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This time, Luke Lilledahl couldn't keep pace with his older, stronger rival.
There would be no dramatic save like in April.
Lilledahl, the Penn State wrestling lightweight NCAA champion, gave up big scoring runs near the end of both of his Final X best-of-three series matches to Olympic silver medalist Spencer Lee on Friday, June 19.
Lee pulled away to win both of their matches, even after being down 4-0 to start Round Two, in the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Lee won the first match, 7-1, and the second, 8-4.
The defeats denied the ultra-successful Lilledahl his first shot at making the U.S. Senior World Team and competing in the October world championships in Kazakhstan. He also will surely give away his No. 1 world freestyle ranking at 57 kilograms. He took over that top spot after pulling out a scintillating 5-4 victory over the No. 2 Lee in April's U.S. Open in Las Vegas.
That was a breakthrough for Penn State's new NCAA champ. In their previous matches, Lilledahl, 20, struggled to even stay close to Lee, 27, who won three national titles at Iowa.
Lee had swept him in last year's Final X series, winning 7-2 and 6-0. He also dominated Lilledahl, 11-0, in a 2024 tournament, just before his freshman season at Penn State.
This time, Lee was the stronger, more resilient wrestler, again. Already competing with a wrapped right arm, Lee willed his way through the second match. He appeared dazed and dropped to his knees after butting heads with Lilledahl in the first period.
Still, he would not be denied. He stepped up his pursuit and scoring, and hit a big four-point move to go ahead and put things away.
He wobbled as he walked off the match after the 8-4 victory.
The showdown between Lilledahl and Lee was one of the top draws of the best-of-three qualifying event. Other Penn State Final X winners were Marcus Blaze over Jax Forrest at 61 kg, Zain Retherford at 70 kg and Levi Haines over Chance Marsteller at 79 kg.
Nittany Lion Wrestling Club stars Kyle Dake (86 kg) and Kyle Snyder (97 kg) also won their third finals matches to make Team USA.
Frank Bodani covers Penn State wrestling for the York Daily Record and USA Today Network. Contact him at [email protected] and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @YDRPennState.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Spencer Lee beats Penn State wrestling star Luke Lilledahl at Final X
Continue reading...
There would be no dramatic save like in April.
Lilledahl, the Penn State wrestling lightweight NCAA champion, gave up big scoring runs near the end of both of his Final X best-of-three series matches to Olympic silver medalist Spencer Lee on Friday, June 19.
Lee pulled away to win both of their matches, even after being down 4-0 to start Round Two, in the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Lee won the first match, 7-1, and the second, 8-4.
The defeats denied the ultra-successful Lilledahl his first shot at making the U.S. Senior World Team and competing in the October world championships in Kazakhstan. He also will surely give away his No. 1 world freestyle ranking at 57 kilograms. He took over that top spot after pulling out a scintillating 5-4 victory over the No. 2 Lee in April's U.S. Open in Las Vegas.
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That was a breakthrough for Penn State's new NCAA champ. In their previous matches, Lilledahl, 20, struggled to even stay close to Lee, 27, who won three national titles at Iowa.
Lee had swept him in last year's Final X series, winning 7-2 and 6-0. He also dominated Lilledahl, 11-0, in a 2024 tournament, just before his freshman season at Penn State.
This time, Lee was the stronger, more resilient wrestler, again. Already competing with a wrapped right arm, Lee willed his way through the second match. He appeared dazed and dropped to his knees after butting heads with Lilledahl in the first period.
You must be registered for see images attach
Still, he would not be denied. He stepped up his pursuit and scoring, and hit a big four-point move to go ahead and put things away.
He wobbled as he walked off the match after the 8-4 victory.
The showdown between Lilledahl and Lee was one of the top draws of the best-of-three qualifying event. Other Penn State Final X winners were Marcus Blaze over Jax Forrest at 61 kg, Zain Retherford at 70 kg and Levi Haines over Chance Marsteller at 79 kg.
Nittany Lion Wrestling Club stars Kyle Dake (86 kg) and Kyle Snyder (97 kg) also won their third finals matches to make Team USA.
Frank Bodani covers Penn State wrestling for the York Daily Record and USA Today Network. Contact him at [email protected] and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @YDRPennState.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Spencer Lee beats Penn State wrestling star Luke Lilledahl at Final X
Continue reading...
