InterMat Staff

Iowa State head coach Kevin Dresser (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Yesterday, Iowa State gave the college wrestling world a bit of a jolt as the Cyclones received a verbal commitment from top recruit Cody Chittum. Word leaked out of Iowa City that Chittum might consider leaving the University of Iowa where he had been training (while not enrolled) during the 2022-23 school year. As we were trying to figure out if those rumors had legs, the StaleMates media group produced a graphic that stated Chittum had given the Cyclones a verbal. With Chittum aboard, fans are ready to slide Chittum into the ISU lineup between Paniro Johnson and David Carr to form a formidable set of middleweights. That may end up being what Iowa State looks like during the 2023-24 season; however, Cyclone head coach Kevin Dresser has plenty of options between 133 and 157 lbs. We decided to explore some of the options that Dresser and staff will have to work with, focusing on 141 through 157 lbs Straight Forward 141 lbs: Casey Swiderski 149 lbs: Paniro Johnson 157 lbs: Cody Chittum For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat's Rokfin Page

Cody Chittum at Fargo in 2022 (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Iowa State got one over on their biggest rival, Iowa, today as the Cyclones received a verbal commitment from blue-chip prospect Cody Chittum. At one point, Chittum was regarded as the top recruit in the Class of 2023; however, he reclassified and graduated in 2022. After graduation, Chittum gave a verbal to the University of Iowa and moved out to Iowa City to begin training. He basically used the 2022-23 season as a grayshirt season, but never enrolled at Iowa. That meant that Chittum never had to enter the transfer portal. Prior to his arrival at Iowa, Chittum had a boatload of impressive credentials at the high school level. He was a six-time placewinner in Fargo, never finishing lower than fifth in any tournament. In 2022, Chittum was a Junior freestyle champion and third in Greco-Roman. At the beginning of that high school season, Chittum claimed a championship belt at the Super 32 competing at 145 lbs. It remains to be seen how Chittum fits in with the Cyclones. 141 and 149 lbers, Casey Swiderski and Paniro Johnson, were both freshmen in 2022-23. Swiderski is said to be moving up from 141 at some point. ISU also has senior Jason Kraisser at 157 lbs, which is Chittum’s projected weight. He also has a redshirt available, but most are under the assumption that he could or should step in and compete right away. Iowa State becomes the third school that Chittum has committed to. He originally gave the University of Minnesota a verbal commitment, before switching over to Iowa.

Iowa Tranfer Victor Voinovich (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Last week, InterMat put out a list of the wrestlers who have transferred into DI institutions during this offseason. Since that time, the list has continued to grow with some very notable names (2021 NCAA champion Shane Griffith), so it’s appropriate for an updated list. With Sunday the 7th being the final day for wrestlers seeking to transfer to file paperwork, transfer portal-related news may die down a bit, though wrestlers already in the portal can make their decisions. Here is the updated list (for now). Arizona State Chance McLane (Oklahoma State) California Baptist Eli Sheeran (Buffalo) Cal Poly Chance Lamer (Michigan) George Mason Brandon Wittenberg (Virginia Tech) Iowa Victor Voinovich (Oklahoma State) Iowa State Garrett Grice (Virginia) Lehigh Hunter Mays (Rider) Maryland Seth Nevills (Penn State) Michigan Chris Cannon (Northwestern) Lucas Davison (Northwestern) Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) Shane Griffith (Stanford) Nebraska Caleb Smith (Appalachian State) North Dakota State Giuseppe Hoose (Buffalo) Northern Illinois Tommy Curran (NC State) Northwestern Patrick Adams (Buffalo) Oklahoma State Mirzo Khayitov (Ellsworth CC) Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois) Troy Spratley (Minnesota) Penn State Mitchell Mesenbrink (California Baptist) Aaron Nagao (Minnesota) Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) Purdue Joey Milano (NC State) Marcos Polanco (Minnesota) Rider Enrique Munguia (Kent State) Rutgers Jacob Butler (Oklahoma) Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) The Citadel Jeffrey Boyd (West Virginia) Wyoming Ethan Ducca (Edinboro) Gabe Willochell (Edinboro)

Penn State's 2023 NCAA finalist Levi Haines (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) We're getting down to the final days of the Class of 2023 for recruiting purposes. Our recruiting rankings are looming and will be published soon. Before then, recruiting is the topic and recruiting content you shall get. Today we're looking at the Class of 2022 and how its top-50 wrestlers fared during their first year of collegiate competition. There was a wide variety of results from these true freshmen. Some competed and had success right away. Three Class of 2022 wrestlers earned All-American honors. Others competed primarily unattached and took their lumps. Some redshirted or grayshirted or went to a military prep school. Below we have the top-50 wrestlers in the Class of 2022, via MatScouts a year ago. Along with each wrestler is their 2022-23 record and how they fared at the NCAA Tournament (if they wrestled). Listed with them are key wins. Not all of the "key wins" are equal. For someone like Caleb Henson, who defeated multiple All-Americans, some wins over lower-ranked national qualifiers are not listed. For others, wins over wrestlers on this list or lower-ranked national qualifiers are included. Basically, it's a tool to help gauge where they belong in the mix for 2023-24, especially those that redshirted and did not compete in the postseason. 1) Nick Feldman (PA) - Ohio State: 3-0 (Redshirt) Key Wins: Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) 2) Daniel Cardenas (CO) - Stanford: 24-3; Pac-12 champion, Round of 12 Finisher Key Wins: Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State), Jason Kraisser (Iowa State) For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat's Rokfin Page

U17 World Champion Koy Hopke (photo courtesy of Martin Gabor/UWW) The school that produced legendary heavyweights like Verne Gagne, Brock Lesnar, Garrett Lowney, Cole Konrad, Tony Nelson, and Gable Steveson has its next big man. The University of Minnesota received a verbal commitment from the #3 overall recruit in the Class of 2024 Koy Hopke (Amery, WI). In MatScouts most recent ranking update (without the Class of 2023), Hopke is the top-ranked wrestler at 285 lbs and #2 overall in the pound-for-pound rankings. So what has Hopke done to merit such lofty rankings? Hopke is a three-time Wisconsin state champion and a U17 world champion in freestyle. He won the U17 Trials in both freestyle and Greco-Roman, taking eight in Greco at the 2022 U17 World Championships. The previous year he was third in both styles after his freshman year of high school. That same summer, Hopke was a 16U national champion in both styles in Fargo. Prior to his commitment, Hopke was the highest-ranked uncommitted wrestler in the Class of 2024. He'll be the centerpiece of a Minnesota Class of 2024 that already includes two other wrestlers in the top-100, #22 Charlie Millard (WI) and #79 Jack Nelson (MN), along with one that just missed #104 Blake Beissel (WI). The Gophers have typically recruited Wisconsin well and Hopke would be the third wrestler from Wisconsin in the class. It's easy to get excited about Minnesota's future prospects in the upperweights. They should have some combination of Max McEnelly and Gavin Nelson at 184/197, followed by Hopke at heavyweight. McEnelly was a U17 world bronze medalist last year and Nelson fell in the bronze medal match in 2021.

Three-time Pennsylvania state champion Rune Lawrence (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Sunday afternoon, West Virginia received a huge verbal from three-time Pennsylvania state champion Rune Lawrence (Frazier, PA). Lawrence announced his commitment via social media. Lawrence is currently ranked #21 overall in the Class of 2024 and #3 at 220 lbs in MatScout's post-Vegas rankings from last week. He is the highest-ranked recruit to commit to West Virginia during the Tim Flynn-era. The last time WVU had a recruit ranked in the top-25 of their respective class sign was in 2015 when they had #23 Keegan Moore and #25 Austin Myers. Last year, they came close with Brody Conley, who was ranked #27 in the Class of 2022. In addition to his in-state dominance, Lawrence has some good national-level credentials. He has finished in the top four at the last two Super 32's (3rd and 4th). At the beginning of the 2022-23 high school season, Lawrence was third at 190 lbs at the Walsh Ironman. Lawrence is the second wrestler from the Class of 2024 to commit to the Mountaineers. He joins West Allegheny state runner-up #60 Shawn Taylor to represent the groundwork for a formidable recruiting class for Coach Flynn and staff. At the next level, Lawrence likely projects as a heavyweight for WVU. That could definitely be a need once Lawrence reaches Morgantown, as current starter Michael Wolfgram has two years of eligibility remaining, if he chooses to use them.

2022 World silver medalist Yianni Diakomihalis (photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan; UWW) Men's Freestyle 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Thomas Gilman (USA) over Darian Cruz (Puerto Rico) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Pedro Mejias Rodriguez (Venezuela) over Darthe Capellan (Canada) 10-7 Bronze Medal Match: Santiago Hernandez Chaveco (Cuba) over Hernan Almendra (Argentina) 8-3 61 kg Gold Medal: Vito Arujau (USA) Silver Medal: Joey Silva (Puerto Rico) Bronze Medal: Jason Luneau (Canada) 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Yianni Diakomihalis (USA) over Alejandro Valdes Tobier (Cuba) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Agustin Destribates (Argentina) over Sixto Auccapina Pedragas (Peru) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Sebastian Rivera (Puerto Rico) over Albaro Rudecindo Camacho (Dominican Republic) 9-2 70 kg Gold Medal Match: Zain Retherford (USA) over Connor Quinton (Canada) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Mauricio Lovera (Argentina) over Vinicius Da Silva Joaquim (Brazil) 6-4 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Dake (USA) over Franklin Gomez (Puerto Rico) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Cesar Bordeaux Rego Alvan (Brazil) over Anthony Montero Chirinos (Venezuela) 4-2 Bronze Medal Match: Franklin Maren Castillo (Cuba) over Adam Thomson (Canada) 4-3 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Jordan Burroughs (USA) over Jasmit Phulka (Canada) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Nestor Tafur (Colombia) over Alexander Cusinga Gomez (Peru) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Shane Jones (Puerto Rico) over Victor Hernandez Luna (Mexico) 11-0 86 kg Gold Medal Match: Yurieski Torreblanca (Cuba) over Alexander Moore (Canada) 5-1 Bronze Medal Match: Mark Hall (USA) over Bruno Nicoletti (Brazil) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Carlos Izquierdo Mendez (Colombia) over Pedro Ceballos Fuentes (Venezuela) 7-6 92 kg Gold Medal: Mike Macchiavello (USA) Silver Medal: Jeremy Poirier (Canada) Bronze Medal: Luis Villagomez Paredes (Ecuador) 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Arturo Silot Torres (Cuba) 14-3 Bronze Medal Match: Nishan Randhawa (Canada) over Ricardo Baez (Argentina) 5-1 Bronze Medal Match: Luis Perez Sosa (Dominican Republic) over Maxwell Lacey (Costa Rica) Fall 125 kg Gold Medal Match: Dom Bradley (USA) over Jose Diaz Robertti (Venezuela) 2-1 Bronze Medal Match: Catriel Muriel (Argentina) over Elison Adames Garcia (Dominican Republic) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Aaron Johnson (Jamaica) over Reineris Salas Perez (Cub) MedFFT Women's Freestyle 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Sarah Hildebrandt (USA) over Jacqueline Mollocana Eleno (Ecuador) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Patricia Bermudez (Argentina) over Madison Parks (Canada) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Yusneylis Guzman Lopez (Cuba) over Thalia Oliveira De Freitas (Brazil) Fall 53 kg Gold Medal Match: Lucia Yepez Guzman (Ecuador) over Bethzabeth Aguello Villegas (Venezuela) 5-1 Bronze Medal Match: Karla Acosta Martinez (Mexico) over Dom Parrish (USA) 4-2 Bronze Medal Match: Laura Herin Avila (Cuba) over Thalia Mallqui Peche (Peru) 11-0 55 kg Gold Medal: Diana Weicker (Canada) Silver Medal: Alisha Howk (USA) Bronze Medal: Adrianny Castillo (Argentina) 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Luisa Valverde Melendres (Ecuador) over Giullia Oliveira (Brazil) 4-2 Bronze Medal Match: Betzabeth Sarco Colmenarez (Venezuela) over Camila Amarilla (Argentina) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Angela Alvarez Martinez (Cuba) over Nes Rodriguez Tirado (Puerto Rico) Fall 59 kg Gold Medal: Xochitil Mota-Pettis (USA) Silver Medal: Alexandria Town (Canada) Bronze Medal: Jessica N'Derrell (Barbados) 62 kg Gold Medal Match: Ana Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) over Nathali Griman Herrera (Venezuela) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Kayla Miracle (USA) over Javiera Roco Pardo (Chile) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Lais Nunes (Brazil) over Katherine Renteria Cuero (Colombia) Fall 65 kg Gold Medal: Mallory Velte (USA) Silver Medal: Paula Montoya Garcia (Colombia) Bronze Medal: Aleah Nickel (Canada) 68 kg Gold Medal Match: Forrest Molinari (USA) over Ambar Garnica Flores (Mexico) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Yanet Sovero Nino (Peru) over Saidy Chavez Figueroa (Honduras) 3-1 Bronze Medal Match: Hangelen Llanes Echevarria (Cuba) over Soleymi Caraballo Hernandez (Venezuela) 8-3 72 kg Gold Medal: Amit Elor (USA) Silver Medal: Luisa Mosquera Parra (Colombia) Bronze Medal: Katie Mulkay (Canada) 76 kg Gold Medal Match: Milaimys Marin Potrille (Cuba) over Tatiana Renteria (Colombia) 7-0 Bronze Medal Match: Genesis Reasco Valdez (Ecuador) over Emelyn Bautista Corcino (Dominican Republic) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Justina DiStasio (Canada) over Maria Acosta (Venezuela) 4-1 Greco-Roman 55 kg Gold Medal: Dalton Duffield (USA) Silver Medal: Jose Rodriguez Hernandez (Mexico) Bronze Medal: Axel Rolon (Argentina) 60 kg Gold Medal Match: Dalton Roberts (USA) over Jeremy Peralta Gonzalez (Ecuador) 9-0 Bronze Medal Match: Raiber Rodriguez Orozco (Venezuela) over Alexis Rodriguez Hernandez (Mexico) 7-2 Bronze Medal Match: Kevin DeArmas Rodriguez (Cuba) over Dicther Toro Castaneda (Colombia) MedFFT 67 kg Gold Medal Match: Luis Orta Sanchez (Cuba) over Nestor Almanaza Truyol (Chile) MedFFT Bronze Medal Match: Andres Montano Arroyo (Ecuador) over Edsson Olmos Gutierrez (Mexico) 6-1 Bronze Medal Match: Julian Horta Acevedo (Colombia) over Enyer Feliciano (Dominican Republic) 9-2 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Justus Scott (USA) over Kenedy Moraes Pedrosa (Brazil) 6-2 Bronze Medal Match: Jose Varela Garcia (Guatemala) over Jesus Guzman Davila (Peru) 3-1 77 kg Gold Medal Match: Kamal Bey (USA) over Yosvanys Pena Flores (Cuba) 2-1 Bronze Medal Match: Jair Cuero Munoz (Colombia) over Emmanuel Benitez Casto (Mexico) 6-3 Bronze Medal Match: Wuileixis Rivas Espinoza (Venezuela) over Luis Centeno Rodriguez (Puerto Rico) MedFFT 82 kg Gold Medal: Spencer Woods (USA) Silver Medal: Jose Mosquera Murillo (Colombia) Bronze Medal: John Yeats (Canada) 87 kg Gold Medal Match: Daniel Gregorich Hechavarria (Cuba) over Luis Avendano Rojas (Venezuela) MedFFT Bronze Medal Match: Carlos Munoz Jaramillo (Colombia) over Ariel Alfonso Rodriguez (Hondurus) 9-0 Bronze Medal Match: Alan Vera (USA) over Ronisson Brandao Santiago (Brazil) 4-1 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Joe Rau (USA) over Kevin Mejia Castillo (Hondurus) MedFFT Bronze Medal Match: Carlos Adames Palmer (Dominican Republic) over Luillys Perez Mora (Venezuela) 9-0 Bronze Medal Match: Igor Alves de Queiroz (Brazil) over Ricardo Gomez (Argentina) 9-0 130 kg Gold Medal Match: Oscar Pino Hinds (Cuba) over Gino Avila Dilbert (Hondurus) MedFFT Bronze Medal Match: Eduard Soghomonyan (Brazil) over Moises Perez Hellburg (Venezuela) 5-3 Bronze Medal Match: Yasmani Acosta Fernandez (Chile) over Donny Longendyke (USA) 8-0

Obe Blanc with All-American Jared Franek (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) North Dakota State's decision was quick and decisive. And now after spending four years under Roger Kish, who recently departed to become the Head Coach at Big 12 foe Oklahoma, Obe Blanc will now be at the helm for the Bison after spending the last two seasons as the Associate Head Coach. When Blanc made the move from Raleigh, NC where he was an assistant coach for the North Carolina State Wolfpack, to head to Fargo, ND it was to set himself up for bigger opportunities like the one in front of him now. "I left NC State for the opportunity to be exactly where I am now," he said. "Obviously there are a lot of other factors involved when you make a move, but I wanted to be in position to lead my own program one day." Although he hasn't been in the position for 24 hours yet, he's already called his first team meeting to speak with his guys and let them know that nothing is going to change when it comes to the expectation set for them both on and off the mat. "Our culture is very strong and it's the No. 1 foundation of this program," Blanc said. "Academically we've had the Elite 90 Award Winner for the last two seasons and our team has finished in the top 10 with one of the highest GPAs in the country, and one year we were in the top 2. It's a staple and we will continue to have that standard." Since Blanc joined the staff, the Bison have also seen success on the mat with Jared Franek, who won both the aforementioned Elite 90 Awards, and Michael Caliendo, an AWN All-Rookie Team selection, earning All-America honors at this past year's NCAA Championships. Both guys whose performances Blanc will look to keep building on going forward. "We want to continue our growth in all facets. I want to build our current RTC/club to allow our student-athletes to pursue more NCAA titles, but also World and Olympic titles as well," Blanc said about his outlook for the NDSU program. However, when there are some changes within the coaching staff at this level there are always questions of whether wrestlers will stick around under the new regime. And with the current transfer portal and NIL situation, those same speculations aren't foreign to Blanc and his new staff. "Changes like this are a shocking thing for young guys to handle," he said. "But I let them know that I love them, and no one is getting cut or anything like that. If you're here you've been vetted. We want you here. I'm open with my student-athletes and they are open with me. They let me know what's going on. I know the sharks are always circling, looking to capitalize off of what others have built. I expected it but hopefully, our bonds can withstand any attacks." With Blanc's ascension, he now becomes the sixth minority head coach at the division level. "It's not really something I think about as I value character and merit the most," he said. "However, just like having All-Americans on your team, it shows other guys that something like that is obtainable. So it's good for an African-American wrestler to say 'Obe did it, I can too'."

Michigan 2x NCAA All-American Will Lewan (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Over the past three weeks, the top story in college wrestling has been transfers. Some of the most notable and decorated wrestlers that are changing places have picked either Penn State or Michigan. The Wolverines struck first with All-American Lucas Davison; however, Penn State countered with Aaron Nagao and Bernie Truax. Though he isn’t counted in this exercise, they also picked up 2022 U20 world champion Mitch Mesenbrink. At this point, it’s unclear where Mesenbrink fits into the PSU lineup, though, it will likely be at 157/165 lbs. Last week, Michigan added to their haul with two more former Northwestern All-Americans in Michael DeAugustino and Chris Cannon. A stunning fourth AA committed yesterday in 2021 national champion Shane Griffith. With the high-caliber additions for Michigan, it begs the question. Can the Wolverines challenge Penn State for the 2024 national championship in Kansas City? Penn State started with a healthy lead, but were Michigan’s graduate transfers enough to close the gap and make things interesting? Before the Griffith announcement, Michigan was dealt a blow as redshirt sophomore 149 lber Chance Lamer entered the transfer portal. Lamer was an NCAA Round of 12 finisher as a freshman. As of now, Michigan’s 149 lb situation looks a bit murky. The only other 149 on the roster is Fidel Mayora, who was a strong recruit coming out of Illinois but is only 7-7 after two years of competition. We’ve taken a look at the returning NCAA team points for both Michigan and Penn State, along with the points earned by their respective transfers. Additionally, we have targeted the highest career point total for the Michigan wrestlers in an attempt to create a “best-case scenario” for the Wolverines. Michigan’s returning 2023 NCAA team points Dylan Ragusin (2 points) Will Lewan - 8th (5.5 points) Cam Amine - 4th (14.5 points) 22 total points For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat's Rokfin Page

3x NCAA All-American Mekhi Lewis (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The Champ Is Back! Mekhi Lewis, 2019 NCAA Champion and three-time All-American, announced that he will utilize his final year of eligibility and will return to the Hokies. Lewis has been a lynchpin in the success of the Hokies since he came to Blacksburg. After a stellar 28-2 redshirt campaign in 2018--his only two losses were to Chance Marstellar at the Southern Scuffle--Lewis added a Junior World Championship over the summer. There were high expectations for Lewis from the staff and the Hokie faithful, but he flew under the radar for many nationally. After an early season dual loss to Connor Flynn of Mizzou and a tight 2-0 loss to All-American Isaiah White of Nebraska at the CKLV, Lewis reeled off 21 straight wins--including an incredible NCAA run, to stand atop the podium in Pittsburgh. He earned OW honors at the ACC Championships and the NCAA Championships where he beat the #1 seed Alex Marinelli, #4 seed Evan Wick and #2 seed Vincenzo Joseph to capture his first NCAA title. This was also the first individual title for the Hokies. After an Olympic Redshirt in the 2019-2020 season, Lewis started the 2020-2021 season 8-0 before suffering a significant injury against Jake Wentzel in the Pitt dual. Lewis gritted his way to two wins at the NCAA tournament before ultimately medically defaulting. He entered the 2021-2022 season looking to make a statement; he started the season on a 19-0 run before a sudden victory loss to Hayden Hidlay in the dual against NC State. He avenged this loss in the ACC semifinals, then beat Clay Lautt in the finals to win his second ACC title. He put together another phenomenal run in Detroit to make his second appearance in the NCAA finals. In one of the best matches of the tournament, Lewis dropped a heartbreaker to Carter Starocci in TB1. Lewis capped this season with another finish on the podium in Tulsa; while it wasn’t his best finish, the grit he showed to get to that step is impressive. He suffered a knee injury in the Stanford dual in late December that held him out of action for several weeks. While still fighting through this nagging injury, he suffered another injury to his other leg while en route to winning the ACC Championship. While watching his run in Tulsa, it was evident that Mekhi was not at full strength, but that he was going to leave everything he had on the mat. He won his first three matches--including a chippy match against Jackson Turley where he tweaked his knee--and then beat a scrappy Nelson Brands in the quarterfinals with a dislocated finger. This set up a rematch of the CKLV finals where Mikey Labriola was again able to come out on top in TB1 to keep Lewis from making his third NCAA final. Lewis topped Dustin Plott to make the 3rd place match where he lost again in TB1 to Chris Foca to finish in 4th place. Lewis will return to a Hokie squad that finished in 9th place in Tulsa. They lose only one starter, Hunter Bolen, and return All-Americans Eddie Ventresca, Sam Latona, Caleb Henson, and Bryce Andonian. The Hokies will be a force to be reckoned with in 2023-2024 and will be in the hunt for a team trophy. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Mekhi’s off-the-mat contributions. I’ve had the privilege of being behind the scenes and seeing how big of an impact Lewis has made both on his teammates and on the community around him. He has capitalized on several NIL opportunities, and with this, he has made a point to give back to his community. Last season he partnered with the Center for Great Expectations in his hometown in New Jersey, donating $8,000 and receiving partner donations for a total of $21,000 (VT Magazine). This season he is splitting his donations between NJ Toy Drive and Micah’s Backpack; a Blacksburg organization. Another year in Blacksburg means one more year to add to the legacy that Mekhi has built both on and off the mat. I, for one, am looking forward to seeing what he still has up his sleeve.

New North Dakota State head coach Obe Blanc (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Just three days after Roger Kish left his head coaching position at North Dakota State, the Bison have announced that they’ve hired his successor in Obe Blanc. Blanc is no stranger to the NSDU program, as he has been the team’s associate head coach for the past two seasons and has served a total of four on staff in Fargo. Prior to his tenure at North Dakota State, Blanc was on the NC State staff for five years. Blanc was an integral part of a Wolfpack program on the rise and on NC State’s team trophy-winning squad in 2018. While at NC State, Blanc helped mentor a pair of national champions and ten All-Americans. As a competitor, Blanc wrestled at both Lock Haven and Oklahoma State. At Lock Haven, Blanc finished sixth in the country at the 2007 NCAA Championships. After college, Blanc was a fixture on the freestyle scene, making the 2010 World Team and capturing a pair of silver medals at the Pan-American Championships. He made every national team from 2009-13. Blanc’s freestyle prowess also came in handy at NC State as he was the head coach of the Wolfpack Wrestling Club. Retaining Blanc was an important measure of continuity for a team that went 11-3 last season with wins over Nebraska and Oklahoma. The Bison also put a pair of wrestlers on the NCAA podium (Jared Franek and Michael Caliendo), a feat that hadn’t been achieved at the school since 2015. Blanc has also been a key figure in NDSU’s recruiting upswing. North Dakota State’s Class of 2021 (that included Caliendo) was ranked 15th in the nation by InterMat. Last year's class didn’t make the top-25, but was included in the “next five.” This year’s class features six wrestlers on MatScouts Big Board (Top 200) and will likely get noted in our forthcoming rankings.

New Michigan transfer Chris Cannon (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome back all to another edition of the Friday Mailbag. The US Open has concluded and Willie Saylor made it home alive, so we’re still in business over here. Since we last spoke, Michigan has added Lucas Davison, Michael DeAugustino, Shohei Ohtani, Chris Cannon, Brock Lesnar, Gandalf, and now Shane Griffith to an already-loaded lineup. I don’t even know what to say. I didn’t even know Gandalf was still competing. Let’s just move on. It’s been a long week and you can’t stay on the toilet forever or your legs will fall asleep. Do you think Jersey Mike’s could be to Rutgers for NIL as Cliff Keen is to Michigan? Mike Abromitis I seriously doubt it. They already own the arena naming rights. I’m not sure they’re really interested in the success of the wrestling team while they shove yet another sandwich shop between a pharmacy and a tanning salon. While we’re on the subject, the NIL era is bonkers. But the whole ordeal has been exacerbated by the extra year given to everyone. You have a run of athletes with college degrees, AA finishes, and a big, fat, year or two of eligibility left to do with what they please. Throw in a vague set of rules where you can basically pay lots of money for various services and it’s the perfect storm for what is going on. I do think it will settle down in a few years when the extra-year guys are gone. Will it end up being a feeder program for the big guns with money? Under the current rules, I’m afraid it might be. What they can do to regulate it, I do not know. It’s not easy to compete when you recruit, coach up, and lead a kid to success just to watch him walk to the team you’re trying to catch in the first place. On the flip side, I can’t fault any kid for getting his share right now. Wrestling isn’t an easy sport to make money in and if someone wants to give you some, you can’t pass it up. The whole thing is quite the catch-22 for the average fan. How many 2023 D1 All-Americans at 125 do you think could beat Brady Koontz in a Greco match? Richard Mann, Nationals fan Look man, If anyone wants to step up and challenge Koontz for the top spot, then step up and get your cranium cracked. My man is more than willing to take on any challengers. Should pins, nearfalls, and back exposure points be removed from the sport? Nicholas Strub Yes. Remove everything but takedowns. Take out the clock while we’re at it. The first to five takedowns wins. Each wrestler gets one timeout to use after any takedown. That’ll put butts in seats. Play Madden with injuries and fatigue turned on or off? Also Nicholas Strub I haven’t played Madden regularly in about 20 years. But when I did, I jacked up my team so much that I won every game 126-0. I guess you could say I didn’t play it like real football and there was no way I was losing a guy to injury. Oh, to be young again. Will Jagamania be getting in on the NIL sponsor/collective space? Nick Kosko, Rutgers announcer extraordinaire and Austin Sommer doppelganger Yes, but it’s not what you think. You are now reading the Cliff Keen Jagger Bag. Also brought to you by Carl’s Jr. What’s that? They both pulled their sponsorship? Because of the Morning Blast videos? Guess, I can’t blame them. We saw the All-Jagger team; what would the criteria be for an All-Anti-Jagger team? Austin Sommer, Drexel announcer extraordinaire and Nick Kosko doppelganger There is none. Everyone is eligible. You don’t even have to be an AA. You don’t even have to start. I might give old Rutgers utility man Willie Scott an honorary All-Jagger degree for always being ready to jump in at any weight between 165 and 184. Win or lose, he battled out there every time and that’s what I like to see. I’ll admit if I see you openly being a Chiefs fan then your chances drop significantly. Where do you feel your video content has had the biggest impact in the wrestling community, the United States, and World at large? Kevin Claunch, Michigan Bag Man Austin, Texas and Western New York. They say Austin is the fastest-growing city in America and that also applies to Jagamaniacs. They can’t get enough of me over there. Meanwhile, in Buffalo, they already invited me to get tossed through the opening table at the first Bills game. Once I conquer Easton, PA there’s no stopping me. How do the Celtics turn this around? Clay is Dancing and smiling in all our faces. Rhino, tweeter of Boston sports They don’t? Let’s face it, Larry Bird ain’t walking through that door. And if he did he'd be old and gray. I’m afraid ClaySauerbreeze and Brandango from New Jersey will have the last dance before the Sixers face the Knicks in the Battle for the New Jersey Turnpike. Will the Sixers make the finals? Will Philly finish second in another major sport? Did Ban Basketball just punch a hole in his computer screen?

2021 NCAA champion Shane Griffith (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) This afternoon, 2021 NCAA champion Shane Griffith announced that he would spend his final year of eligibility competing for the University of Michigan. Griffith earned NCAA All-American honors three times while at Stanford. He was fifth at the 165 lb weight class this season after finishing second in 2022. During the 2019-20 campaign, Griffith amassed a perfect 28-0 record and earned first-team All-American honors from the NWCA after receiving the third seed. Griffith will join Michigan as a graduate transfer after receiving his Master’s at Stanford. During his four years of attached competition, Griffith racked up an 87-11 record, won a 2020 Pac-12 title and made the conference finals on three other occasions. Last year, Griffith won his second career Southern Scuffle title and finished the season with a 28-5 record. He was 10-2 in dual competition with a bonus-point rate of over 20%. At this time, it’s unclear where Griffith will fit into the Wolverine lineup as three-time NCAA All-American Cam Amine returns at Griffith’s customary 165 lb weight class. In Tulsa, the two clashed and Amine was victorious 2-1 in tiebreakers. Griffith has a long frame and appears as if he could wrestle at 174 lbs. Griffith is the fourth past All-American to join Michigan this offseason, all of which are grad transfers. That makes for an imposing lineup for Sean Bormet’s squad as they return All-Americans Amine and Will Lewan (157 lbs), also.

Two-time NCAA champion Keegan O'Toole (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) In front of a record-setting Hearnes crowd, senior Jarrett Jacques got his hand raised in a close 2-0 decision win. That clinched the dual win upset for #10 Missouri over #3 Iowa State. Despite this, no fan of either school was heading for the doors. There was just one match remaining; one that everyone had circled since the start of the season. Returning champ Keegan O'Toole was taking on 2021 champion David Carr. The match had been discussed since Carr first announced the move to 165 pounds. Not only had both wrestlers won national titles, but they were also both U20 World Champions at 74kg. Carr won in 2019 while O'Toole won in 2021. Both wrestlers even competed at the revived NWCA All-Star Classic where Carr beat Quincy Monday and O'Toole beat Dean Hamiti. The style matchup was clear, could David Carr's explosive and dynamic offense overwhelm Keegan O'Toole's scrambling and flexibility? A 40-second scramble towards the end of the first period showed that Carr could scramble with O'Toole and more, as he scored a late takedown for a lead. Carr took bottom, which at the time felt like a chance for O'Toole to turn the tide with a tough ride. Carr was out quickly, however, and suddenly O'Toole was down 3-0. O'Toole managed to score a takedown of his own, followed by another quick escape from Carr. Again late in the period, Carr won a scramble to score another takedown. Carr then showed off a facet of his game that had not been highlighted against someone of O'Toole's caliber yet, his top game. Carr rode him out the entire third period for a dominant 7-2 win. It was the first loss for O'Toole since the 2021 NCAA quarterfinals and broke a 41-match winning streak. "I'd never seen Keegan get ridden like that before." Mizzou coach Brian Smith stated. "He left the game plan and never got back with it." The loss didn't keep O'Toole down for long, as the no longer undefeated wrestler was in the room early the next morning drilling with Kendric Maple. The team had two weeks to prepare for Big 12's and everyone expected another finals matchup between O'Toole and Carr. Much of the preparation was spent with Jarrett Jacques and true freshman Cam Steed. The anticipated rematch happened, this time with a much closer score. This time however O'Toole was able to get out, and there were multiple reviews that could have gone either way. Carr scored a late takedown for the lead, but an O'Toole escape and stall point tied it. In overtime, Carr again successfully got to a leg, and similar to the first match patiently worked his way up. O'Toole was looking to hook a leg, and Carr took advantage by locking up a cradle and pinning O'Toole in a shocking finish. "I remember standing in the tunnel and they [O'Toole and Maple] were immediately back to working," said Coach Smith. The work continued with NCAA's finally coming up, and the two were once again on a crash course to the finals as the top two seeds. Despite some close matches, both navigated their way to the finals for their final match of the season. After two losses, surely there must be some hesitation for your athlete, teammate, or friend right? "Never felt more confident going into a finals match." per Coach Smith. Jarrett Jacques, his teammate and warmup partner before the finals, said O'Toole was amazing. A part of the game plan for the Tiger wrestler had always been to get a first-period takedown. He had come close, but it didn't occur until this match, when a late takedown and rideout gave O'Toole an early lead. The match stayed close going into the third period, with O'Toole up by one. Again he was able to score an escape, a major difference from the first match. From there he scored another takedown, and broke the match open with two nearfall and locked up riding time for an 8-2 win and his second national title. Keegan O'Toole and David Carr after the 2023 NCAA finals (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) "I was exposed to a really high-level wrestler there and I needed to address some things," O'Toole said. "I'm still carrying that into every match." For O'Toole, the adjustments can begin before a match even ends. Recently he took on Jason Nolf in the US Open semifinals. Nolf took an early 9-0 lead after the first period. In the second period, O'Toole had made clear adjustments, scoring a takedown of his own but also keeping Nolf from scoring. Then immediately after the match, he was texting Coach Smith about things he wanted to work on. After his 2022 title, Jacques said he was in the hotel room watching his finals match multiple times and focusing on things he could improve on. One of the biggest things O'Toole has that makes him a successful wrestler? A growth mindset. "He has one of the greatest growth mindsets of any athlete I've ever coached," Smith said. "What you believe is how you're going to respond, and he responds in the right ways." That showed almost immediately in talking with O'Toole, who said it was "good that he got his butt kicked" after the first match. Maple calls him different, and can be a difficult wrestler to find critiques for after matches. The two often spend time trading ideas and coming up with plans for his evolution. While O'Toole tried his hand at the Senior level this offseason, Carr has said that he is putting the rest of his time into folkstyle in his final year in college. Both are expected to be at 165 again, a weight that also returns seven of the eight 2023 All-Americans. "I think it's going to be one of those great rivalries that people look forward to," Smith said. "They're going to continue to bring out the best in each other and I know they're up there working and we'll be working." "I'm expecting some battles." Said O'Toole when asked about his expectations for their future matches. "I don't expect them to be easy, nor do I want them to be." The two are likely to meet up multiple times again with the dual, conferences, and potentially NCAA's. Not only that, but there's a good chance they could match up on the Senior level someday as well. After an incredible back and forth in the 2023 season, this could be one of the most anticipated rivalries in years in 2024.

2023 US Open 130kg Greco-Roman champion Cohlton Schultz (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The U.S. Open returned last week with some high stakes on the line. Winners of the tournament advanced directly to Final X even if a returning medalist was already waiting in the finals. As always, the event served as a qualifier for the upcoming World Team Trials as well. Perhaps those stakes brought out the best in the field since there were plenty of impressive performances up and down the Senior level brackets. The following looks at some of the top statistical performers across all three of the Olympic styles. Point Differential (Points per Minute minus Points Against per Minute) Greco Roman Alan Vera was perhaps the most dominant wrestler at the U.S. Open. The Greco-Roman champion at 87kg won all four of his matches via match termination and outscored his opposition 38 to 4. On a per-minute basis, he averaged 5.84 points per minute and allowed only 0.61. His +5.22 point differential was by far the highest on the senior level across all three styles. In the finals, Vera scored a 9-0 victory over John Stefanowicz in a little over two minutes. Stefanowicz is one of the few domestic wrestlers to hand Vera a loss since he transferred over, and his win over Vera came in the semifinals of the last Olympic Trials. With this victory, Vera advances to Final X and should be the prohibitive favorite to make another world team. Women's Freestyle Over in women's freestyle, there was a rather interesting development. As you can see based on the previous paragraphs, point differential is usually a good performance measure. After all, scoring more points than your opponents is almost always the path to winning. "Almost always" is doing a lot of the heavy lifting in this case. Carrieann Randolph (68kg) and Anna Stephens (65kg) both tied for the highest point differential in women's freestyle at +4.23, but neither went very far in the tournament. Randolph actually lost both of her matches in the tournament, but she was leading in both before losing by fall. In her first match against Kayani Ayal, she scored 11 points before being pinned. In her bounce-back attempt in the consolation bracket, she managed to score six points in under two minutes, but once lost via fall. Stephens was more successful but still bowed out of the tournament after going 2-2. All four of her matches ended via fall, and she spent a total of only 128 seconds on the mat. Her two victories came over Sierra Hartfelder (35 seconds) and Jaylene Martinez (42 seconds). Unfortunately for Stephens, her losses against Ella Schmit (33 seconds) and Skylar Hattendorf (18 seconds) were even quicker. Men's Freestyle The returning heavyweight king had an overly dominant performance on his way to the title. Gable Steveson, who famously left college wrestling with one year of eligibility remaining to join WWE, returned this past week at the Open. He defeated all four of his opponents. In the process, the Olympic gold medalist scored 44 points and allowed only one. Those numbers equate to 4.15 points per minute and 0.09 points against per minute. His resulting +4.06 point differential was the highest across the men's freestyle tournament. The only other wrestler in the style who even came close was Spencer Lee (+3.42) who dropped out of the tournament after making the semifinal round. Not only did Steveson show zero signs of rust after an extended absence, but he also faced off against some of the toughest available domestic opposition. He defeated Wyatt Hendrickson, who was third at the 2023 NCAA tournament, Mason Parris, the reigning Hodge trophy winner and multiple-time world medalist Nick Gwiazdowski. The only wrestler who was able to score a single point against Steveson was Parris. The former Michigan wrestler scored a step-out point late in the first period. Steveson was leading 7-0 prior to that score and finished the bout 19 seconds into the second period with a 12-1 score. Points per Minute Men's Freestyle After qualifying for the 2022 NCAA tournament, Jack Jessen had a tough 2023 for Northwestern. However, he still has one year of eligibility remaining, and he certainly did not have issues putting up points at the open. In the 86kg bracket, Jessen went 5-2 and racked up the points in the consolation bracket. His run came to an end against Maximus Hale who went on to finish eighth in the tournament. Obviously, Jessen would have liked to place in the tournament, but he can take some consolation in the fact that nobody in men's freestyle averaged more than his 6.83 points per minute. Women's Freestyle The previously outlined odd tournament performances from Radolph and Stephens also had an impact on this measure. Stephens finished with a 7.51 points per minute rate, which was not only tops in the style but also across the entire senior event. Randolph had the second-highest in women's freestyle at 6.54. Kennedy Blades finished with the third highest points per minute rate in women's freestyle at 4.76. Her virtuoso performance at 76kg could be a sign of future dominance. Following Blades' tournament-winning performance, BroBible luminary Clay Sauertieg tweeted, "Welcome to the Kennedy Blades Era," and he might be onto something. Blades blitzed her first two opponents with 10-0 VSU stoppages. The competition then got tougher, but the champion kept scoring. She put up 11 points against Yelena Makoyed to take an 11-7 victory in what turned out to be her closest match. In the finals, Blades knocked off multiple-time world champion Adeline Gray via match termination with a 12-2 score. Greco Roman Not only did Vera have the highest point differential in Greco, but he also had the highest scoring rate. His 5.84 points per minute rate was the highest in the style. The next highest-scoring competitor in Greco was heavyweight Cohtlon Schultz at 4.62 points per minute. Schultz recently became a three-time All-American at Arizona State with a seventh-place finish at the NCAA tournament. However, he seemed eager to return to his best style. At the Open, the Sun Devil scored match-termination victories in all four of his matches. The highlight of his run was an 11-0 victory over rival Adam Coon. In their previous meetings recorded by USA Wrestling, Coon had outscored Schutlz 36 to 10 across five matches. Points Against per Minute Greco Roman Across all three styles at the senior level, there were only two wrestlers who made it through the entire tournament without surrendering a single point, and they both competed in Greco. Schultz not only finished with the second-highest scoring rate in the style, but also shut out all four of his opponents. The only other wrestler to not give up a point was Brady Kootnz who won the Greco title at 55kg. He defeated all three of his opponents by 9-0 scores including Dalton Duffield in the finals. After starting his collegiate career at Ohio State, Koontz moved to Dubuque last season where he was a Division III All-American with a seventh-place finish at 125 pounds. He has previously been a member of both the U23 and Junior world teams, and with this victory he will return to Final X for the third time. Women's Freestyle Macey Kilty's run at the last Olympic team came to an end due to injury. She has worked her way back into form and showed this past week that she will be a contender for the world team sport. Kilty won the tournament title at 65kg and outscored her opposition 36 to one. The only point she allowed came in the finals against Emma Bruntil. The match went to the break with Kilty leading 1-0. In the second, Bruntil got on the board when Kilty was unable to score on the activity clock. The younger wrestler then busted the match open in the final minute with a pair of exposures in a scramble to take the 5-1 victory. By allowing only a single point across four matches, Kilty finished with a 0.09 points against per minute rate, which was by far the highest in women's freestyle. The closest competitor in the style was Joye Levendusky who allowed four points (0.19 per minute) on her way to the title at 72kg. Men's Freestyle Steveson not only dominated point differential, but he also had the best points against-per-minute rate in men's freestyle. Like Kilty, he allowed only 0.09 points per minute on his way to the championship. The second-best defensive performance in the style came from Alex Dierigner. The former Oklahoma State wrestler allowed his opponents only 0.17 points per minute at 79 kg. His run included an impressive 7-1 victory over reigning NCAA champion Carter Starocci in the semifinals. However, Dieringer averaged only 0.88 points per minute on offense and ultimately fell to former college teammate Chance Marsteller in the finals by a 3-2 score.

Tamyra Mensah-Stock at the 2020 Olympic Games (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Earlier this afternoon, ESPN reported that 2020 Olympic Gold Medalist Tamyra Mensah-Stock has officially signed with the WWE. This decision seemed imminent after Mensah-Stock did not accept an invitation to compete at 68 kg in Final X. She was given that option after winning a gold medal at the 2022 World Championships. If this is indeed the end of Mensah-Stock’s wrestling career, she’ll finish as one of the all-time great American women. She was only the second American woman to win gold at the Olympics and the first black woman to do so. In addition, Mensah-Stock won a pair of world titles (2019 and 2022) to go along with a pair of world bronze medals (2018 and 2021). Mensah-Stock won every World/Olympic Team Trial event at 68/69kg since 2016. In 2019, Mensah-Stock became the first American (man or woman) to win the prestigious Ivan Yarygin on three occasions. She also claimed three gold medals at the Pan-American Championships. Collegiately, she was a two-time WCWA national champion (2014 and 2017) for Wayland Baptist University. Shortly after winning the 2020 Olympic gold medal (in 2021), Mensah-Stock and fellow gold medalist, Gable Steveson, were guests of the WWE at a pay-per-view event. At the time, she expressed her desire to become a part of the WWE. According to the ESPN article, Mensah-Stock reported to the WWE Performance Center on Monday to officially start her tenure.

2023 US Open champion Mike Macchiavello (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The ACC was well represented in Vegas for the US Open with wrestlers from all six teams covering freestyle and Greco in both the Senior and U20 divisions. Another interesting tidbit was the conference was also repped by three assistant coaches--Jack Mueller, Cody Brewer and Luke Pletcher, a Director of Operations; Demetrius Thomas and a Student-Athlete Development Coordinator; Hayden Hidlay. Several incoming ACC wrestlers also finished on the podium for the U20 tournament, but we will dive into those later. Let’s take a look at the podium finishers for the ACC. North Carolina: The Tar Heels had reps at Senior Greco and U20 freestyle and brought home trophies in both styles. Cade Lautt opened the tournament with a seventh-place finish in Senior Greco at 97 kg. Nick Fea and Jayden Scott finished on the podium for U20 freestyle. Fea finished in fourth at 74 kg while Scott ended in eighth at 65 kg; Scott defaulted his final two matches and finished with a 7-3 record for the tournament. North Carolina State: The Wolfpack had a great weekend in Vegas, especially with the performances by Pack alumni. This was topped off by a US Open title from Mike Macchiavello at 92 kg; he secured a spot at Final X and will face the winner of the WTT tournament. Nick Gwiazdowski also made the finals at 125 kg where he fell to Olympic Champion Gable Steveson. Tommy Gantt finished in sixth at 74 kg and Hayden Hidlay finished in fifth at 70 kg. Current Pack wrestlers also left Vegas with some hardware. Isaac Trumble had a fantastic tournament run, making it to the finals before dropping to J’den Cox. Jakob Camacho made his return to competition with a third-place finish at 57 kg. Trent Hidlay finished in fourth at 86 kg while teammate Dylan Fishback finished in sixth. On the U20 side, Jackson Arrington and Chase Horne both finished in seventh place at 70kg and 125kg, respectively, while Troy Hohman finished in eighth at 57 kg. Pittsburgh: The Panthers sent a smaller squad to Vegas, but returned with two medalists in the U20 tournament. Luca Augustine brought home a third-place finish at 79 kg while Mac Stout finished in third at 92 kg. Virginia: The Hoos saw some solid performances in both age groups, with several wrestlers notching multiple wins in the tournament. They did bring some trophies home to Charlottesville at both Senior and U20. Soon-to-be graduate Jarod Verkleeren earned a sixth-place finish at 70 kg while graduate Jay Aiello finished in fifth at 92 kg. On the U20 side, Colden Dorfman was the lone placer for the Hoos, finishing in fourth place at 92 kg; teammate Nick Sanko had a solid tournament and fell just before the placing round at 5-2 on the weekend at 70 kg. Virginia Tech: The Hokies sent a small contingent to Vegas and had trophy finishes from two wrestlers. Graduate Ty Walz finished in seventh at 125 kg and current wrestler Cooper Flynn finished in fifth at 57kg. Assistant Coach Cody Brewer made his return to the mat and finished 3-2 on the weekend.

New Oklahoma head coach Roger Kish (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com This afternoon, the University of Oklahoma announced that they have hired Roger Kish as their next head coach. Kish comes to Norman after spending the last 12 years leading the Bison of North Dakota State University. Kish is fresh off his finest season in Fargo. The Bison set a program record with 25.5 points at the NCAA Championships, which was good for 24th place. NDSU had a pair of All-American's (Jared Franek and Michael Caliendo) for the first time since 2015. In dual competition, the 2022-23 Bison team amassed an 11-3 record that includes wins over Oklahoma and Nebraska. Six of his wrestlers went on to qualify for NCAA's after a fifth place finish in the Big 12. During his time with North Dakota State, Kish's teams went 108-70. Kish wrestled collegiately for the University of Minnesota and made the podium twice for the Gophers. In 2006, Kish won a Big Ten championship before making the NCAA finals. He'll inherit a Sooner team that features seven past national qualifiers, though there's bound to be some attrition as per usual with head coaching changes.

86 kg Senior US Open men's freestyle champion Aaron Brooks (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Wrestlers love fighting. It’s a built-in part of the sport. To get your hand raised, you have to have that fighter spirit in you. That fighting spirit also tends to carry over to other areas of your life as well. It can manifest itself on social media as wrestlers, parents, fans, media, and everyone else in between can get into verbal scuffles over a variety of topics. We’ve seen it recently with the proposed rule changes for college. Three-point takedowns and no riding time without near-fall points. Changing our sport over to freestyle for good. These are all arguments that people have vigorously fought for or against. Looking at a bigger audience than the wrestling community, society rarely gives their respective governing body credit. It’s more fun to fight against “the man.” But after attending and covering the 2023 US Open, I have to give USA Wrestling their just due. The changes they have made for qualification to the 2023 World Team made the Open more important and more intriguing than any one in recent memory. This is one change that the wrestling community should be able to agree upon as a positive in our sport. This year’s world team measures basically stated that if there was a 2022 world medalist returning at their 2022 weight, he/she would be invited to participate in Final X. Their opponents would be decided at the US Open. The winner would move on to Final X. No World Team Trials needed. If there was no returning world medalist, then the Open winner would still move on to Final X. His/her opponent would be decided at the 2023 World Team Trials, which will occur on May 20-21st. That simple change contributed to an increase in Open entries across all three styles. In past years, wrestlers with world medals, world team experience, and other strong credentials likely were able to bypass the Open and wait at the WTT’s. So, who are the wrestlers with world medals and world team medals? In many cases, those are some of the most talented and popular wrestlers. Basically, they didn’t “have” to wrestle in the Open. Some chose to anyway, just as a chance to get mat time and tournament simulation. Not only did the Open suffer in the prior format, but the Trials ended up being lackluster, which came to a head last year in Coralville, Iowa. This year’s version of the WTT’s will be in Colorado Springs with all ten Greco weights being contested, along with three men’s freestyle and four women’s freestyle. It likely won’t be a huge event, but neither was last year’s. Another factor that can’t be overlooked is the participation of two of the top young stars in the sport, both intriguing for different reasons. 2020 Olympic gold medalist, Gable Steveson, announced he was returning to the mat after spending the last year training for the WWE. The Open would be the site for his return since it was needed to make the world team. Spencer Lee, on the other hand, would be wrestling freestyle for the first time since December 2019. Lee also was wrestling for the first time after he was pinned in the semifinals of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. The women’s tournament also saw the return of one of its all-time greats in Adeline Gray. The six-time world champion missed the 2022 world team qualification process as she was pregnant with twins. Gray competed at the 2023 Open three weeks after getting cleared to return to the mat. Even so, she made the finals and fell to the young phenom, Kennedy Blades. Gray will now have to win the Trials to make Final X opposite Blades. Those three stars, combined with a loaded field, led to attendance from spectators that seemed to double compared to recent years. In our post-match interview with 92 kg men’s freestyle champion, Mike Macchiavello, he mentioned how the size and noise of the crowd made the match seem more special than it already was. This final set of men’s freestyle matches was probably the best, most action-packed championship matches I’ve watched in years. That goes for any age group or style. Planning may or may not be responsible for that. While it may have just been a positive clash of styles, it also included high-caliber, popular wrestlers that may not have been at the Open under previous conditions. USA Wrestling takes a lot of heat for whatever the wrestling world can think of. Some justified and some not. But, in this case, the US Open was a major win for wrestling.

Michigan transfer Michael DeAugustino a 2022 NCAA 4th Place finisher (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The weeks following the NCAA Tournament can now be called portal season. College wrestling is inundated with names of wrestlers entering the portal, signing with other programs, and thanks to NIL, rumors of gigantic, hypothetical sacks of cash involved. We know, that's not necessarily how NIL works, but it's fun social media fodder. Along with recruiting, re-recruiting of current team members and cherry-picking wrestlers from the portal has become almost an essential part of roster building. This will certainly impact the 2023-24 team race, as six past All-Americans have already gone in and out of the portal. In addition, some high-profile freshmen have done so, too. As of Tuesday morning, these are the names of wrestlers that have transferred into DI wrestling programs. I'm sure that list will continue to grow in the near future. Wrestlers have been listed by their new school with their previous one in parenthesis. Arizona State Chance McLane (Oklahoma State) Iowa State Garrett Grice (Virginia) Lehigh Hunter Mays (Rider) Maryland Seth Nevills (Penn State) Michigan Chris Cannon (Northwestern) Lucas Davison (Northwestern) Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) Nebraska Caleb Smith (Appalachian State) North Dakota State Giuseppe Hoose (Buffalo) Northern Illinois Tommy Curran (NC State) Oklahoma State Mirzo Khayitov (Ellsworth CC) Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois) Troy Spratley (Minnesota) Penn State Mitchell Mesenbrink (California Baptist) Aaron Nagao (Minnesota) Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) Purdue Joey Milano (NC State) Marcos Polanco (Minnesota) Rutgers Jacob Butler (Oklahoma) Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) Virginia Ryan Catka (Navy) Wisconsin Shane Liegel (Loras) Wyoming Ethan Ducca (Edinboro) Gabe Willochell (Edinboro)

Final X NYC at Madison Square Garden (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) With the US Open in the books, we are almost set for Final X. Between men’s and women’s freestyle, seven spots remain to be determined at the World Team Trials, May 20-21st, while half the Greco-Roman lineup will be set, too. For now, we’re looking past the Trials to see which wrestlers have qualified for Final X and which matchups we can anticipate. Men’s Freestyle 57 kg - Thomas Gilman vs. Zane Richards 61 kg - Vito Arujau vs. TBD 65 kg - Yianni Diakomihalis vs. Nick Lee 70 kg - Zain Retherford vs. Tyler Berger 74 kg - Kyle Dake vs. Jason Nolf 79 kg - Jordan Burroughs vs. Chance Marsteller 86 kg - David Taylor vs. Aaron Brooks 92 kg - Mike Macchiavello vs. TBD 97 kg - Kyle Snyder vs. J’den Cox 125 kg - Gable Steveson vs. TBD Women’s Freestyle 50 kg - Sarah Hildebrandt vs. Audrey Jimenez 53 kg - Dom Parrish vs. Katie Gomez 55 kg - Alisha Howk vs. TBD 57 kg - Helen Maroulis vs. Xochitl Mota-Pettis 59 kg - Michaela Beck vs. TBD 62 kg - Kayla Miracle vs. Adaugo Nwachukwu 65 kg - Mallory Velte vs. Macey Kilty 68 kg - Forrest Molinari vs. TBD 72 kg - Amit Elor vs. Joye Levendusky 76 kg - Kennedy Blades vs. TBD Greco-Roman 55 kg - Brady Koontz vs. TBD 60 kg - Dalton Roberts vs. TBD 63 kg - Hayden Tuma vs. TBD 67 kg - Robert Perez III vs. TBD 72 kg - Justus Scott vs. TBD 77 kg - Kamal Bey vs. TBD 82 kg - Spencer Woods vs. TBD 87 kg - Alan Vera vs. TBD 97 kg - Joe Rau vs. TBD 130 kg - Cohlton Schultz vs. TBD

71 kg freestyle world team member Ladarion Lockett (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) U17 World Team Members Men's Freestyle 45 kg - Ignacio Villasenor (Colorado) 48 kg - Paul Kenny (New Jersey) 51 kg - Christian Castillo (Arizona) 55 kg - Marcus Blaze (Ohio) 60 kg - Ben Davino (Illinois) 65 kg - Brock Mantanona (California) 71 kg - Ladarion Lockett (Oklahoma) 80 kg - Zack Ryder (New York) 92 kg - Aeoden Sinclair (Wisconsin) 110 kg - Sampson Stillwell (Missouri) Men's Greco-Roman 45 kg - Henry Aslikyan (California) 48 kg - Lincoln Sledzianowski (Pennsylvania) 51 kg - Hudson Loges (Nebraska) 55 kg - Jordyn Raney (Kentucky) 60 kg - Sam Herring (Pennsylvania) 65 kg - Billy Greenwood (Colorado) 71 kg - Arvin Khosravy (California) 80 kg - Adam Waters (Pennsylvania) 92 kg - Dreshaun Ross (Iowa) 110 kg - Nicholas Sahakian (California) Women's Freestyle 40 kg - Jaclyn Bouzakis (Pennsylvania) 43 kg - Morgan Turner (Illinois) 46 kg - Rianne Murphy (Indiana) 49 kg - Heather Crull (Indiana) 53 kg - Karlee Brooks (Arizona) 57 kg - Everest Leydecker (Arizona ) 61 kg - Haylie Jaffe (Pennsylvania) 65 kg - May Prado (Georgia) 69 kg - Jasmine Robinson (Texas) 73 kg - Piper Fowler (Tennessee)

U20 freestyle champion Christian Carroll (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) U20 UWW Junior Nationals (Freestyle) Championship Finals 57 kg - Luke Lilledahl (Wyoming Seminary) over Jore Volk (Wyoming) 10-4 61 kg - Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State) over Kale Peterson (Greene County HS; IA) 11-8 65 kg - Tyler Kasak (M2 Wrestling; PA) over Kannon Webster (Washington HS; IL) 15-7 70 kg - Meyer Shapiro (Wyoming Seminary) over Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) 7-2 74 kg - Mitchell Mesenbrink (Askren Wrestling) over Hunter Garvin (Stanford) 16-6 79 kg - Gabe Arnold (Iowa City High, IA) over Rocco Welsh (Waynesburg, PA) 3-2 86 kg - Bennett Berge (South Dakota State) over Max McEnelly (Waconia HS; MA) 7-4 92 kg - Jack Darrah (Stanford) over Stephen Little (Little Rock) 4-3 97 kg - Camden McDanel (Teays Valley HS; OH) over Joey Braunagel (Illinois) 11-0 125 kg - Christian Carroll (Stillwater HS, OK) over Bradley Hill (Iowa) 13-2 Third Place Bouts 57 kg - Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin) over Brendan McCrone (Ohio State) 10-0 61 kg - Emilio Ysaguirre (Arizona State) over Markel Baker (George Mason) 8-0 65 kg - Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) over Cole Brooks (Collinsville, OK) 12-0 70 kg - Paniro Johnson (Iowa State) over Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) 5-0 74 kg - Joseph Sealey (Wyoming Seminary) over Nick Fea (North Carolina) 14-4 79 kg - Luca Augustine (Pittsburgh) over Lucas Condon (Poway HS, CA) 8-2 86 kg - Brayden Thompson (Stillwater HS, OK) over Wyatt Voelker (Northern Iowa) 3-2 92 kg - Mac Stout (Pittsburgh) over Gavin Nelson (Simley, HS; MN) 13-2 97 kg - Sawyer Bartelt (South Dade, HS; FL) over Colden Dorfman (Virginia) 8-8 125 kg - Carter Neves (Blair Academy) over Juan Mora (North Dakota State) 6-2 Fifth Place Bouts 57 kg - Adrian Meza (Valiant Prep) over Cael Nasdeo (Williamsport HS, PA) MedFFT 61 kg - Jace Rhodes (Iowa) over Nasir Bailey (Rich Township HS, IL) MedFFT 65 kg - Vince Cornella (Cornell) over Pierson Manville (State College HS, PA) 14-4 70 kg - John Wiley (Oklahoma) over Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) 12-1 74 kg - Aiden Riggins (Iowa) over Matt Bianchi (Little Rock) 8-4 79 kg - Josh Barr (Davison, HS; MI) over Noah Mulvaney (Arrowhead, HS; WI) 16-10 86 kg - Connor Mirasola (West Bend West, HS; WI) over Clayton Whiting (Missouri) 9-2 92 kg - Cole Mirasola (West Bend West, HS; WI) over Gabe Sollars (Indiana) 11-9 97 kg - Steven Burrell (Virginia) over Ben Kawczynski (UW LaCrosse) 10-7 125 kg - Nathan Taylor (Lehigh) over Harley Andrews (Nebraska) MedFFT Seventh Place Bouts 57 kg - Dominic Mendez (Righetti, HS; CA) over Troy Hohman (NC State) 12-6 61 kg - Fernando Barreto (North Dakota State) over Cael Hughes (Stillwater, HS; OK) MedFFT 65 kg - Dylan Chappell (Bucknell) over Jayden Scott (North Carolina) MedFFT 70 kg - Jackson Arrington (NC State) over Nicco Ruiz (St. John Bosco, HS; CA) 74 kg - Kyle Dutton (Little Rock) over Kamdyn Munro (Chattanooga) 14-7 79 kg - Jared Simma (Northern Iowa) over Ethan Riddle (Germantown, HS; WI) 12-1 86 kg - Tate Naaktgeboren (Linn-Mar, HS, IA) over Justin Rademacher (West Linn, HS; OR) Fall 1:35 92 kg - Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia) over Carson Floyd (Appalachian State) 8-1 97 kg - Max Ramberg (Augustana) over Liam Heikkila (Colorado Mesa) MedFFT 125 kg - Chase Horne (NC State) over Ethan Vergara (Florida) 12-2 U20 UWW Junior Nationals (Greco-Roman) Championship Finals 55 kg - Kenneth Crosby (CO) over Roberto Estrada (CO) 8-0 60 kg - Max Black (CO) over Cory Land (AL) 8-0 63 kg - Landon Drury (CO) over Pierson Manville (PA) 9-4 67 kg - Jadon Skellenger (ID) over Ivan Morris (CO) 8-0 72 kg - Richard Fedalen (MD) over Brendon Abdon (FL) 7-2 77 kg - Derek Matthews (ID) over Aydin Rix McElhinney (CO) 8-0 82 kg - Michael Altomer (NY) over Darion Johnson (WA) 4-1 87 kg - Wyatt Voelker (IA) over Jack Darrah (MO) 11-2 97 kg - Sawyer Bartelt (FL) over Joey Braunagel (IL) 5-4 130 kg - Aden Attao (ID) over Ryan Boersma (IL) 13-5 Third Place Bouts 55 kg - Anthony Ruzic (IL) over Zach Silvis (MN) 3-2 60 kg - Zan Fugitt (MO) over Rhett Peak (OK) 9-0 63 kg - Colton Parduhn (AK) over Ayson Rice (SD) 9-0 67 kg - Gunnar Hamre (WI) over Charlie Dill (NY) 9-0 72 kg - Arvin Khosravy (CA) over Jeremy Paradice (GA) 10-0 77 kg - Adrian Artsishevskiy (NY) over Hunter Garvin (IA) 14-6 82 kg - Jared Strickler (WI) over Franklin Ordonez-Fernandez (FL) 9-0 87 kg - Tate Naaktgeboren (IA) over Brandon Britten (TX) 6-2 97 kg - Max Ramberg (WI) over Jackson Dewald (IA) Fall :27 130 kg - Keith Miley (MO) over Matthew Moore (CO) Fall :34 Fifth Place Bouts 55 kg - Elyle Francisco (AK) over Davis Motyka (PA) 10-1 60 kg - Teegan Vasquez (MT) over Ruben Calderon (TX) 8-0 63 kg - Paul Kelly (CA) over Nash Singleton (OR) 12-4 67 kg - Braden Stauffenberg (IL) over Noah Rice (PA) 8-0 72 kg - Tyler Antoniak (NE) over Dylan Whitt (IA) 10-9 77 kg - Lars Michaelson (WA) over Jake Prudek (CA) MedFFT 82 kg - Codei Khawaja (MI) over Arian Khosravy (CA) 13-5 87 kg - Jarrett Stoner (TX) over Hunter Sonnenberg (WA) MedFFT 97 kg - Damion Schunke (SD) over Asher Ruchti (OR) 11-3 130 kg - Alex Semenenko (NY) over Soren Pirhoun (VA) MedFFT Seventh Place Bouts 55 kg - Tyler Klein (WI) over Blake Gioimo (IA) 10-3 60 kg - Gable Porter (IA) over Anthony Aniciete (NV) 10-2 63 kg - Zachary Marrero (CO) over Otto Black (CO) MedFFT 67 kg - Christopher Martino (ID) over Daniel Zepeda (CA) 11-2 72 kg - Joe Antonio (CA) over Aaron Dobbs (WI) 8-0 77 kg - Gaetano Console (IL)/CJ Hamblin (WA) 82 kg - Kasey Ross (IA) over Blake Jouret (KS) 10-1 87 kg - Talmadge Carman (UT) over Jakob Gilfoil (PA) 3-1 97 kg - Sage Harrison (CO) over Ibrahim Ameer (MO) 8-0 130 kg - Cameron Groncki (NY) over Shilo Jones (ID) 12-1

79 kg champion Chance Marsteller (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 2023 US Open Senior Men's Freestyle Champion Interviews 57 kg champion: Zane Richards 61 kg champion: Vito Arujau 65 kg champion: Nick Lee 70 kg champion: Tyler Berger 74 kg champion: Jason Nolf 79 kg champion: Chance Marsteller 86 kg champion: Aaron Brooks 92 kg champion: Mike Macchiavello 97 kg champion: J'den Cox 125 kg champion: Gable Steveson

Kennedy Blades (left) and Adeline Gray (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The last Senior-level US Open championship finals were conducted from the Southpoint Casino in Las Vegas, as the women’s freestyle world team hopefuls took the mat. The theme of the night was a “changing of a guard,” as the final session revealed nine first-time US Open champions. The most notable instance came in the final bout of the tournament as U20 World champion Kennedy Blades took on six-time world champion Adeline Gray at 76 kg. Gray was returning to the mat after missing 2022 following the birth of her twins. Blades struck early and often and carried a 10-2 lead into the second period. Less than :30 seconds into the final period, Blades secured another takedown to end the bout 12-2. Since the United States did not medal at the 2022 World Championships with Gray out of the picture, there was no one in Final X before Saturday night. Now, Blades has punched her ticket to Newark and Final X at 76 kg. Gray can wrestle during May’s World Team Trials to grab the second spot in hopes of a rematch. To call this match a “changing of the guard” might be a bit premature considering Gray’s lack of mat time and overall talent. But at the same time, it’s hard to ignore what Blades did against Gray and the rest of a loaded weight class. The opening bout provided a glimpse into the theme of the evening as 2023 U20 World Team member and 2022 U20 World silver medalist, Audrey Jimenez took on Final X participant Alyssa Lampe. Early in the contest, Lampe made the competition look like no-contest. She held an 8-0 lead with less than two minutes in the contest. That didn’t phase the youthful Jimenez who continued to attack, finished a takedown and transitioned into a leg lace. The 50 kg final was decided after Lampe exposed Jimenez during a takedown sequence and Lampe was given two points and Jimenez one for a reversal. At the final whistle, this ruling was challenged and overturned to show that Jimenez got a takedown, not a reversal. That meant two points for Jimenez who took the match 10-10 on criteria. She’ll face multiple-time world medalist Sarah Hildebrandt in Final X. In the two matches that followed 53 kg, the wrestler who got on the scoreboard first ended up losing the match. Samara Chavez got up an early takedown, but it was Katie Gomez that poured it on and ended up with a 12-2 tech. She’ll face returning world champion Dom Parrish in Final X. At 55 kg, it was Alisha Howk who got down early after giving away a point for a shot clock violation after a passivity warning. Unphased Howk, continued to attack and came away with an 8-3 win over Lauren Mason. Howk’s Final X opponent will be determined at the World Team Trials. There will be no third incarnation of a Helen Maroulis/Alex Hedrick series at Final X, at least in 2023, as Hedrick was shocked by Xochitl Mota-Pettis. Mota-Pettis only needed :44 seconds for a big four-point takedown, followed by four exposures. Mota-Pettis’ explosiveness and high-scoring ways could make for an intriguing matchup against Maroulis. The 59 and 65 kg weight classes showcased a pair of young, but experienced women who finally had breakthrough wins. Michaela Beck gritted out a tough win over former world team member Maya Nelson at 59 kg, 5-3. Kilty needed a late set of exposure points to jump out in front of rival Emma Bruntil. Another put gave her more cushion for a comfortable 5-1 victory. Beck’s Final X opponent will be determined at the Trials. Kilty has Mallory Velte at 65 kg in Final X. Though this is Kilty’s first Final X, she may have made the team last year, but was injured. She also had to default out of the 2020 Olympic Trials finals. In between Beck and Kilty’s wins, Adaugo Nwachukwu made her third world team of the spring. Two weeks ago, she dominated the field and claimed berths on the U20 and U23 teams. The Senior bid did not seem very likely after a period when she trailed Jennifer Page, 8-4. Shortly after, Nwachukwu got a four-point takedown, then another to win 10-8. She’ll face Kayla Miracle in Final X. The only wrestler during Saturday’s finals who wasn’t a first-time champion was Forrest Molinari at 68 kg. Molinari grabbed her third title after a second-period fall over Alex Glaude. Molinari used an armbar to expose and eventually pin Glaude, in what was a semi-close bout. Since Tamrya Mensah-Stock did not accept her spot in Final X, Molinari will wait for an opponent after the Trials. After Molinari’s win, Joye Levendusky booked her trip to Final X at 72 kg. Levendusky got her first takedown less than ten seconds into the match and never let up on Rose Cassioppi. After a final takedown approaching the one-minute mark in the second period, Levendusky had terminated the match with a 10-0 tech. She’ll move on to face history-marking Amit Elor in Final X. Elor captured championship belts at the U20, U23 and Senior World Championships last year. Senior Women’s Freestyle Final Results at the 2023 US Open 50 kg - Audrey Jimenez over Alyssa Lampe 10-10 53 kg - Katie Gomez over Samara Chavez 12-2 55 kg - Alisha Howk over Lauren Mason 8-3 57 kg - Xochitl Mota-Pettis over Alex Hedrick 10-0 59 kg - Michaela Beck over Maya Nelson 5-3 62 kg - Adaugo Nwachukwu over Jennifer Page 10-8 65 kg - Macey Kilty over Emma Bruntil 5-1 68 kg - Forrest Molinari over Alex Glaude Fall 4:21 72 kg - Joey Levendusky over Rose Cassioppi 10-0 76 kg - Kennedy Blades over Adeline Gray 12-2