2025-26 Preseason Ivy League Preview
Our preseason conference previews began out west, but now moves across the country to check out the Ivy League. March of 2025 marked the first time that the Ivy League qualified for the NCAA Championship as its own conference rather than part of the EIWA. It was a big change for those who have been following college wrestling for any length of time, but it was one that the Ivy League teams enjoyed and preferred. Rather than a massive conference tournament that could include 18 entrants, there were only six teams.
Those six teams combined to send 29 wrestlers to the 2025 NCAA Championships. Three wrestlers ended up on the NCAA podium and those three wrestlers came from two teams (Cornell/Penn).
This is a very interesting conference from a coaching standpoint. You have the longest-tenured DI coach in the nation (Jay Weiss/Harvard), along with a lot of new blood. Matt Valenti is heading into his first year at the helm at his alma mater, Penn. Donny Pritzlaff is in his second year leading Columbia. Joe Dubuque was elevated to Princeton’s head coaching position in the fall of 2023, while Jordan Leen was hired by Brown in 2022, and Mike Grey took over the reins at Cornell in 2021. There are lots of new faces in the conference, and many new rivalries are developing.
Here’s our look at the Ivy League Conference for 2025-26
InterMat’s Preseason First-Team All-Ivy League
125 lbs: #17 Marc-Anthony McGowan (Princeton)
133 lbs: #25 Brett Ungar (Cornell)
141 lbs: #5 CJ Composto (Penn)
149 lbs: #7 Cross Wasilewski (Penn)
157 lbs: #3 Meyer Shapiro (Cornell)
165 lbs: #21 Cesar Alvan (Columbia)
174 lbs: #3 Simon Ruiz (Cornell)
184 lbs: #13 Aaron Ayzerov (Columbia)
197 lbs: #15 Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia)
285 lbs: #26 Ashton Davis (Cornell)
Stars in Motion
Ideally, this category was designed to highlight notable wrestlers in the conference changing weights. That isn’t too prevalent this year in the Ivy League. What we’ll do is point out the fact that Columbia brings back a pair of wrestlers that have to be considered the early-season favorites at their respective weights. Aaron Ayzerov and Jack Wehmeyer both grayshirted last year and are back and start the year in the top 15 nationally. Ayzerov was an EIWA champion in 2024 and Wehmeyer had a breakout year that showed by he was a top 100 recruit in the Class of 2022.
Weight Class to Watch
157 lbs has it all in the Ivy League. It’s the only weight with five of the six teams represented in the preseason rankings. Up top, you have a national title threat in two-time All-American Meyer Shapiro. In the middle, there is NCAA bloodround finisher Jude Swisher (Penn) and Ty Whalen (Princeton), who spent much of last year in the top 10 at 149 lbs. Also coming off their first NCAA tournament berth are Richard Fedalen (Columbia) and Jimmy Harrington (Harvard). Every conference dual should have a quality match at this weight.
Freshmen Phenoms
Cornell leads the way with a pair of wrestlers coming off grayshirts. Jaxon Joy at 149 lbs and Lou Cerchio at 165 lbs. Joy had an incredible 2024-25 campaign, going 29-1 coming in open tournaments. Among those 29 wins were five that came at the expense of NCAA qualifiers. With 149 lbs clearing out a bit, Joy has the potential to come in and threaten for the podium immediately. Cerchio was also very active and picked up 29 wins, though against six losses. Cerchio starts the year near the bottom of the national rankings, but could move up quickly.
At this point, the only other school that might have a significant impact from freshmen is Penn. They’re trying to figure out the upperweights and could have freshmen vying for the slots between 174-197 (Liam Carlin, Brian Heard, Greyson Meak).
Mark it on the Calendar
November 1st: All-Star Classic @ Rutgers - 174 lbs Simon Ruiz (Cornell) vs. Lenny Pinto (Rutgers)
November 9th: Journeymen Collegiate Classic (Columbia, Harvard)
November 14th: Princeton @ Pitt
November 15th: Throwdown on the Yorktown (Penn)
November 15/16th: National Duals Invitational (Cornell)
November 16th: Princeton @ West Virginia
November 21st: Michigan @ Columbia
November 23rd: Keystone Classic (Harvard, Penn) @ Penn
December 5th: Brown vs. Nebraska @ St. Charles, Missouri
December 5/6th: Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Columbia, Cornell, Harvard, Princeton)
December 21st: Collegiate Duals (Cornell)
December 29/30th: Midlands Championships (Harvard)
January 3/4th: Southern Scuffle (Brown, Cornell, Penn)
January 9/10th: NWCA National Duals (Havard)
January 10th: Cornell @ Lehigh
January 18th: Lehigh @ Princeton
January 31st: Arizona State @ Columbia
January 31st: Arizona State @ Cornell
February 16th: Princeton @ Rutgers
February 20th: Cornell @ NC State
February 20th: Princeton @ Penn State
March 8th: Ivy League Championships @ Columbia
Brown
Head Coach: Jordan Leen
2024-25 Season Record: 3-9
Preseason Ranked Wrestlers (0)
This could be the year that we start to see some of the hard work that Jordan Leen and his staff have put in on the recruiting trail start to pay off on the mat. Brown brought in a Class of 2025 that was ranked #24 in the nation and featured four of the top 250 prospects in the nation. That’s on top of some good recruiting effort in the years that preceded 2025.
While none of the Brown wrestlers cracked the top 33 in the preseason, there were some who were close. Very close in the case of heavyweight Alex Semenenko. The senior big man was 26-14 last season and notched plenty of quality wins. He’s shown marked improvement during every year in Providence, so there’s no reason to think 2025-26 should be any different.
We should also keep an eye on 141 lber Joey Joyce. He was 12-3 at 133 lbs before his season ended in January and all three losses came to quality opponents.
The bulk of the Brown starting lineup should consist of veterans who have been in Leen’s system for a few years now. All signs point to 2025-26 as a year that the Bears turn the corner and make an impact in the Ivy.
Columbia
Head Coach: Donny Pritzlaff
2024-25 Season Record: 6-7
Preseason Ranked Wrestlers (6)
141 lbs: #33 Lorenzo Frezza, 157 lbs: #27 Richard Fedalen, 165 lbs: #21 Cesar Alvan, 174 lbs: #23 Nick Fine, 184 lbs: #13 Aaron Ayzerov, 197 lbs: #15 Jack Wehmeyer
Donny Pritzlaff’s first year in New York City was a bit of a chaotic one, as a handful of Columbia wrestlers graduated and were forced to use their final year of eligibility elsewhere, and two of their best returners took greyshirts. Lost in that shuffle was the development of Frezza, Fedalen, and Fine, who all qualified for nationals for the first time. Now with Ayzerov and Wehmeyer back in the lineup, combined with Cesar Alvan, they have a really solid nucleus to build around.
On top of the ranked wrestlers returning, the Lions will also have a wrestler with prior NCAA experience at 149 lbs with Kai Owen and a heavyweight that showed flashes of getting to that level in Vincent Mueller.
The ideal lineup for Pritzlaff will feature only juniors and seniors. Of course, an ideal lineup rarely holds! As it stands now, Columbia will be a very solid dual lineup. With a full offseason working with the new staff, we might see Ayzerov assert himself as a podium threat.
Cornell
Head Coach: Mike Grey
2024-25 Season Record: 11-1
Preseason Ranked Wrestlers (8)
125 lbs: #31 Marcello Milani, 133 lbs: #25 Brett Ungar, 141 lbs: #19 Vince Cornella, 149 lbs: #10 Jaxon Joy, 157 lbs: #3 Meyer Shapiro, 165 lbs: #31 Lou Cerchio, 174 lbs: #3 Simon Ruiz, 285 lbs: #26 Ashton Davis
It will truly be a tale of two seasons for Mike Grey’s Cornell team in 2025-26. Because of injuries and Ivy League eligibility Greg Diakomihalis (125), Ungar, Cornella, Ethan Fernandez (149/157), and Shapiro will all miss the first semester. Unfortunately, that’s when a couple of the marquee events on Cornell’s schedule take place (National Duals Invitational and Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational). The bad news for the rest of the Ivy League is that the lineup should be intact for the conference dual season.
During the first semester, we’ll get to focus on the young guys in the Big Red lineup. Joy and Cerchio will try to establish themselves. Simon Ruiz quietly snuck into the All-American hunt as a freshman. Coming off a podium finish and a good offseason on the freestyle circuit, he won’t sneak up on anyone.
Luckily for Cornell, they have the talent and depth to withstand a semester without the abovementioned wrestlers. Returners like Milani, Tyler Ferrera (133), and Joshua Saunders (141) were national qualifiers in 2025. Each will handle the starting duties quite capably and might make it difficult for the others to retake their spots in the lineup.
Despite trying to figure things out at a couple of the upperweights (184/197), Cornell is still the team to beat in the Ivy League. With Shapiro and Ruiz (and potentially others) they have high-scoring capabilities at NCAA’s too.
Harvard
Head Coach: Jay Weiss
2024-25 Season Record: 0-8
Preseason Ranked Wrestlers (1)
157 lbs: #28 Jimmy Harrington
We should see a step up from Harvard this year as they bring back two of the better wrestlers from grayshirt years. 2024 EIWA runner-up, Jack Crook (149), and veteran Joe Cangro (165 lbs) both sat out the 2024-25 season, but are back. The pair, combined with 2025 national qualifier Jimmy Harrington, should make the middle of the Crimson lineup formidable.
I’m excited about the recruiting class that coach Jay Weiss’ staff has assembled from the Class of 2025. At this point, it’s too early to pencil any of the freshman into the Crimson lineup; however, it’s not unreasonable to think that a few could work their way in as the year progresses. One of them is Robert Kucharczk, who was a top 150 recruit from a power high school program.
Harvard will need to continue to grow to keep up with the rest of the conference. They were only able to amass eight team points in one of their five Ivy duals in 2025-26.
Penn
Head Coach: Matt Valenti
2024-25 Season Record: 10-6
Preseason Ranked Wrestlers (5)
141 lbs: #5 CJ Composto, 149 lbs: #7 Cross Wasilewski, 157 lbs: #13 Jude Swisher, 165 lbs: #22 Sean Seefeldt, 197 lbs: #28 Martin Cosgrove
This is officially the first year of the Matt Valenti era. Valenti was named the successor to Roger Reina prior to the 2024-25 season, with this year in mind for his debut. Valenti inherits a team and program on the rise. Two-time All-American CJ Composto leads the way for the Quakers. Behind him in the lineup, at the next two slots, are wrestlers who advanced to the NCAA bloodround in 2025 - Cross Wasilewski and Jude Swisher.
Solid recruiting has led to a potential lineup that features lots of quality competition, even for Penn’s best wrestlers. Evan Mougalian (141) and Kelly Dunnigan (149) are potential national qualifier-type wrestlers pushing their stars. That competition is present throughout the lineup. We’ll have to “wait and see” at a handful of weights as wrestlers with good pre-collegiate pedigree battle for a starting position. That should be the case at 125 lbs (Brady Pruett/Davis Motyka), 133 lbs (Spencer Barnhart/Deven Casey), and 285 lbs (John Pardo/Zach Delsanter) among others.
One spot I’m interested in monitoring is 197 lbs. Martin Cosgrove was ranked in the preseason last year, but lost in the early going with a season-ending injury. If healthy, he could move up quickly.
Of late, Penn has been a quality dual team. That should continue in 2025-26. They should be a much better tournament team with the high-finish capabilities of their 141/149 lbers and a team effort from the rest of the squad.
Princeton
Head Coach: Joe Dubuque
2024-25 Season Record: 8-9
Preseason Ranked Wrestlers (4)
125 lbs: #17 Marc-Anthony McGowan, 141 lbs: #17 Eligh Rivera, 157 lbs: #16 Ty Whalen, 184 lbs: #17 Kole Mulhauser
Looking at Princeton’s preseason rankings, three wrestlers ranked #17 and one at #16, which tells me they have a handful of wrestlers who could be headed for breakout seasons. With McGowan headed into his sophomore year and Rivera/Whalen going into their junior seasons, it could be the right time.
Two weights that might produce new national qualifiers for the Tigers could be 133 and 285 lbs. Danny Jones had a solid freshman season and might be ready to take the next step in a lightweight room that includes McGowan, Joe Dubuque, and Cody Brewer. Heavyweight Sebastian Garibaldi was a part of an Ivy League heavyweight class that featured a lot of parity last year. As a junior, Garibaldi posted two wins over wrestlers who went on to make the 2025 NCAA Championships.
Princeton should be a solid dual team in 2025-26, but how they’ll fare in tournaments depends on whether some of the notable returners take that next step and develop into podium threats.
