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NCAA Championships: Penn State Wrestling’s road map to another national title

By Chris Snyder

ST LOUIS, MO - MARCH 20: Cater Starocci of Penn State celebrates after beating Michael Kemerer of Iowa in the 174lb weight class in the first-place match during the NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championship at the Enterprise Center on March 20, 2021 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
ST LOUIS, MO - MARCH 20: Cater Starocci of Penn State celebrates after beating Michael Kemerer of Iowa in the 174lb weight class in the first-place match during the NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championship at the Enterprise Center on March 20, 2021 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /
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Penn State Wrestling
Penn State Wrestling head coach Cael Sanderson (Image via HawkCentral) /

Previewing the road which lay ahead for each Penn State Wrestling grappler heading into the 2022 NCAA Wrestling Championships

The page in the proverbial “Book of College Wrestling” has been officially turned from the 2022 Big Ten Championships to the page containing the 2022 NCAA Wrestling Championships.

This is the week every aspiring collegiate wrestler looks forward to and winning some hardware is what they dream about.

Hopes may be dashed, frustrations can mount, upsets will happen, and the blood, sweat, and tears of constant training all season culminate in three days of incredible wrestling action.

So we put together a preview for each of the Nittany Lions in action, and highlighted any key matches they may face on their road to glory. And to prevent you from going cross-eyed staring at a text wall, we’ve cut down each weight class to the top 16 seeded wrestlers.

Can Penn State Wrestling take home another NCAA Wrestling Championship?

NCAA Wrestling Championship – Penn State Preview

Drew Hildebrandt

125
1. Nick Suriano (MICH) 11-0
2. Vito Arujau (COR) 14-1
3. Pat Glory (PRIN) 16-1
4. Brandon Courtney (ASU) 21-1
5. Killian Cardinale (WVU) 14-1
6. Eric Barnett (WIS) 16-3
7. Trevor Mastrogiovanni (OKST) 18-3
8. Patrick McKee (MINN) 20-7
9. Devin Schroder (PUR) 19-4
10. Michael DeAugustino (NW) 10-4
11. Brandon Kaylor (ORST) 19-4
12. Malik Heinselman (OHST) 19-5
13. Drake Ayala (IOWA) 16-6
14. Jakob Camacho (NCST) 16-4
15. Brody Teske (UNI) 12-6
16. Drew Hildebrandt (PSU) 9-3

Opening Match: No. 17 Anthony Noto (LHU) 29-1

Noto, a recent transfer from North Carolina State, has put together an impressive record this season but he only one match against a fellow NCAA qualifier at 125 (6-2 win over Joey Prata). This is Noto’s first full year of wrestling and he and Hildebrandt have yet to face each other.

Key Match: Opening Round match against No. 17 Anthony Noto (LHU)

Let’s be honest here, regardless of what was bothering Drew in the 2022 Big Ten Championships, he will need to shake it off and get back to business. Because the Nittany Lions are going to need every point they can get and staying in the Championship bracket for as long as possible will be paramount.

Also, should Hildebrandt win his opening round match, there’s about a 99.999999999999% chance he will face the No. 1 seed (Nick Suriano – Michigan) in the second round. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but Hildebradt’s trek in the Championship bracket could be fairly short.

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