Cadet freestyle wrestling starts on Wednesday with two sessions, those at 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. CT. Those sessions will whittle the field down to the quarterfinalists on the championship side of the draw. The competition continues on Thursday where the finalists and medal winners will be determined in two sessions, the quarterfinals are a part of the 9:30 a.m. session, with semifinals in the session commencing at 3:30 p.m. Medal matches will be wrestled at 2 p.m. on Friday afternoon.
The following is a weight-by-weight overview of the Cadet freestyle field, entrants as of Sunday evening.
88: Entering as the favorite in this weight class is Cadet folkstyle champion Mosha Schwartz (Colorado), who was also runner-up at the UWW Cadet Nationals in freestyle in late May at 42 kilos. Others to watch in this weight class include Cadet regional double champions Logan Ashton (Georgia), Lucas Byrd (Ohio), Ridge Lovett (Idaho), and Chase Tebbets (Washington).
94: The favorite in this weight class is defending champion Malik Heinselman (Colorado), who is also the UWW Cadet freestyle world team representative at 42 kilos. Others to watch include Cadet folkstyle champion Steele Dias (Nevada); Jace Koelzer (Kansas), undefeated in both styles at the Cadet Duals last month; state runner-up Cody Phippen (Kansas), who was runner-up in Cadet folkstyle at 100 pounds; Kurt McHenry (Virginia), ranked No. 14 overall in the Class of 2019; and Gabriel Tagg (Ohio), who was one match from All-American honors at 46 kilos in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals.
100: The favorite in this weight class is Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio), who is the UWW Cadet freestyle world team representative at 46 kilos. He is also ranked No. 5 overall in the Class of 2019, and was a Cadet freestyle runner-up last year at 94 pounds. Primary challengers include Cadet folkstyle champion Kyle Biscoglia (Iowa); a pair of nationally ranked Class of 2019 wrestlers, No. 10 Travis Ford-Melton (Illinois) and No. 18 Eric Faught (Iowa); state champion Rhett Golowenski (Oklahoma), who was a Cadet double All-American last year and finished second to D'Emilio at the UWW Cadet Nationals; along with returning Cadet National double All-Americans in Joey Melendez (Illinois), Patrick McKee (Minnesota), and Peter Ogunsanya (Illinois).
106: Three nationally ranked Class of 2019 wrestlers lead the field in this weight class, No. 8 Adam Busiello (New York), No. 19 Jordan Decatur (Ohio), and No. 22 Jaden Abas (California); Decatur and Abas both placed at 50 kilos in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals this spring. Other notables in this weight class include Cadet folkstyle champion Aaron Cashman (Minnesota), Charles Faber (Illinois), state champion Malik Johnson (Missouri), Logan Macri (Pennsylvania), returning Cadet double All-American Izaak Olejnik (California), state champion and returning Cadet freestyle All-American Clayton Singh (Missouri), along with state champion Dallas Wilson (Kansas).
113: The favorite in this weight class is returning Cadet Nationals double champion Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona), who is ranked No. 17 in the Class of 2018. Two other wrestlers ranked in that grade are among the primary challengers: No. 37 Tommy Hoskins (Ohio) and No. 44 Roderick Mosley (Oklahoma). At least eight other wrestlers in this field were state champions in high school this year - Brock Bergelin (Wisconsin), A.J. Facundo (Michigan), Jonathan Gomez (New York), Michael Millage (Iowa), Peyton Robb (Minnesota), Brian Stuart (Maryland), Brody Teske (Iowa), and Logan Treaster (Kansas). Additional wrestlers meriting attention include returning Cadet freestyle All-American Matthew Parker (Pennsylvania) and Preseason Nationals champion Chase Zollman (California).
120: Things seem rather wide open in this weight class with four grade-level ranked wrestlers among the contenders. Nick Raimo (New Jersey) is ranked third overall in the Class of 2019, and was one match away from an All-American finish at 54 kilos in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals this spring; two-time state champion Jacori Teemer (New York) is ranked No. 27 in the Class of 2018; state champion Alex Thomsen (Iowa) is ranked No. 45 in the Class of 2018; while two-time state runner-up Jason Renteria (Illinois) is ranked No. 21 in the Class of 2017, and was a Cadet folkstyle champion this spring at 120 pounds.
Two other Cadet folkstyle champions are among the field, state runner-up Jake Gliva (Minnesota) and state fifth placer Zander Silva (California). Also among the primary contenders is state champion Max Murin (Pennsylvania), a returning Cadet freestyle runner-up who finished sixth at 54 kilos in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals this spring. At least six other state champions appear in this weight class, including two-time champion Clay Quintanilla (Washington). Also meriting attention is two-time state placer Cameron Valdiviez (Missouri).
126: This weight class is also wide open, though not as talented as the weight class that immediate precedes. The lone grade-level ranked wrestler returning Cadet freestyle All-American Anthony Madrigal (Illinois), who is No. 42 overall in the Class of 2018. However, the favorite here is most likely two-time state finalist Kyran Hagan (Missouri), a state champion this past year. Others to watch include two-time state champion David Bertoni (Maryland); 2014 state champion Hunter Dusold (New York); Cadet folkstyle runner-up Lawrence Saenz (California); along with state placers Abdullah Assaf (Illinois), Tim Kane (Connecticut), Justin McCoy (Pennsylvania), Jaden van Maanen (Wisconsin), and Zach Villarreal (Illinois).
132: Six grade-level ranked wrestlers lead the way in this weight class, though the leading the way in that pack is Vitali Arujau (New York). The two-time state champion is ranked tenth overall in the Class of 2017, is a returning Cadet freestyle All-American, and finished runner-up in the 58 kilogram weight class at the UWW Cadet freestyle nationals this spring. The other five come from the Class of 2018: No. 14 Sammy Sasso (Pennsylvania), No. 19 Brock Hardy (Utah), No. 21 Alex Lloyd (Minnesota), No. 30 Brayton Lee (Indiana), and No. 39 Aaron Brooks (Maryland); Lloyd is a returning Cadet double All-American, while Sasso is already a two-time placer at the FloNationals.
Others to watch in this weight class include two-time state champions Sam Eckhart (Idaho) and Dakota Galt (South Dakota), two-time state runner-up Alec Hagan (Missouri), state placer and Cadet folkstyle runner-up J.J. Figueroa (California), as well as notable incoming freshmen Carson Kharchla (Ohio) and Austin Kraisser (Maryland).
138: Three nationally ranked wrestlers in the Class of 2018 are among the primary contenders in this weight class, No. 15 Shane Griffith (New Jersey), No. 22 Joe Lee (Indiana), and No. 33 Phil Conigliaro (Massachusetts); Griffith was a state champion this past season, Lee a state runner-up, and Conigliaro placed fourth at National Preps. The other primary contender is returning Cadet freestyle runner-up Jamie Hernandez (Illinois), fourth in his state tournament this season.
Additional wrestlers to watch include incoming freshman Brian Case (Michigan), state placers Jaxen Gilmore (Oklahoma) and Tyler Shilson (Minnesota), 2014 state champion Ryan Hansen (Utah), two-time state champion Eli King (Tennessee), Andrew Merola (New Jersey), and two-time state placer Mike Stuart (Pennsylvania).
145: Four wrestlers ranked in their grade level anchor the field here, led by UWW Cadet freestyle runner-up at 69 kilos David Carr (Ohio), who is ranked No. 7 in the Class of 2018. Additional grade-level ranked wrestlers are Anthony Artalona (Florida), No. 44 in the Class of 2017, though he is actually a Class of 2018 wrestler; Jaryn Curry (Oklahoma), No. 29 in the Class of 2018; and Anthony Jackson (Minnesota), ranked No. 7 in the Class of 2019. Two-time state champion Artalona was a UWW Cadet double All-American at 63 kilos, Curry placed third this season, while Jackson has already twice placed fourth at the state tournament.
Also in this weight class are three Cadet folkstyle finalists, Kameron Bush (Michigan), Kameron Frame (Kansas), and Kendall Frame (Kansas); Kameron Frame won the title at 138, while Bush and Kendall were runners-up at 138 and 145 respectively. Two others were Preseason Nationals champions this past fall, state champion Braeden Redlin (Texas) and Emille Shannon (Illinois). Others to watch include state runner-up Logan McKoy (Maryland), NHSCA Sophomore Nationals runner-up Connor Melbourne (New York), and state champion Hunter Richard (New York).
152: Two ranked wrestlers from the Class of 2018 are in this field, No. 34 Robert Patrick (Pennsylvania) and No. 50 Ben Sarasin (Iowa). Patrick was a state runner-up this past season, while Sarasin went undefeated across styles at the Cadet Duals last month. However, joint favorites in this weight class would be Cadet folkstyle champion Jake Allar (Minnesota), a state runner-up this season; along with state placer Tervell Timmons (Illinois), who was third at 69 kilos in this spring's UWW Cadet freestyle Nationals.
Others to watch here include 2014 state champion Max Wohlabaugh (Florida), Cadet folkstyle runner-up Logan Coyle (Indiana), along with a trio of state placers in Michael O'Malley (New Jersey), Kenny O'Neil (Minnesota), and Alex Ward (Iowa).
160: Three nationally ranked Class of 2018 wrestlers anchor this weight class, No. 13 Travis Wittlake (Oregon), No. 20 Nate Jimenez (Illinois), and No. 25 Ryan Karoly (New Jersey). Wittlake was Cadet folkstyle champion this spring after a high school state title, while Jimenez and Karoly were both behind a pair of excellent wrestlers in their high school lineups as freshmen; Jimenez won the Preseason Nationals, with Karoly winning a title at the NHSCA Freshman Nationals. Others to watch include state champions Marcus Coleman (Iowa) and Clay Lautt (Kansas), along with state placers Kyle Cochran (New Jersey) and David Carwford (Ohio).
170: A pair of Illinois natives ranked in their respective grade level leads the field at this weight class, Jack Jessen and Jacob Warner. Jessen is No. 12 in the Class of 2018, was third in both styles last summer in Fargo, a Cadet folkstyle champion this spring, and a state runner-up this past season; while Warner is No. 25 in the Class of 2017, double fifth at Cadet Nationals last summer, a state champion, and placed third at 76 kilos in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals this spring.
Others to watch include Anthony Sherry (Iowa), a returning Cadet double All-American, ranked No. 47 in the Class of 2018; Cadet folkstyle runner-up Jacob Gray (Indiana); returning Cadet freestyle All-American Jacob Woodley (Pennsylvania); state runners-up Anthony Falbo (Connecticut) and Robbie Bowers (Ohio); along with state placers Isaac Bartel (Iowa) and Dylan Servis (Kansas).
182: The prohibitive favorite in this weight class is its lone grade-level ranked wrestler Brandon Whitman (Michigan), the UWW Cadet freestyle third place finisher at 85 kilos who is ranked No. 6 overall in the Class of 2018. Others to watch include Blake Barrick (Pennsylvania), NHSCA Freshman Nationals champion; Cadet folkstyle champion Andrew Davison (Indiana), fourth place finisher at 85 kilos in UWW Cadet freestyle; two-time state placer Jacob Raschka (Wisconsin), a returning Cadet freestyle All-American; along with state placers Jared Florell (Minnesota), Riley Vanik (Illinois), and Anthony Walters (Pennsylvania).
195: Among the primary contenders in this weight class are a pair of nationally ranked Class of 2018 wrestlers, No. 41 Gavin Hoffman (Pennsylvania) and No. 46 Dan Baker (Oklahoma); Hoffman placed sixth at state this year, while Baker was undefeated across styles at last month's Cadet Duals. Others to watch include state champion Brady Daniel (Maryland), state placer and Cadet folkstyle champion Bryce Esmoil (Iowa), state runner-up Brandon Closson (Utah), as well as state placers Dylan Prince (Kansas) and Danny Salas (California).
220: Two superstars headline this weight class, one more of a star than the other. Gable Steveson (Minnesota) is ranked No. 1 in the Class of 2018, and is the UWW Cadet freestyle world team representative at this weight class; to earn the spot, he had to beat returning world silver medalist Jordan Wood in the semifinal. Also a star in this weight is Cohlton Schultz (Colorado), ranked No. 2 in the Class of 2019. Others to watch include state placers Max Darrah (Missouri) and Kayne Hutchison (Kansas), as well as Preseason Nationals champion Blake Zalapi (Illinois).
285: Leading the way in this weight class is Cadet folkstyle champion Zach Muller (Illinois). Others to watch include state champion Nicholas Boykin (Tennessee), Cadet folkstyle runner-up Chris Middlebrooks (Illinois), and state placer Gavin Nye (California).
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