U-17, U-20 and U-23 world titles in 2022, '24 and '25, respectively. Opponents neutralized Lilledahl's hand-fighting, taking away opportu- nities for leg attacks and subsequent scoring. "I think it's just made me more hun- gry overall, because, for me, wrestling is wrestling," Lilledahl said. "Obviously, freestyle and folkstyle are two differ- ent disciplines, but at the same time, it's competition, and I want to win no matter what style it is. So, I think losing a couple times [in Las Vegas] has defi- nitely made me hungrier going into the season, which is going to help." High Standards Lilledahl, who was the pre-tournament favorite in Vegas, said he has "flushed" those results but understands being in the limelight can come with a price. "There aren't a lot of times that I get criticism, but I feel like at the same time, when you're at the highest level, people are going to find things to criticize you about, whether you win or lose," he ex- plained. "If I would have won [at the U- 23s], I'm sure there would still be people who would be out there criticizing me. But I don't really care what the critics have to say because I'm going to keep getting better and I'm going to keep en- joying the sport." World titles are unquestionably pres- tigious, but Lilledahl's real goals have more to do with upholding his personal standards. "Obviously, I want to win Olympic gold. But at the same time, my ultimate goal is just to become the best wrestler that I can be, and things like this are just going to help me keep improving and keep getting to that," he said. "I have some stuff to work on, just talking to the coaches. I was frustrated because I'm not really in that position [of losing] a lot. It's definitely a differ- ent perspective for me, but I think every time I lose, I always come back hungrier and better." It would behoove Lilledahl to main- tain that attitude. He enters the season ranked No. 1, but it's a veteran, talented field of about 10 wrestlers who sit below him. No. 2 in FloWrestling 's preseason rankings is Marc-Anthony McGowan of Princeton, whom Lilledahl defeated 2-1 in the NCAA finals, and he's fol- lowed by Nico Provo of Stanford, 2025 NCAA champ Vincent Robinson of Ne- braska and Eddie Ventresca of Virginia Tech. Then come Troy Spratley of Okla- homa State, Jore Volk of Minnesota, Nic Bouzakis of Ohio State, Ezekiel Witt of North Dakota State, Nicolar Rivera of Maryland and Brendan McCrone of North Carolina. WRESTLING MIND THE GAP Defending national champ Luke Lilledahl looks to put more distance between himself and his rivals J I M CA R L S O N | B L U E W H I T E C O N T R I B U T O R