Penn State Wrestling: How to Watch the Nittany Lions at Final X

Mitchell Mesenbrink, Levi Haines are among the Penn State stars competing for bids to the 2025 World Wrestling Championships.

Penn State's Mitchell Mesenbrink celebrates his win against Iowa's Michael Caliendo at the NCAA Wrestling Championships. / Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Penn State was dominant at the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships, medaling its entire lineup and breaking its own scoring record in winning a fourth straight national title. Four stars from that lineup will be in the field at Saturday's Final X, competing for bids to the World Wrestling Championships in Croatia. A potential future star hits the mat as well.

Here, then, is what you need to know about Penn State at Final X

What and when is Final X?

Final X is the last qualifier to determine the U.S. Team that will head to the World Championships in September in Croatia. Wrestlers will compete in best-of-three series in men's and women's freestyle. The event will be held at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Wrestling begins at 12;30 p.m. ET with the matches for third place. Round 1 of the championship series begins at 2 p.m., with the second and third rounds (if necessary) starting at 5 p.m.

Which Penn State wrestlers are competing at Final X?

Five current and future Nittany Lions are in Saturday's field. NCAA champs Mitchell Mesenbrink and Levi Haines (2024) lead the group, which also features NCAA All-Americans Luke Lilledahl and Josh Barr. In addition, 2025 Penn State commit PJ Duke seeks to make the Senior world team before starting his Penn State career.

Elsewhere, 2025 Penn State commit Marcus Blaze will wrestle for true third, and Nittany Lion Wrestling Club members Kyle Snyder and Kyle Dake seek to add another a world team to their resumes.

How to watch, follow the Nittany Lions at Final X

Tickets remain on sale for Final X at the Prudential Center. The event is being held in conjunction with the annual "Beat the Streets" wrestling benefit. FloWrestling, the subscription streaming service that covers all aspects of wrestling, will carry the action live from Newark.

When are the Nittany Lions wrestling at Final X?

USA Wrestling released the match order for Final X, with Mesenbrink kicking off the competition at 74 kg. Here's the order for men's freestyle:

• 74 Kg: Mitchell Mesenbrink vs, David Carr

• 79 Kg: Levi Haines vs. Evan Wick

• 125 Kg: Wyatt Hendrickson vs. Trent Hillger

• 92 Kg: Josh Barr vs. Trent Hidlay

• 97 Kg: Kyle Snyder vs. Hayden Zillmer

• 65 Kg: Joseph McKenna vs. Real Woods

• 70 Kg: PJ Duke vs. Yianni Diakomihalis

• 57 Kg: Luke Lilledahl vs. Spencer Lee

• 86 Kg: Kyle Dake vs. Zahid Valencia

Nittany Lions to watch at Final X

All five Penn State wrestlers seek to make their first trips to Senior Worlds, though they have significant international experience. Lilledahl is a two-time age-group world freestyle champ, and Mesebrink won a U20 world title in 2023.

Lilledahl faces a huge challenge at 57 kg, where he will meet world favorite Spencer Lee. Mesenbrink takes on David Carr in a matchup of the last two NCAA champs at 165 pounds. Haines already has a victory over Wick, pinning him at the 2024 U.S. Team Trials, and Barr gets international veteran Trent Hidlay.

An interesting match at 70 kg pits Duke against one of his childhood heroes. Duke, a four-time New York state high school champ, grew up watching Diakomihalis win four NCAA titles at Cornell.

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