How Penn State wrestling made history and crowned 4 NCAA champions in dominant performance

The 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships were full of excitement and history-making moments for Penn State.

The Nittany Lions captured a team title by breaking the all-time NCAA Championships scoring record with 172.5 points, topping 1997 Iowa’s previous best of 170. Penn State also set another NCAA record with the largest-ever winning margin, beating runner-up Cornell by 100 points. (The 1986 Iowa Hawkeyes previously held the record with a margin of 73.75.)

Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks became the sixth and seventh wrestlers, respectively, to collect four individual NCAA championships. They also became the first- and second-ever Nittany Lions to accomplish the feat.

Here’s a look at who else won titles for Penn State on Saturday:

174 Pounds: Carter Starocci

Final record: 5-0

Finish: 1st

Recap: Starocci had a storybook ending by earning his fourth NCAA title.

He became just the second wrestler in NCAA history to win all his titles at the same weight, joining Oklahoma State great Pat Smith, who did it at a former weight of 158 pounds. Starocci also became the first-ever Nittany Lion to win four national titles, earning the honor over teammate Aaron Brooks, who also won his fourth not long afterward.

It’s been quite the interesting last month of the season for Starocci.

He suffered an injury during the Edinboro dual at the end of February that left fans wondering about his health. He wanted to compete at the Big Ten Championships, but coach Cael Sanderson and his staff felt it was more important to rest and be ready for this week.

“Like I said, it was a long road. Twelve days ago I wasn’t even walking,” Starocci said. “It’s just a blessing. The Big Ten situation, I wanted to wrestle and I was ready to wrestle, but just having my coaches on my side, I was frustrated at the decision, but it’s just all part of it. It’s all just one big storm. It’s all one big story, and this is my story.”

Starocci’s finals story saw him face Ohio State’s Rocco Welsh, who up until the NCAA tournament kept Starocci from having a perfect season of wins with bonus points. But Starocci shut him out — he shut out his final three opponents — with a 2-0 victory.

The four-time champ forced two stalls on Welsh in the first period for a point. Starocci’s escape in the second period was the only other point scored in the win. He was able to accomplish the feat of four titles on the exact same day that Sanderson did 20 years ago, at Iowa State.

“It’s funny how history repeats itself a little bit; that’s pretty interesting. It’s cool seeing how those coaches care about us. It’s something that I never experienced before growing up,” Starocci said. “It was really rare to find that, and coming to Penn State, everyone’s like that. It really starts with the coaches. This morning I was a little heavy and a little more than I wanted to be, and Coach Cael was right there riding the bike with me.”

197 Pounds: Aaron Brooks

Final record: 5-0

Finish: 1st

Recap: After seeing Starocci make some history, Brooks was ready to join him.

In his finals match with North Carolina State’s Trent Hidlay, Brooks parlayed an early lead into a 6-1 victory. And, like Starocci, the decision gave Brooks the fourth national title of his career.

“It’s pretty cool,” Brooks said of accomplishing the feat with Starocci. “... Having someone else to be part of that journey and doing it with is a lot of fun. We’re blessed.”

In the opening period, Brooks nearly picked up an early takedown. Hidlay fought it off, but Brooks did get a takedown with seven seconds left in the first period for the 3-0 lead. He opened the second period with an escape.

Brooks’ persistent pressure kept Hidlay out of his own offense, but rewarded the Nittany Lion with a stall point.

In the third period, Brooks rode Hidlay for nearly the entire period — as the Wolfpack’s wrestler escaped late — to pick up a riding time point.

“Styles bring matchups. Nowadays — especially with the media, social media — everyone knows what everybody’s got,” Brooks said. “People know I underhook, and people know he underhooks. It just happens to be that he’s right-leg lead underhook, and I’m lefty underhook. One of us is going to get to it. We both like that technique.”

As Brooks heads onto the next part of his career, which appears to be trying to make the Olympic team, he reminisced on how he got started. It all began with a video that his dad brought home one day.

“I’m pretty sure I was 7. There was a disk of Coach Cael, him in high school and NCAA finals and his four national championship titles,” Brooks said. “I watched it, learned an ankle pick, cradle and the Granby roll. To be wrestling in this program and him as my head coach, some days I look, and God is great. You never know where God’s going to take you.”

157 Pounds: Levi Haines

Final record: 5-0

Finish: 1st

Recap: Haines earned a spot in the finals last year, too — but he refused to suffer the same runner-up fate again.

The sophomore earned a 5-0 shutout of Arizona State’s Jacori Teemer on Saturday night for his first title.

The first period appeared to be a “feeling out,” as it was the first time the two ever faced each other. Haines tallied an escape in the second period for the lone points.

In the third period, Teemer wanted to start on his feet, and Haines made him pay with an early takedown. From there, Haines rode Teemer out for the remainder of the period for a riding time point.

“Losing last year may have been one of the best things that ever happened to me,” Haines said. “In the moment it wasn’t like that, but I think I’m just more proud of this year because I just went out and competed free. I wasn’t worried about losing; that just means a lot more to me than winning or losing.”

285 Pounds: Greg Kerkvliet

Final record: 5-0

Finish: 1st

Recap: Kerkvliet took on a Big Ten foe in Michigan’s Lucas Davison for a shot at his first title — and he didn’t disappoint.

Kerkvliet collected a 13-4 major decision, after a quick start where he snapped off two-first period takedowns to hold a 6-2 lead. He then added another in the second and third periods, respectively, to clinch bonus points.

It’s the third time this season where the two conference wrestlers have squared off. Kerkvliet won each time.

“I think in the past it would have been a sense of relief, but I kind of went into the match with the mindset of, it doesn’t really matter if I win or lose because I have a platform,” Kerkvliet said. “I’m going to use this platform to glorify God, so win or lose, I think I did my best to do that. It just happened that the cards fell my way.”

141 Pounds: Beau Bartlett

Final record: 4-1

Finish: 2nd

Recap: Bartlett took on Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez, who gave Bartlett what was previously his lone loss of the year in the Big Ten finals.

Mendez gave Bartlett his second loss of the season, 4-1, in the NCAA finals on Saturday.

The Buckeye scored first with an escape in the second period. Bartlett tied it up with 1:22 left in the third period with an escape of his own.

With just under 30 seconds remaining, the Nittany Lion was deep on a double leg takedown attempt, but he couldn’t finish it off. Mendez Granby-rolled out, caught Bartlett’s leg and countered for the winning takedown with three seconds remaining.

The takedown was challenged by Penn State’s coaches, but to no avail.

“Bartlett, I have respect for him. I know every match will be a scrap,” Mendez said. “I knew this match wasn’t going to be settled on the mat. We’re both pretty good on bottom. He got real close at the end, but I wanted it too bad.”

165 Pounds: Mitchell Mesenbrink

Final record: 4-1

Finish: 2nd

Recap: Mesenbrink had his hands full in his finals match against Iowa State’s David Carr, who was in his third NCAA final.

Carr tallied the first points of the match with a takedown five seconds in, and started to build riding time, which came into play in Carr’s 9-8 win.

Mesenbrink escaped with 1:11 remaining in the first period. The second period then saw Mesenbrink get an escape and a stall point as Carr added an escape and a takedown to make it 7-3.

In the final period, Mesenbrink got another escape and stall point to get within two. He tallied a takedown with 1:05 left to take the lead, but Carr quickly escaped to tie it.

From there, Mesenbrink tried to get a winning score, but Carr had enough riding time for the winning point.

“(Mesenbrink is) so tough because he has a good attitude. He’s smiling and having fun, and so am I. I try to keep even keel, but he’s having fun out there,” Carr said. “That attitude is what helps him wrestle so hard, and that’s what makes him tough.”

149 Pounds: Tyler Kasak

Final record: 7-1

Finish: 3rd

Recap: Kasak made some history of his own Saturday afternoon.

The true freshman became just the ninth wrestler in NCAA history — second in Penn State history — to win seven straight matches at the NCAA Championships en route to his third-place finish.

“I won some wrestling matches is what I did, nothing crazy. I just enjoy competing,” Kasak said with a laugh. “I think the underdog story is kind of cool. Back against the wall, I like that aspect of it.”

Kasak started his day by facing Nebraska’s Ridge Lovett, who was the No. 1 seed. Lovett beat the Nittany Lion twice this year by three each time.

Kasak got revenge by snapping off three takedowns — two in the first period — to earn a 10-1 major decision over Lovett.

In a battle for third, he took on West Virginia’s Ty Watters. The pair faced off in the first round of the 2020 PIAA Championships as freshmen, with Kasak coming out with a 5-0 win.

As true freshmen in college, Kasak came out with a win again, using a first-period takedown as the winning points in a 3-2 victory.

“I came here to win and I didn’t, but that’s on me. There’s another time to accomplish that, so I’m going to enjoy what I did, and move on,” Kasak said.

184 Pounds: Bernie Truax

Final record: 6-2

Finish: 5th

Recap: Truax had an up-and-down last day during his final NCAA Championships.

The graduate student faced off with a familiar foe in Oregon State’s Trey Munoz, who had beaten Truax the last three times they faced, including back in January. Unfortunately for the Nittany Lions, it wasn’t any different this time around.

Saturday saw Munoz bodylock Truax and put him toward his back for a pin in 2:29. The loss put Truax in the fifth-place match against a Big Ten foe in Minnesota’s Isaiah Salazar, who topped the Penn State wrestler for the Big Ten title two weeks ago.

Truax was able to get some revenge to the tune of a 12-0 major decision. He tallied a takedown in each period, had riding time advantage, an escape and a stalling point from Salazar.

125 Pounds: Braeden Davis

Final record: 2-2

Finish: Eliminated Friday

Recap: Davis’ Friday didn’t start well, and it didn’t end well either.

The true freshman and No. 1 seed was upset by No. 8 Richard Figueroa of Arizona State, 3-2. Figueroa opened the third period with a reversal and built up enough riding time for the winning points.

After dropping into the consolation bracket, Davis faced Wyoming’s Jore Volk, needing one win to become an All-American. The pair traded escapes to go to sudden victory.

With 44 seconds left, Volk took Davis down for the 4-1 win.

133 Pounds: Aaron Nagao

Final record: 3-2

Finish: Eliminated Friday

Recap: Nagao battled his way back through the consolation bracket after suffering a first-round loss.

He got himself to within one win of becoming an All-American by earning a 3-0 shutout over Arizona State’s Julian Chlebove. But he couldn’t get past North Carolina State’s Kai Orine for a spot on the podium.

Orine took control of the bout early with a takedown in the first period. He extended his lead in the second period with four nearfall points and a full period rideout to lead 7-1 after two.

Nagao tried for the comeback, but he couldn’t get it in an 11-4 loss.

NCAA Championships

Saturday at Kansas City, Mo.

Team key: Air Force (AF), American (A), Appalachian State (APP), Arizona State (ASU), Army West Point (AWP), Binghamton (BT), Brown (B), Bucknell (BK), Buffalo (BF), Cal Poly (CP), California Baptist (CBT), Campbell (CB), Central Michigan (CM), Chattanooga, (CT), Clarion (C), Cleveland State (CSU), Columbia (CL), Cornell (CN), Davidson (D), Franklin & Marshall (F), Gardner-Webb (GW), George Mason (GM), Harvard (H), Hofstra (HF), Illinois (IL), Indiana (ID), Iowa State (ISU), Iowa (I), Kent State (K), Lehigh (L), Little Rock (LR), Long Island University (LIU), Lock Haven (LH), Maryland (MD), Michigan State (MSU), Michigan (M), Minnesota (MN), Missouri (MS), Navy (N), Nebraska (NEB), North Carolina State (NCS), North Carolina (NC), North Dakota State (NDS), Northern Colorado (NCO), Northern Illinois (NI), Northern Iowa (NIU), Northwestern (NW), Ohio State (OSU), Ohio (O), Oklahoma State (OKS), Oklahoma (OK), Oregon State (OS), Penn State (PSU), Pennsylvania (P), Pittsburgh (PT), Princeton (PN), Purdue (PD), Rider (RD), Rutgers (R), SIU Edwardsville (SE), South Dakota State (SD), Stanford (S), The Citadel (T), Utah Valley (U), Virginia Tech (VT), Virginia (V), VMI (VMI), West Virginia (WV), Wisconsin (W), Wyoming (WY)

Team scores: 1. Penn State 172.5, 2. Cornell 72.5, 3. Michigan 71, 4. Iowa State 68.5, 5. Iowa 67, 6. Arizona State 64.5, 7. Virginia Tech 64, 8. Ohio State 62, 9. Nebraska 60.5, 10. Oklahoma State 56

Finals

125: Richard Figueroa, ASU, dec. Drake Ayala, I, 7-2; 133: Vito Arujau, CN, dec. Dalton Fix, OKS, 5-3; 141: Jesse Mendez, OSU, dec. Beau Bartlett, PSU, 4-1; 149: Caleb Henson, VT, major dec. Austin Gomez, M, 15-7; 157: Levi Haines, PSU, dec. Jacori Teemer, ASU, 5-0; 165: David Carr, ISU, dec. Mitchell Mesenbrink, PSU, 9-8; 174: Carter Starocci, PSU, dec. Rocco Welsh, OSU, 2-0; 184: Parker Keckeisen, NIU, major dec. Dustin Plott, OKS, 14-5; 197: Aaron Brooks, PSU, dec. Trent Hidlay, NCS, 6-1; 285: Greg Kerkvliet, PSU, major dec. Lucas Davison, M, 13-4

Consolation Finals

149: Tyler Kasak, PSU, dec. Ty Watters, WV, 3-2

5th Place Match

184: Bernie Truax, PSU, major dec. Isaiah Salazar, MN, 12-0

Consolation Semifinals

149: Kasak, PSU, major dec. Ridge Lovett, NEB, 10-1; 184: Trey Munoz, OS, pinned Truax, PSU, 2:29