InterMat Staff

The year started with some fireworks, but we are in the heart of dual meet season now and it’s no secret that the B1G Ten dual meet schedule is considered to be the toughest around. As we inch closer to the NCAA Championships, there are a few duals on the way there that have our attention. Check out this week’s Conference Crossover Conversation with Holmes, Claunch, Sommer, and Wendell. (Holmes’ pick) Nebraska vs Iowa - 1/12/2024 With six potential matchups between ranked wrestlers, this dual meet is must must-watch this Friday night on BTN. The biggest bout will go down between #2 Jared Franek of Iowa and #3 Peyton Robb at 157-pounds. Robb is coming off his first loss of the season so it will be interesting to see how he bounces back against a very stingy Franek, who remains undefeated on the year. But things will be off to a hot start as #5 Drake Ayala is set to face #7 Caleb Smith in the first bout of the night at 125. Each team will feature a top-ranked wrestler at 141 and 149, respectively. Hawkeye senior and returning NCAA runner-up Real Woods is set to face #7 Brock Hardy at 141. In the following match Huskers’ #1 ranked guy Ridge Lovett will toe the line against #12 Caleb Rathjen. We will also get ranked vs ranked matches at 165 and 197 as well, but the potential for a heavyweight bout between Nash Hutmacher and Ben Kueter, who are both finishing up their freshman seasons on the football field. Hutmacher made his mat debut last weekend and came out with a fall while Kueter is yet to step on the mat for the Hawks this season. This will be the 35th meeting between the two teams with Iowa leading the series 26-7-1. The Huskers will be looking to put an end to the winning streak the Hawkeyes have put together where they’ve won the last 14 straight meetings. (Claunch’s pick) Michigan vs Michigan State - 1/14/2024 You have to love it when in-state rivals do battle. Growing up in the great state of Michigan, I knew several high school legends who ended up competing for these two programs and have always enjoyed watching these teams compete. Throw in the fact that these guys run into each other several times a year, and likely multiple times throughout their careers with their respective programs, and it adds a little bit of animosity to layer on top of the built-in school rivalry. At 157, you’ll get Michigan State’s Chase Saldate facing Michigan’s Will Lewan. Last season, Saldate got the win in the dual, but ultimately dropped their last match at the B1G Championships. Both matches went to overtime, so look for another close and methodical battle. Also, you’ll get Cam Amine and Caleb Fish at 165. Amine is currently ranked 5th and Fish is currently ranked 11th. This bout was close last year just like the match at 157 so the rankings aren’t much of an indicator here. Amine won in the dual 3-2 and took the match in OT at B1Gs. Both of these guys made the quarterfinals at NCAAs last year, and I expect they’re both looking forward to getting after each other again. (Holmes’ pick) Penn State vs Michigan - 1/19/2024 We all know about the influx of talent that Michigan was able to snag from the transfer portal masters during the postseason and it’s matches like this that they certainly had their eye on as they picked up those new additions. But it’s definitely still going to be a tall task to keep up with the everlasting powerhouse out of State College. The biggest bouts are at 165 and 174. At 165, #5 Cam Amine will wrestle #10 Mitchell Messenbrink. The Nittany Lion freshman came in with a lot of expectations and so far he’s holding up his end of things as he currently holds a 10-0 record and recently defeated Matthew Olguin by technical fall to climb into the top 10. This will be his biggest test to date. Then right after that, we get a pair of NCAA champs taking the mat against each other as top-ranked three-time champ Carter Starocci and 4th-ranked 2021 champ Shane Griffith are headed for each other. It’s been a tough year for Griffith, who is in his first season at 174 after making the finals the last 2 seasons at 165. Starocci, on the other hand, hasn't skipped a beat since winning his third title. In fact, he looks even tougher. A pair of matches that you shouldn’t sleep on are at 141 between #2 Beau Bartlett and #26 Sergio Lemley and at 157 where #9 Will Lewan will face #1 Levi Haines. Bartlett shouldn’t have any trouble, but I have to give props to the freshman Lemley who has looked good in his first season. And let’s throw the heavyweight bout in there where will we see #4 Lucas Davison take on #1 Greg Kerkvliet. This will be a good bout between two athletic heavies. Lastly, I’m intrigued by the match at 125. Braeden Davis has looked very good for PSU this season and will have his biggest test when he meets #3 Michael DeAugustino. P.S. Dylan Ragusin is back so be on the lookout for a supercharged version of the multiple-time NCAA qualifier to come out against Nagao. (Claunch’s pick) Michigan vs Rutgers - 1/21/2024 At first glance, this might not seem huge, but when you look at the matchups and rankings, this should turn into a very exciting dual. Assuming healthy and full lineups, we should get ranked matchups at 7/10 weight classes. Another interesting wrinkle with this is where the teams don’t have ranked battles, they look like they could be one-sided and dramatically affect the team score. The dual concludes with a showdown at heavyweight between Lucas Davison and Yaraslau Slavikouski, ranked 4th and 7th, respectively. I’m also very interested to see Mitch Moore and Sergio Lemley at 141. Lemley has had a great start to the season as a true freshman, and Mitch Moore has looked excellent in his final season of college wrestling. Will the grizzled and traveled veteran use his “old man” tricks on the young Wolverine? Will the continuous improvement efforts and youthful exuberance of Lemley get his hand raised in the end? Find out on January 21st on BTN+! (Claunch’s pick) Maryland vs Indiana - 1/21/2024 I remember where I was when I watched this dual last season. I was sitting in my van watching this on my computer while I waited for my daughter to finish basketball practice. It was a back-and-forth battle ending in a 5-3 battle at 149 between Graham Rooks and Ethen Miller. That win tied the dual at 16 with the Hoosiers winning on the tiebreaker criteria. I hope they start at 157 just so it can come down to the battle at 149 between those two again. Many of the same faces return, but the Terrapins also get Seth Nevills in at heavyweight. And Danny Fongaro has looked great for the Hoosiers at 141, so that battle with Kal Miller should be a fun one as well. (Claunch’s pick) Purdue vs Indiana - 1/27/2024 The battle for the State of Indiana! Like the Michigan vs Michigan State dual previously referenced, in-state rivalries always have a little extra excitement. As previously mentioned, Fongaro has been great this year, and he’ll be facing one of the young studs for the Boilermakers, Greyson Clark. One of the other ranked matches in this dual will be at 157 where Brayton Lee takes on Joey Blaze. Lee hasn’t wrestled much this season, but it would be great to see him take on the exciting freshman. In addition to the rivalry portion of this dual, the other intriguing piece to this is that it could be a tossup. Both teams have some strong wrestlers at weights where they aren’t ranked, so the score could get wild with this one. The battle for Indiana will be decided this year in Bloomington. (Claunch’s pick) Michigan vs Ohio State - 1/26/2024 The roughest piece of the B1G wrestling schedule is that some years this dual simply doesn’t take place. So with that being said, we need to really appreciate the years when it does. Both of these teams are in the top 10 with multiple All-Americans in their lineups and National Champion contenders. Rankings absolutely go out the window in matchups like this, and coaches look for every edge with matchups and lineup adjustments. This year the dual takes place in Columbus, Ohio, and the Wolverines head there looking to avenge their loss from the dual last season. Heavyweight is very intriguing to me with the tried and true veteran Davison looking great so far this season, and the exciting young freshman Nick Feldman looking like the real deal. (Holmes’ pick) Ohio State Road Trip - 2/2 & 2/4 February is the month of love, but for the Buckeyes, it will not be getting off to a loving start as they face Penn State on February 2nd and Rutgers on the 4th both on the road. As we know, Penn State vs Ohio State is an age-old rivalry that has given us some of the greatest sports memories no matter if you’re talking about on the football field or the mat. But unlike football, this rivalry has been all about the Nittany Lions. Then after their stint in State College, they head across the PA/NJ border to take on Rutgers at Jersey Mike’s Arena. The bouts at 133, 141, 184, and 285 will be the most intriguing here so make sure you don’t sleep on this one. Most notably, my question is what type of approach Jesse Mendez will have for the highly stingy and hard to score on Mitch Moore at 141. And this will be a particularly tough weekend for Nick Feldman who gets #1 Greg Kerkvliet followed by #7 Yaraslau Slavikouski. (Holmes’ pick) Penn State vs Iowa - 2/9/24 A week after hosting Ohio State, PSU heads to Carver Hawkeye and I’m already praying to the wrestling Gods that we get to see Gabe Arnold take the mat against Carter Starocci. Arnold had plenty to say about the three-time champ, who hasn’t lost a match since 2021. Now, we are hoping that we see Arnold, who still has a few dates he can compete, come out of the tunnel. The rest of the dual will be absolute fire too with top matchups taking place at 133, 141, 157, and 165. We could be getting an NCAA finals preview at 141 and 157 where the #1 and #2 ranked wrestlers in the weight classes are slated to hit. So let’s hope that this one lives up to the hype and we get the matchups we’re all hoping for. (Holmes’ pick) Minnesota vs Wisconsin - 2/16 When you look at this one it isn’t the most intriguing dual since we are devoid of ranked matchups. However, it has the potential to be a good one because despite there not being a ton of numbers next to guys names like in the other dual meets we’ve highlighted, the matches will probably still be very close which always makes for an entertaining dual meet. However, I’m hoping that the 125-pound match is the last one of the night. Patrick McKee and Eric Barnett have wrestled nine times throughout their careers. Nine times? Nine times. Currently, the series is 5-4 with McKee in the lead. Two of those matches came at B1Gs last year where McKee pinned Barnett in the quarterfinals then went on to lose to him 7-3 for 5th place. Four of McKee’s five wins over Barnett have come with bonus points with three of those being pins. It’s been a wild series so I really hope they end the dual with this match.

We're officially in the second half of the collegiate wrestling season and have a full schedule of DI duals this week. A total of 68 duals will be contested. Since it can be difficult to figure out where and when to watch all of these events, InterMat has put together a list of all of the live-streamed events occurring this week. Below are the dates/times and how to watch each match (with links). Thursday, January 11: Cleveland State vs. Gardner-Webb at Davidson 11:00 AM FloWrestling Little Rock at Davidson 11:00 AM FloWrestling Harvard at Davidson 1:00 PM FloWrestling Gardner-Webb vs. Lock Haven at Davidson 1:00 PM FloWrestling Cleveland State vs. Little Rock at Davidson 3:00 PM FloWrestling Harvard vs. Lock Haven at Davidson 3:00 PM FloWrestling Princeton at Rider 7:00 PM ESPN+ Friday, January 12: Brown vs. The Citadel at Davidson 10:00 AM FloWrestling Little Rock vs. Lock Haven at Davidson 10:00 AM FloWrestling Lock Haven at Davidson 12:00 PM FloWrestling Little Rock vs. Presbyterian at Davidson 12:00 PM FloWrestling Kent State vs. South Dakota State at Hampton, VA 1:30 PM FloWrestling Brown at Davidson 2:00 PM FloWrestling Cleveland State vs. Presbyterian at Davidson 2:00 PM FloWrestling Kent State vs. Virginia at Hampton, VA 3:00 PM FloWrestling Wisconsin vs. Oklahoma at Hampton, VA 3:00 PM FloWrestling Cleveland State vs. The Citadel at Davidson 4:00 PM FloWrestling Navy vs. South Dakota State at Hampton, VA 4:30 PM FloWrestling Bloomsburg at Clarion 7:00 PM FloWrestling Binghamton at Lehigh 7:00 PM FloWrestling Michigan at Maryland 7:00 PM B1G+ Penn at North Carolina 7:00 PM ACC Network Extra Oklahoma State at Pittsburgh 7:00 PM ACC Network Extra Indiana at Rutgers 7:00 PM B1G+ Appalachian State at Virginia Tech 7:00 PM ACC Network Extra Iowa at Nebraska 7:30 PM Big Ten Network Utah Valley at Iowa State 8:00 PM ESPN+ Ohio at Northern Illinois 8:00 PM ESPN+ Illinois at Ohio State 8:00 PM B1G+ Air Force at Wyoming 8:00 PM FloWrestling American at Cal Poly 8:30 PM FloWrestling Northern Colorado at Cal Poly 10:00 PM FloWrestling Saturday, January 13: Oklahoma vs. Navy at Hampton, VA 12:00 PM FloWrestling Edinboro at George Mason 1:00 PM ESPN+ Brown at North Carolina 1:00 PM ACC Network Extra Hofstra at VMI 1:00 PM ESPN+ Virginia vs. Wisconsin at Hampton, VA 1:30 PM FloWrestling Cornell at Lehigh 2:00 PM FloWrestling Chattanooga at Lindenwood 2:00 PM ESPN+ Morgan State at Princeton 2:00 PM ESPN+ Harvard at North Carolina 3:00 PM ACC Network Extra Drexel at Binghamton 5:30 PM ESPN+ Northern Colorado at California Baptist 6:00 PM FloWrestling Buffalo at Binghamton 7:30 PM ESPN+ Utah Valley at Northern Iowa 8:00 PM FloWrestling Sunday, January 14: Bucknell at LIU 12:00 PM ESPN+ Columbia at Army West Point 1:00 PM Hofstra at George Mason 1:00 PM ESPN+ Northwestern at Maryland 1:00 PM B1G+ Michigan State at Michigan 1:00 PM B1G+ Indiana at Penn State 1:00 PM B1G+ Truett McConnell at Presbyterian 1:00 PM ESPN+ Rutgers at Purdue 1:00 PM B1G+ VMI at Queens 1:00 PM Queens Athletics Edinboro at Rider 1:00 PM ESPN+ Oklahoma State at West Virginia 1:00 PM ESPN+ Lindenwood at SIU Edwardsville 2:00 PM ESPN+ Sacred Heart vs. VMI at Queens 2:30 PM Drexel at Army West Point 3:00 PM Pittsburgh at Iowa State 3:00 PM ESPN+ Air Force at Cal Poly 4:00 PM FloWrestling American vs. Campbell at CSU Bakersfield 4:00 PM Central Michigan at CSU Bakersfield 4:00 PM GoRunners Sacred Heart at Queens 4:00 PM Queens Athletics American at CSU Bakersfield 6:00 PM GoRunners Campbell vs. Central Michigan at CSU Bakersfield 6:00 PM American vs. Central Michigan at CSU Bakersfield 8:00 PM Campbell at CSU Bakersfield 8:00 PM GoRunners

We’ve turned the corner in the college wrestling season. Mid-January means almost all attention is on in-conference duals. We’ll see #2 vs. #3 in the Big Ten and the end of an era in the EIWA. Both are among the five big things I’m focusing on this weekend. 5. Adds With classes starting in Iowa City next Tuesday, will anyone be added to the team? Amid months of speculation, Iowa skipper Tom Brands spoke at a press conference Tuesday and, when asked if the team would have any roster additions this semester he said, ‘We do not, at this moment.’ It’s not crystal clear, but it’s an indication that neither Anthony nor AJ Ferrari will be joining the Hawks after that seemed to be a foregone conclusion throughout the offseason, fall semester, and over the holidays. There have also been rumors and mixed messages regarding a possible Gable Steveson return. 4. Drops Does Daton or Vito drop to 125? With the Olympic Team Trials (April 19th) in such close proximity to NCAA’s (March 23rd), it could make sense for either to shrink down well ahead of time. Increasing the intrigue and plausibility for this to happen was Daton purportedly weighing in well under 133lbs for his dual last week against NC State, and Vito’s absence from the Big Red lineup. Vito hasn’t competed since December 18th and could be avoiding weigh-ins until he can make a weight that allows him to go 125 based on the descent plan formula. Recent quotes from Mike Grey indicate that Vito plans to remain at 133. 3. Mean Dean vs. The King Slayer Rutgers visits Purdue this week and it should be a good dual. But the marquee match will be last week’s #2 at 125, Dean Peterson, vs. this week’s #2, Matt Ramos. Other than what follows below, it could be the biggest individual bout of the weekend. 2. Huskers & Hawks Iowa hasn’t lost to Nebraska since Jim Zelesky’s last year at the helm. The next year, Tom Brands took over and the Hawks have won 14 straight vs. The Huskers. But Iowa lost six starters from last year’s dual lineup and Nebraska is reinforced with #1-Ridge Lovett off redshirt. The Huskers have a real shot to beat their neighbors to the east this year. It’s the premier dual of the week and will be televised on The Big Ten Network on Friday night. Here’s the projected lineups; picks in BOLD: 125: #5-Drake Ayala (I) vs. #7-Caleb Smith (N) History: Ayala beat Smith in 2022, 5-2. The Pick: Smith is much improved and could certainly win but I’m going with precedence. 133: #7-Brody Teske (I) vs. #30-Jacob Van Dee (N) History: Teske beat Van Dee two weeks ago 5-4. The Pick: They traded takedowns. Van Dee can win, but like 125, Teske is the safe pick. 141: #1-Real Woods (I) vs. #7-Brock Hardy (N) History: Woods beat Hardy 6-4 in the Big Ten Finals and then majored him at NCAA’s. The Pick: Hardy gave Real a good go in the B1G finals while the lopsided win at NCAA’s came in a match where Hardy broke his ribs. Gimme Real in a regular decision. 149: #12-Caleb Rathjen (I) vs. #1-Ridge Lovett (N) History: Never met The Pick: I like Rathjen. But with three-point takedowns and four-point nearfall, I think this is on the verge of bonus. Gimme a regular decision though. Something like 8-2. 157: #2-Jared Franek (I) vs. #3-Peyton Robb (N) History: Robb beat Franek last year in a dual while Franek returned the favor at NCAA’s. The Pick: On one hand, Robb won a controlling 7-4 bout in the regular season and Franek’s win came when PRobb had, literally, a flesh-eating skin infection. On the other hand, Robb just got beat by #12 Ryder Downey of UNI. It’s tough to call. I think maybe the Downey loss gets Robb refocused. I’ll take him by a takedown. 165: #7-Mikey Caliendo (I) vs. #19-Antrell Taylor (N) History: Never met The Pick: Taylor is one of the nation’s brightest freshmen stars. He wrestles fearlessly, so he’ll certainly give himself scoring opportunities. But Caliendo is seasoned- a returning AA and proven commodity. Caliendo is the pick. 174: NR-Patrick Kennedy or Gabe Arnold (I) vs. #30-Bubba Wilson (N) History: Kennedy majored Wilson in last year’s dual. The Pick: While I think Iowa may consider Gabe, it might not make much sense in this spot. Kennedy already proved he can get the win (and bonus), and both he and Gabe would be an underdog to Pinto at 184. 184: NR-Aiden Riggins or NR-Gabe Arnold (I) vs. #3-Lenny Pinto (N) History: Never met The Pick: If Iowa is in trouble in the dual, I could see them using Gabe, who, unlike Riggins in my opinion, has a shot to win vs. Pinto. That being said, I’d take Pinto over either. 197: #16-Zach Glazier (I) vs. #11-Silas Allred (N) History: Never met The Pick: Silas was the Big Ten Champ as a freshman last year with two wins over the defending national champ. WrestleStat has a major for Allred, but I’ll call it a regular decision. 285: NR-Bradley Hill or NR-Ben Kueter (I) vs. NR-Harley Andrews or NR-Nash Hutmacher (N) History: Never met The Pick: I think it’s going to be Hill vs. Hutmacher. Kueter’s probably not up to speed yet after his bowl game. I’d take Hutmacher over either, but feel Kueter gives them a better chance. Overall Thoughts: I have it 5-5 with Iowa winning the first two and Nebraska winning the last three. But beyond the individual match picks, many of which are toss-ups, I think Iowa pulls it out. The intangibles, ya know. Iowa always seems to get it done. 1. End of an Era Since 2002 only two schools have won the EIWA tournament: Cornell, thirteen times; Lehigh nine times. Their duals have been heated and often filled with twists and turns and the unexpected. The two may continue their rivalry in duals going forward, but with the Ivy League starting their own league this is the last dance under the EIWA banner. And you should tune in not just for the nostalgia - this dual is loaded with great bouts. At 125 Brett Ungar could see Luke Stanich, who just won Midlands. At 133, we could possibly see a rematch from the earth-shaking Crookham-over-Vito result from November, though Grey’s recent statement seems to lean towards Vito being out for another week or two. At 141, Hines and Cornella are ranked 16 & 17. Cardenas and Beard are #7 and #9 at 197, respectively. And #10-Taylor will face #19-Fernandes at heavyweight.

57 kg Gold Medal Match: Aman Sehrawat (India) over Wanhao Zou (China) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Georgi Vangelov (Bulgaria) over Horst Lehr (Germany) 3-1 Bronze Medal Match: Muhammet Karavus (Turkey) over Roberti Dingashvili (Georgia) 14-5 United States Results Round of 16: Zane Richards (USA) over Ahmet Duman (Turkey) 5-2 Quarterfinals: Aman Sehrawat (India) over Zane Richards (USA) 11-0 Repechage: Muhammet Karavus (Turkey) over Zane Richards (USA) 17-8 61 kg Gold Medal Match: Bekhbayar Erdenebat (Mongolia) over Andrii Dzhelep (Ukraine) 9-2 Bronze Medal Match: Nuraddin Novruzov (Azerbaijan) over Daniel Popov (Israel) 7-3 Bronze Medal Match: Aliabbas Rzazade (Azerbaijan) over Joey Silva (Puerto Rico) 4-2 United States Results Quarterfinals: Aliabbas Rzazade (Azerbaijan) over Michael McGee (USA) 5-4 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Vazgen Tevanyan (Armenia) over Rahman Amouzadkhalili (Iran) InjDef Bronze Medal Match: Abbas Ebrahimzadehsavadkouhi (Iran) over Abdullah Toprak (Turkey) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Joey McKenna (USA) over Sebastian Rivera (Puerto Rico) 10-0 United States Results Round of 32: Nino Leutert (Germany) over Nahshon Garrett (USA) 10-8 Round of 16: Joey McKenna (USA) over Ziraddin Bayramov (Azerbaijan) 11-0 Quarterfinals: Vazgen Tevanyan (Armenia) over Joey McKenna (USA) 5-2 Repechage: Joey McKenna (USA) over Khamzat Arsamerzouev (France) 3-3 Bronze Medal Match: Joey McKenna (USA) over Sebastian Rivera (Puerto Rico) 10-0 70 kg Gold Medal Match: Akaki Kemertelidze (Georgia) over Giorgi Elbakidze (Georgia) 7-4 Bronze Medal Match: Doug Zapf (USA) over Marc Dietsche (Switzerland) 13-2 United States Results Round Robin 1: Giorgi Elbakidze (Georgia) over Doug Zapf (USA) 6-5 Round Robin 2: Doug Zapf (USA) over Daniel Antal (Hungary) 5-1 Semifinals: Akaki Kemertelidze (Georgia) over Doug Zapf (USA) 8-4 Bronze Medal Match: Doug Zapf (USA) over Marc Dietsche (Switzerland) 13-2 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Jason Nolf (USA) over Hossein Abouzaripashkolaei (Iran) 10-1 Bronze Medal Match: Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (Azerbaijan) over Tobias Portmann (Switzerland) 5-3 Bronze Medal Match: Murad Kurmagomedov (Hungary) over Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) 4-1 United States Results Round of 32: Quincy Monday (USA) over Patryk Olenczyn (Poland) 15-4 Round of 16: Quincy Monday (USA) over Yash Tushir (India) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (Azerbaijan) over Quincy Monday 5-4 Round of 32: Jason Nolf (USA) over Anthony Montero (Venezuela) 11-0 Round of 16: Jason Nolf (USA) over Ramazan Ramazanov (Bulgaria) 12-2 Quarterfinals: Jason Nolf (USA) over Murad Kurmagomedov (Hungary) 7-0 Semifinals: Jason Nolf (USA) over Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) Fall Gold Medal Match: Jason Nolf (USA) over Hossein Abouzaripashkolaei (Iran) 10-1 86 kg Gold Medal Match: Magomed Ramazanov (Bulgaria) over Azamat Dauletbekov (Kazakhstan) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match: Evsem Shvelidze (Georgia) over Matt Finesilver (Israel) 7-3 Bronze Medal Match: Chance Marsteller (USA) over Arsenii Dzhioev (Azerbaijan) 5-0 United States Results Round of 32: Chance Marsteller (USA) over Pedro Ceballos Fuentes (Venezuela) 4-0 Round of 16: Chance Marsteller (USA) over Osman Nurmagomedov (Azerbaijan) 3-1 Quarterfinals: Chance Marsteller (USA) over Vladimeri Gamkrelidze (Georgia) 8-5 Semifinals: Magomed Ramazanov (Bulgaria) over Chance Marsteller (USA) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Chance Marsteller (USA) over Arsenii Dzhioev (Azerbaijan) 5-0 Round of 16: Magomed Ramazanov (Bulgaria) over Max Dean (USA) 8-3 Repechage: Max Dean (USA) over Ethan Ramos (Puerto Rico) 8-8 Repechage: Arsenii Dzhioev (Azerbaijan) over Max Dean (USA) 8-3 Round of 32: Valentyn Babii (Ukraine) over Zahid Valencia (USA) 10-2

Here are some of the notable happenings from the last week in the MAC. George Mason over Virginia On Saturday, George Mason did something that hasn’t been done by the Patriot wrestling program since 1991, when they snapped a 10-match losing streak against the University of Virginia, 18-17. GMU handed Virginia their first loss of the season in a neutral-site dual at St. Christopher’s High School in Richmond, VA. These two teams tangled almost a year ago, to the day, at the same venue and Virginia prevailed 26-6. The dual didn’t appear as if it was going GMU’s way as they lost the first three bouts and found themselves in a 10-0 hole. The Patriots middleweights helped turn the tide with three consecutive wins by Kaden Cassidy, DJ McGee, and Evan Maag at 149-165 lbs. Virginia extended their lead to 14-9 after a major decision at 174; however, 184 lber Malachi Duvall struck the biggest blow of the contest when he pinned UVA’s Griffin Gammel late in the first period to give the Patriots their first lead of the day (15-14). At 197 lbs, Tyler Kocak extended that advantage with a 15-10 win over Colden Dorfman. Though Virginia won the heavyweight contest, it was via a regular decision and the Patriots held on to win 18-17. The Duvall pin led to him earning MAC Co-East Wrestler of the Week honors from the conference. His fall was the only bonus point win for George Mason. George Mason will be back in action this weekend with a pair of home duals. They’ll host MAC rival Edinboro on Saturday and Hofstra in a non-conference tilt on Sunday. The Hofstra dual will feature marquee matches at 149 lbs and heavyweight. Those have been Hofstra’s two best weights and they are strengths for GMU, as well. SIU Edwardsville Picks Up Two Conference Wins The Friday/Sunday swing saw SIU Edwardsville notch a pair of conference wins as they downed Edinboro 23-9, before beating Buffalo 24-9. Both of which occurred on the road. Six Cougar wrestlers earned wins in both duals. Davian Guanajuato (125), Marcel Lopez (133), Eric Almarinez (141), Brock Woodcock (157), Deron Pulliam (184), and Bryson Buhk (285) all went 2-0 on the weekend. Woodcock won via tech fall in the Edinboro dual and received a forfeit at Buffalo. Almarinez, a redshirt freshman, was named the MAC Co-West Wrestler of the Week after his 2-0 showing. His 15-3 major decision over the Bulls Caleb Brooks gave Almarinez the team lead with 15 wins on the season. The Cougars will be back in action on Sunday at home against Lindenwood. Tyler Klinsky over Dean Peterson All year we’ve lamented the chaos that is 125 lbs, nationally. The MAC did their part contributing to that topsy-turvy weight class when Tyler Klinsky defeated then-number two ranked Dean Peterson on Sunday. Peterson came into the bout a perfect 6-0 and had beaten Penn’s national qualifier Ryan Miller the night before. Down 5-1 after the first period, Klinsky used a reversal, then a takedown to even the score at six a-piece during the second stanza. He would add three more in the final period to win 9-6. The win brings Klinsky’s season record to an even 9-9. Though he recently went 1-2 at the Midlands, Klinsky did knock off Jett Strickenberger (West Virginia) who was ranked at the time. With the unexpected being the norm at 125 lbs this season, Klinsky could be rounding into form at the right time and has the potential to make some noise at the MAC Tournament. Before then, Klinsky has matches with Princeton’s Drew Heethius and Edinboro’s Caleb Edwards on the docket. During the last week of January, he’ll face top-ranked Anthony Noto (Lock Haven) and attempt to notch his second top-five upset of the year. Last year the two met twice and wrestled close bouts in both instances. At the 2023 MAC Championships, the pair met in the quarterfinals and Noto prevailed, 3-2.

Below is a recap of last week’s EIWA action, with individual news and highlights worth noting. Key Takeaways DePrez and Nolan of Binghamton win F&M Open Harvard’s Conigliaro wins F&M Open at 174 lbs Penn’s Swisher wins F&M Open at 157 lbs Cerniglia of Navy wins F&M Open at 165 lbs American The Eagles were split between a dual at Michigan State and the F&M Open. Only three Eagles had wins over Michigan State: Max Leete at 133 lbs via fall, Lucas White at 174 lbs, and #16 Jack Maida at 125 lbs. The Eagles had a bunch of wins at the F&M Open also. Gage Owen was 4-2 at 149 lbs. Caleb Campos made his season debut with a 4-2 record at 174 lbs. Ryan Zimmerman won three matches on the day at 149 lbs. Michigan State 28 – American 12 133 - Maximilian Leete (AU) pinned Andy Hampton (MSU), 1:50 (AU 6-0) 141 - Jordan Hamdan (MSU) dec. Raymond Lopez (AU), 8-4 (AU 6-3) 149 - Braden Stauffenberg (MSU) dec. Ethan Szerencsits (AU), 5-2 (Tied 6-6) 157 - #21 Chase Saldate (MSU) pinned Devon Capato (AU), 6:08 (MSU 12-6) 165 - #14 Caleb Fish (MSU) major dec. Breon Phifer (AU), 8-0 (MSU 16-6) 174 - Lucas White (AU) dec. Marty Larkin (MSU), 3-2 (MSU 16-9) 184 - #21 Layne Malczewski (MSU) major dec. Connor Bourne (AU), 12-2 (MSU 20-9) 197 - #31 Kael Wisler (MSU) tech. fall Liam Volk-Klos (AU), 17-2 (MSU 25-9) 285 - Josh Terrill (MSU) dec. Will Jarrell (AU), 6-3 SV (MSU 28-9) 125 - #16 Jack Maida (AU) dec. #32 Tristan Lujan (MSU), 2-1 (MSU 28-12) American will travel out to the West Coast this weekend for duals with Cal Poly, CSU Bakersfield, Central Michigan, and Campbell. Army Army had a strong contingent at the F&M Open. Matt Williams was the only champion on the day. He won the 149 lbs bracket over Dunnigan of Penn. At 165 lbs, Dalton Harkins was runner up to #24 Cerniglia of Navy. Dakota Morris was 3rd in that bracket after a win over #16 Cassella of Binghamton. Rich Treanor earned 5th place at 141 lbs with a conference win over Phillips of F&M. Dillon Sheehy was 5th at 174 lbs. Wolfgang Frable was 5th at 197 lbs and Austin Kolhofer was 5th at a loaded heavyweight bracket. Army is back to dual meet action this weekend, hosting Drexel and Columbia. Binghamton Leading the way for the Bearcats at the F&M Open were Jacob Nolan (#22 @ 184 lbs) and Lou DePrez (#14 @ 197 lbs). Nolan’s win in the finals match came over #17 Conway of F&M. DePrez was dominant with four of five matches being bonus point wins. Cory Day’s lone loss came to #2 Hendrickson of Air Force. The 285lbs wrestler had a nice win over #13 Griess of Navy. At 133lbs, Micah Roes was 2-2 on the day, but his win over #25 Ferretti of Navy was a quality one. At 157 lbs, Binghamton had two place winners in Carter Baer and Fin Nadeau. Baer was 4th, while Nadeau was 5th/6th due to match limits. Walking away in 5th/6th at 165lbs was #16 Brevin Cassella. At 174lbs, Dimitri Gamkrelidze was also 5th/6th with one loss in overtime to #21 Wask of Navy. The Bearcats have three duals this weekend. They will travel to #28 Lehigh on Friday, then host Drexel and Buffalo on Saturday. Brown The Bears had off this past weekend. Friday, they will be in Davidson with duals against Davidson, Presbyterian, and The Citadel. These are the first dual meets of the season for the Bears. Bucknell The Bison took some time off after the Southern Scuffle. Next is an away dual with LIU on Sunday. Columbia Columbia’s dual with #23 West Virginia was located in Atlantic City. They came up short by a point losing 22-21. Nick Babin started the dual off at 125 lbs with a pin. Lennox Wolak (#24 @ 174 lbs) earned a tech fall while Aaron Ayzerov won by major at 184 lbs over #24 Dennis Robin. Kai Owen and #28 Jack Wehmeyer each won by decision at 141 lbs and 197 lbs, respectively. Columbia is right on the cusp being a top 30 team. #23 West Virginia 22 – Columbia 21 125: Nick Babin (COL) def. Jace Schafer (WVU) | Fall, 5:57 133: Jett Strickenberger (WVU) def. Yanni Vines (COL) | Fall, 5:46 141: Kai Owen (COL) def. Sam Hillegas (WVU) | Dec., 10-8 149: #11 Ty Watters (WVU) def. Richard Fedalen (COL) | MD, 10-1 157: Alex Hornfeck (WVU) def. Jaden Le (COL) | Dec., 8-4 165: #12 Peyton Hall (WVU) def. Andrew Garr (COL) | MD, 17-3 174: #24 Lennox Wolak (COL) def. Jack Blumer (WVU) | TF, 23-7 184: Aaron Ayzerov (COL) def. #27 Dennis Robin (WVU) | MD, 12-2 197: #28 Jack Wehmeyer (COL) def. Austin Cooley (WVU) | Dec., 4-3 HWT: Michael Wolfgram (WVU) def. Billy McChesney (COL) | TF, 15-0 The Lions will start EIWA competition on Sunday with an away dual at Army. #8 Cornell Cornell had two tough duals against #6 Ohio State and #11 Virginia Tech. It was a tougher task than originally planned with Vito Arujau sidelined due to injury. Meyer Shapiro had a great performance against Ohio State, winning by tech fall over #12 Gallagher. Unfortunately, #8 Andonian of Virginia Tech had to injury default in a hyped rematch from CKLV. Chris Foca won via fall over All-American #14 Hoffman versus Ohio State. He had a major over #18 Howard of VT. Jacob Cardenas (#9 @ 197 lbs), Chris Foca (#8 @ 184 lbs), and Julian Ramirez (#3 @ 165 lbs) were all undefeated in their duals as well. Ohio State 21 - Cornell 20 125: No. 14 Brett Ungar def. No. 22 Brendan McCrone 7-1 by decision 133: No. 13 Nic Bouzakis def. Ethan Qureshi by fall (1:48) 141: No. 3 Jesse Mendez def. No. 17 Vince Cornella 14-4 by major decision 149: No. 5 Drew D'Emilio def. No. 24 Ethan Fernandez 8-1 by decision 157: No. 15 Meyer Shapiro def. No. 12 Paddy Gallagher 15-0 by fall 165: No. 3 Julian Ramirez def. Bryce Hepner 6-4 by decision 174: Rocco Welsh def. Benny Baker 20-4 by technical fall 184: No. 8 Chris Foca def. No. 14 Gavin Hoffman by fall (1:48) 197: No. 7 Jacob Cardenas def. No. 23 Luke Georg 8-2 by decision HWT: No. 18 Nick Feldman def. No. 19 Lewis Fernandes 6-4 by decision #8 Cornell 24 – #11 Virginia Tech 13 125: No. 14 Brett Ungar lost to No. 9 Cooper Flynn 4-3 by decision 133: Ethan Qureshi lost to No. 12 Sam Latona 14-3 by major decision 141: No. 17 Vince Cornella def. No. 18 Tom Crook 4-2 by decision 149: No. 24 Ethan Fernandez lost to No. 2 Caleb Henson 9-2 by decision 157: No. 15 Meyer Shapiro def. No. 8 Bryce Andonian by injury default 165: No. 3 Julian Ramirez def. No. 23 Connor Brady 10-0 by major decision 174: Benny Baker lost to No. 2 Mehki Lewis 9-3 by decision 184: No. 8 Chris Foca def. No. 18 Cody Howard 12-4 by major decision 197: No. 7 Jacob Cardenas def. No. 26 Andy Smith 11-1 by major decision 285: No. 19 Lewis Fernandes def. Jimmy Mullen 6-3 by decision (overtime) Cornell’s tough schedule continues this week with an away dual at #28 Lehigh. Drexel The Dragons sent mostly non-starters to the F&M Open. Jasiah Queen led the way for the team with a 4th place finish. He had a major decision over previous NCAA Qualifier Burkhart of Kent State and took losses from #12 Conigliaro of Harvard and #21 Wask of Navy. At 133 lbs, John Hildebrandt was just shy of placing, but had a ranked win over #27 Leiphart of F&M. Both Gabe Onorato and Tyler Williams went 3-2 on the day at 141 lbs and 157 lbs, respectively. This week’s schedule includes a dual at Binghamton and Army West Point. Franklin & Marshall In case you didn’t hear, the Dips hosted their annual open. It was a huge turn out with plenty of tough competition. #27 Mason Leiphart took a loss early and won four in a row to reach his match limit – ending the day in 5th/6th at 133 lbs. At 141 lbs, Pat Phillips ended the day in 6th place capturing a handful of wins along the way. #17 James Conway was runner up at 184 lbs due to a loss to #22 Nolan of Binghamton. John Crawford’s (#32 @ 197 lbs) 3rd place performance was solid, as he was outplaced by higher ranked opponents. The Diplomats will have a week off before getting into the dual meet part of the season in two weeks. Harvard The Crimson had a partial line up at the F&M Open. They crowned one champion in Phil Conigliaro at 174 lbs. His 12th national ranking proved to be a dominant performance with four of five wins coming by major decision. His lone decision was in the finals to #26 Murphy of Campbell. Josh Kim (#26 @ 165 lbs) ended the day with a 4th place finish. His loss in the semifinals came to #24 Cerniglia of Navy. His 3rd place bout was a loss to Morris of Army. The final place winner for Harvard was at 184 lbs where Leo Tarantino was 6th. Harvard is on the road this week with two duals at Davidson against Davidson and Lock Haven. Hofstra The Pride continued with their treacherous schedule when they hosted #7 North Carolina State. The dual was lost 43-5. Noah Tapia (149 lbs) was the lone victor winning via tech fall. It’s safe to say NC State was out for vengeance following a loss to #11 Oklahoma State two days prior. North Carolina State 43 - Hofstra 5 197: Brock DelSignore (NCST) major dec. Nikolas Miller (Hofstra), 17-9 (4-0) 285: #16 Owen Trephan (NCST) major dec. #21 Keaton Kluever (Hofstra), 11-3 (8-0) 125: Jarrett Trombley (NCST) major dec. Dylan Acevedo (Hofstra), 9-0 (12-0) 133: Jacob Cox (NCST) wins by forfeit, (18-0) 141: #4 Ryan Jack (NCST) tech fall Alex Turley (Hofstra), 20-4 (5:33) (23-0) 149: Noah Tapia (Hofstra) tech fall Trevor Kantor (NCST), 20-3 (3:59) (23-5) 157: #6 Ed Scott (NCST) wbf. Jurius Clark (Hofstra), 1:30 (29-5) 165: #20 Derek Fields (NCST) tech fall Matt Rogers (Hofstra), 19-4 (4:21) (34-5) 174: #32 Alex Faison (NCST) tech fall Eric Shindel (Hofstra), 21-5 (3:50) (39-5) 184: Dylan Reinert (NCST) major dec. Will Conlon (Hofstra), 11-3 (43-5) This weekend, The Pride will square off with VMI and George Mason #28 Lehigh The Mountain Hawks had a handful of wrestlers at the F&M Open, as this was not an official date on their schedule. At 141 lbs, Carter Bailey had a huge win over #9 Miller of Maryland to advance to the semis after beating his teammate Connor McGonagle. He walked away as the runner-up after dropping a match to Henson of Lock Haven. At 149 lbs, both Matt Repos (unattached) and Kelvin Griffin finished in the 5th/6th place bout after match limits were reached. Each had one loss to the finalists in the bracket. Lehigh will be in dual meet action against Binghamton and Cornell this weekend, both matches at home. They will look to earn their first dual win of the season. Long Island The Sharks were in attendance at the F&M Open as well. The team had two grapplers reach the quarterfinals. At 141 lbs, Devin Matthews lost to All-American #27 Matthews of Pitt in the quarters on his way to a 3-2 day. John Dsuza was in the quarters at 197 lbs, where he fell to #20 Hopkins of Campbell. He also went 3-2 on the day. LIU saw a bunch of wins from Rhise Royster at 157 lbs, Corey Connolly at 174 lbs, and Anthony D’Alesio at 184 lbs. The Sharks will have a dual this weekend against Bucknell in a home EIWA matchup. #15 Navy The Midshipmen sent a full squad to the F&M Open. The lone champ was Andrew Cerniglia (#26 @ 165 lbs) in dominating fashion. He won five of his six bouts by bonus points. At 174 lbs, #21 Danny Wask was a 3rd place finisher with a loss to #26 Murphy of Campbell. At 285 lbs, Navy had two podium finishers in Grady Griess (#13) with a 4th place finish and Jamier Ferere was 5th/6th reaching his match limit. There were another nine wrestlers who won at least two matches on the day. Navy will be at the Virginia Duals this weekend with duals against #18 Oklahoma, #13 South Dakota State, and #30 Wisconsin. This is a tough weekend in order to stay undefeated. #20 Penn The Quakers had an eventful weekend with plenty of wrestlers at the F&M Open on Friday. They hosted a dual against #14 Rutgers. Jude Swisher led the way for the Quakers at F&M with a title at 157 lbs. He had a ranked win over #31 North of Maryland. At 149 lbs, Kelly Dunnigan had a very nice day finishing as runner-up with a very quality win over #13 Miller of Maryland in overtime in the semi-finals. Also at 149 lbs, Sean Seefeldt and Hunter Gandy were top 8 after winning a handful of matches. Martin Cosgrove was a 6th place winner in his bracket racking up four wins on the day. Against Rutgers, #25 Revano reversed a win from two weeks ago over #33 Clark at 157 lbs. At 184 lbs, #16 Hale had a win over #19 Soldano. #14 Rutgers 22 – #20 Penn 14 149 – Michael Cetta (Rutgers) def. Andy Troczynski (P), 9-3 DEC – Rutgers leads 3-0 157 – #25 Lucas Revano (P) def. #33 Andrew Clark (Rutgers), 10-7 DEC – Tied 3-3 165 – Kaya Sement (P) def. Luke Gayer (Rutgers), 10-4 DEC – Penn leads 6-3 174 – #11 Nick Incontrera (P) def. Shane Cartagena (Rutgers), 21-4 TF – Penn leads 11-3 184 – #16 Maximus Hale (P) def. #19 Brian Soldano (Rutgers), 4-2 DEC – Penn leads 14-3 197 – #8 John Posnanski (Rutgers) def. #21 Cole Urbas (P), 18-1 TF – Penn leads 14-8 285 – #7 Yaraslau Slavikouski (Rutgers) def. #33 John Scott (P), 21-4 TF – Penn leads 14-13 125 – Dean Peterson (Rutgers) def. Ryan Miller (P), 10-4 DEC – Rutgers leads 16-14 133 – #9 Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) def. #7 Michael Colaiocco (P), 9-8 DEC – Rutgers leads 19-14 141 – #14 Mitch Moore (Rutgers) def. #11 CJ Composto (P), 5-0 DEC – Rutgers wins 22-14 Next week’s travel includes a dual at #27 North Carolina. Princeton The Tigers had a bunch of wrestlers at the F&M Open. Drew Heethius led the way with a 5th place finish at 125 lbs. He was the lone placer, as many starters were not in action. At 133 lbs, both Nick Kayal and Sean Pierson won a handful of matches each. Sebastian Garibaldi won four of his matches on the day at heavyweight. The Tigers return to full action this weekend with duals against Rider and Morgan State. Sacred Heart The Pioneers competed before Christmas and are off until this week’s duals with Queens and VMI. It’s a great opportunity for them to pick up some wins.

Key Takeaways from NWCA National Duals National Duals over the weekend were filled with nonstop exciting wrestling moments for fans of both NAIA and NCAA schools. Teams brought strong lineups to compete for a coveted team title, and these wrestlers showed out. Here are some big moments from the weekend across the two competitions. NAIA 1. Life Reclaims Top Spot The #1 Life University Running Eagles went on a run to claim the team title at the tournament winning over #2 Menlo in the finals. This dual had several exciting ranked matchups, including an upset at 101 lbs when Menlo’s #10 Kayla McKinley-Johnson took out #4 Devyn Gomez in a 4-1 decision. Life had a quick response at 109 lbs when Diana Gonzalez got a quick pin to cap off her impressive tournament showing. Fans also saw Menlo’s #11 at 123 lbs Ajayzee Zaballos, move down a weight for this dual and win a slow-starting match with three second-period takedowns to win against #6 Ariana Martinez at 116 lbs. A pin from Menlo’s #8 Alana Vivas at 123 lbs had the two teams tied after the first 5 bouts. However, at 130 lbs, #2 Sarah Savidge continued her impressive tournament with a first-period pin. From there, the three McBryde sisters all earned impressive wins to lock up the dual for the Running Eagles. Not to be dismayed, Menlo ended their day with two ranked wins in the final two matches including freshman #3 Kalila Shrive getting the tech against #4 Margaret Graham and #1 Tavia Heidelberg-Tillotson getting the win over #6 Madeline Welch. Throughout the day, we saw big matches at 101 lbs where #4 Devyn Gomez had a tough draw wrestling against the #1, #7, and #10 wrestlers at the weight and losing in each of these matches. Similar to the ups and downs of 125 lbs in men’s college wrestling right now, this 101lb weight class is anyone’s game. Gomez will certainly see these wrestlers again in March and could certainly change the results as she has previously - she beat #7 Quezaire at last year’s Grand View Open. Gomez is typically an aggressive and high-scoring wrestler with a number of tech falls over opponents. It seemed like a bit of an off day, but could also speak to the depth of talent at this weight. The driving force for Life’s success over the weekend definitely came from the center of the lineup led by Sarah Savidge and the McBryde sisters. Savidge went 3-0 with two techs and a pin. The McBryde sisters won 10 out of 12 matches including winning all 3 ranked matchups they had against a tough Menlo team. 2. Texas Wesleyan Battles Back Texas Wesleyan earned the 3rd place finish at the tournament after being seeded at #6. In their second matchup in the tournament, they pulled the upset over the No. 3 seed Grand View. Starting with an upset win from unranked Julie Lucas for Texas Wesleyan over #13 Jalen Bets, the Rams followed it up with a fall and tech fall from #6 Jasmine Howard and #3 Camille Fournier. The Rams dropped their first match at 123 lbs, but #3 Elizabeth Duvall quickly got those points back and then some with a tech of her own. After dropping 136 lbs, the Rams’ #4 Mea Mohler gets another pivotal decision followed by the same from #6 Tayden Khamjoi. Even after dropping the last two matches of the dual, the Rams had the points to send them forward in the tournament. The semifinal dual between Texas Wesleyan and Menlo was possibly the most exciting dual of the entire weekend. Almost every matchup was ranked, with just one upset coming at 130 lbs when #4 Louisa Schwab of Menlo defeated #3 Elizabeth Duvall of Texas Wesleyan. This match truly came down to one more win for Menlo than Texas Wesleyan as they each exchanged pins, techs, and decisions. In the third-place match, the Rams won eight out of ten matches with seven pins and one tech fall to make the final score a dominant 39-10 victory over the University of Providence. All that to say, Texas Wesleyan is showing themselves to be a force far beyond their powerhouse competitors like #3 Camille Fournier and #4 Mea Mohler. I expect to see most of the wrestlers they send to the individual tournament return as All-Americans. This is a team of individuals who have what it takes to compete at a high level throughout a tournament. NCAA Hawkeyes Crowned in Cedar Falls The Iowa Hawkeyes claimed the NCAA Championship at this year’s National Duals over the #1 seed North Central with a 21-20 final team score. Iowa forged their path to the finals in dominant fashion with a 49-1 win over Adrian College, 39-4 win over #13 Presbyterian, and 31-8 win over #3 King University. In the finals, almost every matchup was ranked and the atmosphere when these two teams were competing was electric. #2 Sterling Dias got things started with a big tech fall 11-0 over #4 Madison Avila of North Central. At 109 lbs, Jaslynn Gallegos got the start against #2 Ava Bayless instead of teammate Kendra Ryan, who has a recent win over Bayless. This match is one of the ones that could have easily swung the dual the other way, as it ended 5-5 with Bayless having criteria over her opponent. It’s unclear if Gallegos knew she needed to score or assumed she had the criteria instead. North Central returned in a big way with five straight wins at 116 lbs, 123 lbs, 130 lbs, 136 lbs, and 143 lbs. Probably the biggest win from these matches was Alara Boyd over #1 Reese Larramendy by a 9-4 decision. The Hawkeyes came back with a pin from #1 Marlynne Deede over London Houston at 155 lbs and a super exciting win from #1 Kylie Welker over the three-time champ Yelena Makoyed who is back for her final semester. In the final match at 191 lbs, Traeh Haynes had control of the match over Jaycee Foeller of Iowa, but gave up a shot clock point in the second period to give Iowa a single point in that loss. It is hard to say that any single match was the deciding factor, as Iowa scored at least one point in every single match. A tie would have gone to North Central given their total number of matches, but that just shows how important scoring points even in matches you lose can be for team score. It speaks to the discipline and grittiness of this new Iowa squad. While not the flashiest dual win as we’ve seen against other teams, they did exactly what they needed to do to get the win. The North Central squad they competed against is so tough this season. They had a surprisingly lopsided semifinals match against former champs McKendree, and were so close to closing this gap and overtaking the Hawkeyes. You can see a pretty clear path where many of these matches could be finals matchups at NCWWCs in March. #1 vs #1 Later This Month Fans do not have to wait long to watch #1 Life vs #1 Iowa in a dual meet after their dominant performances over the weekend. The two will compete at the Iowa duals at Carver-Hawkeye on January 21. Results this week in major NCAA, NWCA, and NAIA competitions NWCA National Duals VIEW BRACKETS NUWAY Combat Women’s Open VIEW BRACKETS Upcoming Events January 11: Central Methodist vs William Penn January 12: Southern Oregon vs Menlo January 12: Cumberlands vs Siena Heights January 12: Cumberlands vs Lourdes January 13: York Open January 13: Golden Bear Open January 14: Tornado Open January 14: Presbyterian vs Campbellsville January 14: Lakeland Scramble

The Conference Crossover Conversation is back and features our Big Ten correspondents Ryan Holmes and Kevin Claunch, along with ACC rep Robbie Wendell and the EIWA's Austin Sommer. The four discuss some of the notable duals and individual matches from the last week, along with Nash Hutmacher's transition from the football field to the wrestling mats, Daton (and possibly Vito) weighing in light and much more! For the full video: Click Here

After making through the holiday season, we're back to a normal Tuesday rankings cycle for the duration of the season. Though there wasn't a full slate of duals, there were some high-profile clashes which led to movement in the rankings. The obligatory 125 mention for the week. Once again, the second and third ranked wrestlers suffered losses on the week, which led to some shuffling. At 133 lbs, Chris Cannon has been removed. Multiple sources indicate that he'll miss a significant portion of the season, perhaps the postseason, too. At 157 lbs, Peyton Robb lost but maintains his #3 spot. The defeat was his first in the regular season since February of 2022. That combined with number's four and five losing led him to hold his spot. The undefeated (and pictured) Vince Zerban moves up to #4 ahead of Jacori Teemer, who now has two losses and an injury default, and previous #5 Ed Scott, who was beaten by Teague Travis. For the full rankings: Click Here

Arizona State splits duals Arizona State fell to Iowa State 28-10 with a handful of wrestlers watching from the sidelines. Richard Figueroa and Kyle Parco rested while Cohlton Schultz made his season debut. The Sun Devils only winners included Julian Chlebove winning 13-3 against Ethan Perryman and Kaleb Lakin defeating Zach Redding by pin. Jacori Teemer lost 9-5 to Cody Chittum and Schultz fell 4-3 to Yonger Bastida. The Sun Devils responded with a 43-0 victory against CSU Bakersfield. Chlebove, Teemer and Tony Negron won by pin while Schultz won by tech fall. CSU Bakersfield shut out by ASU The Roadrunners lost six of the ten matches by bonus-point deficits. Even though the Roadrunners failed to win a match, Richard Castro-Sandoval battled ASU’s Triston Mascarenas to a 5-4 loss. In addition, the Roadrunners’ Guillermo Escobedo nearly defeated ASU’s Maxwell Wilner 3-2. Oregon State falls to Nittany Lions The Beavers hosted Penn State in one of the top duals over the weekend. However, the Beavers fell short of an upset, losing 36-3 to the Nittany Lions. The Beavers lone win came in a familiar matchup. Trey Munoz won at 184 pounds against former Cal Poly All-American Bernie Truax 5-2. Besides the Munoz win, the Beavers had three tight matches. Cleveland Belton was taken down in sudden victory and lost 8-5 to Beau Bartlett, Nash Singleton lost 4-1 to Tyler Kasak and Isaiah Crosby lost 10-8 to top-ranked Levi Haines. A positive note is that Oregon State had a record-setting 8,540 fans in attendance during the PSU dual.

From time to time, during the middle or end of a season, you may hear a coach say something like, “They aren’t freshmen anymore.” However, the phrase is uttered, it’s meant to illustrate the fact that they’ve been with the team, practicing for months, experienced multiple competitions, and need to come up big for the team. Maybe some mental and physical errors early on in their season can be tolerated and learned from, but at some point coaches need results. It just so happened that a handful of talented freshmen earned huge wins over the last week. Wins that may change the trajectory of their entire careers. After beating an All-American (or a ranked wrestler), beating another one doesn’t seem like such a daunting task. They have that tangible evidence that the work they’ve put in has paid off, in terms of wins and losses. Not everyone is in that same boat. Some freshmen were thought to be really good, but just didn’t have a high-level opponent to validate such expectations. The schedule finally broke right so they got tested. However the scenario, during the last week of action, plenty of freshmen shined brighter than ever before in the 2023-24 season. And they all did it during a couple of day span. Here’s more about their big wins: Cody Chittum (Iowa State) In our “27 Key Matches to Watch This Weekend” article, we stated that “Chittum has been good thus far, but is still looking for a first signature win.” I think beating two-time All-American Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) qualifies as a “signature win.” Chittum finished his weekend with a football-score victory over California Baptist’s Chaz Hallmark (31-11). That loss was Teemer's first in a dual setting since January 2021 and only the fourth of his career. Braeden Davis (Penn State) It’s been well-documented that Penn State hasn’t been able to find a long-term answer at 125 lb since the graduation of Nico Megaludis in 2016. Maybe, just maybe, they’ve found it with Michigan native Braeden Davis. Davis came into the weekend with an 8-0 record and had passed every test presented to him. That trend continued and he even took it up a notch with an 11-6 victory over 2022 NCAA All-American Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State). We’re approaching Davis’ fifth date of competition so a decision about his status as the Nittany Lions starter should come soon. TK Davis (Gardner-Webb) The rest of the wrestlers we’ll mention are already in the rankings and/or were huge nationally-ranked recruits. TK Davis is a true freshman for Gardner-Webb who appears to be in the midst of a redshirt season. He entered the weekend with a 4-7 record competing only in tournaments. In Davis’ dual debut for Gardner-Webb, he stunned #28 Marlon Yarbrough (Virginia) with a first-period fall. That victory put Gardner-Webb up 9-0 after two matches against the Cavaliers. Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) The Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational was the site for Ryder Downey’s breakout when he earned wins over Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State) and Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern). He took it up a notch over the weekend and defeated CKLV champion Peyton Robb, 6-5. It was Robb’s first regular season loss since February 2022. Tyler Kasak (Penn State) With the injury to All-American Shayne Van Ness, Penn State had a hole in the middle of the lineup at 149 lbs. In steps true freshman Tyler Kasak, for now, possibly for the rest of the season. Kasak competed in the Black Knight Invitational at 141 lbs, but has moved up for two duals since then. The most recent came at Oregon State, where Kasak knocked off redshirt freshman Nash Singleton, who was a sixth-place finisher at the CKLV. Sergio Lemley (Michigan) Thursday night saw Michigan travel to the Sanford Pentagon to take on South Dakota State for the first time in program history. Though the dual was ultimately a loss for Michigan, one of the bright spots was the performance of the Wolverines' two true freshmen. The first of which was Sergio Lemley who used a late score to knock off two-time All-American Clay Carlson. Since his debut, Lemley’s only losses have come to opponents ranked in the top ten. Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) Friday night the rest of the 165 lb weight class was put on notice by redshirt freshman Mitchell Mesenbrink. Coming into Friday’s dual, Mesenbrink had a perfect 9-0 record; however, he hadn’t faced anyone ranked higher than 16th in the nation. That changed as a match against the defending Pac-12 champion, #10 Matt Olguin (Oregon State), hung in the balance. Mesenbrink wasted no time racking up 17 points in a tech fall that took only 3:46 to amass. Mesenbrink is now solidified as a contender at 165 lbs. Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) We’ve had some glimpses at just how good Meyer Shapiro could be thus far, but on Friday night the picture became much clearer. Shapiro crushed #12 Paddy Gallagher with a 15-0 tech fall. Two days later, was the rematch of his much-anticipated CKLV bout against two-time All-American Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech). Unfortunately, this match ended prematurely as Andonian suffered a gruesome-looking injury during a prolonged scramble. Troy Spratley (Oklahoma State) One of the sparks for Oklahoma State during their 22-12 win over NC State Friday night came from leadoff hitter Troy Spratley. Spratley got the Cowboys on the board with a 7-3 win over Jakob Camacho, who has spent time as the number one-ranked wrestler in the nation at 125 lbs. Before beating Camacho, Spratley’s signature win was handing Midlands champion Luke Stanich his only loss of the year. Brayden Thompson (Oklahoma State) The true freshman that shine for Oklahoma State was their 174 lber Brayden Thompson. At the time of the 174 lb bout, the NC State dual was still in question with the Cowboys holding a 13-7 lead. Thompson and the Wolfpack’s Alex Faison were involved with a seven-minute stalemate, of sorts. Each wrestler had an escape after nine minutes of wrestling and needed rideouts to decide the bout. Thompson got another escape and appeared to have a takedown, via cradle, and potentially backpoints; however, that was deemed after the whistle. He would ride Faison long enough to get riding time on his side in the second :30 period.

The first weekend of 2024 saw plenty of action in the Big 12. Oklahoma State took out top-five NC State on the road, firmly establishing themselves as a trophy contender this season. South Dakota State beat a shorthanded Michigan team. Iowa State went 2-0 on the weekend, while Northern Iowa and Wyoming had a tri with Nebraska. Air Force (Overall: 2-2; Conference: 0-2): F&M Open Brackets Air Force sent a number of wrestlers to the Franklin and Marshall Open and came back with one champ and one on the podium. True freshman Josh Cordio made the semis while unseeded and finished fourth. Wyatt Hendrickson dominated his way to a title with five pins and a 9-3 decision over Taye Ghadiali. The only other typical starters were Joe Fernau (149) and Calvin Sund (174), who missed out on placing on the day. Next Up: Air Force wrestles Big 12 opponent Wyoming on January 12th on the road. California Baptist (Overall: 3-5; Conference: 0-2): Dual Results The Lancers competed against the Cyclones in a Big 12 dual. California Baptist won one match at 133 where Hunter Leake beat Ethan Perryman. Eli Griffin dropped a close one-takedown match to Kysen Terukina at 125. Justin Phillips had a close match against MJ Gaitan, but a late score by Gaitan won him the match. Next Up: California Baptist competes against Northern Colorado on January 13th at home. Iowa State (Overall: 8-1; Conference: 1-0): Dual Results (ASU)|Dual Results (CBU) Iowa State had a dominant weekend, beating Arizona State 28-10 and following it up with their first Big 12 win of the season over California Baptist 39-3. The Cyclones won 17 of 20 matches on the weekend. All eight typical starters went 2-0 on the weekend, including Echmendia and Carr scoring bonus points in each. Ethan Perryman started at 133 but went 0-2 while Zach Redding was quickly pinned by Kaleb Larkin. Chittum scored one of the biggest wins, taking out Jacori Teemer 9-5. Yonger Bastida took out Cohlton Schultz with an early takedown; Bastida now has an absurd 60:1 takedown ratio this season. Against California Baptist the team dominated with bonus point wins from Cody Chittum, David Carr, Will Feldkamp, Yonger Bastida, and Anthony Echemendia. Next Up: Iowa State duals against Utah Valley on January 12 and a rematch against Pittsburgh on January 14, both at home. Missouri (Overall: 6-0; Conference: 3-0): No Competition. Next Up: The team hits the road for a long trip to wrestle Stanford on January 10th. North Dakota State (Overall: 1-6; Conference: 0-1): No Competition. Next Up: The team had a dual against Oregon State canceled, so the team doesn’t compete again until January 20th against California Baptist. Northern Colorado (Overall: 7-1; Conference: 0-1): No Competition. Next Up: The Bears compete on the road against Cal Poly and California Baptist on January 12th and 13th. Northern Iowa (Overall: 2-4; Conference: 1-0): Dual Results Northern Iowa had a road tri-dual, taking on Nebraska and Wyoming. Starting against Wyoming the Panthers won eight matches. Trever Anderson dropped a close 4-0 decision to Jore Volk while Adam Allard lost 7-2 to Gabe Willochell. Wyatt Voelker returned to the lineup and notched a 5-3 decision win over tough true freshman Joey Novak. The team also got bonus point wins from Cael Happel, Ryder Downey, RJ Weston, Jared Simma, Parker Keckeisen, and Tyrell Gordon. Against Nebraska, the team ended up dropping a criteria match, 18-17. Trever Anderson again dropped a close match to a top-eight opponent, losing in overtime to Caleb Smith. Happel scored his second win over Brock Hardy this season, with an overtime takedown for an 11-8 win. The Panthers got a big upset at 157 lbs, with Ryder Downey beating Peyton Robb 6-5. Wyatt Voelker was pinned by Silas Allred in a neutral danger position. Tyrell Gordon scored a major decision to tie up the dual, but Nebraska won on criteria. Next Up: Northern Iowa hosts Utah Valley on January 13th. Oklahoma State (Overall: 5-0; Conference: 2-0): Dual Results The Cowboys scored their biggest win of the season, taking out top-five NC State on the road 22-12. Troy Spratley and Teague Travis lead the way with upsets over Jakob Camacho and Ed Scott respectively. Since making the move to 157, Travis is undefeated and now has a top-five win on the resume. Tagen Jamison lost a heartbreaker late in the match to Ryan Jack, while Jordan Williams lost a one-sided major decision to Jackson Arrington. Daton Fix moved to 3-0 on the year in impressive fashion, majoring All-American Kai Orine. Dustin Plott and Dylan Fishback had an entertaining back-and-forth, with Plott taking the match with a 13-8 win. Rumors are that Daton Fix could be making a descent to 125, something to keep an eye on as the season progresses. Next Up: Oklahoma State has two more road duals starting January 12th against Pitt then West Virginia on January 14th. Oklahoma (Overall: 4-2; Conference: 2-2): No Competition. Next Up: The Sooners compete in the Virginia Duals, wrestling Navy on January 12th followed by Wisconsin and Virginia on the 13th. South Dakota State (Overall: 4-2; Conference: 0-0): Dual Results South Dakota State scored their biggest dual win of the season with a 22-17 dual win over Michigan. While it wasn’t the Wolverines typical squad, SDSU still scored solid wins. Tanner Jordan won a regular decision, while Derrick Cardinal, Cael Swensen, Bennett Berge, and Tanner Sloan scored bonus points. Berge scored a ranked win over Jaden Bullock, his first of the season. Cade DeVos went to overtime with Shane Griffith, dropping a 4-1 decision. Clay Carlson made his dual debut, but lost a 6-4 decision to true freshman Sergio Lemley. Next Up: South Dakota State competes at the Virginia duals, taking on Kent State on January 12th followed by Navy and Virginia on January 13th. Utah Valley (Overall: 1-0; Conference: 0-0): No Competition. Next Up: The Wolverines wrestle Iowa State for their first Big 12 dual on January 12th followed by Northern Iowa on January 13th. West Virginia (Overall: 8-1; Conference: 2-1): Dual Results Competing on UFC Fight Pass, the Mountaineers needed some late heroics to take out Columbia 22-21. Down by four with one match left, Michael Wolfgram scored a 15-0 tech fall to secure the tech and the dual win. Earlier in the dual were wins from Jett Strickenberger, Ty Watters, Alex Hornfeck, and Peyton Hall. Strickenberger competed at 133, while Jace Schafer was pinned at 125. Alex Hornfeck and Caleb Dowling went back and forth for the starting spot last year and could be doing the same now. The team was missing Jordan Titus and Brody Conley in this dual as well. Now 8-1 on the year, it is the first time the team has won eight of its nine duals since 1990. Next Up: West Virginia wrestles Columbia on the road on January 7th. Wyoming (Overall: 3-5; Conference: 1-2): Dual Results Competing in a tri against Northern Iowa and Nebraska the Cowboys went 0-2. They lost to UNI 36-6 and Nebraska 43-3. Jore Volk had an impressive day, beating Trever Anderson and Caleb Smith. Gabe Willochell was the only other Wyoming wrestler to win, beating Adam Allard. Next Up: Wyoming hosts Air Force on January 12th for another Big 12 dual.

Ben Pasiuk photo courtesy of Tony DiMarco Several student-athletes across the country will end their wrestling careers after the 2023-2024 season to serve their country. Wrestlers go into college focusing on obtaining their degrees and establishing successful wrestling careers, but these wrestlers in particular are going after those accolades while preparing for their future careers in the United States Military. Wrestling and the military have had an excellent relationship. In fact, Military servicemen and servicewomen hand our wrestlers stop signs after winning Senior Nationals, US Open, and Fargo while sponsoring these tournaments. Soldier Salute and Armed Forces Wrestling Championship are also examples of how wrestling and the military support one another. The two acts joining forces are showing appreciation for our men and women serving our country and representing our country as USA athletes. Beyond the mat and spectacle, many wrestlers will grapple with public service and military service displaying true courage and dedication in the face of daunting challenges. This article aims to highlight our senior student-athletes who will serve off the mat, embodying the essence of heroism in the real world upon a 2024 graduation. Virginia Military Institute Seniors: David Diaz: Plans to use his Chemistry Degree in the civilian sector or pursue graduate school. Brian Jackson: “Following graduation, I will be commissioned into the US Army as an officer.” He plans to pursue law school and eventually become a Judge Advocate Officer. Reid Hampton: Following graduation will be commissioned into the US Navy. He will be working in the Surface Warfare Community pursuing his interest in ship weapon systems. After his service, he plans to use his degree in Mechanical Engineering. Fred Junko: Will graduate with a Civil Engineering Degree. He plans to enter the civilization workforce using his degree. Hopes to stay involved in the sport of wrestling as a coach. Ethan Barrett: Will graduate with a Mechanical Engineering Degree. Plans to attend graduate school to study in the aerospace sector. Noah Roulo: Plans to attend graduate school and possibly continue to wrestle. Isaac Dolph: Has secured a position with BWX Technologies working in their Nuclear Operations Security Group. Josh Yost: Will graduate with a business and economics degree - plans on having a position in construction management. Travis Fridley: Will graduate with a degree in Psychology. Plans to enter the Virginia State Police. Tyler Mousaw: Plans to graduate with a Business and Economics degree, and pursue a position using his degree. The Citadel Seniors: Ben Stemmet: “I will be working at an investment bank. I have already received an offer and signed the contract with Guggenheim Partners in Atlanta. I will be working for the Technology Mergers and Acquisitions group.” Joe Clement: “My plans after graduation will be to first commission into the Army as a second lieutenant and then get a job in New York doing medical sales while serving in the Army Reserve.” Ryan Duffelmeyer: “I am graduating with a civil engineering degree. After graduating I will be commissioned into the Army where I will serve for a minimum of 8 years. I want to branch infantry and serve as an infantry officer. Eventually, I plan on getting involved with anti-sex trafficking operations in my career outside of the Army.” Tucker Allen: “My plans after this year are to get my Masters in Finance or possibly something else along those lines and wrestle for my fifth year. Either here at The Citadel or anywhere else if opportunities present themselves. After that, I plan to pursue Law School and if possible use my last year of eligibility in my first year at law school. I am going to get my masters just to have and also be able to wrestle one more year. As well as use that time to finish preparing and take the LSAT exam.” Josh Stillings: Find a job in the finance sector in and around the Philadelphia area, specifically as a financial advisor, or as an accountant. “I will also continue to coach wrestling at the same club I grew up in called SEPA Wrestling where we coach kids K-12.” West Point Seniors: Logan Brown CDT: “My post-graduation plans are to be an Athletic Intern for a West Point Athletics Program for the first 6 months after graduation ending in December of 2024. Then in January of 2025, I will go to BOLC where I learn the job to specifically be a Field Artillery officer in Lawton, OK. After BOLC, I hope to stay in Lawton, OK for the rest of my 5 years or go where the Army needs me if I cannot. Non-militarily, I will be getting married in June 2024. As for wrestling, I don’t plan to compete after this year, but hopefully, if the opportunity arises I will get to coach my kids one day or help out a local wrestling club just to stay active in the sport!” Dominic Carone CDT: “I plan to branch Field Artillery or Engineers. I would like to be a paratrooper and post with the 82nd Airborne Division in North Carolina. As of now, I plan on staying in the Army for 5-8 years but we will see how everything plays out down the road.” Tanner Craig CDT: “After graduation, I am going to be an athletic intern for the wrestling team for six months. I branched signal with detail in the infantry. So for the first three years, I will be infantry. After being an AI I will go to IBLOC then to ranger school and airborne school.” Daniel Lawrence CDT: “Upon graduating I’ll be an Engineer Officer and hope to become a Dive Officer. I also have personal goals of going to Ranger school and SAPPER school while in the Army. Currently, I’m not sure how long I plan to stay in the Army after my commitment is up. I do, however, hope to go to graduate school to earn a degree in an engineering field. Currently, I do not plan to wrestle competitively after graduating from West Point.” Nathan Lukez CDT: “After graduation, I do not plan to compete anymore. As for my military career, it’s currently up in the air. Assuming my cross-commission gets approved, I will be commissioned as a 2LT into the United States Marine Corps. I have always wanted to serve as a Marine. My father and two uncles were Marines, and I would like to carry on the family lineage of service in the Corps. If afforded the privilege to cross-commission, I am hoping to fly for the Marine Corps, ideally jets. I have always had an interest in aviation since I was a boy. If this process works out, I will attend The Basic School in Quantico, VA, and then report to Pensacola for primary flight training. Marines who I have spoken to have said they coached their sport in their free time at local high schools. I would like to do the same and get into coaching while I have the free time available.” Tyler Morris CDT: “My plans post-graduation are to branch infantry, and in the upcoming month we will all find out where we will be posting to (which base we will start at). All of us will get a month or two off after graduation. I plan on sticking around West Point to help out with the Summer Camps and give back to the West Point community. After that, I will be going to the Basic Officer Leadership Course (BOLC) for my selected branch, IBOLC. After that, I plan on going to Airborne and Ranger School.” Benjamin Pasiuk CDT: “After I graduate from West Point, I plan to branch Field Artillery and if given the opportunity AI at West Point for the first six months, which is where I would be an additional instructor for the wrestling team.” Matthew Williams CDT: “I chose to go into the infantry, so after graduation, I will attend IBOLC (Infantry Basic Officer Leadership Course) and go into my unit after that. I might go into BJJ, but other than that I am not planning on continuing my wrestling career.” Thomas Deck, Mark Montgomery, Julian Sanchez, and Dillon Sheehy are also a part of the West Point graduating class of 2024 but were not available to comment. Navy Seniors: Grant Treaster: Navy Pilot Chase Caprella: Naval Officer Tyler Hunt: Marine Air Luke Lucerne: Marine Ground Christian Hodges: Naval Officer Ben Bancroft: Navy Pilot Andrew Cerniglia: Marine Ground Zander Manuel: Marine Ground David Key: Marine Air Grady Griess: Navy Pilot Christian Bryant: Submarine Warfare Zane Chapman: Marine Ground Rudy Rodriguez: Submarine Warfare Air Force Seniors: Noah Blake: Contracting Wyatt Hendrickson: Air Force Acquisitions Garrett Henigin: Pilot Garrett Kuchan: Medical School at Virginia Tech Crew Squires (mgr): Space Force Acquisitions Giano Petrucelli: Space Force Acquisitions Cal Sund: Air Battle Manager Sam Wolf: Pilot Jeremiah Cronk (mgr): Intelligence

Saturday’s Dual Results Northern Iowa 36 Wyoming 6 125 - Jore Volk (Wyoming) dec Trever Anderson (Northern Iowa) 4-0 133 - Julian Farber (Northern Iowa) dec Garrett Ricks (Wyoming) 4-1 141 - Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) tech Stockton O’Brien (Wyoming) 21-6 149 - Gabe Willochell (Wyoming) dec Adam Allard (Northern Iowa) 8-2 157 - Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) tech Cooper Voorhees (Wyoming) 16-0 165 - RJ Weston (Northern Iowa) fall Brett McIntosh (Wyoming) 6:22 174 - Jared Simma (Northern Iowa) tech Kevin Anderson (Wyoming) 15-0 184 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) tech Tyce Raddon (Wyoming) 18-2 197 - Wyatt Voelker (Northern Iowa) dec Joey Novak (Wyoming) 5-3 285 - Tyrell Gordon (Northern Iowa) maj Mason Ding (Wyoming) 9-0 Nebraska 44 Wyoming 3 125 - Jore Volk (Wyoming) dec Caleb Smith (Nebraska) 5-1 133 - Jacob Van Dee (Nebraska) dec Cooper Birdwell (Wyoming) 7-5 141 - Brock Hardy (Nebraska) maj Cole Brooks (Wyoming) 15-3 149 - Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) fall Gabe Willochell (Wyoming) 1:25 157 - Peyton Robb (Nebraska) tech Cooper Voorhees (Wyoming) 18-1 165 - Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) tech Brett McIntosh (Wyoming) 22-5 174 - Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) fall Kevin Anderson (Wyoming) :50 184 - Elise Brown Ton (Nebraska) dec Tyce Raddon (Wyoming) 10-3 197 - Silas Allred (Nebraska) fall Joey Novak (Wyoming) 2:15 285 - Nash Hutmacher (Nebraska) fall Mason Ding (Wyoming) 2:07 Nebraska 18 Northern Iowa 17 125 - Caleb Smith (Nebraska) dec Trever Anderson (Northern Iowa) 4-1SV 133 - Julian Farber (Northern Iowa) dec Jacob Van Dee (Nebraska) 8-1 141 - Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) dec Brock Hardy (Nebraska) 11-8SV 149 - Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) dec Cael Rahnavardi (Northern Iowa) 7-1 157 - Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) dec Peyton Robb (Nebraska) 6-5 165 - Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) dec RJ Weston (Northern Iowa) 6-3 174 - Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) dec Jared Simma (Northern Iowa) 3-1 184 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) tech Elise Brown Ton (Nebraska) 17-2 197 - Silas Allred (Nebraska) fall Wyatt Voelker (Northern Iowa) 5:53 285 - Tyrell Gordon (Northern Iowa) maj Harley Andrews (Nebraska) 9-1 Virginia 22 Gardner-Webb 19 125 - Drew West (Gardner-Webb) dec Kyle Montaperto (Virginia) 2-0 133 - TK Davis (Gardner-Webb) fall Marlon Yarbrough (Virginia) 2:19 141 - Todd Carter (Gardner-Webb) dec Jack Gioffre (Virginia) 11-5 149 - Zach Price (Gardner-Webb) dec Erik Roggie (Virginia) 8-2 157 - Nick Sanko (Virginia) maj Tyler Brignola (Gardner-Webb) 11-3 165 - Mason Stefanelli (Virginia) tech Tyler Hicks (Gardner-Webb) 19-2 174 - Justin McCoy (Virginia) tech Samuel Mora (Gardner-Webb) 20-5 184 - Jha’Quan Anderson (Gardner-Webb) maj Griffin Gammel (Virginia) 10-1 197 - Colden Dorfman (Virginia) dec Joshua McCutheon (Gardner-Webb) 6-4 285 - Ryan Catka (Virginia) tech Peyton McComas (Gardner-Webb) 20-5 George Mason 18 Virginia 17 125 - Kyle Montperto (Virginia) dec Ben Monn (George Mason) 3-0 133 - Keyveon Roller (Virginia) dec Shawn Nonaka (George Mason) 10-3 141 - Kyren Butler (Virginia) maj Nathan Higley (George Mason) 18-7 149 - Kaden Cassidy (George Mason) dec Erik Roggie (Virginia) 5-4 157 - DJ McGee (George Mason) dec Nick Sanko (Virginia) 7-2 165 - Evan Maag (George Mason) dec Mason Stefanelli (Virginia) 13-7 174 - Justin McCoy (Virginia) maj Paul Pierce (George Mason) 9-1 184 - Malachi Duvall (George Mason) fall Griffin Gammel (Virginia) 7:00 197 - Tyler Kocak (George Mason) dec Colden Dorfman (Virginia) 15-10 285 - Ryan Catka (Virginia) dec Chad Nix (George Mason) 7-3 Michigan State 30 Ohio 11 125 - Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) dec Ryan Meek (Ohio) 8-3 133 - Mason Brugh (Ohio) dec Andrew Hampton (Michigan State) 5-2SV 141 - Jordan Hamdan (Michigan State) maj Aidan Wasza (Ohio) 12-4 149 - Derek Raike (Ohio) maj Braden Stauffenberg (Michigan State) 11-3 157 - Chase Saldate (Michigan State) fall Daniel Segura (Ohio) 2:33 165 - Caleb Fish (Michigan State) dec Garrett Thompson (Ohio) 7-1 174 - Sal Perrine (Ohio) maj Marty Larkin (Michigan State) 15-2 184 - Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) maj Zayne Lehman (Ohio) 8-0 197 - Kael Wisler (Michigan State) maj Austin Starr (Ohio) 14-3 285 - Josh Terrill (Michigan State) fall Jordan Greer (Ohio) 6:05 Rutgers 22 Penn 14 125 - Dean Peterson (Rutgers) dec Ryan Miller (Penn) 10-4 133 - Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) dec Michael Colaiocco (Penn) 9-8 141 - Mitch Moore (Rutgers) dec CJ Composto (Penn) 5-0 149 - Michael Cetta (Rutgers) dec Andy Troczynski (Penn) 9-3 157 - Lucas Revano (Penn) dec Andy Clark (Rutgers) 10-7 165 - Kaya Sement (Penn) dec Luke Gayer (Rutgers) 10-4 174 - Nick Incontrera (Penn) tech Shane Cartagena-Walsh (Rutgers) 21-4 184 - Max Hale (Penn) dec Brian Soldano (Rutgers) 4-2 197 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) tech Cole Urbas (Penn) 18-1 285 - Yaraslau Slavikouski (Rutgers) tech John Stout (Penn) 21-5 Sunday’s Dual Results NC State 43 Hofstra 5 125 - Jarrett Trombley (NC State) maj Dylan Acevedo-Switzer (Hofstra) 9-0 133 - Jacob Cox (NC State) FFT 141 - Ryan Jack (NC State) tech Alex Turley (Hofstra) 20-4 149 - Noah Tapia (Hofstra) tech Trevor Kantor (NC State) 20-3 157 - Ed Scott (NC State) fall Jurius Clark (Hofstra) 1:30 165 - Derek Fields (NC State) tech Matthew Rogers (Hofstra) 19-4 174 - Alex Faison (NC State) tech Eric Shindel (Hofstra) 21-5 184 - Dylan Reinert (NC State) maj Will Conlon (Hofstra) 11-3 197 - Brock Delsignore (NC State) maj Nik Miller (Hofstra) 19-7 285 - Owen Trephan (NC State) maj Keaton Kluever (Hofstra) 11-3 SIU Edwardsville 24 Buffalo 9 125 - Davian Guanajuato (SIU Edwardsville) dec Max Elton (Buffalo) 7-2 133 - Marcel Lopez (SIU Edwardsville) dec Tommy Maddox (Buffalo) 5-2 141 - Eric Almarinez (SIU Edwardsville) maj Caleb Brooks (Buffalo) 15-3 149 - Caleb Tyus (SIU Edwardsville) dec Kaleb Burgess (Buffalo) 5-0 157 - Brock Woodcock (SIU Edwardsville) InjDef Ty Raines (Buffalo) 165 - Hunter Shaut (Buffalo) dec Bradley Gillum (SIU Edwardsville) 5-2 174 - Marcus Petite (Buffalo) dec Dominic Lopez (SIU Edwardsville) 9-4 184 - Deron Pullium (SIU Edwardsville) dec Chase Kranitz (Buffalo) 4-1SV 197 - Sam Mitchell (Buffalo) dec Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville) 7-4 285 - Bryson Buhk (SIU Edwardsville) dec Robbie Unruh (Buffalo) 5-1 Rutgers 31 Rider 5 125 - Tyler Klinsky (Rider) dec Dean Peterson (Rutgers) 9-5 133 - Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) dec Richie Koehler (Rider) 10-4 141 - Mitch Moore (Rutgers) fall Will Betancourt (Rider) 4:14 149 - Michael Cetta (Rutgers) dec Quinn Kinner (Rider) 8-6 157 - Colton Washleski (Rider) dec Andy Clark (Rutgers) 4-1 165 - Tony White (Rutgers) dec Jake Silverstein (Rider) 4-1 174 - Jackson Turley (Rutgers) fall Michael Wilson (Rider) 1:05 184 - Brian Soldano (Rutgers) dec Isaac Dean (Rider) 7-1 197 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) maj Azeem Bell (Rider) 17-5 285 - Yaraslau Slavikouski (Rutgers) maj David Szuba (Rider) 11-2 Cornell 24 Virginia Tech 13 125 - Cooper Flynn (Virginia Tech) dec Brett Ungar (Cornell) 4-3 133 - Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) maj Ethan Qureshi (Cornell) 14-3 141 - Vince Cornella (Cornell) dec Tom Crook (Virginia Tech) 4-2 149 - Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) dec Ethan Fernandez (Cornell) 9-2 157 - Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) InjDef Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) 165 - Julian Ramirez (Cornell) maj Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) 10-0 174 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) dec Benny Baker (Cornell) 9-3 184 - Chris Foca (Cornell) maj Dakota Howard (Virginia Tech) 12-4 197 - Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) maj Andy Smith (Virginia Tech) 11-1 285 - Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) dec Jim Mullen (Virginia Tech) 6-3TB West Virginia 22 Columbia 21 125 - Nick Babin (Columbia) fall Jace Schafer (West Virginia) 5:57 133 - Jett Strickenberger (West Virginia) fall Yianni Vines (Columbia) 5:46 141 - Kai Owen (Columbia) dec Sam Hillegas (West Virginia) 10-8 149 - Ty Watters (West Virginia) maj Richard Fedalen (Columbia) 10-1 157 - Alex Hornfeck (West Virginia) dec Jaden Le (Columbia) 8-4 165 - Peyton Hall (West Virginia) maj Andrew Garr (Columbia) 17-3 174 - Lennox Wolak (Columbia) tech Jack Blumer (West Virginia) 23-7 184 - Aaron Ayzerov (Columbia) maj Dennis Robin (West Virginia) 12-2 197 - Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia) dec Austin Cooley (West Virginia) 4-3 285 - Michael Wolfgram (West Virginia) tech Billy McChesney (Columbia) 15-0 Arizona State 43 CSU Bakersfield 0 125 - Tristan Mascarenas (Arizona State) dec Richard Castro-Sandoval (CSU Bakersfield) 5-4 133 - Julian Chlebove (Arizona State) fall Santino Sanchez (CSU Bakersfield) 2:20 141 - Cody Foote (Arizona State) maj Michael Folch (CSU Bakersfield) 12-1 149 - Kaleb Larkin (Arizona State) maj Brock Rogers (CSU Bakersfield) 10-1 157 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) fall Devyn Flores-Che (CSU Bakersfield) :16 165 - Max Wilner (Arizona State) dec Guillermo Escobedo (CSU Bakersfield) 3-2 174 - Cael Valencia (Arizona State) dec Augustine Garcia (CSU Bakersfield) 5-1 184 - Tony Negron (Arizona State) fall Braden Smelser (CSU Bakersfield) 3:49 197 - Jacob Meissner (Arizona State) dec Ryan Arrington (CSU Bakersfield) 8-2 285 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) tech Jake Andrews (CSU Bakersfield) 17-2 Iowa State 39 California Baptist 3 125 - Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) dec Eli Griffin (California Baptist) 4-2 133 - Hunter Leake (California Baptist) dec Ethan Perryman (Iowa State) 4-0 141 - Anthony Echemendia (Iowa State) tech Emilio Trujillo (California Baptist) 20-3 149 - Zach Redding (Iowa State) dec Dayne Morton (California Baptist) 5-3 157 - Cody Chittum (Iowa State) tech Chaz Hallmark (California Baptist) 30-11 165 - David Carr (Iowa State) fall Timothy Cowan (California Baptist) 1:02 174 - MJ Gaitan (Iowa State) dec Justin Phillips (California Baptist) 10-9 184 - Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) fall Nathan Haas (California Baptist) 1:02 197 - Julien Broderson (Iowa State) dec Eli Sheeran (California Baptist) 7-2 285 - Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) tech Max Acciardi (California Baptist) 21-6

The last month or so has seen some excellent individual tournaments at the high school level. This span concluded with the best tournament out west, the Doc Buchanan Invitational, which took place on Friday and Saturday. The Doc B featured an incredibly deep field with most of California’s best teams, along with plenty of other top teams from the West Coast and all points in between. As we typically do with high-profile high school tournaments, we’ve singled out the wrestlers who have committed to compete at the next level and tracked their progress at the Doc B. These wrestlers have been grouped together by their future schools. Air Force Jack Estevez - Poway, California: 3-2 (160 lbs) Gianni Maldonado - Lake Gibson, Florida: Seventh Place (160 lbs) American Leo Maestas - Clovis West, California: 3-2 (135 lbs) - Class of 2025 Arizona State Nicholas Sahakian - St. John Bosco, California: Runner-Up (288 lbs) Army West Point Joseph Antonio - St. John Bosco, California: Runner-Up (168 lbs) - Class of 2025 Mike Calcagno - Immaculate Conception, Illinois: Fourth Place (218 lbs) Primo Catalano - Chaminade, California: Eighth Place (178 lbs) Bryce Luna: St. Francis, California: 4-2 (135 lbs) Ryland Whitworth - Fountain Valley, California: Seventh Place (218 lbs) Brown Khimari Manns - St. Edward, Ohio: 4-2 (129 lbs) - Class of 2025 Moses Mirabel - Gilroy, California: Fifth Place (147 lbs) California Baptist Paul Kelly - Poway, California: Champion (141 lbs) Sonny Kling - Canyon Springs, California: Champion (193 lbs) Remy Murillo - Canyon Springs, California: Fourth Place (135 lbs) Cal Poly Joe Buck - Clovis, California: Fourth Place (178 lbs) Eugenio Franco - Corona del Mar, California: Seventh Place (193 lbs) Jagger French - Del Oro, California: 2-2 (147 lbs) Carlos Garcia - Oakdale, California: 3-2 (178 lbs) Jake Honey - Bakersfield, California: Fifth Place (178 lbs) Anthony Lucio - Fountain Valley, California: 2-2 (129 lbs) Alek Van Bebber - Kingsburg, California: 3-2 (141 lbs) Hercules Windrath - Fountain Valley, California: 3-2 (141 lbs) Chadron State Mason Villwok - Elkhorn, Nebraska: 2-2 (193 lbs) Columbia Robert Platt - Poway, California: Runner-Up (218 lbs) Cornell Elijah Cortez - Gilroy, California: Champion (135 lbs) - Class of 2025 Isaiah Cortez - Gilroy, California: Champion (129 lbs) - Class of 2025 Cash Henderson - Woods Cross, Utah: Third Place (218 lbs) Illinois Ryan Bennett - St. Edward, Ohio: Champion (147 lbs) Lehigh Jadon Skellenger - Bishop Kelley, Idaho: Fourth Place (147 lbs) Mary Michael Murillo - Bakersfield, California: 2-2 (218 lbs) Maryland Abram Cline - Granite Hills, California: 2-2 (116 lbs) Michigan Brock Mantanona - Palm Desert, California: Champion (153 lbs) Missouri Mack Mauger - Blackfoot, Idaho: Seventh Place (123 lbs) Jace Roller - Bixby, Oklahoma: Sixth Place (141 lbs) Gage Walker - Bixby, Oklahoma: Third Place (129 lbs) NC State Daniel Zepeda - Gilroy, California: Fourth Place (152 lbs) - Class of 2025 North Carolina Beau Priest - Bakersfield, California: Fifth Place (160 lbs) - Class of 2025 Braden Priest - Bakersfield, California: 3-2 (153 lbs) - Class of 2025 Laird Root - Poway, California: Third Place (153 lbs) Northern Illinois Lucan O’Brien - St. Edward, Ohio: Sixth Place (147 lbs) Oklahoma Clay Giddens-Buttram- Bixby, Oklahoma: Fifth Place (168 lbs) Oklahoma State Ishmael Guerrero - Bixby, Oklahoma: Runner-Up (160 lbs) - Class of 2025 Cody Merrill - Gilroy, California: Champion (288 lbs) Oregon State Adrien Reyes - Clovis, California: Fourth Place (168 lbs) - Class of 2025 Pittsburgh Kade Brown - St. Edward, Ohio: Third Place (141 lbs) Princeton Diego Costa - Palm Desert, California: Fourth Place (193 lbs) Conor McCloskey - Buford, Georgia: 2-2 (193 lbs) - Class of 2025 Dale O’Blia - Mullen, Colorado: 3-2 (123 lbs) Purdue Isaiah Quintero - El Dorado, California: Champion (123 lbs) Rutgers Andrew Barbosa - Palm Desert, California: Champion (160 lbs) San Francisco State Antonio Aramburu - Corona del Mar, California: 3-2 (160 lbs) Stanford Grigor Cholakyan - St. John Bosco, California: Third Place (160 lbs) Collin Guffey - Granite Hills, California: Champion (168 lbs) Lars Michaelson - Bremerton, Washington: Fifth Place (193 lbs) EJ Parco - Los Gatos, California: Runner-Up (153 lbs) Angelo Posada - Poway, California: Champion (178 lbs) - Class of 2025 Edwin Sierra - Poway, California: Runner-Up (116 lbs) - Class of 2025 Virginia Adam Butler - St. Edward, Ohio: 3-2 (135 lbs) - Class of 2025 Virginia Tech Drew Gorman: Buford, Georgia: Runner-Up (141 lbs) - Class of 2025

The #11 Hokies are coming off a tough loss to #3 Missouri; the matches were split 5/5, but bonus points went in favor of the Tigers to give them the dual win. It was highlighted by wins from #9 Cooper Flynn over #2 Noah Surtin and #8 Bryce Andonian over #5 Brock Mauller in a thrilling back and forth match. The Hokies will look to rebound in another tough road test, facing #8 Cornell in Ithaca. The Big Red traveled to Blacksburg last year for a dual at the Moss Arts Center that was highlighted by a huge win from Sam Latona over Vito Arujau; unfortunately, it doesn’t sound like we will see that rematch today. There are some very fun matchups on deck for the day, though, including a rematch of CKLV between #8 Bryce Andonian and #15 Meyer Shapiro. This dual has the potential for fireworks, and they always pack a great crowd into the Friedman Wrestling Center. I like the way the dual lines up for the Hokies, but they are going to have to take care of business in front of a hostile Ivy League crowd to take the win back home. Potential Lineups: #11 Virginia Tech v #8 Cornell 125: #9 Cooper Flynn v #14 Brett Ungar 133: #12 Sam Latona v Ethan Qureshi 141: #18 Tom Crook v #17 Vince Corella 149: #2 Caleb Henson v #24 Ethan Fernandez 157: #8 Bryce Andonian v #15 Meyer Shapiro 165: #23 Connor Brady v #3 Julian Ramirez 174: #2 Mekhi Lewis vs Benny Baker 184: #18 Cody Howard OR Sam Fisher v #8 Chris Foca 197: #26 Andy Smith OR Sonny Sasso v #7 Jacob Cardenas 285: #20 Hunter Catka OR Jimmy Mullen v #19 Lewis Fernandes

After the 22-12 win by Oklahoma State over host NC State, we were able to speak with both head coaches along with NC State's multiple-time All-American Trent Hidlay. Below are the links to the interviews: Pat Popolizio (NC State) Trent Hidlay (NC State) John Smith (Oklahoma State)

Friday’s Dual Results Oklahoma State 22 NC State 12 125 - Troy Spratley (Oklahoma State) dec Jakob Camacho (NC State) 7-2 133 - Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) maj Kai Orine (NC State) 11-3 141 - Ryan Jack (NC State) dec Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State) 6-4 149 - Jackson Arrington (NC State) maj Jordan Williams (Oklahoma State) 10-0 157 - Teague Travis (Oklahoma State) dec Ed Scott (NC State) 7-6 165 - Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) dec AJ Kovacs (NC State) 8-3 174 - Brayden Thompson (Oklahoma State) dec Alex Faison (NC State) 2-2RTTB 184 - Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) dec Dylan Fishback (NC State) 13-8 197 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) tech Jersey Robb (Oklahoma State) 21-4 285 - Konner Doucet (Oklahoma State) dec Owen Trephan (NC State) 2-1 SIU Edwardsville 23 Edinboro 9 125 - Davian Guanajuato (SIU Edwardsville) dec Caleb Edwards (Edinboro) 13-6 133 - Marcel Lopez (SIU Edwardsville) dec Lane Aikey (Edinboro) 7-2 141 - Eric Almarinez (SIU Edwardsville) dec Jacob Brennaman (Edinboro) 7-1 149 - Caine Tyus (SIU Edwardsville) dec Colin Roberts (Edinboro) 3-2 157 - Brock Woodcock (SIU Edwardsville) tech Steffan Lynch (Edinboro) 15-0 165 - Max Kirby (Edinboro) dec Bradly Gillum (SIU Edwardsville) 7-5 174 - Joey Arnold (Edinboro) dec Dominic Lopez (SIU Edwardsville) 6-5 184 - Deron Pullium (SIU Edwardsville) dec Brody Evans (Edinboro) 8-2 197 - Jack Kilner (Edinboro) dec Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville) 4-1 285 - Bryson Buhk (SIU Edwardsville) dec Nick Lodato (Edinboro) 7-4SV Michigan State 28 American 12 125 - Jack Maida (American) dec Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) 2-1 133 - Max Leete (American) fall Andrew Hampton (Michigan State) 1:50 141 - Jordan Hamden (Michigan State) dec Raymond Lopez (American) 8-4 149 - Braden Stauffenberg (Michigan State) dec Ethan Ezerencsits (American) 5-2 157 - Chase Saldate (Michigan State) fall Devon Capato (American) 6:08 165 - Caleb Fish (Michigan State) maj Breon Phifer (American) 8-0 174 - Lucas White (American) dec Marty Larkin (Michigan State) 3-2 184 - Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) maj Connor Bourne (American) 12-2 197 - Kael Wisler (Michigan State) tech Liam Volk-Klos (American) 17-2 285 - Josh Terrill (Michigan State) dec William Jarrell (American) 6-3SV Rider 19 Northern Illinois 18 125 - Blake West (Northern Illinois) dec Tyler Klinsky (Rider) 8-5 133 - Nathaniel Genobana (Northern Illinois) dec D’Amani Almodovar (Rider) 6-4 141 - Jacob Brya (Northern Illinois) fall Will Betancourt (Rider) 4:11 149 - Quinn Kinner (Rider) dec Jaivon Jones (Northern Illinois) 9-7 157 - Colton Washleski (Rider) maj Munkhtulga Zuunbayan (Northern Illinois) 10-2 165 - Tommy Bennett (Northern Illinois) dec Jake Silverstein (Rider) 5-4 174 - Michael Wilson (Rider) fall Hayden Pummel (Northern Illinois) 4:48 184 - Isaac Dean (Rider) dec Matt Zuber (Northern Illinois) 4-3 197 - Azeem Bell (Rider) dec Sean Carroll (Northern Illinois) 5-1 285 - Jacobi Jackson (Northern Illinois) dec David Szuba (Rider) 8-6 Iowa State 28 Arizona State 10 125 - Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) dec Tristan Mascarenas (Arizona State) 12-6 133 - Julian Chlebove (Arizona State) maj Ethan Perryman (Iowa State) 13-3 141 - Anthony Echemendia (Iowa State) tech Cody Foote (Arizona State) 20-4 149 - Kaleb Larkin (Arizona State) fall Zach Redding (Iowa State) :48 157 - Cody Chittum (Iowa State) dec Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) 9-5 165 - David Carr (Iowa State) tech Nicco Ruiz (Arizona State) 20-4 174 - MJ Gaitan (Iowa State) dec Cael Valencia (Arizona State) 8-4 184 - Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) dec Tony Negron (Arizona State) 12-7 197 - Julien Broderson (Iowa State) dec Jacob Meissner (Arizona State) 11-4 285 - Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) dec Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) 4-3 Ohio State 21 Cornell 20 125 - Brett Ungar (Cornell) dec Brendan McCrone (Ohio State) 7-1 133 - Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State) fall Ethan Qureshi (Cornell) 1:48 141 - Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) maj Vince Cornella (Cornell) 14-4 149 - Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) dec Ethan Fernandez (Cornell) 8-1 157 - Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) tech Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State) 15-0 165 - Julian Ramirez (Cornell) dec Bryce Hepner (Ohio State) 6-4 174 - Rocco Welsh (Ohio State) tech Benny Baker (Cornell) 20-4 184 - Chris Foca (Cornell) fall Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) 1:48 197 - Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) dec Luke Geog (Ohio State) 8-2 285 - Nick Feldman (Ohio State) dec Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) 6-4 Penn State 36 Oregon State 3 125 - Braeden Davis (Penn State) dec Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) 11-6 133 - Aaron Nagao (Penn State) maj Gabe Whisenhunt (Oregon State) 9-0 141 - Beau Bartlett (Penn State) dec Cleveland Belton (Oregon State) 8-5SV 149 - Tyler Kasak (Penn State) dec Nash Singleton (Oregon State) 4-1 157 - Levi Haines (Penn State) dec Isaiah Crosby (Oregon State) 10-8 165 - Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) tech Matthew Olguin (Oregon State) 17-2 174 - Carter Starocci (Penn State) tech Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) 19-3 184 - Trey Munoz (Oregon State) dec Bernie Truax (Penn State) 5-2 197 - Aaron Books (Penn State) tech Justin Rademacher (Oregon State) 19-4 285 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) tech Boone McDermott (Oregon State) 21-5

It’s not a super busy week in the ACC, but there are some high-level duals on tap within the conference. Duke and UNC are off this week and Pitt has sent some starters to the F&M Open. UVA will “host” a tri with Gardner-Webb and George Mason at the ARMS Duals at St. Christopher’s School in Richmond on Saturday--I will preview some matches to watch once I get the final lineups. The biggest matchups will be on Friday and Sunday with two top-10 duals. On Sunday, the Hokies (#11 Dual #10 Tourney) will travel to New York to face Cornell (#8 Dual #8 Tourney); we will break that dual down later this weekend. The big one on tap for this evening will be NC State (#7 Dual #2 Tourney) hosting Oklahoma State (#10 Dual #6 Tourney) to open their home slate at Reynolds Coliseum. If we see both teams at full strength, there could be 10 ranked versus ranked matchups, including top-10 matchups at 133, 141, and 184. Though this time of year between injuries and illnesses, we seem to have several “OR”s listed on the probable lineups. Regardless of the final lineups, this dual will have fireworks from the opening whistle. 125: #17 Jakob Camacho OR Jarrett Trombley v #20 Troy Spratley OR Sam Smith Camacho is looking to bounce back from a rough showing at the Collegiate Duals and a scrappy Troy Spratley would be a good place to start. 133: #5 Kai Orine v #3 Daton Fix OR Reece Witcraft Orine has looked better every time he has stepped onto the mat this year. Fix only has two matches this season, but as we well know, he is one of the best wrestlers in the country. I would love to see these two get after it, it has absolute fireworks potential. 141: #4 Ryan Jack v #7 Tagen Jamison OR Sammy Alvarez Jack has quietly put together an impressive season, as has Jamison. Contrasting styles but this will be an important bout for the Pack to get some momentum. 149: #3 Jackson Arrington v #19 Jordan Williams Arrington continues to impress. He has incredible poise and mat presence for being a true sophomore. Williams can be explosive and dangerous, but I think Arrington is able to avoid being phased by that. 157: #5 Ed Scott v #23 Teague Travis After a slower start to the season, Ed Scott has been on a tear. He is looking to continue that run against Teague Travis. 165: #18 Derek Fields OR AJ Kovacs v #2 Izzak Olejnik OR Joey Sanchez A double “OR” at 165. I’m hopeful we get to see Olejnik, he is so fun to watch and will be a very tough test for whoever the Pack sends out. 174: #31 Alex Faison v #28 Brayden Thompson This is a big toss-up match and could have major implications on how this dual shakes out. The Pack will be looking to the veteran Faison for a big win in his home debut this season. 184: #5 Dylan Fishback OR Brock Delsignore v #3 Dustin Plott This is the match I have had circled. Fishback has put together an incredible redshirt freshman campaign but will face a very tough and experienced Dustin Plott. I actually like the style matchup in favor of Fishback, he is relentless, but Plott can be tough to score on and finds ways to win tight matches. 197: #4 Trent Hidlay v #12 Luke Surber OR Jersey Robb The soon-to-be mayor of Raleigh, Trent Hidlay, will be looking for a big win to open his final season at home for the Pack. We have come to expect Hidlay to be in the hunt for bonus points in every bout, I don’t see this one any differently. 285: #16 Owen Trephan OR Isaac Trumble v #11 Konnor Doucet I wondered if this one would be listed as an option for the Pack. Isaac Trumble has been in redshirt, opening 197 for Hidlay for his final season. Trumble has been wrestling on the freestyle circuit--winning a U23 World Championship at 97kg. He is coming off winning the Midlands title at 285 last week. As it stands, he is still in redshirt… The Pack has a solid starter in Trephan who was an ACC Champion and NCAA qualifier last year. I like this matchup for Trephan and it could be a big win for him if he is able to take out Doucet. I’m very pumped for this dual, the atmosphere at Reynolds is always amazing and they will have a sell-out crowd tonight. I’m about to hit the road to Raleigh myself so I can see this one in person.

Earlier this week, South Dakota State officially had ten wrestlers in the national rankings for the first time. On Thursday night, those ten wrestlers took down the ninth-ranked University of Michigan team that got a pair of big wins from true freshmen and saw Austin Gomez make his debut in the maize and blue. The Jackrabbits got bonus point wins from Derrick Cardinal (133 lbs), Cael Swensen (157 lbs), and Tanner Sloan (197 lbs). Another wrestler who got bonus was redshirt freshman #26 Bennett Berge who downed #12 Jaden Bullock, 14-5. In the most anticipated bout of the evening, Michigan’s Shane Griffith handed Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational champion Cade DeVos his first loss of the season with a takedown in sudden victory overtime. South Dakota State is back in action next week at the Virginia Duals, while Michigan will open up its Big Ten slate with duals against Maryland and Michigan State. #13 South Dakota State 22 #9 Michigan 17 125 lbs - Tanner Jordan (South Dakota State) over Wilfried Tanefeu (Michigan) 5-3 133 lbs - Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State) fall Nolan Wertanen (Michigan) 6:39 141 lbs - Sergio Lemley (Michigan) dec Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) 6-4 149 lbs - Austin Gomez (Michigan) dec Alek Martin (South Dakota State) 9-4 157 lbs - Cael Swensen (South Dakota State) maj Zack Mattin (Michigan) 13-2 165 lbs - Beau Mantanona (Michigan) dec Tanner Cook (South Dakota State) 4-2 174 lbs - Shane Griffith (Michigan) dec Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) 4-1SV 184 lbs - Bennett Berge (South Dakota State) maj Jaden Bullock (Michigan) 14-5 197 lbs - Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) tech Brendin Yatooma (Michigan) 17-1 285 lbs - Lucas Davison (Michigan) tech Luke Rasmussen (South Dakota State) 20-4

The new “weekend” of wrestling begins tonight as the University of Michigan travels to South Dakota State to face off with the Jackrabbits for the first time. As I was getting this week’s Live Streaming Guide together, I noticed it was an incredible week for duals. Though there aren’t a lot of them as some teams are licking their wounds from Midlands/Salute/Scuffle; what they lack in numbers is made up for in quality. Not only are good teams tangling, but there are some awesome individual matchups on the docket. Sometimes you can have good teams wrestling, but none of their top guys hit. Not this week. There’s a lot of them. About 27 of them. Maybe more; hopefully not less. Here’s a little bit about 27 prospective matches on tap for the next four days. 125 lbs - #3 Caleb Smith (Nebraska) vs. #8 Jore Volk (Wyoming) Appalachian State transfer Caleb Smith has been an excellent fit in a loaded Nebraska lineup. He is 13-1 with the Big Red, with his only loss coming against Jore Volk at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Smith has a chance to avenge that loss and solidify himself as a bona fide contender at 125 lbs. Volk has built on an impressive freshman campaign, by winning the Reno Tournament of Champions, finishing fifth in Vegas and making the Soldier Salute finals. 125 lbs - #9 Cooper Flynn (Virginia Tech) vs. #14 Brett Ungar (Cornell) An injury to 2023 All-American Eddie Ventresca has led to Cooper Flynn getting pulled out of Olympic redshirt for the Hokies. Flynn’s debut saw him knock off CKLV champion Nico Provo (Stanford) and since then he’s defeated then-#2 Noah Surtin (Missouri) and finished fourth at the Midlands. Ungar made the Vegas finals opposite Provo. During the 2023 version of this dual, Ungar edged Ventresca in tiebreakers. He’d later finish his freshman year in the NCAA Round of 12. 125 lbs - #23 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) vs. #27 Eli Griffin (California Baptist) This match doesn’t have the rankings cache that most others on this list, but it has the potential for some fun. Kysen Terukina has been hard to read. He started the season with a dominating major decision victory over two-time All-American Eric Barnett (Wisconsin). Since then, he’s gone 2-5 albeit against a difficult schedule. Can he get things back on track against the surprise Midlands finalist Eli Griffin? Griffin posted four bonus point wins on his way to the Midlands finals. Since both schools compete out of the Big 12, this match also has conference-seeding implications. 125 lbs - Braeden Davis (Penn State) vs. #15 Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) True freshman Braeden Davis appears to be getting the call for Penn State as the national favorites attempt to lock down a starter at 125 lbs. Davis has passed every test thus far with an 8-0 record and two wins over past national qualifiers. The competition gets much stiffer with 2022 All-American Brandon Kaylor. Kaylor was fourth in Vegas and is a good benchmark for whether or not Davis should be kept in redshirt. 133 lbs - #2 Vito Arujau (Cornell) vs. #12 Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) The only wrestler to defeat Vito Arujau during his national championship-winning 2022-23 season was Virginia Tech’s Sam Latona. The pair met three times during the season and Latona grabbed the victory in dual competition. Though Arujau prevailed in Vegas and Tulsa, Latona pushed him as much as anyone else in the country. They say “styles make fights” and the length of Latona could be an issue for Arujau, who tends to have that advantage against most other competitors. 133 lbs - #2 Vito Arujau (Cornell) vs. #13 Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State) Before getting to Latona, Vito Arujau will have stud redshirt freshman Nic Bouzakis on Friday night. Bouzakis has had an interesting first half of the season, to say the least. He suffered a pair of losses in his Clarion Open debut and was upset in the first round of the CKLV. Bouzakis then stormed back through the consolation bracket with seven straight wins to take third place. At the Collegiate Duals, Bouzakis was edged by Northern Iowa’s Julian Farber, then pinned All-American Kai Orine to help spark Ohio State’s upset of NC State. 133 lbs - #3 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) vs. #5 Kai Orine (NC State) Daton Fix was a late-scratch in Vegas so we didn’t get to see this match in December. With Fix out of the picture, Orine went on to claim the CKLV title. In the colossal clash between OSU and NC State, this is the only potential matchup we’ve seen before. In the 2022 NCAA Round of 16, Fix downed Orine, 7-4. I’m not sure that result has much bearing on Friday's contest as Orine has improved significantly since then. 133 lbs - #9 Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) vs. #11 Michael Colaiocco (Penn) Both of these wrestlers had prominent finishes at the Midlands though they did not square off against each other. Dylan Shawver was a finalist, while Michael Colaiocco finished fourth. Both suffered losses to Michigan’s Dylan Ragusin along the way. They also had another common opponent in Zeth Romney (Cal Poly). Shawver earned his second win of the season over Romney, while Colaiocco was majored by the Mustang freshman for third place. 141 lbs - #4 Ryan Jack (NC State) vs. #7 Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State) I’m not sure if we’ll see this one as Tagen Jamison hasn’t competed since the Bedlam Dual on December 10th. Just a week prior, he surprised the country with a fifth-place showing in Vegas. There he posted a win over a returning All-American and two other national qualifiers. Should he be unable to go, Sammy Alvarez is listed as a potential starter by Oklahoma State. Alvarez, originally an NC State recruit, was a national qualifier for Rutgers in 2020. The Vegas runner-up at 141 lbs was Ryan Jack, who did not meet Jamison on his way to the finals. Both of Jack’s 2023-24 losses have come to Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez. 141 lbs - #6 Brock Hardy (Nebraska) vs. #8 Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) Last year, Brock Hardy defeated Cael Happel 6-1 in the finals of the CKLV. Hardy would later make the Big Ten finals and finished sixth in the national tournament. Happel sputtered at the Big 12 meet and went 2-2 at NCAA’s. The two met at this year’s CKLV and Happel turned the tables in a wild 15-13 affair. Overall, Hardy has been more consistent, which has led to their current rankings. Another win over Hardy should be enough to push Happel past the Cornhusker star. 141 lbs - #11 CJ Composto (Penn) vs. #13 Mitch Moore (Rutgers) This should represent the most significant test of the year for Mitch Moore, who had joined Rutgers as a graduate transfer in his final year of eligibility. In his last outing, Moore defeated 2023 NCAA Round of 12 finisher Malyke Hines to capture a title at the Sheridan Invitational. Moore has yet to lose while wearing Rutgers’ block R. Looking to clear the zero on Moore’s record is Midlands runner-up CJ Composto. Composto was Penn’s first All-American during Roger Reina’s second tenure at the helm for the Quakers in 2022. Earlier this year, Composto won the Keystone Classic after suffering a pair of losses during his season debut at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic. 149 lbs - #12 Nash Singleton (Oregon State) vs. Tyler Kasak (Penn State) Similar to the 125 lbs weight class, you have a wrestler with a good ranking for Oregon State against a true freshman from Penn State. In December, word trickled out of State College that 2023 NCAA third-place finisher Shayne Van Ness would miss the remainder of the year due to an injury. There was no clear-cut successor, but Tyler Kasak who started the year at 141, got the call against Lehigh and responded with a 7-5 win over Drew Munch. Nash Singleton put himself on the map with a sixth-place finish in Las Vegas. In Vegas, Singleton’s best victory came over Rider’s national qualifier Quinn Kinner. 157 lbs - #3 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) vs. #13 Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) One of the best developments for Northern Iowa out in Vegas was Ryder Downey. Though he only went 2-2, Downey notched a pair of really solid wins in a loaded bracket. Since then, Downey’s proven he’s more than just a one-hit wonder. Winning that Vegas bracket was Peyton Robb who prevailed over the 157 lb weight class for a second straight year. Robb is undefeated and showing no ill effects from the gruesome post-NCAA inflection that almost cost him his leg. 157 lbs - #4 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) vs. #20 Cody Chittum (Iowa State) In two 2023-24 tournaments, Jacori Teemer has placed second (CKLV) and first (Midlands). Teemer missed last season due to an injury, but has not shown any rust during the first half of this campaign. His challenger from Iowa State is freshman Cody Chittum. Chittum has been good thus far, but is still looking for a first signature win. Beating the two-time All-American would definitely qualify as one. This should be a good style clash with Teemer typically looking for explosive attacks, while Chittum is more of a grinder. 157 lbs - #8 Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) vs. #15 Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) Everyone had this match circled as “must-watch” in the Round of 16 at the CKLV Invitational. True freshman sensation, Meyer Shapiro, prevailed via major decision; however, he did not get on the podium and went 2-2. Bryce Andonian rebounded to finish fourth. Andonian was recently in dual action against Missouri’s three-time All-American Brock Mauller and managed to win a 13-10 shootout. 157 lbs - #9 Will Lewan (Michigan) vs. #16 Cael Swensen (South Dakota State) I’m sure this match has been circled on Cael Swensen’s calendar since the 2023-24 schedule was released. Swensen was knocked out of the 2023 NCAA Tournament in the bloodround by Michigan’s Will Lewan, to the tune of, 7-4. Swensen has had a ridiculously tough schedule thus far. His record is a pedestrian 5-5; however, those five losses have come to #2 Jared Franek (Iowa), #3 Peyton Robb (x2), #8 Andonian, and #11 Michael Blockhus (Minnesota). It doesn’t get any easier tonight with Lewan. Typically, Lewan wrestles close bouts, so this could come down to the final buzzer. 157 lbs - #12 Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State) vs. #15 Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) Shapiro’s busy weekend starts with Paddy Gallagher on Friday night. It’s a match between two wrestlers who were ranked #1 overall in their respective recruiting classes, 2023 (Shapiro) and 2021 (Gallagher). Gallagher had an up-and-down redshirt freshman season last year, but has been much more consistent this time around. When we last saw Gallagher, at the Collegiate Duals, he avenged a CKLV loss to Ryder Downey. 165 lbs - #9 Garrett Thompson (Ohio) vs. #14 Caleb Fish (Michigan State) I’m not sure there’s another wrestler that’s had a breakout campaign like Garrett Thompson has had in 2023-24. After going 11-9 as a part-time starter at 157 lbs last season, Thompson has moved up to 165 and has won 16 of 20 matches. He finished fifth in Vegas amidst a loaded field. Thompson’s next challenge is 2023 NCAA Round of 12 finisher Caleb Fish. Fish is coming off a fifth-place showing at the Midlands and has dropped a couple of slots in the rankings. Bouncing back by beating Thompson, could put him back in the top ten. 165 lbs - #10 Matthew Olguin (Oregon State) vs. #12 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) Once again, we have a freshman from Penn State using an opponent from Oregon State as a measuring stick. Mitchell Mesenbrink has been utterly dominant with seven bonus-point wins among his nine 2023-24 matches. Just by the way things have broken, Mesenbrink has only faced one ranked opponent. Now, he’ll have 2023 Pac-12 champion, Matthew Olguin, a seventh-place finisher at the CKLV. Last year, when these two teams tangled in State College, Olguin fell by a 3-2 decision to Alex Facundo. 174 lbs - #4 Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) vs. #5 Shane Griffith (Michigan) What a massive potential matchup between two top-five 174 lbers. Cade DeVos appears to have taken the next step and has gone from a possible medal threat to a high All-American finisher. He did so by winning the CKLV Invitational. 2021 NCAA champion Shane Griffith was the top seed at that tournament, but he was upset in the early going and defaulted out of the tournament. If SDSU has hopes of an upset, they’ll probably need to get this one. 184 lbs - #1 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) vs. #4 Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) We should get another round of Keckeisen/Pinto in the UNI/Nebraska dual. The two met in Vegas and Keckeisen grabbed an 8-4 victory. That match was one of only two regular decisions for Keckeisen amongst his 13 matches this season. This pair always makes for a good matchup with the physicality and technique of Keckeisen, mixed with the wide-open attacks by Pinto. 184 lbs - #2 Bernie Truax (Penn State) vs. #6 Trey Munoz (Oregon State) We’ve just got a ridiculous amount of top-notch 184 lb bouts this week. An upset or two could shake up the entire upper tier at this weight class. This match is the renewal of a former Pac-12 rivalry as Bernie Truax, formerly of Cal Poly, takes on Trey Munoz. Truax took the first four matches in this series; however, Munoz pinned him in the 2022 Pac-12 finals. This series goes back to 2021 when Munoz was wrestling 174 lbs for Arizona State. 184 lbs - #3 Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) vs. #5 Dylan Fishback (NC State) Another great potential matchup from the Oklahoma State/NC State dual has the third (Dustin Plott) and seventh place (Dylan Fishback) finishers from Vegas finally going toe-to-toe. The duo did not meet at the CKLV. Fishback has been one of the most impressive freshmen in the nation; while Plott has moved up from 174 lbs and looks as good as ever. Plott’s only loss at 184 lbs came to Pinto early in the CKLV. He’d later avenge the loss by wrestling for third place. 184 lbs - #8 Chris Foca (Cornell) vs. #14 Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) Chris Foca and Gavin Hoffman were two of the four returning All-Americans who did not place at the CKLV meatgrinder that was 184 lbs. Though he didn’t crack the top eight, Gavin Hoffman did score a win over an opponent that did (Sam Fisher). Chris Foca used the Collegiate Duals to get back on track. He scored a win over CKLV finalist Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) and Reece Heller (Pittsburgh). A week before the Duals, Heller majored Hoffman. 197 lbs - #11 Silas Allred (Nebraska) vs. #21 Joey Novak (Wyoming) One of the better possible bouts in the Nebraska/Wyoming dual comes at 197 lbs where Big Ten champion Silas Allred is slated to meet the Cowboy's true freshman Joey Novak. The two met in Vegas and Allred prevailed with a second-period fall. Since then, Novak finished eighth (Allred was fifth) and had respectable showings at the Reno TOC and Soldier Salute. He’s proven to be one of the few true freshmen that can handle to rigors and physicality it takes to compete at 197 lbs. 285 lbs - #1 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) vs. #12 Boone McDermott (Oregon State) We haven’t seen top-ranked Greg Kerkvliet since he defeated the returning EIWA champion, Nathan Taylor, in a dual meet victory over Lehigh. Kerkvliet is listed among Penn State’s probable’s for Friday Night’s dual at Oregon State. There he’ll meet Boone McDermott. Though McDermott had spent the last three years at Rutgers, the two never crossed paths. McDermott appears to be on the verge of putting together his finest collegiate campaign. He finished fourth in Vegas and two of his three losses on the year have come to the same opponent (Taye Ghadiali - Campbell) 285 lbs - #3 Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) vs. #5 Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) Here’s one I really hope we get to see. As of right now, Cohlton Schultz has yet to compete during the 2023-24 campaign. The three-time All-American is number one on the Olympic Greco-Roman ladder and has turned his focus towards making the team. If he does make his season debut, it’s quite a tough opponent to do it against. Yonger Bastida has taken off after moving up from 197 lbs. Bastida is a perfect 12-0 with a Vegas title under his belt. Thus far, he’s been able to amass bonus points in 8 of his 12 wins. It’ll be interesting to see how Schultz is able to slow down the big man from Cuba.

I’ve been sick as a dog for a month and traveling non-stop, which is why I haven’t done a show in a while. But you know I’m chomping at the bit to talk about Cornell mailing it in at Collegiate Duals, AJ Ferrari’s unprecedented double bird splits, and why duals just don’t matter despite very intelligent and life-long wrestling people insisting that they do. Case in point, last night #9 Michigan sat at least 40% of their lineup in a dual loss to #13 South Dakota State. Call them ducks. Call them rest. Call them load management. Call them whatever you will. When fans tune in to see Chris Cannon and get Nolan Wertanan, we’re bummed. And if the past is a prologue we’re in for more of it. Earl has a nice write-up on all the big individual matches slated for this weekend. But before he even published he told me, ‘I’m bracing for the worst.’ Editor's Note: We now have reason to believe that the matchup pictured (Vito Arujau/Sam Latona) on the referenced article will not occur. I’m hoping the scratches will be limited, but you best believe those that don’t materialize are going to be added to the war chest above which I will rant about next week. Here’s what else I’m burning on this weekend. 5. Nash Hutmacher To Debut For The Husker It could be something; it could be nothing. But Nebraska has a team this year that is very strong in both dual and tournament formats. A four-time state champ and Fargo titleist, Hutmacher, the starting nose tackle for the football team, shed 45 lbs to make weight for this weekend’s tri-meet vs. Wyoming and Northern Iowa. While my optimism is muted, it will certainly be interesting. It’s a rare occurrence when we get a starting DI football player coming back to wrestling. I’m skeptical of anyone who’s been off the mat for that amount of time. But if he proves to be even just ‘solid’ he’ll boost an already Top 4 dual team. 4. Cohlton Schultz Returns in Banger vs. Yonger A big old zero. That’s what I’ve been earning at HWT in my fantasy league all nine weeks this year because Cohlton Schultz is the only 285 I have on the roster and he’s yet to wrestle. But indications from ASU communications are that the perennial All-American will indeed go this weekend. And his first match is a doozy: Iowa State’s Yonger Bastida who is up to #3 in the country after wrestling 197 last year. It’s not only a Top 5 matchup, but a clash in styles as Schultz is among the largest 285’s and a Greco specialist while Yonger is among the smallest and a free-wheeling leg attacker. 3. Oklahoma State in Raleigh This dual was supposed to take place on a Navy base in Sicily. But when tensions arose in Israel the plan was scrapped. What that means to me is that I didn’t get the excuse to go to a place I’ve wanted to see for a long time. But it’s good news for you because now you won’t have to wake up in the middle of the night to watch what should be an amazing dual. Six of the ten matchups feature opponents ranked within five spots of each other. 2. Braeden Davis’ Audition I’ve been the conductor of the start-Braeden-Davis train. He got the nod vs. Hofstra on December 12th and should get his first high-caliber opponent this weekend in #15-Brandon Kaylor, a former All-American. Davis is 8-0 on the year winning six by bonus. I already think Davis should be the full-time starter and postseason entry, but a win over Kaylor should put the issue to rest for the Nittany Lions. 1. Meyer’s Big Weekend The no-brainer #1 prospect of 2023, Meyer Shapiro came into college with much fanfare after winning world titles in both the Cadet and Junior divisions. His first college assignment was the uber-tough CKLV where he started off hot with a 16-4 major over All-American Bryce Andonian. But just when we started to crown him this year’s NCAA Champ, he fell to #7 Daniel Cardenas and then, in an uninspiring bout where he just didn’t look himself, to #14 Trevor Chumbley. While we thought we’d get a chance to see him rebound at Collegiate Duals, he didn’t go against Iowa State’s Cody Chittum. But he’ll have a couple good ones this weekend with #12 Paddy Gallagher (on Friday) who’s wrestling the best he has in his college career and then (on Sunday) Andonian again.

Well, that was some ending to 2023, eh? We had all kinds of excitement, drama, Zapruder-like video breakdowns, and even some inappropriate images. And that was just the Soldier Salute finals! But now it is 2024 and we have an entire second half of the season to get worked up about. We can say goodbye to the burden of trying to floor tournaments as it’s mostly all duals for the next two months. But fear not, tournament fans. There are still some open tournaments this weekend, including the much-anticipated Bongo Bayly going on somewhere in the land. But before that, it’s time to get cracking on the first mailbag of the new year! I swear, I‘ll hit my hundredth mailbag this year then probably ride off into the sunset. Double birds blazing. (Just kidding I’m not going anywhere) In honor of 2024, pick a wrestler currently ranked 20th and a wrestler currently ranked 24th to make the podium in March. Salty Walkon An interesting enough question, so I’ll bite. After perusing the Intermat rankings, I found a few viable options here. Naturally, 125 has two good options in Troy Spratley and Diego Sotelo. With the way that weight is going, anyone can do anything. I also like Josh Koderhandt and Danny Fongaro at 141 but that class has a solid top six and could be hard to penetrate. But if this was a fantasy draft and we were all picking one from each rank then I’m going with Cody Chittum first overall. We know how talented he is so it’s just a question of whether he develops during the season or succumbs to the grind like many a true frosh before him. Give me Chittum as my 20 and Fongaro as my 24 and let’s do this. Why are there two ranks for one weight in women's wrestling? I saw a handful of weights on Iowa's team with two ranked wrestlers. JD Money Because of the metric system? But seriously, that is because the women’s National tournaments are allowed to have multiple team entries per weight. Thus, making anyone worthy of a ranking eligible whether they are technically a starter or not. Who would win in a match, Dan Gable or Jagger? Remember, Dan Gable is 75 years old and has an artificial hip so I’m only setting the line at Gable -14.5. Jkos11 Remember, Jagger is 45 years old and on the fast track to two artificial lungs. Gable by a million. Unless I can hit him with a lefty headlock in the first 30 seconds. My beautiful friend, it's the New Year and several of PSU's big hitters have only a handful of matches... Any concerns the workload management has gone too far? Saltier Walkon Not really, And I’m certainly not going to argue with the coaching methods of one Cael Sanderson. But it does feel like Penn State has been MIA this year. It’s like Phil Hellmuth walking into the World Series of Poker 45 minutes late. He’s just not worried about it. Cael has a veteran team who know how to prepare themselves throughout the season. Plus, a good handful of Nittany Lions were supposed to compete at Senior Nationals until ultimately bowing out. Don’t worry, you'll see more than enough blue and white singlets come March than you’ll know what to do with. What's Jagger's favorite pro wrestling moniker and with word that pork rolls may be served at Rutgers @ VT next year, would Jagger make his appearance in Blacksburg for Pork Roll night? Ethan Aguigui See, you think you’re trolling me by stealing another Jersey gimmick after ruining Jagger Night. But you forgot one small detail. I’m a Taylor Ham man. You can’t troll me. It’s impossible. But I do like the way you guys do wrestling nicknames. Hit me with a Hunter Hearst Catka and I’ll pop. Do you think “Ferrari-ing” is going to become the new “planking?” Fantasy Championship Wrestling We can’t have guys pulling groins out there trying to go viral. It’s not worth it. Fongaro did it already. The joke has been made. And I’m certainly not one for repeating the same joke over and over. Couldn’t be me. What do you think of The Replacements? Oldest and Greatest The movie or the band? Doesn’t matter. Not a huge fan of either.

While the Midlands tournament may have lacked a bit of star power compared to some of the stacked fields of the past, the event still took place over the holiday break. As always, there were several wrestlers who put up impressive stat lines and those competitors are celebrated here. Michael Beard finishes with absurd Point Differential No. 9 Michael Beard had a borderline incredible performance in the 197-pound bracket. The Lehigh wrestler defeated all five of his opponents and averaged a tournament-high 3.10 points per minute. At the same time, he allowed his opponents to only score 0.34 points per minute. His resulting +2.77 point differential was the second highest of the event. The only wrestler with a better differential (Matthew Cover of Princeton) defaulted out after winning his first match. Beard opened his tournament with a pair of 18-1 technical falls over Carter Blough (Michigan State) and Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville). He then bested a pair of Virginia Tech teammates in Sonny Sasso and Andy Smith. Smith, the number 26th ranked wrestler in the most recent InterMat rankings, failed to even notch a single point before he was defeated via fall in the waning seconds of the second period. In the finals, Beard’s run continued with a 15-0 technical fall over No. 10 Luke Stout (Princeton). While Beard defeated the Princeton wrestler earlier this season, he seriously widened the gap in this rematch. Their first bout of the season, back in November was an 18-8 major decision. Dean Hamiti relies on his defense Down at 165 pounds, Wisconsin’s No. 6 Dean Hamiti was nearly as dominant as Beard. He averaged 2.23 points per minute, allowed 0.17 points per minute and therefore finished with a +2.07 point differential on his path to the title. While Hamiti has always been a prolific scorer in the neutral position and on top, his defense was perhaps the most impressive aspect of his Midlands performance. He surrendered four points in his opening match against Tate Geiser (Cleveland State). After that Hamiti did not allow a single point in his next four matches. He pinned Luke Gayer (Rutgers) and Beau Mantanona (Michigan) before they could get anything going. In the semifinals, he wrestled for the full seven minutes against No. 17 Maxx Mayfield (Northwestern) and walked away with a 10-0 major decision. For the title, Hamiti faced off against No. 11 Peyton Hall (West Virginia). He once again went the full regulation and did not give up a single point. Prior to the finals, Hall had been on quite a scoring tear. In his first four matches, he averaged 2.07 points per minute and won all four matches with bonus. Hamiti was able to completely stifle that offense and pick up his own bonus-point victory. Dakota Howard racks up the points While he did not win the tournament, Virginia Tech’s No. 18 Dakota Howard had a big-time scoring tournament at 184 pounds. He averaged 2.68 points per minute on his way to a fourth-place finish. His only defeat outside of a medical forfeit out of the third-place match was a quarterfinal loss against No. 17 James Conway (Franklin & Marshall) in sudden victory. Even in defeat, Howard managed to score eight points. Things really took off for him in the consolation bracket where he scored 22, 22, and 14 points respectively against No. 20 Nate Dugan (Princeton), Hayden Filipovich (Purdue) and No. 29 Tony Negron (Arizona State). Other things I liked and didn’t like Yes, I stole the idea for this section from ESPN basketball writer Zach Lowe. Sue me. Actually, please do not sue me. The following are a few things I came across while reviewing the brackets and collecting data that I thought I would share. All back points technical fall There has been some consternation among the wrestling Twitterati that the advent of the three-point takedown has devalued mat wrestling. There might be some merit to that argument, but do not tell that to Northwestern’s Sam Cartella. In the consolation bracket, the 149-pounder faced off against Jaivon Jones (Northern Illinois). After a scoreless first period, Jones won the toss and deferred to Cartella. The Wildcat took the top position and proceeded to score four consecutive sets of four-point near falls and finish the match via technical fall with 22 seconds left in the second period. Even with the three-point takedown, that kind of turning ability will never go out of style. Who cares about the scoreboard? Per Wikipedia, “Thomas More University is a private Roman Catholic university in Crestview Hills, Kentucky. It serves about 2,000 full and part-time students.” One of those students, heavyweight Daulton Mayer placed fifth at the Midlands. While it is always impressive when competitors from outside NCAA Division I place in the mid-season classic (Thomas More is transitioning from NAIA to Division II), Mayer took a very interesting path to his placement. He went 5-2 in the bracket with his only losses coming against Jacob Bullock (Indiana) and No. 24 Trevor Tinker (Cal Poly). However, he only actually finished with more points than his opponent in one match. Mayer won his opening match via fall over Charles Hastriter (Oregon State) while leading 3-0. He then defeated Princeton’s Matthew Cover via injury default while trailing 2-0, Ira Jenkins (Michigan) by fall while trailing 6-3, John Stout (Penn) by fall while trailing 6-1, and finally picked up a forfeit over Tinker in the fifth-place match. For the tournament, he was outscored 31 to nine and still finished fifth. Technicality about Technical Falls Rule 4 Section 5 Article 13 of the NCAA Wrestling includes the following passage, “an earned riding time point may be awarded no sooner than at the end of the third period and/or at the end of any sudden victory or any round of tiebreakers.” While this is an odd way to turn a phrase, it basically means that for any match that ends via termination (such as a fall, technical fall or injury default) the riding time point should not be added to the point total. Unfortunately, this rule is not consistently followed in collegiate wrestling. It is exceedingly common to see a wrestler earn an extra point when the match is stopped due to a 15-point margin. In the grand scheme of things, the extra point does not mean very much. However, for the purposes of statistical analysis such as this article, it creates pretty clear inaccuracies. This was clearly a problem at the Midlands as the mistake appeared to happen with some frequency. Perhaps there could be some sort of standardized training for table workers, or a tournament official could be responsible for verifying final scores. I am open to ideas here people. While the Midlands tournament may have lacked a bit of star power compared to some of the stacked fields of the past, the event still took place over the holiday break. As always, there were several wrestlers who put up impressive stat lines and those competitors are celebrated here.