In recruiting news, six Penn State wrestling commits, as of now, are registered for the U.S. Open scheduled for later this month.
U20
The headliner is Marcus Blaze, the top overall recruit in the Class of 2025.
Blaze will be competing at 61 KG, which is equal to 134 pounds.
He projects to compete at either 133 or 141 at Penn State. Joining Blaze at 61 KG is Sam Herring, who’s committed to Penn State’s Class of 2026. Herring, who stars at Johnstown’s Bishop McCourt, recently took third at the PIAA Tournament, where he competed at 139 pounds.
Nate Desmond wasn’t able to compete at the PIAA Championships due to injury but is scheduled for the U.S. Open at 61 KG.
Desmond, a national prep champion last season, also wrestled at the Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic last weekend. He fell to Oklahoma State commit Ronnie Ramirez. Desmond didn’t get to wrestle much for Wyoming Seminary this season, going 8-2 before the injury. We’ll see what he can do in Freestyle.
Moving on to 65 KG, where Dalton Perry is competing. Perry, a star at Central Mountain High School, committed to Penn State as a freshman and hasn’t wavered from that commitment.
Perry won states as a true freshman, competing at 126. But he fell just short over the next three seasons, finishing third at 139 as a sophomore and second as a junior before finishing second at 145 this season.
Penn State’s heaviest commit is William Henckel, who will be competing at 79 KG.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.Henckel has already put together quite the wrestling resume. In February, he won his second national prep championship and placed for the fourth time.
Penn State Wrestling Recruiting: PSU Commit, Sister Become National Champs
In the years he didn’t win, he finished second and third, respectively. He’s also a two-time Beast of the East champion, with features wrestlers from more than 20 states. This season, he beat Ryan Burton, also from New Jersey, in the finals. Burton, a Virginia Tech commit, is ranked No. 13 overall in the Class of 2025 by FloWrestling.
At this year’s national prep championships, Henckel went 5-0 with four pins and a tech fall. In the finals, he pinned Brown commit Maximums Norman.
U17
Penn State’s only entry— thus far— in the U17 category is Jayden James, the No. 4 overall recruit in the Class of 2026 who recently flipped from Virginia Tech. He’ll be competing at 71KG.
The U.S. Open is scheduled for April 23-27.
6 Penn State Commits are Now Registered
For 2025 CLAW US Open 4/23-27
U20 Freestyle
Marcus Blaze, 61 kg – Newest
Sam Herring, 61 kg – Newest
N. Desmond, 61 kg
D. Perry, 65 kg
W. Henckel, 79 kg
U17 Freestyle
J. James, 71 kg@pennstateWREST @samherring06 @MarcusBlaze23 pic.twitter.com/NiQQ7kUWUo— Penn State/NLWC Fan (@NlwcFan) April 4, 2025
