No. 1 Wyoming Seminary (Pa.) at No. 2 Blair Academy (N.J.)
Any time one sees No. 1 facing No. 2 in any sporting event, regardless of what ranking level, it elevates the cache of the event. This one being no exception, as the two east coast prep schools have grown to establish a wrestling rivalry in recent years, especially since Wyoming Seminary has knocked off Blair Academy on a couple of occasions; the 2014 National Prep Championships and last year's dual meet.
The match this Saturday could turn on any number of strategic maneuverings in addition to the actual wrestling that occurs on the Blair Academy home mat. Below is a projected set of matchups based on weight classes in which the wrestlers have competed this season.
106: Justin Hoyle (Wyoming Seminary) vs. No. 15 Michael Colaiocco (Blair Academy)
113: Benny Baker vs. No. 16 Chris Cannon
120: Jack Davis vs. Zach Sherman
126: Jake Riegel vs. Josh Gobencion/Mike Madara
132: Trent Olson vs. No. 9 Requir van der Merwe
138: Patrick Munn/Andrew Munn vs. Shane Brackup
145: Jake Hendricks vs. Andrew Merola
152: No. 1 Mason Manville vs. John Manning/Max Pickett
160: Will Verallis vs. No. 14 Ryan Karoly
170: Michael Doggett vs. No. 4 Brandon Dallavia
182: No. 1 Nick Reenan vs. Jimmy Stillerman
195: No. 12 Christian Dietrich vs. No. 3 Chase Singletary
220: No. 14 Will Hilliard vs. Nick Mosco
285: TBD vs. Neil Putnam
Based on the "base" lineups, Blair Academy has the edge in seven matches (106, 113, 132, 160, 170, 195, and 285), Wyoming Seminary the edge in five (126, 138, 152, 182, and 220), while there are two tossups (120 and 145). However, Wyoming Seminary could easily flip three of those Blair advantages (132, 160, and 195) into wins of their own with what would be upsets; while based on personnel on the mat, only possibly the 220 match could be flipped by Blair Academy.
In addition, based on strategy, Wyoming Seminary can hold on to the 182 pound match and turn the 195 pound match into one they are favorites; Nick Reenan could end up going 195, while Deitrich competes at 182, Reenan having beaten Singletary on multiple occasions last year. Another strategic gambit could come at 152/160, with Manville and Verallis switching weight classes to create yet another Wyoming Seminary win.
The most likely scenario in this dual meet is a Wyoming Seminary win, and that would make the national ranking landscape much easier. On the other hand, a Blair Academy upset creates a mucked up picture at the top of the national rankings.
Chicago Catholic League returns to wrestling prominence
Seeing the Chicago Catholic League (CCL) calendar in such a prominent position on the wrestling calendar, one must think it is a decade gone by. However, the injection of No. 19 Marmion Academy (Ill.) and No. 40 Montini Catholic (Ill.) into the league, along with the re-emergence of No. 14 Mt. Carmel (Ill.) as a national power, has created the present landscape.
Saturday's tournament is being held at the De La Salle Institute. The following wrestlers are ranked in the top 12 by Illinois Matmen within their classification at their weight class.
106: No. 14 Joey Melendez (Montini Catholic), No. 19 Sean McKenna (Marmion Academy), Hassan Johnson (Brother Rice), Jacob Lindsey (Providence Catholic)
113: No. 2 Real Woods (Montini Catholic), Joey Eagan (Mt. Carmel)
120: Caleb Guzior (Mt. Carmel)
126: Jimmy Pawelski (Montini Catholic), Yahya Thomas (Mt. Carmel)
132: No. 7 Dylan Duncan (Montini Catholic), Anthony Cheloni (Marmion Academy), Jacob Silzer (St. Rita), Kendall Coleman (Mt. Carmel), Mason Sauseda (Bishop McNamara)
138: No. 19 Will Lewan (Montini Catholic), A.J. Jaffe (Marmion Academy), Jack Mulay (Mt. Carmel)
145: No. 3 Austin O'Connor (St. Rita), Dillon Hoey (Mt. Carmel), Caleb Fortuna (Montini Catholic)
152: No. 13 Jake Tucker (Mt. Carmel), Michael Callahan (Marmion Academy), Cole Smith (Providence Catholic)
160: No. 18 Trace Carello (Marmion Academy), Cameron Lopez (Mt. Carmel)
170: David Riojas (Mt. Carmel), Nate Jimenez (Marmion Academy)
182: No. 7 Nathan Traxler (Marmion Academy), No. 13 Kyle Betourne (Bishop McNamara), Johnny Drozd (Mt. Carmel)
195: Dru Worker (Mt. Carmel)
220: Leo Ortiz (Mt. Carmel)
285: Solomon Smith (De La Salle), Matthew Reyes (Mt. Carmel)
Top of the Rockies Invitational
Close to 30 teams from five different states will convene in the Boulder (Colo.) area this Friday and Saturday to form a solid field that includes two nationally ranked teams (No. 31 Pueblo County and No. 44 Pomona) and a plethora of nationally ranked wrestlers. Below is a listing of notable wrestlers in the field this coming weekend.
106: Mosha Schwartz (Pomona), Nathan Bonham (Pueblo County), Colton Yapoujian (Pomona), Andrew Lucero (Pueblo East)
113: Josiah Nava (Pueblo County), Jose Pacheco (Pomona), Hunter Matney (Ponderosa)
120: Tomas Gutierrez (Pomona), Job Greenwood (Poudre), Cody Fatzinger (Arvada West), Jody Sandoval (Fort Lupton), Christian Ordaz (Franklin, Texas)
126: Theorius Robison (Pomona), Grant Willits (Pueblo County), Orion Gutierrez (Rio Rancho, N.M.)
132: Justin Davis (Pueblo County), Dayton Marvel (Pomona)
138: No. 11 Chris Sandoval (Pueblo County), No. 17 Ryan Deakin (Legacy), Jacob Greenwood (Poudre), Ryan Rochford (Rio Rancho, N.M.), Nate Parris (Cheyenne Central, Wyo.), Ben Rodriguez (Scottsbluff, Neb.)
145: Hunter Willits (Pueblo County)
152: Jason Romero (Pomona), Matt Finesilver (Cherry Creek)
160: No. 19 Parker Simington (Thompson Valley)
170: Dalton Robertson (Weld Central)
182: Mike Berg (Thompson Valley)
220: No. 7 Cohlton Schultz (Ponderosa), Alex Mai (Fort Morgan)
285: No. 17 Toby McBride (Fort Morgan), Jacob Robles (Pueblo East)
Ed Winger Invitational
Traditionally viewed as the top individual bracket tournament of the regular season in Iowa, this weekend's Ed Winger Invitational hosted by Urbandale is no exception. Four of the top six teams in Iowa's big-school division (Class 3A) as per The Predicament are in the 21 school field: No. 30 Southeast Polk, No. 32 West Des Moines Valley, Bettendorf, and Waukee. As are eight of the individuals ranked atop their weight class in the big-school division.
Below is a listing of individuals appearing in the latest classification rankings (top ten) from The Predicament that are slated to be in the tournament field this Saturday.
106: No. 9 Kyle Biscoglia/Cade Devos (Waukee), Nick Oldham (WDM Moines Valley), Kobey Pritchard (Indianola), Riley Thomas (North Scott)
113: Biscoglia/Devos (Waukee), McGwire Midkiff (Council Bluffs Jefferson), Gauge Perrien (Southeast Polk), Spencer Hutchinson (WDM Valley), Jacob Schipper (North Scott), Lance Runyon (Indianola), Max Tracy (Dallas Center-Grimes)
120: No. 9 Jack Wagner (Bettendorf), Jakob Allison (Waukee), Zach Price (Johnston), Adam Brown (Southeast Polk), Harlan Steffensemier (Fort Madison)
126: Nathan Lendt (Southeast Polk), Grant Stotts (WDM Valley), Jacob Watters (Cedar Falls)
132: Zach Barnes (Southeast Polk), Zane Mulder (Dallas Center-Grimes), Joe Howard (Indianola), Ethan Ksiazek (Johnston)
138: Jackson Gallagher (Bettendorf), Nelson Brands (Iowa City West), Cody Batterson (Southeast Polk), Anthony Zach (Waukee), Nick Graham (Johnston)
145: Michael Zachary (Dowling Catholic), Joel Shapiro (WDM Valley), Alex Ksiazek (Johnston)
152: No. 6 Colton Clingenpeel (Council Bluffs Jefferson), Matt Malcolm (Glenwood)
160: Jack Koethe (WDM Valley), Zach Johnston (ADM Adel), Carter Rohweder (Iowa City West), Austin Garcia (Johnston)
170: No. 19 Marcus Coleman (Ames), Anthony Sherry (Glenwood), Spencer Sherwood (Burlington), Austin Stotts (WDM Valley), Cody Wonderlich (Southeast Polk)
182: Kaden Sauer (Dowling Catholic), Ben Wilson (Johnston), Kameron Padavich (Southeast Polk), Cole Bennett (ADM Adel)
195: Donovan Doyle (Iowa City West), Jacob Zachary (Dowling Catholic), Logan Buck (Dallas Center-Grimes), Zach Haggstrom (Glenwood)
220: No. 5 Ethan Andersen (Southeast Polk), Rocky Lombardi (WDM Valley), Wyatt Wriedt (North Scott), Harrison Townsend (Ames), Hunter Gibson (ADM Adel)
285: Max Erpelding (Bettendorf), Daniel Ramirez (Southeast Polk), Korbin Caves (North Scott), Trenton Wellendorf (Fort Madison), Nathan Heath (ADM Adel), Caleb Sanders (Glenwood)
Quick hits
Two other events this week feature multiple Fab 50 teams. On Thursday night, there is going to be a dual meet between No. 26 Kasson-Mantorville (Minn.) and No. 42 Kenyon-Wanamingo (Minn.) as part of a tri-meet at Kenyon-Wanamingo. Then on Saturday, No. 7 St. Edward (Ohio) will host a quad meet that also features No. 24 Delta (Ohio) and Lowell (Mich.), all teams will compete against one another.
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