InterMat Staff

2021 NCAA All-American Michael Beard (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to another edition of the Jagger Bag. Hope you all had a good holiday weekend but now it's time to get back to some wrestling. We kick things off with the National Freestyle Duals this weekend followed by the big guns at the US Open next week. The last month has felt like an age and I'm excited to see mat action again. From Cadets to Seniors the country seems to be more loaded than ever and we should all just enjoy the amount of talent we get to see. Many questions will be answered in the next few weeks. And since that's also what I do, let's get to some. Who's a darkhorse college guy who can make Final X? Lee C. I'm very interested in seeing where Carson Kharchla stands with the big boys at 74kg. There may be a new crop of challengers for two-time World Champ Kyle Dake and Carson may very be the guy left standing when the smoke clears. If he's even competing. You never quite know until it's tournament time. Editor's note: Here are the current entries for the US Open in Senior Men's Freestyle. As of now, Kharchla has not entered, but he still has time. Where does Michael Beard end up now that he is in the portal? @Obrats Michael Beard may be the guy with the most potential to enter the portal this year. It's insane that he has three years left since his first match was against a sophomore Greg Bulsak in 2019. With an AA already on his resume, and four years of college experience with three to go, I don't think we will ever see this kind of situation play out again. Throw in the alleged bags of cash and Beard is in an excellent situation to maximize his worth. I'd like to see him uphold his original commitment and return to Northwestern, but it's really anyone's guess where he ends up. My guess is Michigan. Find me a more perfect storyline than a guy losing his spot only to transfer to a rival, that just happens to be the home state of the guy who beat him, just to challenge him on the big stage. Who is your celebrity crush? Who is your celebrity look alike? @AustinSommer Meemaw from Young Sheldon. Annie Potts all day baby! Also, people used to say I look like Tom Green but I don't see it. Is Vito a darkhorse? FinishedNumber Vitali Arujau is a threat to win any tournament he enters on American soil. One of these days he will breakthrough. What are your thoughts on Rutgers (the mecca of Italian wrestling)? @SethPetar Messina Olivieri Raimo Cetta Fongaro DeSantis Soldano Casale Esposito Colucci And those are just the guys who are Italian on their dads' side. I know some of the other guys have to have some Italian moms, too. It's Jersey, everyone's a little Italian. Can anyone tell me what happened to OSU's Echemendia this year? @buckeyenomo Much like your handle, he's a buckeye no mo. Currently in the transfer portal, I'd be mildly shocked if he gets picked up by another school. I'm also not so sure his current "sponsorship" falls under NIL guidelines.

Spencer Lee in high school (left) and at Iowa (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) One of the longstanding traditions at InterMat is the re-ranking of high school recruiting classes five years after the wrestlers enrolled in college. Wrestlers are re-ranked based on the accomplishments racked up during their collegiate tenure. During normal circumstances, this would encompass almost all of the wrestlers in the Class of 2017. But we aren't in a typical stretch of wrestling seasons. Due to the extra year of eligibility after Covid, the bulk of the wrestlers below have at least another year of competition on the books. With another season's worth of accomplishments, there could be some shuffling on this list were it to be revisited a year from now. As far as recruiting classes go, it's hard to top 2017. There are three multiple-time NCAA champions already (and counting…), along with two other champions and four national finalists. Looking back at the original top-ten (from 2017), all ten wrestlers qualified for the NCAA tournament at least once and eight have earned All-American honors. Below are the wrestlers from the Class of 2017 re-ranked after five years in college. Below the top-25 and honorable mentions, you'll find the original rankings of this class, from 2017. 1. Spencer Lee (Iowa/Franklin Regional, PA) - 2017 high school rank: 2nd - 3x NCAA Champion, 2x Big Ten Champion, 2x Hodge Trophy winner 2. Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell/Hilton, NY) - 2017 high school rank: 3rd - 3x NCAA Champion, 3x EIWA Champion 3. Nick Lee (Penn State/Mater Dei, IN) - 2017 high school rank: 9th - 2x NCAA Champion, 5x All-American, 4x NCAA All-American, 2022 Big Ten Champion 4. Daton Fix (Oklahoma State/Sand Springs, OK) - 2017 high school rank: 1st - 3x NCAA Runner-Up, 3x Big 12 Champion, 2x NCAA #1 seed 5. Austin O'Connor (North Carolina/St. Rita, IL) - 2017 high school rank: 12th - 2021 NCAA Champion, 4x All-American, 3x NCAA All-American, 2x ACC Champion 6. Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech/Bound Brook, NJ) - 2017 high school rank: 19th - 2019 NCAA Champion, 2x NCAA Finalist, 2x NCAA All-American, 2x ACC Champion 7. Jacob Warner (Iowa/Washington, IL) - 2017 high school rank: 7th - 2022 NCAA Runner-Up, 4x All-American, 3x NCAA All-American, 3x Big Ten 3rd place 8. Vito Arujau (Cornell/Syosset, NY) - 2017 high school rank: 4th - 2x NCAA All-American, 2022 EIWA Champion, 2022 NCAA #2 seed 9. Austin DeSanto (Iowa via Drexel/Exeter, PA) - 2017 high school rank: 17th - 4x All-American, 3x NCAA All-American, 2x Big Ten Runner-Up 10. Brandon Courtney (Arizona State/Desert Edge, AZ) - 2017 high school rank: 76th - 3x All-American, 2x NCAA All-American, 2021 NCAA Runner-Up, 3x Pac-12 Champion 11. Mike Labriola (Nebraska/Bethlehem Catholic, PA) - 2017 high school rank: 5th - 4x All-American, 3x NCAA All-American 12. Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh/Bethel Park, PA) - 2017 high school rank: 30th - 2x All-American, 2021 NCAA Runner-Up, 2x ACC Champion 13. Michael McGee (Arizona State via Old Dominion/Plainfield East, IL) - 2017 high school rank: 99th - 2x NCAA All-American, 3x conference champion (1x Pac-12/2x MAC) 14. Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State/Ben Smith, NC) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2x NCAA All-American, 3x SoCon Champion 15. Trent Hillger (Wisconsin/Lake Fenton, MI) - 2017 high school rank: 21st - 3x All-American, 2x NCAA All-American 16. Jake Woodley (Oklahoma/North Allegheny, PA) - 2017 high school rank: 18th - 2021 NCAA 6th, 2019 Big 12 3rd 17. Grant Willits (Oregon State/Pueblo County, CO) - 2017 high school rank: 61st - 2022 NCAA 4th Place, 2x Pac-12 Champion 18. Austin Gomez (Wisconsin via Iowa State/Glenbard North, IL) - 2017 high school rank: 11th - 2022 NCAA 4th Place, 2022 Big Ten Champion 19. Yahya Thomas (Northwestern/Mount Carmel, IL) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2021 NCAA 3rd Place, 3x National Qualifier 20. Kaleb Romero (Ohio State/Mechanicsburg, OH) - 2017 high school rank: 16th - 2022 NCAA 6th Place, 3x National Qualifier 21. Hunter Willits (Oregon State/Pueblo County, CO) - 2017 high school rank: 29th - 2022 NCAA 7th Place, 4x Pac-12 Runner-Up 22. Patrick Brucki (Michigan via Princeton/Carl Sandburg, IL) - 2017 high school rank: 35th - 2019 NCAA 4th Place, 2019 EIWA Champion, 2022 Big Ten 3rd Place 23. Dom Demas (Oklahoma/Dublin Coffman, OH) - 2017 high school rank: 43rd - 2x All-American, 2019 NCAA 4th Place, 2x Big 12 Champion 24. Ethan Smith (Ohio State/Sparrows Point, MD) - 2017 high school rank: 33rd -2021 NCAA 5th Place, 2021 Big Ten Runner-Up 25. Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech/Christiansburg, VA) - 2017 high school rank: 50th - 2x All-American, 2021 NCAA 7th Place, 2020 ACC Champion ***Honorable Mentions*** (in alphabetical order) Noah Adams (West Virginia/Independence, WV) - 2017 high school rank; 27th - 3x NCAA Qualifier, #2 seed at 2020 NCAA's, 2020 All-American Brady Berge (Penn State/Kasson-Mantorville, MN) - 2017 high school rank: 6th - 3x NCAA Qualifier, 2021 NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2022 Big Ten 3rd Place Jake Bergeland (Minnesota/Centennial, MN) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2022 NCAA 7th Place, 2022 Big Ten 3rd Place Cameron Caffey (Michigan State/Carbondale, IL) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2020 All-American, 4x National Qualifier, 2021 NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2020 Big Ten Runner-Up Killian Cardinale (West Virginia via Old Dominion/Brentsville, VA) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2021 NCAA 7th Place, 2022 Big 12 Champion, 2022 NCAA #5 seed Marcus Coleman (Iowa State/Ames, IA) - 2017 high school rank: 78th - 2022 NCAA 7th Place, 2022 Big 12 3rd Place Louie DePrez (Binghamton/Hilton, NY) - 2017 high school rank: 8th - 2021 NCAA 8th Place, 3x EIWA Champion Rayvon Foley (Michigan State/Pioneer, MI) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2019 NCAA 7th Place, 2021 Big Ten 3rd Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State/Heritage Hall, OK) - 2017 high school rank: 15th - 2x NCAA qualifier, 2022 NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2x Big 12 Champion Clay Lautt (North Carolina/St. James Academy, KS) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2022 NCAA 8th Place, 2020 ACC Champion Max Murin (Iowa/Central Cambria, PA) - 2017 high school rank: 44th - 4x NCAA Qualifier, 3x NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2022 Big Ten 3rd Place Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State/Marian Catholic, IL) - 2017 high school rank: 46th - 2020 NWCA 2nd Team All-American, 4x NCAA Qualifier, 2021 NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 4x Pac-12 Champion Zach Sherman (North Carolina/Blair Academy, NJ) - 2017 high school rank: 48th - 2021 NCAA 7th Place, 2020 ACC Champion Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois/Mexico, MO) - 2017 high school rank: NR - 2021 NCAA 6th Place, 3x MAC Champion High profile seniors with notable wrestling success outside of NCAA Division I: #45 Nick Boykin (Riverdale, TN) - Junior and U23 World Team member in Greco-Roman #56 Wyatt Wriedt (North Scott, IA/Nebraska/Loras) - 2021 NWCA DIII National Champion #82 Paxton Rosen (Edmond, OK/Campbell/Central Oklahoma) - 2x DII All-American For final review, the top 25 overall wrestlers in the Class of 2017 were as follows: 1. Daton Fix (Sand Springs, OK/Oklahoma State) 2. Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, PA/Iowa) 3. Yianni Diakomihalis (Hilton, NY/Cornell) 4. Vito Arujau (Syosset, NY/Cornell) 5. Mikey Labriola (Bethlehem Catholic, PA/Nebraska) 6. Brady Berge (Kasson-Mantorville, MN/Penn State) 7. Jacob Warner (Washington, IL/Iowa) 8. Louie DePrez (Hilton, NY/Binghamton) 9. Nick Lee (Mater Dei, IN/Penn State) 10. Chase Singletary (Blair Academy, NJ/Ohio State) 11. Austin Gomez (Carol Stream, IL/Wisconsin via Iowa State) 12. Austin O'Connor (St. Rita, IL/North Carolina) 13. Cam Coy (Penn Trafford, PA/Virginia) 14. Quentin Hovis (Poway, CA/Navy) 15. Kaden Gfeller (Heritage Hall, OK/Oklahoma State) 16. Kaleb Romero (Mechanicsburg, OH/Ohio State) 17. Austin Desanto (Exeter, PA/Iowa via Drexel) 18. Jake Woodley (North Allegheny, PA/Oklahoma) 19. Mekhi Lewis (Bound Brook, NJ/Virginia Tech) 20. Jarod Verkleeren (Belle Vernon, PA/Virginia via Penn State) 21. Trent Hillger (Lake Fenton, MI/Wisconsin) 22. Tanner Litterell (Tuttle, OK/Oklahoma) 23. Zack Donathan (Mason, OH/Lincoln College) 24. John Borst (Sherando, VA/Virginia Tech) 25. Jake Allar (St. Michael/Albertville, MN/Minnesota)

Bloomsburg, Pa. -- Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield universities have received NCAA approval to proceed with their plan to retain a full complement of NCAA athletic programs on the campuses that currently host them. Each campus will maintain its full menu sports offerings and remain wholly independent of each other. All athletic programs will continue to use their respective location name, existing logos, colors, mascots, and traditions. "I extend our thanks to our NCAA colleagues and the Membership Committee for its consideration and approval of our plan to maintain the full complement of athletic teams at Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield," said Bashar W. Hanna, president of Bloomsburg University and interim president of Lock Haven and Mansfield universities. "Through our collaboration, we've ensured that our student-athletes have the opportunity to compete as they do today. Intercollegiate athletics hold a special place as part of the fabric of each of our campus communities and institutional brands. Together we can confidently move forward into the 2022-23 academic year and beyond - to cheer on the Huskies, Bald Eagles, and Mounties." "The NCAA's decision is another major decision toward building these powerhouse institutions and is great news for our universities, our system, Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, and above all, our student-athletes," said Dr. Daniel Greenstein, chancellor of Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education. "I congratulate President Bashar Hanna, students, faculty, staff, and trustees at Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield for this accomplishment. The excitement of intercollegiate athletics will continue for players and fans when the integrated university begins enrolling students in August." "Today is a great day for the Bloomsburg Huskies athletic department after the months-long integration discussions to announce that we are remaining intact as planned from the start," said Michael McFarland, director of athletics at Bloomsburg. "To our current student-athletes, future Huskies, coaches, and alumni, we are excited about retaining our brand while still offering a solid athletic program with expanded academic opportunities for recruits. It is a great day to be a Husky." Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield are charter members of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) and compete primarily at the NCAA Division II level. Bloomsburg sponsors 23 varsity athletic programs including an NCAA Division I men's wrestling program that competes in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). Lock Haven sponsors 21 varsity athletic programs including Division I men's wrestling and field hockey. The men's wrestling program is an affiliate member of the MAC and the field hockey team competes in the Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10). Mansfield sponsors 13 varsity athletic programs including sprint football, which is a member of the Collegiate Sprint Football League (CSFL). The integration of Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield universities is a bold investment in the communities and people of Pennsylvania with the mission to expand high-quality, affordable academic opportunities to support the needs of all learners. First proposed in September 2020, the integration plan received initial approval by the institutional accrediting agency, Middle States Commission on Higher Education in March 2022. The three institutions will officially unite as Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania on July 1, 2022, though each will retain their respective location name - Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield - maintaining existing logos, colors, mascots, and traditions. Existing foundations and alumni associations will remain separate and continue to support their respective campuses. Donors can continue to designate funds to support programs or a campus of their choosing.

New Edinboro Fighting Scot Luke Kemerer (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) It's always been a staple of the collegiate offseason, but with the advent of the transfer portal, keeping track of wrestlers who have found new homes can be difficult to do. Over the spring, summer, and most likely, into the fall, we'll keep a running list of who's going where on the transfer front. As team's finalize their Class of 2022's in the coming weeks, expect to see more updates. For now, here's what we've heard on the DI transfer front.

Nick Lee at the Olympic Trials (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Considering the style is not really contested on the senior level, an NCAA Division I title is probably the richest prize in all of folkstyle wrestling. While it is a huge accomplishment in its own right, finishing first at the NCAA tournament also qualifies a competitor for the subsequent World Team Trials. There are some solid arguments against the NCAA tournament being a qualifier. For example, it is an entirely different style. Many of the country's top young stars are competing extensively in freestyle already, so in many cases, NCAA champions have already qualified. However, the majority of wrestling fans seem to enjoy seeing the top college stars on the freestyle, and occasionally Greco, scene, so the qualification spot is not likely to disappear. In that spirit, let's take a look back at the performances of NCAA champions in the World/Olympic trials immediately following the last five college tournaments. 2021 Six of the 10 champions from the 2021 NCAA tournament chose to enter the Olympic Trials. At heavyweight, Gable Steveson defeated Tanner Hall and Greg Kerkvliet to make the finals. He then bested Nick Gwiazdowski in the best-of-three series to win a spot on the team. From there, Steveson went on an incredible run in Tokyo and captured Olympic gold. Nick Lee placed third at 65 kg with his only loss coming against eventual tournament champion Jordan Oliver. The then-junior picked up three-straight victories over fellow NCAA champions, Nahshon Garrett, Zain Retherford and Yianni Diakomihalis, on the backside to finish in third. David Carr, Aaron Brooks, Carter Starocci and AJ Ferrari all failed to place. Brooks did pick up a pair of impressive victories over veterans Nate Jackson and Sammy Brooks, but he was ultimately eliminated on the backside by Pat Downey. Spencer Lee, Roman Bravo-Young, Austin O'Connor and Shane Griffith were the four champions who chose not to participate in the Olympic Trials. 2019 Yianni Diakomihalis not only qualified for the World Team Trials in 2019 via the NCAA tournament, but he also then earned the opportunity to sit in Final X thanks to a gold medal performance at the U.S. Open. He ran through Retherford, Oliver and Frank Molinaro on the way to that tournament title and then followed that up with a victory over Bajrang Punia at Beat the Streets. Despite that momentum, Diakomihalis came up short against Retherford in the best-of-three series at Final X. After a controversial finish in the second match, a special wrestle-off was ordered for June. Retherford won, once again, and took the sport on the World team at 65 kg. Bo Nickal also won the U.S. Open in 2019 at 92 kg. Since J'den Cox was already sitting in the Final X finals, Nickal's victory only earned him a spot in the challenge tournament finals. The then-Penn State wrestler defeated fellow former NCAA champion Michael Macchiavello to advance to Final X. There Nickal ran into Cox and dropped a pair of matches. Zahid Valencia (79 kg), Jason Nolf (74 kg) and Anthony Ashnault (70 kg) all made the finals of the World Team Trials Challenge Tournament. However, all three ran into veteran competitors and their progress toward the World team was stopped there. Drew Foster also entered the Trials in 2019 and failed to place. Lee, Nick Suriano, Mekhi Lewis and Anthony Cassar did not compete in the Trials process in 2019 despite earning a spot via the NCAA tournament. 2018 Back in 2018 only three NCAA champions took part in the World Team Trials process. The highlight, of course, was Kyle Snyder at 97 kg. Prior to the start of his senior year at Ohio State, Snyder won his third World/Olympic title at the 2017 World Championships. This allowed him to sit in the finals of Final X with or without an NCAA title. He won his third-straight NCAA title and then beat rival Kyven Gadson in back-to-back matches to make yet another World team. Valencia walked off the college mats and promptly won the challenge tournament at 79 kg. He defeated former Maryland All-American Josh Asper and then won two-straight matches over former Hodge Trophy winner Alex Dieringer to make Final X. He then faced off against Kyle Dake in a three-match series to determine the World team representative. Dake won the series in two-straight matches, but Valencia did manage to keep it close in the second bout and lost by only one point. Seth Gross entered the 61 kg Challenge Tournament. He won his first match over Darrius Little. In true Gross fashion, it was a high-scoring shootout, and he walked away with a 12-11 victory. However, Gross dropped his next match against Garrett and was ultimately eliminated by Jon Morrison in the consolation bracket. 2017 The year was a particularly strong year for collegiate champions at the World Team Trials. While six of the NCAA champions entered the Trials, three eventually made the team and two brought home medals. Fresh off his second NCAA title, Snyder advanced straight to the finals thanks to his 2016 Olympic gold medal. There he faced off against Gadson, and he dominated the series. Not only did the Ohio State wrestler sweep the two-match series, but he also outscored Gadson 13-2. Snyder would go on to win another gold at the 2017 World Championships. In the finals, he handed Abdulrashid Sadualev one of only two losses in his 146-match senior career. Cox also found himself sitting in the Trials finals after securing a bronze medal at the previous Olympics. David Taylor worked his way through the bracket and set up one of the best Senior-level rivalries in the sport. Taylor won the first bout of the three-match series via a 9-3 score, but Cox was able to control the last two bouts with his defense and earned the spot on the team with 4-3 and 5-3 victories respectively. Cox would go on to win another bronze medal at the 2017 World tournament. Retherford was the third NCAA champion to make the 2017 World team. After winning his second of three college titles, he defeated Jaydin Eierman, Nick Dardanes and Bernard Futrell to make the finals. Waiting for him in the finals was 2016 Olympian Frank Molinaro. In the all-Penn State best-of-three series, Molinaro won the first match, but Retherford stormed back with a 6-0 shutout and a 7-4 victory in the rubber match. Darian Cruz and Dean Heil both entered the 2017 Trials but failed to place at the event. 2016 After winning a surprise gold medal at the 2015 World Championships, Snyder made a late return to college in 2016. He made his season debut on Jan. 17 and wrestled only three matches before the Big Ten tournament. Snyder went on to win his first NCAA title over Nick Gwiazdowski. He then became one of the seven NCAA champions to enter the 2016 Olympic Trials. Snyder advanced straight to the finals where he bested Jake Varner in a three-match series. Varner won the first match via criteria as the final score was 4-4. However, Snyder then won two-straight matches to make the team. He would go on to become the youngest Olympic gold medalist in American wrestling history. Cox won his second NCAA title in 2016 and the cut down to 86 kg for the Olympic Trials. He defeated Clayton Foster, Jake Herbert, and Keith Gavin to make the finals. There he faced off against Dake who had bulked up to avoid Jordan Burroughs at 74 kg. Cox set the tone in the first match with an 8-1 victory. Dake evened things with a 5-3 victory in the second match. Ultimately, Cox would reverse that result in the deciding match as he completed a 5-3 decision and qualified for his first Senior-level team. The Missouri wrestler would then go on to win the Olympic Qualification Tournament to qualify the weight for Brazil. Cox then brought home a bronze medal with victories over veterans Alireza Karimi of Iran and Refineries Salas of Cuba. Retherford and Dieringer both finished third at the Trials at 65 kg and 74 kg respectively. Heil, Garrett, and Nico Megaludis would also enter the event, but failed to place.

SIUE head coach Jeremy Spates (center) with Daryl Thomas (right) (photo courtesy of SIUE athletics) It may have flown under the radar as the hire was officially announced during the opening week of the 2021-22 collegiate wrestling season, but SIU Edwardsville bringing Edwardsville native Daryl Thomas home and to the Cougar coaching staff could prove to be a stroke of genius for head coach Jeremy Spates. Thomas and the members of the SIUE coaching staff have hit the recruiting trail hard and are getting some excellent verbal commitments. Thomas joined the SIUE staff after spending the previous two seasons at Campbell. Before that, Thomas assisted at Old Dominion, which is where he really developed a reputation for being a top-flight recruiter. Last week, SIU Edwardsville received its second verbal from a top-100 prospect from the Class of 2023. It was their third out of the top-150. For comparison's sake, the Cougars only signed three Big Board'ers from 2018 to 2021. The team may have taken some lumps on the mat in 2021-22, going 1-14 and not having any national qualifiers this season, but that hasn't mattered on the recruiting front, as the Cougar staff has been able to sell their program to talented high school juniors and seniors. The latest commit for SIUE is Braxton Strick (Ozark, MO), who is currently ranked #79 overall in the Class of 2023. Strick is a three-time Missouri Class 4 state placewinner. Each year, he has improved by a step on the state podium, topping out as a state champion in 2022. Last summer, Strick was eighth in Fargo's 16U Greco-Roman national tournament. Strick joins #86 Santino Robinson (Mascoutah, IL) and #137 Brock Woodcock (St. Clair, MO) as rising seniors that have already pledged to SIUE. Robinson is an Illinois state runner-up, while Woodcock is a two-time Missouri state champion that was recently third at NHSCA Junior Nationals. Just because SIUE has all the makings of an excellent Class of 2023, don't think that the Cougar staff will have to wait another year to reap the rewards of a remarkable recruiting class. Frankly, the 2022 class is going to be solid itself. Two of the top 250 seniors have inked with SIUE, #189 Daniel Guanajuato (Valiant Prep, AZ) and #234 Bradley Gillum (Dekalb, IL). Guanajuato was third at both UWW Cadets in freestyle, along with Fargo's Juniors. His Fargo placement came at 106 lbs, while he was 48 kg for UWW's. If Guanajuato can grow into a full-sized college 125, he'll be a steal for the SIUE staff. Gillium was a double AA in Fargo at the 16U level in 2019, including a title in Greco, and was seventh in Junior Greco last summer. Gillum was a two-time Illinois state runner-up and a champion at the open state tournament in 2021. Though not on the Senior Big Board, Marcel Lopez (New London, IA) joined the elite fraternity of four-time Iowa state champions (30) this February. Lopez competes at Iowa's smallest classification and may get overlooked nationally. In addition to the quality of the Cougars recruits, the staff is also marking their recruiting territory. Gillum and Robinson are top-flight in-state recruits. SIUE has made recruiting Missouri a priority as Strick and Woodcock hail from the neighboring state. Another '22 recruit, Andrew Doehring, is from Missouri. The Cougar staff has also secured commitments from Indiana and Ohio, two other midwest states that typically have plenty of DI talent. Along with the in-state and regional recruiting, SIUE has ventured to the west coast to get Guanajuato and Alec Peralta (Temecula Valley, CA). Daniel Guanajuato will join his older brother, Davian, who went 6-5 wrestling unattached as a true freshman in 2021-22. As the recruiting battles end and high-quality talent enrolls at SIU Edwardsville, another fight begins. That's the task of developing green true freshmen into productive DI wrestlers. But, I imagine that Spates' staff embraces that phase as getting the wrestlers on-campus can be the difficult part for many non-Power Five wrestling programs.

Kael Lauridsen at the 2021 UWW Cadet WTT's (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The Nebraska staff got great news this morning as one of the top juniors, in-state, #36 Kael Lauridsen (Bennington, NE) announced his commitment to the Big Red over social media. Lauridsen is a three-time Nebraska state champion, winning at 106 lbs as a freshman and 113 in each of the past two seasons. The future Husker finished his junior year ranked #2 in the nation at 113 lbs. Lauridsen has plenty of credentials outside of his home state, as well. Before this high school season, he was seventh at the Super 32, while competing at 120 lbs. That was where he entered Fargo, as well. Lauridsen left the FargoDome with some hardware, winning a 16U Greco title and finishing fourth in freestyle. A couple months prior, he was a runner-up to Spencer Moore at the Cadet World Team Trials. Not only does Lauridsen have national-level accolades, but he also has made an impact outside of the United States. In 2018, Lauridsen was a Pan-American U15 champion in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. A year later, he was a bronze medalist at the U15 World School Combat Games. Last year, Lauridsen doubled up again at the Pan-American Championships, this time in the Cadet age group. Lauridsen is the third junior to verbal to Nebraska, joining #40 Alan Koehler (Prior Lake, MN) and #156 Griffin Ray (Hillsboro, MO). With a large frame, Lauridsen could even see action as high as 141 lbs once he matriculates to Lincoln. That should serve Nebraska well as the Huskers don't appear to have a clear-cut, young, long-term solution at that weight class in the pipeline. For more recruiting news, check out our college commitment page .

(L to R: Hayley Snyder [Jay Bennett/The Marietta Times]; Josie Davis [Josh Brown/AIM Media Midwest]; Alaina Jackson [John Hulkenberg]) The last time we tapped into the #SanctionOH movement, back in mid-December, Kimberly Root was beating the “Sanction!” drum from way out in California. A month later, the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) made waves in the wrestling community when they became the 33rd state in the Union to sanction girls wrestling at the high school level, approving a girls, stand-alone state tournament for the 2022-2023 season. The decision to sanction girls wrestling in the great wrestling state of Ohio only adds to the national chorus calling for the advancement and promotion of girls and women's wrestling from the youth through the NCAA Division 1 level. The decision by the OHSAA also adds a dramatic layer to the coming season for a few particular competitors. While bureaucrats debated, high school girls in Ohio have been competing for their individual state titles – “unofficial” or otherwise – since 2020, under the authority of the Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association (OHSWCA). With official, OHSAA-sanctioned state titles on the line in 2023, three girls will have the opportunity to secure for themselves an unprecedented fourth Ohio state title. And just as previous states experienced as they mulled over the decision to adopt girls wrestling, the competition in Ohio has only grown fiercer in the lead up to achieving official sanctioning. Hayley Snyder (Warren High School), Josie Davis (Sidney High School), and Alaina Jackson (Minerva High School) have each won three consecutive OHSWCA state titles – with a year remaining in their high school careers. A mix of achievement and serendipity has placed them each in a position to make history in the very first year of the OHSAA state tournament era. And if history is any indicator, all three have a very strong chance of becoming the first “four-timer” in the Ohio girls high school wrestling record books. Hayley Snyder of Warren has dominated the lightweight class, winning the 2020 and 2021 state titles at 101lbs, before winning the 110lbs OHSWCA state title this year. She has enjoyed consistent success at the state tournament, recording seven falls in eleven total matches between 2020 and 2022. Snyder's closest match was in the 2021 state final, a 3-0 shutout. A potential threat to Snyder's bid for a fourth state title is Chloe Dearwester of Harrison High School. Dearwester, a two-time OHSWCA state champion in her own right (106lbs in 2021; 105lbs in 2022), enters the 2022-2023 season as a junior and is on track to be a four-timer herself. It would not be the first time a state champion moved weight classes in an attempt to “block” another champion from earning four. Snyder will need to be prepared to defeat an opponent of her own caliber, or at least the caliber of Dearwester (whichever is higher), when she takes the mat at the OHSAA state tournament if she intends to be the first four-timer. Another hammer chasing history is Josie Davis of Sidney High. Davis has won state titles at 126lbs, 121lbs, and 125lbs – in that order – in the past three years, and has little intention of stopping. Davis has pinned all of her opponents at the state tournament so far, earning ten falls in eleven matches. Her only non-fall victory came in the 2021 finals, a 9-2 decision over Rachel Nusky of Badin High for Davis's second title. Davis separated that result this year, pinning Nusky in 56 seconds for her third title. Nusky, the Badin senior-to-be and twice a state runner-up, will need to make a big jump to threaten Davis's aim of a fourth state title. To say Minerva heavyweight Alaina Jackson has “dominated” the field would be almost disingenuous. Jackson has pinned every opponent at the state tournament en route to three state championships at 235lbs, and it doesn't look like there will be much in her way of a fourth. Jackson defeated Karlie Harlow of Greeneview High in the state finals the past two seasons, earning first and second period falls, respectively. Harlow, a three-time Ohio state placer, returns as a senior next season and will aim to close the gap against Jackson. Another potential threat to Jackson's pursuit of a fourth state title is Savannah Isaac of Whitmer High, a two-time state champion that has locked down the 189lbs/190lbs division the last two years. Entering 2022-2023 as a junior, Isaac may be in the middle of her competitive upswing, which could put her on a collision course with Alaina Jackson for the inaugural OHSAA heavyweight title. As of USAWrestling's February 11th national rankings, Snyder is ranked No. 24 at 112lbs; Davis, No. 14 at 127lbs; and Jackson, No. 10 at 225lbs. Keep an eye on these Ohioans, on the mat and in the national rankings, as they chase a membership into the exclusive “four-timers'' state champions club over the next year. With the official stamp of the OHSAA on the medals, a fourth state title may taste that much sweeter when the final whistle blows.

Max Nowry (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) We're about a week and a half out from the US Open which takes place from the South Point Casino, along with a handful of other age-level events. Today we'll look at the entries for the Senior Greco-Roman portion of the tournament. We've already posted the men's and women'sfreestyle entries Entries as of 4:00pm (est) 4/18/2022 Men's Greco-Roman 55 kg Jacob Cochran (NMU) Dalton Duffield (Army WCAP) Stephen Emrich (MN) Brady Koontz (TMWC) Max Nowry (TMWC) Dominic Robertson (All Navy Wrestling) Camden Russell (MWC Wrestling Academy) Cole Smith (TMWC) Drew West (IL) 60 kg Max Black (Black Fox Wrestling Academy) Mitchell Brown (Air Force RTC) Kegan Calkins (IL) Jonathan Gurule (NMU) Ildar Hafizov (Army WCAP) Dylan Koontz (TMWC) Nick Masters (Princeton WC) Hunter Pfantz (Mustang WC) Dalton Roberts (Army WCAP) Kenny Sanders (WA) Alex Thomsen (Nebraska RTC) Taylor Ticknor (Stars WC) Jeffrey Warra (FL) 63 kg Joey Cape (Central Coast RTC) Colton Davis (All Navy Wrestling) Dwayne Guerrero (West Coast Greco RTC) Corbin Nirschl (MWC Wrestling Academy) Aidan Nutter (NYAC) Diego Romero (FL) Farrokh Safaeinejad (FL) King Sandoval (Bandits WC) Jesse Thielke (Army WCAP) 67 kg Paul Bagnoli (NE) Joe Betterman (Betterman Elite) Charlie Dill (Curby 3-Style WC) Brenton Dotter (Rhinelander WC) Sheldon Ealy (All Navy Wrestling) Justin Feldman (Betterman Elite) Morgan Flaherty (NYAC) Kaden Hine (Colorado Mesa WC) Jamel Johnson (US Marines) Tylik Mawyer (All Navy Wrestling) Lenny Merkin (Princeton WC) Nathan Moore (Northern Colorado WC) Jakob Murillo (Brunson UVRTC) Timothy Nevarez (Yuba Sutter Combat) Alston Nutter (Sunkist Kids WC) Peyton Omania (MI) Robert Perez III (Sunkist Kids WC) Jason Reiser (Waialua WC) Dante Rodriguez (NE) Alejandro Sancho (Army WCAP) Logan Savvy (NYAC) Max Schierl (WI) 72 kg Robert Adams (AJ WC) Dominic Damon (NMU) Logan Hatch (G-R Development) Michael Hooker (Army WCAP) Sean Howk (Mustang WC) Tallin Johnson (Mustang WC) Brody Olson (NMU) Benji Peak (Sunkist Kids) Orlando Ponce (Minnesota Storm) Tyler Soltau (Mustang WC) Santonio Thompson Jr. (NC) Noah Wachsmuth (Cobra All-Stars) Bobby Yamashita (All Navy Wrestling) 77 kg Kamal Bey (Army WCAP) Bryon Brand (MI) Tytus Coombs (CSU Pueblo RTC) Geoffrey Curtis (SoCo WC) Nektoe Demison (All Navy Wrestling) Jack Ervien (Viking WC) Britton Holmes (Army WCAP) Payton Jacobsson (Sunkist Kids WC) Justin McCunn (Viking WC) George Minasyan (CA) Khalid Morales (All Navy Wrestling) Terrance Parks (NY) Tony Raupp (Mustang WC) Glenn Rhees (Viking WC) Fritz Schierl (TMWC) Matthew Shirk (PA) Luke Silva (IL) Antonio Washington Jr. (Bluff City WC) 82 kg Khalil Abdush Shakur (Morris Fitness WC) Tyler Cunningham (MWC Wrestling Academy) Aaron Dobbs (NMU) Anthony Edson (All Navy Wrestling) Ryan Epps (Minnesota Storm) Javier Gomez (Montwood HS) Josiah Green (OR) Jake Hendricks (Pennsylvania RTC) Richard Hicks (CA) Jordan Lara (505 WC) Ben Lee (IA) Carter Marx (Mustang WC) Jamal Morris (Cardinal Gibbons HS) Spencer Woods (Army WCAP) 87 kg Kevin Bostwick (Mustang WC) Austin Craig (All Navy Wrestling) Christian DuLaney (Minnesota Storm) Jovan Mercado (MI) George Sikes (NYAC) Caden Steffan (Mustang WC) Alan Vera (NYAC) Timothy Young (IL) 97 kg Kash Anderson (Colorado Mesa WC) Dylan Buschow (Mustang WC) Justyn Cox (All Navy Wrestling) Kyle DeBerry (AZ) Ryan French (TX) Ben Gould (CSU Pueblo RTC) Joshua Guerrero (All Navy Wrestling) Erik Hinckley (KS) Khymba Johnson (NYAC) Hadyn Maley (Roseburg Mat Club) Guy Patron (Dubuque WC) Chad Porter (Sunkist Kids WC) 130 kg Ryan Bascue (Spartan Mat Club) West Cathcart (NYAC) Tyler Curd (Kobra Kai) Keaton Fanning (NMU) Tom Foote (NYAC) Courtney Freeman (US Marines) Sage Hecox (Hecox Team Benaiah) Tate Orndorff (TMWC) Kaleb Reeves (Eastern Iowa WC) Cohlton Schultz (Sunkist Kids) Warren Smith (Rise RTC)

2021 World Bronze medalist Kayla Miracle (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) We're about a week and a half out from the US Open which takes place from the South Point Casino, along with a handful of other age-level events. Today we'll look at the entries for the Senior women's freestyle portion of the tournament, followed by Greco-Roman. We've already posted the men's freestyle entries. Entries as of 2:00pm (est) 4/18/2022 Women's Freestyle 50 kg Mariah Anderson (Air Force RTC) Victoria Anthony (Sunkist Kids WC) Charlotte Fowler (River Valley WC) Erin Golston (NYAC) Greta Gustafson (Santa Cruz County Wrestlers Union) Alyssa Lampe (Sunkist Kids WC) Alleida Martinez (TMWC) Sage Mortimer (TMWC) Nina Pham (Texas WC) Arelys Valles (Grand View WC) 53 kg Paige Denke (SD) Estrella Dorado Marin (Army WCAP) Haley Franich (Air Force RTC) Ronna Heaton (Sunkist Kids WC) Tiare Ikei (TMWC) JoNiesha Kennedy (Texas WC) Victoria Smith (CA) Areana Villaescusa (Army WCAP) 55 kg Marissa Gallegos (Colorado Mesa WC) Alisha Howk (Sunkist Kids WC) Lauren Mason (Brunson UVRTC) Nichole Moore (KS) Cara Romeike (Bronco Women's WC) Samantha Shepherd (MI) Rachel Silverman (Silverback WC) Jacarra Winchester (TMWC) 57 kg Claire DiCugno (Colorado Mesa WC) Adriana Dorado Marin (Army WCAP) Cameron Guerin (TMWC) Alex Hedrick (TMWC) Charlotte Kouyoumtjian (Twin Cities RTC) Amanda Martinez (Cardinal WC) Alisha Narvaez (McKendree Bearcat WC) Tateum Park (Twin Cities RTC) Genesis Ramirez (All-Navy Wrestling) Ngao Shoua Whitethorn (Victory School of Wrestling) 59 kg Hailey Corona (UT) Aspen DeHerrera (Texas WC) Bridgette Duty (Army WCAP) Nanea Estrella (HI) Autumn Flanigan (Twin Cities RTC) Madyson Gray (Lawrence Elite WC) Nonnie Justice (MO) Esther Han (Bruin WC) Xochitl Mota-Pettis (Rise RTC) Isabell Nunez (Ascend Wrestling Academy) Brenda Reyna (Army WCAP) 62 kg Sierra Brown Ton (Twin Cities RTC) Cierra Foster (Team Idaho WC) Jolynn Harris (Colorado Mesa WC) Alex Liles (Army WCAP) Janae Liljenquist (UT) Morgan Mackey (Legends of Gold LV) Nina Makem (Twin Cities RTC) Kayla Miracle (Sunkist Kids WC) Adaugo Nwachukwu (Swamp Monsters WC) Andrea Schlabach (Grand View WC) Mya Velasquez (Twin Cities RTC) 65 kg Anayka Besco (KS) Emma Bruntil (TMWC) Kairiah Cantillo (CA) Dalia Garibay (Colorado Mesa WC) Alexis Gomez (Grand View WC) Amanda Hendey (TMWC) Andrea Jones (Grays Harbor WC) Katerina Lange (Twin Cities RTC) Olivia Pizano (OR) CarrieAnn Randolph (TN) Erica Schroeder (CA) Mallory Velte (TMWC) Rachel Watters (IA) 68 kg Nahiela Magee (Army WCAP) Solin Piearcy (Menlo WC) 72 kg Marlynne Deede (Twin Cities RTC) Amit Elor (TMWC) Marilyn Garcia (CA) Skylar Grote (NYAC) Michelle Montague (FL) Aury Naylor (GA) 76 kg Precious Bell (TMWC) Victoria Francis (TMWC) Dymond Guilford (TMWC) Melissa Jacobs (Twin Cities RTC) Tristan Kelly (Army WCAP) Ashley Lekas (Texas Pride WC) Yelena Makoyed (Cardinal WC) Jordan Nelson (IA) Tiaira Scott (KY)

The Cliff Keen Wrestling Club's Alex Dieringer (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) We're about a week and a half out from the US Open which takes place from the South Point Casino, along with a handful of other age-level events. Today we'll look at the entries for the Senior men's freestyle portion of the tournament, followed by women's freestyle and Greco-Roman. Entries as of noon (est) 4/18/2022 Men's Freestyle 57 kg Cian Apple (Colorado Mesa WC) Jakob Camacho (Wolfpack WC) Dawson Collins (Colorado Mesa WC) Noah Cortez (WA) Greg Diakomihalis (Spartan Combat RTC) Juan Diaz (CA) Foster Griffin (TX) Bryson Hamada (Hawaii Wrestling Academy) Dalton Henderson (VA) Sam Latona (Southeast RTC) Anthony Molton (Buies Creek WC) Hunter Pfantz (Mustang WC) Saoul Prado (Aniciete Training Club) Joey Prata (Oklahoma RTC) Matt Ramos (Boilermaker RTC) Aden Reeves (Viking WC) Timothy Romero (Colorado Mesa WC) Caleb Smith (Boone RTC) Derek Wilson (NV) 61 kg Paul Bianchi (Arkansas RTC) Mitchell Brown (Air Force RTC) Julian Chlebove (Sunkist Kids WC) Colton Davis (All-Navy) Daniel DeShazer (Gopher WC) Luciano Fasulo (La Grande Mat Club) Sean Fausz (TMWC) Justin Folley (NV) Ernesto Garcia (NV) Tyler Graff (TMWC) Seth Gross (Sunkist Kids WC) Peter Hammer (TX) Wyatt Henson (Sunkist Kids WC) Josh Jones (Patriot Elite WC) Josh Kramer (Sunkist Kids WC) Timothy Levine (NE RTC) Shelton Mack (TMWC) Nick Masters (Princeton WC) Nico Megaludis (TMWC) Jesse Mendez (Region Wrestling Academy) Thomas Miracle (ID) Dustin Norris (Boilermaker RTC) Ethan Rotondo (Sunkist Kids WC) Justin Sampson (Mustang WC) Gabe Tagg (Jackrabbit WC) Gabe Townsell (California RTC) Jason Valencia (CA) Taylor Vasquez (Mustang WC) Gabe Vidlak (Oklahoma RTC) Brandon Wright (IN) 65 kg Austin Almaguer (WA) Paul Bagnoli (NV) Justin Benjamin (Izzy Style Wrestling) Xavear Cullors (Air Force RTC) Ben Freeman (Bulls WC) Shannon Hanna (Buies Creek WC) Dean Heil (TMWC) Evan Henderson (TMWC) Matt Kolodzik (New Jersey RTC) Pat Lugo (Hawkeye WC) Colton McCrystal (Stalemates) Kendric Maple (Sunkist Kids) Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh WC) Matthew Minton (Yuba Sutter Combat) Jeremy Monk (MN) Jordan Monroe (Spatola Wrestling) Isaiah Mora (CA) Tristan Moran (WI) Timothy Nevarez (Yuba Sutter Combat) Ian Parker (IA) Luke Pletcher (Pittsburgh WC) We Rachal (Illinois RTC) Joshua Reyes (OR) Federico Robles (AZ) Matthew Ryan (Bulls WC) Joshua Saunders (TMWC) Kyle Shoop (Bulls WC) Kyle Smith (UT) Ty Smith (Brunson UVRTC) Kanen Storr (TMWC) Julian Tagg (OH) Yahya Thomas (Wildcat WC) Brock Zacherl (Clarion RTC) Zack Zeamer (Oklahoma RTC) 70 kg Bryce Andonian (Southeast RTC) Anthony Ashnault (NYAC) Tyler Berger (California RTC) Caleb Blasius (CA) Michael Blockhus (Gopher WC) Gabe Blough (KS) Tyrae Carter (Rise RTC) Seonghun Chung (OR) John Diener (Mustang WC) Dallas Evans (FL) Ryan Fillingame (CA) Austin Gomez (Wisconsin RTC) Riley Gurr (Beaver Dam RTC) AC Headlee (Sunkist Kids) Sean Howk (Mustang WC) Jake Keating (Cavalier WC) Jason Kraisser (MD) Will Lewan (Cliff Keen WC) Brock Mauller (Sunkist Kids) Alec McDoulett (OK) Christian Monserrat (NYAC) Brent Moore (Clarion RTC) Dayne Morton (Wolves WC) Jordan Oliver (Sunkist Kids) Alec Pantaleo (TMWC) Elroy Perkin (WI) Ariel Rodriguez (Colorado Mesa WC) Graham Rooks (Indiana RTC) Sammy Sasso (TMWC) Ed Scott (Wolfpack WC) Noah Styskal (NE) Tyler Soltau (Mustang WC) Jacori Teemer (Sunkist Kids) Jarod Verkleeren (Cavalier WC) Jonathan Viveros (CA) Luka Wick (TMWC) Evan Yant (Panther WC) Grant Zamin (Cardinal WC) Doug Zapf (Pennsylvania RTC) 74 kg Robert Adams (AJ WC) Noor Almusahwi (CA) Cam Amine (Cliff Keen WC) Anthony Asatrian (NJ) Kolbi Caffey (Carbondale WC) Andrew Cerniglia (PA) Isaiah Crosby (Beaver Dam RTC) Evan Delong (Clarion RTC) Nektoe Demison (All Navy Wrestling) Tommy Gantt (Wolfpack WC) Shane Gantz (Higher Level Wrestling) Tallin Johnson (Mustang WC) Joey Lavallee (TMWC) Joey Mora (CA) Khalid Morales (All Navy Wrestling) Peter Pappas (Patriot Elite WC) Quentin Perez (California RTC) Collin Purinton (Sunkist Kids WC) Loranzo Rajaonarivelo (Patriot Elite WC) Hunter Shaut (Bulls WC) Josh Shields (Sunkist Kids WC) Tyler Shilson (Twin Cities RTC) Jon Van Brill (Seagull WC) Jacob Wright (Wyoming RTC) 79 kg Jordan Baughman (NE) Tytus Coombs (CSU Pueblo RTC) Alex Dieringer (TMWC) Parker Drake (Alpha Pack Wrestling) Seth Gleave (IN) Josiah Green (OR) Hayden Hastings (Wyoming RTC) Nick Incontrera (Pennsylvania RTC) Vincenzo Joseph (California RTC) Jared Krattiger (Gopher WC) Taylor Lujan (Panther WC) Chance Marsteller (TMWC) Isaiah Martinez (TMWC) David McFadden (TMWC) Jamal Morris (Fort Lauderdale WC) Val Park (OK) Jacen Petersen (Mountain Man Wrestling Academy) Dustin Plott (Cowboy RTC) Casey Randles (Viking WC) Dylan Ranieri (Colorado Mesa WC) Tony Raupp (Mustang WC) Mason Reiniche (Beaver Dam RTC) Devin Skatzka (Spartan Combat RTC) Hudson Stewart (Cavalier WC) Kyle Terry (KY) Brian Topp (FL) Antonio Washington Jr. (Bluff City WC) Isaiah White (Sunkist Kids WC) Evan Wick (TMWC) Sam Wolf (Air Force RTC) 86 kg Kevin Bostwick (Mustang WC) Julien Broderson (IA) Jason Bynarowicz (Colorado Mesa WC) Marcus Coleman (IA) Kohl Drake (Alpha Pack Wrestling) Nathan Dugan (Princeton WC) Max Hale (Pennsylvania RTC) Mark Hall (TMWC) Trent Hidlay (Wolfpack WC) Caleb Hopkins (Buies Creek WC) Nate Jackson (NYAC) Hunter Johns (OH) Kendrick Jones (Viking WC) Gavin Kane (Tar Heel WC) Ryan Law (OK) Carter Marx (Mustang WC) Andrew Morgan (Spartan Combat RTC) Nick Reenan (Wolfpack WC) Caden Steffan (Mustang WC) John Stout (Pennsylvania RTC) Owen Webster (Gopher WC) David Willoughby (Texas WC) Timothy Young (IL) 92 kg Kash Anderson (Colorado Mesa WC) Michael Battista (Cavalier WC) Cam Caffey (Michigan WC) Logan Colbert (CA) Donovan Corn (AZ) Timothy Dudley (Sunkist Kids WC) Levi Hopkins (Buies Creek WC) Jake Koser (Navy-Marine Corps WC) Michael Macchiavello (TMWC) Basil Minto (IA) Zachary Peterson (SMI WC) Max Shaw (Tar Heel WC) Robert Striggow (Cliff Keen WC) Isaac Trumble (Wolfpack WC) 97 kg Jay Aiello (Cavalier WC) Stephen Brady (MO) Davidson Cassagnol (Willpower WC) Ben Gould (Colorado Mesa WC) Evontay Johnson (NY) Darien Kauffman (Stampede WC) Duncan Lee (IA) Samuel Mitchell (Bulls WC) Joe Rau (TMWC) Marco Retano (La Grande Mat Club) Andy Smith (Southeast RTC) Morgan Smith (Ohio RTC) 125 kg Dom Bradley (Sunkist Kids WC) Dominick Cotton (CA) Antonio DaCosta (CA) Lucas Davison (Wildcat WC) Konner Doucet (Cowboy RTC) Lewis Fernandes (Spartan Combat RTC) Brandon Halsey (CA) Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force RTC) Ethan Laird (Broncs WC) Christian Lance (Nebraska RTC) Tate Orndorff (TMWC) Lord Oroke (NV) Borys Peresadko (CA) Sam Schuyler (NY) Demetrius Thoms (Pittsburgh WC) Gary Traub (Beaver Dam RTC) Owen Trephan (Wildcat WC) Ryan Vasbinder (MI) Ty Walz (TMWC) Derek White (TMWC) Nick Williams (North Valley RTC) Jordan Wood (Lehigh Valley WC) Hayden Zillmer (Gopher WC)

Logan Massa at the 2022 NCAA Champions (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) This most recent collegiate season was one that we've never seen before. Because of the “Covid year,” active wrestlers were granted an extra year of eligibility. That resulted in a bunch of sixth and seventh year seniors taking the mat, along with incoming freshmen and other underclassmen. It gave us some of the deepest weight classes we've ever seen. But, did having that many sixth (and beyond) year seniors work to their benefit? In some cases yes, and in others, no. Another year of wear and tear from a DI wrestling room rendered some of these veterans less impactful than expected, while some others had better achievements than any previous season. Here are the wrestlers who made it to Detroit and were in their sixth (or greater) year of competition in college. Their season record is listed first, followed by their NCAA performance and their conference placement. As you'll notice, the results vary greatly from each. 125 lbs #1 Nick Suriano (Michigan) - 16-0; NCAA Champion, Big Ten Champion #9 Devin Schroder (Purdue) - 19-6; 0-2 @ NCAA's, Big Ten 6th #16 Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) - 10-5; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big Ten 10th #19 Joey Prata (Oklahoma) - 19-9; NCAA Bloodround, Big 12 4th #20 Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga) - 21-7; 1-2 @ NCAA's, SoCon Champion #21 Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley) - 12-6; 2-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 5th 133 lbs #4 Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech) - 22-4; NCAA 6th, ACC Champion #11 Devan Turner (Oregon State) - 25-9; NCAA 8th; Pac-12 3rd #12 Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) - 18-8; NCAA Bloodround; ACC Runner-Up #13 Brock Hudkins (Indiana) - 14-6; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big Ten 10th 141 lbs #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) - 19-3; 2-2 @ NCAA's Big Ten Runner-Up #3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) - 30-1; NCAA 3rd; Big Ten 6th #13 Ian Parker (Iowa State) - 13-5; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 5th #14 Dresden Simon (Central Michigan) - 20-7; 2-2 @ NCAA's, MAC At-Large #15 Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina) - 21-4; NCAA Runner-Up, ACC At-Large #19 Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) - 15-8; NCAA Bloodround, Big Ten At-Large #24 Stevan Micic (Michigan) - 13-8; NCAA Bloodround; Big Ten 4th 149 lbs #2 Tariq Wilson (NC State) - 19-2; NCAA 7th; ACC Champion #7 Josh Heil (Campbell) - 12-4; 1-2 @ NCAA's, SoCon Runner-Up #12 Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) - 21-6; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big Ten 6th #14 Josh Finesilver (Duke) - 28-7; 1-2 @ NCAA's, ACC 4th #17 Jarrett Degen (Iowa State) - 18-7; 0-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 4th #27 Cory Crooks (Oregon State) - 17-11; 2-2 @ NCAA's, Pac-12 3rd #29 John Arceri (Buffalo) - 22-12; 0-2 @ NCAA's, MAC 4th 157 lbs #2 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) - 18-0; NCAA Champion, Big Ten Champion #9 Kaleb Young (Iowa) - 19-9; 2-2 @ NCAA's, Big Ten 4th #13 Justin Thomas (Oklahoma) - 21-9; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 4th #20 Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) - 14-10; 1-2 @ NCAA's, ACC 5th #30 Ben Barton (Lock Haven) - 25-9; 0-2 @ NCAA's, MAC Champion #31 Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) - 11-10; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 At-Large 165 lbs #1 Evan Wick (Cal Poly) - 23-1; NCAA 3rd; Pac-12 Champion #3 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) - 26-3; NCAA 5th; Big Ten Champion #10 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) - 19-7; NCAA Bloodround; ACC Champion #16 Luke Weber (North Dakota State) - 22-9; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 4th #18 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) - 18-8; 2-2 @ NCAA's, Pac-12 At-Large #21 Thomas Bullard (NC State) - 20-8; 1-2 @ NCAA's, ACC 3rd 174 lbs #3 Logan Massa (Michigan) 20-4; NCAA 5th; Big Ten Runner-UP #4 Hayden Hidlay (NC State) - 19-3; NCAA 3rd; ACC Runner-Up #5 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) - 14-4; NCAA 4th; Big Ten 6th #13 Matt Finesilver (Duke) - 29-9; 2-2 @ NCAA's, ACC 4th #19 Thomas Flitz (Appalachian State) - 17-8; 1-2 @ NCAA's, SoCon Champ 184 lbs #1 Myles Amine (Michigan) - 21-2; NCAA 2nd; Big Ten Champion #10 Taylor Venz (Nebraska) - 19-10; NCAA Bloodround, Big Ten 5th #16 Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) - 17-8; 2-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 At-Large #27 Keegan Moore (Oklahoma) - 10-6; 2-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 4th #28 Gregg Harvey (Pittsburgh) - 10-12; 0-2 @ NCAA's, ACC 4th #29 Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) - 11-15; 0-2 @ NCAA's, Big Ten 12th #30 Max Lyon (Purdue) - 16-15; NCAA Bloodround, Big Ten At-Large 197 lbs #1 Max Dean (Penn State) - 23-1; NCAA Champion, Big Ten Champion #3 Eric Schultz (Nebraska) - 20-4; NCAA 7th, Big Ten Runner-Up #14 Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) - 26-8; NCAA 8th, Big Ten 7th #17 Jay Aiello (Virginia) - 16-5; NCAA Bloodround, ACC 3rd #25 Jaron Smith (Maryland) - 20-15; 1-2 @ NCAA's, Big Ten At-Large #27 Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) - 14-14; 0-2 @ NCAA's, Big 12 At-Large 285 lbs #7 Jordan Wood ( Lehigh) - 27-3; NCAA 3rd, EIWA Champion #8 Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) - 20-6; 2-2 @ NCAA's, MAC Champion #10 Nathan Traxler (Virginia Tech) - 21-4; 1-2 @ NCAA's, ACC Champion #11 Gary Traub (Oregon State) - 23-7; NCAA Bloodround; Pac-12 Runner-Up #12 Christian Lance (Nebraska) - 19-11; NCAA 8th; Big Ten 7th #28 Michael McAleavey (The Citadel) - 24-12; 0-2 @ NCAA's, SoCon Runner-Up

Aaron Pico at the 2016 Olympic Trials (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) This weekend is packed with MMA events, and as one might expect, there will be plenty of wrestlers in action. The slate features multiple former All-Americans and some international competitors with impressive credentials. Friday - Bellator 277 AJ McKee vs. Patricio Pitbull McKee won the Bellator featherweight title from Pitbull in dramatic fashion last July. The former wrestler will make his first title defense in a rematch. McKee was a standout wrestler and CIF Southern Sectional champion for Long Beach Poly before going on to wrestle for Notre Dame College and Cerritos College. While at Cerritos, he picked up a CCCAA state championship. Pitbull had held the Bellator featherweight title since 2017 before McKee stopped him with a guillotine choke two minutes into their fight at Bellator 263. Corey Anderson vs. Vadim Nemkov Anderson's collegiate wrestling career began at Lincoln College where he was an NJCAA All-American. He then made a stop at Newberry College, before eventually finding a home at Wisconsin-Whitewater. As a senior at the Division III school, he went 46-5 and finished second. Here Anderson will face off against Bellator light heavyweight champion Nemkov in the finals of the promotion's heavyweight tournament. The former wrestler left the UFC in 2020 and has won three-straight bouts over Melvin Manhoef, Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov and Ryan Bader to earn a title shot. Aaron Pico vs. Adli Edwards After three medals at the age-group World Championships, Pico made news by announcing he was forgoing college in exchange for an early start on his MMA career. After making the finals of the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials, he made his professional MMA debut in 2017. Things got off to a bit of a rough start as he went 4-3 in his first seven fights. However, things have settled down recently, and he is riding a five-fight winning streak. His opponent has also had recent success. He holds a 9-1 record and is on a seven-fight winning streak. Edwards last fought earlier this month as he stopped Josh Harvey with a head and arm choke at XMMA 4. Tim Johnson vs. Linton Vassell Johnson has been fighting professionally since 2010. Prior to that, he was a two-time NCAA Division II qualifier for Minnesota Moorhead. Johnson could really use a win here as he is coming off back-to-back losses against Valentin Moldavsky and Fedor Emelianenko. Vassell should be a tough challenge. He moved up to heavyweight in 2019 and has gone 3-1 including a victory over former wrestler Tyrell Fortune in his last fight. Tyrell Fortune vs. Rakim Cleveland Fortune will be looking to get back on track after falling against Vassell by split decision last November. During his collegiate days, Fortune was a two-time NJCAA champion at Clackamas and eventually transferred to Grand Canyon. At the new school, he won an NCAA Division II title. Fortune also excelled in both freestyle and Greco, as he came one match away from picking up a pair of bronze medals at the 2013 World University Games. Fortune made his MMA debut with Bellator in 2016 and holds an 11-2 record. Cleveland has a 22-14-1 record. He made his Bellator debut last November and fell via first-round Kimura against Steve Mowry. Cleveland does hold a signature victory over UFC veteran Houston Alexander. Kyle Crutchmer vs. Michael Lombardo Crutchmer was a two-time All-American for Oklahoma State, who finished his eligibility in 2017. He made his MMA debut the following year and won four fights before signing with Bellator in 2019. Since suffering his first loss in 2020, Crutchmer has bounced back with victories over Levan Chokheli and Oliver Enkamp. Lombardo should be an interesting test for the former Cowboy wrestler. Lombardo has gone 12-2 as a professional, fought twice on Dana White's Contender Series and is coming off a victory over Kyron Bowen under the PFL banner last year. The Bellator 277 main card, which features McKee, Anderson, Pico and Johnson, airs live on Showtime at 10:00pm ET. The preliminary card begins at 7:00pm ET on the promotion's YouTube page. Friday - CFFC 107 Mark Grey vs. Hector Iglesias Grey kicked off his amateur MMA career in 2021. He went 4-0 with all of his victories coming via unanimous decision under the CFFC banner. Per his Instagram, his bout against Iglesias will be his professional debut. On the high school level, Grey was a four-time National Prep champion before Blair Academy, before going to Cornell for college . There he was a three-time NCAA qualifier and finished with an 81-42 record. Iglesias has a 3-2 amateur MMA career with his last fight coming in 2019. Last year, he fought in a pair of amateur kickboxing fights and won both by stoppage. Grey's fight will be part of the preliminary card, which starts at 7:00pm ET on CFFC's YouTube page (https://www.youtube.com/c/CageFuryMMA/featured). Friday - Rizin Trigger 3rd Kazuma Kuramoto vs. Yuto Hokamura Kuramoto had an extensive Greco-Roman wrestling career before making the transition to MMA in 2017. His best finishes were a silver medal at the 2008 World University Championships and another silver at the 2012 Asian Championships. Kuramoto began his MMA career with Shooto and signed with Rizin in 2020. He has gone 2-1 in Japan's biggest promotion to push his professional record to 9-2. His opponent, known mostly as “Kintaro,” holds a 14-11-2 record and has been fighting professionally since 2011. Takeshi Izumi vs. Grant Bogdanove Izumi twice represented Japan at the World Championships in Greco-Roman. Over the course of his career, his signature result was a gold medal at the 2017 Asian Championship. He also added a gold at the 2017 Grand Prix of Spain. In his last wrestling action, he placed fifth at the Japanese national championships in 2019. This will be his MMA debut. Bogdanove made his MMA debut last year and won a pair of fights. In his last contest he scored a submission over professional wrestler Keisuke Okuda in a little over a minute. The Rizin event will air live on internet pay per view at 1:00am ET. Saturday - UFC Vegas 51 Pat Sabatini vs. TJ Laramie Sabatini wrestled for Bristol High School in Pennsylvania before continuing his career at Rider. He made his professional MMA debut in 2014 and built a 13-3 record before signing with the UFC last year. In the Octagon, he has gone 3-0 with victories over Tristan Connelly, Jamall Emmers and Tucker Lutz. Laramie is currently 12-4 as a professional, but he lost his only UFC bout against Darrick Minner back in 2020. William Knight vs. Devin Clark Knight was a state champion wrestler for Manchester High in Connecticut. The "Knightmare" made his UFC debut in 2020 after winning a spot via Dana White's Contenders Series. He is now 3-2 in the promotion after dropping a decision against Maxim Grishin last February. Clark won a South Dakota state championship as a senior and continued his wrestling career at Rochester Tech. There he was a two-time NJCAA All-American and won the 184-pound title in 2009. He made his MMA debut in 2013 and signed with the UFC in 2016. Clark currently has a 12-6 record overall and a 6-6 record in the Octagon. Drakkar Klose vs. Brandon Jenkins Klose was a Michigan state champion in high school and made the finals three times. He wrestled collegiately for North Idaho and Lindenwood. Klose has been fighting professionally since 2014 and joined the UFC in 2017. He has gone 5-2 in the promotion but is coming off a loss against Beneil Dariush in his last fight. Jenkins made his UFC debut last September and lost via third-round stoppage against Zhu Rong. The defeat dropped his professional record to 15-8. Sabatini will be on the main card, which airs live on ESPN at 8:30pm ET. The rest of the wrestlers will be part of the undercard that is scheduled to begin at 5:30pm ET on ESPN+.

Duke 174 lber Matt Finesilver (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Spring is in the air and Freestyle/Greco season is upon us. Leave the headgear and ankle bands at home, we don't need 'em. It's always fun to see what changes every year. Who got better? Who got worse? Who grew a beard? Who's making a comeback? Can anyone explain what exactly Titan Mercury is? Why am I watching Bridgerton while writing this? Oops, wrong chat. Anyway, it seems like forever since we've had a proper World Team qualifying process and I'm excited for it. Where else can you get national champs hitting in early rounds at tournaments? The best of the best. Seth Petarra won't get much sleep in the next few months. Speaking of the Italian Devil... Do you think there should be an Intermat Masterchef? If you answered yes, why do you think I would win? Who are your All-Italian American first-teamers after NCAA's? @SethPetar A little-known fact about the CEO of Italians is that he loves to cook. If you think his articles are in-depth, you should see his recipe for pork shoulder. Give me the Brain, the CEO, and DiMarco in a cooking competition and I'll judge the crap out of it. You pick an All-Italian team and come meet my All-Jagger team for a dual meet. But seriously folks, our guy Seth churns out the best Freestyle content on the interwebs and nobody has a deeper knowledge of international wrestlers ready to break out. The guy follows Kyrgyzstan cadets. Which Intermat employee would be the easiest/hardest to strike out? @IndianaMat I thought about this one for awhile. The toughest might be Willie. I can picture him just being a nuisance at the plate. Small strike zone, probably crouching over the plate spitting juice between pitches. I'd probably just bean him in the ass to great applause. Then I'll just strike out everyone else while huffing Bogey's in the dugout. If Handsome Matt Finesilver is on the move, what places does Jags think he should consider? @Rhino184 It's going to be quite strange to see a Finesilver not wearing Duke blue, but this is the world we live in with an infinite amount of Finesilver's and eligibility. How about Northern Colorado? Taking that last year and coming home seems to be a trend and Matt can put a little notch in his belt by being the only brother to represent his home state. Which programs do you see winning #WrestlingShirtADayinMay this year? @DutrowJim Nobody does a better job of marketing than Allyson Schwab. Get on the Panther Train before they run out of stock. Do I still have to ask questions in off-season? @PelikanHead Of course, you still have to ask questions. There's no offseason here at Intermat. I rely on you for half my content and can't have you showing up in November all out of shape asking dumb questions like if Penn State can repeat. You don't see Rhino taking a break. The Michigan Ref is asking questions in the room right now. Iron questions sharpen iron questions. Is PKHead's question's use of 'offseason' actually a troll of Yianni and/or freestyle? @JpPearson71 I think every Pelikan Head tweet has a hint of troll to it. The man is a Picasso with 280 characters and you should all be following him. Jags, you're the manager of Mailbag right? Will you pull yourself out of the mailbag after 7 questions? Or would you advocate to finish out the final two? @MichWrestlinRef Told you the ref was asking questions in the room right now. Seeing as this is the seventh question I guess we'll find out. For the record, I've maybe missed five questions so far in my time writing this column. I know what it's like to be left on read. If Intermat did a documentary on Jagger, what would the documentary be named? @AustinSommer Smoke Rise: The Jagger Chronicles Well, that was only eight questions, so no perfect game, but the good news is I get another chance next week. Happy Passover today and Happy Easter this Sunday. CadburyCreme Eggs are my jam.

Scottie Boykin (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) USAF ACADEMY – Head wrestling coach Sam Barber has announced the addition of Scottie Boykin to the AF Wrestling staff as a volunteer assistant coach and head coach of the Air Force Regional Training Center (AFRTC). Boykin comes to the Academy by way of Cornell where he served as the Spartan Combat RTC head coach. Boykin replaces Dustin Kilgore who after six seasons of positive impact on the program is leaving the program for opportunities outside of wrestling. "I am excited to add Scottie Boykin to our staff," Head coach Sam Barber said. "He is a hardworking and high energy young coach that will take over where Coach Kilgore left off in being an exemplar for our cadet-athletes on and off the mat." "I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to coach at the United States Air Force Academy," Boykin said. "The Academy is a prestigious institution, and its reputation speaks for itself. I look forward to getting to work alongside Coach Barber and staff, and help these young men reach their highest athletic potential on the national and world stage." "Scottie received high praise from Coach Grey and Coach Eslinger, two leaders in our sport that I have much respect and appreciation for," Barber continued. "Coach Boykin's commitment to pursuing excellence while living a life of character and integrity make him a great fit for coaching at the United States Air Force Academy. His knowledge and passion for the sport of wrestling is infectious, I'm excited to watch him share that passion and enthusiasm with our team!" During his time at the Spartan Combat RTC Development Program Boykin helped develop and prepare the top national recruits before getting into Cornell. He assisted in the coaching four top-20 seeds going into their inaugural NCAA tournament their freshman year (Julian Ramirez 165, Chris Foca 174, Jacob Cardenas 197, Lewis Fernandez HWT). Prior to his stint in Ithaca, New York, Boykin served as the volunteer assistant coach at his Alma Mater UT-Chattanooga. While attending Chattanooga, Boykin became a two-time Southern Conference Champion at 197 pounds and made three appearances at the NCAA National Tournament. He had 94 career wins, which is eighth all-time at UTC. After graduating with a degree in sports administration, Boykin competed Dave Schultz Memorial International tournament where he battled his way to finalist. He is a two-time US OPEN Freestyle All-American (8th 2019, 4th 2021), and a two-time World Team Trials qualifier.

Ivan Ivanov (right) (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Ivan R. Ivanov of Boise, Idaho has been named to the new position of General Manager, Greco-Roman Programs by USA Wrestling, the National Governing Body for wrestling in the United States. Ivanov was a World silver medalist as an athlete and is a highly-respected Greco-Roman coach at the Senior and age-group levels. He will be tasked to transform Greco-Roman wrestling in the United States, from the youth development pipeline through performance on the Olympic and World level. “We're truly excited to have Ivan Ivanov accept this new role within our Greco-Roman program. This is an extremely important hire within our organization at a pivotal time for our Greco-Roman program. We had a great deal of interest in this position and some very strong candidates to take into consideration. There is a lot of work to be done from this point forward, but we are confident that Ivan possesses not only the passion, but the vision to help lead our Greco-Roman program. It's going to take a lot of people in a lot of different areas to help elevate our Greco-Roman program to the levels we continually want to see it succeed. Ivan is ready to hit the ground running and his leadership will help build the U.S. Greco program into a recognizable force among the current world powers,” said Cody Bickley, USA Wrestling Director of National Teams High Performance. Ivanov will lead every aspect of the USA Wrestling Greco-Roman program. He will be given the opportunity to evaluate every facet of the U.S. Greco-Roman program. In this new role, the General Manager will create the strategic direction for the sport and will be empowered to re-imagine how USA Wrestling operates its development and high-performance efforts. “With my club, we are doing well using a system of training which I have experience with and understand very well. I want to share my methods of training with the rest of the coaches in America. In this new position with USA Wrestling, I will be able to engage with coaches, share methods and bring valuable resources to them and their athletes. We can move ahead with Greco-Roman and start winning medals at all ages. That is my biggest motivation,” said Ivanov. “It all starts with the coaches. As coaches, we have a lot of work to do. It is going to be hard, not easy, but I am very optimistic that if we all work together, we will make some great results for U.S. Greco-Roman. The first priority will be the elite team, the next Olympic Team, and we will know very soon who those athletes are. We need to focus our energy on that team, so we have well-prepared athletes for the Paris Olympics. We then want to go down to the Juniors, our grassroots, which is the next Olympic cycle,” he said. Since 2010, Ivanov has been the owner and head coach for the Suples Wrestling Club in Boise, where he trains wrestlers from the age-group through the Senior level. Ivanov planned and instructed a specialized Greco-Roman technique and training curriculum at Suples WC. His training methods include online teaching platforms as well as web instruction and demonstration. In 2004, Ivanov founded Suples, LTD, which specializes in wrestling training products and educational courses. As CEO, Ivanov is responsible for all business development and operations for the company. He was the designer and innovator for wide variety of training product lines, which are used by wrestling clubs and organizations around the world. From 2002-2009, Ivanov served as the head Greco-Roman coach for the U.S. Olympic Education Center (USOEC), which is affiliated with Northern Michigan University in Marquette, Mich. This was a university-based program specializing in selected Olympic sports. Under his direction, the USOEC developed into one of the top Greco-Roman training locations in the nation. Ivanov coached numerous athletes to Senior National Teams and national titles, as well as athletes who made age-group World Teams and won national titles. Among the star athletes developed by Ivanov were two-time Olympian Spenser Mango, two-time World medalist and Olympian Justin Lester, Olympian Chas Betts, and many others. Other coaching stints for Ivanov were with the Treehouse Athletic Club in Utah, and at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. He has coached numerous U.S. teams on international tours, including serving as assistant coach for the 2001 Junior World Team and on the coaching staff for Senior World Teams. Ivanov is a gold-certified coach within USA Wrestling's National Coaches Education Program. In 2009, Ivanov was named USA Wrestling Greco-Roman Coach of the Year. Ivanov emigrated to the United States from Bulgaria, where he was a world-class Greco-Roman athlete. He won a World silver medal at 62 kg in 1994, and placed fifth at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Ga. He was also fourth at the 1995 European Championships. He was a student-athlete at the Sports School and Technical College in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria. He was also a student-athlete for the Bulgarian World Class Army Wrestling Program, based in Sofia, where he trained and also received educational training in military technical skills. He was awarded with the Honored Master of Sport from the Bulgarian Wrestling Federation in 1996. “I am all about building a USA Greco-Roman identity, a style that is typical for America. It is our USA cultural style. This will be very specific for our country, for what we are trying to do. We will build a complete USA team identity. We must have our own style, after evaluating our strengths and weaknesses. We need to build a style that we understand. Our athletes need to wrestle that way, with our coaches coaching that way. We need to find a way that we train while, at the same time, making it difficult for people to figure out what we are doing. We are not coming here to fight with rusty weapons, but with new weapons. This is who I am. I am very optimistic about U.S. Greco-Roman because we have a lot of resources. We need to work effectively and work together,” said Ivanov.

2022 NCAA 3rd Place Bryce Andonian (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The Hokie's finished another strong year in Blacksburg with a top-10 finish at the NCAA Championships and extending their streak of having three or more All-Americans for the ninth year--one of five programs in the country to claim such a streak. They were ACC Runners-Up in both duals and the tournament behind NC State. The Hokies only lose two starters from this top-10 team--Korbin Myers and Nathan Traxler--and have a lot of talented wrestlers ready to move up into starting roles. There will be a lot of shifting in weight from last year's lineup; Sam Latona, Bryce Andonian, and Connor Brady are all moving up a weight class. While the incoming recruiting class is small in number, it is deep in talent. The Hokies bring in #8 TJ Stewart, #16 Caleb Henson and #81 Tom Crook. There are bound to be changes to this lineup, but here is what I see from the Hokies next year. 125: Eddie Ventresca/Cooper Flynn With veteran Sam Latona moving up, the Hokies have two solid options fighting for the spot at 125. Cooper Flynn went 15-3 in his redshirt campaign with two of those losses to Ventresca, who was 15-6 on the year. The Hokies coaches are excited about the future at 125 and think both of these guys could step in to make an immediate impact. 133: Sam Latona It's no secret that Latona had a tough cut to maintain 125 the last two years--and this seemed to have a big impact on the start of the season last year. He was 4-6 in the first half of the season, albeit against some stout competition. Latona came into the new year on a tear and had an 8-match winning streak before falling 3-1 to Jakob Camacho in the ACC title match. He went on to make the bloodround at the NCAA tournament, one match short of repeating his All-American performance. I think a focused Sam Latona, who isn't consumed by a big cut, is a dangerous Sam Latona. He has shown he can go with anyone in the country and I could see him making a statement next year. I'm excited to see him fill out his frame a little more and be focused on the mat instead of the bike as much--I'm sure Sam is excited about that as well. 141: Collin Gerardi/Tom Crook Collin Gerardi will likely hold the spot at 141 again next season after winning the spot this year and earning a berth in the NCAA tournament. Gerardi was over .500 on the year and is a notoriously stingy defensive wrestler. He has been great at winning close matches and minimizing damage against higher-ranked opponents. However, there will be competition from four-time Florida State Champion Tom Crook who is coming in as part of a stacked recruiting class for the Hokies. Crook is a top-100 recruit who has a skill set that translates very well to college; he will be a great long-term solution for the Hokies. 149: Caleb Henson There is real potential for blue-chip recruit Caleb Henson to immediately step into the lineup. Henson is a top-20 recruit that has an impressive resume--3x GA State Champ, Fargo Champ, Super 32 Champ; that also includes a title at the Southeast Open (ahem, Hokie Open). Henson ran through the 149 bracket last season and showed that he is college-ready out of the gate. Kylan Montgomery saw some time in the starting lineup last year while filling in for Bryce Andonian. This could be a weight where the Hokies look to the transfer portal for a short-term solution if they want to give Henson a year to redshirt. 157: Bryce Andonian If you don't enjoy watching the chaotic beauty of Bryce Andonian wrestling, we can't be friends. Andonian has been must-see viewing every time he steps on the mat since he arrived in Blacksburg, but really put on a show for the national audience this year at the NCAA tournament. The move up a weight class could be a blessing for Andonian. 149 has been a more difficult cut than it may seem. Andonian had an amazing run at the NCAA tournament that had three of the most entertaining matches of the tournament. He fell just short of a trip to the finals against Ridge Lovett, but came back to beat Austin Gomez for a second time to finish his All-American run in third place. Andonian caps off his impressive year with a Bronze at the Junior World Championships and an All-American finish in Detroit--it's hard not to think that this momentum will continue as he moves up a weight class. 165: Connor Brady/Clayton Ulrey/Transfer This will be an interesting weight for the Hokies. They have two experienced starters in Connor Brady--potentially moving up from 157--and Clayton Ulrey, who held the 165 spot this season. Both have a load of potential and could be big contributors for the Hokies. Brady started the season off very strong with a 9-2 record before going winless in conference duals. He did pick up a critical win at ACCs to qualify for the NCAA tournament where he went 1-2. Ulrey had an opposite experience-he started slow and improved throughout the year, picking up some big wins along the way. He went 2-2 at ACCs and fell just short of an NCAA berth. Watch out for the wildcard here of a move from the transfer portal. Both Brady and Ulrey could benefit from a year of growth; Brady to grow into the weight and Ulrey to continue to improve to his fullest potential. 174: Mekhi Lewis What more can one say about Mekhi Lewis? Lewis is the quiet leader of this team on and off the mat. He is a three-time NCAA qualifier and only has one loss in that tournament; a heartbreaker in the finals last month. Junior World Champ, NCAA Champ and two-time NCAA finalist. The move up to 174 was seamless for Lewis and he looked incredible at the higher weight. He was big enough and strong enough to hang with even the biggest 174's and he didn't lose any of the speed that makes him so dangerous on his reattacks. Lewis only had two losses on the year, 3-1 in sudden victory to Hayden Hidlay and 6-5 in TB1 to Carter Starocci in the NCAA finals. I have no doubt that Mekhi will grow from those tough losses and be an even more dangerous wrestler next season--and I can't wait to see it. 184: Hunter Bolen The return of the Christiansburg Cowboy is one of the bigger stories of the offseason for the Hokies. Bolen is an All-American and a four-time NCAA qualifier and will return to Blacksburg looking to add more hardware to his shelf. He has consistently been in the top-tier of wrestlers at 184 since moving up after his first season. Bolen is 60-12 as a starter at 184. The return of Bolen will allow for another blue-chip recruit time to acclimate to college. TJ Stewart is a huge signing for the Hokies and will be a major part of the continued success in Blacksburg. Stewart is from Virginia but attends Blair Academy where he was a National Prep Champion in addition to his Fargo accolades--winning as both a Cadet and a Junior. Stewart was the #1 ranked wrestler at 182 and #10 in the class of 2022; he has an incredible amount of potential and will be a fan favorite in Blacksburg. I would guess Stewart will get a redshirt and Bolen will be on a limited schedule, so look for another VA guy-Sam Fisher-to get reps in the lineup as well. 197: Dakota Howard/Andy Smith This weight will again be a battle between Howard and Smith for the starting spot. Howard edged out Smith for the spot last season; Smith struggled with returning from injuries as he tried to make a push for the lineup later in the year. Howard is a fan favorite and gives everything he has every match; he was over .500 on the year and had some solid wins to help the team. Smith has a lot of upside, but has struggled to stay healthy--if he is 100% he can be a dangerous option at 197. 285: Hunter Catka Catka started as a true freshman in 2021 and he had a 10-4 record and was an NCAA qualifier. He redshirted last season behind Nathan Traxler and competed unattached with a 10-6 record. Catka is a very large human and is incredibly athletic and fast for his size. He benefited greatly from a year of training with Traxler and will be a force at heavyweight; I expect big things from Catka.

Central Methodist head coach and director of wrestling Sam Schmitz (Photo/Central Methodist athletics) Central Methodist University's new director of wrestling and head men's wrestling coach comes to the Eagles with no shortage of hardware. Sam Schmitz has three consecutive national titles as the women's coach and several top 5 finishes as men's assistant coach at McKendree University. Schmitz is anxious to get to work at Central. "I'm nervous and I'm excited," said Schmitz. "This is a big step for me and for my family." Schmitz said that one thing won't be any different, though. "The recipe for success doesn't change," he said. "It always has come straight from my heart." Schmitz has nine years of experience under his belt as a head coach, but some of that coaching prowess was learned from his old college coach and now Central Methodist's vice president for enrollment management and athletics, Dr. Joe Parisi. "His success was unmatched as a head coach and I did a lot of learning," Schmitz said. "He created the blueprint, especially with the small things he did outside of coaching. I've learned from that. I'm not going to do exactly as he did, but I'm adding my own touch and making the approach mine." Parisi said that he and athletics director Jeff Sherman, along with President Roger Drake, have high expectations for their new coach. "He's got great tools and a great heart," Parisi said. "He is a master technician and an excellent recruiter. We can't wait to see the changes in our program." As a college wrestler under Parisi, Schmitz was an NAIA all-American on two of Parisi's seven national championship teams. He has a proud history with Parisi, but Schmitz is also looking forward to working with legendary coach and now CMU athletic director Jeff Sherman. "You see a lot of things in 37 years as a head coach," Schmitz said. "I can't wait to visit more with him and learn." Schmitz has three consecutive NCWWC national championships under his belt at McKendree. In addition, Schmitz was the one coach nationally to serve as a clinician earlier this year at the prestigious high school national championships. Besides being the men's head coach at Central, Schmitz will serve as the director of wrestling, overseeing the Eagles' successful women's wrestling program and Head Coach Brieana Delgado. She is looking forward to learning from the veteran. "He has a great reputation and I'm looking forward to working with him," she said. "I'm also looking forward to re-connecting with his wife, who is one of my old teammates." Schmitz, from Oregon, comes to Central with his wife, Michaela, a three-time national champion and the first female to win a boys' high school championship. They have two children.

Oregon State Assistant Coach Josh Rhoden (Photo/Oregon State athletics) CORVALLIS, Ore. - Oregon State wrestling head coach Chris Pendleton announced Wednesday that Josh Rhoden has been named an assistant coach with the Beavers. Rhoden joins the program after serving as the head coach at Clackamas Community College since 2006. While there, his teams have won the NJCAA National Championship five times, including the past four years. He's also been named the National Coach of the Year four times, earning that honor in two of the last three years. "I want to thank both Chris Pendleton and VP/Director of Athletics Scott Barnes for the opportunity to continue to do what I love, as well as, be a part of something special in Corvallis," Rhoden said. "Chris and his staff have things moving in an exciting direction and I feel very blessed to have been asked to join the staff. "Oregon State and the wrestling community in Oregon have a special place in my heart and I am excited to continue to help move wrestling forward here in our state and throughout the Pacific Northwest." Rhoden exits Clackamas after posting a 169-36-2 record. In addition to national titles in 2011, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022, his Clackamas teams finished as runner ups in 2015, 2017 and 2018. He coached 33 national finalists, 101 All-Americans and 148 national qualifiers. "I'm excited to get to work Building the Dam with Coach Rhoden," Pendleton said. "His character, work ethic, and approach to building successful young men on and off the mat is exactly what we believe in at Oregon State." A Pacific University graduate, Rhoden was a graduate assistant at his alma mater from 2004-05. He then served as the head coach at Redmond High School from 2005-06 before moving to Clackamas in 2006. Rhoden joins an Oregon State program that produced four All-Americans in 2022, the Beavers' most since 1995. OSU finished 12th nationally, the team's best mark in nearly a decade, and was just half a point shy from winning the Pac-12 Championship. Pendleton, who just finished his second year as the program's head coach, was named the Pac-12 Coach of the Year.

Four-time All-American Troy Nickerson (left) (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Yesterday, Cornell received a verbal commitment from Cadet World Champion, Meyer Shapiro (Wyoming Seminary, PA), the #2 overall recruit in the high school Class of 2023. Shapiro is the highest-ranked wrestler to commit to second-year head coach Mike Grey and joins a short-list of top-ten recruits that have matriculated to Ivy League school in Ithaca. How have the previous blue-chippers fared while at Cornell? Glad you asked. We have looked at the wrestlers ranked in the top ten of their respective graduating classes that wrestled for the Big Red and reminded you of some of their pre-collegiate credentials, along with a recap of their careers. This exercise starts in 2005 as individual big boards or top 100's are difficult to come by for any time before 2005. 2005 #3 Troy Nickerson (Chenango Forks, NY) In reality, Travis Lee was probably the first huge recruit of the Rob Koll-era in Ithaca, but recruiting rankings were non-existent from his senior year in high school (2001). I'd also wager that if they were "a thing," he still wouldn't have matched the hype that surrounded Troy Nickerson coming out of high school. Nickerson was New York's first-ever five-time state champion and won a pair of Cadet and Junior National Championships. Nickerson went on to AA four times for the Big Red, never finishing lower than fourth in any year. He was an NCAA finalist as a true freshman and a national champion in 2009. 2006 #3 Mike Grey (Delbarton, NJ) New Jersey's first-ever four-time state champion, Mike Grey, recorded 120 wins via fall along with a 157-2 career record. He was a Junior National Champion in freestyle and grabbed a title at NHSCA Senior Nationals. What a great signing this turned out to be as Grey had a distinguished career that included a pair of EIWA titles and appearances on the NCAA podium. As soon as Grey's competitive career finishes, he joined the Big Red coaching staff and hasn't left. Last June, after Rob Koll stepped down, Grey was named Cornell's head coach. In his first season at the helm, Grey led the team to a top-ten finish and oversaw Yianni Diakomihalis' first NCAA title. #7 Mack Lewnes (Mt. St. Joseph, MD) A two-time National Prep champion, Mack Lewnes also won all of the notable regular-season tournaments, the Ironman, the Beast, and the Powerade (x2). Lewnes was also a member of the Dapper Dan team. From the time he stepped on campus, Mack Lewnes was one of the top wrestlers in the nation. He captured four EIWA titles and placed in the top four at NCAA's on three occasions. In both 2009 and 2010, Lewnes entered the NCAA Tournament as the undefeated top seed. He was also never seeded lower than four in his four trips to nationals. 2009 #4 Kyle Dake (Lansing, NY) In 2008 Kyle Dake made his international debut when he finished in 14th place at the Junior World Championships, while competing in Greco-Roman. Dake also won the NHSCA grade-level tournament on three occasions, mixing in a pair of New York state titles for good measure. Dake would go on to have one of the most unique and outstanding collegiate careers in the history of the sport. As a true freshman, he jumped into the fray and immediately brought home a national title at 141 lbs. In each of the proceeding years, Dake moved up a weight class and claimed an NCAA championship. His final win, over returning Hodge Trophy recipient David Taylor, helped him earn the 2013 Hodge. His greatness wasn't limited to the collegiate scene as Dake has won three world titles and an Olympic bronze medal. 2010 #3 Chris Villalonga (Blair Academy, NJ) Chris Villalonga has one of the best high school careers in the history of Blair Academy wrestling, a feat in itself. Villalonga was a four-time National Prep champion and won the Ironman and Beast three times. After the high school season, Villalonga won NHSCA Senior's and was named the OW at the Dapper Dan. In each of his first two years at Cornell, Villalonga made the NCAA tournament but went 0-2 both times. After winning the first of two EIWA titles, Villalonga was seeded third at the 2014 tournament, but fell a match short of placing. He finally got on the podium as a senior when he took sixth place. #5 Marshall Peppelman (Central Dauphin, PA) A member of some incredible Central Dauphin teams, Marshall Peppleman won three Pennsylvania state titles and made the finals four times. He grabbed a pair of belts at the Super 32 and also was victorious at the Beast of the East three times. In Peppelman's best season as a collegiate (2011-12), he finished fourth in the EIWA and qualified for the NCAA Championships. Peppleman used his final year of eligibility to compete for Lehigh and he was seventh in the conference at 165 lbs. He tallied 73 wins, against 50 losses, during his collegiate career. 2012 #6 Alex Cisneros (Selma, CA) A three-time state champion and four-time finalist in single-class California, Alex Cisneros ended up being one of the top wrestlers in the Class of 2012. He ended up competing for a year at Cornell, but never broke into the starting lineup for an extended period of time. #7 Mark Grey (Blair Academy, NJ) Like his older brother, Mark Grey, made a bit of history while in high school. He was the first wrestler to win the aptly-named Beast of the East four times. Grey also was a four-time National Prep champion, competing for Blair Academy. Before his senior year, Grey made the Junior World Team in freestyle and came up a match shy of medaling. He would replicate that feat in 2013. After a grayshirt year, Grey came out and took third in the conference, a placement he'd attain twice in the following seasons. Grey received the 15th seed and ended up falling in the bloodround. That would end up being his best NCAA finish in three trips. 2017 #3 Yianni Diakomihalis (Hilton, NY) A recruit with precollegiate credentials approaching Cornell studs like Nickerson and Dake, Yianni Diakomihalis amassed a 242-3 record that included four New York state titles. He also became one of only two Americans to win a pair of Cadet World Championships, a feat he accomplished in 2015 and 2016. Right away, Diakomihalis jumped into the Big Red lineup and proved to be a title threat. His first year ended with a national title after rallying in his final three NCAA bouts. Since then, Yianni has another pair of NCAA championships and is on the brink of becoming Cornell's second four-time national champion. Only four wrestlers have achieved the feat previously. Yianni enters his final year with a 75-match winning streak. While at Cornell, Diakomihalis has already made a Senior world team. #4 Vito Arujau (Syosset, NY) Like Yianni, Vito Arujau was also a four-time New York state champion during his high school days. He also experienced some success internationally, earning a silver medal at the Cadet World Championships in 2016. Arujau also was a champion at the Super 32 and at FloNationals. Unlike Yianni, Arujau waited a year before stepping in for Cornell. In year one, Arujau made the EIWA finals before taking fourth in the nation. After a few years away, Arujau returning in 2021-22 with an EIWA title and a third-place finisher in Detroit. In freestyle, he's made the finals of the Junior World Championships and the 2020 Olympic Team Trials. 2019 #10 Julian Ramirez (Blair Academy, NJ) Julian Ramirez finally got a chance to compete officially for Cornell in 2021-22 as he delayed enrollment initially, then was hampered by the Ivy League shutdown last year. The two-time National Prep champion and three-time Beast winner proved to be quite capable with a fourth-place finish at his first EIWA tournament. He would advance to the NCAA Round of 12 before getting eliminated at the 165 lb weight class. 2020 #8 Joshua Saunders (Christian Brothers College, MO) The list of pre-collegiate achievements for Joshua Saunders was extremely impressive as he captured three Missouri state titles, two stop signs in Fargo, and berths on the Cadet and Junior World Teams, before ever enrolling at Cornell. Saunders did not see action in a dual meet last year, but was 13-4 competing in tournaments. At the Southern Scuffle, Saunders logged four wins, including one over an NCAA qualifier (Angel Martinoni), though he did not place.

2021 Cadet World Champion Meyer Shapiro (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Meyer Shapiro, the number two overall junior in the country, made his college intentions known this afternoon as he committed to Cornell University. Shapiro finished the high school season ranked #2 at 145 lbs behind Iowa State signee Casey Swiderski. A Maryland native, Shapiro attended Wyoming Seminary during the 2021-22 school year and captured a National Prep championship after racking up four falls and a major decision in the title match. Last spring, Shapiro won the Cadet WTT's in freestyle at 65 kg's. A few months later, Shapiro went to Budapest, Hungary and came home with a gold medal. In the gold medal match, Shapiro defeated Georgia's Giorgi Gogritchiani, 8-4 to lock up first place. Two bouts earlier, he defeated a Russian by two points. To clinch a medal and a berth in the finals, Shapiro teched his Azeri opponent Aghanazar Novruzov, 10-0. Also in the 2021-22 high school season, Shapiro won the Powerade Invitational for the first time. In 2019, he was third. Shapiro is easily the biggest recruit to commit to Mike Grey in his less-than-ten months as head coach. He'll join New Jersey state champion, #61 Simon Ruiz (Delbarton, NJ), as early commits from the Class of 2023. Shapiro probably projects as a 157 lber at the next level. If that's the case, Shapiro is a perfect fit as the Big Red have a few young 57's on the roster or incoming, but no one near his level of a prospect. For more commitments check out InterMat's College Commitment Page

Undefeated 2022 NCAA Champion Keegan O'Toole of Missouri (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) When the dust cleared from Detroit and the ten national champions were crowned Saturday evening, one interesting fact stuck out to me. Of the ten winners, eight of them finished the year unbeaten! That “seemed” like a big number, but was it actually? Just to make sure, we've gone through the list of NCAA champions since the turn of the century to validate that eight was an incredible total. Below are the undefeated champions by year. For the bulk of this time period (2000-22) pin/tech/major decision totals have been included too. As we went back closer to 2000, those numbers became more difficult to obtain. 2022 125 lbs - Nick Suriano (Michigan) 16-0: 3 falls, 2 techs, 7 majors 133 lbs - Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) 22-0: 4 falls, 4 techs, 4 majors 141 lbs - Nick Lee (Penn State) 22-0; 2 falls, 4 techs, 6 majors 149 lbs - Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) 28-0; 5 falls, 4 techs, 4 majors 157 lbs - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) 18-0; 6 falls, 1 tech, 2 majors 165 lbs - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) 25-0; 7 falls, 2 techs, 7 majors 174 lbs - Carter Starocci (Penn State) 23-0; 4 falls, 5 techs, 4 majors 285 lbs - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) 18-0; 1 fall, 6 techs, 7 majors 2021 125 lbs - Spencer Lee (Iowa) 12-0; 5 falls, 3 techs, 2 majors 133 lbs - Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) 14-0; 1 fall, 2 techs, 2 majors 149 lbs - Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) 13-0; 2 falls, 4 majors 157 lbs - David Carr (Iowa State) 20-0; 4 falls; 4 techs, 5 majors 184 lbs - Aaron Brooks (Penn State) 14-0; 2 techs, 5 majors 285 lbs - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) 17-0; 4 falls, 6 techs, 3 majors 2019 141 lbs - Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) 29-0; 7 falls, 4 techs, 5 majors 149 lbs - Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) 32-0; 8 falls, 4 techs, 7 majors 157 lbs - Jason Nolf (Penn State) 31-0; 15 falls, 4 techs, 6 majors 197 lbs - Bo Nickal (Penn State) 30-0; 18 falls, 3 techs, 6 majors 2018 149 lbs - Zain Retherford (Penn State) 31-0; 17 falls, 5 techs, 4 majors 174 lbs - Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) 32-0; 9 falls, 7 techs, 9 majors 184 lbs - Bo Nickal (Penn State) 31-0; 16 falls, 1 tech, 6 majors 2017 141 lbs - Dean Heil (Oklahoma State) 32-0; 2 falls, 4 techs, 6 majors 149 lbs - Zain Retherford (Penn State) 28-0; 17 falls, 7 techs, 1 major 157 lbs - Jason Nolf (Penn State) 27-0; 14 falls, 8 techs, 3 majors 197 lbs - J'den Cox (Missouri) 28-0; 6 falls, 6 techs, 6 majors 285 lbs - Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) 17-0; 4 falls, 5 techs, 4 majors 2016 133 lbs - Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) 37-0; 11 falls, 7 techs, 7 majors 149 lbs - Zain Retherford (Penn State) 35-0; 16 falls, 8 techs, 7 majors 165 lbs - Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) 33-0; 12 falls, 7 techs, 8 majors 285 lbs - Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) 11-0; 1 fall, 5 techs, 2 majors 2015 141 lbs - Logan Stieber (Ohio State) 29-0; 10 falls, 8 techs, 4 majors 157 lbs - Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) 35-0; 6 falls, 11 techs, 7 majors 165 lbs - Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) 32-0; 11 falls, 4 techs, 12 majors 285 lbs - Nick Gwiazdowski (NC State) 32-0; 14 falls, 1 tech, 9 majors 2014 165 lbs - David Taylor (Penn State) 34-0; 16 falls, 8 techs, 8 majors 2013 133 lbs - Logan Stieber (Ohio State) 27-0; 14 falls, 7 techs, 2 majors 141 lbs - Kendric Maple (Oklahoma) 31-0; 7 falls, 4 techs, 8 majors 149 lbs - Jordan Oliver (Oklahoma State) 38-0, 17 falls 165 lbs - Kyle Dake (Cornell) 37-0, 18 falls, 2 techs, 8 majors 184 lbs - Ed Ruth (Penn State) 33-0, 12 falls, 4 techs, 10 majors 197 lbs - Quentin Wright (Penn State) 32-0, 11 falls, 4 majors 2012 149 lbs - Frank Molinaro (Penn State) 33-0; 4 falls, 7 techs, 11 majors 157 lbs - Kyle Dake (Cornell) 35-0; 12 falls, 3 techs, 6 majors 165 lbs - David Taylor (Penn State) 32-0, 15 falls, 9 techs, 6 majors 174 lbs - Ed Ruth (Penn State) 31-0, 10 falls, 7 techs, 9 majors 2011 125 lbs - Anthony Robles (Arizona State) 36-0, 2 falls, 24 techs, 5 majors 133 lbs - Jordan Oliver (Oklahoma State) 29-0, 11 falls, 6 techs, 7 majors 141 lbs - Kellen Russell (Michigan) 38-0, four falls, 1 tech, 9 majors 165 lbs - Jordan Burroughs (Nebraska) 36-0, 6 falls, 14 techs, 9 majors 174 lbs - Jon Reader (Iowa State) 39-0, 3 falls, 11 techs, 13 majors 2010 133 lbs - Jayson Ness (Minnesota) 31-0, 19 falls 157 lbs - JP O'Connor (Harvard) 35-0, 4 falls, 6 techs, 7 majors 174 lbs - Jay Borschel (Iowa) 37-0, 10 falls, 11 majors 197 lbs - Jake Varner (Iowa State) 31-0, 10 falls, 1 tech, 10 majors 2009 125 lbs - Troy Nickerson (Cornell) 25-0 157 lbs - Jordan Burroughs (Nebraska) 35-0 174 lbs - Steve Luke (Michigan) 32-0 184 lbs - Jake Herbert (Northwestern) 34-0 2008 174 lbs - Keith Gavin (Pittsburgh) 27-0 2007 141 lbs - Derek Moore (UC Davis) 24-0 174 lbs - Ben Askren (Missouri) 42-0 184 lbs - Jake Herbert (Northwestern) 34-0 285 lbs - Cole Konrad (Minnesota) 35-0 2006 141 lbs - Nate Gallick (Iowa State) 35-0 157 lbs - Ben Cherrington (Boise State) 20-0 174 lbs - Ben Askren (Missouri) 45-0 285 lbs - Cole Konrad (Minnesota) 41-0 2005 184 lbs - Greg Jones (West Virginia) 25-0 285 lbs - Steve Mocco (Oklahoma State) 37-0 2004 157 lbs - Matt Gentry (Stanford) 42-0 184 lbs - Greg Jones (West Virginia) 26-0 2003 125 lbs - Travis Lee (Cornell) 34-0 149 lbs - Eric Larkin (Arizona State) 34-0 165 lbs - Matt Lackey (Illinois) 38-0 285 lbs - Steve Mocco (Iowa) 34-0 2002 125 lbs - Stephen Abas (Fresno State) 35-0 197 lbs - Cael Sanderson (Iowa State) 39-0 2001 125 lbs - Stephen Abas (Fresno State) 34-0 141 lbs - Michael Lightner (Oklahoma) 41-0 157 lbs - TJ Williams (Iowa) 29-0 174 lbs - Josh Koscheck (Edinboro) 42-0 184 lbs - Cael Sanderson (Iowa State) 40-0 2000 133 lbs - Eric Juergens (Iowa) 31-0 174 lbs - Byron Tucker (Oklahoma) 34-0 184 lbs - Cael Sanderson (Iowa State) 40-0

2x NCAA champion Aaron Brooks of Penn State (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Last week we looked at the bloodround., its importance, and which teams have found the most success in the NCAA Round of 12. Today, we're examining the top-half of the NCAA bracket and the money rounds. The quarterfinals, the semis, and the finals. As one may expect, Penn State dominates all three of those rounds. But to the extent in which they dominate is difficult to fathom. For instance, the Nittany Lions are 24-2 in the NCAA semifinals over the last five NCAA Tournaments (2017-22). For perspective's sake, the team with the second-most wins during that span is Ohio State, who is 8-11. Below we have the records of each DI team during the last five NCAA tournaments in these extremely important rounds, starting with the finals and working our way down to the quarters. Finals: Penn State: 21-3 Iowa: 4-3 Cornell: 3-2 Rutgers: 2-1 Arizona State, Minnesota, Missouri: 2-2 Oklahoma State: 2-4 Ohio State: 2-6 Iowa State, Lehigh, Northern Iowa, Northwestern: 1-0 North Carolina, South Dakota State, Stanford: 1-1 NC State, Virginia Tech: 1-2 Michigan: 1-4 Lock Haven, Rider, Wisconsin, Wyoming: 0-1 Illinois, Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Princeton, Virginia: 0-2 Semifinals: Penn State: 24-2 Ohio State: 8-11 Iowa: 7-8 Oklahoma State: 6-5 Michigan: 5-10 Cornell: 5-4 Minnesota: 4-1 Arizona State, Missouri: 4-5 Rutgers: 3-3 NC State, Virginia Tech: 3-6 Illinois, South Dakota State: 2-0 Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Stanford, Virginia: 2-1 North Carolina, Princeton: 2-3 Lock Haven, Rider: 2-1 Iowa State: 1-1 Northern Iowa, Northwestern, Wisconsin, Wyoming: 1-2 Lehigh: 1-3 Bucknell, Central Michigan, Kent State, Oklahoma, Oregon State: 0-1 Duke, Utah Valley: 0-2 Cal Poly: 0-3 Quarterfinals Penn State: 26-7 Ohio State: 19-7 Michigan: 15-5 Iowa: 15-15 Oklahoma State: 11-10 Cornell: 9-2 NC State: 9-7 Arizona State: 9-8 Missouri: 9-10 Virginia Tech: 9-11 Rutgers: 6-3 Princeton: 5-2 North Carolina: 5-3 Minnesota: 5-7 Lehigh: 4-7 Cal Poly: 3-1 Pittsburgh, Virginia, Wyoming: 3-3 Stanford: 3-4 Wisconsin: 3-5 Northern Iowa: 3-6 Northwestern: 3-7 Nebraska: 3-11 Duke, Utah Valley: 2-1 Iowa State, South Dakota State: 2-2 Illinois: 2-4 Bucknell, Kent State: 1-1 Central Michigan, Oklahoma: 1-2 Lock Haven: 1-3 Rider: 1-5 Oregon State: 1-7 Appalachian State, Army West Point, Buffalo, Clarion, Drexel, Eastern Michigan, Maryland, Navy, Northern Illinois, Penn, SIU Edwardsville: 0-1 Binghamton, North Dakota State, Purdue: West Virginia: 0-2 Old Dominion: 0-3

2022 NCAA DII national champion at 285 lbs Darrell Mason (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) MANHEIM, PA – The 2022 National Wrestling Coaches Association DII Wrestler of the Year is Minnesota State's Darrell “Debo” Mason and the season's Rookie of the Year is Mary's Reece Barnhardt, the Association announced Monday. Both wrestlers hail from Super Region 5 and the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. Mason won the 285 National Championship at the 2022 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships, while Barnhardt finished fourth at 133. Mason entered the 2022 NCAA tournament as the bracket two-seed. With his 5-3 win over top-seeded Andrew Dunn of Kutztown in the final, Debo closed out an unblemished 22-0 season as DII's top wrestler at 285. The Maverick junior was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler for his efforts, in which he outscored his opponents 21-13 in four matches. “Debo had a great, competitive season,” Minnesota State Head Coach Jim Makovsky said. “He set a goal of becoming a National Champion, but kept his focus on the daily process and the hard work that needed to be done. He dealt with a season of injuries, COVID shutdowns, and the loss of his grandmother, all while competing in a very deep, talented weight class. Overcoming those obstacles made his success even sweeter- I'm proud of him!” A First Team All-NSIC selection and NSIC Wrestler of the Year, Debo was also the Super Region 5 Champion at 285. The Chicago native came to the Mavericks from Ellsworth Community College, where he was a NJCAA runner-up in 2020. Barnhardt, a true freshman for the Mauraders, put together a campaign that ended in the highest finish by a UMary wrestler in their time in NCAA Division II. The Bismark, ND native went into the 2022 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships as the five-seed and finished the season 24-10, after a 4-2 showing at the National Tournament. “Since day one of stepping on UMary's campus, it was very evident that Reece had the ability to become an All-American as a true freshman,” Marauder Head Coach Adam Aho said. “What really separates him from others that have had similar ability is his internal drive and desire to improve every day. His mental toughness to push himself to and beyond his mental breaking point in every practice is what makes him unique, and is another reason for his success on and off the mat. This award couldn't have gone to anyone more deserving, not only because of his wrestling accolades but also because of Reece's character. He is a true representative of the UMary wrestling program on and off the mat, and I couldn't be more proud of Reece for earning the NWCA Rookie of the Year Award.” Barnhardt also earned the NSIC's Rookie of the Year honors, and was ranked as high as #6 in the NWCA Division II Coaches Rankings on the year. He also finished runner-up at both the Super Region 5 tournament and the Midwest Classic. This is the second consecutive year that the DII Wrestler of the Year has been a heavyweight from Super Region 5, as St. Cloud State's Kameron Teacher earned the honor a season ago. This is the third consecutive Rookie of the Year honor for Super Region 5, with Upper Iowa's Zach Ryg earning the award in 2021 and St. Cloud State's Joey Bianchini in 2020.

Jordan Oliver (left), Alec Pantaleo (center), and Ryan Deakin (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) On Friday, the wrestling world was shocked by the retirement of 70 kg mainstay and two-time world medalist James Green. The Nebraska alum has moved on to take a coaching position with USA Wrestling as their National Freestyle Developmental Coach. With the man who has represented the United States at 70 kg at every World Championship event since 2015 out of the picture, there's a huge void on our 2022 team. That begs the question, who steps up and takes control of the weight class? Does someone go on a Green-like run and lockdown the weight for the next six years? Or will it turn out to be more like 65 kg; a weight class with plenty of capable contenders, all trading WTT wins back-and-forth. Here are some of the key contenders who will vie for a spot on the World Team this year and going forward. What complicates 70 kg for the future is that it isn't an Olympic weight, so wrestlers in this bracket will either move up or down for the 2024 Trials. That could lead to a shakeup next year as they prep for the Olympic year. Jordan Oliver - A veteran of the international wrestling game, Jordan Oliver has been a contender for world and Olympic teams for at least two cycles. Oliver won the 65 kg Olympic Trials in 2020, but did not get to represent the United States in Tokyo since the weight was not qualified. He's still seeking his first appearance at the World/Olympic Games. In non-Olympic years we've seen Oliver up at 70 kg and it's probably a more ideal weight for him. While Oliver may take losses in an exhibition setting, it's hard to bet against him in an “official” tournament. Alec Pantaleo - The wrestler that handed Oliver a recent loss is Alec Pantaleo, at Rudis Super Match. Pantaleo has continued to grow since hitting the Senior level full-time in 2019. He also scored a win over Oliver in the 2021 FloWrestling 150 lb 8-man bracket. At one point last year, Pantaleo held the #1 ranking in the world at 70 kg after winning the Poland Open, the Matteo Pellicone, and the Pan-American Championships. At the Poland Open, he knocked off James Green in the gold medal match. Pantaleo later had to pull out of the World Team Trials, in the semifinals, due to a rib injury. While Oliver and others may have “bigger” names, Pantaleo consistently turns in excellent results and should not be considered a dark horse here. Ryan Deakin - In the last decade or so, we've seen more and more often, current or recently graduated collegiate wrestlers jump into the Senior level and experience positive results. By the time the US Open rolls around, Ryan Deakin will be just over a month removed from his final collegiate match, where he won a national title at 157 lbs. Even while competing for Northwestern, Deakin has proven himself to be one of the top contenders at 70 kg. In 2019, he knocked off James Green at the US Open and earned a berth in Final X. Only a select few domestic opponents have defeated Green, at 70 kg, since 2015. Deakin almost made the 2021 World Team Trials finals, but was thwarted by the incumbent, Green. Zain Retherford - In 2021, we saw Zain Retherford move up to this weight class after competing at the Olympic Trials at 65 kg and making the 2019 world team at that weight. Retherford finished third at the 2021 Trials, which clinched a berth in this year's Trials. In his only competition thus far in 2022, Retherford dominated the field at the Dan Kolov, where his closest bout was a four-point win in the finals. Last year's Trials loss was only 2-2, on criteria, to Oliver, so Retherford should be one of the favorites in Coralville. Tyler Berger - Who better to take over for Green than one of his former training partners at Nebraska, Tyler Berger? Berger is now out west at Stanford as a part of the California RTC. Working out with 2021 NCAA champion Shane Griffith and assistant coach Vincenzo Joseph couldn't have hurt his development, while in Palo Alto. Berger showed he was ready to compete with the top dogs at this weight as he won the Bill Farrell International with a victory over Anthony Ashnault in the final. That combined with a fourth-place showing at the 2021 WTT's earned the foreigner Cornhusker a spot in the 2022 Trials. Anthony Ashnault - Growing up, Anthony Ashnault was never known for his freestyle accolades, but has placed himself amongst the contenders on the domestic ladder since 2019. Ashnault captured the first of his two Pan-American Championships that year and later was third at the WTT's. While he did not place at the Olympic Trials, Ashnault did claim a victory over Nahshon Garrett in the process. Recently, he fell to Berger at the Bill Farrell. Current collegiate crop of 157 lbs - Quincy Monday, David Carr, and Jacori Teemer. Youth has prevailed recently on the Senior level as Gable Steveson, Daton Fix, and Yianni Diakomihalis all made world/Olympic teams within the last year, while still holding collegiate eligibility. David Carr and Jacori Teemer both captured hardware on the international front, as Carr is a Junior World Champion and Teemer has Cadet bronze to his name. Monday is a part of the NJ RTC, which has made a strong impact on the domestic scene in the past three years. Teemer hasn't qualified for the Trials and is set to compete at the Open, while Quincy Monday and Carr have locked up a spot in the WTT's based on their 2022 NCAA finish.