Seven wrestlers from Penn State University will represent the United States at the United World Wrestling U23 World Championships in Novi Sad, Serbia. The event is scheduled to start on Friday, October 24, and will run through Monday, October 27.
The U.S. U23 World Team consists of ten members, with seven currently competing for Penn State. The championships begin on Monday, October 20, with Greco Roman wrestling. Women’s freestyle events are set for midweek, followed by men’s freestyle starting Friday.
Mitchell Mesenbrink, a two-time All-American and 2025 NCAA Champion at 74 kg, along with Josh Barr, an All-American and 2025 National Runner-Up at 92 kg, will be the first Penn State athletes to compete on Friday and Saturday.
Levi Haines, a three-time All-American and 2024 NCAA Champion at 79 kg; Luke Lilledahl, a 2025 All-American at 57 kg; and freshman PJ Duke at 70 kg will compete next on Saturday and Sunday.
Rocco Welsh, an All-American and 2024 National Runner-Up at 92 kg, together with freshman Marcus Blaze at 65 kg, will close out competition for Penn State on Sunday and Monday.
Penn State’s wrestling program has seen recent success internationally. Seven wrestlers have already earned medals this season in world competitions across senior and U20 levels. Levi Haines won silver at the Senior World Championships while Kyle Snyder from the regional training center took gold. In U20 competition, Marcus Blaze and PJ Duke secured gold medals; William Henckel earned silver; Connor Mirasola and Cole Mirasola both took bronze.
The upcoming NCAA season for Penn State wrestling begins November 14 when they host Oklahoma in the Bryce Jordan Center.
Fans can follow updates about Penn State wrestling on X/twitter (@pennstateWREST), Facebook (www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling), or Instagram (www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest). The Family Clothesline is serving as presenting sponsor for the team’s upcoming season.