Penn State wrestling live blog: Big Ten Championships Semifinals

Penn State wrestling kicked off its postseason push earlier Saturday with a dominant opening session at the Big Ten Championships on the campus of Northwestern in Evanston, Illinois. After the action this morning and afternoon, the Nittany Lions held a dominant 25-point lead over second-place Nebraska.

The Nittany Lions went 11-1 in the first session, with nine wrestlers advancing to Saturday night’s Semifinal Round and punching their tickets to the NCAA Championships later this month. Only 133-pounder Braeden Davis, who dropped a last-second 3-1 decision to Rutgers’ Dylan Shawver, heads to the consolation bracket.

Looking for a way to stay up-to-date with all the most important news surrounding Penn State wrestling and Nittany Lion athletics? Follow us on social media and subscribe to our free newsletter for live news and insights sent directly to your feed!

Action will resume from Welsh-Ryan Arena with Session II beginning with consolation matches at 6 p.m. ET. The Semifinals will begin at 8 p.m.

Penn State wrestling Big Ten Semifinals live blog

Match-by-match results can be found below. Please note, this page will not update automatically. To see the latest results, please refresh your browser.

Consolation Round

133: No. 5 Braeden Davis def Dustin Norris (PUR) by 17-2 tech fall

Braeden Davis rebounded nicely after his quarterfinal loss and immediately took Dustin Norris down and put him on his back, grabbing a 7-0 lead in under one minute to open the match. Davis took down two more times and put Norris on his back once again for a four count and took home the 17-2 tech fall victory in just over two minutes. He will advance in wrestlebacks as he will try and battle back for 3rd place.

Semifinal Round

125: No. 8 Luke Lilledahl (PSU) def No. 1 Matt Ramos (PUR) by 12-4 major decision

Luke Lilledahl lived up to his lightning nickname and used his speed to take down and get the undefeated Ramos to his back early in the 2nd period. The result was a quick 7-0 lead and a shocking opening period. Ramos was able to get an escape to get on the board.

Ramos was able to get the reversal before Lilledahl escaped to push it to 8-3. Despite having the lead the Penn State true freshman continued his offensive onslaught to push his lead to eight. Matt Ramos was never able to close the gap and the result is a major decision for Lightning Luke.

141: No. 8 Vance Vombaur (MINN) def No. 1 Beau Bartlett (PSU) by 5-3 decision

Vance Vombaur got on the board early with a quick takedown to grab the 3-0 lead. After Bartlett got the escape the score was 3-1 after the first period. Vombaur opened the second with an escape to push his lead to 4-1. Bartlett had a few opportunities in the 2nd period but neither wrestler could get much offense going.

Bartlett started on bottom and was unable to get the escape before Vombaur pushed the riding time over one minute. He was never able to get it going offensively and lost for the first time this season.

149: No. 16 Kannon Webster (ILL) def No. 2 Shayne Van Ness (PSU) by 4-1 decision

Neither wrestler was able to get on the board in the first period but Van Ness did get the quick escape to begin the 2nd and Webster the same to begin the 3rd period to eliminate riding time from becoming a factor. Webster repeatedly kept getting in on single legs before finally being able to take down Van Ness with just 3 seconds left to pull off the massive upset.

157: No. 1 Tyler Kasak (PSU) def No. 4 Antrell Taylor (NEB) by FALL

Tyler Kasak opened the scoring with a takedown just 30 seconds into the period. After giving up an escape Kasak immediately got Taylor to his back again and this time got the fall in dominant fashion over the 4th ranked wrestler in the country. It was a refreshing return to normal for Penn State fans after watching both Bartlett and Van Ness get upset.

165: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (PSU) def No. 10 Beau Mantanona (MICH) by 25-8 tech fall

Mantanona came out aggressive and took Mesenbrink to grab the 3-0 lead. It is the first time that Mesenbrink has been taken down all season so it continued the head scratching performances by Penn State wrestlers. He was able to get back on track and pickup a takedown to retake the lead 4-3 to end the first period.

After picking up the escape to open the 2nd period Mesenbrink went to work. A series of takedowns and releases resulted in the Penn State sophomore leading 14-5 after two periods. It was clear that Manatanona didn’t have the stamina to keep up with Mesenbrink and the third period went the same ending as a tech fall.

174: No. 2 Levi Haines (PSU) def No. 10 Patrick Kennedy (IOWA) by 10-3 decision

Levi Haines picked up the early takedown and grabbed the early lead. The second period was pretty much a replica of the first and outside of an extra escape the result was a 7-2 lead. Kennedy grabbed an escape to open the third but it was Haines who picked up the late escape to pick up the comftorable decision and return to the Big Ten final for the 3rd year in a row.

184: No. 1 Carter Starocci (PSU) def No. 11 Jaxon Smith (MD) by 12-2 major decision

Neither wrestler was able to get on the board in the first period. Starocci picked up an escape and then scored a takedown to lead 4-0. After allowing an escape the 4-time national champ took down Smith two more times and got Penn State the extra point for the major decision. It was a workman like approach for Starocci who will be looking to return to the top of the Big Ten podium tomorrow for the first time since 2023.

197: No. 3 Jacob Cardenas (MICH) def No. 2 Josh Barr (PSU) by 4-1 decision

Like their matchup at the Bryce Jordan Center in early February this one was a low scoring defensive battle. Both wrestlers picked up the escape after starting on bottom in their respective periods. Cardenas took home the rematch, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw a third matchup between these two in the NCAA Tournament.

285: No. 2 Greg Kerkvliet (PSU) def No. 8 Joshua Heindselman (MICH) by 9-1 major decision

Greg Kerklviet came out firing early and took a 3-0 lead in the 1st period. After Heindselman picked up an escape after the takedown, Kerkvliet got out quickly to start the second and pushed the lead back to 4-1. Kerkvliet picked up another takedown in the 2nd period to push the lead to 7-1. The Penn State heavyweight flexed his muscles in the third and rode Heindselman the entire third period to clinch the 9-1 major decision.

Thank you for reading Basic Blues Nation, one of the fastest-growing outlets covering Penn State athletics. Part of the Full Ride network, we are an alumni-owned, community-operated, credentialed media outlet dedicated to providing you with updated and reliable insights for all your favorite Nittany Lion sports. Whether it’s Penn State football, basketball, wrestling, or anything in between, you can find it all on Basic Blues Nation!

Please follow us on our social channels, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube, and subscribe to our newsletter on Substack for breaking news and notifications. For feedback, questions, or concerns, please email us at [email protected] or direct message us on social media.