CLEVELAND, Ohio — Penn State’s Shayne Van Ness came up just short of an NCAA title Saturday night, falling to Stanford’s Aden Valencia 8-5 in sudden victory in the 149-pound final at the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships.
Van Ness battled throughout the match and appeared poised to seize control after rallying from an early deficit, but Valencia delivered the decisive takedown in overtime to claim the national championship.
Valencia struck first in the opening period with a takedown at the 2:22 mark, but Van Ness answered with an escape and later benefited from a stalling point to keep the match within reach. In the second period, Van Ness found his opening and converted a takedown of his own to swing momentum, though Valencia responded with two escapes to keep the bout tight.
Throughout the bout, there was a few blood stoppages that Van Ness needed attention for.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.Van Ness added another escape in the third period, knotting the match at 5-5 and forcing sudden victory. But with 1:28 remaining in overtime, Valencia secured the winning takedown and ended Van Ness’ title hopes.
It was a tough finish for the Nittany Lion, who put together an outstanding tournament run to reach the championship bout and add another All-America finish to Penn State’s dominant weekend in Cleveland.
Even in defeat, Van Ness helped power the Nittany Lions’ latest title push, though the individual crown at 149 slipped away in one of the night’s most competitive finals.
