Penn State wrestlers shine at US Open

The Penn State wrestling season may be over, but that doesn’t mean the Nittany Lion stars are done on the mats. Over the weekend, multiple current Nittany Lion wrestlers competed at the US Open in Las Vegas. A total of six Penn State and NLWC members competed in the senior division, with three winning titles.

The top two American athletes in each weight class will wrestle a best-of-three series at Final X on June 14 to determine who will be the representative at the Senior World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia.

Lilledahl victorious at 57 kg

Penn State wrestling 125-pounder Luke Lilledahl. © Chris Eutsler / Basic Blues Nation, 2025.

Luke Lilledahl carried over the momentum of finishing third at the NCAA Championships to freestyle wrestling, winning the US Open title at 57 kg. The rising sophomore went 4-0 with three tech falls. Lilledahl’s tournament was capped off with a 10-0 tech fall (2:45) victory over Liam Cronin (Nebraska RTC) in the championship match.

The US Open victory now sends Lilledahl to face Spencer Lee at Final X with an opportunity to represent Team USA. Lee received an automatic bid to Final X for winning the Silver Medal at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Mesenbrink avenges 2024 NCAA Finals loss en route to 74 kg crown

Penn State wrestling 165-pounder Mitchell Mesenbrink. © Chris Eutsler / Basic Blues Nation, 2025.

Mitchell Mesenbrink built off his NCAA Championship with a dominant US Open performance. Mesenbrink went 5-0 on the weekend, winning all his matches by technical fall.

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The rising redshirt junior capped off his dominant victory by taking down David Carr (Cyclones RTC) 16-6. It was the first time the two had met since the 2024 NCAA Finals, where Carr won 9-8 based on riding time. That defeat remains the only loss of Mesenbrink’s college career.

Snyder brings title home for NLWC

Kyle Snyder. © Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports

Beyond Lilledahl and Mesenbrink, several Penn State wrestling alumni and NLWC members helped to bolster the program’s success over the weekend.

For the NLWC, Kyle Snyder won the Open Championship at 97 kg. He went 4-0, with all four matches decided by technical fall. Snyder defeated Jonathan Ailleo (Penn RTC) 11-0 in the finals. Kyle Dake went 4-1 in his first US Open at 86 kg, cruising to the finals with four straight tech falls before falling 8-4 to Zahid Valencia (Cowboy RTC) to finish as the runner-up.

Penn State wrestling lettermen Beau Bartlett (65 kg) and Sam Beckett (79 kg) each went 3-2 on the weekend.

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