Penn State wrestling pipeline shines at U20 World Championships

Penn State wrestling is still months away from competing for another national title, but a few current and future Nittany Lions brought home some hardware from the 2024 U20 World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain, last weekend.

Incoming freshman Luke Lilledahl headlines the group from Team USA, winning Gold at 57 kg. Lilledahl could be projected to start for Cael Sanderson and Penn State at 125 pounds this upcoming season, and many believe he will be an instant contender to win a National Championship in the weight class.

Fellow freshmen Zack Ryder and Connor Mirasola also had successful tournaments. Ryder finished with a Silver Medal at 79 kg, while Mirasola finished fifth at 92 kg.

The combination of Lilledahl, Ryder, and Mirasola helped to make up the No. 1 recruiting class in the country for 2024. All three should see the mat in some capacity in 2024-25, even if it is during a redshirt season.

One current Penn State wrestler who knows about what it is like to redshirt his freshman season is Josh Barr. The Nittany Lion 184-pounder brought home a Silver Medal at 86 kg. Barr is expected to either slot in behind Carter Starocci at 184 or to move up and compete for the 197-pound spot in the starting lineup.

🇺🇸 USA finishes Junior/U20 Worlds with 9 Medals!

🥇🥈🥈🥈🥈🥉🥉🥉🥉 & the team 🥇 pic.twitter.com/2YX5oEv6Nv

— Justin Basch (@JustinJBasch) September 8, 2024

Penn State wrestling commit, recruiting targets also deliver at U20 World Championships

© KELLY MARSH / USA TODAY NETWORK

A few Penn State wrestling future commits and recruiting targets also brought home some hardware during the U20 World Championships. The No. 1 overall wrestler in the 2025 recruiting class and Penn State pledge, PJ Duke, took home a Bronze Medal at 70 kg.

Nittany Lion targets Marcus Blaze (2025) and Bo Bassett (2026) also took home Bronze at both 61 kg and 65 kg, respectively.

Ultimately, the U20 World Champions served as a prelude to that talent that recently joined, and could be coming down the pipeline to, the Penn State wrestling program. The Cael Sanderson recruiting machine has been rolling, and it doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

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