To no surprise, Penn State wrestling was well represented at this weekend’s U20 World Team Trials, and five Penn State wrestlers/commits will be representing Team USA at that level.
Marcus Blaze (61 KG), PJ Duke (70 KG), William Henckel (79 KG), Connor Mirasola (92 KG) and Cole Mirasola (125 KG) are going to Bulgaria in August.
None of these five representatives should come as a surprise.
Blaze and Duke are the top two Class of 2025 recruits anywhere in the country, and both picked Penn State wrestling. Henckel isn’t terribly far behind, finishing 23rd on FloWrestling’s Big Board. The Mirasola brothers were also top-level recruits once upon a time and they each have a year college experience in America’s best room under their belt.
Here’s a breakdown of how each of the five got here.
MARCUS BLAZE
He’s No. 1 for a reason. Blaze took on Arizona State’s Kyler Larkin in the best-of-three finals at 61 KG, and demolished him, winning two matches by a combined 14-1.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.PJ DUKE
Duke is right there with Blaze, if not ahead, and again, there’s a reason for this. The New Yorker took on Oklahoma State’s Landon Robideau in the finals and got the job done, winning 7-0 in the first bout and 9-4 in the second.
WILLIAM HENCKEL
It’s easy to forget about Henckel because of how decorated Blaze and Duke are but Brock Mantanona won’t be forgetting about him anytime soon. Henckel beat the Michigan wrestler in straight bouts to punch his ticket.
THE MIRASOLA’S
It’s been quite a late spring for Connor and Cole, who each won U.S. Open titles and then did the same at the World Team Trials. Cole swept Oklahoma State commit Dreshaun Ross to make the U20 World Team at 125 KG. Connor did the same to Bucknell’s Dillon Bechtold.
This year’s U20 World Team Championships are scheduled for Aug. 18-24 in Bulgaria.
