Below are five storylines to watch at this year's JJ Classic.
Alex Lloyd celebrates after beating Peyton Robb to win his second state title (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)Lloyd goes for No. 4
Alex Lloyd (Shakopee, Minn.), the nation's No. 23 overall senior, will be looking to capture his fourth straight JJ Classic title. He is competing at 145 pounds. Only one other wrestler, Mark Hall, has won four or more JJ Classic titles. (Hall won five.) Lloyd was named the Outstanding Wrestler at last year's event, picking up two technical falls and two pins to reach the finals. In the finals, Lloyd cruised to a 12-4 major decision over a state champion. He is a two-time state champion and two-time Junior National folkstyle champion. Lloyd has committed to South Dakota State.
Israel Navarro, a state runner-up to Patrick McKee, will attempt to win his third JJ Classic title (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)Navarro attempts three-peat
Israel Navarro (Willmar, Minn.) will attempt to become the fifth wrestler to win three or more JJ Classic titles, joining Hall, Lloyd, Justin Portillo and Bobby Steveson. Last year, Navarro survived three one-point matches en route to claiming the JJ Classic title at 120 pounds. His finals victory came over Colby Njos 4-3 in tiebreaker. Navarro was a state runner-up last season, losing in the state finals at 120 pounds to nationally ranked Patrick McKee. He is competing in this year's JJ Classic at 132 pounds, one of the tournament's toughest weight classes (see below).
Sam Stuhl defeated Brent Jones to claim a title at the Minnesota Christmas Tournament (Photo/David Peterson)132 pounds loaded with talent
The 132-pound weight class is one to keep an eye on this weekend as it is loaded with talent. In addition to the two-time JJ Classic champion Navarro, the weight class includes multiple-time state champions Sam Stuhl (Ellsworth, Wis.) and Charlie Pickell (Mankato West, Minn.), as well as Fargo freestyle finalist Aidan Medora (Brookfield Academy, Wis.).
Stuhl is a three-time state champion. Last season he won titles at the Minnesota Christmas Tournament and Bi-State Classic, and was a runner-up at the JJ Classic. Stuhl, like Lloyd, committed to South Dakota State.
Pickell will be looking to win his first JJ Classic title after finishing third in the event in 2015 and runner-up a year ago. The two-time defending state champion is up three weight classes from last season. He has won state titles at 106 pounds and 113 pounds.
Medora, one of the nation's top sophomore wrestlers, reached the finals of the Cadet freestyle competition in Fargo this past summer before losing to Carson Manville, a 2015 JJ Classic runner-up and the nation's No. 1 freshman wrestler. He was a state runner-up as a freshman, finishing the season with a record of 38-4. Medora was also a runner-up at last year's JJ Classic. He defeated Pickel by fall earlier this year in freestyle at the Northern Plains Regional, which was held in the same venue as the JJ Classic.
Another wrestler who could challenge in this weight class is Dylan Droegemueller (Anoka, Minn.), a fourth-place finisher in the Junior National folkstyle competition earlier this year. Others to watch in this weight class include state third-place finishers Tanner Kroells (Delano, Minn.), Mike Smith (Amery, Wis.) and Colby Mennis (Madison, S.D.), as well as state placerwinner Cade Lundeen (Thief River Falls, Minn.).
Reid Ballantyne won a state title as an eighth-grader, finishing the season undefeated (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)Ballantyne looks to go 2-for-2
Last year, Reid Ballantyne (Stillwater, Minn.) became the second eighth-grader ever to win a JJ Classic title, joining Mark Hall, who accomplished the feat in 2011. Ballantyne is one of the young, rising stars in the sport. He was an undefeated state champion last season and is ranked among the top 20 freshmen in the nation by InterMat. Ballantyne has moved up three weight classes from last season and is now competing at 126 pounds, a weight class that includes multiple-time state champions Ryan Ripplinger (Bismark, N.D.), Hunter Burnett (Pipestone Area, Minn.) and Brody Armstrong (Minot, N.D.). Ripplinger was third at last year's JJ Classic, losing to Navarro in the semifinals. Burnett is a two-time state champion who has yet to suffer a loss as a high school wrestler in Minnesota. Armstrong has won state titles at 120 pounds and 126 pounds.
Anthony Cassioppi won Junior National titles in all three styles (Photo/Jim Thrall)Cassioppi returns
Anthony Cassioppi (Hononegah, Ill.), one of the nation's top high school heavyweights, is returning to the JJ Classic. The future Iowa Hawkeye last competed in the event two years ago, winning a title by defeating Andrew Piehl, who now wrestles for Navy. Cassioppi won Junior National titles this year in all three styles of wrestling, folkstyle, freestyle and Greco-Roman, becoming just the eighth wrestler ever to win a Junior National Triple Crown and the first since 2014. Prior to Fargo, Cassioppi became a Pan American Junior champion in both freestyle and Greco-Roman in Lima, Peru, going a combined 7-0, which included four falls and three technical falls. He was awarded the "Golden Boot" as the Outstanding Wrestler in Greco-Roman. Cassioppi claimed a state title as a junior, finishing the season with a perfect 50-0 record. He is ranked as the nation's No. 27 overall senior by InterMat.
For more information on the JJ Classic, visit intermatwrestle.com/jjclassic.
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