Jocelynn Benitez delivered a dominant title run at 103 pounds, becoming the first women’s national champion in Fresno State history while leading the Bulldogs at the NCWA National Championships.

Fresno State crowned a conference champion and qualified 5 athletes for the national tournament at the 2026 NCWA West Coast Conference Championships in Atherton, California. Jocelynn Benitez captured the 103-pound title while Emmanuel Plascencia finished runner-up at 141 pounds.

Fresno State returned as host of the NCWA California State Championships for the first time since 2017, highlighted by a title run from Jocelynn Benitez and multiple podium finishes across both squads.

Jocelynn Benitez captured gold at 103 pounds and earned Lower Weight Outstanding Wrestler honors as Fresno State wrapped up its regular-season slate of open tournaments in Sacramento.

Fresno State opened its Pacific Northwest road swing at the Evergreen Open on January 18 in Olympia, Washington, highlighted by a championship performance from Jocelynn Benitez and a fourth-place finish from Emmanuel Plascencia.

Fresno State competed at the Westcliff Duals on January 10, 2026, hosted by Westcliff University at Golden West College in Huntington Beach. The Bulldogs faced a challenging slate of duals against West Coast opponents, gaining important experience in a women’s-only team format.

Fresno State opened the 2026 calendar year at the Mat Cat Open on Sunday, January 4, hosted by Linfield University in McMinnville, Oregon. The Bulldogs were highlighted by a championship performance from Jocelynn Benitez, while the rest of the squad gained valuable experience against a deep, mixed-division field.

Despite battling a flu outbreak that sidelined most of the roster, Fresno State NCWA Wrestling stayed true to its competition commitments and sent two determined athletes into a tri-dual against NCAA Division II programs Menlo College and Vanguard University. Emmanuel Plascencia and Josiah Rowland insisted on competing, using the opportunity as a benchmark for where they want to take the program.

Fresno State Wrestling closed out its pre-Thanksgiving stretch with a powerful showing at the Utah Tech Stampede Invitational in St. George, Utah. The Bulldogs brought home two individual titles as freshman standouts Emmanuel Plascencia and Jocelynn Benitez dominated their respective brackets to claim tournament championships.

The Bulldogs entered athletes into the 2nd Annual Battle at Sparta in San Jose to secure early season mat time, focusing on development and assessment rather than tournament placement.