The Penn State’s Nittany Lions are on a roll! Recently, the Bryce Jordan Center in Pennsylvania witnessed some high-octane performances as part of the US Olympic Team Trials. Completing the Men’s freestyle USA squad for Paris, four of the six have officially qualified are from the Penn State RTC/Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. Namely, Aaron Brooks in the 86 kg category, Zain Retherford in 65, Kyle Dake in 74, and Kyle Snyder in 97kgs. But now with the U20 and U23 World Team Trials about to begin in Ohio, can we expect a similar form from the Lion entrants?

Beginning May 31st, the World Team Trials will feature stiff competition as it is the deciding podium and a litmus test for the U20 and U23 World Championship’s representatives. And as per the speculated entries, it is a possibility that the NLWC could go firing on all cylinders once again with its capable brigand of wrestlers!

The Nittany Lions limbering up for another victory-studded show?

Amongst the slew of participants who have entered for the World Team Trials according to the Flowrestling website list, the Nittany Lions are once again heavy in their numbers. Beginning with U20 freestyle, the Lions that could feature in the 57kg bracket are Cael Nasdeo from Pennsylvania and Luke Lilledahl from Missouri. Possibly stepping up in the 61kg division is Kyison Garcia from Utah, whereas the 70kg could witness 1X All- American Tyler Kasak in action. Moreover, as per the list, Joseph Sealey and Joshua Barr are also slated to compete from the Lion’s side in the 74 and 86kg categories, respectively.

On the other hand, hoping to romp to victory in U23 freestyle are a few known Lions. In the 61kg category, the wrestlers expected to appear on the Geneva mat are Aaron Nagao from California and Gary Steen from Pennsylvania. Nagao, a 2023 NCAA All-America winner and Penn State sophomore who recently clinched bronze at the 2024 Big Ten Championships, is a sure favorite for this category. Also, Matthew Rodriguez could probably be competing in 65kg.

Branched across various categories, the Nittany Lions will also cover the 70kgs and 79kgs sections, with Connor Pierce and Erik Gibson vying to cut into these slabs. Progressing to the heavier categories, the Nittany Lion entrant from the 92kg slot is Lucas Cochran. Whereas, the 125kg contender for them is none other than 3X NCAA All-American Greg Kerkvliet who just returned to Nittany for the 2024-25 season. 

Cumulatively, after hitting the nail on the head in their Olympic trials, this present line-up of robust competitors makes the NLWC look as strong as ever. More so, even recent records testify that the side is downright dominating. And a huge chunk of the credit certainly goes to coach Cael Sanderson.

Penn State’s Nittany Lions are at the top of the ladder

The Penn State’s Nittany Lions wrestling team surely does know what success tastes like! Their recent form has been commendable, with them being the 2024 Big Ten Regular Season Champions, the 2024 Big Ten Champions, and the 2024 NCAA Champions. Particularly at the NCAA, with 172.5 points, they ended at the top of the table, followed by Cornell, who was a distant second with 72.5. Crushing Iowa’s highest score from 1997, the team has truly struck gold with their performance.

However, Head Coach Cael Sanderson has played a major role here. As per the Penn State website, out of the total 59 NCAA champions that Penn State has had, 38 have been under Coach Cael’s mentorship. Lucky mascot, or the main strategic cog in the Penn State wrestling machinery, the side has won 12 NCAA titles overall, and all but one has been under Coach Cael. Starting from 2011, and barring 2015,2020, and 2021, the team has only clutched the first place.

Thus, beyond the shadow of a doubt, one can say that Penn State is truly smashing all records. They are on a winning streak and the days to come will unfold if it remains unbroken at the U20 and U23 championships too.