UNIVERSITY PARK — Of all the storylines that have emerged for the 2025 NCAA Div. I Wrestling Championships, one has arguably risen above the rest.
Beyond Penn State’s quest for a fourth consecutive team title, 12th title under coach Cael Sanderson and 13th in program history, more than how many All-Americans of its 10 qualifiers it will crown, stands a question about 184-pounder Carter Starocci.
It’s simple: Can the four-time NCAA champion, one of only seven, win one more to become the first and only five-time champion on Saturday, March 22, in the Wells Fargo Center, the site of Penn State’s first championship under Sanderson in 2011?
Neither Starocci nor Sanderson would make a prediction Monday, March 17, at the team’s pre-NCAA media day, but each in his own way gave a hint at what they thought of the possibility.
“Naturally, he’s going to be at his best in the big moments. He always has been,” Sanderson said.
“It’s an unusual situation. He’s a four-time national champion. That’s kind of the ultimate goal for kids when they’re looking at NCAA wrestling. He’s just blessed to have another opportunity to do something that we hope never is again available. It’s just seizing the moment. He has a pretty good mindset about it. Carter’s the supreme competitor.”
Starocci isn’t the only Nittany Lion who has been his best at the big moments. Since 2011, Penn State has won 38 individual championships from 56 finalists. Over that same time frame, the Nittany Lions have compiled a 56-8 record in semifinal bouts.
Starocci has been pretty consistent about emphasizing the competitive nature of the sport over the accolades.
“For me, it’s never about winning a national title or anything like that. I really enjoy competition and I’m very competitive. One thing I want to make sure of is before I go that I kill all these guys,” he said.
“If you take [out] the guy in front of you and you win a national title that’s earned. I know NIL’s getting big, but there’s one thing that all these guys have to remember; you can’t buy a national title. That comes from within.”
With all 10 of its wrestlers seeded in the top eight of their respective weights — Luke Lilledahl (1st at 125), Braden Davis (8th at 133), Beau Bartlett (2nd at 141), Shayne Van Ness (3rd at 149), Tyler Kasak (1st at 157), Mitchell Mesenbrink (1st at 165), Levi Haines (2nd at 174), Starocci (1st at 184), Josh Barr (4th at 197) and Greg Kerkvliet (3rd at 285) —Penn State could take a run at another NCAA record, a year after setting the mark for team points — 172.5.
The Nittany Lions are aiming to become just the second team in NCAA history to crown 10 All-Americans in the same tournament, a feat only Minnesota achieved, in 2001.
“I think it’s a steppingstone for one of the things that the program hasn’t done yet. I think it’ll put it into another status, to where we separate ourselves from wrestling teams and just sports in general,” Kasak said.
“I think this program is just doing things that no sports program, regardless of the sport or the level that anyone could possibly do. I think it’s special and it’s a real possibility.”
To even approach that record, the Nittany Lions will have to enjoy good fortune, as well as good health. While no wrestler is truly 100% healthy at this point of the season, one Lion in particular exited the Big Ten Championships on Sunday, March 9, a little worse for wear.
Josh Barr suffered what appeared to be a left leg injury in a consolation semifinal match and had to injury default. He medically forfeited his next match. He needed help to exit the mat and didn’t appear on the medals podium.
“Josh has been working really hard. We’ve got Dan Monthley as our trainer. I can’t imagine there’s a better trainer in the world,” Sanderson said. “He’s put a lot of time and effort into Josh. Josh is gonna be ready to scrap on Thursday. He’s looking good.”
While all 10 Nittany Lions have arguably looked good this season, one of the youngest Lions —Lilledahl — has perhaps shown more improvement than any of his teammates. His Big Ten title earned him a No. 1 seed for the national tournament.
“Obviously, he was very, very good coming in here,” Sanderson said. “He has the right energy, the right mindset, he’s coachable and he’s obviously really good at the sport and really talented. That’s why you see him just continue to get better as he goes.”
And it sounds like Lilledahl’s confidence has grown, too.
“Just seeing how much better I am than these other guys from other conferences and just having fun, as well,” he said of what’s he looking forward to in his first NCAA tournament.
“Personally, I think I’m a lot higher level than all these guys and I can just go out and show it now that it’s time.”
Sanderson, who said the NCAA tournament is his favorite of any wrestling tournament, said these three days present a unique opportunity.
“It’s not every week you have the opportunity to go win a national championship. So, I’m guessing our guys are pretty excited for that opportunity and the fun part is seeing what they do with it,” he said.
“One thing I love about the nationals, I think as a competitor, … you can talk about winning the nationals your whole life. You can talk about it all season long. People ask you about it. You can actually do something about it right now, like this week. You can go win the national title. I think that’s really refreshing and freeing. There’s no more talk or speculation or this or that. You just get to go do it. That’s the fun part.”
