NCAA Wrestling Live: Follow Penn State on Day 1
The 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships are underway in Kansas City, where Penn State seeks its third consecutive team title and a potential scoring record. The Nittany Lions are overwhelming favorites in the team race, with four No. 1 seeds and two wrestlers, Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks, pursuing their fourth NCAA titles.
Catch up here with the top Penn State wrestling storylines and tournament schedule. And follow along for results from Day 1.
Penn State Wrestling First-Round Results
125: No. 1 Braeden Davis (Penn State) vs. No. 33 Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) 8-1
Davis (20-2) looked crisp in his NCAA opener, scoring takedowns in the first and second periods and wrestling a clean bout from there. However, Davis appeared to favor his left hand following the bout. Davis earned the top seed at NCAAs following a determined weekend at the Big Ten Championships, where he won twice in sudden victory and claimed the conference title as the sixth seed.
133: No. 23 Marlon Yarbrough (Virginia) dec. No. 10 Aaron Nagao 13-5
This was a significant first-round upset, as the Virginia junior, making his first NCAA appearance, majored the All-American from Penn State. Nagao placed fifth last year at 133 pounds wrestling for Minnesota and was ranked among the nation's top 10 all season. But Yarbrough (16-7) jumped on Nagao early, scoring two first period-takedowns. He scored two more in the second period and built his riding time before allowing a late escape.
Nagao (14-6) has had an uneven season but entered NCAAs positively after pinning Nebraska's Jacob Van Dee for third place at the Big Ten Championships.
141: No. 2 Beau Bartlett (Penn State) dec, vs. No. 31 Kal Miller (Maryland) 4-1
Bartlett needed 50 seconds to finish a third-period takedown and clinch his first-round victory but remained committed to it to the end. Bartlett, who sustained his first loss in the Big Ten finals, went for a single-leg shot with 56 seconds remaining in the bout. Miller nearly defended it to overtime, but Bartlett finished the takedown with 5 seconds remaining to advance. Strong finish for Bartlett (21-1).
149: No. 26 Jaden Abas (Stanford) dec. No. 7 Tyler Kasak (Penn State) 4-2
Abas scored the second seed upset of Penn State's first round, turning a slick second-period takedown into a 4-2 decision. Abas caught Kasak (17-5) with 2 seconds left in the second to take a 4-1 lead. Kasak couldn't find the tying takedown in the third, and Abas gladly conceded the stalling penalty point late to secure the win.
157: No. 1 Levi Haines (Penn State) tech. fall No. 32 Isaac Wilcox (Ohio State) 17-2 in 7:00
Haines (19-0) began his second NCAA Tournament with Penn State's first bonus-point win of the event. Haines scored his fifth technical fall of the season in defeating Wilcox for the second time.
165: No. 2 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) tech. fall No. 31 Maxx Mayfield (Northwestern) 18-2 in 5:33
Mesenbrink, one of Penn State's three freshman stars, opened his first NCAA Tournament with an coldly efficient technical fall. Mesenbrink. who led Penn State with 56 team points this season, has been a points machine all season. He scored 34 in his semifinal and final bouts at Big Tens, rallying from a significant deficit in the conference championship bout.
174: No. 9 Carter Starocci (Penn State) dec. No. 24 Andrew Sparks (Minnesota) 12-6
Starocci, wrestling for the first time since Feb. 25, had not allowed a takedown during the dual-meet season. Sparks got one in the first period, which seemed to motivate Starocci. The three-time NCAA champ quickly put Sparks on his back for first-period near-fall points en route to the 12-6 decision. Starocci didn't look tentative in his first bout back from the injury against Edinboro, though he wore a brace on his right leg. Starocci (13-2) moved well and didn't favor the leg during the bout.
More Penn State Wrestling
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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.