A two-time national champ in his senior year will take on one of the toughest challengers he'll face all season as Ohio State's Jesse Mendez is set to wrestle Iowa State's Anthony Echemendia at the 2025 NWCA All-Star Classic!

The 141-pound matchup between Mendez and Echemendia will also be the headliner in Jersey Mike's Arena on the campus of Rutgers University!

Season Breakdown

Jesse Mendez

Preseason Rank: #1

2024-25: 1st at NCAAs at 141lbs

2023-24: 1st at NCAAs at 141lbs

2022-23: 6th at NCAAs at 133lbs

Anthonny Echemendia

Preseason Rank: #7

2024-25: Medical redshirt

2023-24: 5th at NCAAs at 141lbs

2022-23: competed unattached, enrolled at Iowa State

2021-22: redshirt at Ohio State at 141lbs

2020-21: Did not start at Ohio State at 141lbs

Match Breakdown

Jesse Mendez has been one of the most consistent performers on the collegiate wrestling scene since he burst into the Buckeye starting lineup as a true freshman at 133lbs. Mendez was the #3 recruit in the Class of 2022 and he immediately delivered on the hype for Ohio State, reaching the podium in his first season out of high school.

The following two years saw Mendez ply his trade up a weight class, and the results at 141lbs could hardly have gone better, as Mendez reeled off two consecutive titles to firmly cement his legacy as one of the best Buckeyes in program history going into his senior season.

Anthonny Echemendia took a more circuitous route to the Iowa State starting lineup. You can learn more about it in this half-hour video, but it started in Cuba and had stops in Guatemala, Arizona, and Ohio along the way to Ames. 

Echemendia showed tremendous promise by winning Fargo stop signs in both Freestyle and Greco-Roman in 2019. That led to getting recruited by Iowa State before flipping to Ohio State, where Anthony had difficulties finding regular starts. That led to a season of wrestling unattached before he found his way back to Iowa State, where he had his best and most consistent season, finishing fifth at the NCAA tournament at 141lbs. 

Echemendia would start the next season up at 149, however, his time in the lineup was cut short by an ankle injury at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. There would unfortunately be complications from that injury that would keep him off the mat for the better part of a year. 

This season, Echemendia is healthy and back down at 141 with one of his toughest matches awaiting him in New Jersey. 

Hear Echemendia describe his long offseason recovery process and what to expect in his match with Mendez: 

Matchup History

We've seen this match before, at the 2024 NCAA semifinals, which Mendez won 6-4. Mendez had gnarly paths to his titles in 2024 and 2025, showing both how tough he is and how tough it is to win an NCAA title. His bout with Echemendia in 2024 was evidence of this, as Echemendia was able to score a late takedown and push Mendez to the brink. 

Mendez had the edge on the mat, however, securing riding time and ultimatley gutting out the win. Echemendia mentioned how riding and escapes were something he has been working on specifically this offseason, so it might be a battle of takedowns to determine the winner of the rematch. 

Watch highlights of Mendez and Echemendia's NCAA semifinal bout:

Mendez, the returning champ, will be the favorite in this marquee matchup and event headliner. We haven't seen Echemendia at 141 in over a year, however, and there's no telling what new tricks he's got up his sleeves. We'll see on Saturday if Mendez continues his reign as the top dog at 141 or if Echemendia can flip the script in his return to competition. 

2025 NWCA All-Star Classic Bout Order

Women’s Matches

138 lbs - #1 Zaynah McBryde, Life vs  #1 Katie Lange, Grand Valley

145 lbs -  #1 Esther Kolawole, William Penn vs  #2 Reese Larramendy, Iowa

160 lbs -  #1 Latifah McBryde, Life  vs  #1 (145) Bella Mir, North Central

117 lbs -  #1 Salyna Shotwell, Life vs  #1 Sage Mortimer, Grand Valley

D2 vs D3 Match

141lbs - #1 Mark Samuel, Roanoke vs #1 Khyvon Grace, West Liberty

NCAA D1 Men’s Matches

149lbs - #5 Casey Swiderski, Oklahoma State vs #3 Lachlan McNeil, Michigan

174lbs - #3 Simon Ruiz, Cornell vs #8 Lenny Pinto, Rutgers

197lbs - #3 Joey Novak, Wyoming vs #4 Stephen Little, Little Rock

125lbs - #4 Eddie Ventresca, VA Tech vs #5 Sheldon Seymour, Lehigh

157lbs - #5 Ty Watters, West Virginia  vs #4  Daniel Cardenas,  Stanford

165lbs - #4 Hunter Garvin,  Stanford vs #7 Max Brignola, Lehigh

184lbs - #4 Jaxon Smith, Maryland vs #7 Zack Ryder, Oklahoma State

285lbs - #3  Yonger Bastida , Iowa  State vs #4 Taye Ghadiali , Michigan

133lbs - #1 Lucas Byrd, Illinois vs #7 Dylan Shawver, Rutgers

141lbs - #7 Anthony Echemendia , Iowa State vs #1 Jesse Mendez, Ohio State