Penn State Wrestling still had two wrestlers fighting for high place finishes in Session V of the 2024 NCAA Championships.
Just a handful of hours prior, the jam packed T-Mobile Center in Kansas City saw the Nittany Lions advance six wrestlers to the NCAA finals. And the dominant run of NCAA Championships continued as Penn State secured their 11th team title in the last 13 NCAA Championships.
But, they weren’t the only Penn State guys who were still fighting for glory.
Both Tyler Kasak and Bernie Truax were locked up in the consolation bracket as they looked to snag some high finishes to end their seasons.
But before we break down the wrestling here is the schedule for the final session this evening.
Saturday Schedule
Session VI – Finals
Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
Where: Kansas City, Missouri
TV: ESPN and ESPN+
Session Duration: 3 hours
Now onto the action!
Session V – Consolation Semifinals
149
No. 7 Tyler Kasak (PSU) major dec. over No. 1 Ridge Lovett (NEB) 10-1
184
No. 4 Trey Munoz (OKST) fall over No. 6 Bernie Truax (PSU) 2:29
Session V – 3rd and 5th Place Matches
3rd Place Match
No. 7 Tyler Kasak (PSU) dec. over No. 5 Ty Watters (WVU) 3-2
5th Place Match
No. 6 Bernie Truax (PSU) major dec. over No. 2 Isaiah Salazar (MINN) 12-0
Penn State Wrestling Summary
Losing in the opening round and then making it all of the way back to the third place match is single-handedly one of the most difficult tasks any collegiate wrestler can accomplish.
But that’s just what Penn State’s freshman sensation Tyler Kasak was able to do. In the consolation semifinals, Kasak was matched up against the No. 1 wrestler at the NCAA tournament and the No. 1 guy at 149 pounds for the duration of the season.
Kasak was up to the task in destroying Lovett 10-1 to snag a major decision. He had made it to the third place match.
But Kasak not only made it that far, he continued his amazing run in the wrestlebacks and toppled West Virginia’s Ty Watters 3-2 to finish third in his first NCAA’s as a true freshman.
All of that for a guy who wasn’t even supposed to start this year.
Now looking at the Nittany Lions’ other grappler still in action in the consolation bracket, Bernie Truax dropped a tough loss in the semifinals to Trey Munoz.
But the three-time All-American bounced back and drubbed Minnesota’s Isaish Salazar to the tune of 12-0.
The major decision notched Truax’s fourth top-five finish at the NCAA’s and he added his name to the prestigious list of collegiate grapplers who finished as All-Americans four times.
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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