Penn State Wrestling's Shayne Van Ness defeats Dylan Gilcher 7-1 in Penn State's dual meet against Michigan, February 7, 2025. Credit - Lloyd McCully
Penn State Wrestling travels to Ann Arbor this week as they are set to take on the No. 11 ranked Michigan Wolverines Friday evening.
The dual meet between the Nittany Lions (12-0) and the Wolverines (8-3) is slated for 6:00pm EST. And while Michigan had some fairly lofty expectations heading into this season, things haven’t exactly panned out in their favor so far.
Credit – Lloyd McCully
Because when you look at their roster from top to bottom, there’s a ton of experience there. Especially when you consider Sean Bormet and his staff landed highly touted transfer Lachlan McNeil in the offseason.
However, the Wolverines dropped back-to-back matches in the National Duals Invitational to No. 6 Nebraska (14-24) and to No. 18 Missouri (10-26). Then last Sunday afternoon Michigan dropped its third dual meet of the year to Ohio State.
Does Michigan have a talented roster? Of course they do. But does that mean they can push Penn State? Probably not.
Before we look at some of the potential matchups, because there are for sure going to be a lot of goods ones, let’s take a look at how to watch the dual meet.
How to watch Penn State Wrestling
Credit – Lloyd McCully
Date: Friday, February 6th
Time: 6:00 p.m. EST
Where: Crisler Arena (Ann Arbor)
TV: B1G
Listen: Free via Lionvision at GoPSUsports.com
Now let’s turn to the potential matchups.
Potential matchups for Michigan vs Penn State Wrestling
Credit – Lloyd McCully
No. 1 Penn State (12-0) vs. No. 11 Michigan (8-3)
125 – No. 1 Luke Lilledahl (PSU) vs No. 23 Diego Sotelo (MICH)
133 – No. 4 Marcus Blaze (PSU) vs Gauge Botero (MICH)
141 – No. 12 Braeden Davis (PSU) vs No. 26 Dylan Ragusin (MICH)
149 – No. 1 Shayne Van Ness (PSU) vs No. 13 Lachlan McNeil (MICH)
157 – No. 4 PJ Duke (PSU) vs No. 13 Cam Catrabone (MICH)
165 – No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (PSU) vs Justin Gates (MICH)
174 – No. 1 Levi Haines (PSU) vs No. 11 Beau Mantanona (MICH)
184 – No.1 Rocco Welsh (PSU) vs No. 7 Brock Mantanona (MICH)
197 – No. 1 Josh Barr (PSU) vs No. 20 Hayden Walters (MICH)
285 – No. 12 Cole Mirasola (PSU) vs No. 5 Taye Ghadiali (MICH)
Prediction for Michigan vs. Penn State Wrestling
Credit – Lloyd McCully
On paper, this dual meet could potentially have eight ranked matchups.
Additionally, there could be four top-15 ranked matchups.
But unfortunately for the Wolverines, they also have several holes in their lineup. Which doesn’t bode well for teams when they face Penn State Wrestling.
However collegiate wrestling does not play out on paper. And there aren’t any guarantees. Especially when it comes to wrestling.
So who knows how the action will actually unfold on Friday night.
But if I was a betting man, I think I would lay down a decent chunk of change on Penn State winning by a fairly large margin.
Predictions for Michigan vs Penn State Wrestling
125 – No. 1 Luke Lilledahl (PSU) major dec. over No. 23 Diego Sotelo (MICH)
133 – No. 4 Marcus Blaze (PSU) tech. fall over Gauge Botero (MICH)
141 – No. 12 Braeden Davis (PSU) major dec. over No. 26 Dylan Ragusin (MICH)
149 – No. 1 Shayne Van Ness (PSU) dec. over No. 13 Lachlan McNeil (MICH)
157 – No. 4 PJ Duke (PSU) major dec. over No. 13 Cam Catrabone (MICH)
165 – No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (PSU) fall over Justin Gates (MICH)
174 – No. 1 Levi Haines (PSU) major dec. over No. 11 Beau Mantanona (MICH)
184 – No.1 Rocco Welsh (PSU) dec. over No. 7 Brock Mantanona (MICH)
197 – No. 1 Josh Barr (PSU) tech. fall over No. 20 Hayden Walters (MICH)
285 – No. 5 Taye Ghadiali (MICH) dec. over No. 12 Cole Mirasola (PSU)
Penn State 38 Michigan 3
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Education: Penn State University
Location: State College, PA
Even though he had no prior journalism experience, Chris has now covered Penn State Wrestling and Penn State Football for the past three years, including as the Penn State Wrestling Beat Writer for VictoryBellRings.com, part of the FanSided network.
And it's clear he also likes constant torture as he's been a PSU Basketball fan for way too long.
Several years back, Chris made the seamless transition from PGA Professional to computer programmer and thoroughly enjoys following and writing about all things related to Penn State sports during his spare time.
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