Between shutouts, upsets, individual breakout stars and the return of a national champion, this weekend in college wrestling had it all. Here’s everything you need to know about the action and results from across the country.
Ohio State All-American Sasso descents to 157 pounds, splits weekend matches
One of the biggest, most inspiring storylines this season in college wrestling has been the return of Ohio State’s Sammy Sasso, a two-time NCAA finalist who survived a shooting in the fall of 2024 and is now healthy and back on the mat for his final season. Sasso, who wrestled most of his career at 149 pounds, started the year up at 165 pounds, has officially made the descent down to 157 pounds where he finished as the runner-up at the Franklin & Marshall Open to NC State’s Jackson Arrington by fall and notched a key win against Rutgers’ Conner Harer 3-2.
Eyes on 𝘽1𝙂 𝙎𝙕𝙉 😤
— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks)
Sasso’s weight class move shakes up the Buckeye lineup a little bit as well but puts him back down at a weight closer to his prime competition weight earlier in his career. In the Buckeyes’ two duals this weekend, Ohio State’s national qualifier Paddy Gallagher and Sasso split time at 157 pounds, with Gallagher competing the weight against the Illini on Saturday while Sasso competed in the Franklin & Marshall Open before the veteran took over the weight against Rutgers. Gallagher dropped his match against Illinois’ Jason Kraisser 16-9, but the Buckeyes still won the dual 24-9. The Rutgers dual was much dicier.
Rutgers’ Dean Peterson and Dylan Shawver pulled off top-15 upsets against Ohio State’s Brendan McCrone and Nic Bouzakis to open the day at 125 and 133 pounds before NCAA champion Jesse Mendez, All-American Dylan D’Emilio and Sasso notched their wins. All-American Carson Kharchla followed with a win over Rutgers’ All-American Jackson Turley before Ohio State heavyweight Nick Feldman secured the dual with a victory in his own battle of former placewinners against Yaraslau Slavikouski. The Bucks remain undefeated on the year with two big duals against Purdue and No. 2 Iowa ahead.
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If Sasso stays down at 157 pounds, he could see Iowa’s No. 7 Joey Blaze of Purdue and No. 1 Jacori Teemer (assuming Teemer returns to health after his injury earlier this fall) in those bouts. He has the talent to finish on the podium again, but just the fact that he’s on the mat making moves alongside his Buckeye teammates this year following his near-death experience in 2023 is notable.
Arizona State’s Richard Figueroa returns to help Sun Devils top Lancers
Sasso wasn’t the only high-profile athlete to make news this weekend. Arizona State’s NCAA champion Richard Figueroa also returned to the mat for the first time since his injury in November and secured a 7-1 win over Mitchell Neiner of California Baptist 7-1. Figueroa, who beat Iowa’s Drake Ayala in the NCAA finals last year as a sophomore, is now 3-1 on the year with a loaded Big 12 dual schedule ahead of him.
Undefeated in 2025 🙏
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling)
He could see No. 32 Trever Anderson, No. 31 Gage Walker and No. 6 Stevo Poulin in the next three weeks before hitting No. 19 Kysen Terukina, No. 13 Greg Diakomihalis, No. 26 Antonio Lorenzo, No. 15 Sheldon Seymour and No. 24 Jace Schafer in the rest of February. Of those athletes, he’s only ever wrestled Lorenzo collegiately, beating the Sooner senior 6-5 in their lone meeting.
Figueroa is an athlete who performs his best in big moments. He’s someone who, despite starting last season around .500 in his early duals, caught fire in the postseason and ran his way through one of the most tumultuous weight classes in the country. His return suggests he’s ready to do the same thing this year, though, once again, the path to the top will be littered with landmines.
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In an interview with during media availability earlier this fall, Arizona State head coach Zeke Jones said Figueroa’s experience last season during the regular season and the national tournament taught him how to balance his emotions and prepare himself physically and mentally for tough matches and this tough schedule.
“Richie's experienced it all, from the pressure of being undefeated to taking lumps by guys he should never lose to,” Jones said. “I think he's wiser…and I think he's setting a goal of being the best and being the most dominant. But that comes with another set of standards, expectations, discipline and commitment.”
Figueroa’s lone win this weekend may not be enough to put him back at No. 1 in the rankings given his light schedule so far and the dominance of 2023 NCAA finalist Matt Ramos who is 18-0 on the year with 77% bonus, but Figueroa’s victory did send a message that he’s back. He’s title-hunting once again.
Panther Train rolls to National Duals title with wins over Sacred Heart, Ohio, Northern Colorado & South Dakota State
The Big 12 is full of depth from title contenders like Figueroa to undefeated teams like No. 3 Oklahoma State and No. 7 Northern Iowa. The Panther, specifically, put up a series of standout performances this weekend with four wins, two within the Big 12 conference, against Sacred Heart, Ohio, Northern Colorado and No. 14 South Dakota State, all without giving up more than seven team points.
“I see the numbers shrinking.“ - Coach Schwab this week as the team moved from #10 to #7 in the country.
— UNI Wrestling (@UNI_wrestling)
The Panthers went 4-0 on the weekend and will take off this week to Tempe, Arizona to take on Arizona State on Friday night. They return home January 24th and 25th to take…
Julian Farber, Cael Happel, Colin Realbuto, Jack Thomsen, Parker Keckeisen and Wyatt Voelker all went 4-0 on the weekend with Happel and Keckeisen bonusing all of their opponents, while Ryder Downey finished 3-0 and Lance Runyon went 2-0 with a fall and a tech. The Panthers have Arizona State next on the schedule before meeting the Cowboys on the 24th. Oklahoma State has been rolling, but expect UNI to put up a fight. After all, this is the same Panther team that beat No. 9 Nebraka 24-9 last week.
Northern Iowa’s team win headlined the National Duals, but several individuals also made noise at this event. Cal Poly’s Zeth Romney, the breakout star of the 2024 Cliff Keen Invitational, in particular, notched a notable pin against All-American Nasir Bailey of Little Rock at this event along with a tech fall over Geoffrey Whelan of George Mason. Romney qualified for NCAAs last season but has jumped levels this year and currently holds an 11-1 record with his lone loss coming against No. 10 Tyler Knox of Stanford 5-3.
TEAM PROFILES: Cal Poly | South Dakota State | Penn | Little Rock | Northern Colorado
Penn’s Max Gallagher also picked up a win over an All-American Tanner Jordan of South Dakota State at the National Duals 6-5 to help the Quaker finish undefeated on the weekend after also beating Logan Dean of Ohio, Garrett Ricks of Wyoming and accepting a forfeit against Sacred Heart. Jordan, meanwhile, also notched victories against Kaden Chinavare of Central Michigan, Kyle Gollhofer of Northern Iowa and Jayden Carson of Little Rock to prove that, despite his loss, he’s still in the mix at the weight as well. Both Gallagher and Jordan will have a lighter schedule in the next two weeks before hitting ranked opponents in the last few duals heading into their respective conference tournaments. Jordan, who was seeded No. 23 in last year’s NCAA bracket before finishing eighth, proved that seeds don’t matter, but in a weight as unpredictable as 125 pounds, any ranked win is valuable.
Another All-American Jackrabbit generated news this weekend as No. 7 Cade DeVos split matches at 174 pounds with No. 21 Alex Cramer and No. 5 Nick Incontrera, dropping to Cramer 4-1 but topping Incontrera 4-1. South Dakota State has a scrappy squad, and if everyone is performing at their peak, the Jackrabbits could potentially put at least three athletes on the podium again this season. The loss to Cramer will hurt DeVos in his national seeding but not in his conference seeding, as Cramer competes in the MAC.
Iowa women continue winning ways at National Duals
Speaking of national duals, the Hawkeyes can call themselves champions once again after rolling through the NWCA national duals and picking up wins against Aurora 35-10, Wartburg 42-1, McKendree 33-11 and North Central — the 2024 Midlands champions — 28-13. This marks the second year in a row that the Hawks have claimed the team title at this event and further highlights not only the team’s star power but also the depth of the young program. The women who put their rankings on the line this weekend helped grow the sport.
Coming home with some hardware 🤩
— Iowa Women's Wrestling (@IowaW_Wrestling)
In the semifinals against McKendree and the finals against North Central, Kennedy Blades and Kylie Welker paced the Hawks with Blades earning two techs against Kaylynn Albrecht and Tiera Jimerson respectively at 160 pounds and Welker notching pins against Tristan Kelly and Brittyn Corbishley at 180 pounds.
Brianna Gonzalez and Nanea Estrella also went 2-0 in their matches, with Estrella securing a pin over Viktorya Torres of McKendree and a 13-8 decision against Sara Sterner at 138 while Gonzalez beat Norah Swaim and Sydney Petzinger by scores of 9-2 and 10-7. Gonezalez is currently undefeated on the season, but she wasn’t the only Gonzalez sister to shine in this event. Her sister Emilie Gonzalez earned the nod at 110 pounds against McKendree, picking up a fall of her own. Teammate Ava Bayless then took over the weight against North Central and fought for a 5-2 win.
Iowa also went undefeated at 145 pounds across these two duals, with Reese Larramendy earning the 6-2 win against McKendree and Macey Kilty closing out 145 pounds against North Central with an 11-6 win over Bella Mir.
Iowa will not see North Central or McKendree again in dual action this year, but the Hawks will face ranked competition on January 18 against Grand Valley State University before the 2025 College Duals against Presbyterian, Lock Haven, Sacred Heart and Elmira.
Terps finish 2-0 in Michigan after topping Wolverines, Spartans
The action and excitement of the weekend extended across states and conferences. In fact, Maryland made major Big Ten news when it topped No. 10 Michigan and Michigan State on Friday and Sunday, giving the Terps an undefeated start to their conference schedule and the best win in program history since 2007. Maryland’s Braxton Brown proved to be the difference maker against the Wolverines, as his pin, along with decision wins from Kal Miller, Ethen Miller, Branson John and Jaxon Smith elevated the Terps to their 19-18 win on criteria over Michigan.
This is Turtle Power 🐢❤️
— Maryland Wrestling (@TerpsWrestling)
Against Michigan State, Maryland won in more definitive fashion 27-11 behind a tech from Brown, a pin from Smith, major decisions from Ethen Miller and heavyweight Seth Nevills and decisions from Dario Lemus, Kal Miller and Alex Uryniak.
The Terps will take on Wisconsin next, a team that just lost 45-0 to Iowa in a dual where the most significant result was Patrick Kennedy’s tech fall at 174 pounds against No. 31 Luke Condon. While Kennedy was expected to be in a roster battle with All-American teammate Nelson Brands at 174 pounds, Kennedy has done everything he can to separate himself with bonus points and his Soldier Salute title at the end of 2024. His win against Wisconsin further suggests that he may have an edge at this point in the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED: Breaking down Braxton Brown's match-defining pin against Michigan
When Wisconsin wrestles Maryland, it’s the Badgers who will have the advantage at 174 pounds, albeit slight. Wisconsin’s No. 31 Condon will be one of just two top-33 Badger athletes who will come in with a higher rank, joined by No. 18 Nicolar Rivera at 125 pounds. The Badgers will need Rivera and Condon to wrestle to their rank, No. 24 Zan Fugitt to upset a tough No. 14 Braxton Brown at 133 pounds and coin-flip match wins at 141 and 165 pounds to keep the dual close against the red-hot Terps.
Nebraska’s upset win over Minnesota and Penn State’s dominant performance against Michigan State add to Big Ten fireworks
While Maryland’s upset win was the most unexpected result of the weekend, the Terps weren’t the only team to pull off an upset in the Big Ten this weekend. The Nebraska Cornhuskers put together an impressive performance of their own against No. 6 Minnesota, winning seven of ten matches against the Gophers, all via decision for the 21-13 victory.
Woke up winners. |
— Nebraska Wrestling (@HuskerWrestling)
No. 5 Antrell Taylor kicked off the action at 157 pounds with a top-ten win over Tommy Askey in sudden victory while Chris Monto and Lenny Pinto followed with their own ranked wins at 165 and 174 pounds. Minnesota then rocked the upperweights and attempted to get themselves back in the dual.
No. 4 Max McEnelly, No. 10 Isaiah Salazar and No. 1 Gable Steveson all scored bonus points with the most surprising result being McEnelly’s 16-6 win against 2022 Big Ten champion Silas Allred. Nebraska’s Allred has taken these kinds of losses in the regular season and still finished in the Blood Round at NCAAs, so this score says more about McEnelly than Allred, both of whom will still expect to compete for a podium spot in two months.
BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIPS: 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020
The Huskers rallied at the lightweights with No. 8 Caleb Smith, No. 19 Jacob Van Dee, No. 6 Brock Hardy and No. 5 Ridge Lovett all earning wins. Smith and Van Dee’s wins over No. 5 Cooper Flynn and No. 10 Tyler Wells respectively were both upsets on paper, though not entirely shocking given the unpredictability of 125 pounds and Van Dee’s potential for flashes of greatness.
Nebraska will take on the goliath that is Penn State next week after the Nittany Lions rolled past the Michigan State Spartans 55-0 with pins from Greg Kerkvliet, Shayne Van Ness, Tyler Kasak, Levi Haines, Carter Starocci, Josh Barr.
✅ Greg Kerkvliet
— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling)
✅ Shayne Van Ness
✅ Tyler Kasak
✅ Levi Haines
✅ Carter Starocci
✅ Josh Barr
Relive each of No. 1 's six pins in its 55-0 win over Michigan State 👇
Much like the dual against Minnesota, Nebraska’s contest against Penn State will feature 20 ranked wrestlers, though the Huskers will be favored in just one bout: 125 pounds. No. 7 Caleb Smith has the potential to get momentum rolling for his Huskers, but topping Penn State’s No. 12 Luke Lilledahl is far from easy. All ten of Penn State’s wrestlers are ranked in the Top 12, with 11 of them in the Top 5. Any team that takes on the Blue and White has the potential for the same shutout fate as the Spartans this weekend.
Gavin Kane’s pin helps UNC top No. 7 Virginia Tech while Stanford finishes 1-1 to open ACC action
The Big Ten took up quite a bit of attention over the weekend, but the North Carolina Tar Heels had quite the weekend themselves, topping No. 7 Virginia Tech in Chapel Hill 20-17 behind All-American Gavin Kane’s pin over All-American TJ Stewart in the second period.
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The dual started unconventionally at 165 pounds with Tech’s Mac Church giving the Hokies a 4-0 lead following his major decision against Collin Carrigan but the Heels responded well with back-to-back wins over Tech All-Americans. Josh Ogunsanya first topped Columbia transfer and Carolina upperweight Lennox Wolak while Kane followed with his pin to give Carolina a 9-4 lead heading into 197. Tech tied the score there with a sudden victory win from Andy Smith but Carolina wasn’t done. The Heels earned another win over a Tech All-American at 125 pounds from Spencer Moore in sudden victory as well as a decision from Ethan Oakley at 133 pound and a tech from Lachlan McNeil at 149 pounds over Hunter Mason to secure the win.
The team win pushes North Carolina above .500 in duals overall this year but makes the team 1-0 in the ACC, a conference that only got stronger this year with the addition of Stanford.
TAR HEELS ON TOP 🐏
— NCAA Wrestling (@NCAAWrestling)
No. 25 defeats No. 8 Virginia Tech, 20-17.
The Cardinal are currently ranked No. 15, though they may drop a few spots after a 24-15 loss to No. 18 Pittsburgh. The Panthers secured the win via bonus points from No. 26 Finn Solomon at 149 pounds and No. 12 Mac Stout at 197 pounds as well as a forfeit at 125 pounds, a weight Stanford has given up in the last six duals.
Stanford has had a solid season so far aside from that loss though, beating No. 13 Iowa State 23-21 and No. 21 Missouri 27-15 and winning Midlands. The Panthers also look tough with their only loss coming against No. 5 Ohio State in a competitive 20-17 matchup.
Five of seven ACC teams are ranked in the Top 25 this season with NC State currently leading the way at No. 5. North Carolina and Pittsburgh, though, should both expect to see rankings boosts following their upset wins over the weekend.
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