Alex Cisneros is seeking his fourth state title (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Carl Sandburg champions -- close, some drama, but still the lead Eagle
The journey of No. 41 Carl Sandburg, Ill., to the Class 3A (big school) state championship certainly was not easy, clear, or without challenge. It started at the individual regional tournament, the first layer of three for the individual bracket series in Illinois. In that event, Carl Sandburg out-pointed Marist 258 to 245.5 to earn the qualification to the team state series. Despite Marist having an excellent team, and beating Carl Sandburg 28-24 in a dual meet at The Clash, they had no chance for a state title.
The easiest portion of the road for Carl Sandburg was a 66-14 victory over Mt. Carmel in the team sectional final to advance to this past Saturday's state tournament in Bloomington. Ranked second in the team rankings compiled by Illinois Matmen, the Eagles journey started with a quarterfinal against fifth ranked Lockport. The dual started out well for Carl Sandburg, a 12-0 lead after a decision from Mitch Cook (138), pin from Colin Holler (145), and decision from C.J. Brucki (152). However, Lockport answered strong with wins in four of the next five matches to take an 18-16 lead after No. 4 Brad Johnson bumped up to 220 and earned a pin in 54 seconds. Nate Sonneveld's pin at 285 for Carl Sandburg gave them back the lead at 22-18; however, a 10-4 decision for Brian Rossi (106) followed by a 3-2 decision for Austin Strzelczyk (113) gave the Potters a 24-22 lead.
In what would become a recurring theme, Carl Sandburg ended the dual meet with consecutive wins -- this time it was three in a row. First, a 15-5 major decision for Sebastian Pique (120), then a 15-2 major decision for John Pellegrino (126), and finally a 9-6 decision from Dan Garcia (132). It was onto the semifinal against No. 42 Glenbard North, who advanced with a 36-24 win over Minooka. These teams met in an early January dual won by Carl Sandburg, 25-24, seven matches to seven. This dual was similarly tight, but not without lots of intrigue, strategy, and controversy.
Match strategy started right away, as Glenbard North sent out 152 pound state runner-up Brian Murphy, who is ranked No. 4 nationally in that weight, as their wrestler at 145 pounds. However, Carl Sandburg did not utilize their starter, instead placing in a reserve -- Wes Shepherd. Murphy could only muster a 14-6 major decision. In the next weight, Carl Sandburg bumped up three-time state placer Colin Holler to wrestle Dan Johnson. Holler secured a first period pin. This type of pattern would occur through heavyweight, a point in which Carl Sandburg held a 20-14 lead despite the teams having won four matches each.
Going back to the lower weights, the Panthers would pull out three consecutive victories. Richard Browne's pin at 106 pounds tied the match at 20-20. A 3-2 victory for Chris Gonzalez, over Jim Panozzo, gave Glenbard North their first lead since the opening match. And then things got interesting. One week earlier, No. 5 Jered Cortez earned a major decision victory over Pique in the state final at 120 pounds. However, this week with Cortez on the mat for Glenbard North, Carl Sandburg chose to move Pique up a weight. Cortez pinned reserve wrestler Jake Vales in the first period.
In theory this should mean a 29-20 lead for the Panthers. However, Cortez was called for taunting after the match for a team point deduction. The resulting meltdown/overreaction by the Glenbard North bench leads to the head coach being ejected and three additional team points being deducted, reducing it to a 25-20 advantage, and leaving the dual much more open for the taking. In the next match, Pique earns a 7-6 victory over state placer Jon Marmolejo.
John Pellegrino bumps up for Carl Sandburg to 132 pounds and upends state placer Johnny Gosinski 7-4 to give the Eagles a 26-25 lead heading into the final match. In that match, Mitch Cook comes up the hero with a 3-2 victory over Cory Bradle to give the Eagles a 29-25 dual meet victory, and a date in the finals with No. 30 Oak Park River Forest, who upended Barrington (fourth ranked in Class 3A), 35-21.
The upperweight portion of the championship dual, which starts at 152, does not go well for Carl Sandburg, as Oak Park River Forest wins five of seven matches to jump out to a 20-6 lead. However, at the turn, Jim Pellegrino would answer back for the Eagles with a 6-4 overtime victory over state runner-up Matthew Rundell. Three further decision victories from Panozzo, Pique, and John Pellegrino cut the deficit to 20-18. The Huskies did answer back with a 12-4 major decision from Cam Harris at 132 pounds to extend the advantage to 24-18.
Mitch Cook came up the hero yet again for Carl Sandburg, with a pin at 5:43 into the match against Jake O'Mara to tie the dual meet, and let junior anchor Colin Holler slam the door, which he did with a pin early in the second period. Carl Sandburg wins 30-24, and earns their first state title since 2007 when they had won a third consecutive title.
Glenbard North won the third place match 34-21 over Barrington. In Class 2A, No. 27 Montini Catholic steamrolled their three opponents in Saturday's competition on the way to the title. Finally, in Class 1A, Leroy came home with the title. Results
Cougars seek a repeat in the Golden State
Qualifying thirteen individuals to the state tournament, No. 5 Clovis has shown its comprehensive depth through a rigorous single-class state series so far as they exited the always tough Central Section. The Cougars are led by six section champions --Daniel Gayton (113), defending state champion No. 20 Jonas Gayton (120), Vincente Hernandez (126), Adrian Salas (160), Dakota Gordon (195), and state champion No. 4 Nick Nevills (285). Three-time state placer No. 6 Zach Nevills (170) is one of three to qualify as section runners-up after losing for the second time this year to No. 12 Silas Nacita from Bakersfield.
Nacita is one of three wrestlers -- along with No. 11 Natrelle Demison (138) and Maxx Ramirez (145) -- to exit the Central Section as champions for the 22nd ranked in the nation Drillers squad. No. 5 Coleman Hammond (152) and Kyle Pope (182) finished as runners-up at the section tournament, while four other Bakersfield wrestlers also made the state tournament. The Golden State's other nationally ranked team is No. 18 Poway, which qualified eleven wrestlers to state from the San Diego section, including six that won the tournament.
The major individual story of the weekend is clearly at 132 pounds, where No. 1 Alex Cisneros from Selma seeks to join Darrell Vaquez (Bakersfield, 1999-2002) as the only four-time state champions in the history of the single-class California state tournament. Cisneros will have to navigate some challenges, as a possible path to the title could include Cadet National Greco-Roman champions in the round of 16 and quarterfinals -- Elijah Davis (Oakland Tech) and John-Jay Chavez (De La Salle) -- and two-time state medalist Martin Ramirez (Elk Grove) in the semifinal. Then it would come prior to a potential showdown with sophomore Niko Villarreal (Gilroy), who made the late drop to this class and is ranked No. 13 up at 138 pounds nationally. During the season, Villareal has lost two tight matches to Cisneros, 4-3 in the tiebreakers in the Doc Buchanan final and 1-0 in the Mid-Cals final.
Also seeking a fourth state medal, but a first state title, is Zach Nevills at 170 pounds. He comes into the state tournament with a 1-2 record this season against Nacita, having won the divisional tournament two weekends ago, but losing in the sectional final last weekend and in the final at the Temecuala Valley Invitational in mid-January. Those wrestlers will be in opposite half-brackets.
The opening weight features the top freshman in the whole country Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco), who is ranked No. 1 at 106 pounds. Trying to take step one of four in joining Vasquez -- and possibly Cisneros -- he is the favorite, having two wins to his credit against defending state champion Johnson Mai (North Torrence). That includes one over the nation's fifth ranked wrestler in the southern section final this past weekend, so they'll be in opposite half-brackets.
Returning state runner-up Isaiah Locsin (Live Oak) is ranked No. 3 in the nation at 113 pounds, and is opposite his two primary challengers -- No. 6 Micah Perez (Central Union) and Jonas Gayton (Clovis). However, a quarterfinal and semifinal match against returning state placers is possible -- Mason Pengilly (Porterville) and then Arnulfo Olea (Exeter).
Defending state champion Daniel Gayton, ranked No. 20 nationally, will have a battle on his hands to repeat, as two-time state placer Hermilio Esquivel (Orland) is also in the 120 pound weight class. Esquivel does have a 10-9 early-season victory over Gayton to his credit. Mercifully, the bracket gods have them in opposite halves.
Nationally ranked wrestlers in No. 11 Demison and No. 18 Shayne Tucker (Bella Vista) look to be on a collision course for a championship bout at 138 pounds. The two wrestlers have met once this year, a quarterfinal bout at the Reno TOC over two months ago, won 3-2 by Tucker. The two wrestlers also met for third at state last year, with Demison winning that meeting.
A pair of state champions is featured in the 152 pound weight class, with No. 2 Isaiah Martinez (Lemoore) and Jake Elliott (Oakmont) each seeking a second state title. Also present here is No. 5 Hammond, a Junior National freestyle All-American, who placed fourth as a freshman in 2010 but failed to place last year. In order for the battle of state champions to occur, Elliott will have to clear Hammond in the semifinal, with Martinez floating in the opposite half-bracket.
No. 2 Joey Davis (Santa Fe) seeks a repeat state title, and third state finals appearance, this time at 160 pounds. He has just one loss on the season -- a disqualification -- and has been named Outstanding Wrestler at five different tournaments. For purposes of the state draw, he is in the same half-bracket as No. 11 James Wilson (McNair), who has twice placed fourth at the state tournament. In the opposite half of the draw is No. 13 Victor Pereira (Newark Memorial), who was fourth at the Super 32 and Walsh Ironman this year, along with fellow returning state placer Adrian Salas (Clovis). Those two wrestlers are likely to meet in the other semifinal, and already this year Salas pulled off a 4-3 upset victory over Pereira in the Mission San Jose Tournament final.
Yet another wrestler on the Vasquez/Cisneros plan is sophomore Nick Nevills, who is ranked No. 4 nationally at 285 pounds after winning that same weight last year as a freshman. He is looking at a championship final against No. 11 Johnny Schupp from Vacaville, who was fifth in this weight last year. When these two wrestlers met in the Doc Buchanan final, Nevills won 10-8 in overtime -- more scoring then one might see in four or five matches at this weight class combined.
Additional nationally ranked wrestlers include No. 18 Willie Fox (145) from Gilroy, No. 6 Nikko Reyes (182) from Clovis West, No. 11 Robert Marchese (195) from Oak Hills, and No. 20 J.T. Goodwin (220) from Bear Creek.
Best in the nation Blair Academy closes season with a flourish at National Prep Championships
Ranked No. 1 in the nation, Blair Academy, N.J. asserted its position with an impressive performance at the National Prep Championships this past weekend on the campus of Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. The Buccaneers placed eleven wrestlers into the finals, with nine of them earning championships.
Finishing with titles were Jordan Kutler (106), No. 11 Joey McKenna (120), No. 2 Mark Grey (132), No. 4 Todd Preston (138), No. 20 Russ Parsons (152), Patrick Coover (160), Michael Mocco (182), No. 14 Frank Mattiace (195), and No. 1 Brooks Black (285). Runner-up finishes were accrued by Chaz Tucker (113) and No. 8 Dylan Milonas (145), while No. 16 Max Hvolbek was third at 126 and David Farr took fifth at 220.
Blair Academy scored 354.5 points, placing those 13 wrestlers, as Addison Knepshield (170) was the lone non-placer, defaulting out of the tournament after his quarterfinal loss. Just over 100 points back in second was No. 9 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. with 252.5 points. The Blue Knights were led by championships from No. 9 Dominick Malone (126) and No. 7 Eric Morris (170), and a quintet of runner-up finishes -- those coming from Danny Boychuck (106), post-graduate Tyler Fraley (132), Connor Wasson (182), No. 8 A.J. Vizcarrando (220), and No. 14 Michael Johnson (285). Additional Blue Knights wrestlers placed fourth, fifth, and eight respectively.
The other nationally ranked team -- No. 40 McDonogh, Md. -- was in fourth partly due to the absence of 2011 National Prep placer Kevin Marvel, who had placed at both the Ironman and Beast of the East at 195 pounds. The Eagles had six medalists, led by the championship earned by No. 16 Jack Clark at 145 pounds, with his 2-1 victory over Milonas in the final. Joining Clark on the awards podium were Myles Martin (152) and Toby Hague (160) with second place finishes, Roman Braglio (285) taking fourth, and additional wrestlers in seventh and eighth. That was enough for 120 points, while Germantown Academy, Pa., had 126 points with just five placers -- two in third, two in fourth, and one in fifth.
Among the highlights of the championship was an impressive 120 pound weight class, with McKenna earning a 6-2 semifinal victory over Jake Goodwin (Bishop Lynch, Texas) before dismantling fellow Beast of the East champion No. 17 Will Mason (Cape Henry Collegiate, Va.) 7-0 in the final. That came after Mason upended No. 12 Andrew Atkinson (Liberty Christian Academy, Va.) 4-2 in the semifinal, and then Goodwin got third with a 3-2 victory over Atkinson.
The 126 pound weight class was equally impressive, as 2010 National Prep champion Jeffrey Ott (Belmont Hill, Mass.) upended Hvolbek by 7-1 decision, before Malone earned a repeat championship with a 10-2 major decision over Ott. In the next weight class, at 132 pounds, Mark Grey won his fourth National Prep title with four pins, and then a 7-2 victory over Fraley in the final. The 138 pound weight class featured a Beast of the East finals rematch, yet again Preston won, this time it was a 5-4 overtime victory over No. 20 Alfred Bannister (Archbishop McNamara, Md.).
As mentioned previously, Clark ascended one step higher on the National Prep podium this year, with his victory over Milonas after losing to Preston last year in the final. Two other additional showdowns among nationally ranked wrestlers occurred in the last two weight classes. At 220 pounds, it was a rematch of last year's 215-pound title match, as No. 2 Kyle Snyder (Good Counsel, Md.) dominated Vizcarrando to the tune of a 17-4 major decision. Then, at 285 pounds, Black upended Johnson 3-2 in the championship match.
Rounding out the weight class champions was Corey Huntley (Archbishop Curley, Md.) at 113 pounds. Brackets Team Scores
Eagles eye Ohio glory
While No. 1 Blair Academy was taking care of its business, No. 2 St. Edward, Ohio, was dominating all comers in their state qualification tournament this past weekend. For the second time in school history, they qualified all 14 wrestlers to the Division I state tournament. The feat had previously been accomplished in 2007. It was a staggering weekend, as they went 53-4 for the tournament, losing their first match in overtime during the 285-pound semifinal on Saturday afternoon. Ten wrestlers won weight class titles.
Records are on the line this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday in Columbus. St. Edward can possibly tie (or exceed) the seven state titles won, nine state finalists, and 282 team points amassed by St. Paris Graham in Division II, three years ago. At present, the Eagles have seven of their wrestlers as on paper favorites -- No. 2 Dean Heil (126), No. 7 Edgar Bright (132), No. 20 Jacob Davis (160), No. 4 Mark Martin (170), No. 8 Domenic Abounader (182), No. 20 James Suvak (195), and No. 14 Ty Walz (220). Alex Moore (113), Nick Barber (138), and Markus Scheidel (145) also enter the tournament as district champions.
Despite the dominance to be had by St. Edward, the Division I field is pretty formidable overall with the presence of two additional nationally ranked teams in No. 16 Cincinnati Moeller and No. 26 Massillon Perry. Each squad won their respective district tournaments last weekend, as well -- the Crusaders with eight qualifying to state and the Panthers with seven. The other team to win a district title was Marysville, and they bring eight to the tournament as well.
Defending state champions include Brandon Thompson (113) from Solon, No. 1 George DiCamillo (120) from St. Ignatius, Heil seeking his third title, No. 8 Joey Ward (132) from Cincinnati Moeller, No. 10 Anthony Collica (145) from Solon, No. 12 Zack Dailey (152) from Massillon Perry, Martin seeking a third state finals appearance, Abounader and Michael Baker from Twinsburg both at 182 pounds, and No. 5 Nick Tavanello (285) from Wadsworth seeking a third title.
In Division II, there is little doubt that No. 8 St. Paris Graham will win the state title. Despite qualifying only eight to the state tournament, all were district champions. Also present in the division is No. 49 CVCA with seven of their wrestlers making it to Columbus, while Claymont and Steubenville join the Falcons in qualifying eight to the state tournament. Seeking milestone titles for the Falcons are No. 5 Ryan Taylor (120), No. 1 Bo Jordan (152), and No. 4 Isaac Jordan (160) -- each are strongly favored to win a third state title this year, with Bo Jordan on pace to become the 23rd Ohio four-time state champion next year. No. 7 Huston Evans (182) is likely to make it to a fourth state final this weekend, and seeks a second title having won in 2010. He failed to win last year, losing to No. 9 Chaz Gresham of Goshen in the final at 189 pounds, and Gresham is likely to be his finals opponent as well this year.
Sophomore Micah Jordan (126), ranked No. 17 nationally, is favored to win his second state title in as many years. The Falcons other nationally ranked wrestler, they have six in all, No. 11 Blake Kastl (145) is likely to have a very stiff test in the finals from either No. 14 Jake Faust of Lexington or James Klosz of Holy Name. Kastl beat both opponents this past weekend, but they were tight matches -- the semifinal victory over Faust came 5-3 in overtime, while the championship match victory over Klosz was by a 6-5 score. In addition, freshmen Eli Stickley (106) and Eli Seipel (113) made state as district champions.
Division II, Ohio's medium school classification, features additional nationally ranked wrestlers in No. 2 Nathan Tomasello (113) from CVCA, No. 16 Brent Fickel (132) from Padua, No. 2 Nate Skonieczny (138) from Walsh Jesuit, and No. 10 Matt Meadows (220) from CVCA.
Waynedale is the favorites in Division III, which is the small school classification, a tournament that is down in quality from past years. The Bears lead the way with six state qualifiers, three schools have five each (Nelsonville York, Caldwell, and Amanda-Clearcreek), while seven schools have a quartet in the state tournament. That field has two nationally ranked wrestlers, defending state champion No. 8 Mimmo Lytle (285) from Swanton and freshman Matthew Kolodzik (106) from Miami Valley School, who is ranked fourth nationally but was upset by fellow freshman Jared Ganger from Troy Christian in the district semifinal this past weekend.
Heavies collide in the Gopher State
Arguably the best showcase of heavyweight wrestling this year will come at the Minnesota state wrestling tournament this Friday and Saturday at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. The Class 2A (medium schools) tournament features four high profile 285-pound wrestlers, three of whom are nationally ranked. Seeking to become the first ever wrestler to win three state titles as a heavyweight in Minnesota is No. 3 Austin Goergen (Caledonia).
However, coming after the throne are fellow state champion No. 4 (at 220) Michael Kroells (Scott West), who is undefeated on the season and bumped up just for the challenge of this rigorous bracket; No. 7 Sam Stoll (Kasson-Mantorville), runner-up to Goergen last year as a freshman; and undefeated senior Jesse Hein (Perham), who placed fourth at state as a sophomore.
The bracket is very favorable for Goergen coming off of his section final win over Stoll, which was one week after Stoll beat Goergen in the team sections. That's it for losses in the quartet -- Kroells and Hein both come in with 41-0 records, Goergen is 33-1, while Stoll has a 41-1 mark. Hein and Stoll are projected to meet in the quarterfinal, with the winner slated to face Kroells in the semifinal. Sitting relatively alone in the other half-bracket is Goergen, who is likely to face senior Brient Pokornowski (Dassel-Cokato), who comes into the tournament with a 34-1 record.
Two other weights across the three classifications feature a pair of nationally ranked wrestlers. In Class 3A (big schools) at 126 pounds, No. 8 Mitch Bengtson (St. Cloud Apollo) and No. 12 Sam Brancale (Eden Prairie) are in the same bracket for a second straight year. Last year at 119 pounds, the wrestlers met in a quarterfinal match that Bengtson won 1-0. The junior Bengtson is undefeated this year, seeks a fourth state title, and has not lost since the first weekend of his eighth grade year. Brancale is a three-time state placer, having won state as a sophomore at 103 pounds, with other placements of 6th as a freshman and 3rd last year.
Then, at 132 pounds in Class 3A, No. 9 Ben Morgan (Forest Lake) and No. 12 Dakota Trom (Apple Valley) are in the same position that Bengtson and Brancale found themselves last year. In Minnesota's 8x2 system, they were drawn into a quarterfinal match. Morgan was a state champion in eighth grade but has finished third in each of the last three years, while Trom comes in having won three consecutive state titles; however, Morgan possesses a head-to-head victory over Trom in this year's Minnesota Christmas Tournament final. The likely finals opponent for either wrestler would be Eric Bauer (Hastings), who has placed third, second, and third at the state tournament.
Two additional showdowns of some intrigue come in Class 2A. At 145 pounds, two-time state champion Jake Short (Simley), ranked No. 4 nationally, and defending state champion Gabe Fogarty (Scott West) are slated to meet in the semifinal round. The classification's third ranked kid, Tyler Bemboom (Foley), is in the same quarter as Fogarty; while fourth ranked Dustin Ellsworth (St. Paul Harding) is the best in the opposite half of the draw.
Then, it is a potential finals showdown between undefeated wrestlers at 170 pounds. Micah Barnes (Simley), a two-time state runner-up, is ranked No. 3 nationally; while Garrett Miller (Plainview-Elgin-Millville) finished third at state last year.
Additional nationally ranked wrestlers in the tournaments include Class 3A wrestlers No. 5 Tommy Thorn (St. Michael-Albertville) at 113 pounds, No. 3 Mark Hall (Apple Valley) at 145, No. 10 Brandon Kingsley (Apple Valley) at 160, and No. 11 Kyle Begin (Anoka) at 170; Class 2A wrestlers No. 14 Kyle Gliva (Simley) at 113, No. 14 Joey Munos (South St. Paul) at 132, No. 14 Nick Wanzek (Simley) at 152, and No. 17 Broc Berge (Kasson-Mantorville) at 195; while No. 8 Cooper Moore (Jackson County Central) at 170 pounds is the lone nationally ranked Class 1A wrestler.
In addition, there is the question about if seventh-grader Brady Berge (Kasson-Mantorville) can win state in Class 2A at 106 pounds, which would join him with Eric Devos and Destin McCauley as among the isolated few to ever win a title in the seventh grade. Berge is ranked No. 5 among all junior high wrestlers, with Hall ranked in the pole position.
Also this coming weekend …
Minnesota will host its dual meet state tournament on Thursday, while Wisconsin does the same on Friday and Saturday. Individual bracket tournaments will also be conducted for Hawaii, Maryland, Michigan, the New England regional, and New Jersey.
(Additional) Individual State Tournaments this past weekend …
Delaware
Results
Idaho
Class 5A, 4A, 3A, 2A-1A Results
Kansas
Class 6A, 5A Results
Class 4A Results
Class 3-2-1-A Results
New York
Division I Results
Division II Results
North Carolina
Class 4A, 3A, 2A, 1A Results
Oklahoma
Class 6A Results
Class 5A Results
Class 4A Results
Class 3A Results
Oregon
Class 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A, 2A/1A Results
South Carolina
Class 4A, 3A, 2A/1A Results
South Dakota
Class A Results
Class B Results
Texas
Results
West Virginia
Class AAA Results
Class AA/A
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Class 4A Results
Class 3A Results
Class 2A Results
Additional dual meet state tournaments held this weekend …
Indiana
Results
Michigan
Results
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