After Luke Lilledahl wins Budapest Ranking Series gold, what's next for Penn State wrestling this offseason?

Penn State wrestling scored its latest offseason success on July 17 when returning All-American and sophomore Luke Lilledahl took home the gold medal in the 57-kilogram weight class at the Budapest Ranking Series event in Hungary. The Nittany Lion beat four challengers en route to his latest International honor, including a 3-1 win over Azerbaijan’s Islam Bazarganov in the finals.

“The pair exchanged shot clock points in each period, Bazarganov scoring in the first frame, Lilledahl the second,” USA Wrestling writes in a news release. “With Lilledahl leading late on criteria, he pounced an errant Bazarganov attack, icing the match with a picturesque blast double in the final moments.

“The victory over Bazarganov proves the young American will continue to be a force on the Senior level internationally. Bazarganov has won back-to-back bronze medals at the European Championships. Lilledahl was runner-up to Olympic silver medalist Spencer Lee at 2025 Final X and is the U.S. representative for the 2025 U23 World Championships. He is a four-time age-group World medalist, earning a silver and gold at both the U17 and U20 levels.”

Senior Levi Haines was also at the event. But, he finished off of the podium at 79 kilograms. The good news for him, Lilledahl, and many of their Penn State teammates is that the offseason action is far from over.

Here’s a look at what comes next for head coach Cael Sanderson’s team during the offseason.

Lilledahl has one match to go in Budapest

The 125-pound starter for Penn State, Lilledahl, will look to build off his Budapest Ranking Series triumph during a Team USA vs. Team Russia freestyle dual meet on Monday. The No. 5 57-kilogam wrestler in the world according to FLO, the Nittany Lion will face No. 4 Musa Mekhtikhanov of Russia in the 57-kilogram match of a 10-bout card.

World championship season is approaching

Penn State will be well-represented at the U17, U20, U23, and senior-level World Championships over the next few months. U17s kick things off in two weeks. Class of 2026 commit Jayden James is in the 71 kilogram spot for Team USA at that event. Here is the full list in chronological order of which Lions are competing in each tournament and also where and when they will be held:

U17 World Wrestling Championships (July 28 – Aug. 3 in Greece)

Penn State Class of 2026 commit Jayden James will compete for Team USA at 71 kilograms.

U20 World Wrestling Championships (Aug. 14-18 in Bulgaria)

PSU ties include Marcus Blaze (61 kilograms), PJ Duke (70 kilograms), William Henckel (79 kilograms), Connor Mirasola (92 kilograms), and Cole Mirasola (125 kilograms)

U23 World Wrestling Championships (Oct. 20-26 in Serbia)

Penn State ties include:

57 kg – Luke Lilledahl (St. Charles, Mo./Nittany Lion WC/Titan Mercury WC)

65 kg – Marcus Blaze (Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg WC/Titan Mercury WC)

70 kg – PJ Duke (Slate Hill, N.Y./KD Training Center)

74 kg – Mitchell Mesenbrink (Bellefonte, Pa./Nittany Lion WC/Titan Mercury WC)

79 kg – Levi Haines (Arendtsville, Pa./Nittany Lion WC/Titan Mercury WC)

86 kg – Rocco Welsh (Fredericktown, Pa./Nittany Lion WC/Titan Mercury WC)

92 kg – Josh Barr (Davison, Mich./Nittany Lion WC/Titan Mercury WC)

World Wrestling Championships (Sept. 13 – 21 in Zagreb, Croatia)

PSU ties on Team USA include PJ Duke (70 kilograms), Levi Haines (79 kilograms), and NLWC member Kyle Snyder (97 kilograms)

More schedule news should be coming

So far, we know two things about the 2025-2026 Penn State dual meet schedule. The first is that the Lions will wrestle at Drexel on Dec. 5. The second is that the team’s Big Ten opponents.

The Lions will host Ohio State, Nebraska, Indiana, and Rutgers in State College.

They will travel to Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, and Northwestern.

The conference will finalize dates and times later this year. But, we’d expect to learn more non-conference dual dates over the next few weeks. Stay tuned for the latest.