What to Watch at the NWCA All-Star Wrestling Classic

Penn State hosts one of college wrestling marquee in-season events Tuesday night, when the NWCA All-Star Classic visits Rec Hall. The sold-out event brings together many of the nation's top-ranked wrestlers for an early season exhibition and possible NCAA Tournament preview.

Five Penn State wrestlers will compete in the NWCA All-Star Classic, including returning NCAA champs Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks and runnerup Greg Kerkvliet. NCAA runnerup Levi Haines was scheduled to compete at 157 pounds but has been replaced.

Here's a look at the tournament.

What is the NWCA All-Star Classic?

The 2023 NWCA All-Star Classic features 28 of the nation's top men's college wrestlers and includes four women's bouts. The exhibition begins at 7 p.m. ET at Rec Hall.

How to watch the NWCA All-Star Classic

FloWrestling will stream the exhibition match live from Rec Hall. Tickets for the event are sold out.

Who is wrestling from Penn State?

Penn State will be featured in five of the 14 men's weight classes, with most of the roster's top returning wrestlers taking the mat. Results from the NWCA All-Star Classic do not count toward a wrestler's official record. Haines, the defending NCAA runnerup at 165, initially was in the field but now is not scheduled to compete.

149: No. 2 Shayne Van Ness vs. No. 3 Kyle Parco

Van Ness went 24-7 last season, capping the season with a phenomenal 5-1 run through the NCAA championships to finish third. Parco (Arizona State) is a two-time Pac-12 champ. The bout is a rematch of their 2023 third-place meeting at NCAAs. Van Ness won 7-2.

174: No. 1 Carter Starocci vs. No. 3 Mekhi Lewis

Starocci and Lewis are meeting for the second time at the NWCA Classic. Starocci won 2-0 last year, following his overtime victory over Lewis (Virginia Tech) in the 2022 NCAA final.

184: No. 2 Bernie Truax vs. No. 1 Parker Keckeisen

Both wrestlers are at different weight classes this season. Truax, who placed fourth at 197 last season, takes on the returning NCAA runnerup from Northern Iowa. Keckeisen fell to Penn State's Aaron Brooks in the 184-pound final.

197: No. 1 Aaron Brooks vs. No. 3 Tanner Sloan

Brooks, Penn State's three-time NCAA champ, moves up a weight class this season. He'll face Sloan, the South Dakota State wrestler who made a run to the NCAA final as the No. 7 seed last season. By comparison, Sloan beat Truax 6-4 in sudden victory at NCAAs.

285: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet vs. No. 2 Wyatt Hendrickson

Kerkvliet defeated Hendrickson (Air Force) 4-2 in their NCAA semifinals meeting in March. Kerkvliet's win included a strong third-period ride that secured his spot in the heavyweight final.

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