InterMat Staff

In late June, news broke that James Green was returning to competition and leaving his post as USA Wrestling’s National Freestyle Development Coach. Today, USA Wrestling announced that Oklahoma State assistant coach Zack Esposito will be Green’s successor. Esposito has spent the last seven years as Oklahoma State’s Associate Head Coach and he was on staff for a total of 14 years at his alma mater. During his time on the OSU staff, Esposito saw four wrestlers combine to win 10 national titles. As a team, Oklahoma State captured 11 Big 12 championships during that time period. As a competitor, Esposito was a three-time All-American and 2005 national champion. His title came on the storied 2005 squad that featured a total of five national champions and outdistanced second-place Michigan by 70 points. The Cowboys claimed national titles in each year that Esposito started. When his collegiate career concluded, in 2006, Esposito had amassed a 120-12 record and won three Big 12 championships. The National Freestyle Development Coach position had been an important one for USA Wrestling. In 2022, the U17, U20, and U23 World Teams combined to bring home 18 medals in men’s freestyle alone. This week, in Amman, Jordan, the U20 men’s freestyle team claimed eight medals, two of which were gold, and finished in second place to Iran. In the coming days, more news should come to the forefront regarding Esposito’s replacement on the Cowboy staff.

Morristown

Edmond North

Wednesday in Amman, Jordan saw the men’s freestyle portion of the 2023 U20 World Championships come to a close. The American team finished with a remarkable eight medals, yet still finished in second place to an Iranian team that crowned four champions amongst their eight medalists. The final session on Wednesday saw Mitchell Mesenbrink put the cherry on top of an already incredible tournament when he put together a tech fall victory in the world finals at 74 kg. Mesenbrink used relentless pressure and attacking to wear down 2022 U20 World bronze medalist Hossein Mohammad Aghaei (Iran), 16-5. Right off the opening whistle, Mesenbrink was in on Aghaei’s leg and wasn’t able to lock up a takedown, but did get credit for a step-out point. Mesenbrink blew the match wide open off of the ensuing restart when he used a body lock finish to a single leg for a takedown, then transitioned into a gut wrench for two turns. Aghaei ended the sequence with a reversal and a leg lace; however, the damage was done and Mesenbrink led 7-3. Undeterred by the scoring from the Iranian, Mesenbrink got back on the offensive and split the middle to finish another takedown and led 9-3. Late in the first period, Aghaei was able to withstand Mesenbrink’s heat and grabbed a takedown of his own, only to give up a step on point and trail 11-5 at the break. Despite holding a six-point lead, Mesenbrink continued to be the aggressor and managed to get a set of exposure points, while attempting to finish a high-c. The Iranian corner challenged the ruling, which was upheld, and pushed Mesenbrink’s lead to 14-5. Mesenbrink put the finishing touches on his gold medal performance by scoring a takedown off of a low single, to push the score into tech fall territory (16-5). With his gold medal and a silver in 2022, Mesenbrink becomes only the third US man in the last decade to make the U20/Junior finals twice. The other two were Spencer Lee and Mark Hall. Mesenbrink wasn’t the only medalist for the United States men’s freestyle team. Nic Bouzakis (61 kg) and Bennett Berge (86 kg) both locked up bronze medals with strong performances. Bouzakis was all over Besir Alili (North Macedonia) from the outset and prevailed 11-1 in a first-period tech. Wrestling directly after Mesenbrink’s lap with the American flag, Berge needed just over two minutes to tech Shakjir Bislimi (North Macedonia), 11-0. Berge is now a two-time U20 world medalist after taking silver at the 2022 tournament. In addition to the exploits from the men’s freestyle team, the women’s freestyle squad saw their tournament commence today, as well. Audrey Jimenez, a 2022 U20 World silver medalist, is back on the main stage after going 3-0 on the day. In the quarterfinals, Jimenez came back from a 2-0 deficit at the break to down Japan’s Miruko Sakane, 4-2. She was also down momentarily in the semi’s against Reka Hegedus (Slovakia), but was not flustered. Jimenez responded with a takedown of her own and managed to stay in bounds to rattle off five turns via leg lace to end the contest 12-2 in just over a minute. Jimenez will head to tomorrow’s 50 kg gold medal match against China’s Yanrong Li. The performance of the women’s 50 kg fireplug was a high note, while the ending of the 59 kg semifinal was definitely a downer from an American perspective. Alexis Janiak held a seemingly comfortable 8-4 lead with less than :30 seconds left in her bout against Aurora Russo (Italy). Janiak even had the edge on criteria due to a four-point throw early in the period. Russo grabbed a pair of takedowns, to pull even with Janiak, though the Italian still trailed on criteria 8-8 with a restart with :05 remaining in the bout. Like most international wrestlers in a similar situation, Janiak did not actively attack and was totally in a defensive mode fending off potential attacks from Russo. After the final seconds ticked off the clock, the Italian corner threw a seemingly hopeless challenge brick. That closing sequence was reviewed and the official gave a point for caution and one to Russo, which gave her the bout, 9-8. It was truly a puzzling ruling given Janiak had no passivity warnings and conducted herself as most wrestlers do in that situation. Frankly, the match had no business being decided on a caution challenge after the final whistle. Janiak will try and regroup and wrestle for the bronze tomorrow after a challenger is determined via repechage. The rest of the women who wrestled on Wednesday are all still in the tournament and in the hunt for a bronze medal. Amani Jones (55 kg) and Isabella Mir (68 kg), will go through repechage, while Janiak and Kennedy Blades (76 kg) drop from the semis to a bronze medal match. Blades was teched in the semifinals by two-time U17 world champion and 2022 U20 silver medalist Priya (India). While her opponent had impressive credentials, Blades did not appear to be herself and may have been dealing with a lingering injury or another ailment. In addition to these four women, the remainder of the women’s freestyle team will be in action on Thursday morning. Final Results Men’s Freestyle 61 kg Gold Medal Match: Kumar Mohit (India) over Eldar Akhmadudinov (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) 9-8 Bronze Medal Match: Nic Bouzakis (USA) over Besir Alili (North Macedonia) 11-1 Bronze Medal Match: Ali Khorramdel (Iran) over Tamazi Sulamanidze (Georgia) 10-0 74 kg Gold Medal Match - Mitch Mesenbrink (USA) over Hossein Mohammad Aghaei (Iran) 16-5 Bronze Medal Match - Giorgi Gogritchiani (Georgia) over Anton Suchkov (Russia) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match - Jaideep (India) over Zhakshylyk Baitashov (Kyrgyzstan) Fall 2:07 86 kg Gold Medal Match - Rakhim Magamadov (France) over Fumiya Igarashi (Japan) 6-4 Bronze Medal Match - Bennett Berge (USA) over Shakjir Bislimi (North Macedonia) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match - Eugeniu Mihalcean (Moldova) over Mushegh Mkrtchyan (Armenia) 3-0 92 kg Gold Medal Match - Mohammadmobin Azimi (Iran) over Rizabek Aitmukhan (Kazakhstan) 5-4 Bronze Medal Match - Giorgi Romelashvili (Georgia) over Nurbolot Adyl Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) 8-1 Bronze Medal Match - Mustafagadzhi Malachdibirov (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) over Knyaz Iboyan (Armenia) 11-0 125 kg Gold Medal Match - Amirreza Masoumi Valadi (Iran) over Said Akhmatov (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match - Hakan Buyukcingil (Turkey) over Volodymyr Kochanov (Ukraine) 11-1 Bronze Medal Match - Rajat Ruhal (India) over Karanveer Mahil (Canada) 9-8 USA Results Men’s Freestyle 61 kg Repechage - Nic Bouzakis (USA) over Dmitri Carastoianov (Moldova) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match - Nic Bouzakis (USA) over Besir Alili (North Macedonia) 11-1 74 kg Gold Medal Match - Mitch Mesenbrink (USA) over Hossein Mohammad Aghaei (Iran) 16-5 86 kg Bronze Medal Match - Bennett Berge (USA) over Shakjir Bislimi (North Macedonia) 125 kg Repechage - Hakan Buyukcingil (Turkey) over Christian Carroll (USA) 13-0 Women’s Freestyle 50 kg Round of 16 - Audrey Jimenez (USA) over Zerda Demir (Turkey) 16-6 Quarterfinals - Audrey Jimenez (USA) over Miruko Sakane (Japan) 4-2 Semifinals - Audrey Jimenez (USA) over Reka Hegedus (Slovakia) 12-2 55 kg Round of 16 - Amani Jones (USA) over Lina Nita (Moldova) 11-1 Quarterfinals - Aryna Martynava (Belarus - Individual Neutral Athlete) over Amani Jones (USA) 10-0 59 kg Round of 16 - Alexis Janiak (USA) over Jovana Radivojevic (Serbia) 10-0 Quarterfinals - Alexis Janiak (USA) over Annatina Lippuner (Switzerland) Fall 1:56 Semifinals - Aurora Russo (Italy) over Alexis Janiak (USA) 9-8 68 kg Round of 16 - Isabella Mir (USA) over Manola Skobelska (Ukraine) 12-8 Quarterfinals - Ray Hoshino (Japan) over Isabella Mir (USA) 12-1 76 kg Round of 16 - Kennedy Blades (USA) over Mariia Zenkina (Ukraine) 10-0 Quarterfinals - Kennedy Blades (USA) over Ayano Moro (Japan) 4-3 Semifinals - Priya (India) over Kennedy Blades (USA) 10-0

Morgan Kopitsky sat down with McKendree's Alexio Garcia on the cusp of his second year as head coach of the Bearcats' women's program. Coach Garcia talks about his expectations for the coming season individually and as a team. Coach Garcia explains how his experience coaching at various levels helps him in his current role with McKendree. The two also discuss recruiting, key dates on the Bearcats' schedule, and plenty more. Get to know more about McKendree's women's wrestling program and Coach Garcia! Interview with Coach Alexio Garcia.mp4

On day two of the U20 World Championships, the United States men’s freestyle team built off of the momentum generated by a 17-0 start to the tournament and earned five medals. Each of the wrestlers that started their tournament on Monday will leave Amman, Jordan with hardware. In addition, the remainder of the team hit the mat today and another American punched their ticket to the world finals, clinching a sixth medal for 2023. However the rest of the tournament plays out, the men’s freestyle team has already exceeded their medal output from the 2022 tournament (4; 2 gold/2 silver). Leading the way for the US contingent on Tuesday was Meyer Shapiro at 70 kg. Shapiro, an incoming freshman at Cornell who was deemed the top recruit in the Class of 2023, showed any hype surrounding him was justified by winning a U20 world championship. Shapiro got in an early hole against Ali Rezaei Aghouzgeleh (Iran) trailing 4-0 :30 seconds into the bout; however, that didn’t seem to matter. Shapiro chipped away at the lead and trimmed the margin to 4-3 heading into the break. Just over ten seconds into the final period, Shapiro took the lead and never looked back. Over the final three minutes, Shapiro displayed a great combination of solid defense and opportunistic offense, as he extended the score to 11-6. The win gave Shapiro his second world championship as he was a U17 gold medalist in 2021. While largely dominant in 2023, Shapiro also had to come from behind in both the Round of 16 and the finals. He’s expected to be a key addition to the Cornell lineup for the 2023-24 season. Luke Lilledahl and Jesse Mendez were both finalists on Tuesday that had to settle for silver. Lilledahl was never able to generate any offense against Japan’s Yuto Nishiuchi during a 5-0 loss. Nishiuchi is now a two-time world champion, as he won the 61 kg weight class in 2022. Lilledahl’s silver medal gives him three, but this is his first at the U20 division. Mendez was on the wrong side of a tactical affair with Mohammad Shakeri (Iran) in the 65 kg world finals. The Iranian got on the board first with a step-out point just as Mendez’s shot clock expired for a 2-0 lead. The Buckeye All-American got his first point via a shot-clock violation on Shakeri; however, the Iranian made up for it by almost simultaneously generating a step out. With approximately :40 left on the clock, Mendez got in on his best takedown attempt, but he settled for a step-out point to pull within a pair, 4-2. Shakeri put the finishing touches on his victory by earning another step-out point after countering a Mendez low shot attempt. The two wrestlers that fell in yesterday’s semifinals, Matty Singleton (79 kg) and Camden McDanel (97 kg), both rebounded today with bronze medals. Singleton was seemingly cruising in the second period against Turkey’s Ahmet Yagan. Late in the period, the two went out of bounds and Yagan was awarded a step-out and caution which led to plenty of confusion regarding the score. After some consternation, Singleton was deemed the winner 8-7. The Turkish corner challenged, which was lost, resulting in a 9-7 final score. There was no controversy surrounding the score in McDanel’s bronze medal bout with 2022 U17 world champion Kamil Kurugliev (Kazakhstan). A takedown in the opening period gave McDanel a lead at the break. After Kurugliev countered early in the second period, McDanel bounced back and poured it on to win 8-2. In addition to the first five, the second five team members started their tournaments and 2022 U20 World silver medalist Mitchell Mesenbrink advanced to the finals in stunningly dominant fashion. Mesenbrink outscored his opponent by a 43-1 margin and never was pushed into the second period. In the semifinals, Mesenbrink needed only nine seconds to secure his first takedown. He never let Zhakshylyk Baitashov (Kyrgyzstan) regroup and continued to score, making the final margin 10-0 after only :57 seconds. In tomorrow's final, Mesenbrink will draw Hossein Mohammad Aghaei (Iran). The two are familiar having met in the 2022 quarterfinals, a bout won by Mesenbrink, 9-7. Three more Americans have the opportunity to claim a medal tomorrow during the repechage process. Nic Bouzakis (61 kg) and Christian Carroll (61 kg) will both have to win a pair of matches to get the bronze medal. Bennett Berge (86 kg) fell in the semifinals, so he’ll automatically be thrust into a bronze medal match against a currently undetermined opponent. In addition to the men’s freestyle competition wrapping up, the women’s freestyle team will start their tournament Wednesday morning. Final Results 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Yuto Nishiuchi (Japan) over Luke Lilledahl (USA) 5-0 Bronze Medal Match: Nodirbek Jumanazarov (Uzbekistan) over Sagar (India) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Edik Harutyunyan (Armenia) over Ruslan Abdullayev (Azerbaijan) 8-4 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Mohammad Shakeri (Iran) over Jesse Mendez (USA) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Abdullah Toprak (Turkey) over Aden Sakybaev (Kyrgyzstan) 5-3 Bronze Medal Match: Dalgat Abdulkadryov (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) over Kaiji Ogino (Japan) 9-2 70 kg Gold Medal Match: Meyer Shapiro (USA) over Ali Rezaei Aghouzgeleh (Iran) 11-6 Bronze Medal Match: Magomed Baitukaev (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) over Julian George (Puerto Rico) 12-2 Bronze Medal Match: Ibrahim Yaprak (Turkey) over Omurbek Taalaibek Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) 3-2 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Ibragim Kadiev (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) over Sagar Jaglan (India) 17-6 Bronze Medal Match: Ali Tcokaev (Azerbaijan) over Farzad Safijahanshahi (Iran) 11-1 Bronze Medal Match: Matty Singleton (USA) over Ahmet Yagan (Turkey) 9-7 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Abolfazl Babaloo (Iran) over Ivan Prymachenko (Ukraine) 5-0 Bronze Medal Match: Camden McDanel (USA) over Kamil Kurugliev (Kazakhstan) 8-2 Bronze Medal Match: Deepak Chahal (India) over Uladzislau Kazlou (Belarus - Individual Neutral Athlete) 9-8 USA Results 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Yuto Nishiuchi (Japan) over Luke Lilledahl (USA) 5-0 61 kg Qualification: Nic Bouzakis (USA) over Shehabeldin Mohamed (Egypt) 4-2 Round of 16: Nic Bouzakis (USA) over Yahor Rudauski (Belarus - Individual Neutral Athlete) 9-6 Quarterfinals: Kumar Mohit (India) over Nic Bouzakis (USA) 12-11 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Mohammad Shakeri (Iran) over Jesse Mendez (USA) 5-2 70 kg Gold Medal Match: Meyer Shapiro (USA) over Ali Rezaei Aghouzgeleh (Iran) 11-6 74 kg Qualification: Mitchell Mesenbrink (USA) over Ion Marcu (Moldova) 10-0 Round of 16: Mitchell Mesenbrink (USA) over Elkhan Garayev (Azerbaijan) 12-1 Quarterfinals: Mitchell Mesenbrink (USA) over Jaideep (India) 11-0 Semifinals: Mitchell Mesenbrink (USA) over Zhakshylyk Baitashov (Kyrgyzstan) 10-0 79 kg Bronze Medal Match: Matty Singleton (USA) over Ahmet Yagan (Turkey) 9-7 86 kg Round of 16: Bennett Berge (USA) over Ivan Chornohuz (Ukraine) 9-5 Quarterfinals: Bennett Berge (USA) over Slavi Stamenov (Bulgaria) 11-0 Semifinals: Rakhim Magamadov (France) over Bennett Berge (USA) 9-2 92 kg Round of 16: Giorgi Romelashvili (Georgia) over Jack Darrah 4-3 97 kg Bronze Medal Match: Camden McDanel (USA) over Kamil Kurugliev (Kazakhstan) 8-2 125 kg Round of 16: Christian Carroll (USA) over Ksawery Kaminski (Poland) 14-2 Quarterfinals: Amirreza Masoumi Valadi (Iran) over Christian Carroll (USA) 10-0

We are just about at the turning point where last season’s results and memories start to fade into the WrestleStat archives and the general wrestling community ramps up the interest and speculation of the upcoming season. And when it comes to Fantasy College Wrestling, drafters need to start thinking about who they want to pick in their 2024 draft. One way to do this is to look at the results of the 2023 season. The 2023 FCW Top-20 at each weight can give you a good idea of who the top Fantasy wrestlers in the country are. Seeing who returns, who leaves, who outplaced who, what teams made these lists more than others… all important information and data to digest. Of course, things can change quickly in college wrestling. Wrestlers can transfer, injuries can happen, and new stars can emerge. But the 2023 FCW Top-20 is a good starting point for your fantasy draft preparation, as you will see some (many, actually) repeat names from the 2022 Top-20 articles and even 2021 Top-20 articles. Take for instance: Pat Glory (PRIN), Yianni Diakomihalis (COR), Keegan O’Toole (MIZZ), and Carter Starocci (PSU). That championship group scored 223 Fpts in the 2023 season. How about these names though: Caleb Smith (APP), McKenzie Bell (RID), Evan Barczak (DREX), and Tyler Stoltzfus (LHU). That group scored 313 Fpts, and none were All-Americans. As you look at the list, keep in mind that not all of the top performers are household names. Some of the wrestlers who scored the most points in 2023 were not All-Americans. This is just one of the things that makes fantasy sports so exciting and unpredictable. So start your draft preparation today by taking a look at the 2023 FCW Top-20. You might just find some hidden gems that can help you win your league in 2024. To compile these lists, we used standard WrestleStat Fantasy College Wrestling Data & Scoring. Just a reminder of how points were tallied in WrestleStat leagues: 1) The scoring used was Standard Team Scoring across all competitions (+3 for a win by decision, -4 for a loss by Major, etc) 2) Scoring only counted against D1 competition 3) Wins via Forfeits (FFT) would count as +6 towards a wrestler's point total 4) Wins or Losses by Medical Forfeit (MFF) did not count as + or - towards a wrestler's point total 5) Points were only accumulated during the regular season Notes: Starting with his redshirt year in 2018 through 2021, Will Feldkamp had a record of 21-16 against D1 competition. Then, in 2022 at 197, he finished #10 with a 17-3 regular season record. In 2023, he is your Top Fantasy Wrestler at 184 thanks to 10 pins and one tech. What's more impressive, he had three losses against D1 competition and two of them were by bonus (one loss by pin and one by major). Trey Munoz tied for first place last season and followed it up with another stellar Fantasy showing in 2023. The same goes for Parker Keckeisen (who was also 3rd in 2022) and Trent Hidlay (who also was 4th in 2022). Both Keckeisen and Hidlay finished with just about the same number of Fpts in 2022 as well (74 and 69, respectively). Now that’s consistency. Tying for first at 184 in 2022 was Hunter Bolen, who finds himself at #13 in this Top-20. A combination of factors are to blame: In 2023 he had two fewer matches wrestled, four fewer matches won by pin, and a loss by pin. That’s potentially at least 21 Fpts, which would have slotted him at #4 in this Top-20. Graduate Transfer Neil Antrassian made his way down to UVA and with the help of his best statistical season of his career to take the #8 spot, and was sandwiched between two non-starters. Dennis Robin used the most out of his 32 D1 matches to edge Antrassian by two points, despite NINE losses which accounted for -30 Fpts. Had he won two of those matches, he would have been 3rd and tied Trey Munoz with 74 Fpts. One of those losses was to the other non-starter in the Top-10, Sam Fisher. Fisher participated in five tournaments and even started three duals, which was just enough to place higher than Marcus Coleman and Matt Finesilver. True Freshman Brian Soldano went (Taylor) Ham to start the season, going 15-3 (one win and one loss to non-D1 competitors). In that first half, he had six pins and one tech, but the reason he didn't finish better than 12th was due to the unforgiving dual season that is the Big Ten. He went 5-4 with two majors and a pin, but he also had losses by pin, maj, and tech for a net +2. Hard to jump up the ranks when you tread water. Lenny Pinto made his collegiate debut (after not wrestling in his Redshirt Freshman season), and a bonus-laden season it was, with a full season bonus rate of 55%... but also had his shares of losses by bonus too. With three losses by pin and one by major, which he was able to mitigate at the end of the regular season with two pins and an FFT win. Making his first-ever Fantasy Top-20, Abe Assad could have jumped to #13 if he hadn't lost by pin to Tyler Dow. A loss by Decision (or a win by Decision) would have vaulted him to #13 over Hunter Bolen. Who Missed The Cut: As I alluded to a few articles ago, there was one National Champ that didn't make a Top-20 at their weight. Well, the champ is here. Aaron Brooks (PSU) comes in at #25 with 39 Fpts in 10 matches wrestled in the regular season. In fact, out of any starter or the highest fantasy-ranked Penn State wrestler at each weight, he had the lowest match total. His loss to Marcus Coleman (#10 on the Top-20 at 184), did not change his fate as he would have only had 45 Fpts with a win by Decision. Redshirt Freshman Clayton Whiting (MIZZ) finished two points shy of making the Top-20 with Binghamton’s Jacob Nolan one point behind him. In his last year of eligibility, Brian Bonino (DREX) traveled south on I-95 to the City of Brotherly Love changing from a Lion to a Dragon. Before the 2023 season, he had not qualified for Nationals, and since being a starter was 22-27 against D1 competition (including postseason). 2023 was different though, as he went 24-10 and qualified for his first NCAA Tournament. Despite this jump, he wasn't able to crack the Top-20, and finished at #29 with 38 Fpts. Travis Wittlake (OKST) took a joint up a couple weights, and really the only thing that was out of the ordinary was his bonus rate. His regular season bonus rate was his lowest in his career (20%) while his full season bonus down to 14.8%, also a personal low. The main reason why he finished #24 with 40 Fpts. Other notables to miss the cut include Tate Samuelson (LEH) at #28 with 38 Fpts, Caleb Hopkins (CAMP) at #31 with 34 Fpts, John Poznanski (RUT) at #48 with 19 Fpts, and Jonathan Loew (COR) at #69 with 7 Fpts due in large part to his early season injury. Don't see your favorite wrestler on the list? Let me know @FantasyD1Wrestl for the full stats. Previous 2023 Top-20 Articles: Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 125 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 133 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 141 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 149 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 157 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 165 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 174

Do you remember the summer after your freshman year of college? Maybe you traveled, maybe you worked, maybe you had an internship. Davidson’s Tanner Peake (157) has had a pretty unforgettable summer. After making Puerto Rico’s U20 national team at 74 kg in April, Peake hit the ground running, making preparations to compete at the Pan-American Championships in Santiago, Chile in July. The last time we spoke with Peake, he was wrapping up the Spring semester and getting training plans together with Head Coach Nate Carr Jr and Assistant Coach Ty Eustice, training through the newly-formed Charlotte RTC. As the semester came to a close, Tanner headed home to New Jersey to train at Rider and the NJRTC, to work with some of the same guys he grew up with. While technique is an important aspect of wrestling, staying on track with strength and conditioning goals continues to elevate the craft. Pete Shebey, a coach of Peake’s since his sophomore/junior year of high school, has worked with Tanner this summer. Morning lifts came early at around five or six in the morning, consisting of strength training with movements and techniques focused on the development of more explosiveness and improved foot movement and speed. RTC practices varied - some days Peake would head to the NJRTC for 10:00am practices led by Reece Humphrey, while other days he would go to Rider’s 11:00am practices. Peake was able to train in a variety of environments this summer, ranging from more instruction and technique at the NJRTC, while Rider’s practices were mostly self-motivated. At the end of the day, Tanner made sure to top it off with some cardio - usually sprints. Practicing in different rooms throughout the week was another way for Tanner to get to hang out with his best friend Mikey Wilson, who wrestles for Rider (174). When reflecting on the similarities in team culture and coaching styles, Peake says that “Coach Carr is very energetic, similar to Reece - he just has a lot of energy and you can tell they both love being in the room and coaching.” Preparations continued with the NCJ Camps hosted at Davidson - which included a week of training with the coaches and the team during these youth camps. The journey to the Pan-American Championships in Chile began with Coach Carr traveling to New Jersey for Peake’s final practices before heading south, real south. We’ve been experiencing quite the heat wave here in the States, and if you remember from science class the southern and northern hemispheres of Earth experience the opposite climates. That’s right - it’s wintertime in Chile. This was Peake’s first time traveling internationally - since Puerto Rico is a U.S. Commonwealth, it is considered domestic travel from the continental United States. (Y’all didn’t think you’d get science, travel, and history lessons did you?) After a 10.5-hour red-eye flight, Peake was finally in Chile. A few days later, Assistant Coach Ty Eustice arrived. Team Puerto Rico consisted of guys from all over, mostly with Puerto Rican roots. Some were from Pennsylvania, South Dakota, or even New Jersey but moved to Puerto Rico, while others may have moved away from the island but returned to wrestle. Tanner experienced wrestling at the Chilean Olympic Training Center - being around other world team members. “There’s a lot of pride that comes with this, I’m so grateful for the opportunity. And it’s so cool to look down and be able to see the Puerto Rican flag on my singlet, knowing I’m representing this group and doing well for them, so I was happy to be able to go and bring back a medal. I’m so grateful I was able to get this opportunity to compete and do what I love.” Peake finished out in Santiago with a 2-1 record, defeating Peru 10-0 in the quarterfinal, then was defeated by USA’s Mitchell Mesenbrink 12-0, finally bouncing back to bronze with a 10-0 win over Colombia. When dealing with the nerves, Tanner’s mentality is “It’s just another wrestling match, I try to keep my cool.” “Not a lot of people can say they got to this point or even be a Pan-American medalist.” When Tanner reflected on his experience, his gratitude toward his family, his coaches, and Davidson was what shined the most. The takeaways for Peake from Pan-Ams have him ready to go for the next round of competition. He was able to see how different countries wrestle and become familiar with their different styles, while also leaning into owning his own style. So, what’s next for Tanner Peake? He’s headed to the U20 World Championships set to be hosted in Jordan on August 14. Coach Carr will travel as his coach, and his support system - his parents Nydia and Chris, who wrestled for Rutgers. Peake even announced a partnership with Chain Wrestling - where you can order your exclusive Peake gear. Oh yeah, and Tanner plans on staying at 157 for the SoCon regular season this year - “I’m most looking forward to going back into the conference tournament at the end of the season, I’m excited to see the team grow - with these freshmen coming in who are hard workers and the current guys who put in such hard work…I think we’re going to shock some people in the SoCon and in the NCAA this year. I’m super excited.”

The U20 World Championships got started off in a major way for the United States on Monday morning from Amman, Jordan. Men’s freestyle led off and set a pace that will be hard to match. As the first five weights were conducted, the United States won its first 17 matches of the day. That streak included three semifinal victories by Luke Lilledahl (57 kg), Jesse Mendez (65 kg), and Meyer Shapiro (70 kg). Each will wrestle for gold medals tomorrow afternoon. The other two wrestlers that hit the mat on Monday, Matthew Singleton (79 kg) and Camden McDanel (97 kg) both advanced to the semifinals but lost and will have to win a match tomorrow to claim a bronze medal. The lightest member of the team, Lilledahl, has plenty of international experience despite heading into his senior year of high school. Lilledahl is a two-time U17 world finalist and already owns a gold and silver medal. Lilledahl showed maturity way beyond his years during his semifinal clash with Ruslan Abdullayev of Azerbaijan. The pair exchanged step-out points in the first period before Lilledahl put together a sweet sweep single to get the match's first takedown. Abdullayev struck in the second period on a reshot that found him immediately in position for a pair of leg laces. In an instant, he was leading 7-3. Undeterred, Lilledahl notched a second takedown off a single leg to pull the margin to 7-5. He appeared close to taking the lead after another shot; however, with Lilledahl behind him, Abdullayev used a Peterson-like finish to get exposure and lead, 9-5. Lilledahl continued to attack and with under :15 seconds remaining in the bout, he was on the verge of another takedown. Abdullayev stuck out his right arm to block a Lilledahl spin attempt. Rather than spin. Lilledahl hopped over the block attempt and torqued Abdullayev’s shoulder in a manner that forced him onto his back. With six seconds remaining in the contest, the official signaled for a fall, which was quickly confirmed. While behind on the scoreboard and racing against time, Lilledahl forced a fall and advanced to his third age-group world championship bout. In tomorrow’s gold medal match, he’ll face Japan’s Yuto Nishiuchi, a U20 world champion at 61 kg last year. He also defeated Northern Colorado star Stevo Poulin for a U17 world bronze medal in 2019. Before you could catch your breath after Lilledah’s stunning victory, Ohio State All-American Jesse Mendez took the mat in the 65 kg semifinals against Turkey’s Abdullah Toprak. The bout didn’t have the fireworks of its predecessor, it was more of a tactical affair. A shot clock violation on Mendez resulted in a point for Toprak, which was the only score from the opening stanza. In the second period, the two wrestlers both exchanged a series of re-shots, which led to a Mendez single leg, then a takedown at the edge. Later in the period, the official put Toprak on the shot clock. When he didn’t score, another point was awarded to Mendez to make the bout 3-1. He’d fend off any further attacks from Toprak and go on to win by that score. Mendez is now in the world finals and has locked up his first world medal. The third time was the charm for the Buckeye, who had previously wrestled at the U17 and U20 World Championships and didn’t return with any hardware. He’ll face Mohammad Shakeri of Iran. Last year, at the U20 World Championships, Shakeri fell to Cornell’s Vince Cornella, 6-5 in the quarterfinals. The third finalist of the day for the United States was the most dominant in Meyer Shapiro at 70 kg. The Cornell signee only surrendered points during his Round of 16 win over Mirjavad Nabiyev of Azerbaijan. In his next match, Shapiro blanked 2021 U21 world champion, Magomed Baitukaev, (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete), 8-0 in the quarterfinals. He’d punch a ticket to the finals by teching future Wisconsin Badger Julian George (Puerto Rico), 11-0 in less than a period. In tomorrow’s gold medal match, Shapiro will square off with Iran’s Ali Rezaei Aghouzgeleh (Iran). The two were in the same U17 weight class in 2021, but did not meet. There Shapiro grabbed a gold medal, while the Iranian was a bronze medalist on the opposite half of the bracket. Both Singleton and McDanel will need to wait and see who emerges from repechage as an opponent in their respective bronze medal matches. The remainder of the men’s freestyle team will start their tournaments on Tuesday morning, highlighted by 2022 world silver medalists Mitchell Mesenbrink and Bennett Berge. US Results 57 kg Qualification: Luke Lilledahl (USA) over Lev Pavlov (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) 9-2 Round of 16: Luke Lilledahl (USA) over Tolga Ozbek (Turkey) 6-1 Quarterfinal: Luke Lilledahl (USA) over Edik Harutyunyan (Armenia) 8-3 Semifinal: Luke Lilledahl (USA) over Ruslan Abdullayev (Azerbaijan) Fall 5:54 65 kg Qualification: Jesse Mendez (USA) over Mykyta Zubal (Ukraine) 2-1 Round of 16: Jesse Mendez (USA) over Aden Sakybaev (Kyrgyzstan) 7-2 Quarterfinals: Jesse Mendez (USA) over Ion Berghi (Moldova) 13-4 Semifinal: Jesse Mendez (USA) over Abdullah Toprak (Turkey) 3-1 70 kg Qualification: Meyer Shapiro (USA) over Yuma Tomiyama (Japan) 11-0 Round of 16: Meyer Shapiro (USA) over Mirjavad Nabiyev (Azerbaijan) 6-4 Quarterfinals: Meyer Shapiro (USA) over Magomed Baitukaev (Russia - Individual Neutral Athlete) 8-0 Semifinals: Meyer Shapiro (USA) over Julian George (Puerto Rico) 11-0 79 kg Qualification: Matthew Singleton (USA) over Denizbek Ulan Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) 12-2 Round of 16: Matthew Singleton (USA) over Nandor Hajduch (Hungary) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Matthew Singleton (USA) over Narek Grigoryan (Armenia) 10-6 Semifinals: Sagar Jaglan (India) over Matthew Singleton (USA) 16-6 97 kg Round of 16: Camden McDanel (USA) over Toyoki Hamada (Japan) 12-1 Quarterfinals: Camden McDanel (USA) over Taron Shahinyan (Poland) 12-2 Semifinals: Abolfazi Babaloo (Iran) over Camden McDanel (USA) 5-1

Palm Desert

The U20 World Championships kicked off this morning and the US men’s freestyle team is officially on fire. All five of the wrestlers that started their tournament’s this morning advanced to the semifinals round at 11 am EST. That means each will at least wrestle for bronze and a win guarantees a medal. As we’re preparing to root on these five, here’s some information about their opponents in the semifinal round. 57 kg - Luke Lilledahl (USA) vs. Ruslan Abdullayev (Azerbaijan) There’s not much to go on in terms of past history for Abdullayev. He was the European U20 champion this year, which means he’s extremely tough. In the quarterfinals, Abdullayev defeated Iran’s Ahmad Mohammad Nezhad Javan, a U20 world bronze medalist in 2022. Abdullayev’s path to the semis: David Kiefer (Germany) - 10-0 Ahmad Mohammad Nezhad Javan (Iran) - Fall 4:19 65 kg - Jesse Mendez (USA) vs. Abdullah Toprak (Turkey) If the UWW profile is correct, Toprak has made world team’s in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. Toprak was a U17 world bronze medalist in Greco at 50 kg back in 2016. He’s made U17 and U20 world team’s in freestyle, but never wrestled for a medal. His best freestyle credential is a bronze medal at European U17 in 2021. Toprak’s path to the semis: Said Elgahsh (Egypt) - 10-0 Sanzhar Mukhtar (Kazakhstan) - Fall 5:55 70 kg - Meyer Shapiro (USA) vs. Julian George (Puerto Rico) Meyer Shapiro will square off with a familiar face for US fans. Julian George is a three-time New Jersey state placewinner who was third in 2023 and a finalist in 2022. George was a senior in 2023 and has signed with the University of Wisconsin. Last month, George took the silver medal at the Pan-American Championships, losing to Nebraska’s Antrell Taylor in the finals. George’s path to the semis: Zafarbek Otakhonov (Uzbekistan) - 11-5 Burak Salviz (Germany) - 6-3 79 kg - Matty Singleton (USA) vs. Sagar Jaglan (India) Not only has Jaglan had success on the U20 level and below, but he’s also already made an impact on the Senior level. At the 2022 World Championships, Jaglan was in the bronze medal bout opposite Yones Emamichoghaei (Iran). Earlier in that tournament, he teched former Duke All-American Mitch Finesilver (Duke). Also in 2022, Jaglan captured a bronze medal at this very tournament. In his only international competition of 2023, Jaglan claimed gold at the Asian U23 Championships. Jaglan’s path to the semis: Radomir Stoyanov (Bulgaria) - 15-4 Abdallah Makoon (Jordan) - 10-0 Ahmet Yagan (Turkey) - 11-1 97 kg - Camden McDanel (USA) vs. Abolfazl Babaloo (Iran) There isn’t much to go off of with Iran’s Abolfazl Babaloo. His only result in the UWW database is a bronze medal finish at the Yasar Dogu in June. That event is geared towards Senior level competition, so Babaloo is quite good. Iran generally has contenders at every weight, so he’ll be ready to go. Most telling is that Babaloo notched a 6-1 win over 2022 U17 world champion Kamil Kurugliev (Kazakhstan) in the quarterfinals. At the 2022 World Championships, Kurugliev teched American Max McEnelly. Babaloo’s path to the semis: Tuxige (China) - 10-0 Kamil Kurugliev (Kazakhstan) - 6-1

Tomorrow, the 2023 U20 World Championships will get underway from Amman, Jordan. The United States will send an incredibly tough contingent with lots of previous international experience across all three styles. Altogether, 12 of the 30 wrestlers donning red, white, and blue singlets have won at least one age group world medal during their young careers. That number should increase a week from now. Before we get to the action, here are the US rosters for each of the three squads: Men’s Freestyle 57 kg - Luke Lilledahl: 2022 U17 World Champion, 2021 U17 World silver medalist 61 kg - Nic Bouzakis: 2022 U20 World Team member, 2021 World Team member (Greco-Roman) 65 kg - Jesse Mendez: 2021 U20 World Team member, 2019 U17 World Team member 70 kg - Meyer Shapiro: 2021 U17 World Champion 74 kg - Mitchell Mesenbrink: 2022 U20 World silver medalist 79 kg - Matthew Singleton: 2021 U20 World Team member (Greco-Roman) 86 kg - Bennett Berge: 2022 World silver medalist 92 kg - Jack Darrah 97 kg - Camden McDanel 125 kg - Christian Carroll: 2022 World Team member (Greco-Roman) Women’s Freestyle 50 kg - Audrey Jimenez: 2022 U20 World silver medalist, 2022 U17 World Team member 53 kg - Katie Gomez: 2022 U20 World bronze medalist, 2021 U17 World Champion 55 kg - Amani Jones 57 kg - Cristelle Rodriguez: 2019 U17 World silver medalist 59 kg - Alexis Janiak 62 kg - Adaugo Nwachukwu: 2022 U20 World bronze medalist 65 kg - Maddie Kubicki 68 kg - Isabella Mir 72 kg - Amit Elor: 2022 Senior World Champion, 2x U20 World Champion, 2021 U17 World Champion, 2019 U17 World bronze medalist 76 kg - Kennedy Blades: 2021 U20 World Champion, 2019 U17 World Team member Greco-Roman 55 kg: Zach Silvis 60 kg: Max Black: 2022 U20 World Team member 63 kg: Landon Drury 67 kg: Joel Adams: 2022 U17 World Champion 72 kg: Braden Stauffenberg: 2021 U17 World Team member 77 kg: Derek Matthews 82 kg: Michael Altomer 87 kg: Wyatt Voelker 97 kg: Sawyer Bartelt 130 kg: Aden Attao: 2022 U20 World bronze medalist

The final member of the 2023 Senior World Team was minted today as Helen Maroulis downed Xochitl Mota-Pettis in two straight matches on the campus of the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The series was delayed from the rest of the Final X card as Maroulis was granted a later wrestle-off after an injury. The two 57 kg competitors had never met before and both appeared to be a bit tentative as they felt each other out for much of the first period. Maroulis grabbed the lead after a half-shot from Mota-Bettis. After stuffing Mota-Pettis, Maroulis moved into a cow-catcher and was able to break the ice with two exposure points. Since the two had not previously met, Mota-Pettis had not experienced Maroulis’ legendary footsweep firsthand. That changed in the second period as Maroulis used the signature technique to add to her lead with a takedown. Maroulis would extend it to 6-0 with exposure from a gut wrench. After a standup from the official, Maroulis used another one of her tried-and-true techniques. She caught Mota-Pettis off balance and hit an ankle-pick straight to Mota-Pettis’ back for four points, which brought the final score to 10-0. Bout two started with fireworks almost immediately. With Mota-Pettis pushing forward, Maroulis was able to counter and reach for a leg while going out of bounds. That maneuver put Mota-Pettis on her back for four points. Undeterred, Mota-Pettis stayed on the offensive and got in on a single leg, and finally finished for a takedown after a lengthy fight from Maroulis. Maroulis immediately responded and earned a fall to lock up the match and the series. With the win, Maroulis has now made 11 world teams and 13 World/Olympic squads. Her addition to the 2023 Senior World team gives the US seven past Senior medalists at ten weights.

Yesterday, Cornell released their 2023-24 schedule and it is quite impressive, to say the least. It features non-conference duals against four teams that finished in the top-ten at the 2023 NCAA Championships. That doesn’t even factor in some key EIWA/Ivy League rivals, the Journeymen Collegiate Classic, and a Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational that features six other squads that finished in the top-ten in Tulsa. Cornell was a trophy-winning team in 2022-23; finishing third at the national tournament with a pair of national champions and two other All-Americans. Though instant college legend Yianni Diakomihalis is gone, Cornell is not expected to drop off much with one of the pound-for-pound best wrestlers in the sport (Vito Arujau) combined with three others that have earned All-American honors and a #4 overall recruiting class. Based on the schedule that head coach Mike Grey has assembled, this talented squad will be repeatedly tested before the EIWA and NCAA Championships in Kansas City. Before getting into the actual schedule and some key matches to watch; here is some information to illustrate just how tough their 2023-24 slate is. Duals against teams that finished top-20 in Tulsa: #4 Ohio State, #5 Missouri, #9 Virginia Tech, #10 NC State, #13 Princeton, and #20 Lehigh. Two ACC teams: NC State, Virginia Tech One Big Ten team: Ohio State One Big 12 team: Missouri One SoCon team: Appalachian State Duals against three conference championship teams: Appalachian State, Missouri, NC State Home Slate: Binghamton, Brown, Columbia, Harvard, Missouri, Sacred Heart, Virginia Tech Away Slate: Appalachian State, Lehigh, NC State, Ohio State, Penn, Princeton Plus, however, the Collegiate Duals brackets shake out. The winning percentage of Cornell’s non-conference opponents for 2023-24 is a staggering 82.6% (57-12). November 12th - Journeymen Collegiate Classic @ Bethlehem, PA The Journeymen Collegiate Classic is typically an individual pool-style event. It’s hard to target any specific matchups as some teams are more likely to send all of their starters than others. The top pool featured eventual All-Americans at three of the ten weights and that doesn’t include weights won by Richard Figueroa (Arizona State), Silas Allred (Nebraska), and Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard). Teams with a deep roster like Cornell have the opportunity to get competitive matches for their stars and third-stringers alike at the Journeymen. November 18th - Sacred Heart Props to Sacred Heart head coach John Clark for setting up this dual with a loaded team like Cornell. He’s proven in the past that Sacred Heart won’t back down from anyone. This will be the first opportunity for Big Red fans to catch the 2023-24 squad at home. They might get a chance to see some of the lesser-known wrestlers from Cornell shine. November 26th - Mat Town Open @ Lock Haven Once again, it’s difficult to figure out which wrestlers will be in attendance for an open tournament in November, much less in early-August. The Mat Town Open typically has good-sized brackets and maybe some high-caliber freshmen slated for redshirts. December 1st/2nd - Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Cornell has been a mainstay at the CKLV, so it's no surprise they are back in Vegas. 2023 saw the CKLV re-establish itself as the toughest regular season tournament in the nation. Like any other regular season tournament these days, I wouldn’t expect every star from every team to take the mat in Vegas, but the bracket still should be loaded. Some of the notable teams heading to the CKLV this year are: Arizona State, Michigan, NC State, Nebraska, North Carolina, Northern Iowa, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oregon State, South Dakota State, and Virginia Tech. Including Cornell, that’s seven top-ten teams from the 2023 NCAA Championships. December 18th - Collegiate Duals @ Nashville, Tennessee As of now, the Collegiate Duals field hasn’t been completely finalized. Looking at the 2022 tournament, Cornell saw Iowa State, which resulted in one of the best duals of the entire season, along with Oregon State and North Carolina. However the event shakes out, I’d expect some quality duals for the Big Red. One thing to note is that the US Open/Senior Nationals will be during this timeframe. 2023 national champion and world team member Vito Arujau shouldn’t need to wrestle in it to qualify for the Olympic Trials, but other notable wrestlers for Cornell or their opponents might. January 5th - @ Ohio State Just the setup for this weekend’s worth of duals is impressive. Cornell travels to take on a team that finished just below them at the 2023 NCAA Tournament (4th), before traveling to meet another group that finished 9th. Some of the potential matchups here are juicy with Arujau squaring off with redshirt freshman Nic Bouzakis. EIWA champion Vince Cornella could meet 2023 All-American Jesse Mendez, who is slated to move up from 133. At 149 lbs, the top recruit in the Class of 2023 Meyer Shapiro could take on returning All-American Dylan D’Emilio. More clashes between All-Americans could take place at 174 with Chris Foca and Carson Kharchla and at 197 with Jacob Cardenas and Gavin Hoffman. January 7th - Virginia Tech The 2023 dual between these schools was a good one and this could be even better. In that meeting, Sam Latona handed Arujau his only loss of the season. Arujau got the last laugh with an 8-5 win in the NCAA quarterfinals. The two also met at the CKLV (with Arujau winning). Another match with tons of national implications is at 174 with Foca and 2019 NCAA champion Mekhi Lewis. The two New Jersey natives battled to a 3-2 tiebreaker win for Foca in the 2023 NCAA third-place match, but didn’t meet in the dual. The dual also saw Brett Ungar outlast Eddie Ventresca, who went on to finish the season in seventh place at 125 lbs for Virginia Tech. This edition could feature Shapiro against another returning All-American in Caleb Henson, who was fifth in the country last season. Between this weekend and CKLV in the previous month, Shapiro could have a very lofty ranking in mid-January. January 13th - @ Lehigh Cornell/Lehigh has traditionally been one of those rivalries where “the records go out the window.” The teams have split the last two duals with the winning squad doing so by the score of 18-15 both times. Expect an upset or two that just don’t seem to make sense on paper. The marquee matchup here is at 197 lbs between All-Americans Cardenas and Michael Beard. Beard prevailed in the dual last season, while Cardenas got even in the EIWA finals and got on the podium. This should be the first of at least two 2023-24 matches between the pair. January 27th - Brown, Harvard The New England contingent of the Ivy League travels to Ithaca to take on Cornell. Both Brown and Harvard don’t figure to threaten Ivy supremacy just yet, so both duals should see the Big Red as a heavy favorite. The 125 lb match against Harvard is very interesting considering the familiarity between its participants. Ungar edged Harvard’s Diego Sotelo 1-0 in the dual; however, Sotelo evened the score with a sudden victory win at EIWA’s. The 174 lb bout could feature a pair of past EIWA champions with Foca and Phil Congiliaro. Despite being in the same weight last year, the two did not meet. January 28th - Missouri A day after taking on two Ivy rivals, Cornell will host a dangerous non-conference opponent in Missouri. The Tigers finished fifth in the nation at the 2023 NCAA Championships with a champion and five total All-Americans. All five will return in 2023-24. That sets up possible bouts between All-Americans at 174 with Foca and Peyton Mocco and at 197 with Cardenas and Rocky Elam. There is no collegiate history in either bout. Other great matches include Shapiro against three-time All-American Brock Mauller and two-time NCAA Round of 12 finisher Julian Ramirez against two-time national champion Keegan O’Toole. Despite not getting on the podium thus far, Ramirez could be a threat to O’Toole. Back in 2021-22, Ramirez knocked off returning champion Shane Griffith in his first collegiate dual. February 3rd - Columbia An improving Columbia squad travels up to Ithaca seeking to improve upon the 30-3 drubbing that Cornell handed out in 2022-23. A loaded Cornell team just was a bad matchup for the Lions. This dual could end up featuring round six (or possibly seven) between Ramirez and Josh Ogunsanya. Ramirez holds a three-matches-to-two edge in this rivalry. Ogunsanya outplaced Ramirez at the 2022 EIWA tournament, while Ramirez returned the favor after winning the 2023 tournament. Columbia is also slated to attend the CKLV, so the two could also clash there. February 10th - @ Princeton Princeton loses a pair of NCAA finalists, but they won’t concede anything to their Ivy rivals. Once again, 197 lbs could be the focal point as Cardenas and Luke Stout are among two of the better wrestlers in the conference and the nation. Stout was third in the EIWA losing a pair of lopsided bouts to Cardenas in dual competition and at the EIWA’s. He pulled closer at nationals but still fell 3-1. One match to watch out for is at 125 lbs. Ungar was a match away from All-American status last year and should be back to that level in 2023-24. Princeton graduated their national champion, Pat Glory, but brought in a top freshman in Marc-Anthony McGowan. If McGowan is as good as advertised, he could be in the rankings at this juncture in the season. February 11th - @ Penn A day after taking on Princeton, Cornell will stay in the area and meet Penn. In last year's dual, Cornell prevailed but was pushed by Penn in a 19-15 victory. The headline match of this dual comes at 141 lbs in what could be an EIWA finals preview. 2023 champion Cornella against 2022 All-American CJ Composto. Composto took off the 2022-23 and has yet to meet Cornella. If this dual is as close as last year, 125 lbs could end up being a swing weight. They also traded victories last season with Ungar getting a 6-1 win in Tulsa. February 17th - @ NC State We’ll have plenty of familiarity on the bench in this dual as Cornell assistants Donnie Vinson and Nick Gwiazdowski each spent significant time working with NC State’s Pat Popolizio in Raleigh. Regarding the “on the mat” action, you can go up and down these lineups and pick out great potential matchups. 197 could feature two returning All-Americans with Cardenas and Trent Hidlay. By this point of the year, we’ll have a good idea of how Hidlay has acclimated to the new weight. Whoever, NC State sends out at 125 should be very competitive with Ungar. All-American Kai Orine is at 133 versus Arujau. Perennial All-American threat Ryan Jack is at 141 against Cornell, and 2023 true freshman Round of 12 finisher Jackson Arrington would meet this year’s freshman sensation, Shapiro. February 18th - @ Appalachian State Cornell will stay in North Carolina after the NC State dual to take on SoCon power Appalachian State. The Mountaineers return national qualifiers at 133 (Ethan Oakley/Sean Carter), 149 (Cody Bond), 157 (Tommy Askey), and 174 (Will Miller). ASU head coach JohnMark Bentley typically has a wrestler or two that was previously unheard of to develop into nationally ranked wrestlers. They’ll probably emerge by this point. Regardless of any talent disparity, Appalachian State will battle. February 24th - Binghamton The Big Red closes the regular season with a dual against in-state EIWA opponent Binghamton. The Bearcats return four national qualifiers (Micah Roes - 133, Brevin Cassella - 165, Jacob Nolan - 184, and Cory Day - 285). In addition, they’ll have an infusion of youth as redshirt freshman Carter Baer (157 lbs) and Will Ebert (174 lbs) and true freshman Carson Wagner (125 lbs), could find their way into the starting ten.

St. Michael-Albertville

This MMA weekend is packed with former collegiate wrestlers. As always, the Bellator show is loaded, but there are a few smaller shows that also have some impressive wrestling talent. The following is a breakdown of those upcoming fights. If we missed any, please let us know in the comment section. Friday: Bellator 298 Logan Storley vs. Brennan Ward During his collegiate days, Storley was a four-time All-American for Minnesota. His best finish at the NCAA tournament came during his junior season where he finished third at 174 pounds and scored victories over Matt Brown (Penn State) and Robert Koeksh (Nebraska). Storley returned at the same weight for his senior year in 2015 and finished fourth. Eight months after his last NCAA tournament, he made his MMA debut. Storley has gone 14-2 to date with both of his losses coming against Bellator welterweight champion Yaroslav Amosov by decision. Last year, he won the interim title over Michael Page but failed to hold the title in the unification match against Amosov. Ward was a Division III All-American during his time at Johnson & Wales. Interestingly enough, he was prevented from reaching the podium a second time by multiple-time Greco world team member Joe Rau. Ward returned from an extensive layoff last year and has won three-straight fights. The recent streak has pushed his professional record to 17-6. Michael Blockhus vs. Eli Mefford Blockhus started his college career at Northern Iowa before ending up at Minnesota. He qualified for the NCAA tournament in all four seasons as a starter. This past season, Blockhus finished 8th at 149 pounds to become an All-American. Despite having one more season of eligibility, Blockhus announced quickly that he was making the transition to MMA. This will be his debut. From 2017 to 2021, Mefford went 8-5 in amateur MMA, but he has found the competition much more challenging on the professional level. Since making his debut in August 2021, he has lost all four of his fights. Jordan Oliver vs. Andrew Triolo Oliver, the 33-year-old wrestler, is getting a bit of a late start to his MMA career. He was a two-time NCAA champion who exhausted his eligibility in 2013. He then became a regular on the freestyle circuit. He finished in the top two at four different U.S. Opens and won the 65 kg title at the 2019 edition of the tournament. In 2021, he won the Olympic Trials at the same weight, but failed to qualify the weight for the Games. He last wrestled against Zain Retherford at the 2022 Final X, where he dropped the three-match series. Last March, he announced he signed with Bellator and this will be his MMA debut. Triolo made his professional MMA debut last year and failed to make it out of the first round against Adamu Isah on the LFA 128 undercard. Per Tapology, that was his only fight to date. Sullivan Cauley vs. Hamza Salim Cauley was a three-time state placer in his native Nevada, and he continued his wrestling career at Arizona State. He bounced between heavyweight and 197 during his time in Tempe between 2014 and 2017. The Ryan Bader protege is 5-1 in MMA and looking to bounce back after losing for the first time this past March. Salim holds a 7-6 record as a professional. He previously fought twice for Bellator in 2020 and dropped a pair of matches against Grant Neal and Christian Edwards. The Storley vs. Ward fight will serve as the main event of Bellator 298, which airs live on Showtime at 9:00pm ET. The rest of the wrestlers will be part of the preliminary card set to begin at 6:00pm ET on the promotion’s YouTube page. Saturday: Brave CF 73 Zach Makovsky vs. Flavio de Queiroz Following an extensive high school wrestling career at Bethlehem Catholic, Makovsky walked onto the wrestling team at Drexel. There he was a four-year starter and finished his career in 2006; the same year he made his professional MMA debut. In 2010, Makovsky won an eight-man tournament to become the inaugural Bellator bantamweight champion. He signed with the UFC in 2013, but he went only 1-4 before being released in 2016. Since then, he has gone 2-2, and his record stands at 21-11. De Queiroz picked up a victory over Igor Taylon last year. That victory stopped a two-fight skid and pushed his overall MMA record to 13-4. The event will go down on Saturday in Bogota, Colombia. The bout will be part of the main card, which airs live on YouTube at 8:00pm ET. Saturday: United Fight League 3 Ryan Loder vs. Lajuan Davis Loder was a four-time NCAA qualifier for Northern Iowa. In 2013, he broke through with a seventh-place finish at 184 pounds to become an All-American. Loder continued to wrestle on the freestyle circuit and placed at the 2015 U.S. Open. He made his professional MMA debut in 2021 and has so far gone 5-1 in the sport. Davis holds an undefeated 5-0 record. In March he scored a decision victory over Zak Borrego who previously lost against Bo Nickal on Dana White’s Contender Series. Chris Mecate vs. Canaan Kawaihae Mecate wrestled for the now-defunct Old Dominion program. He was a four-time NCAA qualifier and a two-time All-American. He finished school in 2016 with a 141-51 collegiate record. Mecate turned professional in MMA in 2020. He lost his second fight, but he has bounced back with a winning streak. Mecate’s record currently stands at 6-1. Kawaihae has gone 8-2 and previously fought for both Bellator and Dana White’s Contender Series. Unfortunately, both of his losses came on the Contender Series, and he has yet to receive a shot in the UFC. UFL 3 will stream live on Rumble at 9:00pm ET.

The final piece of the Senior World Team puzzle will be clear after Saturday as the special wrestle-off at 57 kg in women’s freestyle will take place. Due to an injury to Helen Maroulis, her Final X bout with Xochitl Mota-Pettis was postponed to August 12th in Colorado Springs, Colorado. This won’t be the first time that Maroulis has had to delay a Final X matchup, as she needed to do so in 2018 against Alex Hedrick. The actual result was dominant in Maroulis’ favor; however, at the ensuing World Championships, she was injured and failed to place for only the second time at a World/Olympic-level event since she broke onto the Senior level, for good, in 2011. For now, we’re operating under the assumption that Maroulis will be healthy this weekend. Maroulis, one of the legends of US women’s wrestling, is seeking to make her 13th World/Olympic team. In 2022, Maroulis captured a world silver medal in Belgrade, Serbia, also the host of the 2023 event. That medal gave her an eighth World/Olympic medal. After appearing to be close to the end of her career after the injuries and concussions in 2018, Maroulis has padded her stats with medals in three consecutive tournaments. That silver medal at the 2022 World Championships allowed Maroulis to sit out the world team qualification process until Final X. Mota-Pettis punched her ticket to Final X after a largely dominant performance at the US Open. She had three techs and a wild 12-10 victory over Amanda Martinez in the semifinals. In the finals, Mota-Pettis needed only :44 seconds to tech two-time Final X qualifier Hedrick. It marked a second consecutive appearance in the Open finals, as Mota-Pettis fell to Nanea Estrella in 2022. Just about a week after the 2023 Open, Mota-Pettis was the US representative at 59 kg at the Pan-American Championships. She blew through the field with a pair of 10-0 techs to claim the gold. Maroulis wrestled at 57 kg and lost in the quarterfinals. A Senior world team would be the second world team that Mota-Pettis has made within the last few months. She already locked up a spot on the U23 squad. At that tournament, Mota-Pettis had very little trouble and ended every bout early. This will be a fun, unique matchup. Neither has met each other in the past, so there’s no frame of reference as to how it will unfold. Mota-Pettis has bounced between 57 and 59 kg, but has primarily competed at 59. She has a wide-open style that is entertaining for fans. I’d imagine that even with an opponent like Maroulis, she’ll still try to throw the proverbial kitchen sink at her. Combined with the polished, well-rounded approach from Maroulis could make for some fireworks. Mota-Pettis is a very exciting prospect for the future, but until proven otherwise, you have to go with the experience and talent from the legendary Maroulis. Pick: Helen Maroulis in two matches.

We are just about at the turning point where last season’s results and memories start to fade into the WrestleStat archives and the general wrestling community ramps up the interest and speculation of the upcoming season. And when it comes to Fantasy College Wrestling, drafters need to start thinking about who they want to pick in their 2024 draft. One way to do this is to look at the results of the 2023 season. The 2023 FCW Top-20 at each weight can give you a good idea of who the top Fantasy wrestlers in the country are. Seeing who returns, who leaves, who outplaced who, what teams made these lists more than others… all important information and data to digest. Of course, things can change quickly in college wrestling. Wrestlers can transfer, injuries can happen, and new stars can emerge. But the 2023 FCW Top-20 is a good starting point for your fantasy draft preparation, as you will see some (many, actually) repeat names from the 2022 Top-20 articles and even 2021 Top-20 articles. Take for instance: Pat Glory (PRIN), Yianni Diakomihalis (COR), Keegan O’Toole (MIZZ), and Carter Starocci (PSU). That championship group scored 223 Fpts in the 2023 season. How about these names though: Caleb Smith (APP), McKenzie Bell (RID), Evan Barczak (DREX), and Tyler Stoltzfus (LHU). That group scored 313 Fpts, and none were All-Americans. As you look at the list, keep in mind that not all of the top performers are household names. Some of the wrestlers who scored the most points in 2023 were not All-Americans. This is just one of the things that makes fantasy sports so exciting and unpredictable. So start your draft preparation today by taking a look at the 2023 FCW Top-20. You might just find some hidden gems that can help you win your league in 2024. To compile these lists, we used standard WrestleStat Fantasy College Wrestling Data & Scoring. Just a reminder of how points were tallied in WrestleStat leagues: 1) The scoring used was Standard Team Scoring across all competitions (+3 for a win by decision, -4 for a loss by Major, etc) 2) Scoring only counted against D1 competition 3) Wins via Forfeits (FFT) would count as +6 towards a wrestler's point total 4) Wins or Losses by Medical Forfeit (MFF) did not count as + or - towards a wrestler's point total 5) Points were only accumulated during the regular season Notes: The top four All-Americans of 174 made the Fantasy Top-5, all posting a PPM above 3.4, and Carter Starocci having the best of those four (4.3 PPM) with only 19 matches, and with only three wins by decision. But you know who beat them out as the #1 Fantasy Wrestler? Tyler Stoltzfus did, with his 42 regular season match count and 2.1 PPM jumping over Labriola by five Fpts. Stoltzfus made the 2022 Top-20, barely squeaking in at #19 with roughly the same match count (38). Only this time in 2023, he had 13 wins by pin compared to his five in 2022. Crazy still, is that Stoltzfus also lost three matches by pin this past season, which is a total of -18 Fpts. While he didn’t have the rocket ship of a start to the season like in 2022 (eight pins in his first nine matches), Donnell Washington did have seven bonus wins in his first nine matches of 2023 (two pins, three techs, and two majors). More matches and more bonus lands Washington at #7. With a change of scenery and down a weight, Rocky Jordan made his return into a Fantasy Top-20 (his last time in the Top-20 was in 2020 at 184 finishing #18). Coming in at #10, Jordan only had two decision losses in the regular season and six techs and one pin. Right behind him, Logan Messer makes his second straight Top-20 in his second year of collegiate competition. Wrestling in just about the same amount of matches as he did in 2022, the difference between when he was #4 to this year’s #11 is solely due to bonus. 40% bonus rate in 2022 compared to 27% this year. In his past four years as a starter, Michael O’Malley has steadily been climbing the Fantasy ranks. In 2020 he was #20, in 2021 (COVID season) he was #10, and in 2022 he was #2 at 174. This season though, with an injury in his first match of the season, it put a halt on a usually productive start. O’Malley only had one match at the Tiger Open, then two MFFs. He would return to the mat until December 20th at the Boilermaker Duals. In the past few years, he would have had about 12 matches to his record in that time. So, with only 14 D1 countable matches wrestled, and only four pins compared to 2022 where he had 11 Pins, his Fantasy stock for the season dipped a little. Dustin Plott started the season out with 10 straight wins, and six of them being by bonus. After the Southern Scuffle, he would lose four times (-12 Fpts) and only have two bonus wins in his next 12 matches. Two returning fantasy wrestlers to the 174 Top-20 both improved their previous season performance, but went in opposite directions in the rankings. Ben Pasuik was #13 in 2022 with 47 Fpts and Nick Incontrera was #11 with 51 Fpts. This past season, Pasuik launched up to #9 in the standings (with 61 Fpts), while Incontrera had 57 Fpts and fell to #13 in 2023. 174 is one of three weights to be composed of only Starters. Who Missed The Cut: Two All-Americans finished off the Top-20, one by four Fpts and the other by 36 Fpts. Ethan Smith (OHST) last made a Top-20 in 2021 where he was #10. Last season, he was just on the outside sitting at #22, and this season he tied Jared McGill (EDIN) with 39 Fpts but slots in behind him at #25 due to PPM. The other AA, Nelson Brands (IOWA), finished at #76 with seven Fpts. With an injury midseason and four of his 10 regular season matches resulting in a loss, it was a tough hole to climb out of, but Brands did have an ADP of 141.6 (the equivalent of a 15th-round pick). Out here in the field, he fought for his meals, and put his back into his matches, but Bailee O’Reilly (MINN) fell one point short of the Top-20. That said, he only lost three matches in the regular season (Plott, Mocco, and Labriola) in his 18 bouts. Hard to hold that against him. If you check his WrestleStat page, Demetrius Romero (UVU) will show seven “L” designations. However, five of those “Ls” were Medical Forfeits and do not count for negative points (in standard WrestleStat Leagues). Granted, two were against non-D1 competitions so it wouldn't count for Fpts anyway. Coming in at #22 with 40 Pts, had he wrestled and won one of the other three (against either Labriola, DeVos, or Troy Fisher) then he would have, been #20. The highest non-starter in the 174 Fantasy ranks comes in at #26 with Iowa State’s Joel Devine. Devine actually tied Tate Picklo (OU) in Fpts with 34, but just edged him out with a 1.4 PPM compared to Picklo’s 1.2. Dillon Sheehy (ARMY) was the next highest non-starter with 33 Fpts at #28, also slightly outdueling Troy Fisher (NU) who tied him in Fpts but had a better PPM (1.5 compared to 1.4). Other notables include Alex Faison (NCST) at #32 with 26 Fpts, Luca Augustine (PITT) at #38 with 23 Fpts, MJ Gaitan (ISU) at #29 with 22 Fpts, Aaron Olmos (ORST) at #57 with 14 Fpts, and Phil Conigliaro (HARV) at #81 with 6 Fpts. Don't see your favorite wrestler on the list? Let me know @FantasyD1Wrestl for the full stats. Previous 2023 Top-20 Articles: Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 125 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 133 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 141 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 149 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 157 Top-20 Fantasy Wrestlers at 165

Midlothian

In June, we started a new feature investigating some of the toughest NCAA brackets of all time. In our first two editions of this feature, we looked at the 133 lb weight class from 2019 and the 157 lb weight class from 2009. Now, we’re going back into the 1990’s to look at an excellent 275 lb weight class from 1997. The 1997 275 lb class featured a pair of returning national champions amongst the seven returning All-Americans. The trio atop this weight class would go on to dominate the Senior level for the next decade, each winning a world medal. In addition, a couple of members of this weight class would go on to make names for themselves in the NFL and the WWE. So, get ready to relive one of the better heavyweight brackets of all-time. The Champion: Kerry McCoy (Penn State) The 1997 NCAA tournament saw Kerry McCoy win his second national championship and earn All-American honors for the third time. At the tournament, in Cedar Falls, McCoy posted wins over the eventual fourth, fifth, and seventh-place finishers, along with runner-up Stephen Neal. His victories over Shelton Benjamin and Jason Gleasman both came via major decisions. After the 1997 tournament, McCoy was awarded the Hodge Trophy. He finished his senior campaign a perfect 41-0 with 11 falls. It marked the second time in McCoy’s career that he put together an unbeaten season. Between his sophomore and junior season, McCoy had amassed an 88-match winning streak. A 2003 World silver medalist, McCoy twice made the US Olympic Team, beating Neal in the 2000 Trials and Tolly Thompson in the 2004 Trials. The Runner-Up: Stephen Neal (CSU Bakersfield) Two years after McCoy’s Hodge Trophy, Stephen Neal captured one of his own after winning his second consecutive national championship in 1999. At the ‘97 tournament, Neal dominated on his way to the semifinals, with a major decision, a tech, and a fall. The fall came in the quarterfinals and at the expense of returning All-American Nick Nutter. He would edge Tolly Thompson, 5-4, for his first NCAA final. The previous year, Thompson defeated Neal in the NCAA third-place bout, 4-1. Right after his collegiate career concluded, Neal famously defeated McCoy to make the 1999 World Team and went on to capture gold at both the Pan-American Games and the World Championships in Ankara, Turkey. After failing to make the Olympic Team in 2000, Neal turned his attention to the NFL and wound up starting 81 games and winning three Super Bowl rings with the New England Patriots during a career that lasted until 2010. 3rd Place: Tolly Thompson (Nebraska) The 1995 NCAA champion Tolly Thompson finished his career as a three-time All-American after taking third as a junior and senior. Thomas made the 1997 semifinals after posting falls in his first three bouts. The first of which came over future-All-American Mat Orndorff, while the last one was against returning NCAA fifth-place finisher Airron Richardson. The two had clashed in the 1996 consolations and Thompson prevailed via a 5-3 margin. After falling by a point to Neal in the 1997 semifinals, Thompson finished his collegiate career with wins over Justin Harty and Bryan Stout to secure third place. Harty was the wrestler who upset a top-seeded Thompson in the 1996 NCAA semifinals. Thompson spent much of the next decade near the top of the domestic freestyle ladder. He finally made his first World Team in 2005 and immediately responded with a bronze medal. Thompson also made the 2006 team, but did not garner any hardware. 4th Place: Bryan Stout (Clarion) The old weight classes at this time went from 190 lbs to 275 lbs, which was a significant jump. Bryan Stout made the move up to 275 lbs in 1997 after earning All-American honors three times at 190. 1996 saw him earn the #2 seed at nationals; however, he ended up placing seventh. At the 1997 tournament, Stout grinded out a pair of five and six-point wins before downing the returning runner-up, Justin Harty. That led to a bout with McCoy in the semifinals, which he lost, 4-2. He’d finish his collegiate career majoring Shelton Benjamin, before falling to Thompson in the third-place bout. To this day, Stout is the only four-time All-American in Clarion’s storied wrestling history. He has three sons that have wrestled Division I, Kellan (Penn State/Pittsburgh), Luke (Princeton), and Mac (Pittsburgh). Luke and Mac are both still active and are both slated to be starters at 197 lbs this season. 5th Place: Shelton Benjamin (Minnesota) One of the many great heavyweights to step through the doors at Minnesota, Shelton Benjamin earned All-American honors twice for the Gophers. After placing fifth in 1997, Benjamin finished up by taking second at the Big Ten tournament in 1998 and third at nationals that same year. Benjamin had a rough draw in 1997 with Trent Hynek in the opening round. Hynek would go on to make the national finals in 1998. After Hynek, Benjamin fell via major decision to McCoy. In order to claim a spot on the podium, Benjamin had to win three consolation bouts, the final of which came in the bloodround against Richardson, a returning AA. The two would meet in the Big Ten finals a year later and Richardson was victorious. He’d finish up his 1997 run with wins over Bill Closson and returning national runner-up, Justin Harty. Instead of making a run at the 2000 Olympics, Benjamin turned his focus toward professional wrestling. It proved to be a wise decision as Benjamin has spent most of the last two-plus decades in that world. Almost half of that time has been spent in the WWE. 6th Place: Justin Harty (North Carolina) A bit of a surprise national finalist (#5 seed) in 1996, Justin Harty wasn’t able to replicate his magic from the previous season, but still made the podium for the fourth time. After a quarterfinal loss to Bryan Stout, Harty bounced back with a bloodround win over Wes Hand to ensure he was a four-time All-American. Beating an Iowa guy was no small feat in the 1997 tournament as the Hawkeyes rolled to 170 team points with five champions and eighth All-Americans. Harty’s Round of 12 win over Hand made him only the second four-time All-American in UNC history (Rob Koll was the first). It wouldn’t be until this past season when another Tar Heel joined the club in Austin O’Connor. 7th Place: Jason Gleasman (Syracuse) The dubious distinction of being the most recent All-American for Syracuse belongs to Jason Gleasman who got on the podium in 1997 and 1998 for the Orange. Three years later, the school would cut wrestling. At the 1997 tournament, Gleasman started with back-to-back wins over opponents from Iowa and Oklahoma State, a feat that was extremely rare in those days. That set the stage for a quarterfinal loss to McCoy. To lock up All-American status for the first time, Gleasman pinned Fresno State’s Darin Priesendorf in the bloodround. Wrestling for seventh place, Gleasman downed EIWA rival Bill Closson, an opponent he pinned at Eastern’s. 8th Place: Bill Closson (Lehigh) The final member of this group of All-Americans was Lehigh’s Bill Closson. Just to crack the top eight, Closson scored wins over a returning All-American (Nick Nutter) and two eventual AA’s Leslie Apedoe and Mat Orndorff. This was the first of two trips to the podium for Closson, who was fourth in 1998. Interestingly enough, Closson got a bit of revenge on two opponents from the 97 tournament in 98. He defeated Gleasman and Shelton Benjamin at nationals his senior year. The Bloodround: #10 Nick Nutter (Ohio State), #6 Airron Richardson (Michigan), #11 Darin Priesendorf (Fresno State), Wes Hand (Iowa) The 1997 bloodround losers consisted of a pair of returning All-Americans from 1996 (Richardson - 5th and Nutter - 7th). Also is Wes Hand, who was eighth in 1998 and a national finalist (opposite Brock Lesnar) in 2000. The semifinal losers (Thompson/Stout) dropped down and assumed the third and fourth place slots, while the bloodround winners were fifth-eighth. Other Notables: Trent Hynek (Iowa State), Leslie Apedoe (VMI), Mat Orndorff (Oregon State) NCAA Finals: Kerry McCoy (Penn State) over Stephen Neal (CSU Bakersfield) 3-2 Third Place: Tolly Thompson (Nebraska) over Bryan Stout (Clarion) 6-4 Fifth Place: Shelton Benjamin (Minnesota) over Justin Harty (North Carolina) 8-4 Seventh Place: Jason Gleasman (Syracuse) over Bill Closson (Lehigh) 5-3 NCAA Semifinals Kerry McCoy (Penn State) over Bryan Stout (Clarion) 4-2 Stephen Neal (CSU Bakersfield) over Tolly Thompson (Nebraska) 5-4 NCAA Quarterfinals Kerry McCoy (Penn State) over Jason Gleasman (Syracuse) 9-1 Bryan Stout (Clarion) over Justin Harty (North Carolina) 5-1 Stephen Neal (CSU Bakersfield) over Nick Nutter (Ohio State) Fall 4:05 Tolly Thompson (Nebraska) over Airron Richardson (Michigan) Fall 4:45 NCAA Bloodround Bill Closson (Lehigh) over Nick Nutter (Ohio State) 4-3 Shelton Benjamin (Minnesota) over Airron Richardson (Michigan) 5-2 Jason Gleasman (Syracuse) over Darin Priesendorf (Fresno State) Fall 5:21 Justin Harty (North Carolina) over Wes Hand (Iowa) 4-1 Top 12 Seeds 1. McCoy 2. Neal 3. Thompson 4. Stout 5. Harty 6. Richardson 7. Seth Brady (Illinois) 8. Gleasman 9. Bob Puzio (American) 10. Nutter 11. Priesendorf 12. Closson Conference Champions ACC: Harty Big 8: Thompson Big Ten: McCoy CAA: Puzio East Regional: Kenneth Hunter (Coppin State) ECWA: Dion Reed (Boston) EIWA: Gleasman EWL: Stout MAC: Jim Guttridge (Ohio) Pac-10: Neal SoCon: Leslie Apedoe (VMI) WAC: Priesendorf Fun Facts - This bracket contained a pair of wrestlers that entered the tournament with NCAA titles already (McCoy - 1994, Thompson - 1995). - Just a year later, Kerry McCoy would make the Senior World Team at 130 kg. In 1999, Stephen Neal took the spot and went on to win a World Championship. McCoy reclaimed the spot at the 2000 Olympic Trials, making the first of two Olympic teams. With Tolly Thompson, you have three wrestlers who’d go on to claim world medals from this weight class. - That big three all claimed at least one NCAA title during their careers. Five total; Thompson (1/95), McCoy (2/94/97), Neal (2/98/99). - This bracket contained six wrestlers that made an NCAA final at one point or another during their collegiate careers. The big three; plus, Justin Harty (1996), Trent Hynek (1998), and Wes Hand (2000). - Six of these wrestlers already had NCAA All-American honors under their belt prior to the tournament, McCoy, Neal, Thompson, Harty, Richardson, and Nutter. - Of all the great wrestlers from this bracket, only Neal, Harty, and Stout were four-time All-Americans. - The trio of McCoy, Neal, and Thompson are the only three wrestlers in this bracket to earn #1 seeds at the NCAA Tournament. The three combined to have the top seed every year from 1994-2000. - 14 wrestlers from this bracket earned All-American honors at least once during their collegiate careers. The eight AA’s from 1997; plus, Nutter, Richardson, Hand, Leslie Apedoe, and Mat Orndorff. - Those 14 AA’s combined to get on the podium 33 times. Comparisons Here is where we compare the 1997 275 lb weight class to the two brackets we’ve previously covered 2009 (157 lbs) and 2019 (133 lbs). Returning NCAA Champions: 1997 (2), 2009 (2), 2019 (0) Total NCAA Champions: 1997 (3), 2009 (4), 2019 (2) Total NCAA Titles Won: 1997 (5), 2009 (5), 2019 (4) Total NCAA Finalists: 1997 (6), 2009 (6), 2019 (5) Total NCAA All-Americans: 1997 (14), 2009 (14), 2019 (14) Total Times Those Wrestlers AA’ed: 1997 (33), 2009 (31), 2019 (31) Number of Wrestlers Seeded #1 at NCAA’s: 1997 (3), 2009 (5), 2019 (4) Number of World Medalists: 1997 (3), 2009 (1), 2019 (2) Number of Hodge Trophy Winners: 1997 (2), 2009 (1), 2019 (0) Conclusion: We gave a slight edge to the 2009 157 lb weight class during our last edition. In many ways, this bracket is very similar. The sheer star power from the top three from 1997 gives it the edge. This bracket produced a pair of Hodge Trophy winners, along with a trio of world medalists, which is extremely rare. The top three from the 1997 heavyweight class were so good that they had a pair of four-time All-Americans that were unable to crack the top three (Stout/Harty).

Minnesota head coach Brandon Eggum (center); flanked by Luke Becker (left) and Trevor Brandvold Kevin Claunch sits down with Minnesota head coach Brandon Eggum to discuss all things Gopher wrestling. As we're right after the two-year anniversary of Gable Steveson winning an Olympic gold medal, coach Eggum rehashes the roller coaster of emotions associated with that classic match. Coach Eggum also talks about some of the leaders and mainstays of the 2023-24 team including, Patrick McKee, Brayton Lee, and Isaiah Salazar. The two wrap-up with an excellent story about a bet between Eggum and legendary Minnesota head coach J Robinson. Brandon Eggum Interview.mp4

The U17 World Championships have come and gone and we have a new crop of world medalists. After looking at the newly minted medalists and the list of previous U17 world medal winners, one thing that stands out is that the list is incredibly impressive. That begs the question, “Does success at the world level correlate to success in college?” Collegiate wrestling is slightly different since it’s folkstyle opposed to freestyle (or Greco-Roman) on the international scene. Also, plenty of wrestlers improve or regress during their time in college, so success is not guaranteed for an elite 17-year-old. With that being said, there’s an incredible correlation between winning a U17 world medal in freestyle and winning at the collegiate level. Of the 27 different wrestlers who have won U17/Cadet world medals from 2011-2018, only three have not qualified for the NCAA Tournament at least once. Digging deeper into those figures, Aaron Pico is the obvious outlier, as he passed over collegiate wrestling for a shot at MMA fame. Pico even came back to wrestling and made the finals of the 2016 Olympic Team Trials. Needless to say, he likely would have done a lot of winning in college. Of those other two, Mason Manville made a Greco world team while in college and Kurt McHenry still has some eligibility remaining. Going further into collegiate results, 20 of the 27 medalists earned All-American honors at least once. That group that qualified for nationals, yet hasn’t AA’ed, includes current wrestlers like Abe Assad and Alex Facundo, who still have opportunities to add to their accomplishments. Below, we have divided the men’s freestyle world medalists from 2011-18 into groups based on their collegiate accolades. The first groups are the most elite and wrestlers in that category fit into any of the others below them (excluding AJ Ferrari who was not a multiple-time AA). The cut-off point for this exercise is 2018 as wrestlers younger than this generally have plenty of eligibility remaining and it skews the data. Multiple-Time NCAA Champions Aaron Brooks (Penn State) - 2017 World Champion Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) - 2015/2016 World Champion Spencer Lee (Iowa) - 2014 World Champion Zain Retherford (Penn State) - 2012 World Champion Gable Steveson (Minnesota) - 2015/2016 World Champion NCAA Champion Vito Arujau (Cornell) - 2016 World Silver Medalist David Carr (Iowa State) - 2016 World Bronze Medalist AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State) - 2018 World Bronze Medalist Mark Hall (Penn State) - 2014 World Champion Multiple-Time All-Americans Sam Brooks (Iowa) - 2011 World Bronze Medalist Adam Coon (Michigan) - 2011 World Champion Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) - 2015 World Bronze Medalist Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) - 2017 World Champion; 2018 World Silver Medalist Will Lewan (Michigan) - 2017 World Champion Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) - 2017 World Bronze Medalist Jacob Warner (Iowa) - 2016 World Bronze Medalist Jordan Wood (Lehigh) - 2014 World Silver Medalist NCAA All-American Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) - 2017 World Bronze Medalist Matt Ramos (Purdue) - 2018 World Champion Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) - 2016 World Bronze Medalist NCAA Qualifier Abe Assad (Iowa) - 2018 World Bronze Medalist Alex Facundo (Penn State) - 2018/2019 World Bronze Medalist Owen Webster (Minnesota) - 2015 World Bronze Medalist Jarod Verkleeren (Penn State/Virginia) - 2015 World Champion Non-NCAA Qualifier Mason Manville (Penn State) - 2014 World Champion Kurt McHenry (Michigan/Penn State) - 2016/2017 World Champion Aaron Pico - 2013 World Champion

After the stunning announcement that Arizona State was moving to the Big 12, Sun Devil head wrestling coach Zeke Jones spoke to the media about the move and all of the different facets of the situation. Coach Jones also gives updates on the team leading up to the 2023-24 season. Below are time stamps for each new topic Coach Jones addresses: 1:50 - Zeke Jones opening statement about leaving Pac-12, the history of the Pac-12 and joining Big 12 3:50 - Position for the move and preparing the wrestlers for the move to Big 12 5:15 - How it will affect recruiting and opening up new markets 7:40 - Concern about longevity of program in the Pac-12 since nearly losing the program in 2008 and does this move help keep the program alive 11:00 - Can the rest of the Pac-12 join the Big 12 and what it may look like 12:00 - Conversations with other Pac-12 schools and where Zeke would like to see them land 14:30 - Discussing the Big 12 move with President Michael Crow and Athletic Director Ray Anderson 16:30 - How the athletes figured out about the Big 12 move 18:00 - Zeke discussing about schools brining in wrestling programs into Big 12 and Big 10 schools and thinking that the wrestling momentum is on the rise 20:15 - Will traveling to Big 12 schools affect the student-athletes 23:30 - Jacori Teemer update 24:45 - What teams are Zeke looking forward to wrestle in the Big 12 the most 29:30 - How can ASU promote Pac-12s goals of academic success, mental health in student-athletes and more with Big 12 schools 33:00 - What type of money will be allocated once ASU joins the Big 12, NIL deals 38:00 - What the projected lineup may look like this upcoming season 42:00 - Valiant Prep, Eloy and pipeline of AZ High schools to ASU 44:15 - Missouri wins the Big 12 their first year back in the conference, does Zeke believe ASU can do it? 47:00 - Will ASU be the villains in the West still or get a new identity in the Big 12, what the atmosphere will be like at Big 12 Championships and duals Aug 7 2023 Zeke Jones Media Availability.mp4

Malvern Prep