Don Bosco Prep wins Virginia Duals, but has multiple tests this week
Coming into the past weekend with some uneven performances in the first four weeks of their season, Don Bosco Prep, N.J. traveled to the Virginia Duals looking to establish order. Last year's state runner-up at 106 pounds as a freshman, Kyle Bierdumpfel returned to the mats for the Ironmen. Even though not at an optimal weight class, his presence at 126/132 pounds is still an asset.
In the semifinals, Don Bosco Prep upended fellow Fab 50 member McDonogh, Md., by a 47-18 score, as they won nine of the fourteen weight classes; while in the final, they upended another Fab 50 squad -- Nazareth, Pa., 32-20, winning nine matches yet again. Those performances moved the Ironmen up fourteen spots in the Fab 50 to No. 23 nationally.
However, there is no time for Don Bosco Prep to rest of their laurels, as they have major competition in a home quadrangular meet on Saturday afternoon. They will host No. 25 Bound Brook, defending Group 4 (big-school public) state champions Brick Memorial, and Newark Academy. Then, on Monday, they travel to No. 21 St. Peter's Prep for a dual meet. Here are the projected lineups for Don Bosco Prep, Bound Brook, and St. Peter's Prep.
106: Evan Deluise (DBP), Anthony Lopez (BB), Alec Kelly (SPP)
113: Avery Shay (DBP), Gonzalo Limenza (BB), Nicholas Santos (SPP)
120: Luis Gonzalez (DBP), Stephen Glasgow (BB), Michael Russo (SPP)
126: Kyle Bierdumpfel/Sam Cali (DBP), Craig De La Cruz (BB), Isaiah McGowan (SPP)
132: Bierdumpfel/Cali/Andrew Roszenweig (DBP), Mekhi Lewis (BB), Sonny Simonetti (SPP)
138: Roszenweig/Bruno Gerardi (DBP), Nicholas Accetta (BB), Connor Burkert (SPP)
145: Joe Napolitano (DBP), Sean Glasgow (BB), Ryan Burkert (SPP)
152: Ryan Forero (DBP), Andrew Gombas (BB), Manny Ramirez (SPP)
160: Jeremy Soto (DBP), Josh Ugalde (BB), Stephen Kellner (SPP)
170: No. 18 Luke Farinaro/Jeff Lombardi (DBP), Isaiah Soto (BB), Luke Leonard(SPP)
182: Farinaro/Lombardi (DBP), Abraham Saavedra (BB), Danny Sblendorio (SPP)
195: Eric Chakonis (DBP), Ronald Picado (BB), Christian Colucci (SPP)
220: No. 16 Zack Chakonis (DBP), Aaron Saavedra (BB), Jordan Fox (SPP)
285: Kevin Feder (DBP), Mike Johnson (BB), Armond Cox (SPP)
Runner-up Nazareth did not have the best of weeks, as they lost ten bouts in a 40-17 defeat against fellow Fab 50 member Bethlehem Catholic, Pa this past Wednesday. The Blue Eagles were without state alternate Sage Karam at 145, but that still doesn't rationalize the defeats. As a result, Nazareth drops five spots to No. 19 in the Fab 50, while Bethlehem Catholic jumps seven spots to No. 17.
Additionally, McDonogh compounded their semifinal loss to Don Bosco Prep by getting blown out in their next dual meet against St. Anthony's, N.Y. The Eagles only won five weight classes in a 44-26 loss. Even with multiple wrestlers up in weight classes, it was still baffling. As a result, McDonogh drops seventeen spots to No. 32 in the nation. Their performance in particular at the Beast of the East keeps them as a nationally ranked team.
St. Edward to dual Fab 50 team for third straight weekend
Perennial Ohio power St. Edward continues its rigorous January schedule this Saturday with a home dual meet against No. 5 St. Paris Graham at 2 p.m. For the third of four straight Saturdays, the Eagles will compete in a dual meet against a fellow Fab 50 squad. This past weekend, they upended No. 30 Marmion Academy, Ill., 36-27.
Despite losing the dual meet, the visiting Cadets won seven of the nine contested bouts, but had to forfeit at 145, 160, and the last three bouts of the dual meet (220, 285, and 106). Two weekends ago, Marmion Academy had wrestlers compete at 145 and 160 pounds, and both placed at the Dvorak Memorial Tournament. Also of note is that St. Edward won the two most contested matches of the meet: at 113 pounds, No. 11 L.J. Bentley upended No. 15 Anthony Bosco 3-0, while Gabe Dzuro defeated Nathan Traxler 7-6 at 182. The residual of this is that St. Edward drops five spots to No. 26 nationally.
The following are projected lineups for Saturday's dual meet between St. Paris Graham, who is after their 14th consecutive Division II state title; and St. Edward, who has won 16 of the last 17 titles in Division I (big-school).
106: Justin Stickley/Tanner Smith (G) vs. Allan Hart (SE)
113: No. 16 Eli Stickley (G) vs. No. 11 L.J. Bentley (SE)
120: Mario Kastl (G) vs. Mason Daugherty (SE)
126: No. 14 Eli Seipel (G) vs. Isaac Collier (SE)
132: Brent Moore (G) vs. Hunter Ladnier (SE)
138: Kyle Lawson (G) vs. Jack Conway/Joey Ciacchi (SE)
145: No. 1 Micah Jordan (G) vs. Ray Barr (SE)
152: Garrett Jordan (G) vs. D.J. Williamson (SE)
160: No. 7 Alex Marinelli (G) vs. Adam Wukie (SE)
170: Lane Thomas (G) vs. Kevin Khoma (SE)
182: Hayden Bronne (G) vs. Gabe Dzuro (SE)
195: Josh Couchman/Kanan Sarver (G) vs. Mike O'Malley (SE)
220: Brandon Hays (G) vs. Parker Knapp (SE)
285: Dylan Nave (G) vs. Ralph Nichols (SE)
Wyoming Seminary gives No. 1 Blair Academy a scare, face Bergen Catholic next
In the championship match of the NHSCA Final Four Festival of Wrestling, Wyoming Seminary competed against No. 1 Blair Academy, N.J. After the match was done the Blue Knights let the nation know that a disappointing Walsh Jesuit Ironman was far, far back in the rear view mirror. They won seven of the fourteen weight classes in the dual meet, but lost 27-24.
Tossup matches started going in favor of Wyoming Seminary with a second match 5-4 victory from Tyler Ponte against National Prep runner-up Walker Dempsey at 145 pounds. However, Blair Academy was quick to respond with a 7-1 victory in a potential swing bout at 152 pounds, as No. 8 Mason Manville defeated No. 10 Nick Reenan.
No. 20 Chris Weiler capitalized on the hole left in Blair Academy's lineup at 160 pounds due to the absence of No. 3 Dylan Milonas, as he earned a fall in 3:20 over Jimmy Stillerman to tie the dual meet at 9-9. The teams would trade decisions in four straight bouts -- No. 16 Brandon Dallavia (170) and David Showunmi (195) winning for the Buccaneers, while the Blue Knights got victories from Greg Kleinsmith (182) and Matthew Doggett (220). Two further consecutive decision victories from Jake Scanlan (285) and John Busiello (106) would give Wyoming Seminary a 21-15 heading to a crucial turn in the dual meet.
For the second straight week Requin van der Merwe came up with an important victory for Blair Academy, this time earning a 7-2 victory over Trent Olson at 113 pounds. An 11-3 major decision from No. 17 Chaz Tucker would give Blair Academy a 22-21 lead, one they would keep as the teams split the last two bouts of the meet; No. 5 Matthew Kolodzik earned a technical fall for Blair at 126, while Will Verallis of Wyoming Seminary upended Alex Rinaldi 2-0 in a battle of returning National Prep placers at 132 pounds.
The rest of giving Blair Academy a close call is that Wyoming Seminary moves up one spot in the national rankings to No. 6, as they swap spots with now No. 7 Bergen Catholic, N.J. The Blue Knights and the Crusaders will compete in a 5 p.m. dual meet on Friday night at the University of Pennsylvania. Here are the projected lineups for that match.
106: John Busiello (WS) vs. Evan Quinn (BC)
113: Trent Olson (WS) vs. No. 2 Nick Suriano (BC)
120: Jimmy Overheiser (WS) vs. Tyler Casamenti (BC)
126: Aaron Kliamovich (WS) vs. Peter Lipari (BC)
132: Will Verallis (WS) vs. J.P. Ascolese (BC)
138: Danny Boychuck (WS) vs. Lauren Anghelina (BC)
145: Tyler Ponte (WS) vs. Zack Spira (BC)
152: No. 10 Nick Reenan (WS) vs. Joe Grello (BC)
160: No. 20 Chris Weiler (WS) vs. Jordan Pagano (BC)
170: Ryan McMullan (WS) vs. Kevin Mulligan (BC)
182: Greg Kleinsmith (WS) vs. No. 2 Johnny Sebastian (BC)
195: Mike Rogers (WS) vs. Conner O'Brien/Danny DeLorenzi (BC)
220: Matthew Doggett (WS) vs. Christian Jenco (BC)
285: Jake Scanlan (WS) vs. Joe Caggiano (BC)
Bergen Catholic impressive at Garden State Duals
The one spot drop in the Fab 50 for Bergen Catholic, N.J., comes despite their impressive showing at the inaugural Garden State Duals held on the campus of Rutgers University this past Saturday. The Crusaders dominated their three matches in preliminary competition, as they went 31-9 in terms of bouts during victories over Shawnee (45-21), Passaic Valley (54-9), and Holy Cross (55-18).
On the other hand, it was a bit more trying for their championship match opponent, No. 21 St. Peter's Prep, N.J. The Marauders won ten bouts each in victories over River Dell (47-21) and New Milford (48-18), but split the fourteen weight classes in a 32-29 victory over Delbarton, needing a technical fall from Christian Colucci (195) and a pin from Jordan Fox (220) in the last two bouts to win the meet.
The championship match started with the Crusaders' ace in the hole Nick Suriano batting leadoff, and the nation's No. 2 113 pound wrestler earned an 18-6 major decision over freshman Nicholas Santos. State placer Michael Russo would respond for St. Peter's Prep with a 5-3 decision over Tyler Casamenti at 120, before a pair of wins from Peter Lipari (126) and J.P. Ascolese (132) extended the lead out to 13-3. State placer Connor Burkert (138) was able to cut into the lead with a 6-3 decision victory.
However, five consecutive victories for the Crusaders -- all but one coming with bonus points -- sucked the life out of the dual meet. Notable among those wins was the 5-1 victory at 152 pounds for Joe Grello against returning state placer Ryan Burkert, though Burkert was up one weight class from normal. An 8-0 major decision for No. 2 in the nation Johnny Sebastian at 182 concluded the barrage.
St. Peter's Prep would close the dual meet with four consecutive victories, including a last match forfeit at 106 pounds to make the score respectable at 34-21 in favor of the Crusaders.
Sooner State journey for supremacy
The Geary Invitational, which is the nation's oldest high school tournament, celebrated its 70th edition this past weekend. It was a show fitting of the occasion, as the two highest ranked teams in Oklahoma waged a tight battle all the way to the end. No. 13 Broken Arrow won the tournament with 149.5 points despite having only two champions -- No. 12 Markus Simmons (120) and No. 16 Davion Jeffries (126) -- because of their tournament-high ten placers, including eight inside the top three.
Three additional wrestlers for the champion Tigers placed second and third respectively. Runner-up finishes were earned by Shea Conley (138), Tanner Bailey (145), and Paden Bailey (152). For the formerly ranked Tanner Bailey, he was upset 3-1 by Will Steltzen of Collinsville in the final. Third place finishes were earned by Damon Hail (113), Zack Edwards (132), and Isaiah Page (170).
Finishing razor close in second place was No. 11 Edmond North with 147.5 points, despite missing returning state placer Cy Trindle (120). The Huskies were led by five weight class champions: No. 13 Paxton Rosen (106), No. 10 Joel Dixon (182), No. 5 Derek White (195), No. 13 at 170 Lance Dixon (220), and No. 11 at 220 Andrew Dixon (285). White was also named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler, while Andrew Dixon earned most falls in the least time. Zach Walton (160) finished in second place, while only two other wrestlers earned placement honors.
Finishing in third and fourth place were Tuttle (111.5) and Collinsville (108.5). Despite having only Dakota Head (152) win a weight class title, No. 31 Tuttle had the tournament's second-most placers, as nine earned a podium finish. Of note was a runner-up finish by Riley Fielder (220) and third place finishes from Noah McQuigg (106), Beau Guffey (120), and Blake Dauphin (126). The fourth place finish, led by weight class titles from No. 9 Gary Wayne Harding (138) and Will Steltzen (145), was enough to propel the Cardinals back into the Fab 50 at No. 47 nationally. Three additional wrestlers earned runner-up honors, Nate Keim (106), No. 10 Christian Moody (113), and Roc Robbins (182).
Rounding out the weight class champions were Montorie Bridges (Altus) at 113 pounds; Cub Yeager (Locust Grove), who upset previously ranked Jacob Rubio (Canyon Randall, Texas) 2-0 in the final at 132 pounds; Levi Berry (Norman North) at 160; and Drake Pilgrim (Tascosa, Texas).
This coming weekend will be the Sand Springs Tournament, where Broken Arrow and Edmond North will be joined by No. 14 Stillwater. Those three teams will be in the same event, something that will also happen a couple times in February, as the teams contest for both the dual meet and individual state titles in Class 6A (big-school).
Quick hitters from the past weekend
No. 35 Clovis West, Calif. won the Eastern States Tournament in New York State this past weekend with 129 points, which was 30-plus points more than their closest challengers, Springfield Central (Mass.) and Hauppauge (N.Y.). The Golden Eagles had five placers -- which were led by a second place finish from No. 17 Michael Knoblauch (126), as well as third place finishes from Chris Garcia (145) and Cortes Morales (220). Seven nationally ranked wrestlers won weight class titles: No. 13 Vitali Arujau (Syosset) at 113 pounds, No. 5 Nick Piccinnini (Ward Mellville) at 120, No. 15 Travis Passaro (Eastport-South Manor) at 126, No. 14 Burke Paddock (Warsaw) at 170, No. 13 Christian Dietrich (Greene) at 182, No. 11 Levi Ashley (Shenendehowa) at 195, and No. 15 Richard Sisti (Monsignor Farrell) at 220. Of note is the tournament from Passaro, who was previously unranked, but jumps into the rankings are wins over two nationally ranked wrestlers.
No. 9 Franklin Regional, Pa., was a dominant host of the 17-team Westmoreland County Coaches Association Tournament this past weekend, as six Panthers won weight class titles while six others finished inside the top four as well. Winning weight class titles were No. 3 Devin Brown (106), No. 1 Spencer Lee (113), No. 2 Tyler Smith (132), No. 2 Michael Kemerer (138), Josh Maruca (145), and No. 11 Josh Shields (152). Lee upended National Prep runner-up Ethan McCoy (Greater Latrobe) 9-5 and Smith beat No. 3 Sam Krivus (Hempfield Area) 3-2 in rematches of finals from the POWERade Christmas Wrestling Tournament. The Panthers amassed 290.5 points, more than 100 points ahead of Kiski Area (187) and No. 42 Greater Latrobe (186.5). Deterring Greater Latrobe from more points was the need for No. 19 Dom Scalise (160) to default from the tournament down to a sixth place finish after making the semifinals. That squad had No. 1 Luke Pletcher (120) and No. 5 Zack Zavatsky (182) win weight class titles, with Pletcher's coming by a 4-2 score over No. 8 George Phillippi (Derry Area) in a rematch of the Super 32 Challenge final.
In a battle of the top two teams in the state of Iowa, Bettendorf beat Southeast Polk 37-27 on Sunday morning before Iowa State's dual meet against Oklahoma at Hilton Coliseum. The Bulldogs won eight of fourteen weight classes, and move ahead of the Rams in the national rankings. Bettendorf moves up five spots to No. 22, while Southeast Polk drops two spots to No. 27 in the country.
Bettendorf will be one of three nationally ranked teams attending the Geneseo Bi-State this coming Friday and Saturday in Illinois. Joining the Bulldogs in attendance will be fellow Iowa squads, No. 38 Waverly-Shell Rock and No. 48 Cedar Rapids Prairie.
A recap of the Detroit Catholic Central Super Duals, which featured six Fab 50 teams in the field and nine dual meets directly involving both of those teams, was published on InterMat Sunday morning. Oak Park River Forest, Ill. remains No. 3 nationally after sweeping four Fab 50 opponents; Detroit Catholic Central, Mich. moves up two spots to No. 18 after going 3-1, including two wins over Fab 50 squads; Montini Catholic, Ill. dropped nine spots to No. 20 after going 1-3 against a quartet of Fab 50 teams; Brecksville, Ohio dropped one position to No. 24 after splitting four dual meets; Davison, Mich. dropped two spots to No. 28 after splitting four dual meets; St. Johns, Mich. moved up one position to No. 37 despite losing to a pair of Fab 50 teams (both were ranked higher) on Saturday.
Also on tap for the weekend ahead
The Top Gun Wrestling Tournament will be held in Alliance, Ohio on Friday and Saturday. There is a trio of Fab 50 teams in the field: No. 4 Clovis (Calif.), No. 8 Massillon Perry, and No. 29 Claymont. A separate preview for that event will be posted on Thursday.
No. 1 Blair Academy, N.J. travels to the Escape the Rock Tournament this Saturday and Sunday at Council Rock South, which is located outside of Philadelphia, Pa. Two additional Fab 50 squads join the Buccaneers in the field, No. 17 Bethlehem Catholic, Pa. and No. 36 Robinson, Va. Also in the field is defending tournament champions Parkland, Pa. From an individual standpoint, it is an extremely strong field anchored by No. 1 Joey McKenna (Blair Academy, N.J.) at 138, No. 2 Thomas Haines (Solanco, Pa.) at 285, and No. 3 Zeke Moisey (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) at 126.
Both No. 20 Montini Catholic, Ill., and No. 30 Marmion Academy, Ill., will seek to bounce back from short-comings of the past weekend in a triangular meet on Saturday at Marmion Academy. The teams will dual meet each other and Westerville North, Ohio. It will be interesting to see what type of lineup each can muster.
Two major showcase tournaments in the Golden State are this coming weekend, the Clinch Gear Battle of the Belt at Temecula Valley and the Five Counties Invitational hosted by Fountain Valley.
A pair of Fab 50 squads, No. 39 Pleasant Grove (Utah) and No. 45 Centennial (Idaho) will be at the Rocky Mountain Rumble this weekend in Orem, Utah. Defending champions Maple Mountain (Utah) will also be in attendance.
The nation's biggest showcase of below high school wrestling is also this weekend, the 2014 Tulsa Nationals kick off on Thursday and end on Saturday. Results will be available via Track Wrestling.
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