On Wednesday, the NCAA released the seedings for this year's NCAA Wrestling Championships in Philadelphia later this month. Earlier, we discussed the seeding for Penn State's 10 representatives. Now, we take a look at who each Nittany Lion will face in their opening bout.
125 - No. 1 Luke Lilledahl (PSU) vs. No. 33 Caleb Weiland (MSU) OR No. 32 Marcello Milani (COR)
The talented true freshman Luke Lilledahl (19-2) will begin his run to a potential national championship by facing the winner of No. 32 Marcello Milani vs. No. 33 Caleb Weiland. Weiland, a redshirt freshman from Michigan State, has struggled this season with a 12-16 record, while Cornell's Marcello Milani has been up and down but has posted a winning 16-11 record.
133 - No. 8 Braedan Davis (PSU) vs. No. 25 Kurt Phipps (BUCK)
It hasn't been a great season for redshirt freshman Braedan Davis (12-5), but he's been good enough to earn the No. 8 seed at 133 pounds. He'll face off against Bucknell senior Kurt Phipps, who enters the NCAAs with a 22-8 record and has won seven straight matches.
141 - No. 2 Beau Bartlett (PSU) vs. No. 31 Jordan Titus (WVU)
Beau Bartlett has been phenomenal this season with a 21-1 record, his lone loss coming in the Big Ten Championships. Despite the defeat, he remains a threat to win a national title in a couple of weeks. He'll begin his path to a potential championship against West Virginia junior Jordan Titus, who is 11-15 this season and has lost three of his last four matches.
149 - No. 3 Shayne Van Ness (PSU) vs. No. 30 Gabe Willochell (WYO)
Van Ness, after losing his first match of the Big Ten Championships, bounced back to win three straight in dominating fashion and enters the NCAA Tournament with a 20-2 record. He'll hope to carry his momentum into the NCAA Championships when he faces off against Wyoming junior Gabe Willochell in the opening round. Willochell has lost three of his last four matches and is 16-12 overall.
157 - No. 1 Tyler Kasak (PSU) vs. No. 33 Richard Fedalen (COL) or No. 32 Landon Johnson (NIU)
Kasak enters the NCAA Championships with an 18-1 record and fresh off a Big Ten Championship at 157 pounds. His first opponent in the tournament will either be Columbia's Richard Fedalen (20-13) or Northern Illinois's Landon Johnson (16-11).
165 - No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (PSU) vs. No. 33 Chandler Amaker (CMU) OR No. 32 Jared Keslar (PITT)
Mesenbrink has been dominant this season with a 22-0 record and hasn't suffered a defeat since last year's NCAA Finals match at 165 pounds. He'll look to finish the job this year, and his journey will begin against Central Michigan's Chandler Amaker (12-12) or Jared Keslar (10-11).
174 - No. 2 Levi Haines (PSU) vs. No. 30 Avery Bassett (LOCK)
After taking home the Big Ten Championship at 174 pounds, Haines (20-1) begins his pursuit of a national championship against Lock Haven's Avery Bassett in the first round. Bassett enters the NCAA Championships with a 26-8 record and has won 13 of his last 14 matches.
184 - No. 1 Carter Starocci (PSU) vs. No. 33 TJ McDonnell (OR.ST) OR No. 32 Caden Rogers (LEH)
Carter Starocci will be going for his record fifth NCAA Championship, and his pursuit will begin by facing either TJ McDonnell of Oregon State or Caden Rogers of Lehigh. McDonnell is 7-13 this season, while Rogers is 14-6.
197 - No. 4 Josh Barr (PSU) vs. No. 29 Tucker Hogan (LEH)
The No. 4 seed at 197 pounds, Josh Barr owns a 16-3 record heading into the NCAA Championships and will face Lehigh's Tucker Hogan, the 29th seed, who owns a 22-6 record. Hogan is 14-3 in his last 17 matches dating back to late December.
285 - No. 3 Greg Kerkvliet (PSU) vs. No. 30 Sam Mitchell (WYO)
After suffering his first loss of the season in the 285-pound finals of the Big Ten Championships, Kerkvliet falls to the No. 3 seed behind Minnesota's Gable Steveson and Oklahoma State's Wyatt Hendrickson. Kerkvliet gets a quality opponent to open his path to potential back-to-back national championships by facing Wyoming's Sam Mitchell, who brings a strong 27-10 record with him to Philadelphia.
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