Penn State wrestling wins 8th Big Ten team title under Cael Sanderson, crowns 5 champions

For the eighth time under head coach Cael Sanderson, the Penn State Nittany Lions are Big Ten champions.

They won the crown Sunday evening with 170.5 points, 47 points more than second place Michigan.

The Nittany Lions’ title came with five individual champions, with Braeden Davis (125 pounds), Levi Haines (157 pounds), Mitchell Mesenbrink (165 pounds), Aaron Brooks (197 pounds) and Greg Kerkvliet (285 pounds) all winning titles.

Brooks’ victory makes him a four-time Big Ten Champion, whiles Haines’ win was his second in his two years. All of the Nittany Lions’ other winners are first-time conference champions.

Penn State had seven wrestlers in the finals, with Beau Bartlett (141 pounds) and Bernie Truax (184 pounds) taking second place after losing their matches to Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez and Minnesota’s Isaiah Salazar, respectively.

The team’s other two wrestlers participating Sunday, Aaron Nagao (133 pounds) and Tyler Kasak (149 pounds), took part in third place matches, with both winning by fall to secure third place finishes.

Carter Starocci was the lone Nittany Lion not to make the finals after medically forfeiting both of his matches due to a knee injury he suffered against Edinboro in the team’s final dual of the season. Starocci was the top-ranked wrestler at his weight and would have likely made it six individual titles for Penn State had he been healthy enough to wrestle.

The Nittany Lions will now move on to the NCAA Wrestling Championships, which begin on March 21 in Kansas City, Mo. Only Starocci did not automatically qualify, and he is highly likely to receive an at-large bid for the tournament.

This story was originally published March 10, 2024 at 7:25 PM.

Jon Sauber

Centre Daily Times

(814) 231-6461

Jon Sauber covers Penn State football and men’s basketball for the Centre Daily Times. He earned his B.A. in digital and print journalism from Penn State and his M.A. in sports journalism from IUPUI. His previous stops include jobs at The Indianapolis Star, the NCAA, and Rivals.