"When that whistle blows, you got to turn the kill switch on" - Carter Starocci on his mindset ahead of NCAA Championships final

Penn State's Carter Starocci added another impressive win to his locker, after defeating Dustin Plott of Oklahoma State to make it to the NCAA Wrestling Championships final. He beat Plott with a score of 9-3, making it to the finals at 184 pounds. Starocci is a four-time NCAA Division 1 National Champion and will look to make history by becoming the first wrestler ever to win five NCAA Championships. He also has a bronze medal to his name from the U23 World Championships in 2022, when he competed in the 79 kg category. Starocci also has multiple Big Ten Championships.

After defeating Plott to give himself a chance of potentially winning a historic fifth NCAA title, Starocci was asked about his mindset going into the final where he will face Parker Keckeisen from Northern Iowa. Starocci emphasized that he is always grateful for the moment and that it's easy to switch on when the whistle blows. He said:

“For me always thanking God and always being grateful for the moment and so that's something that I always try and do before my match, during my match, after my match, just anytime I really get to thought, and to make sure that goes through, and then obviously I'll have to get my weight down tonight and things like that so that's the wrestling process right there," Starocci said in a video uploaded by USA Wrestling on YouTube. (2:13 onwards)

"But for me it's just it's no different honestly what goes through my mind, like for me when that whistle blows, you got to turn the kill switch on and whoever's out there in front of you, I mean that's who you got to take out , so that's the kind of mindset, and and for me that's easy to do," Starocci on his mindset ahead of the NCAA Championship finals.

Starocci's opponent in the final, Keckeisen, beat Max McEnelly of Minnesota in the semifinals of the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships. The match ended in sudden victory with a score of 4-1, with Keckeisen looking in red-hot form.

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Carter Starocci shares 2-word reaction on making it to the NCAA finals

Carter Starocci at the 2025 NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championship - (Image via Getty)

Carter Starocci took to Instagram to share his reaction on making it to the finals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships 2025, after beating Dustin Plott. This is the 24-year-old's first time competing in the 184-pound category after winning four consecutive NCAA titles in the 174-pound category.

The Pennsylvania-born wrestler shared his reaction on his Instagram story, where he wrote:

"All day,"

Still taken from Carter Starocci's Instagram (Source: @carterstarocci/Instagram)

Starocci and Keckeisen are set to face off on Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.