Sophomore wrestler Jesse Mendez holds his trophy at the top of the podium after winning the NCAA Wrestling National Championship at 141 pounds Saturday. Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State Athletics
For the first time since 2018, Ohio State has an NCAA wrestling champion.
It was No. 1 versus No. 2 in the 141-pound weight class Saturday, ultimately ending with Jesse Mendez standing at the top of the podium, first place trophy in hand.
Top-ranked Mendez, a sophomore, secured gold after downing Beau Bartlett of Penn State to earn his first NCAA individual championship, as Ohio State finished eighth in the overall team scores at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
“Jesse can score when his opponent shoots and he forces his opponent underneath him,” head coach Tom Ryan said. “This offseason he worked hard on his riding and pinning, as well as his bottom game.”
Seven automatic qualifiers and two at-large qualifiers represented Ohio State in the NCAA Championship, including freshmen Rocco Welsh and Nick Feldman who secured All-American status alongside Mendez.
Others included freshmen Brendan McCrone, Luke Geog and Ryder Rogotzke, redshirt freshman Nik Bouzakis, seniors Dylan D’Emilio and Isaac Wilcox.
“My staff and I are excited about this group and the new prospects coming in,” Ryan said. “This is a young team and they are committed to a non-negotiable standard.”
Welsh finished runner up in the 174-pound NCAA finals as the No. 6 seed, while No. 9-seeded Feldman finished in fifth place at 285 pounds.
McCrone, one of the at-large selections, fell short against University of Northern Colorado’s sophomore Stevo Poulin by 3-1 in the first round. A 14-0 major decision loss against Stanford’s sophomore Nico Provo in the consolation bracket disqualified him from the 125-pound title.
Bouzakis, the second at-large selection, was sent to the consolation bracket following a loss in the second round against No. 1-redshirt senior Daton Fix of Oklahoma State by 5-4. Bouzakis’ 3-0 regular decision loss against Penn State’s No. 10 Aaron Nagao brought his championship run to a close.
Following his first individual Big Ten title from last week, Mendez took down Bartlett 4-1, topped by a decisive takedown in the last period. A 6-4 regular decision win over No. 5 Anthony Echemendia of Iowa State in the semifinals secured Mendez a spot to battle for the title.
“I grew up competitive, I was raised this way,” Mendez said. “I have worked too hard since a young age. I think I put too much effort into the room and do every little thing right.”
At 149 pounds, following an early loss on Thursday night, No. 14 D’Emilio had to battle through the consolation bracket. However, D’Emilio couldn’t earn All-American status after falling short in the blood round against Iowa State’s No. 8 Casey Swiderski in sudden-victory period 2-1.
Wilcox, a No. 32 seed, was defeated by a 17-2 technical fall against No. 1 Levi Haines of Penn State on Thursday morning. Friday morning’s 8-5 regular decision loss against South Dakota’s No. 8 Cael Swensen knocked Wilcox out of the 157-class tournament.
Following two sudden victory wins against Illinois’ No. 3 Edmond Ruth in the quarterfinals and Columbia’s No. 7 Lennox Wolak in the semifinals, No. 6 Welsh fell short in the 174-pound NCAA final against Penn State’s No. 9 senior Carter Starocci. In the 184-pound contest, No. 18 Rogotzke faced two consecutive losses that disqualified him from the NCAA championship.
The first one came against Minnesota’s No. 2 Isaiah Salazar in sudden victory, followed by an 8-5 regular decision defeat against Princeton’s No. 16 Nate Dugan in the consolation bracket.
Geog fell in both of his matchups on Thursday in the 197-pound tournament. He kicked off the morning with a 10-3 loss against No. 10 Silas Allred of Nebraska, followed by a 16-6 major decision defeat against Iowa’s No. 7 Zach Glazier.
In the heavyweight class, No. 9 Feldman battled through the consolation bracket to finish in fifth position and earn All-American status. Feldman pinned Hofstra’s No. 24 Keaton Kluever in the first period to kick the championship off and beat Iowa’s No. 25 Bradley Hill with an 11-2 major decision win on Thursday night.
Feldman trailed Penn State’s No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet by 1-0 in the quarterfinals, topped by a single-point escape. He beat No. 4 Cohlton Schultz of Arizona State by 11-4 for the fifth place.
With two more seasons of eligibility remaining for Mendez, he has high expectations for the future of the team and himself.
“The Buckeyes are coming for a team title, whether it’s next year or the year after that,” Mendez said.
