Penn State Wrestling has a team this year that looked like it could be on its way to winning yet another national championship and shattering some records along the way.
The Nittany Lions returned eight All-Americans to its lineup, and includes two three-time national champions in Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks.
But, it’s the other cogs in the wrestling-machine that keep Cael Sanderson and the Penn State Wrestling head and shoulders above the rest.
However news just broke Tuesday that Penn State will be without All-American, Shayne Van Ness, for the remainder of the year.
Huge news out of PSU wrestling availability, Cael Sanderson confirms Shayne Van Ness won’t be around the rest of the season due to injury.
— Nate Cobler (@byncobler) December 5, 2023
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How Losing Shayne Van Ness Impacts Penn State Wrestling
Van Ness is only a redshirt sophomore and with his incredible run last year at the NCAA Championships, it looked like he was heading towards an even higher finish this year.
But as with all sports, injuries are going to be a part of it. And luckily for Penn State Wrestling, they have the No. 10 overall recruit in last year’s recruiting class, Tyler Kasak, to fill in for Van Ness this season.
The only thing left to be determined is whether or not Shayne can receive a medical redshirt this year. By all accounts, I would think this seems likely.
How Penn State Wrestling can Replace Shayne Van Ness
As for Kasak, he’s already been on the mat five times for Penn State and this includes a runner-up finish in the 2023 Black Knight Invite and a 7-5 decision win in his Rec Hall debut last Sunday against Lehigh.
If he’s going to be the guy at 149 pounds the rest of the season, then he’s sure to gain some valuable experience in the starting lineup.
And all I can say is this, myself and the Nittany Lion faithful wish Shayne a speedy recovery and for him to be back on the mat next season healthy and better than ever.
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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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