Dvorak = Alber's playground
For a second consecutive year, the Dvorak Invitational (held in Machesney Park, Ill.) turned into a show ground for Josh Alber from Dakota. Last year, Alber kept alive his undefeated career with a 3-2 victory over Johnny Jimenez (Marmion Academy) in the 120-pound finals showdown between (at the time) two-time state champion juniors. This year, Alber is up at 132 pounds, and was facing a showdown with a fellow three-time state champion Jered Cortez (Glenbard North). Alber got the 5-3 overtime decision over Cortez to keep the undefeated career alive, the wrestlers respectively are now No. 4 and No. 5 in the nation at 132 pounds.
In terms of the team race, Marist (207.5 points) came up with a somewhat unexpected championship, with Montini Catholic (186.5) in second, followed by Marmion Academy (186). Led by a joint tournament high ten placers, all but one of them inside the top four, the RedHawks move up five spots to No. 13 nationally after their title at the Dvorak. Anchoring the performance were weight class titles won by Nick Lukanich (113), who upset No. 15 Anthony Bosco (Marmion Academy) 4-2 in the final, and Alex Benoit (182).
Runner-up Montini Catholic drops five spots to No. 11 nationally, but they did impress with seven top three placement finishes; however, the Broncos were only able to have one other wrestler earn a spot on the placement podium. Leading the way were weight class titles won by No. 20 Chris Garcia (145), No. 12 Xavier Montalvo (160), and No. 9 Michael Johnson, Jr. (285).
Third place Marmion Academy moved up five spots in the Fab 50 to No. 25 nationally, as they matched Marist in terms of having 10 placement finishes; however, only No. 15 Johnny Jimenez (126) won a weight class title. Additionally, the Cadets only had four other finishes within the top three, two each runner-up and third place.
Additional nationally ranked wrestlers to win weight classes at the Dvorak were No. 9 Austin O'Connor (St. Rita) at 106 pounds, No. 20 Stephen Polakowski (Libertyville), No. 19 Nicholas Gil (Crystal Lake South) at 138, No. 2 Bryce Brill (Mt. Carmel) at 152, and No. 12 Tyler Johnson (Lockport).
Link: Brackets/Results
Golden State Showcase this weekend at Clovis
This weekend's Doc Buchanan Invitational at Clovis H.S. near Fresno, Calif. serves as a de facto state tournament right at the midpoint of the regular season. Virtually every one who is anything in the state of California will be in the field, as well as some formidable wrestlers from other west coast states. Four nationally ranked teams -- No. 4 Clovis, No. 33 Poway, No. 36 Clovis West, and No. 45 Buchanan -- along with seventeen nationally ranked wrestlers are expected to compete this weekend.
Wrestling starts on Friday at 9 a.m. PT (noon ET), with the quarterfinals during that evening. The tournament resumes on Saturday also at 9 a.m. Pacific, semifinals about an hour later, and then the championship match in each weight will take place at 5 p.m. Pacific (8 p.m. ET) on one mat.
A pair of national number one's will be in the tournament, Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco) at 132 pounds and Nick Nevills (Clovis) at 285. Aaron Pico, ranked first at 152 pounds, is not expected to be competing in scholastic competition until very late January or early February. Valencia will face a stern test in this event with two other nationally ranked wrestlers, No. 9 Isaiah Locsin (Gilroy) and No. 10 Emilio Saavedra (Modesto), expected to be in his weight class.
Eight other weight classes will feature at least one nationally ranked wrestler. They are as follows:
106: No. 12 Justin Mejia (Clovis)
113: No. 18 Adrian Camposano (Central), No. 19 Joey Cisneros (Redwood)
120: Israel Saavedra (Modesto)
126: No. 9 Mason Pengilly (Porterville), No. 12 Johnny Parada (San Fernando), No. 13 Michael Knoblauch (Clovis West)
145: No. 9 Nikko Villarreal (Gilroy), No. 18 Ralphy Tovar (Poway)
152: No. 15 Paul Fox (Gilroy)
170: No. 2 Anthony Valencia (St. John Bosco)
182: No. 6 Corey Griego (Sultana), No. 9 Nick Fiegener (Folsom)
Franklin Regional's Super Six comes up strong at POWERade
With the transfer eligibility saga of Devin Brown (106) finally settled, and Tyler Smith (132) down to his weight class, all six pieces of the core for Franklin Regional were present and in place for the 2013 edition of the POWERade Christmas Wrestling Tournament held just south of Pittsburgh, Pa. Five of those Panthers wrestlers won weight class titles, while a sixth finished as runner-up. Only one additional wrestler, Brandon Yant in fifth at 160 pounds, was on the podium, but it was more than enough -- No. 9 Franklin Regional won the POWERade title with 236.5 points.
Panthers to win weight class titles included No. 4 Devin Brown (106), No. 1 Spencer Lee (113), No. 2 Tyler Smith (132), No. 3 Michael Kemerer (138), and No. 11 Josh Shields (152); while two-time state placer Josh Maruca (145) was runner-up, losing 13-7 to No. 2 Jason Nolf (Kittaning) in the final. Highlighted among those championships was the dominance of Lee, who had four pins (three in the first period) and a 14-4 major decision over last year's National Prep runner-up Ethan McCoy (Greater Latrobe) in the final; as well as the 7-0 decision victory for Smith over fellow state champion Sam Krivus (Hempfield Area), who was ranked No. 2 in the nation last week at this weight class.
Finishing as runners-up in the event was No. 44 Greater Latrobe, with 207 points, which was led by three weight class champions: newly minted No. 1 Luke Pletcher (120), No. 17 Dom Scalise (160), and No. 5 Zack Zavatsky (182). Those performances were augmented by a runner-up finish from Ethan McCoy (113), a pair of fourth place finishes from Jake Shaffer (152) and Dylan Davis (220), and a seventh place finish from Ethan Smith (145). Most impressive was the tournament for Pletcher, whose 3-2 victories over No. 3 Sean Russell (Collins Hill, Ga.) and No. 4 Ethan Lizak (Parkland) in the semifinal and final were his second over each foe in ten weeks.
Additional nationally ranked wrestlers to win weight class titles were Dalton Macri (Canon-McMillan), who moves up five spots to No. 5 after an 8-6 upset victory over No. 3 Ryan Millhof (Collins Hill, Ga.) in the 126-pound final; No. 2 Jason Nolf (Kittaning) at 145; No. 1 Chance Marsteller (Kennard Dale) at 170, who became a four-time champion in this event; No. 3 Chip Ness (Buford, Ga.) at 195; and No. 2 Thomas Haines (Solanco).
Link: Brackets/Results
Blair Academy dual meet journey
This past Saturday, No. 1 Blair Academy, N.J. opened its dual meet schedule as it hosted No. 19 St. Peter's Prep, N.J. The Buccaneers came away with wins in 10 of 14 weight classes for a 43-13 victory. St. Peter's Prep earned a victory in the opening match of the dual, as Alec Kelly upended Zach Sherman 5-2 at 106 pounds. However, it was counted by five successive Blair Academy victories, before Ryan Burkert came up with a 3-1 decision over National Prep runner-up Walker Dempsey at 145 pounds.
Four further consecutive Buccaneers victories made the dual meet score 37-6. The last three matches involved St. Peter's Prep wrestlers bumped up one weight class each. State qualifier Christian Colucci earned a 5-1 victory over National Prep placer David Showunmi at 195 pounds; before Blair Academy's Neil Putnam countered with a fall in overtime against state placer Jordan Fox at 220; and the dual meet ended with a 13-4 major decision in favor of St. Peter's Prep wrestler Armond Cox, a state qualifier last year, over Will Cooley.
Link: Brackets/Results
This weekend, the Buccaneers will travel to Ohio for a pair of dual meets on Friday night and then a single dual meet on Saturday night. On Friday, they travel to Stark County in Ohio for a 5 p.m. triangular meet at Massillon Perry. The host Panthers, ranked No. 8 nationally will take on Federal League rival Massillon Jackson; then at 6, the Polar Bears will wrestle Blair; and finally at 7, it will be No. 1 Blair Academy against No. 8 Massillon Perry.
For Saturday, Blair Academy will travel a few hours southwest, where they will take on No. 5 St. Paris Graham, Ohio in a dual meet slated to start at 7 p.m. The following represents projected lineups for Blair Academy, Massillon Perry, and St. Paris Graham.
106: Zach Sherman (B), Tanner Smith/Justin Stickley (G), Thomas Genetin (MP)
113: Requin van der Merwe (B), No. 7 Eli Stickley (G), Evan Snow (MJ), No. 3 Jose Rodriguez/Zac McCauley (MP)
120: No. 17 Chaz Tucker (B), Mario Kastl (G), Jake Newhouse (MP)
126: No. 4 Matthew Kolodzik (B), No. 18 Eli Seipel (G), David Bavery (MP)
132: Jordan Kutler (B), Brent Moore/Nate Henkle (G), Jason Spencer (MP)
138: No. 1 Joey McKenna (B), Kyle Lawson (G), Nick Steed (MP)
145: Walker Dempsey (B), No. 1 Micah Jordan (G), Austin Phillips (MP)
152: No. 8 Mason Manville (B), Garrett Jordan (G), No. 14 Casey Sparkman (MP)
160: No. 2 Dylan Milonas (B), No. 6 Alex Marinelli (G), No. 11 Tony Dailey (MP)
170: No. 18 Brandon Dallavia (B), Lane Thomas (G), Isaac Bast (MP)
182: Nicholas DiNapoli (B), Hayden Bronne (G), Brady Durieux (MP)
195: David Showunmi (B), Josh Couchman (G), Chris Ruby (MP)
220: Neil Putnam (B), Brandon Hayes (G), Stefano Millin (MP)
285: Will Cooley (B), Dylan Nave (G), Seth Maylor (MP)
Cheesehead Invitational this weekend in Wisconsin
The 16th annual Cheesehead Invitational will be held this Friday and Saturday at Kaukauna High School, just outside of Green Bay, Wis. Four nationally ranked teams -- No. 11 Montini Catholic (Ill.), No. 25 Marmion Academy (Ill.), No. 28 Southeast Polk (Iowa), and No. 35 Waverly-Shell Rock (Iowa) -- are among the 26 squads in the field.
Wrestling will begin at 5 p.m. Central Time (6 p.m. ET) on Friday afternoon, with resumption on Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. Cetnral (9:30 Eastern), and finals slated for an approximately 5:30 p.m. Central start on Saturday evening. A television broadcast of the championship matches is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT on Monday, January 13th on some local Fox Sports Network affiliates.
Eleven nationally ranked wrestlers from ten weight classes headline the field. No. 9 Austin O'Connor (St. Rita, Ill.) at 106 pounds, No. 15 Anthony Bosco (Marmion Academy, Ill.) at 113, No. 15 Johnny Jimenez (Marmion Academy, Ill.) at 126, No. 20 Chris Garcia (Montini Catholic, Ill.) at 145, No. 2 Bryce Brill (Mt. Carmel, Ill.) at 152, No. 12 Xavier Montalvo (Montini Catholic, Ill.) and No. 15 Spencer Derifield (Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa) at 160, No. 11 Beau Breske (Hartford Union, Wis.) at 170, No. 7 Javaughn Perkins (Omaha North, Neb.) at 182, No. 12 Tyler Johnson (Lockport, Ill.) at 195, and No. 9 Michael Johnson, Jr. (Montini Catholic, Ill.) at 285.
Quick notes for the coming weekend
A separate event-specific preview for The Clash XII National Wrestling Duals, to be held on Friday and Saturday in Rocheter, Minn., will be posted today. The field of 32 teams features ten Fab 50 squads: No. 2 Oak Park River Forest (Ill.), No. 3 Apple Valley (Minn.), No. 6 Bergen Catholic (N.J.), No. 13 Marist (Ill.), No. 17 Bound Brook (N.J.), No. 18 Cincinnati Moeller (Ohio), No. 19 St. Peter's Prep (N.J.), No. 32 Bettendorf (Iowa), No. 41 West Fargo (N.D.), and No. 48 Vacaville (Calif.)
No. 21 St. Edward will play host to a quadrangular meet on Saturday in Lakewood, Ohio, starting at 1 p.m. Joining the Eagles in competition will be No. 29 Claymont, Wadsworth, and Westerville North.
This is the second year for the Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association (IHSWCA) State Duals, which will be held on Saturday at Westfield H.S. The event came into play when the IHSAA decided to eliminate team state, and instead crown a state team champion based on the scored individual tournament. Though the individual tournament is single class, the State Duals will have three classes. The lone Fab 50 team in the field will be No. 30 Perry Meridian, who seeks the Class 3A (big-school) title.
The Rollie Lane Invitational at the Idaho Center in Nampa, Idaho will be held on Friday and Saturday. It traditionally is one of the showcase events of the Idaho high school wrestling season. This year's field includes both Fab 50 teams in the state, No. 43 Centennial and No. 50 Kuna.
Quick highlights from past weekend
No. 3 Apple Valley, Minn. dominated their way to the title at the Rumble on the Red held in the FargoDome with 343 points. The Eagles were led by with nine finalists, including six weight class champions: Maolu Woiwor (132), No. 13 Dayton Racer (152), No. 3 Mark Hall (170), No. 14 Bobby Steveson (182), Gable Steveson (195), and Paul Cheney (220). Runner-up in the tournament was No. 41 West Fargo, N.D. with 187.5 points, as the Packers had eight placers, including two runners-up in Jordan Shearer (132) and Weston Dobler (160). The most notable individual result was the upset victory by No. 20 Ryan Schuman (Tri-Valley, S.D.) in the 138-pound final, 4-3 over No. 10 Seth Gross (Apple Valley, Minn.)
No. 5 St. Paris Graham, Ohio was upended in the GMVWA Tournament this past weekend at Wright State University near Dayton by No. 10 Archer, Ga. The 10th-ranked Tigers used 13 place-finishers, including four weight class champions to upend the Falcons by a score of 332.5 to 319.5. Champions for the Tigers were Chris Diaz (132), Thomas Bullard (152), Elliott Lee (195), and M.J. Couzan (285). Despite the absence of Brent Moore at 132 pounds, the Falcons still had five weight class champions: Justin Stickley (106), No. 7 Eli Stickley (113), No. 18 Eli Seipel (126), No. 1 Micah Jordan (145), and No. 6 Alex Marinelli (160).
No. 7 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. won the Bethlehem Holiday Classic at Liberty H.S. this past weekend. The Blue Knights were led by four weight class champions -- No. 10 Nick Reenan (152), No. 18 Chris Weiler (160), Michael Rogers (195), and Matthew Doggett (285) -- and five other place-winners to score 220 points. Runner-up Nazareth, Pa. moves up ten spots in the Fab 50 to No. 14 overall after a 215 point performance on the strength of ten total placers, including three weight class champions -- No. 17 at 132 Chase Zemenak (138), Sage Karam (145), and Nicolino Sevi (182). A short-handed Bound Brook, N.J. squad finished fifth with 150 points, which was 18.5 points out of third, and the Crusaders drop five spots to No. 17 in the nation.
Despite the absence of their best wrestler, No. 3 Jose Rodriguez (113), No. 8 Massillon Perry (233 points) earned an impressive victory at the Medina Invitational Tournament this past Friday and Saturday in Ohio. The Panthers had seven wrestlers finish inside the top three, including a trio of weight class champions in Jake Newhouse (120), David Bavery (126), and No. 11 Tony Dailey (160); another pair of wrestlers placed seventh and eighth respectively. No. 21 St. Edward finished as runner-up with 200 points, anchored by the title won by the tournament's Most Oustanding Wrestler L.J. Bentley (113), who moves up seven spots to No. 10 nationally. Nine other wrestlers placed for the Eagles. Finishing third was Claymont with three champions -- No. 3 Tyler Warner (106), Cody Burcher (138), and Garrett Harding (220). Four other Mustangs wrestlers placed on the way to a 199 point performance, as they move up nine positions to No. 29 nationally. The fourth Fab 50 team in the field is No. 20 Detroit Catholic Central, Mich., which placed fourth with 163.5 points despite the absence of two likely tournament finalists; and the Shamrocks still had two wrestlers win weight class titles, No. 12 Nick Bennett (152) and No. 13 Andrew Garcia (170).
No. 24 Brecksville, Ohio won its home tournament for the second consecutive year this past Sunday and Monday, as they scored 216 points. Key to the Bees success was a five-for-six run in the semifinals, which culminated in weight class titles won by No. 12 Austin Assad (120) and Austin Strnad (160). The other Fab 50 team in the field, Davison (Mich.), finished third in the event with 174 points led by a pair of champions in No. 15 Justin Oliver (138) and No. 13 Jordan Cooks (182); as a result, the Cardinals dropped eight spots to No. 27 nationally. Runner-up in the tournament was Delta, Ohio with 191.5 points led by a pair of champions in Drew Mattin (106) and No. 20 Jake Spiess (113). Outstanding Wrestler honors went to No. 14 Anthony Tutolo (Lake Catholic, Ohio), who upended two-time state champion Lincoln Olson (Davison, Mich.) 8-6 at 126 pounds.
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