-NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPs PREVIEW-
- NCAA DIVISION I WRESTLING OUTLOOK -
By Jim and Tony Nordland
Defending team champion Penn State are the solid favorite at the 95th annual NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships being held at the Rocket Arena in Cleveland, OH, on March19th-21st. The Nittany Lions recently won the Big Ten Championships, crowned 7 champions and have 10 NCAA qualifiers. They are seeking their 14 NCAA title and have won 12 championships under head coach Cael Sanderson, their first team crown was in 1953. They are paced by two reigning NCAA titlists, that are both unbeaten, junior Mitchell Mesenbrink (22-0) at 165 and Levi Haines (21-0), a senior at 174 pounds.
Other returning NCAA champions include Vincent Robinson (15-4) of NC State at 125, Lucas Byrd (20-2) of Illinois in the loaded 133-pound class, two-time champ unbeaten Jesse Mendez (22-0) of Ohio State at 141, along with Antrell Taylor (22-3) at 157 and 2021 winner AJ Ferrari (15-3) at 285, both from the 2025 NCAA team runners-up, the Nebraska Cornhuskers who also qualified their entire starting lineup.
Other top tier teams that will challenge the Nittany Lions are Oklahoma State, the Big 12 team champions and Big Ten power Ohio State. Both of those squads have 10 NCAA qualifiers and should be atop the leader board throughout the three-day tournament. Also vying for a top ten NCAA finish will be Arizona State, Cornell, Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State (qualified all 10 of their wrestlers), Lehigh, Michigan, Minnesota, NC State, Stanford and ACC champion Virginia Tech with 10 qualifiers.
The 2026 NCAA field of 330 wrestlers feature a stable of true freshmen and Oklahoma State has a trio of them, Jax Forrest (Johnstown, PA) with a 13-0 mark at 133, Sergio Vega (Sunnyside AZ) - 19-0 at 141 and LaDarion "Dee" Lockett (Stillwater, OK) - 16-2 at 165. Others to watch include a group of 133-pound wrestlers, Marcus Blaze (Johnstown, PA) - 21-1 at Penn State, Kyler Larkin (Gilbert, AZ) - 18-2 at Arizona State and Aaron Seidel (Fredricksburg, PA) - 18-1 at Virginia Tech. Cornell has Ivy League champion Jaxon Joy (Wadsworth, OH) - 24-1 at 149 and Penn State has Big Ten champ PJ Duke (Slate Hill, NY) - 19-1 at 157 pounds. Duke is a four-time state champion from Minisink Valley HS and finished with a stellar 152-1 career mark. That elite group could set some NCAA records for underclassmen at the 2026 meet.
The Big Red of Cornell hope to improve on their 7th place NCAA finish last year and will be led by a pair of returning All-Americans, Meyer Shapiro (15-1) at 157 and unbeaten Simon Ruiz (16-0) at 174. Other red-uniformed standouts are, Tyler Ferrara (23-7), a two-time NYS champion from Chenango Forks HS and tough Vince Cornella (19-1) at 141 pounds.
MAT NOTES:
Oklahoma State is the NCAA leader with 34 team titles, followed by Iowa with 24, their last title was in 2021 with the Spencer Lee led Hawkeyes, as they outpointed Penn State, 129 points to 113. Since then, the Nittany Lions have won four consecutive titles and are on the cusp for their fifth straight NCAA championship. Many wrestling experts think Penn State could eclipse the mark of 5 individual champions this year. Iowa had five winners in 1986 & 1997, Oklahoma State in 2005 and Penn State in 2017 & 2022.
The Empire State has one returning All-American, #13-Stevo Poulin (15-7) from Shenendehowa HS, now at Iowa State, in the 125-pound class. Those numbers should go up at the 2026 NCAAs, especially with the aforementioned Ferrara and Duke. Other New York wrestlers are:
125- Sulayman Bay (23-12) - (Bronx- Columbia)
125- Jace Schafer (23-8) - (Walworth - Bloomsburg)
133- Zach Redding (12-8) - (Eastport-South Manor- NC State)
141- Jordan Titus (16-14) - (Center Moriches- West Virginia)
157- Kaleb Burgess (18-7) - (Canandaigua-Buffalo)
157- Cameron Catrabone (18-8) - (Williamsville North - Michigan)
165- Ryan Burgos (20-7) - (Rochester- Edinboro)
174- Carter Baer (18-4) - (Gouverneur-Binghamton)
174- Carter Schubert (19-6) - (Marion -Oklahoma)
184- Zack Ryder (12-8) - (Minisink Valley- Oklahoma State)
197- Mikey Squires (19-3) - (Norwich- Binghamton)
285- Stephen Monchery (23-7) - (Middletown- Appalachian State)
285- Alex Semenenko (25-7) - (Brooklyn- Brown)
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BY THE NUMBERS:
* There are 330 wrestlers from 35 states.
* The top ten NCAA Qualifiers by home state:
1. PA (50 qualifiers)
2. OH (28)
3. NJ (28)
4. CA (23)
5. IL (18)
6. NY (16)
7. WI (15)
8. IN (12)
8. MN (12)
10. FL (11)
10. MI (11)
* Minisink Valley HS, NY, has two NCAA qualifiers - PJ Duke (157) and Zack Ryder (184).
* Wyoming Seminary, PA, has a record 8 NCAA wrestlers, followed by Blair Academy, NJ, with 5.
* There are ONLY 14 unbeaten wrestlers in the field with three at 141 pounds; No. 1. Jesse Mendez (22-0), No. 2 Leroy Vega (19-0) and No. 5 Luke Stanich (13-0).
* Only two wrestlers have 30 plus wins and both are in the 184-pound bracket: Aeoden Sinclair (30-1) from Missouri and James Conway (32-2) of F & M.
* The Oklahoma State Cowboys have crowned 142 NCAA champions.
* There will be 640 bouts over the three days of competition.
* ESPN will have 18 hours of TV coverage during the six sessions.
* The first round of wrestling kicks off on Thursday, March 19th at 12 noon.
A brief breakdown of each weight for the NCAA Tournament:
125 - Penn State’s unbeaten All-American Luke Lilledahl is the favorite here but will still be challenged by Virginia Tech’s second ranked Eddie Ventresca with just 2 losses this year and another unbeaten the third ranked Sheldon Seymour of Lehigh. Ventresca and Seymour are returning All-Americans. Rounding out the field: Vince Robinson of NC State is the defending champ and the other returning All-Americans in Troy Spratley of Oklahoma State runner-up last year, Matt Ramos from Purdue, Caleb Smith of Nebraska and Stevo Poulin from Iowa State.
133 - Oklahoma State’s number one seed and unbeaten Jax Forrest is ranked second to Ohio State’s Ben Davino with one loss. Davino will most likely battle Marcus Blaze of Penn Sate also with one loss in the semis. All of them are returning All-Americans. Two of New York’s wrestlers, Tyler Ferrara (Cornell) and Zach Redding (NC State) meet first round in that lower bracket.
141 - Almost everyone will pick undefeated Jesse Mendez from Ohio State to win another title but other wrestlers looking to make a run are Oklahoma State’s Sergio Vega, Nebraska’s Brock Hardy, Nasir Bailey of Iowa, CJ Composto of Penn and Cornell’s Vince Cornella. Hardy, Bailey and Composto are also returning All-Americans.
149- Another unbeaten Penn State wrestler Shayne Van Ness (21-0) could battle freshman second seeded Jaxon Joy from Cornell who defeated the third seeded Cross Wasilewski from Penn in the Ivy League finals. All-Americans in the hunt: Lachlan McNeill of Maryland, Casey Swiderski from Oklahoma State and Ethan Stiles of Ohio State.
157 - PJ Duke of Penn State has been wrestling well and looked unbeatable in the Big Ten where he defeated defending NCAA champion Antrell Taylor of Nebraska. It could be a rematch in the NCAA final. With only one loss Cornell’s third seeded Meyer Shapiro will be in the hunt after making All-American the last two seasons.
165 - Mitchell Mesenbrink of Penn State is number one ranked at 22-0 and is looking for another NCAA crown. All-Americans Joey Blaze of Purdue and Mikey Caliendo of Iowa should battle in the semis for a shot at the title.
174 - Two unbeatens here, number one seed and top ranked Levi Haines from Penn State and Simon Ruiz of Cornell. Look for a semi final battle with Ruiz and Nebraska’s Chris Minto to get a final berth. All three are returning All-Americans.
184 - Top ranked and undefeated Rocco Welsh will need to wrestle well to get out of the top bracket and could see any of the top contenders in Aeoden Sinclair of Missouri, Max McEnelly a returning All-American from Minnesota or Angelo Ferrari of Iowa in the finals.
197 - Penn State’s Josh Barr (19-0) last year's runner-up is the favorite here having beat most of the contenders solidly throughout the year. The tough bottom bracket is filled with four All-Americans: second seeded and unbeaten Rocky Elam (18-0) from Iowa State, #3- Stephen Little of Little Rock, and Mac Stout from Pitt.
285 - Two undefeated wrestlers here in top ranked Yonger Bastida (25-0) from Iowa State and second ranked All-American Isaac Trumble (16-0) of NC State. AJ Ferrari an All-American at 197 from Nebraska could challenge in the top tier and Big Ten champ Taye Ghadiali of Michigan could make a run in the bottom bracket.
Click for NCAA DIVISION I BRACKETS
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NCAA DIVISION I WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
At The Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio
Wrestling starts on Thursday, March 19th - March 21st. Check back for results...
CORNELL WINS THE 2026 IVY LEAGUE WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Big Red Crowns Four Champions
Cornell won their second consecutive Ivy League Championships title held at the Levien Gymnasium on the Columbia University campus in New York City. Cornell crowned four champions and scored 132.5 points distancing themselves over runner-up Columbia with three champions and 118 points and Penn with one champ and 116.5 points. Big Red also qualified 5 wrestlers for the NCAA Tournament in Cleveland. Jude Swisher from University of Pennsylvania was voted the tournament's Outstanding Wrestler after he defeated number one Meyer Shapiro of Cornell at 157 pounds.
- CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL RESULTS -
125- Marc-Anthony McGowan (Princeton) dec. Davis Motyka (Penn) 10-2
133- Tyler Ferrara (Cornell) dec. Evan Mougalian (Penn) 12-2
141- Vince Cornella (Cornell) dec. CJ Composto (Penn) 5-3
149- Jaxon Joy (Cornell) dec. Cross Wasilewski (Penn) 2-0
157- Jude Swisher (Penn) dec. Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) 8-3
165- Cesar Alvan (Columbia) dec. Ty Whalen (Princeton) 8-1 OT
174- Simon Ruiz (Cornell) dec. Nick Fine (Columbia) 8-2
184- Joe Curtis (Columbia) dec. Louis Cerchio (Cornell) 7-1
197- Andrew Reall (Brown) dec. Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia) 4-1 OT
285- Vincent Mueller (Columbia) dec. Alex Semenenko (Brown) 8-1
TEAM SCORES:
1. Cornell (132.5 points)
2. Columbia (118)
3. Penn (116.5)
4. Princeton (85)
5. Brown (79)
6. Harvard (70)
- SEMI FINAL RESULTS -
125 - Davis Motyka (Penn) dec. Greg Diakomihalis (Cornell) 4-1 OT
Marc-Anthony McGowan (Princeton) dec. Sulayman Boh (Columbia) 9-2
133 - Tyler Ferrara (Cornell) dec. Evan Gursoy (Columbia) 4-1 OT
Evan Mougalian (Penn) dec. Ethan Rivera (Princeton) 2-0
141 - Vince Cornella (Cornell) maj. dec. Matthew Martino (Princeton) 14-3
CJ Composto (Penn) dec. Khimari Manns (Brown) 14-11
149 - Jaxon Joy (Cornell) tech fall Jack Crook (Harvard) 18-1
Cross Wasilewski (Penn) dec. Eligh Rivera (Princeton) 5-0
157 - Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) tech fall Kai Owen (Columbia) 20-2
Jude Swisher (Penn) dec. Jimmy Harrington (Harvard) 4-0
165 - Cesar Alvan (Columbia) dec. Joseph Cangro (Harvard) 7-6
Ty Whalen (Princeton) dec. Benny Rogers (Cornell) 7-6
174 - Simon Ruiz (Cornell) tech fall Caden Bellis (Penn) 18-2
Nick Fine (Columbia) dec. Holden Garcia (Princeton) 5-1
184 - Joe Curtis (Columbia) dec. Matthew Walsh (Harvard) 3-0
Louis Cerchio (Cornell) maj. dec. Liam Carlin (Penn) 12-0
197 - Andrew Reall (Brown) maj. dec. Aiden Hanning (Cornell) 10-2
Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia) dec. Martin Cosgrove (Penn) 4-2
285 - Vincent Mueller (Columbia) dec. Ashton Davis (Cornell) 8-1
Alex Semenenko (Brown) dec. John Pardo (Penn) 4-1
MAT NOTES:
The Big Red of Cornell (9-7 dual meet) were the favorite to win their second consecutive Ivy League Championship which is being held at the Levien Gymnasium on the campus of Columbia University on Sunday, March 8th. Cornell has won 44 Ivy League titles and hopes to match last year's showing and qualify all ten wrestlers for the NCAAs. Their top challengers will be from dual meet champion, Columbia (10-3), and 2025 team runners-up, a formidable squad from Penn.
The red-cladded group return two-time All-American Meyer Shapiro (14-0, 58-6 career), a junior who is the top-ranked 157-pound wrestler in the nation and AA sophomore Simon Ruiz (14-0. 40-7 career), second-ranked in the country. Other standouts for venerable head coach Mike Grey, now in his 5th season at the helm are; Tyler Ferrara (21-7) at 133, along with a pair of No. 1 seeds; Vince Cornella (17-1) at 141 and true freshman Jaxon Joy (22-1) at 149 pounds. Also, to watch is returning Ivy League champ Ashton Davis (285).
Columbia won their fifth Ivy League dual title and first one since 1982. The Lions point to a tandem of lightweights; Sulayman Bah (19-11) at 125 and Brooklyn native Evan Gursoy at 133. Columbia's contingent has a trio of #1 seeds, Cesar Alvan (25-8) at 165, Joe Curtis (184) and rugged Vincent Mueller (23-6) at 285. Head coach Donny Pritzlaff also has potential finalists with #2 seeds, Nick Fine (23-7) a returning Ivy league bronze medalist at 174, and Jack Wehmeyer (17-7) at 197 pounds.
U Penn returns All-American CJ Composto (15-3), who finished in 4th place at the 2025 NCAA at 141 and reigning Ivy League champion Cross Wasilewski (23-2) in the loaded 149-pound bracket. Veteran coaches Matt Valenti and Roger Reina have potential Ivy League champions with Davis Motyka (15-4) at 125 and Evan Mougalian (19-4) at 133, both are top seeded in their respective weight classes. The Quakers also have highly touted Jude Swisher (18-3), the No. 2 seed at 157 pounds.
Other possible NCAA qualifiers are Princeton teammates, defending Ivy champ Marc-Anthony McGowan (13-6) at 125, Elijah Rivera (1107) at 149 and Ty Whalen (19-6) at 165 pounds. Looking for berths to the 2026 NCAA meet in Cleveland, OH, include a pair of Brown upper weights; top-seed Andrew Reall (30-4) at 197 and #2- Alex Semenenko (23-6) in 285- pound class.
The Championship Finals will begin at 4:00 PM and be aired nationally on ESPNews.
There are 23 automatic NCAA Pre-Allocations for the Ivy League Wrestling Championships with 42 at large qualifiers that will be announced on Tuesday, March 10th. The full bracket of 33 wrestlers per weight class will be revealed by the NCAA on Wednesday, March 11th at 8:00 PM. The 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships will be held at the Rocket Arena in Cleveland, OH, on Marck 19th-21st.
Cornell's Tyler Ferrara (23-7) works for his takedown against Evan Mougalian from Penn. The second seeded Ferrera scored a 12-2 major decision against the top seeded Mougalian to win the 133 pound title at the Ivy League Championships held at Columbia University. Cornell scored 132.5 points and won the championship over Columbia (118) and Penn (116.5).
CLICK FOR RESULTS FROM FLO WRESTLING
Cesar Alvan (27-8) from Columbia University takes down Ty Whalen of Princeton. The top seeded Alvan needed this takedown and near fall points to win the 165 pound title in overtime.
University of Penn's Jude Swisher (20-3) scores his second takedown of the match to upset the top seed and number one ranked Meyer Shapiro. Swisher handed Shapiro (15-1) his first loss on the season and won this 157-pound Ivy League final, 8-3.
Marc-Anthony McGowan (17-6) of Princeton controls Davis Motyka of Penn. McGowan beat the top seeded Motyka (16-5), 10-2 to win his second 125- pound Ivy League title.
Cornell's Vince Cornella (19-1) takes down Penn's CJ Composto (16-4) to win the 141-pound Ivy crown 5-3. Both are nationaaly ranked and NCAA podium possibles at the upcoming NCAA meet in Cleveland, OH.
Jaxson Joy (24-1) of Cornell takes Cross Wasilewski (24-3) to the mat. Joy, a true freshman won this 149-pound battle in the finals 2-0.
big ten wrestling championships
PENN STATE WINS BIG TEN WITH 7 CHAMPS
#1- Penn State (15-0) continued to roll through the season and boasted an 86 dual meet win streak. The Nittany Lions, the favorite at the Big Ten Championships outpointed runner-up #2- Ohio State (18-1) for the team title. The entire starting lineup for Penn State qualified for the NCAA Championships in Cleveland.
The 2026 Big Team field features five defending NCAA champions; unbeaten Lucas Byrd (17-0) of Illinois at 133, Jesse Mendez (19-0) of Ohio State at 141 and Nebraska's Antrell Taylor (20-2) at 157. Penn State has the tandem of Mitchell Mesenbrink (19-0) at 165 and Levi Haines (18-0), now in the 174-pound class.
- CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL RESULTS - -
125- Luke Lilledahl (Penn State) dec. Jore Volk (Minnesota) 4-1 OT
133- Ben Davino (Ohio State) dec. Marcus Blaze (Penn State) 2-2, RT
141- Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) dec. Brock Hardy (Nebraska) 7-2
149- Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) pinned Ethan Stiles (Ohio State) 3:29
157- PJ Duke (Penn State) maj. dec. Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) 12-4
165- Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) maj. dec. Michael Caliendo (Iowa) 12-3
174- Levi Haines (Penn State) dec. Christopher Minto (Nebraska) 2-1
184- Rocco Welsh (Penn State) dec. Max McEnelly (Minnesota) 2-1 OT
197- Josh Barr (Penn State) tech fall Camden McDaniel (Nebraska) 19-4
285- Taye Ghadiali (Michigan) dec. AJ Ferrari (Nebraska) 5-2
MAT NOTES:
Two NY natives are lodged in the 157-pound bracket; PJ Duke (16-1) and Cam Catrabone (15-6) of Michigan, who drew the 5th seed. Duke hails from Minisink Valley and Catrabone is from Williamsville North. Both of those Empire State standouts are freshmen and should reach the podium Sunday night. Also, in this loaded weight class is unbeaten Brandon Cannon (13-0) of Ohio State, the 7th seed. Cannon and Duke could meet in a quarterfinal battle with the winner pitted against the aforementioned Kannon Webster (16-3).
Interesting to note that two reigning NCAA champions; Lucas Byrd (133) and Antrell Taylor (157) both were second seeded. The Big Ten has received 87 pre-allocation spots and the NCAA will still announce 42 at large berths on March 10th. On Sunday, March 8th, the Championship Finals, along with 3rd and 5th place bouts are at 4:30 PM. The finals will be televised on the Big Ten Network.
FINALTEAM SCORES:
1. Penn State (184 points)
2. Ohio State (148.5)
2. Nebraska (116.5)
4. Iowa (87)
5. Michigan (86.5)
6. Illinois (78)
7. Minnesota (76.5)
8. Rutgers (63.5)
9. Wisconsin (55)
10. Indiana (40)
BIG TWELVE WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Oklahoma State (176 pts.) wins Big 12 Tournament over Iowa State (144) and Arizona State (94)
- CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL RESULTS -
125 - Troy Spratley (Okla St) d. Stevo Poulin (Iowa St) 5-2
133 - Jax Forrest (Okla St) d. Kyler Larkin (Arizona St) 15-2
141 - Sergio Vega (Okla St) d. Anthony Echemendia (Iowa St) 2-1 OT
149 - Casey Swiderski (Okla St) d. Caleb Rathjen (N Iowa) 5-3
157 - Kaleb Larkin (Arizona St) d. Landon Robideau (Okla St) 4-3
165 - Nicco Ruiz (Arizona St) d. LaDarion Lockett (Okla St) 2-1
174 - Cam Steed (Missouri) d. Alex Facundo (Okla St) 10-6
184 - Aeoden Sinclair (Missouri) d. Eddie Neitenbach (Wyoming) 8-1
197 - Rocky Elam (Iowa St) d. Joey Novak (Wyoming) 5-4
285 - Yonger Bastida (Iowa St) d. Konner Doucet (Okla St) 4-1
FOR UPDATED RESULTS FROM FLO WRESTLING (CLICK HERE)
EIWA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Lehigh (163.5 pts.) wins EIWA Tournament over Navy (135.5) and Bucknell (126.5)
- CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL RESULTS -
125- Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh) md. Andrew Binni (Navy) 17-6
133-Maximilian Leete (American) d. Ethan Berginc (Army) 9-2 OT
141- Luke Stanich (Lehigh) md. Caedyn Ricciardi (Navy) 14-3
149- Eugene Harney (Morgan State) d. Riley Bower (Bucknell) 6-5
157- Logan Rozynski (Lehigh) med. fft. Yannis Charles (Morgan St)
165- Max Brignola (Lehigh) d. Noah Mulvaney (Bucknell) 4-2
174- Myles Takats (Bucknell) d. Carter Baer (Binghamton) 5-2
184- Caleb Campos (American) d. James Conway (Franklin & Marshall) 8-5
197- Dillon Bechtold (Bucknell) d. Mikey Squires (Binghamton) 4-0
285- Nathan Taylor (Lehigh). d. Nate Schon (Drexel) 4-1
FOR UPDATED RESULTS FROM FLO WRESTLING (CLICK HERE)
- THE MAT SLAP'S TOp TEAMS -MARCH 2026 -
1. PENN STATE (15-0)
2. OHIO STATE (18-1)
3. OKLAHOMA STATE (15-1)
4. IOWA STATE (12-2)
5. NEBRASKA (13-6)
6. IOWA (12-6)
7. VIRGINIA TECH (11-3)
8. NC STATE (15-4)
9. MINNESOTA (11-5)
10. ILLINOIS (12-5)
11. RUTGERS (14-5)
12. MICHIGAN (9-6)
13. NORTH CAROLINA (9-5)
14. MISSOURI (12-8)
15. NORTHERN IOWA (11-8)
16. PITTSBURGH (11-4)
17. WEST VIRGINIA (11-5)
18. WISCONSIN (12-5)
19. INDIANA (9-5)
20. SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (12-5)
21. WYOMING (8-5)
22. STANFORD (7-6)
23. OREGON STATE (7-2)
24. OKLAHOMA (9-6)
25. LEHIGH (11-7)
CORNELL (9-7)
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 an 82-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 (8-5) of 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, PJ Duke (13-1) at 157)at Penn State and Oklahoma State's Zack Ryder (10-5) 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 NY state's 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.
The unbeaten Buckeyes (16-0) 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 freshman PJ Duke of Minisink Valley HS.
In the Cy-Hawk Dual Meet Classic - Iowa State upends Iowa, 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 TOP 25 NCAA WRESTLERS at the Mid-Season mark -
1. Mitchell Mesenbrink (Hartland, WI) - Penn State ( 165)
2. Jesse Mendez (Crown Point, IN) - Ohio State (141)
3. Levi Haines (Arendtsville, PA) - Penn State (174)
4. Lucas Byrd (Cincinnati, OH) - Illinois (133)
5. Yonger Bastida (Trinidad, Cuba) - Iowa State (285)
6. Shayne Van Ness (Somerville, NJ) - Penn State (149)
7. Brandon Cannon (Denver, CO) - Ohio State (157)
8. Josh Barr (Davison, MI) - Penn State (197)
9. Rocky Elam (Kansas City, MO) - Iowa State (197)
10. Joey Blaze (Perrysburg, OH) - Purdue (165)
11.Meyer Shapiro (Woodbine, MD) - Cornell (157)
12. Michael Caliendo (Geneva, IL) - Iowa (165)
13. Jaxon Joy (Wadsworth, OH) - Cornell (149)
14. Sergio Vega (Tucson, AZ) - Oklahoma State (141)
15. Mac McEnelly (Waconia, MN) -Minnesota (184)
16. Brock Hardy (Brigham City, UT) - Nebraska (141)
17.Rocco Welsh (Waynesburg, PA) - Penn State (184)
18.Angelo Ferrari (Melissa, TX) - Iowa (184)
19. Nic Bouzakis (Tampa, FL) - Ohio State (125)
20. Ben Davino (South Elgin, IL) - Ohio State (133)
20. Issac Trumble (Springfield, NE) - NC State (285)
21. Luke Lillendahl (St. Charles, MO) - Penn State (125)
22. LaDarion Lockett (Stillwater, OK) - Oklahoma State (165)
23. Aoeden Sinclair (St. Charles, MO) - Missouri (184)
24. Kaleb Larkin (Gilbert, AZ) - Arizona State (157)
25. Eddie Ventresca (Roxbury, NJ) - Virginia Tech (125)
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)
2026 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.
new york state college wrestling
