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Marcus Blaze will be going to his first Senior World Championships.
The Penn State wrestling sophomore-to-be gutted out impressive victories over NCAA champ and fellow phenom Jax Forrest on Friday, June 19, at the Final X event in the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Blaze, who finished fourth behind Forrest at the March NCAA Championships, produced brilliant scoring moves toward the end of his first- and third-match victories over Forrest in their 61 kilogram weight class (about 134 pounds).
Blaze won their last bout, 5-2, to make Team USA along with four other Penn State-related wrestlers. The other winners were three-time NCAA champ Zain Retherford at 70 kg, two-time NCAA champ Levi Haines at 79 kg and Nittany Lion Wrestling Club members Kyle Dake (86 kg) and Kyle Snyder (97 kg).
Blaze, a two-time age-group world champ, made the senior world team for the first time. He and the other winners will compete in October's Senior World Championships in Kazakhstan.
Blaze also now owns the edge in what's becoming one of the nation's top wrestling rivalries.
Blaze won his Final X opening match over Forrest on criteria (2-2) and lost the second, 6-1.
He's now won three of the past four matches against Forrest, going back to their 2024 Olympic Trials showdown.
The only Nittany Lion to lose at Final X was NCAA lightweight champion Luke Lilledahl. He dropped his two matches, and decisively so, to Olympic silver medalist Spencer Lee. Lilledahl and Lee were the No. 1- and No. 2-ranked freestyle wrestlers in the world in their 57 kg weight class, according to FloWrestling.
Blaze and Forrest, meanwhile, are among those positioning themselves for runs at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. They'd likely have to make the team at 65 kg (or 143 pounds), since there are only six freestyle Olympic weight classes.
Forrest left high school in Johnstown, Pa., in December to join Oklahoma State, where he promptly went on an undefeated tear to win his NCAA title at 133 pounds as a freshman.
Blaze, meanwhile, began his freshman season on his own undefeated run before losing in the finals of the Big Ten Championships. He finished fourth at NCAAs, while battling the flu. Blaze, an Ohio native, earned his way into Final X by beating Ohio State's Ben Davino, 4-1, for the U.S. Open title in April.
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: Penn State wrestling's Marcus Blaze beats Jax Forrest, makes Team USA
Continue reading...
The Penn State wrestling sophomore-to-be gutted out impressive victories over NCAA champ and fellow phenom Jax Forrest on Friday, June 19, at the Final X event in the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Blaze, who finished fourth behind Forrest at the March NCAA Championships, produced brilliant scoring moves toward the end of his first- and third-match victories over Forrest in their 61 kilogram weight class (about 134 pounds).
Blaze won their last bout, 5-2, to make Team USA along with four other Penn State-related wrestlers. The other winners were three-time NCAA champ Zain Retherford at 70 kg, two-time NCAA champ Levi Haines at 79 kg and Nittany Lion Wrestling Club members Kyle Dake (86 kg) and Kyle Snyder (97 kg).
Blaze, a two-time age-group world champ, made the senior world team for the first time. He and the other winners will compete in October's Senior World Championships in Kazakhstan.
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Blaze also now owns the edge in what's becoming one of the nation's top wrestling rivalries.
Blaze won his Final X opening match over Forrest on criteria (2-2) and lost the second, 6-1.
He's now won three of the past four matches against Forrest, going back to their 2024 Olympic Trials showdown.
The only Nittany Lion to lose at Final X was NCAA lightweight champion Luke Lilledahl. He dropped his two matches, and decisively so, to Olympic silver medalist Spencer Lee. Lilledahl and Lee were the No. 1- and No. 2-ranked freestyle wrestlers in the world in their 57 kg weight class, according to FloWrestling.
Blaze and Forrest, meanwhile, are among those positioning themselves for runs at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. They'd likely have to make the team at 65 kg (or 143 pounds), since there are only six freestyle Olympic weight classes.
Forrest left high school in Johnstown, Pa., in December to join Oklahoma State, where he promptly went on an undefeated tear to win his NCAA title at 133 pounds as a freshman.
Blaze, meanwhile, began his freshman season on his own undefeated run before losing in the finals of the Big Ten Championships. He finished fourth at NCAAs, while battling the flu. Blaze, an Ohio native, earned his way into Final X by beating Ohio State's Ben Davino, 4-1, for the U.S. Open title in April.
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: Penn State wrestling's Marcus Blaze beats Jax Forrest, makes Team USA
Continue reading...
