Prohibitively favored in the team race is No. 6 Bethlehem Catholic, which won team titles their last three years in AA (2012-2014) before finishing runners-up last year in their debut Class AAA season. The Hawks won the dual team title last month, and qualified a joint-most nine wrestlers to the individual state tournament. They are anchored by a pair of nationally ranked wrestlers in No. 4 Luke Karam (126), a returning state champion, and No. 5 Michael Labriola (170).
Also qualifying nine wrestlers to the state tournament was No. 21 Boyertown, runners-up in the dual team tournament; however, they are adversely impacted by the absence of returning state champion and three-time state finalist Jordan Wood (220). He was scratched from last week's district tournament due to injury, which means the Bears will be led by No. 14 Jakob Campbell (113).
No. 22 Nazareth qualified the next most with seven, as did Erie Cathedral Prep. The Blue Eagles are led by No. 10 Sammy Sasso (138), a returning state runner-up, and No. 20 Tyson Klump (106), a returning state champion.
Among the teams to qualify six was No. 10 Belle Vernon Area; however, the Leopards are missing Jarod Verkleeren (145) due to the weight management mishap from the dual meet state tournament and the abject circus which followed. From those competing, No. 10 Austin Bell (170) is the featured wrestler. Others with six in the tournament are Central Dauphin, Council Rock South, Cumberland Valley, Mifflin County, and North Allegheny.
Rounding out the nationally ranked teams is No. 34 Kiski Area, which qualified just three to the state tournament. The Cavaliers are much more a dual meet and smaller-sized tournament team, but have to be slightly disappointed with their WPIAL tournament result, even considering the absence of returning state medalist Tyler Worthing (182) from the postseason lineup.
The following represents a weight-by-weight overview of the field, as every single weight class features at least one nationally ranked wrestler, with eight featuring multiple ranked wrestlers in the bracket.
106: Much like last year, this is an absolutely wide open weight class, and one that is devoid of true star power. The lone ranked wrestler here is No. 20 Tyson Klump (Nazareth), the returning state champion, who made his season debut in this weight class at the district tournament. The path will be far from easy starting with a round of 16 bout against Walsh Ironman placer Jacob Dunlop (Belle Vernon Area); next would be a likely champ-champ quarterfinal against returning state medalist Geo Barzona (Central Mountain). Most likely awaiting that wrestler in the semifinal will be Powerade champion Jobe Chishko (Penn Trafford), who was upset in the southwest regional (aka WPIAL) final this past weekend. The lower half-bracket is anchored by freshman Patrick Gould (East Stroudsburg South) and WPIAL champion Louis Newell (Seneca Valley); Gould had two wins over Klump on the season prior to the northeast regional final loss.
113: There are four nationally ranked wrestlers in this weight class, and in its infinite wisdom, the PIAA bracket gods have placed two of them in the champ-champ quarter of the draw. Those being No. 8 Matthew Parker (Pennridge) and No. 9 Gage Curry (North Hills); Curry, the returning runner-up in this weight class, is undefeated on the season. Even before that quarterfinal, Parker is likely to face 2014 state medalist Luke Werner (Bethlehem Liberty) in the round of 16. Returning state medalist Jake Cherry (Central Dauphin) is the best bet for a semifinal opponent for either Parker or Curry. The lower half bracket is led by regional champions in No. 7 Julian Chlebove (Northampton) and returning state medalist Devin Schupp (Warwick); No. 14 Jakob Campbell (Boyertown) is positioned to face Schnupp in the quarterfinal round, while returning state medalist Aidan Burke (Council Rock North) could draw Chlebove in the round of 16.
120: No. 1 Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional) is undefeated for his career, and prohibitively favored to win his third state title, even with the presence of No. 4 Austin DeSanto (Exeter Township) in the weight class. DeSanto was Super 32 Challenge runner-up this fall after placing fifth at state last year, even though he took eventual state champion Devin Brown to the brink of defeat. He is featured in the champ-champ quarter of the draw with returning state medalist K.J. Fenstermacher (Bethlehem Liberty), who has wins over 2014 state runner-up Dan Moran (Northampton) the last two weeks. Their most likely semifinal opponent is returning state medalist Hunter Baxter (Pine Richland), runner-up to Lee at the WPIAL meet. Within Lee's half of the draw, Moran is the most notable challenger (in name only), and that would be a semifinal bout.
126: Three nationally ranked wrestlers feature in this weight class, and in its infinite wisdom, the PIAA bracket gods have paired two of them together in the champ-champ quarter of the draw. No. 8 Tyshawn White (Central Dauphin) and No. 14 Wade Cummings (Downington East) are the victims of the PIAA's "magic". The third champion in the top half-bracket is the very dangerous Luke Eddins (Greensburg-Salem), who has wins over returning third place medalist Ethan McCoy (Greater Latrobe) each of the last two weeks. Regional champions in the lower half bracket are Cole Manley (Altoona), last year's runner-up at 106 pounds, and No. 4 Luke Karam (Bethlehem Catholic). McCoy is in the quarter bracket with Manley, but has a tough round of 16 bout against fellow returning medalist Lucas Miller (Boyertown). In the Karam quarter of the draw, there is a round of 16 match between two-time medalist Chandler Olson (Shippensburg) and 2014 medalist Kordell Rush (Pennridge) feeding into Karam.
132: When Cummings moved down to 126 for the postseason, breathing a big sigh of relief was No. 10 Zach Trampe (Council Rock South); the returning runner-up has just one loss on the season, and that was to Cummings during the district duals. Trampe is in the champ-champ quarter of the draw with 2014 medalist Jacob Lizak (Parkland), but Lizak could have a very tough round of 16 match against returning state medalist Joe Blumer (Kiski Area). Two-time state placer Brett Kulp (Exeter Township) is the third regional champion in the top half-bracket. The third quarter of the draw is a very dangerous one, anchored by WPIAL champion Zach Hartman (Belle Vernon Area), a returning state medalist; however, he could see returning medalist Lucas Schaf (Emmaus) in the round of 16 as well as returning medalist and Super 32 placer Andrew Wert (Central Dauphin) in the quarterfinal. Favorite in a relatively tame lower quarter of the draw is 2014 state medalist Joey Gould (Bethlehem Catholic).
138: Two ranked wrestlers in this weight class, both are returning state runners-up, let's guess where the PIAA bracket gods have placed them … without saying, No. 2 Luke Pletcher (Greater Latrobe) and No. 10 Sammy Sasso (Nazareth) are in the champ-champ quarter. Instead of meeting on Saturday evening, they'll meet on Friday afternoon; Pletcher, state champion in 2013 and 2014, gave Sasso his lone loss of the season in a tight King of the Mountain finals bout. The second quarter of the draw features returning medalist Jake Hinkson (North Allegheny), who finished fourth at the WPIAL tournament for a second straight season. Returning state medalist and Super 32 placer Evan Fidelibus (Easton) is the anchor figure in the bracket's third quarter, though he was regional runner-up to Sasso last week; while 2014 state medalist Riley Palmer (Council Rock South) is the regional champion in the bottom quarter, but two-time state medalist Stephen Maloney (Bethlehem Catholic) looms in the round of 16.
145: The second top-ranked wrestler in the nation of the classification is here, Cameron Coy (Penn Trafford). State champion as a freshman, he finished second last year, but is the strong favorite to take home a second gold in this his junior season; especially with the removal over Jarod Verkleeren from the pool of competitors. Coy is in the champ-champ quarter with a familiar last name, freshman Edmund Ruth (Susquehana Township). The bottom half of the draw is anchored by regional champions in returning state medalist Brock Port (Bellefonte) and Beast of the East placer Brock Wilson (Nazareth); 2013 state medalist Dylan Chatterton (Northern York) could face Port in the round of 16.
152: Three nationally ranked wrestlers feature in this weight class, led by No. 2 Hayden Hidlay (Mifflin County), who is seeking a first state final; his first three years at state include a 1-2 performance then sixth and third place medals. Surprise, surprise -- Hidlay finds himself in the champ-champ quarter, with state tournament debutant Derek Verkleeren (Belle Vernon Area). The third regional champion in the top half of the draw is nationally ranked Travis Stefanik (Nazareth), ranked No. 17 nationally. The third quarter of the draw is anchored by No. 9 Jonathan Ross (Northern York), a regional champion, where he is joined by fellow state medalist Jimmy Saylor (Easton); these two wrestlers are likely to meet in the quarters for a second straight year, Ross knocked off Saylor 4-2 in that round last year. Returning state qualifier Dylan Schwartz (Council Rock South) is the regional champion in the bottom quarter.
160: No. 2 Kaleb Young (Punxsutawney) also seeks a first state final after placing fifth and fourth the previous two seasons. The Iowa commit and Super 32 champion finds himself in the champ-champ quarter, where state tournament debutant Josh Stillings (Pennridge) is the other regional champion; Tm Wallace (Albert Gallatin) is the regional champion in the second quarter after winning the WPIAL this past week. The other ranked wrestler in this weight is No. 18 Trent Hidlay (Mifflin County), who lost 2-1 to Young in the regional final. He is in the third quarter of the draw, likely round of 16 match against Mitch Hartman (Belle Vernon) and then quarterfinal with regional champion Cade Moisey (Northampton), both of whom are state tournament debutants. Returning state medalist Bailey Shutt (Lower Dauphin) is the likely semifinal opponent for Hidlay down low.
170: Michael Labriola (Bethlehem Catholic), ranked No. 5 nationally, is a two-time state placer and the favorite in this weight class. He finds himself in the bottom most quarter of the draw, and likely to see two-time state medalist Jake Shaffer (Greater Latrobe) in the round of 16. The quarter directly above him features No. 10 Austin Bell (Belle Vernon), runner-up in the WPIAL meet last week, along with returning state medalist Noah Stewart (Mifflin County). The third nationally ranked wrestler in this weight class is No. 9 Nino Bonaccorsi (Bethel Park), who beat Bell for a second straight week in reverse of a loss from the Powerade final. Bonaccorsi is in the second quarter of the draw and most likely to face undefeated returning state medalist Jared Siegrist (Manheim Central) in the semifinal round.
182: The lone ranked wrestler in this weight class is No. 19 Kyle Gentile (Pennridge), who finds himself in the champ-champ quarter bracket with Jake Woodley (North Allegheny); though Woodley is a state tournament debutant, he is a very talented and dangerous opponent. Their most likely semifinal opponent is Drew Peck (Chambersburg), who placed in the Super 32 Challenge this fall. The two best wrestlers of the lower half bracket are both in the bottom quarter, returning medalists Gregg Harvey (Boyertown) and Josh Colello (Cedar Cliff); Harvey finishing runner-up to Gentile at the regional level, while Colello could face returning state medalist Jayden Reyes (Dieruff) in the round of 16. The other lower half-bracket regional champion is two-time state qualifier Adam Soldridge (Bethlehem Catholic), but his likely quarterfinal is against Milton Kobaly (Belle Vernon Area), whom he lost to at state duals.
195: A pair of nationally ranked wrestlers are present in this weight class, No. 10 Drew Phipps (Norwin) and No. 14 Jakobsen (Stroudsburg). Returning state finalist Jakobsen finds himself in the champ-champ quarter of the draw. Furthermore, his likely round of 16 opponent is returning state medalist Francis Duggan (North Allegheny); the other round of 16 match in that quarter places the undefeated Jesse Kann (Penn Manor) against Cadet freestyle runner-up Ian Malesiewski (Erie Cathedral Prep). The likely semifinal opponent for that group would be returning state medalist Eli Grape (Upper St. Clair), the WPIAL runner-up who has multiple wins over Duggan this year and his only two losses are by narrow margins to Phipps. Down in the lower half, two-time state placer Phipps is undefeated this season and is looking at a likely semifinal with fellow regional champion Trey Hartsock (Mifflin County), a returning state medalist and Super 32 Challenge placer.
220: With Jordan Wood vacating this weight class, No. 9 Jacob Robb (Armstrong), last year's Class AA runner-up in this weight class, is the lone ranked wrestler present. In what has to be a rarity in the Keystone State, Robb is the only returning state placer in this weight class. However, he is in the champ-champ quarter, which means he could have to beat three regional champions on the way to the title. The regional champion in his quarter is Andrew Boob (Selinsgrove), with Trent Thomas (Pleasant Valley) in the second quarter bracket. The lower bracket regional champions are the undefeated Cameron Tinner (Shippensburg) and Gavin Caroff (Quakertown), though WPIAL runner-up and Powerade placer Michael McAleavy (Peters Township) could knock off Caroff in the quarterfinal.
285:The lone nationally ranked wrestler in this weight class is No. 17 Andrew Gunning (Bethlehem Liberty), a returning medalist and Super 32 Challenge champion this fall. He is also undefeated for the season, and is not surprisingly in the champ-champ quarter, with yet another undefeated wrestler in Josh Fye (Bald Eagle Area). The other regional champion in the top half-bracket is Blaine Yinger (Northeastern), though it is likely that either returning state medalist Bruce Graeber (Neshaminy) or Isaac Reid (Kiski Area) will clear to the semifinal round. The lower half is anchored by returning state medalist Tommy Killoran (Boyertown), who beat Graeber in the regional final; while the other quarter of said half includes WPIAL champion Hayden Rice (Norwin) and Niko Camacho (Bethlehem Catholic).
Link: Brackets
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