For some wrestlers in lesser-known wrestling states, preseason tournaments provide an opportunity to get noticed and see tougher competition than they otherwise would. Every fall there are high school wrestlers who shine in preseason events and force people to take notice.
I have selected one wrestler in each of the 14 weight classes who, in my opinion, stood above all else in their weight class this preseason.
106: Paul Mascarenas (Cleveland, N.M.)
Preseason Event: USA Wrestling Preseason Nationals
Preseason Synopsis: Mascarenas, a two-time state champion, cruised to a title at USA Wrestling Preseason Nationals in Cedar Falls, Iowa. He went 6-0, which included victories over a pair of Junior National finalists, Tommy Pawelski and Dante' Rodriguez (Grand Island, Neb.). His victory in the finals came by way of pin over Rodriguez, an InterMat JJ Classic champion and Blue Chip Fall Brawl runner-up.
113: Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco, Calif.)
Preseason Event: NUWAY Southwest Kickoff Classic
Preseason Synopsis: Valencia, who is ranked as the nation's No. 1 freshman by InterMat, won his second straight title at the NUWAY Southwest Kickoff Classic, also known as the Freak Show, in Las Vegas. He rolled through the competition, going 5-0, which included a semifinal win over Junior National double finalist Johnson Mai (North Torrance, Calif.), and a victory in the finals over Junior National freestyle All-American Micah Perez (Central Union, Calif.).
120: Tim Lambert (Forest Hills Eastern, Mich.)
Preseason Event: Grappler Fall Classic
Preseason Synopsis: Lambert, an InterMat Top 100 recruit, followed up a strong summer (All-American honors in Fargo) with a title at the Grappler Fall Classic in Michigan, where he went 5-0. He had two pins and outscored his other three opponents 31-4. His most notable victory came in the finals over nationally-ranked sophomore Zac Hall (St. Johns, Mich.), 5-1.
126: Anthony Ashnault (South Plainfield, N.J.)
Preseason Events: Ironhorse Invitational, Super 32 Challenge
Preseason Synopsis: Ashnault, who is undefeated in his prep wresting career, bounced back from a loss to Randy Cruz (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) at the Ironhorse Invitational to win his second straight Super 32 Challenge title in impressive fashion with wins over five state champions. (Last year Ashnault also beat five state champions on the way to winning the Super 32 challenge title.) His most notable victories at this year's Super 32 Challenge came over PIAA state champion Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), 4-2, in the semifinals, and Junior National freestyle champion Joey Dance (Christiansburg, Va.), 4-3, in the finals.
132: Sam Brancale (Eden Prairie, Minn.)
Preseason Event: InterMat JJ Classic
Preseason Synopsis: Brancale, who is ranked as the nation's No. 56 senior by InterMat, was dominant at the InterMat JJ Classic, going 5-0 with three pins and 9-3 victories in both the semifinals and finals. His victory in the finals came over state champion and two-time state finalist Mitchel Lexvold (Kenyon-Wanamingo, Minn.). The University of Minnesota commit was named Outstanding Wrestler of the event.
138: Ben Whitford (St. Johns, Mich.)
Preseason Event: Super 32 Challenge
Preseason Synopsis: It is rare to see a wrestler completely obliterate a field at a prestigious event like the Super 32 Challenge, but Whitford did just that. The nation's No. 2 junior had five pins, a 19-3 technical fall, and a 13-3 major decision in the finals. Whitford has returned to St. Johns, Michigan, after spending the first two years of his high school career at Marmion Academy (Ill.).
145: Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.
Preseason Events: Grappler Fall Classic, InterMat JJ Classic, NUWAY Southwest Kickoff Classic
Preseason Synopsis: Hall, the nation's No. 1 junior high wrestler, put it on the line three straight weekends and came out on top in all three preseason events. His first title came at the Grappler Fall Classic, where he notched a victory in the finals over state champion and InterMat Top 100 recruit Zack Dailey (Massillon Perry, Ohio). He followed that up the next weekend with a title at the InterMat JJ Classic where he had the Dirty Scramble and Takedown of the Week in his finals match. He then capped off his preseason run with a title at the NUWAY Southwest Kickoff Classic in Las Vegas, where he was untested in five matches.
152: Isaiah Martinez (Lemoore, Calif.)
Preseason Event: NUWAY Southwest Kickoff Classic
Preseason Synopsis: Martinez came through a bracket at the NUWAY Southwest Kickoff Classic that included two other wrestlers ranked in the top 20 nationally in their grades, Joey Lavallee (Reno, Nev.) and Brandon Kingsley (Apple Valley, Minn.). He went 5-0 with three pins, a technical fall, and a 4-2 victory in the finals over Kingsley, an InterMat JJ Classic champion.
160: Chance Marsteller (Kennard-Dale, Pa.)
Preseason Event: Super 32 Challenge
Preseason Synopsis: Marsteller, an undefeated PIAA state champion as a freshman, was originally slated to compete at 152 pounds for the Super 32 Challenge, but made the decision late to move up to 160 pounds. At the Super 32 Challenge he went 6-0 with a pin, two technical falls, a major decision, and two decisions. His victory in the finals came over Cody Allala (Hopewell, Va.), a wrestler he trained with leading up to the event.
170: Taylor Massa (St. Johns, Mich.)
Preseason Event: Super 32 Challenge
Preseason Synopsis: Massa, the nation's No. 1 overall recruit, entered his senior year with titles in just about every major high school or grade level wrestling event, with the exception of the Super 32 Challenge. That changed this past Sunday when Massa, who committed to Michigan, won a Super 32 Challenge belt at 170 pounds with a dominating 16-6 victory over a red-hot Elliott Riddick (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.).
182: Tim Dudley (Irmo, S.C.)
Preseason Event: Super 32 Challenge
Preseason Synopsis: Last week was an eventful week for Dudley. He announced his verbal commitment to the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill on Friday and a few days later captured a Super 32 Challenge title. Dudley, an NHSCA Nationals champion, did not give up an offensive score in six matches. He took out returning Super 32 Challenge champion Brandon Griffin (Sprague, Ore.) in the finals.
195: Matt McCutcheon (Pa.)
Preseason Event: Super 32 Challenge
Preseason Synopsis: McCutcheon, a state fifth-place finisher in Pennsylvania this past season, had a breakthrough performance at the Super 32 Challenge. He registered a 4-2 victory over two-time Cadet National double champion Mitch Sliga (Fishers, Ind.) in the semifinals, and then proceeded to knock off two-time state finalist and Cadet National freeestyle champion Brooks Climmons (Pope, Ga.) in tiebreaker, 2-1, to capture the Super 32 Challenge belt.
220: Willie Miklus (Southeast Polk, Iowa)
Preseason Event: Blue Chip Fall Brawl
Preseason Synopsis: Miklus, an InterMat Top 100 recruit, steamrolled the competition at the Blue Chip Fall Brawl in Kansas City. The Missouri commit went 3-0 with two technical fall victories and a one-minute pin in the finals.
285: Doug Vollaro (Pine Castle Christian, Fla.)
Preseason Event: Super 32 Challenge
Preseason Synopsis: Vollaro, a Junior National double All-American and FloNationals champion, was impressive in capturing the Super 32 Challenge title at heavyweight. He had shutout victories in both the quarterfinals and semifinals, and then defeated fellow Floridian John Dreggors (Springstead, Fla.), an NHSCA Junior Nationals champion and InterMat Top 100 recruit, 3-1, in the finals. Vollaro committed to Lehigh earlier this fall.
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