No. 3 Quentin Hovis knocked off No. 1 David Carr 5-2 in the finals at 152 pounds (Photo/Rob Preston)CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio -- Year-over-year the Walsh Jesuit Ironman is a tournament where the best wrestlers come out for show. This year was no exception with five wrestlers ranked first in the country at their respective weight class in the field, along with eighteen of the nation's top 50 high school teams. In addition, just under 70 nationally ranked wrestlers were in the field, with multiple weight classes having five or more ranked wrestlers present.
All that being said, the lead story on this Saturday was the number of upsets during the course of the event, along with the number of high-level and high-entertainment finals bouts.
Not all five wrestlers ranked first in the country coming into the tournament finished first in their weight class at the event. At 152 pounds, No. 3 Quentin Hovis (Poway, Calif.) upended No. 1 David Carr (Massillon Perry, Ohio) 5-2 in the championship match.
With the score tied at 1-1 early in the third period, Hovis used a bundle to throw Carr to his back for a takedown and two near-fall points. That result avenged a 4-3 win that Carr had last year in the Beast of the East final. In the semifinal round, Hovis beat No. 15 Connor Brady (Olentangy Liberty, Ohio) 2-1 in the tiebreaker.
In addition, a pair of wrestlers not ranked nationally entering the event emerged with weight class titles; furthermore, neither wrestler was a state champion last season, as each finished second at state. Both Gabe Tagg (Brecksville, Ohio) and Moises Guillen (Perrysburg, Ohio) had to beat three nationally ranked wrestlers on Saturday to earn their championships at 113 and 138 pounds respectively.
In order to reach the final at 113 pounds, Tagg scored a 10-1 major decision over No. 14 Joey Melendez (Montini Catholic, Ill.) in the quarterfinal before upsetting No. 7 Dylan D'Emilio (Genoa, Ohio) 3-1 in the tiebreaker during the semifinal round on a reversal. Trailing 4-3 in the third period of his championship bout against No. 12 Jesse Vasquez (St. John Bosco, Calif.), Tagg put the St. John Bosco wrestler to his back to secure the fall in 4:42.
Guillen had a pair of razor tight matches on Saturday to reach the championship match, starting with a 3-2 decision over No. 7 Corey Shie (Cincinnati LaSalle, Ohio) in the quarterfinal that was keyed by a second period takedown. In the semifinal match, a 3-1 victory over No. 9 Grant Aronoff (St. Thomas Aquinas, Fla.), Guillen used a takedown midway through the third period to score the winning points.
The 138-pound championship match was an action-packed affair, starting off with a first period that ended scoreless; however, the period one big scramble where either wrestler could have gotten big points. Guillen opened up the scoring with an escape in the second period, and then the wrestlers traded takedowns with Guillen getting the late takedown in the second; Matthews would get an escape and takedown to take the lead midway through the third, but Guillen escaped to level the score. In the sudden victory period, Guillen came on top of an excellent scramble to capture the Ironman title.
Also beating a trio of wrestlers to win a Walsh Jesuit Ironman title on Saturday were No. 12 Zack Donathan (Mason, Ohio) and No. 16 Georgio Poullas (Canfield, Ohio), champions at 132 and 160 pounds respectively.
Donathan started his day with a 10-7 win over No. 6 Jason Renteria (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.), which was keyed by a big four-point move midway through the first period. His semifinal match was a more clear and decisive 10-4 victory over No. 16 Grant Willits (Pueblo County, Colo.)
In the final, Donathan would face No. 3 Mitch Moore (St. Paris Graham, Ohio), who won the Ironman two years ago at 113 pounds as a freshman. The match, which started the evening's program, was tied at 1-1 after regulation with the wrestlers trading escapes at the start of the second and third periods. Donathan would counter a Moore upper-body attack with a throw-by and low-level attack for the finish to win 3-1 in the sudden victory period.
Poullas opened his Saturday of wrestling with a 3-1 victory over No. 10 Luke Troy (Martin Luther King, Calif.), a match decided by a takedown at the edge late in the first period. The semifinal match was then a 6-3 victory over No. 20 Erich Byelick (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.), before drawing No. 12 Andrew Merola (Blair Academy, N.J.) in the championship bout.
Poullas scored a takedown and a penalty point in the first period, along with his choice escape in the second period, to go up 4-1; Merola would then level the match with about 1:20 to go after an escape and takedown to start the third period. Poullas was let loose, so Merola could go after the go-ahead takedown; however, Poullas fended off the attacks and scored a counter of his own to win 7-4.
Four nationally ranked wrestlers also made their way to the top of the podium at this tournament: Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, Pa.) at 126 pounds, Michael Beard (Malvern Prep, Pa.) at 182, Jacob Warner (Washington, Ill.) at 195, and Chase Singletary (Blair Academy, N.J.) at 220.
Lee advanced to the final with a second period pin, a pair of second period technical falls, and a 5-0 victory over No. 8 Anthony Madrigal (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.). The Iowa commit is viewed as the best senior in the country, and wrestled in the main event bout of the finals program against No. 4 Joey Silva (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.).
Silva emerged in the final via a pair of wins over nationally ranked wrestlers via late scores during the Saturday morning session; 6-3 over No. 15 Chris Cannon (Blair Academy, N.J.) on a four-point move in short time, while it was a takedown with 30 seconds left in regulation against No. 6 Jordan Decatur (CVCA, Ohio).
Lee scored a takedown in each period against a very game Silva, who did penetrate the legs of Lee throughout the match, though the attacks were ultimately fended off on most occasions. However, Silva did score a very late takedown finished by a cradle. The final score was Lee winning 7-3 for his third Walsh Ironman title, a performance that yielded him the Outstanding Wrestler award.
Beard was dominant in the final against the lone nationally ranked wrestler that he faced in the tournament, winning by 17-9 major decision over No. 5 Travis Stefanik (Nazareth, Pa.). Beard scored three takedowns in the first and third periods respectively, while accruing a pair of takedowns in the middle period of the bout.
Warner navigated his way through a weight class that had no other nationally ranked wrestlers in it bereft of true challenge. The Iowa commit gave up a grand total of one point from four matches, as he won by 16-0 technical fall, 9-1 major decision, 11-0 major decision, and a 7-0 decision in the final against Aaron Naples (Brunswick, Ohio).
Singletary was the lone champion for No. 1 Blair Academy, N.J. The Buccaneers dominated their way to the tournament title with 196 points on the strength of ten placers. Their 88-1/2 point margin of victory over No. 3 St. Edward, Ohio, which happened to have zero finalists, is the third most in tournament history. It is the biggest since December 2003 when Blair Academy out-pointed Brandon (Fla.) 273-to-183, while the largest in tournament history is when St. Edward amassed a tournament record 297 points in December 1999 to Blair Academy's 200.
The championship match for Singletary was a 4-2 decision over No. 2 Cohlton Schultz (Ponderosa, Colo.). Singletary used a quick takedown early in the third period to push ahead from a 1-1 tie. Schultz would escape thereafter to cut it to 3-2, but was hit for a penalty point late in the bout to confirm the final margin.
One of two teams to emerge with multiple champions on Saturday evening was No. 9 Bethlehem Catholic, Pa. The Hawks struck gold with No. 2 Michael Labriola (170) and No. 19 Niko Camacho (285). Labriola dominated No. 14 Casey Cornett (Simon Kenton, Ky.) by 18-6 major decision the semifinal before a 6-3 victory over No. 7 Ryan Karoly (Malvern Prep, Pa.) in the final; it was two second period takedowns for Labriola that separated the championship bout after a scoreless first period. While for Camacho it was a takedown with close to 30 seconds remaining off a single-leg attack to beat Trenton Lieurance (Broken Arrow, Okla.) 3-2; Camacho had earned a 5-3 semifinal victory over No. 8 Seth Janney (Malvern Prep.)
Rounding out the weight class champions at the 2016 edition of the Walsh Ironman was No. 6 Julian Tagg (Brecksville, Ohio) at 106 pounds, No. 9 Beau Bartlett (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) at 120, and No. 4 Sammy Sasso (Nazareth, Pa.) at 145; Tagg and Bartlett are among the top overall freshmen nationally.
Julian Tagg won a trifecta of super narrow matches on Saturday in his journey to Ironman gold. In the quarterfinal, it was a 3-2 ultimate tiebreaker victory over No. 13 Jacob Decatur (CVCA, Ohio); the wrestlers traded escapes in regulation and tiebreaker, but the fact Tagg got his regulation escape in the second period enabled him to choose down and escape in the ultimate tiebreaker.
The semifinal was decided when Tagg scored a takedown at about five seconds left in regulation to score a 4-3 win over fellow freshman Mick Burnett (Elyria, Ohio). No. 8 Lucas Byrd (LaSalle, Ohio) rallied from a 5-2 deficit after two periods to take Tagg to overtime in the championship bout, but Tagg came through in the sudden victory period with a takedown to win 7-5.
Bartlett, the nation's top overall freshman, was in for a battle on Saturday night against No. 16 Ryan Anderson (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.). Bartlett gave up an escape very late in regulation, which extended the match to overtime; however, Bartlett was able to prevail when he secured a takedown for the 6-4 sudden victory result.
Sasso cut through the field like a knife through hot butter. He earned a pair of pins that were sandwiched to the outside of three major decisions. Included in those major decisions was a 10-2 result over No. 10 Will Lewan (Montini Catholic, Ill.) in the semifinal round. The finals match was a pin in 2:45 against No. 8 Josiah Rider (Grand Junction, Colo.), who had upended No. 3 Dom Demas (Dublin Coffman, Ohio) 3-1 in the semifinal round.
Sasso and Rider wrestled to a scoreless first period, as were the first four finals of the evening program (132-to-152). Sasso then escaped to start the second and got a takedown to the back from the fall. He earned the Major Ray Mendoza Award at tournament's end for amassing the most team points of any wrestler.
Team Scores:
1. No. 1 Blair Academy, N.J. 196 (10 placers)
2. No. 3 St. Edward, Ohio 127.5 (5)
3. No. 4 Lake Highland Prep, Fla. 118 (7)
4. No. 6 St. Paris Graham, Ohio 116 (4)
5. No. 9 Bethlehem Catholic HS, Pa. 115.5 (3)
6. No. 8 Malvern Prep, Pa. 109.5 (3)
7. No. 33 Brecksville, Ohio 87.5 (2)
8. No. 12 Olentangy Liberty, Ohio 85 (4)
9. No. 11 Nazareth, Pa. 79.5 (3)
10. No. 16 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. 78.5 (4)
11. Massillon Perry, Ohio 74 (3)
12. No. 14 Poway, Calif. 73.5 (2)
13. No. 30 Montini Catholic, Ill. 72.5 (3)
14. No. 23 Washington, Ill. 64 (2)
15. Mason, OH 60 (1)
Other nationally ranked teams: T-18) No. 15 Elyria, Ohio 55 (3 placers), (20) No. 21 Pueblo County, Colo. 51 (2), (22) No. 18 Oak Park River Forest, Ill. 48.5 (2), (27) No. 45 Broken Arrow, Okla. 41 (2), (33) No. 24 Pomona, Colo. 31 (1)
106:
1st: No. 6 Julian Tagg (Brecksville, Ohio) dec. No. 8 Lucas Byrd (Cincinnati LaSalle, Ohio), 7-5 OT
3rd: No. 13 Jacob Decatur (CVCA, Ohio) dec. Nick Incontera (Blair Academy, N.J.), 3-2
5th: No. 12 Ryan Chauvin (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.) by injury default over Mick Burnett (Elyria, Ohio)
7th: Jacob Allen (Poway, Calif.) dec. No. 3 Mosha Schwartz (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.), 8-3
113:
1st: Gabe Tagg (Brecksville, Ohio) pinned No. 12 Jesse Vasquez (St. John Bosco, Calif.), 4:42
3rd: No. 16 Michael Colaiocco (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. No. 7 Dylan D'Emilio (Genoa, Ohio), 6-3
5th: No. 14 Joey Melendez (Montini Catholic, Ill.) dec. Brakan Mead (Olentangy Liberty, Ohio), 6-4
7th: No. 18 Nate Keaton (Circleville, Ohio) by forfeit over Jacob Dunlop (Belle Vernon Area, Pa.)
120:
1st: No. 9 Beau Bartlett (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) dec. No. 16 Ryan Anderson (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.), 6-4 OT
3rd: Bryce Andonian (St. Edward, Ohio) pinned Dack Punke (Washington, Ill.), 4:50
5th: Julian Sanchez (Genoa, Ohio) dec. No. 15 Mike Madara (Blair Academy, N.J.), 3-1 OT
7th: No. 19 Coltan Yapoujian (Pomona, Colo.) dec. Ryan O'Grady (Nazareth, Pa.), 4-0
126:
1st: No. 1 Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, Pa.) dec. No. 4 Joey Silva (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.)
3rd: No. 8 Anthony Madrigal (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) dec. No. 8 Real Woods (Montini Catholic, Ill.), 5-3 OT
5th: No. 6 Jordan Decatur (CVCA, Ohio) dec. Matt Kazimir (St. Edward, Ohio), 4-3
7th: No. 15 Chris Cannon (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. Hunter Kosco (Canal Fulton Northwest, Ohio), 6-2
132:
1st: No. 12 Zack Donathan (Mason, Ohio) dec. No. 3 Mitch Moore (St. Paris Graham, Ohio), 3-1 OT
3rd: No. 8 Zach Sherman (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. No. 9 Allan Hart (St. Edward, Ohio), 8-2
5th: No. 16 Grant Willits (Pueblo County, Colo.) pinned Gary Joint (Lemoore, Calif.), 3:32
7th: No. 6 Jason Renteria (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) maj. dec. Chris Deloza (Clovis North, Calif.), 12-3
138:
1st: Moises Guillen (Perrysburg, Ohio) dec. No. 18 Cole Matthews (Reynolds, Pa.), 7-5 OT
3rd: Malcolm Robinson (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. No. 9 Grant Aronoff (St. Thomas Aquinas, Fla.), 4-2 OT
5th: Anthony Cheloni (Marmion Academy, Ill.) dec. Gage Grunden (Defiance, Ohio), 4-2
7th: J.D. Stickley (St. Paris Graham, Ohio) technical fall Alfonso Martinez (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.), 16-0 2:54
145:
1st: No. 4 Sammy Sasso (Nazareth, Pa.) pinned No. 8 Josiah Rider (Grand Junction, Colo.), 2:46
3rd: No. 10 Will Lewan (Montini Catholic, Ill.) dec. No. 3 Dom Demas (Dublin Coffman, Ohio), 6-2 TB
5th: No. 17 Jake Brindley (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.) dec. Quinn Devaney (McDonogh, Md.), 3-2
7th: Jake Marsh (Marysville, Ohio) dec. Jake Polka (Marmion Academy, Ill.), 4-3
152:
1st: No. 3 Quentin Hovis (Poway, Calif.) dec. No. 1 David Carr (Massillon Perry, Ohio), 5-2
3rd: No. 15 Connor Brady (Olentangy Liberty, Ohio) dec. No. 7 Julian Ramirez (Blair Academy, N.J.), 2-1
5th: No. 13 Hunter Willits (Pueblo County, Colo.) dec. No. 10 Anthony Artalona (Tampa Prep, Fla.), 3-2
7th: Bailey Thomas (Good Counsel, Md.) maj. dec. Kai Bele (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.), 10-0
160:
1st: No. 16 Georgio Poullas (Canfield, Ohio) dec. No. 12 Andrew Merola (Blair Academy, N.J.), 7-4
3rd: No. 5 Hunter Bolen (Christiansburg, Va.) dec. Ryan Thomas (St. Paris Graham), 3-2
5th: No. 20 Erich Byelick (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.) maj. dec. Joe Koontz (Massillon Perry, Ohio), 10-0
7th: Caleb Wise (Broken Arrow, Okla.) by injury default over No. 10 Luke Troy (Martin Luther King, Calif.)
170:
1st: No. 2 Michael Labriola (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) dec. No. 7 Ryan Karoly (Malvern Prep, Pa.), 6-3
3rd: Emil Soehnlen (Massillon Perry, Ohio) dec. Trevor Lawson (Olentangy Liberty, Ohio), 3-1 OT
5th: No. 5 Bryce Rogers (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.) dec. No. 14 Casey Cornett (Simon Kenton, Ky.), 3-2
7th: No. 20 Joey Baughman (Wadsworth, Ohio) pinned Gavin Wilkerson (Reynolds, Pa.), 3:12
182:
1st: No. 1 Michael Beard (Malvern Prep, Pa.) maj. dec. No. 5 Travis Stefanik (Nazareth, Pa.), 17-9
3rd: Jared Ball (Hilliard Darby, Ohio) maj. dec. Kaden Russell (St. Ignatius), 12-1
5th: J.T. Brown (Elyria, Ohio) dec. Trevor Nichelson (Ashland-Greenwood, Neb.), 4-1
7th: Joel Leise (Reynolds, Pa.) dec. Cole Fitzpatrick (Olentangy Liberty, Ohio), 4-3
195:
1st: No. 1 Jacob Warner (Washington, Ill.) dec. Aaron Naples (Brunswick, Ohio), 7-0
3rd: Kavan Sarver (St. Paris Graham, Ohio) dec. Danny Salas (St. John Bosco, Calif.), 3-2
5th: Nick Mosco (Blair Academy, N.J.) by injury default over Cody Howard (St. Edward, Ohio)
7th: Dillon Ryan (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) dec. Angel Solis (Lemoore, Calif.), 3-2
220:
1st: No. 1 Chase Singletary (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. No. 2 Cohlton Schultz (Ponderosa, Colo.), 4-2
3rd: No. 6 Jared Campbell (St. Edward, Ohio) dec. Jeffrey Allen (Amherst County, Va.), 3-1
5th: Dylan Thorp (Oak Harbor, Ohio) dec. No. 13 Ben Sullivan (National Trail, Ohio), 6-4, overtime
7th: No. 20 Ben Goldin (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.) dec. Brady Daniel (Good Counsel, Md.), 2-1 TB
285:
1st: No. 19 Niko Camacho (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) dec. Trenton Lieurance (Broken Arrow, Okla.), 3-2
3rd: No. 4 Kevin Vough (Elyria, Ohio) dec. No. 8 Seth Janney (Malvern Prep, Pa.), 6-2
5th: Jake Levengood (Vacaville, Calif.) dec. Austin Gillham (Sultana, Calif.), 1-0
7th: Jon Spaulding (Lakota East, Ohio) dec. Jordan Earnest (Wadsworth, Ohio), 4-2 UTB
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