2025 NCAA WRESTLING PREVIEW
Richard Figueroa, is from Sanger, CA and a NCAA champion from Arizona State. He is now at Oklahoma State in the 133-pound class.
Ohio State's returning two-time NCAA champion Jesse Mendez is at 141 pounds. Mendez hails from Crown Point, IN and leads a stong Buckeye squad.
Mitchell Mesenbrink of Penn State is the defending NCAA champion at 165 pounds. The three-time stae champion from Hartland HS, WI ,is top-ranked and unbeaten at 12-0 with all his wins via bonus points. He leads the Nittany Lions as they attempt to capture their 14th overall NCAA team title.
- THE MAT SLAP'S TOp 25 TEAMS -Jan. 2026 -
1. PENN STATE (12-0)
2. OHIO STATE (15-0)
3. IOWA STATE (8-1)
4. OKLAHOMA STATE (10-1)
5. MINNESOTA (9-4)
6. IOWA (9-4)
7. NEBRASKA (9-6)
8. VIRGINIA TECH (7-2)
9. NC STATE (12-3)
10. MICHIGAN (7-2)
11. ILLINOIS (9-4)
12. SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (10-3)
13. NORTH CAROLINA (8-2)
14. PITTSBURGH (9-2)
15. NORTHERN IOWA (9-4)
16. RUTGERS (8-5)
17. OKLAHOMA (7-3)
18. WISCONSIN (10-2)
19. LEHIGH (7-6)
20. CORNELL (5-4)
21. MISSOURI (9-7)
22. WEST VIRGINIA (9-3)
23. WYOMING (4-4)
24. INDIANA (7-3)
25. STANFORD (4-6)
MAT NOTES:
Defending NCAA team champion Penn State are the solid favorite at the 95th annual NCAA Championships in Cleveland , Ohio on March 19th-21st, 2026. The Nittany Lions now boast a 77-match win streak and return two national champions, Mitchell Mesenbrink (165) and Levi Haines at 174. The lone returning NYS All-American is Stevo Poulin (Shenendehowa HS) now at Iowa State in the loaded 125-pound class. Other highly regarded NY natives are former Minisink Valley HS teammates; a pair of freshmen, unbeaten PJ Duke (157) at Penn State and Oklahoma State's Zack Ryder at 184 pounds. Both are potential NCAA podium possibles in March. Interesting to note in the 2019 NYS finals Poulin edged Ryder (7th grader), 4-3, at 106 pounds. The Big Red of Cornell return two-time All-American Meyer Shapiro (157) and AA Simon Ruiz (3rd ranked at 174). Also watch is freshman Jaxon Joy (three-time Ohio state champion) at 149 and senior Christan Hansen (NYS champ from Cold Spring Harbor) at 184 pounds. Defending NCAA champions are Vincent Robinson (125)- NC State, Lucas Byrd (133) - Illinois and Antrell Taylor of NCAA team runner-up Nebraska at 157 pounds. That aforementioned trio lead a strong NCAA field as they embark on the 2025-26 season.
Troy Nickerson (Chenango Forks HS) was NYS first five-time champion and NCAA champion at Cornell University with a career mark of 97-8. After a lenghty stint at Northern Colorado, he is now the head coach at Army West Point and along with able assistant Scott Green (former Shamrock Club coach) look to bring Army West Point back into national prominence.
At the National Duals this weekend in Tulsa, OK, Oklahoma State defeated Cornell, 22-12. At 133, Tyler Ferrara (Cornell) upset former NCAA champion Richie Figueroa, 11-9, at 133 pounds. In the championship finals, Ohio State (5-0) upended Iowa (4-1), 27-12, and rolled out to 21-0 lead behind a solid group of lightweights, Nic Bouzakis (125), Ben Davino (133) and two-time NCAA champion Jesse Mendez (Crown Point, IN) at 141 pounds. The Buckeyes are currently ranked second in the nation behind defending NCAA team champion Penn State. Ohio State last won the NCAA Championships in 2015 and at the helm is venerable coach Tommy Ryan (Wantagh HS, LI, NY) and the Buckeyes have a stable of assistants, including associate head coach J Jaggers. They could challenge the Nittany Lions for the team title at the 95th annual NCAA meet in March at Cleveland, OH.
Penn State won nine individual titles at the Black Knight Invitational held at Army West Point. Winning the 157-pound crown was true freshamn PJ Duke of Minisink Valley HS.
In the Cy-Hawk Dual Meet Classic - Iowa State (2-0) upends Iowa (5-2), 20-14 and snapped a 20 match win streak by the Haweyes. The host Cyclones won six bouts in the action-packed dual before over 10, 000 fans at the Hilton Coliseum in Ames. IA . A look at the results of some of the pivotal bouts in the dual meet. The turning point was in the 174-pound bout where junior MJ Gaitan (5-0), a 2022 CA state champion, handed previously unbeaten senior Patrick Kennedy (6-1), a former four-time Minnesota state champ, in an entertaining and exciting 8-7 overtime verdict and gave the Cyclones a 17-11 lead with two bouts remaining in the dual.
125- Dean Peterson (Iowa) dec. Stevo Poulin (Iowa State) 4-2
133- Evan Frost (Iowa State) dec. Drake Ayala (Iowa) 8-5
174- MJ Gaitan (Iowa State) dec. Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) 8-7 OT
197- Rocky Elam (Iowa State) dec. Massoma Endene (Iowa) 8-2
285- Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) dec. Ben Keuter (Iowa) 11-4
COLUMBIA 32 HOFSTRA 6
Columbia's Evin Gursoy, a two-time NYS champion from Midwood HS in Brooklyn takes down Hofstra's Gauge Shipp to win 9-1 at 133 pounds.
COLUMBIA 32 HOFSTRA 6
125- Sulay Bah(Col) d. Strobel 8-2
133- Evin Gursoy(C) md. Shipp 8-2
141- Frezza(C) d. Liardi 5-4
149- R. Fedalen(C) d. Turley 3-1
157- FrankVolpe(H) d. Scanlan 2-0
165- Jake Slotnick(H) d. Alvan 8-6
174- Nick Fine(C) md. Clark 8-0
184- Ayzerov(C) p. Waddell 4:21
197- Haselius(C) d. Conlon 10-5
285- Mueller(C) p. Sans :51
Sulayman Bah of Columbia wins 8-2 at 125 pounds.
Hofstra's Frank Volpe, NYS champion from Hauppauge takes Columbia's Charles Scanlon to the mat en route to a 2-0 decision at 157 pounds.
Hofstra's Jake Slotnick works for a takedown on Columbia's Cesar Alvan. Slotnick won this 165 pound bout 8-6 and earned his 8th victory on the season in front of a large hometown crowd on Alumni Night.
Hofstra Alumni - with over 50 in attendance including 1977 NCAA champion and OSW winner Nick Gallo of Deer Park HS.
MAT NOTES:
Two former NYS champions were victorious in the dual meet, Evan Gursoy (Midwood HS) and Frank Volpe (Hauppauge HS)
new york state college wrestling
