How did Penn State wrestlers Luke Lilledahl and Levi Haines do at the Budapest Ranking Series Event?: Full results

Penn State 125-pound All-American Luke Lilledahl took gold on Thursday in the 57-kilogram division at the Budapest Ranking Series Event in Hungary. The sophomore was one of two Nittany Lions who competed in the tournament as a member of Team USA. Senior Levi Haines and 174-pound All-American finished off the podium at 79 kilograms.

Lilledahl clinched first in his weight class by securing a takedown with 20 seconds to go to break a 1-1 tie with Islam Bazarganov of Azerbaijani. If the match had ended in a draw, Lilledahl would have won on criteria thanks to being the last point scorer. But, he made sure that didn’t matter by pushing the pace late to seal the deal. He made it to the finals by picking up a pair of close decisions.

“Lilledahl, the Final X runner-up and reigning U20 World champion, picked up a pair of solid wins over experienced competitors,” USA Wrestling writes in a recap of the Penn State wrestler’s early-round action. “He opened with a 4-2 decision against Germany’s Niklas Stechele, who was fifth at the 2025 European Championships. In the semifinals, Lilledahl took down India’s 2019 U23 Asian champion Rahul, 7-6.”

On Haines’ tournament, USA Wrestling writes:

“U.S. World Team member Levi Haines posted a 1-1 record at 70 kg and was not pulled into the repechage rounds. He looked strong in a five-point win against Khidir Kurban A Saipudinov of Bahrain before falling 7-3 to Olympian Georgios Kougioumtsidis of Greece in the quarterfinals.”

Kougioumtsidis was later pinned in the semifinals, which ended Haines’ shot at coming back into repechage for a chance at third.

Penn State wrestler Luke Lilledahl has more work to do in Budapest

Lilledahl is not done competing in Budapest just yet. He is fifth in Flo’s International men’s freestyle 57-kilogram rankings. After beating No. 13 Bazarganov in the Budapest Ranking Series finals and No. 20 Rahul in the semis, the Penn State standout will face No. 4 Musa Mekhtikhanov of Russia in the 57-kilogram match of a 10-bout USA vs. Russia card on Monday. It is part of the Professional Wrestling League.

“I think this is a great opportunity for us to develop dual meet concepts for our athletes,” Bruce Baumgartner, the president of USA Wrestling, said in a statement. “This could lead to even more excellent opportunities in the future. I was involved in some of the early USA vs. Russia dual meets in the 1980’s. They were beneficial for both nations and for our sport. We are in a different time right now, and we have not done one of these duals for a number of years. These duals not only help promote wrestling, but also provide quality matches for our athletes to help prepare for future competitions.”

Here is the bout sheet as of July 16, courtesy of USA Wrestling:

57 kg. Luke Lilledahl (USA) vs. Musa Mekhtikhanov (Russia)

61 kg. Seth Gross (USA) vs. Muslim Mekhtikhanov (Russia)

65 kg. CJ Composto (USA) vs. Abasgadzhi Magomedov (Russia)

70 kg. Bryce Andonian (USA) vs. Saiyn Kazyryk (Russia)

74 kg. Joey Blaze (USA) vs. Magoma Dibirgadzhiev (Russia)

79 kg. Dean Hamiti (USA) vs. Mokhmad Nasirkhaev (Russia)

86 kg. Marcus Coleman (USA) vs. Amanula Rasulov (Russia)

92 kg. Mike Macchiavello (USA) vs. Amanula Gadzhimagomedov (Russia)

97 kg. Jay Aiello (USA) vs. Konstantin Pshenichnikov (Russia)

125 kg. Trent Hillger (USA) vs. Zelimkhan Khizriev (Russia)