Penn State wins the 2026 NCAA DI men’s wrestling championships

285 pounds: No. 1 Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) and No. 2 Isaac Trumble (NC State) advance

No. 1 Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) over No. 4 AJ Ferrari (Nebraska), 15-7: Yonger Bastida takes an early shot against AJ Ferrari and converts for a takedown, but his coaches want near fall. Another shot from Bastida that nearly puts Ferrari on his back. This time he gets nearfall points and takes a 10-1 lead. Ferrari is helped on the mat by his trainers. Bastida chooses down to start the second period with a 10-2 lead. Ferrari is in on a shot, but he runs out of time in the period. Bastida will carry his 11-2 lead into the third. Ferrari chooses down to start the third period. The Cornhusker escapes. He trails 11-3. Takedown Ferrari. He still trails 11-6. Fourteen seconds. Bastida escapes. Takedown Bastida for good measure. The Cyclone is a national finalist with a 15-7 semifinal win. 

Yonger Bastida is a national finalist!

He wins 15-7 over AJ Ferrari.

🌪️🚨🌪️ pic.twitter.com/RHD1ayugUz

— Iowa State Wrestling (@CycloneWR) March 21, 2026

No. 2 Isaac Trumble (NC State) over No. 3 Taye Ghadiali (Michigan), 4-1: Ghadiali  is in on the first shot against NC State’s Trumble who finished fourth last year. No points. Scoreless first period. Ghadiali is on the board first with an escape to start the second period. Ghadiali’s point is the only point of the period. Trumble chooses down to start the third and final period. Ghadiali is warned for stalling. Ghadiali rides Trumble hard, but the Wolfpack veteran is out. Shot from Trumble. Ghadiali sprawls. Scrambling! Takedown Trumble. Both coaches threw bricks during that exchange. The call stands. Isaac Trumble is into the national finals! 

197 pounds: No. 1 Josh Barr (Penn State) and No. 7 Cody Merrill (Oklahoma State) advance

No. 1 Josh Barr (Penn State) over No. 5 Joey Novak (Wyoming), 14-3: Josh Barr is in a takedown right off the whistle, and he picks up a quick 3-0 lead. Reversal for Novak. The Cowboy has no quit in him. Escape Barr. The Nittany Lion leads 4-2. Takedown Barr. He leads 7-2 at the end of the first period. Novak chooses down to start the second period. He escapes, and Barr takes him down again. The Nittany Lion leads 10-3.  Barr does neutral in the third period and takes down Novak. He leads 13-3 with 2:30 of riding time. Barr is warned for stalling. Barr rides out Novak for the remainder of the third period, and he’s back in the national finals with a 14-3 win. 

No. 7 Cody Merrill (Oklahoma State) over No. 3 Stephen Little (Little Rock), 2-1: Scoreless first period. Merrill chooses down to start the second period and escapes quickly to put himself on the board first. Merrill’s escape is the lone point of the period. Little chooses down to start the third period. Let’s go to overtime. Little goes in on a shot and nearly gets the takedown. The officials review the call. No takedown. Time for tiebreakers. Little gets out in 24 seconds. Merrill chooses down. Little lets him up and goes for the takedown. He comes up just short. Cody Merrill is a national finalist. 

184 pounds: No. 1 Rocco Welsh (Penn State) and No. 3 Max McEnelly (Minnesota) advance

No. 1 Rocco Welsh (Penn State) over No. 5 Brock Mantanona (Michigan), 4-3: Scoreless after the first period. Mantanona chooses down to start the second. Mantanona escapes. Welsh in on a leg, but Mantanona scrambles away. Takedown Welsh. One minute to go. Rocco Welsh is a national finalist with a 4-3 victory!

Gritty win. 💪#PSUwr pic.twitter.com/ihf9pMCqdo

— Penn State WRESTLING (@pennstateWREST) March 21, 2026

No. 3 Max McEnelly (Minnesota) over No. 7 Angelo Ferrari, 2-1 (TB-1): Scoreless first period. McEnelly chooses down to start the second period. McEnelly escapes. Ferrari chooses down to start the third. McEnelly’s escape is the only point on the board so far. Ferrari escapes. This one is tied 1-1 with 30 seconds to go. Riding time is not a factor. Let’s go to overtime. Scrambling in short time. Ferrari wants the challenge brick. He thinks he had the takedown. No takedown. Time for tiebreakers. McEnelly starts down. McEnelly is out in seven seconds. Ferrari chooses down to start his 30-second tie-breaker. He needs to get out in less than seven seconds. McEnelly holds him down. Ten seconds. Ferrari escapes, but he runs out of time. McEnelly is a national finalist!

174 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines (Penn State) and No. 3 Chris Minto (Nebraska) advance

No. 3 Chris Minto (Nebraska) over No. 7 Cam Steed (Missouri), 5-1: Shot from Minto, and he’s on the board with a takedown in the first two minutes of the period. He finished fourth at 165 pounds last year and second in the Big Ten at 174 pounds this year. Minto chooses down to start the second period and escapes to extend his lead 4-0. Steed chooses down to start the third period. Chris Minto is a national finalist with a 5-1 win! 

THAT’S A FINALIST.

Minto earns a 5-1 decision over No. 7 Cam Steed (MIZZ) to advance to the NCAA finals. pic.twitter.com/BQaOfdB6Hw

— Nebraska Wrestling (@HuskerWrestling) March 21, 2026

No. 1 Levi Haines (Penn State) over No. 5 Patrick Kennedy (Iowa), 18-3 Levi Haines also puts himself on the board with a first-period takedown. He now leads 7-1 after Kennedy’s escape. Kennedy chooses down to start the third period. Kennedy escapes. Takedown Haines. He leads 10-3 and is looking for back points. He adds to his total, leading 17-3. He also has riding time which would give him the tech fall at the whistle. He rides out Kennedy for the bonus points. Haines is back in the national finals!

165 pounds: No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) and No. 3 Mikey Caliendo (Iowa) advance

No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) techs No. 12 Cesar Alvan (Columbia), 11-0: Takedown Mesenbrink. He’s looking for the fall. He takes near fall points instead and leads 11-0. He adds four more near fall points and earns the 15-0 tech fall. He’s back in the national finals. 

No. 3 Mikey Caliendo (Iowa) over No. 2 Joey Blaze (Purdue), 8-5: Blaze picks up a takedown over Mikey Caliendo. He leads 3-2 with one minute to go in the second period. Takedown Caliendo. He takes the 5-4 lead. Purdue challenges the takedown. Call is upheld. Ninety seconds to go. Scrambling! This one is going to overtime 5-5. Takedown Caliendo! He is back in the national finals! Iowa’s finalist streak stays alive for another year! 

NEVER A DOUBT!!!!

165 SF | #3 Michael Caliendo dec. #2 Joey Blaze (Purdue), 8-5 SV1 pic.twitter.com/0m3piArKxa

— Iowa Hawkeye Wrestling (@Hawks_Wrestling) March 21, 2026

157 pounds: No. 5 Landon Robideau (Oklahoma State) and No. 2 Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) advance

No. 5 Landon Robideau (Oklahoma State) over No. 1 PJ Duke (Penn State), 3-1: Scoreless first period. Robideau chooses down to start the second period. He escapes for the only point of the second period. Duke chooses down to start the third period. Duke escape, and this one is tied 1-1. Let’s go to overtime! Takedown Duke. Challenge Oklahoma State. No takedown. Robideau in on a dangerous shot. Duke wrestles on the edge. Ten seconds. Time for ride-outs! Robideau chooses down and picks up a two-point reversal. Duke chooses neutral. He has 30 seconds to get a takedown. Robideau is warned for stalling. The crowd does not approve. Robideau is going to the national finals! He tops formerly undefeated PJ Duke of Penn State 3-1. 

LANDON ROBIDEAUUUU 🤠

📺 ESPN2#NCAAWrestling x @CowboyWrestling pic.twitter.com/OqrOgWeA5F

— NCAA Men’s Wrestling (@NCAAWrestling) March 21, 2026

No. 11 Ty Watters (West Virginia) vs. No. 2 Antrell Taylor (Nebraska), 4-2: Scorless first period. Taylor, the reigning champ at the weight, chooses down to start the period and escapes. Watters is on a shot, but no points. Watters chooses down to start the third period. He escapes. Takedown Taylor! Watters escapes. Taylor leads 4-2. He carries that lead through the final whistle, and he’s back in the finals. 

149 pounds: No. 1 Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) & No. 10 Aden Valencia advance

No. 1 Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) vs. No. 20 Chance Lamer (Nebraska), 22-1: Van Ness is on the board first with an early takedown. He’s looking for back points but settles for the three-point takedown. Lamer is hit for stalling. Van Ness ends the first period on top and carries his 3-0 lead into the second period. Van Ness escapes to start the second period and picks up another takedown. He leads 7-0. Escape Lamer. Takedown Van Ness. He picked up four nearfall points in the process and leads 14-1 with 26 seconds to go in the second period. Lamer chooses neutral to start the third period. Takedown and nearfall for Van Ness. He picks up the 22-1 win, and he’s a national finalist! 

No. 10 Aden Valencia (Stanford) over No. 11 Lachlan McNeil (Michigan), 9-5: Scoreless first period. McNeil escapes to start the second period. Takedown Valencia. He leads the All-American Wolverine 3-1 with short time in the second period. Valencia ends the period on top and chooses down to start the third period. He escapes for the 4-1 lead. Shot from Valencia. Takedown! He leads 7-1 and pushes riding time up over a minute. Takedown McNeil. Valencia leads 7-5 with 10 seconds to go. Aden Valencia is an NCAAA finalist with a 9-5 win. 

NCAA FINALIST @aden_andstill 🙌

(10) Valencia defeats (11) Lachian McNeil (MICH), 9-5, to become the 4th individual @NCAAWrestling finalist in school history 🌲#GoStanford x #GoldRush pic.twitter.com/qWtR8rKfod

— Stanford Wrestling (@CardWrestling) March 21, 2026

141 pounds: No. 1 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) and No. 2 Sergio Vega (Oklahoma State) advance
 

No. 1 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) over No. 5 Luke Stanich (Lehigh), 4-1: Jesse Mendez continues his quest for another national title and a Hodge Trophy by going on offense right away with a shot against Stanich. The Mountain Hawk defends. Scoreless first period. Great defensive effort from Stanich. Mendez chooses down to start the second period and escapes.  Stanich chooses down to start the third period and escapes. This one is all tied up. One minute to go. Let’s go to overtime. Takedown Mendez. The Buckeye is back in the national finals!

No. 2 Sergio Vega (Oklahoma State) over No. 3 Brock Hardy (Nebraska), 5-4: Scoreless first period. Hardy chooses down to start the second period and escapes. He leads 1-0. Vega chooses neutral to start the third period. Takedown Vega. He leads 3-1. Reversal Hardy. This one is tied, but Hardy has been warned for stalling. Vega escapes and has the riding time advantage. Shot from Vega. Scrambling! Ten seconds. No takedown for Hardy, despite a tough effort. Vega takes the win 5-4. 

141 | THE TRUE FRESHMAN IS HEADED TO THE NCAA FINALS

No. 2 Vega dec. No. 3 Hardy (NEB), 5-3#GoPokes pic.twitter.com/yek4DaL3jn

— OSU Cowboy Wrestling (@CowboyWrestling) March 21, 2026

133 pounds: No. 1 Jax Forrest (Oklahoma State) & No. 2 Ben Davino (Ohio State) advance

No. 1 Jax Forrest (Oklahoma State) over No. 4 Aaron Seidel (Virginia Tech), 14-3 Takedown Forrest. He’s on fire this tournament. This is exactly the barn-burner it was advertised to be. Forrest leads 3-0 after the first minute.Forrest chooses down to start the second period with a 3-1 lead. Forrest leads 5-1 with 30 seconds to go in the second period. Takedown Forrest. Make that 8-1 in favor of the Cowboy. Shot from Seidel. Forrest leads 11-1 with twenty seconds to go in the period. Ten seconds. Out of bounds. Jax Forrest is into the national finals with a 14-3 major decision win over Seidel! 

No. 2 Ben Davino (Ohio State) vs. No. 3 Marcus Blaze (Penn State), 3-2: Scorless first period. Such a clash of styles across the two mats in this semifinal, with this one showing off impressive defensive prowess. Blaze is in on a leg. Davino scrambles on the edge and rolls into a shot of his own. Out of bounds. This one is all tied up 1-1 with less than a minute to go in the third period. Thirty seconds. Overtime. Davino is in on a shot. The crowd wants a takedown call. No takedown. Let’s resume sudden victory! Now tie-breakers. Davino escapes in 21 seconds. He holds down Blaze for 30 seconds, and Ben Davino is a national finalist! This crowd loves him! Challenge call. Call upheld. Davino is a national finalist!

The rematch of the 133 lbs #B1GWrestling Championship goes to Ben Davino ‼️@wrestlingbucks‘ 2-seed defeated 3-seed Marcus Blaze 3-2 to punch his ticket to the #NCAAWrestling Championship bout 🎟️ pic.twitter.com/oqm8Hak4Yx

— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) March 21, 2026

125 pounds: No. 1 Luke Lilledadhl (Penn State) & No. 10 Marc-Anthony McGowan (Princeton) advance

No. 1 Luke Lilledadhl (Penn State) vs. No. 5 Troy Spratley (Oklahoma State), 8-3: Lightin’ Luke Lilledahl is living up to his nickname, and he picks up an early takedown against 2025 NCAA finalist Troy Spratley. Spratley escapes. Lilledahl leads 3-1. Another shot from Lilledahl. Spratley is scrambling. Lilledahl puts him on his back, but Spratley scrambles out of it. The Nittany Lions leads 8-1. Officials review the near fall points. Call is upheld. Escape Spratley. Lilledahl leads 8-3 with one minute to go in the second period. Lilledahl holds his lead through the third period and takes the win 8-3. He’s heading to the national finals!

No. 10 Marc-Anthony McGowan (Princeton) over No. 14 Jacob Moran (Indiana), 4-1: Scoreless first period. McGowan chooses down to start the second period and escapes. He’s in on a leg. Out of bounds. Moran chooses down to start the third period. He trails 1-0. Moran escapes. This one is all tied up. Short time takedown from McGowan! He’s a finalist for the Princeton Tigers with a 4-1 win.  

MARC-ANTHONY, YOU’RE A NATIONAL FINALIST‼️#PrincetonWrestling #BIGTrust pic.twitter.com/zaonwm4tZz

— Princeton Wrestling (@tigerwrestling) March 21, 2026