Takedown Report

Amateur Wrestling Reports

Penn State wins Big Ten title with seven champs; Ohio State sweeps postseason awards

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – Penn State crowned seven champions and set a school record with 184 team points on its way to earning the Nittany Lions’ 10th Big Ten title in their own Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday evening.
Ohio State, after crowning two champions, finished second with 148.5 team points, while Nebraska earned third place with 116.5. Iowa and Michigan rounded out the top five with 87 and 86.5 team points, respectively. Penn State and Ohio State became two of just four programs nationwide to earn automatic bids for all 10 wrestlers to the NCAA Championships, joining Oklahoma State (Big 12) and Virginia Tech (ACC). Eight of the 10 No. 1 seeds claimed individual titles, while No. 2 seeds Ben Davino (Ohio State) and PJ Duke (Penn State) won titles as 133 and 157 pounds, respectively.
Duke, a true freshman from Slate Hill, N.Y. who was WIN’s Junior Dan Hodge Trophy recipient in 2025, was named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler after he earned a major decision over returning NCAA champion Antrell Taylor (Nebraska), 12-4. Meanwhile, Ohio State swept all three season-long awards including Coach of the Year, Wrestler of the Year and Freshman of the Year honors, with Tom Ryan, Jesse Mendez and Ben Davino claiming each, respectively.
Penn State senior Levi Haines became PSU’s fourth four-time Big Ten champion after the 174-pounder outlasted Nebraska’s Christopher Minto, 2-1, in the title bout. Haines was awarded a point for an illegal figure-four to the head in the opening frame, which proved to be the difference in the match. When the smoke settled, a total of 87 wrestlers from the Big Ten conference earned automatic bids to the 2026 NCAA DI Wrestling Championships, set for March 19-21 in Cleveland’s Rocket Arena.
Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson briefly reflected on his team’s performance after claiming another conference title, saying, “Overall, this is a very tough conference tournament with a lot of great wrestlers. We’re excited to move into the Nationals and are happy with this weekend. … more at … https://www.win-magazine.com/2026/03/10/penn-state-wins-big-ten-title-with-seven-champs-ohio-state-sweeps-postseason-awards/

March 15, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | , | Leave a comment

Women’s College Notebook: As championship season continues, a look back on the historic NCAA’s, and a preview of NAIA’s to come

Amidst back-to-back championship weekends for women’s college wrestling, it could be easy to get lost in the whirlwind of it all – walking away at its conclusion with nothing but vivid, emotional remnants of the experience that was.
And who’s to say that’s a bad thing?
Perhaps the very purest form of consumption is to simply allow oneself to become swept up in the wave of sensations – never stopping to overanalyze one moment lest the next one pass you by.
I’m certainly not going to argue if that’s your approach.
But as I sit here at my desk during the brief hiatus between last weekend’s inaugural NCAA Championships and this weekend’s forthcoming NAIA national tournament, I find myself wanting to pause – at least briefly – and reflect upon this ongoing moment for the sport.
There’s never been a better, more competitive/appreciated time to be a women’s college wrestler – or women’s wrestler of any age, for that matter. This, after decades spent by trailblazers and advocates to open up the deserved opportunities now being seized by today’s athletes. And just as those pioneers before them offered hope and inspiration to the current generation, so too will this group of young women to those following in their footsteps.
With that in mind, allow me to begin this latest women’s wrestling notebook by highlighting just some of the names to remember from a historic NCAA Championships in Coralville, Iowa. After that, we’ll wrap with some names to look forward to at what will be an equally compelling NAIA Championships this weekend in Park City, Kansas.

Etched in history 

180.
That’s how many women – representing 54 different schools – will forever hold the distinction as the first participants at an NCAA Women’s Wrestling Championships. Among them, Sloane Kruger (Presbyterian) registered the first-ever win (and pin) at NCAAs just 1:03 into her preliminary bout at 103 pounds.
80.
That’s how many All-Americans – representing 27 different schools – stood on the podium. … more at … https://www.themat.com/news/2026/march/12/women-s-college-notebook-as-championship-season-continues-a-look-back-on-the-historic-ncaa-s-and-a-preview-of-naia-s-to-come

March 15, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | , , | Leave a comment

All The Upsets From College Wrestling Conference Weekend!

All the upsets we could find from conference weekend of the 2025-26 NCAA D1 college wrestling season!
Conference weekend was absolutely insane! Here are all the upsets we could find from the NCAA qualifying tournaments of the 2025-26 NCAA D1 college wrestling season!
Week 17 Rankings | Upsets: Week 17 | Week 16 | Week 15 | Week 14 | Week 13 | Week 12 | Week 11 | Week 10 |Week 8 | Week 7 | Week 6 | Week 5 | Week 4| Week 3 | Week 2 | Week 1
Please note that there were no wrestling competitions in week 9 of the 2025-26 NCAA D1 college wrestling season, hence there is no upset article for week 9 of the 2025-26 NCAA D1 college wrestling season.
All the usual caveats apply. What looks like upsets strictly according to the rankings this weekend may not look like upsets by the end of the year!
Major Upsets
133: #31 Blake Boarman, Purdue over #1 Lucas Byrd, Illinois 7-3
165: Anthony Berg, Cal Poly over #5 Matt Bianchi, Little Rock 8-6
285: Shilo Jones, North Dakota State over #7 Christian Carroll, Wyoming 4-1 SV
149: #28 Lucas Kapusta, Lock Haven over #2 Caleb Tyus, SIU Edwardsville 2-1
184: #30 Caleb Campos, American over #5 James Conway, Franklin & Marshall 8-5
184: Mahonri Rushton, Northern Colorado over #10 Brian Soldano, Oklahoma 6-4
174: Collin Carrigan, North Carolina over #13 Luca Augustine, Pittsburgh 4-3
157: #33 Colton Washleski, Virginia over #12 Dylan Evans, Pittsburgh 5-2
165: #32 Peyten Kellar, Oklahoma over #12 Maxx Mayfield, Missouri 2-1
149: Andrew Clark, Rutgers over #14 Ryder Block, Iowa 4-0 … more at … https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/15608892-all-the-upsets-from-college-wrestling-conference-weekend

March 15, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

These are the 6 teams that qualified their full lineups for the 2026 DI men’s wrestling tournament

Six teams will bring all ten athletes to NCAAs, with four of those teams punching their tickets via conference finishes and two teams — Nebraska and Iowa State — needing a wild card for the tenth athlete.
Here are the profiles of each of these deep, talented squads: 
Penn State Nittany Lions 
The Penn State Nittany Lions are the team to beat heading into the 2026 NCAA tournament. Last year, Penn State set the NCAA scoring record and put all ten athletes on the podium. 

Braeden Davis’ seventh-place bracket win over Billy DeKraker 8-1 at this year’s Big Ten tournament ensured that all ten Nittany Lions will return to nationals with the hopes of chasing and surpassing their achievements from last year. With a program record of seven Big Ten champions, there’s an argument to make that this is the best team in program history.

PENN STATE HISTORY: Complete history of the program and its records

Five Penn State wrestlers — Luke Lilledahl, Shayne Van Ness, Mitchell Mesenbrink, Levi Haines and Rocco Welsh — will enter NCAAs undefeated as likely top seeds. Mesenbrink and Haines will chase their second titles, while Welsh will aim to return to the finals and Lilledahl and Van Ness will look to improve on previous All-American finishes and earn the opportunity to compete on Saturday night. 

Complete Penn State roster: 

125 pounds: Luke Lilledahl (1st at Big Tens)
133 pounds: Marcus Blaze (2nd at Big Tens)
141 pounds: Braeden Davis (7th at Big Tens)
149 pounds: Shayne Van Ness (1st at Big Tens)
157 pounds: PJ Duke (1st at Big Tens)
165 pounds: Mitchell Mesenbrink (1st at Big Tens)
174 pounds: Levi Haines (1st at Big Tens)
184 pounds: Rocco Welsh (1st at Big Tens)
197 pounds: Josh Barr (1st at Big Tens)
285 pounds: Cole Mirasola (5th at Big Tens) 

Ohio State Buckeyes

After picking up Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Big Ten Athlete of the Year and Big Ten Coach of the Year honors, Ohio State has exactly the kind of momentum the Buckeyes need heading into NCAAs. Taking down Penn State is a tall task, but the Bucks make a strong case to be the nation’s second-best team and could put up some serious team points in Cleveland. Ohio State’s strength at Big Tens came from its depth and grittiness, particularly on the backside of the bracket. Nic Bouzakis, Carson Kharchla, Luke Geog and Nick Feldman all rallied from losses to finish third, and similar kinds of performances from these four could help all of them fight for podium spots at nationals. Bouzakis and Geog have yet to earn All-American honors in their careers, but put themselves in prime position to do so with their conference results. Returning Ohio State All-American Ethan Stiles also stepped up at Big Tens and finished second — Ohio State fans likely expect a similar finish from him at nationals. … more at … https://www.ncaa.com/news/wrestling-men/article/2026-03-10/these-are-6-teams-qualified-their-full-lineups-2026-di-mens-wrestling-tournament

March 14, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | , | Leave a comment

The first NCAA women’s wrestling champions are crowned. How bright is the sport’s future?

The NCAA’s inaugural National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships wrapped up Saturday in Coralville, Iowa. 
Let’s meet the overall champion and the winners of each weight class, understand why there are so many Division II and Division III wrestling programs and learn about how the national championships translate to the Olympics.
Milestone moments, first champions:
Meet the overall champion and the winners of each weight class.
McKendree is the first team national champion in women’s wrestling. McKendree, under coach Alexio Garcia, bested second-place Iowa 171-166 for the title. North Central (Illinois) finished third with 123.5 points, while Grand Valley State (110.5) finished fourth.  
Individual champions:

March 14, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The Southern Conference and ESPN Announce Multi-Year Media Rights Extension

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Southern Conference and ESPN announced today a multi-year extension of their media rights agreement, continuing a longstanding relationship that will provide unprecedented national linear and digital exposure for SoCon athletics across ESPN’s industry-leading networks through the 2031-32 academic year.  
The extended agreement represents an expanded commitment by ESPN, anchored by a robust slate of regular season and championship broadcasts across ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPNU, along with
comprehensive digital distribution through ESPN’s direct-to-consumer services. 
Full Breakdown
Beginning in the 2026-27 academic year, the SoCon will feature a record number of national regular season and conference championship events on ESPN’s linear networks, including ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPNU.  
Men’s basketball coverage will see notable expansion under the agreement. The Ingles SouthernConference Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship game will be telecast on ESPN for multiple years of the deal, with the semifinal contests presented across ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU.  
For the first time, the league is also guaranteed regular season men’s basketball games on ESPN or ESPN2 … more at …
https://vmikeydets.com/news/2026/3/9/athletics-the-southern-conference-and-espn-announce-multi-year-media-rights-extension.aspx

March 14, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

ACC to Send 43 Wrestlers to 2026 NCAA Championships

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference will send 43 wrestlers to the 2026 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, set for March 19-21 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.
The 43 wrestlers are the second most in ACC history since the NCAA adopted this allocation and at-large format. Last year, the ACC sent a record 46 grapplers to the NCAAs.
The ACC secured 39 automatic qualifiers at the 2026 ACC Wrestling Championship on Sunday, March 8, in front of a record-breaking crowd of 4,692 fans at Cassell Coliseum on the campus of Virginia Tech.
On Tuesday, March 10, the NCAA announced its 42 at-large selections, which included four ACC wrestlers.
The ACC’s at-large selections were Pitt’s Dylan Evans (157 pounds), Jared Keslar (165) and Luca Augustine (174), along with Duke’s Connor Barket (285).

The at-large selections join the 288 student-athletes who qualified automatically through their conference tournament finishes. At-large berths were determined by the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee using the following criteria: head-to-head competition, quality wins, results against common opponents, winning percentage, ratings percentage index (RPI), coaches ranking and conference tournament finish.
The complete list of at-large selections is available on NCAA.com. … more at …https://theacc.com/news/2026/3/10/wrestling-acc-to-send-43-wrestlers-to-2026-ncaa-championships.aspx

March 13, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Singleton and Trumble Win ACC Titles, Team Comes in Third

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Led by two individual titles and four more guys on the podium, NC State wrestling finished third with 57 points at the 2026 ACC Wrestling Championship hosted by Virginia Tech on Sunday.
Seven wrestlers for the Pack earned automatic qualification for the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Cleveland, Ohio, later this month. The group marks the 11th straight season under Popolizio that at least seven NC State wrestlers have earned bids to the national tournament.
Matty Singleton at 174 lbs and Isaac Trumble at 285 lbs each were crowned individual champions at Cassell Coliseum on Sunday night, while six total landed on the podium at third or better in the red-and-white.
Defending his title at 174 lbs, Singleton defeated the No. 7, No. 6, and No. 4 seeds of his bracket to be crowned champion of the weight yet again after winning his first title last year at the 2025 ACC Wrestling Championship in Durham.
Remaining undefeated this season at 16-0, sixth-year senior Trumble earned his first-ever conference title while dominating his No. 5 and No. 2 seed opponents both by major decision in the heavyweight bracket.
The squad turns its focus to the national tournament, which will be at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio … more at … https://gopack.com/news/2026/3/9/wrestling-singleton-and-trumble-win-acc-titles-team-comes-in-third

March 13, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

2026 DIII men’s wrestling championships: Brackets, schedule, results

The 2026 DIII wrestling championships begins March 13 through 14 at Alliant Energy Power House in Cedar Rapids, IA. The championship qualifiers were announced on Monday, March 2, and brackets were released Friday, March 6 on NCAA.com.
Below you can find the complete schedule of the 2026 DIII wrestling championship.
👉 Click here to see the full list of championship qualifiers
➡️ Watch live: 2026 DIII men’s wrestling championships 
2026 NCAA DIII wrestling championship brackets
The official 2026 DIII wrestling brackets were released Wednesday, March 11. Click here to see every bracket weight-by-weight. 
2026 NCAA DIII wrestling championships schedule 
*All times Eastern … more at … https://www.ncaa.com/news/wrestling-men/article/2026-03-13/2026-diii-mens-wrestling-championships-brackets-schedule-results

March 13, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

NCAA announces at-large selections for 2026 Division I Men’s Wrestling Championships

INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA announced the 42 at-large selections for the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Championships in Cleveland.
The at-large selections, listed in alphabetical order in each weight class, join the 288 student-athletes that qualified through their conference tournament finishes over the weekend.  The at-large selections were made by the NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Committee using the following selection criteria: head-to-head competition, quality wins, results against common opponents, winning percentage, ratings percentage index, coaches ranking and conference tournament finish.
Seeding and brackets for this year’s event will be revealed tomorrow, March 11, during the NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Championships Selection Show on NCAA.com at 8 p.m. ET.
Visit http://ncaa.com/wrestling for more information about this year’s championship. … more at … https://nwcaonline.com/news/2026/3/10/national-wrestling-coaches-association-ncaa-announces-at-large-selections-for-2026-division-i-mens-wrestling-championships.aspx

March 12, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

« Previous Entries     Next Entries »