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Penn State wrestling: No. 1 Lions overwhelm shorthanded No. 2 Ohio State 36-5

Published

1 month ago

February 13, 2026

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Penn State wrestling: No. 1 Lions overwhelm shorthanded No. 2 Ohio State 36-5

STATE COLLEGE – This one never felt like No. 1 vs. No. 2.

It wasn’t close.

Cael Sanderson’s top-ranked Penn State team is that good.

And the talented second-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes were missing a few key regulars on Friday night in front of a record crowd of 16,006 at Bryce Jordan Center.

Ohio State was without sixth-ranked Ethan Stiles at 149, top-ranked Brandon Cannon at 157 and fifth-ranked Carson Karchla at 174.

The Buckeyes’ replacements had to face a trio of of Nittany Lions that were a combined 46-1 coming in – junior Shayne Van Ness, true freshman PJ Duke and senior Levi Haines.

Not ideal.

The Lions won nine of 10 bouts, three of them in overtime.

The result? Penn State 36, Ohio State 5.

The Nittany Lions’ winning streak now stands at 85 consecutive matches. Penn State (14-0, 8-0) is the 2025-26 Big Ten dual meet champion.

The Lions close out their regular season with a home matchup against Princeton on Feb. 20 at Rec Hall.

Penn State av Ohio State wrestling, Feb. 13, 2025

“It’s just a close group; a lot of, obviously, tough battles tonight and our guys fought hard and we were able to go find those points at the end in really good matches,” Sanderson said of his wrestlers afterward.

“It’s just something we need to keep doing as we prepare for the postseason now.”

The Buckeyes (17-1, 6-1) needed to create plenty of magic early to have any chance, but PSU’s Luke Lilledahl and Marcus Blaze had other ideas.

The top-ranked Lilledahl, a sophomore 125-pounder, stayed unbeaten with a 4-1 win over previously unbeaten Nic Bouzakis in sudden victory. Lilledahl’s winning takedown occurred 39 seconds into the overtime neutral period.

Both wrestlers had escapes in regulation and Lilledahl just missed converting a takedown shot before the third-period buzzer.

Blaze, an unbeaten true freshman, improved to 18-0 with a 3-2 win in overtime over previously unbeaten Ben Davino at 133.

The two were tied 1-1 after regulation. No points in sudden victory, then Davino escaped in the second OT period.

Blaze, working from underneath and down 2-1, followed with the winning reversal with 15 seconds left overtime and rode out Davino for the win.

Blaze was No. 4 coming in, Davino was ranked No. 2.

Returning national champ Jesse Mendez put the Buckeyes on the board with a dominant win over PSU junior Braeden Davis, winning by 18-2 technical fall in 5:49 to cut Ohio State’s deficit to 6-5, but the issue was pretty much decided after 133.

Mendez now 18-0, is clearly the man to beat at 141.

Van Ness, a heavy favorite, worked Ohio State freshman Brogan Fielding for a 20-5 technical fall at 149 in 6:17.

Duke needed just 3:28 to pin Ohio State freshman Daxton Chase at 157.

Haines also won via tech. fall, 16-1, in 4:16 over Ohio State sophomore T.J. Shierl at 174.

PSU also received bonus point victories from junior Mitchell Mesenbrink at 165 (major decision), sophomore Rocco Welsh at 184 (decison), sophomore Josh Barr at 197 (major decision) and yes, freshman Cole Mirasola (overtime decision) at 285.

Welsh stayed unbeaten by rallying for a 7-6 win over Buckeyes junior Dylan Fishback, scoring two takedowns in the final period, the last one with 14 secods left.

Mirasola, facing Ohio State’s third-ranked Nick Feldman, scored a takedown 14 seconds into sudden victory to upset the Buckeye 4-1.

PENN STATE 36, OHIO STATE 5

125 pounds: Penn State So. Luke Lilledahl (16-0) dec. Ohio State Jr. Nic Bouzakis (12-1) by 4-1 (SV)

133: Penn State Fr. Marcus Blaze (18-0) dec. Ohio State Fr. Ben Davino (20-1) by 3-2 (TB2)

141: Ohio State Sr. Jesse Mendez (18-0) won by tech. fall over Penn State Jr. Braeden Davis (8-3) in 5:49 (18-2).

149: Penn State Jr. Shayne Van Ness (17-0) tech. fall over Ohio State Fr. Brogan Fielding (7-7) in 6:17 (20-5).

157: Penn State Fr. PJ Duke (15-1) pinned Ohio State Fr. Daxton Chase (7-7) in 3:28.

165: Penn State Jr. Mitchell Mesenbrink (18-0) major dec. Ohio State Sr. Paddy Gallagher (9-6) by 12-2.

174: Penn State Sr. Levi Haines (17-0) won by tech. fall over So. T.J. Shierl (12-7) in 4:15 (16-1).

184: Penn State So. Rocco Welsh (16-0) dec. Ohio State Jr. Dylan Fishback (12-6) by 7-6.

197: Penn State So. Josh Barr (15-0) major dec. Ohio State Jr. Luke Geog (12-5) by 11-2.

285: Penn State Fr. Cole Mirasola (13-4) dec. Ohio State Jr. Nick Feldman (17-4) by 4-1 (SV).

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How to watch Ohio State, Wisconsin in NCAA women’s hockey title game

Published

3 hours ago

March 22, 2026

Press Room

How to watch Ohio State, Wisconsin in NCAA women’s hockey title game

Wisconsin and Ohio State ought to just put the NCAA title game on their schedules.

For the fourth consecutive season, the Badgers and Buckeyes will play for the NCAA title in women’s hockey on Sunday, March 22. Top-seeded Ohio State beat Northeastern in the Frozen Four semifinal while defending champion Wisconsin, the second seed, edged Penn State in overtime.

“It’s special and I’m just really pumped to be able to try and do it again [Sunday] with this group that we have here,” Wisconsin’s Kirsten Simms told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel after the Badgers’ Frozen Four win on Friday, March 20.

“It’s a special team, a special group, a special energy, and so I’m really excited that that put us into the game Sunday.”

Here’s how to watch the NCAA title game:

When and where is the NCAA title game?

The NCAA championship game is at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 22. It will be played at Pegula Ice Arena on the Penn State campus.

How to watch the NCAA title game

The NCAA hockey championship game will air on ESPNU.

How to stream the NCAA title game

The Frozen Four games will be streamed on ESPN+.

Who is playing in the NCAA title game?

Ohio State and Wisconsin, and it’s going to be a doozy. The Badgers were the No. 1 team in the country for most of the season until the Buckeyes upset them in the WCHA title game. Now Wisconsin gets a chance to avenge that loss with a national title on the line.

The teams have met in the last three NCAA title games, with Wisconsin winning last year and in 2023 and Ohio State winning in 2024.

Players to watch

Wisconsin is led by Caroline Harvey, who added the Patty Kazmaier Award for college hockey’s best player to her MVP award from the Milano Cortina Olympics. The Badgers also have Olympic gold medalists Laila Edwards, Ava McNaughton and Simms.

In addition to Olympian Joy Dunne, Ohio State has the country’s best freshman, Hilda Svensson.

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City of Dublin, Ohio unofficially breaks Guinness World Record with human shamrock

Published

15 hours ago

March 21, 2026

Press Room

City of Dublin, Ohio unofficially breaks Guinness World Record with human shamrock

An Ohio city appropriately named Dublin had the luck of the Irish on its side this St. Patrick’s Day, unofficially breaking a Guinness World Record by organizing 1,050 people into the shape of a shamrock.

The human shamrock, which took on its verdant hue thanks to the green ponchos worn by participants, was formed immediately following the St. Patrick’s Day parade in the city, located 15 miles northwest of downtown Columbus, and nicknamed “The Other Dublin.”

This human shamrock was formed in Ohio on St. Patrick’s Day.

The record-breaking attempt was hosted by the creative agency Cornett and the tourism group in the city, as per Marketing Communication News.

The impressive feat topped the previous record of 815 participants, set by Dublin, Ireland — though the new mark won’t be official until Guinness certifies it.

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Ohio State vs Howard predictions, picks, odds for NCAA Tournament First Round

Published

1 day ago

March 21, 2026

Press Room

Ohio State vs Howard predictions, picks, odds for NCAA Tournament First Round

The First Round of the women’s 2026 NCAA Tournament continues Saturday with a slate featuring No. 3 Ohio State vs. No. 14 Howard on the 16-game schedule.

Here is the latest on Saturday’s March Madness matchup, including expert picks from reporters across the USA TODAY Sports Network.

USA TODAY Sports has a team of journalists covering the women’s NCAA Tournament to keep you up to date with every point scored, rebound grabbed and game won in the 68-team tournament.

USA TODAY Studio IX: Check out our women’s sports hub for in-depth analysis, commentary and more

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