Head coach Cael Sanderson and his Penn State Nittany Lions are on the cusp of breaking another Division 1 college wrestling record. The Nittany Lions currently sit at 75 straight dual meet wins and haven’t lost since January 31, 2020. Oklahoma State holds the current dual streak record, with 76 total wins spanning from 1937 to 1951. This weekend at the Collegiate Wrestling duals, Penn State has the opportunity to tie and break the Division 1 all-time dual streak record. Check out the article below for a breakdown of Penn State’s streak and a preview of their upcoming duals with history on the line!

Quick Facts On Penn State’s Current Dual Streak:

• Last Loss: January 31, 2021 - Iowa 19-17
• Total dual meet record under Cael Sanderson: 222-16-2
• Previous longest dual streak: 60 (2015-2019)
• Undefeated dual seasons under Cael Sanderson: 9 (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
• Most dual meet wins in a season: 17 (in 2022 and 2011)
• Closest dual during the streak: Ohio State (20-16 on February 15, 2020) and Pennsylvania (20-16 on December 3, 2021)
• Most points scored in a dual during the streak: 55 against Edinboro (2/25/24) and Michigan State (1/10/25)
• Least points scored in a dual during the streak: 18 against Michigan (2/14/21)
• Team wrestled most during streak: Ohio State and Maryland (6)
• Total team points during streak: 2,578 - 514
• Average team score during streak: 34 - 7

Penn State vs North Dakota State - 5:00 pm (ET)

125: #2 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State vs #32 Ezekiel Witt, ND State

133: #7 Marcus Blaze, Penn State vs #31 Tristan Daugherty, ND State

141: #11 Aaron Nagao, Penn State/Nate Desmond/Cael Nasdeo vs Michael Olson, ND State

149: #1 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State vs #23 Max Petersen, ND State

157: #11 PJ Duke, Penn State vs #21 Gavin Drexler, ND State

165: #1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State vs Boeden Greenley, ND State

174: #1 Levi Haines, Penn State vs Max Magayna, ND State

184: #4 Rocco Welsh, Penn State vs #19 Aidan Brenot, ND State

197: #10 Connor Mirasola, Penn State vs Devin Wasley, ND State

285: #14 Cole Mirasola, Penn State vs Andrew Blackburn-Forst, ND State

Penn State will be a huge favorite against a scrappy North Dakota State squad. This dual is highlighted by 5 head-to-head ranked matches, with the premier bouts taking place at 157 and 184. At 157, PJ Duke will face the first All-American in his college career - Gavin Drexler. Drexler finished in 8th place last year at 149 pounds but is struggling up at 157 with a 0-2 record to start the year. Duke should be considered a big favorite, but Drexler might be able to fend off Duke from achieving bonus points.

Rocco Welsh will be tested by Aidan Brenot, who finished just one match shy of All-American honors last year at the NCAA Tournament. Welsh is undefeated on the year but is coming off 2 “close” decision wins (4-1 and 4-2). If Welsh can earn bonus points against Brenot, it will be a great sign for him moving forward.

Another important storyline to follow this weekend will be who Penn State puts on the mat at 197 pounds. Returning national finalist Josh Barr hasn’t wrestled yet this season due to suffering a rib injury at the 2025 U20 World Championships in August. Since then, Connor Mirasola has been manning the spot and is currently 6-1 on the year, with his only loss coming against All-American Joey Novak last week. According to coach Sanderson, Barr will travel with the team to Nashville and could make his season debut this weekend. While Mirasola has been solid filling in, Barr is the favorite to win the spot and even the title this year at 197 pounds. 

Penn State vs North Dakota State Predictions:

125: #2 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State TF #32 Ezekiel Witt, ND State

133: #7 Marcus Blaze, Penn State TF #31 Tristan Daugherty, ND State

141: Cael Nasdeo, Penn State DEC Michael Olson, ND State

149: #1 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State TF #23 Max Petersen, ND State

157: #11 PJ Duke, Penn State TF #21 Gavin Drexler, ND State

165: #1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State FALL Boeden Greenley, ND State

174: #1 Levi Haines, Penn State TF Max Magayna, ND State

184: #4 Rocco Welsh, Penn State MD #19 Aidan Brenot, ND State

197: #10 Connor Mirasola/Josh Barr, Penn State TF Devin Wasley, ND State

285: #14 Cole Mirasola, Penn State TF Andrew Blackburn-Forst, ND State

Final score prediction: Penn State 48, ND State 0

Penn State vs Stanford - 7:00 pm (ET)

125: #2 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State vs #11 Nico Provo, Stanford

133: #7 Marcus Blaze, Penn State vs #6 Tyler Knox, Stanford

141: #11 Aaron Nagao, Penn State/Nate Desmond/Cael Nasdeo vs #20 Jack Consiglio, Stanford

149: #1 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State vs #12 Aden Valencia, Stanford

157: #11 PJ Duke, Penn State vs #4 Daniel Cardenas, Stanford

165: #1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State vs #5 Hunter Garvin, Stanford

174: #1 Levi Haines, Penn State vs Lorenzo Norman, Stanford

184: #4 Rocco Welsh, Penn State vs Abe Wojcikiewicz, Stanford

197: #10 Connor Mirasola/Josh Barr, Penn State vs #20 Angelo Posada, Stanford

285: #14 Cole Mirasola, Penn State vs Jackson Mankowski, Stanford

Assuming Penn State defeats North Dakota State, a very tough Stanford squad will stand in the way of the Nittany Lions breaking the dual streak record. Make no mistake, Penn State is the big favorite, but there are several intriguing matchups throughout this dual.

At 125, Luke Lilledahl and Nico Provo will take the mat in what has the potential to be a phenomenal match. Though Provo isn’t an All-American like Lilledahl, he has a hitlist as good as any at the weight with career victories over Stevo Poulin, Matt Ramos, Richard Figueroa, Jore Volk, and Brendan McCrone. Provo missed last year with an injury but is fresh off a third-place finish at the CKLV. Provo will be Lilledahl’s first real test of the year (outside of his teammate), and this match will tell us a lot about where both wrestlers stand in the 125-pound landscape.

Provo's win over Stevo Poulin at the 2025 CKLV:

Marcus Blaze could wrestle his first All-American of the year - 2024 8th place finisher Tyler Knox. It’s worth noting that Knox didn’t finish the CKLV after losing to Kyler Larkin, but if Knox takes the mat, this should be a fantastic bout. Knox is a fantastic folkstyle test for Blaze and is one of the best scramblers in the weight. Blaze has been incredibly impressive this season with an 8-0 record and bonus point wins in every match (3 pins, 4 techs, and 1 major). Even with as good as Knox is, I expect Blaze to cruise to victory in this match.

Blaze's recent win over Wyoming's Luke Willochell:

141 is another interesting weight to watch for the Nittany Lions, considering Aaron Nagao has been out with injury since November 23. I don’t expect Nagao to return this weekend, so that means we’ll see either Cael Nasdeo or Nate Desmond take the mat for Penn State. That could create a winnable match for Stanford freshman Jack Consiglio, who is coming off a 4th place finish at the CKLV and has ranked wins this year over #22 Lorenzo Frezza, #28 Greyson Clark, and #29 Tyler Wells.

The match at 149 pounds has the potential to be the best of the dual. Shayne Van Ness is currently ranked #1 in the country and the favorite to win an NCAA title this year. Aden Valencia, though only ranked #12, has close losses this year to Kaleb Larkin, Jacob Frost, and David Evans. Beyond that, Valencia was incredibly impressive in freestyle over the summer with two wins over eventual world bronze medalist Real Woods. Many have been waiting for Valencia to record a signature folkstyle win, and Van Ness is the most credentialed college wrestler he’ll face to date. I’m not picking Valencia to win, but I expect a highly competitive match from start to finish.

Aden Valencia shares his thoughts heading into the 2025-26 NCAA season:

PJ Duke should finally get to wrestle his first top-5-ranked opponent of the season against Stanford’s Daniel Cardenas. Duke has looked every bit of a title contender this year with a 7-0 record and 6 bonus point wins (5 pins and 1 injury default). Cardenas is a clear step up in competition as a 4th-place finisher at the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Cardenas also has notable wins in his career over Meyer Shapiro, Will Lewan, Bryce Andonian, Peyten Kellar, and several other ranked wrestlers. After making a senior world team this year, many expect Duke to challenge for a national title, and this match against Cardenas will tell us just how close Duke is to that expectation.

PJ Duke's recent win over Drexel's Luke Nichter:

Though they’ve competed at the same weight over the past two seasons, Mitchell Mesenbrink and Hunter Garvin have surprisingly never wrestled in their college careers. Garvin has placed 6th at the last two NCAA Tournaments, but Mesenbrink is the clear favorite as the defending national champion. Mesenbrink has picked up where he left off last year and is currently 8-0 with a 100% bonus rate (4 pins, 3 techs, and 1 major). Garvin is traditionally a fast starter and has some big-move potential. That skill set adds some intrigue to this match, but I expect Mesenbrink to roll to a bonus point victory.

At his peak, Lorenzo Norman might be the biggest threat in the country to Levi Haines. Norman defeated NCAA champ Shane Griffith at the 2023 CKLV and suffered razor-thin losses to both Dean Hamiti and Keegan O’Toole last year. Even still, Norman hasn’t wrestled yet this season, and it’s certainly not ideal to wrestle Levi Haines in your first or second match back. Haines, coming off a world silver medal, is also wrestling more dominantly than we’ve seen him in past years, with 7 bonus point wins out of his 8 matches this season (2 pins, 4 techs, and 1 major). I expect Haines to continue his success against Norman, but I would be surprised if he gets more than a major.

Lorenzo Norman's win over Shane Griffith:

Penn State will be huge favorites at 184 and 285, so I’m not going to take the time to break these matches down in depth. Both of Stanford’s starters at these weights, Abe Wojcikiewicz and Jackson Mankowski, have losing records on the year. With that in mind, Rocco Welsh and Cole Mirasola shouldn’t have a problem earning big bonus point wins in their respective matches.

Stanford’s Angelo Posada has been incredibly solid this year with ranked wins over Rune Lawrence and Zayne Lehman. Beyond that, Posada’s only losses have come against Justin Rademacher (7-4), Bennett Berge (3-1), and Cody Merrill (5-3). If Barr’s back for Penn State, this will be a good test to see how close he is to 100%. If Mirasola takes the mat, I expect this to be a highly competitive match decided by a takedown or less. Mirasola should be considered the favorite, but Posada is capable of winning if he wrestles his best.

Penn State vs Stanford Predictions

125: #2 Luke Lilledahl, Penn State DEC #11 Nico Provo, Stanford

133: #7 Marcus Blaze, Penn State DEC #6 Tyler Knox, Stanford

141: #20 Jack Consiglio, Stanford DEC Cael Nasdeo, Penn State

149: #1 Shayne Van Ness, Penn State DEC #12 Aden Valencia, Stanford

157: #11 PJ Duke, Penn State DEC #4 Daniel Cardenas, Stanford

165: #1 Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State MD #5 Hunter Garvin, Stanford

174: #1 Levi Haines, Penn State MD Lorenzo Norman, Stanford

184: #4 Rocco Welsh, Penn State TF Abe Wojcikiewicz, Stanford

197: Josh Barr, Penn State DEC #20 Angelo Posada, Stanford

285: #14 Cole Mirasola, Penn State TF Jackson Mankowski, Stanford

Final score prediction: Penn State 33, Stanford 3

Every Penn State Dual During The 75 Dual Meet Streak