Penn State Wrestling Has Seven No. 1 Seeds at 2026 Big Ten Championships The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, with a record of 15-0 overall and 8-0 in Big Ten conference play, will host the 2026 Big Ten Championships at the Bryce Jordan Center on March 7-8. Head coach Cael Sanderson’s squad will enter the tournament with seven top seeds, including eight first-round byes due to having eight total top-two seeds. All individual rankings are based on InterMat data from February 24, 2026. Sophomore Luke Lilledahl, ranked No. 1 at 125 pounds, will carry a perfect 17-0 record into the event as the No. 1 seed. True freshman Marcus Blaze, ranked No. 2 at 133, will also start as a No. 1 seed with a 19-0 record. Junior Braeden Davis, ranked No. 14 at 141, is the No. 6 seed and will face 11th-seeded Dario Lemus of Maryland in the first round. Shayne Van Ness, ranked No. 1 at 149, will have a first-round bye with an 18-0 record. PJ Duke, a true freshman ranked No. 4 at 157, enters his first Big Ten tournament with a 16-1 record and will be the No. 2 seed, facing 13th-seeded Mekhi Neal of Maryland. Mitchell Mesenbrink, a junior ranked No. 1 at 165, will have a first-round bye with a 19-0 record. Senior Levi Haines, ranked No. 1 at 174, will also start as a No. 1 seed with a 18-0 record. Sophomore Rocco Welsh, ranked No. 1 at 184, and sophomore Josh Barr, ranked No. 1 at 197, will both have first-round byes. Redshirt freshman Cole Mirasola, ranked No. 5 at 285, is the No. 4 seed and will face 13th-seeded Gabe Christenson of Northwestern. The tournament will begin with two sessions on Saturday, one at 10 a.m. and one at 5 p.m., followed by a combined session on Sunday starting at 12 p.m. The event will include consolation finals, 7th-place rounds, and the finals, with 3rd- and 5th-place bouts.#penn_state #nittany_lion #bryce_jordan_center #big_ten_championships #cael_sanderson
