Penn State Wrestling: Levi Haines, Josh Barr Win Senior World Team Trials

Penn State wrestling is taking over Final X, with five Nittany Lions in the men's freestyle field for the 2025 World Wrestling Championships qualifier. Two current Nittany Lions, and a potential future star, advanced to Final X by winning their weight classes at the Senior World Team Trials challenge tournament in Louisville, Kentucky. Two more Nittany Lions previously earned Final X spots by winning titles at the U.S. Open.

Penn State's Levi Haines (79 kg) and Josh Barr (92 kg) won their weight classes at the trials, with Haines settling a score in the process. Meanwhile, 2025 Penn State commit PJ Duke won the 70 kg weight class, defeating two NCAA champs in the process, to draw one step close to his first senior world team.

Duke was among the best stories at the U.S. World Team Trials. The 18-year-old from Minisink Valley (N.Y.) High completed a dazzling run to Final X with a 4-1 victory over Bryce Andonian, a three-time All-American at Virginia Tech.

Duke, who will enroll at Penn State this fall, went 3-0 at the Team Trials, with wins over two NCAA champs from Nebraska on Friday. Duke was seeded second at the 70 kg weight class after winning the 2025 U20 U.S. Open title.

Duke gets another major challenge at Final X. He will face 26-year-old Yianni Diakomihalis, a three time-NCAA champ and 2022 world silver medalist. Diakomihalis earned the Final X auto bid by winning the U.S. Open title in April.

Haines, who placed third at 174 pounds at the NCAA Wrestling Championships, got a satisfying rematch at the Team Trials. Haines defeated Oklahoma State's Dean Hamiti 10-2 in the final. Hamiti had decisioned Haines 4-2 in the NCAA semifinals en route to winning the national title. This time, Haines was dominant, scoring takedowns in each period for the win.

Haines advanced to the best-of-three Final X series, which will be contested June 14 in Newark. Haines will take on Evan Wick, a four-time All-American at Wisconsin and Cal-Poly who won the U.S. Open title. The winner will represent the U.S. at the World Wrestling Championships in September in Croatia.

Barr, the NCAA runner-up at 197 pounds, continued his phenomenal 2025 run by winning the 92 kg title at the Team Trials. Barr hit a four-point move in beating Aeoden Sinclair 7-3 to secure his spot at Final X. Barr earlier scored a 10-4 semifinal decision over Dustin Plott.

Barr will face U.S. Open champ Trent Hidlay at Final X. Hidlay was a four-time All-American at North Carolina State and made the NCAA final at 197 pounds in 2024.

Two Penn State wrestlers already have secured their spots at Final X. Luke Lilledahl, who placed third at 125 pounds at NCAAs, will meet Spencer Lee in the 57 kg final. And Mitchell Mesenbrink, the NCAA champ at 165 pounds, will face David Carr in the 74 kg final.

The Barr-Carr bout will be a rematch of the 2024 NCAA final at 165 pounds. Carr won that 9-8 in a thrilling matchup. Carr advanced to Final X with a 2-0 decision over Jarrett Jacques.