State College, Pa. – The Nebraska wrestling team finished third at the 2026 Big Ten Wrestling Championships with 116.5 points as five Huskers earned runner-up finishes.
NU had six top-five finishers, highlighted by Brock Hardy (141), Antrell Taylor (157), Christopher Minto (174), Camden McDanel (197) and AJ Ferrari (285), who each secured second-place finishes and were awarded All-Big Ten Second Team. Freshman LJ Araujo added a fourth-place finish at 165.
Nine Huskers represented Nebraska on the podium, clinching nine automatic bids to the NCAA Championships for the third consecutive season. It marks the fourth straight year the Huskers have finished in the top three at the Big Ten Championships.
All 10 Huskers remained alive in tournament action entering the second day, including five wrestlers competing in the championship finals.
No. 2 Brock Hardy opened the finals at 141 against top-seeded Jesse Mendez (OSU) in their third meeting of the season. Mendez scored an early takedown while Hardy added two escapes, but the Buckeye held control for a 7-2 decision. Hardy finished the tournament as runner-up and will continue his postseason run at the NCAA Championships.
At 157, No. 1 Antrell Taylor faced No. 2 PJ Duke (PSU). Duke built an early lead and pulled away for a 12-4 major decision, giving Taylor a runner-up finish and an automatic bid to NCAAs.
No. 2 Christopher Minto was followed at 174, taking on top-seeded Levi Haines (PSU). After a scoreless first period, Minto opened the scoring with an escape before Haines was awarded a penalty point. Haines added an escape in the third to secure a 2-1 decision. Minto claimed second place and secured his NCAA qualification.
In the 197-pound final, No. 2 Camden McDanel (NEB) fell to No. 1 Josh Barr (PSU) by a 19-4 tech. fall but finished as a runner-up to earn an NCAA bid.
The final championship bout featured No. 2 AJ Ferrari (NEB) against No. 1 Taye Ghadiali (MICH) at heavyweight. After a scoreless opening period, Ferrari built riding time before earning an escape to take the lead. Ghadiali responded with a late takedown and added an escape to secure the 5-2 decision.
In the third-place match at 165, No. 4 LJ Araujo faced No. 2 Joey Blaze (PUR). Blaze scored an early takedown before Araujo recorded an escape in the second period. The bout was later stopped due to injury, with Araujo medically forfeiting to place fourth.
Both No. 3 Silas Allred and No. 6 Jacob Van Dee forfeited their placement matches Sunday. Allred finished sixth at 184 while Van Dee placed eighth at 133.
The Big Red opened the second day with three wrestlers competing in Session III for podium positions.
At 149, No. 6 Chance Lamer began the day in the ninth-place semifinal, defeating No. 10 Drew Roberts (MIN) with an 11-3 major decision after recording two takedowns and a four-point nearfall. Lamer later fell to No. 8 Ryder Block (IOWA) in the ninth-place match, 8-7 in SV, finishing 10th. The senior missed auto qualification by one, but could still make it to Cleveland with an at-large bid.
At 165, Araujo earned his spot in the third-place match with an 11-0 major decision over No. 7 Andrew Barabosa (RUT), scoring a takedown in each period.
Kael Lauridsen closed the Huskers’ Session III action in the 7th-place match at 125 against No. 5 Ayden Smith (RUT). Lauridsen trailed early before scoring a late first-period reversal and added an escape and takedown in the second to secure the 6-3 decision and podium finish.
Up Next
The Huskers will compete at the 2025-26 NCAA Championships at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, March 19-21.
