Nick Raimo is a strong favorite to win the title at 126 pounds (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)The Fargo Week is almost upon us. The Cadet women's freestyle event starts on Saturday, with the first event for male athletes starting on Sunday, and that is the Cadet Greco-Roman competition. This event can serve as a first identifying event for many athletes both entering high school, and also for those already finished with one or two seasons of high school competition, on the national level. While other athletes are already known commodities, also looking for recognition and glory in a national event.
Below is an overview of the participating field in each weight class for the Cadet Greco-Roman competition, which starts on Sunday and reaches its conclusion Monday. Information used in this preview is based on registration posted to Trackwrestling as of mid-afternoon on Friday, July 15.
88 pounds: The two leading contenders are Andrew Chambal (Michigan) and Paxton Creese (Minnesota). Chambal won a Cadet folkstyle title at 94 pounds, earning the first leg of the Cadet Triple Crown, with the second and third legs to come over the next week in Fargo. He also was runner-up in Greco-Roman at the UWW Cadet Nationals in the 42 kilogram (92 pound) weight class. Creese went undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals, and placed fourth in the 42 kilo weight class at the UWW Cadet Greco-Roman tournament.
Others to watch include Timothy Levine (California), who was third in the same Cadet folkstyle weight class as Chambal; Blake Noonan (Michigan), a UWW Cadet freestyle All-American; along with Emilio Haynes (Nebraska), a Cadet folkstyle runner-up at 88 pounds.
94 pounds: The favorite in this weight class is Jalen Spuhler (Wisconsin), who will be representing the United States on the Cadet World team in Greco-Roman at 42 kilograms. Five other All-Americans who finished behind Spuhler in last month's UWW Cadet National tournament feature in this weight class: Dylan Ragusin (Illinois), Caden McCrary (Georiga), Christian Goin (Illinois), Brenden Chaowanapibool (Washington), and Destin Summers (Idaho).
Ragusin and McCrary were All-Americans in the freestyle competition as well. Goin is also a returning Cadet Greco-Roman All-American from last summer in Fargo, placing eighth at 88 pounds. Chaowanapibool went undefeated at last month's Cadet Duals in Greco-Roman. Summers was a state champ during the scholastic season, along with finishing third in Cadet folkstyle at 88 pounds.
100 pounds: Two-time Cadet folkstyle runner-up Eric Faught (Iowa) enters this rather talented weight class as the slightest of favorites; he also was a state runner-up this past scholastic season, finished second in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals last month at 46 kilos (101 pounds), and went undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals. Seeking the second leg of the Triple Crown will be Steele Dias (Nevada), champion in Cadet folkstyle each of the last two years; Dias was also fifth in Cadet Greco-Roman at 94 pounds last year, and is a two-time double All-American at the UWW Cadet Nationals.
Three wrestlers in this weight class were double All-Americans at the Cadet Nationals in Fargo last summer, all of them at 88 pounds. Derek Ramos (Idaho) was runner-up in Greco-Roman, Lucas Byrd (Ohio) was third in both styles, and Ridge Lovett (Idaho) was runner-up in freestyle. Ramos has also placed twice in his high school state tournament, state medalist Byrd was also a double All-American at the UWW Cadet Nationals last month, while state champion Lovett was an All-American in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals.
Additional contenders include impact incoming freshmen Anthony Clark (New Jersey) and Kellyn March (South Dakota), a returning Cadet Greco All-American in Nick Onea (Pennsylvania), along with Matthew Ramos (Illinois) and Max Crowe (Minnesota).
106 pounds: Entering the tournament as a slight favorite is Jace Koezler (Kansas), a Cadet folkstyle champion this spring after winning a high school state title this winter. He also was a Cadet double All-American last summer at 94 pounds, including a runner-up finish in Greco-Roman. Among the primary challengers are a pair of Pennsylvania state medalists in Dalton Rohrbaugh and Beau Bayless.
Two others in this weight class join Koelzer in being returning Fargo All-Americans in Greco-Roman, high school state champion Josh Blatt (North Carolina) and state medalist Patrick Allis (Colorado). Others to note include Adrian Marquez (Colorado); state runner-up Isaac Lopez (Washington); Manny Drexler (Wisconsin), a UWW Cadet All-American in Greco-Roman; along with Mitchel Peterson (Minnesota), who went undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals.
113 pounds: This weight class features at least seven wrestlers who won a high school state title during the 2015-16 season, most notable among the lot being FloNationals runner-up Ben Kamali (Michigan). Others to win gold include two-time champion Antonio Saldate (Nevada), Isaiah Delgado (Texas), Jacob Frias (Arizona), Jordan Hamdan (Michigan), Joseph Otero (New Mexico), and Lorenzo Vasquez (Oregon).
Another four wrestlers finished either second or third: two-time medalist Andrew Lucero (Colorado), Austin Almaguer (Washington), Joey Bianchi (Wisconsin), and FloNationals placer Malyke Hines (Florida). Also meriting attention are returning Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Gavin Stockwell (Oregon) and J.J. Wilson (Pennsylvania), along with Lorenzo Witcraft (Oklahoma), who was undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals.
120 pounds: A pair of nationally ranked Class of 2019 wrestlers anchor this weight class, No. 15 Theorius Robison (Colorado) and No. 40 Cade Devos (Iowa); Robison was also a state champ during the past scholastic season, and an All-American in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals last month. Three wrestlers in this weight class are returning All-Americans from last summer's Cadet Nationals in Greco-Roman: high school state champion Atilano Escobar (Arizona), as well as state medalists Benji Peak (Wisconsin) and Curtis LeMair (Minnesota); Escobar also placed eighth in Greco-Roman at last month's UWW Cadet Nationals, while Peak was a runner-up last summer in Fargo.
Joining Escobar as a UWW Cadet Greco-Roman All-American is two-time state placer Connor Manderfeld (Texas). Five others join Robison and Escobar as high school season state champions: two-timers Alex Cruz (Washington) and Gabe Hixenbaugh (Alabama), Bennett Moudy (Oklahoma), Orion Anderson (New York), and Tyler Delaware (Illinois). Three others in this weight class were high school state runners-up Aaron Schulist (Wisconsin), Cael Carlson (Minnesota), and Earl Blake (Maryland); Blake was also undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals.
Three others to watch in this weight class are two-time National Prep placer King Sandoval (Maryland), incoming freshman Matt Lee (Indiana), and state medalist Patrick Gould (Pennsylvania).
126 pounds: Nick Raimo (New Jersey) was a Cadet National double champion last summer at 120 pounds, and is ranked as the No. 2 overall Class of 2019 wrestler. He enters the tournament as the strong favorite in this weight class. One other wrestler ranked among the top 50 in the Class of 2019 is in this field, No. 49 Kevon Davenport (Michigan), a high school state champion this winter. Two other scholastic state champions are in this field: Dayton Porsch (Kansas), who was undefeated at the Cadet Duals last month in Greco-Roman; and returning Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Peyton Robb (Minnesota).
Other contenders include state medalist Sebas Swiggum (Minnesota), a champion in Cadet folkstyle this spring; state medalists Job Greenwood (Colorado) and Gabriel Ruepke (Iowa), with Greenwood going undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals; along with Josh Steele (Missouri).
132 pounds: Even in the midst of what is a very talented weight class, there is but one favorite, and that is Sammy Sasso (Pennsylvania). Sasso was a Cadet double All-American last summer in Fargo, including a title in freestyle; he is also ranked No. 6 overall in the Class of 2018, including a FloNationals title and third place finish at the Super 32 Challenge. Two other ranked Class of 2018 wrestlers are in this field: No. 29 Jacori Teemer (New York), a three-time state champion, and No. 39 Josh Humphreys (West Virginia), a two-time state champion. Two others with grade level rankings in this weight class are Alfonso Martinez (Arizona) and Frankie Tal-Shahar (Florida), No. 16 and No. 21 in the Class of 2020; Martinez was third in Cadet folkstyle, while Tal-Shahar was undefeated at last month's Cadet Duals in Greco-Roman.
Five wrestlers join Teemer and Humphreys as scholastic season state champions: Andrew Gamble (Missouri), who also went undefeated in Greco-Roman at the Cadet Duals last month; Mason Phillips (Washington); River Curtis (Virginia), a two-time champion; Roderick Mosley (Oklahoma); and T.J. Baun (Washington). Others to note in this weight class include Carnell Andrews (Pennsylvania), two-time state medalist and Cadet folkstyle runner-up Harlan Steffensmeier (Iowa), two-time National Prep placer Nathan Thacker (Maryland), state medalist Nick Freeman (Michigan), along with two-time state runner-up and Cadet folkstyle runner-up Tyler Eischens (Minnesota).
138 pounds: Two elite Class of 2018 prospects anchor this weight class, No. 26 Brock Hardy (Utah) and No. 28 Will Lewan (Illinois). Two-time state champion Hardy is after the second leg of the Cadet Triple Crown having won the folkstyle title in April, and was a Fargo runner-up last summer in both styles; while Lewan was a Cadet double All-American last summer, and is a two-time state medalist. Also in this weight class are a trio of ranked Class of 2019 wrestlers, all of whom won state titles as freshmen: No. 20 Cameron Amine (Michigan), No. 24 James Burks (Nebraska), and No. 26 Jason Kraisser (Maryland).
Also a grade level ranked wrestler is Cadet folkstyle runner-up Fidel Mayora (Illinois), No. 15 overall in the Class of 2020. Three others in this weight class won state championships this past high school season: Frankie Almaguer (Washington), Kolton Clark (Alabama), and Peter Enos (Nevada). Others to watch include 2015 state champion Gerald Angelo (New Jersey), two-time state medalist Ryan Steffen (Iowa), and UWW Cadet Greco All-American John McGowan (Oklahoma).
145 pounds: Seeking the second leg of the Cadet Triple Crown in this tournament is three-time state champion Jared Franek (North Dakota), who also earned All-American honors in Cadet freestyle last summer. The other scholastic state champion in this weight class is Adrian St. Germain (Washington). Two individuals went undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals, Dalton Jensen and state placer Isaac Wilcox, both from Utah.
Others to watch in this weight class include rising freshman Aaron Gandara (Arizona), Abe Assad (Illinois), state placer Brian Case (Michigan), state runners-up Colton Denney (Oklahoma) and Garrett Lange (Kansas), state placers Gabe Kjelgaard (Iowa) and Nathan Moore (Washington), two-time state placer Justin McCoy (Pennsylvania), along with state runner-up and returning Cadet freestyle All-American Logan Jensen (Utah).
152 pounds: The joint favorites in this weight class would have to be Michael O'Malley (New Jersey) and Tyler Dow (Wisconsin), both of whom were state runners-up during their sophomore season of high school. Each wrestler was also a Cadet double All-American last summer, and an All-American at the UWW Cadet Nationals in Greco-Roman last month; Dow also placed in the freestyle tournament as well. Two wrestlers in this weight class were scholastic state champions this year, Mason Reiniche (Tennessee) and McKay Foy (Utah); while another pair join O'Malley and Dow as state runners-up, Hunter Jump (Oklahoma) and James Rogers (Washington).
Additional state medalists in this weight class include Caleb Hetrick (Pennsylvania), Carter Starocci (Pennsylvania), Edmund Ruth (Pennsylvania), and Lucas Roland (Iowa); Ruth is also ranked No. 34 overall in the Class of 2019. Two others to watch are Matthew Ortiz (Illinois) and David Cumberledge (Ohio).
160 pounds: The two most talented wrestlers in this weight class are Aaron Brooks (Maryland) and Josh Stillings (Pennsylvania), both of whom were NHSCA Sophomore Nationals champions this spring. Though neither has had great Olympic styles success, both have robust scholasvtic production; Brooks a two-time state champion and Stillings was fourth in Pennsylvania's big-school division.
Another pair of wrestlers were Cadet All-Americans in Greco-Roman last summer, Bryson Alsteen (Wisconsin) and Jake Hendricks (Pennsylvania); Henricks was also an All-American in both styles at the UWW Cadet Nationals last month. Others to watch include Chris Foca (New Jersey), ranked No. 44 in the Class of 2019, along with a pair of Ohioans in Cornell Beachem and Jacob Lagoa; Lagoa was undefeated in Greco-Roman at the Cadet duals last month.
170 pounds: An absolute baffling loss in the quarterfinals of Cadet freestyle last summer cost Travis Wittlake (Oregon) the shot to win a Triple Crown. This year, Wittlake is in pole position to get that Triple Crown. Ranked No. 8 overall in the Class of 2018, his resume is abundant. Two challengers in this weight class went undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals: Ben Root (Pennsylvania) and Devin Winston (Missouri); Winston joins Wittlake in being eligible for the Cadet Triple Crown, and is ranked No. 39 overall in the Class of 2019.
Other contenders include 2015 state runner-up Sebastian Mordecai (Arizona), state medalist Cade Pederson (North Dakota), along with two-time state placers in Joel Shapiro (Iowa) and Nick Casperson (South Daktoa).
182 pounds: National Prep champion Ryan Karoly (New Jersey), ranked No. 25 overall in the Class of 2018 enters as the favorite in this weight class. Last year, he was a runner-up in Cadet Greco-Roman to Wittlake and won the freestyle tournament after Wittlake suffered the upset loss. Three others in this weight class went undefeated at the Cadet Duals in Greco-Roman: Julian Gorring (Pennsylvania), Ryan C rump (Georgia), and Cadet folkstyle champion Lucas Davison (Indiana).
Others to watch include state champion Christian Knop (Alabama), state runner-up Caden Steffen (Minnesota), two-time state placer Logan Schumacher (Iowa), and NHSCA Freshman Nationals champion Drake Barbee (Oklahoma).
195 pounds: The lone grade level ranked wrestler in the weight class as of the moment is Braxton Amos (West Virginia), No. 5 overall in the Class of 2020. Seeking a Cadet Triple Crown is Sergio Villalobos (Illinois), who won the folkstyle title at 220 earlier this spring. Another trio went undefeated at the Cadet Duals in Greco-Roman last month: state placer Jace Punke (Illinois), Kaleb Reeves (Iowa), and Trent Ragland (Virginia). Two others to watch are Cadet folkstyle runner-up Eli Pokorny (Indiana) and Joseph Miller (Nevada), a state medalist and UWW Cadet Greco All-American.
220 pounds: Cohlton Schultz (Colorado) is the top-ranked wrestler in the Class of 2019, a defending Cadet Greco-Roman champion, and will be representing the United States at the Cadet Worlds in Greco-Roman at 100 kilos (220 pounds). He is your obvious favorite. Others to note include state medalist Tyler Curd (Missouri), undefeated in Greco-Roman at last month's Cadet Duals; as well as state medalist Luke Luffman (Illinois), a double All-American at the UWW Cadet Nationals last month
285 pounds: Ronald Tucker Jr. (Illinois) won the first leg of the Cadet Triple Crown in April. He went undefeated in Greco-Roman at the Cadet Duals last month, and is ranked No. 25 overall in the Class of 2019. Others to watch include state runner-up Louden Haga (West Virginia), Cadet folkstyle runner-up and state medalist Spencer Trenary (Iowa), along with Montana Phillips (Oklahoma) who went undefeated in Greco-Roman at the Cadet Duals last month.
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