InterMat Staff

Detroit Central Catholic

St. Mary's Ryken

Deep Creek

Cascia Hall

Mountain View

Loyola Academy

Bellmont

Earlier today, Andrew Alirez announced that, despite entering the transfer portal, he will return to Northern Colorado to spend his final year of eligibility. Alirez was an NCAA champion in 2023 for his hometown school, in Greeley, Colorado, and brought UNC their first national title since 1969. He was last seen on the mats in State College at the Olympic Team Trials before entering the transfer portal. Despite, some reportedly large NIL offers, Alirez has chosen to stay put. In honor of Alirez’s announcement today, we have selected some of his most notable or memorable matches. In both, freestyle and folkstyle, dating back to his junior year of high school in 2018. Some of the matches have been embedded in this article, while others have links attached. In addition to those, there is commentary to set the stage for why that particular match was significant and some of the action that occurred. 10) Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) - 2022 NWCA All-Star Match Alirez’s 2022 NCAA Tournament ended prematurely in the Round of 12. That being said, we knew Alirez would be a contender the following season. To what extent? An early-season exhibition win over the top-ranked wrestler in the national and the highest placing returner, Cole Matthews, showed Alirez’s first time on the NCAA podium could land him all the way on the top. As is typically the case, Matthews’ defense from the neutral was incredibly difficult to penetrate - which led to a scoreless first period. Within a second or two, Alirez stood up turned, and reversed Matthews. After an escape quickly thereafter and one for Matthews in the final period, the bout was tied at two and headed to overtime. In the extra time, it was Alirez who was the aggressor. He was initially stuffed on a shot attempt, but went again, and lower for the winning takedown. 9) Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) - 2023 NCAA Quarterfinals Being the second seed at 141 lbs, this was a bout where Alirez was favored; however, you still have to win the matches. Although he was named an honorable mention All-American by the NWCA in 2020, Alirez had yet to earn NCAA All-American honors. This battle between UNC’s officially clinched a place in the top-six for Alirez and gave Northern Colorado their first NCAA AA since Justin Gaethje in 2010. Alirez wasted no time getting to McNeil’s legs shortly after the whistle and converting for a takedown. Later in the opening period, Alirez added to his lead with a low double leg. While there was plenty of wrestling remaining, that’s all the scoring Alirez really needed in a 6-4 victory. 8) Dom Demas (Oklahoma) - 2018 Junior WTT Best-of-Three Finals 7) Nick Lee (Penn State) - 2018 Junior WTT Challenge Tournament Finals The 2018 Junior World Team Trials was really the tournament that put Alirez on the map nationally, as a top-ten-type talent in the Class of 2019. By 2018, he had placed at Fargo three times and the Super 32 twice, but the Trials saw him earn wins over a pair of established stars in Dom Demas and Nick Lee. Demas was the returning Junior World Team member and Lee had just finished his first year at Penn State and was fifth in the nation as a true freshman. In the challenge tournament finals, Alirez only needed :36 seconds to blitz Lee for a 10-0 win with technical superiority. Alirez got a takedown from a sweep single and immediately turned Lee four times in a leg lace for the shocking tech. During the first match of their best-of-three series, Alirez hit the same sweep single that quickly ended the Lee matchup and got an early takedown on Demas. Like the previous bout, Alirez was able to move into a leg lace; however, he only got one turn this time. Alirez continued to attack and got to another single, but finished in the opposite direction. In the ensuing par terre opportunity, Alirez showed his diversity from the top getting a turn from a trapped-arm gut wrench. After a Demas takedown, Alirez went back to his single leg and used an impressive lift to get the finish. He’d end the match with a second trapped-arm gut. Even though Alirez would go on to lose the following two matches, he showed that he deserved to be one of the top recruits in the next recruiting class. 6) Chad Red (Nebraska) - 2021 CKLV Semifinals Alirez spent the 2019-20 and the abridged 2021 season competing at 149 lbs, largely with solid results. For the 2022-23 campaign, he moved down to 141 lbs. With the 2020 NCAA Tournament being canceled and Alirez injured and unable to compete at the 2021 version, we didn’t have a great idea of where he fell in the pecking order at 141 lbs. A semifinal matchup against returning All-American Chad Red would be a great barometer for Alirez’s season. After a scoreless first period, Red rode Alirez for 1:57 of the second. The third period consisted of Red getting an escape, followed by an Alirez single leg for the match's lone takedown. He would ride the Husker All-American for the remainder of the bout - with a couple of huge mat returns, which brought riding time below a minute. We’ll mention it a few times here, Alirez is known for his offensive prowess and is excellent in freestyle; however, his mat wrestling is responsible for a handful of key wins. 5) Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) - 2022 Big 12 Finals Entering the 2022 Big 12 finals, Alirez had a 21-3 record. Two of those losses came at the hands of returning All-American Clay Carlson. One in the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational final and another in their late-season dual meet. A pair of takedowns propelled Alirez to a 5-3 victory over Carlson. That win made him the first Big 12 champion in school history and helped him earn the fifth seed at the 2022 NCAA Championships. Also, the only other wrestler to defeat Alirez during the 2021-22 regular season….Real Woods. 4) Alec Pantaleo - 2023 Senior National Semifinals Alirez won the title at Senior Nationals in 2023 but his biggest win likely took place in the semifinals where he downed Alec Pantaleo. Pantaleo has been a fixture on the freestyle circuit. Though he’s never made a world or Olympic Team, Pantaleo is regarded as one of the best wrestlers in the world at 70 kg. Because of the squeeze for Olympic weights, Pantaleo dropped to 65 kg and was a stiff test for Alirez. The first period didn’t have any memorable moments and Pantaleo led 1-0 at the break via a shot clock violation on Alirez. In a rare occurrence, Alirez was put on the shot clock again in the second and surrendered a second point. Shortly after, Pantaleo would pick up another point for a step out. Alirez didn’t appear to be happy with the call and took his frustrations out on the former Michigan star. Alirez got in on a single leg and quickly converted for a takedown. Alirez continued to attack, down by a point, and got in on a single then switched a double for his second takedown and a 4-3 lead. This match was important because you saw Alirez come from behind late in the match against a quality, seasoned opponent. It also locked up a spot in the 2024 Olympic Team Trials. 3) Beau Bartlett (Penn State) - 2023 NCAA Semifinals We already mentioned earlier how the Lachlan McNeil win clinched All-American honors for Alirez. Next up was sixth-seeded Beau Bartlett, who was fresh off a win in tiebreakers over the third seed, Cole Matthews. Like Matthews, Bartlett tends to slow down his opponents and wrestles at a deliberate pace. That worked for the first minute of the opening period, and then Alirez was able to get his offense going with a sweep single that he elevated and eventually scored from. The second period saw Alirez gain an escape and stay offensive with a takedown from a low double. Early in the third stanza, Alirez was able to run his riding time over a minute, in addition to a 5-2 lead on the scoreboard. With a point added for riding time, Alirez would win 6-2. 2) Haji Aliyev (Azerbaijan) - 2023 Poland Open After winning the 2023 NCAA Title, Alirez took off the following year for an Olympic redshirt. His one international tournament during this year was an eventful one, the Ziolkowski Open also known as the Poland Open. There Alirez would meet his toughest competitor to date, three-time world champion and two-time Olympic medalist Haji Aliyev. Their match was actually Alirez’s first of the tournament. Right off the whistle, it was evident that Alirez wasn’t starstruck by his opponent’s incredible credentials. He immediately was in on a double leg and was initially stuffed by Aliyev; however, Alirez readjusted, got elevation and finished for four points. He quickly transitioned into a leg lace for another two points. Later in the first period, Alirez countered an Aliyev attack for a second takedown. Holding onto an 8-0 lead, Alirez almost ended the bout early in the second with a leg attack that Aliyev deftly nullified after a prolonged scramble. 8-0 was the final score after some half-hearted attempts from Aliyev in the final minute of the bout. Alirez would go on to win the tournament after downing former Duke star Josh Finesilver and receiving a forfeit in the finals. Alirez’s win showed he was not just good on the domestic level, he had the ability to beat anyone in the world and would be a factor at the 2024 Olympic Team Trials. 1) Real Woods (Iowa) - 2023 NCAA Finals It’s not a surprise that this one is number one on the list. It’s the match that capped off an undefeated 2022-23 campaign and made Alirez a national champion. It was a battle of unbeaten’s as top-seeded Real Woods also came into the finals without a loss after winning a Big Ten title. Late in the second period was the pivotal sequence. Woods was on top and had earned a pair of nearfall points via a tilt; however, Alirez rose to his feet and, without an escape being granted, worked from an overhook and tripped Woods to his back for a reversal and two back points. After the flurry, there was an extended break for a replay of the sequence. The review deemed that Alirez should have been given four back points, so his lead was now 6-2 with :24 remaining in the second period. Once again, while known for his freestyle prowess, Alirez was able to work on the mat to eliminate Woods’ riding time over :30 seconds to start the third period. Alirez was able to fend off a late charge from Woods and took the match, 6-4. After the win, the Greeley, Colorado native, Alirez, reiterated his belief in the Northern Colorado program and the coaching staff. He was Northern Colorado’s first national champion since 1969.

Spencer Lee finished his college career in 2023. Even though it did not end as he hoped, he still finished as a three-time champion. While he excelled in freestyle on the age-group levels, the number of injuries he dealt with during college somewhat dimmed what many thought would be his prospects for Senior-level world and Olympic titles. However, he has certainly rounded into form recently to both make the U.S. Olympic team and then qualify the weight for the upcoming Games. The following looks back on Lee’s statistical performance in freestyle since exhausting his collegiate eligibility in March 2023. Since moving to freestyle full-time, Lee has wrestled in five events and remained undefeated through 17 matches outside of forfeiting his way out of the 2023 U.S. Open after making the semifinals. Across these 17 matches, Lee has outscored his opposition 166 to 31. On a per-minute basis, he has averaged 3.23 points per minute while allowing his opponents to only score 0.60 per minute and thus has a resulting +2.63 point differential. Of the 17 matches, Lee was able to terminate 11 before the full six minutes. His quickest finish came at the recent Olympic Games qualifier where he stopped Morocco’s Ben Hachem Tarik in only 23 seconds. The former Iowa wrestler has an average mat time of 3:01 per match. With all the quick finishes and an average match time slightly over the length of a single period, it should be obvious that Lee has done the vast majority of his scoring in the first period. In the first period of these matches, Lee has outscored his opponents 147 to 12. Only five of his opponents scored against him in the first period and only one (China’s Wanhao Zou) managed to score more than two points in the first period. The second period has been a different story. Including only second periods, Lee has scored 19 points, while his opposition has scored 19. Looking at only the six matches that went the full six minutes, Lee outscored his opposition 41 to seven in the first period but was outscored 17 to 11 in the second. Regardless of style, the ability to score on the mat is really what separates Lee from the field. Of his 166 points, only 64 points were scored via takedowns and another six came via stepouts. In par terre, Lee has scored a whopping 94 points. The majority of his par terre points have come off his gut wrench (54), while he has also added 34 points via the leg lace. While Lee scores the biggest share of his points on the ground, the reverse is true when it comes to his defense. Of the 31 points he has allowed, 14 came off takedowns, five came off stepouts and he was exposed in the neutral position for four points. He has only allowed his opponents to score six points in par terre with all six coming off counters or scrambles. Despite going basically undefeated, the road has not been easy for Lee. His toughest match was likely his 10-9 victory over Wanhao Zou of China. The bout came in the second round of the World Olympic Games Qualifier. In the match, Zou scored the first takedown of the match and held a 6-1 lead after scoring a four-point double leg out of bounds. However, later in the period, Lee was able to score a takedown and follow it with three straight leg laces. He went to the break up 10-6 and held on for the 10-9 victory. Going into the qualifier many picked Iran’s Alireza Sarlak as Lee’s toughest potential opponent. However, after losing to Lee, Zou was able to work his way back through the repechage and earn the final qualification spot. In order to medal at the upcoming Games, Lee will likely need to pick up multiple wins against wrestlers on the level of Zou. Although the China representative did not place at the 2023 World Championships, his only two losses came against eventual silver medalist Rei Higuchi of Japan and bronze medalist Arsen Harutyunyan of Armenia. At the 2022 World Championships, Zou made the semifinals before dropping an 8-2 match against Thomas Gilman. He then finished fifth after dropping the bronze medal match against Zandanbudyn Zanabazar of Mongolia. With wins over Zou and Gilman as well as his prodigious ability to score on the mat, Lee is certainly in the driver’s seat for a medal at the upcoming Games. However, those victories were certainly not easy, and Lee will need to string together multiple wins over that type of wrestler to get it done. It is not a sure thing, and that's part of what makes wrestling in the Olympics so special.

Roseburg

Buford

Last week saw MatScouts release the final Big Board for the recruiting Class of 2024. Its release signifies the end is near for the current crop of high school seniors (and now perhaps graduates?), at least from a talent evaluation and rankings standpoint. Of course, InterMat’s recruiting rankings are in the works and nearly ready for release. That will officially turn the page and put the focus squarely on the Class of 2025 and beyond. Before we look past the Class of 2024, there was plenty to takeaway from the final Big Board. Some are obvious, but other items need more attention before realizing a trend. Below are plenty of items related to the 2024 Big Board and, in some cases, how it compares to past recruiting classes or interesting notes about a wrestler, state, or school. Luke Lilledahl finishes as the #1 overall recruit in the Class of 2024. This marks only the third time since Cael Sanderson has been at Penn State that the school has signed the #1 overall recruit. It’s also the first time since Mark Hall in 2016. The other two are Morgan McIntosh (2011) and David Taylor (2009). Additionally, they did get Greg Kerkvliet who was #1 in 2019 to transfer within the first year. Lilledahl is also the first wrestler from the state of Missouri to earn the #1 overall distinction during this modern era of recruiting (2005-present). Speaking of Penn State, the Nittany Lions have five of the top-15 recruits. The last time a school had that many, highly-regarded recruits was in 2018 when they had six of the top-22 recruits. Most notably, #2 Aaron Brooks and #12 Roman Bravo-Young. For the second straight year, Oklahoma State has signed the #2 overall prospect and both are upperweights. This year it’s Cody Merrill - last year it was Christian Carroll. Aeoden Sinclair is the highest-ranked signee for the University of Missouri during this modern era of recruiting. He comes in at #3 in the Class of 2024. Keegan O’Toole and J’den Cox were both #5 in their respective recruiting classes. Penn State has two of the top-five recruits (Lilledahl and Connor Mirasola). Over the past ten years, the Nittany Lions have signed ten top-five recruits. That actually ranks second during that period of time to Ohio State who has 11. In a stunning development, the first wrestler on the Big Board to appear from New Jersey is Lou Cerchio at #56. During this modern era of recruiting rankings, this is the first time that there is no New Jersey native among the top-50. The State of Wisconsin had three top-ten recruits this year (Sinclair, Connor Mirasola, and Koy Hopke). In the ten years prior, they only had one other top-ten recruit (O’Toole). Though he went to high school in Pennsylvania at Wyoming Seminary, Joseph Sealey is only the third wrestler from North Carolina to be deemed a top-50 recruit from that state in the modern era. He joins Quincy Monday (#40/2018) and Eloheim Palma (#39/2009). For the first time, Stanford has signed a pair of top-20 recruits. #11 Aden Valencia and #18 Colin Guffey. The school’s only other comparable class was in 2018 with #19 Shane Griffith and #21 Real Woods. Hopke is the first Minnesota recruit to earn a top-ten ranking since…fellow heavyweight Gable Steveson who was #1 in 2018. LJ Araujo finished the year ranked #13. He’s the highest-ranked recruit from North Dakota since #48 Jared Franek in 2018. Karson Tompkins was the #20 overall recruit and has committed to the Air Force Academy. He’s the second-highest-ranked recruit to sign with the Air Force in the modern era. Brooks Climmons, who was #19 in 2013, edges him out by one spot. West Virginia signed a pair of top-30 recruits (#25 Rune Lawrence and #28 Hoke Hogan) for the first time since 2015. That year the Mountaineers brought in #23 Keegan Moore and #25 Austin Myers. Rutgers has signed three top-35 recruits for the first time in the modern era (#26 Conner Harer, #32 Nate Blanchette, #34 Ayden Smith). They came close in 2019 with #6 JoJo Aragona, #26 Ryan Vulakh, and #43 Jackson Turley. Also that year, #34 Sammy Alvarez quickly transferred back to New Jersey after briefly appearing at NC State. Also, Blanchette is the highest-ranked recruit from Massachusetts since 2009 when Michigan signee Sean Boyle was also ranked #32. Eddie Neitenbach was one of the biggest risers in the last update of the Big Board. He went from unranked to #47. The Wyoming signee is the Cowboys first top-50 recruit since Zach Beard (#32) in the Class of 2013. Speaking of….the only wrestlers that went from unranked to the top-100 were Neitenbach, South Dakota State’s Quin Morgan (#49), North Carolina’s Collin Carrigan (#76), Edinboro’s Chris Vargo (#87), NC State’s Draegen Orine (#92), Northern Illinois’ Charles Curtis (#97) Conversely, the only recruit that went from top-100 to missing out on the Big Board was Iowa’s Dru Ayala who was formerly #86. Anders Thompson, a late addition to the Oklahoma recruiting class, comes in ranked #55. He’s the first top-100 recruit from Montana since #47 Parker Filius (Purdue) in 2017. Top 50 recruits by College 5: Penn State, Stanford 4: Rutgers 3: Ohio State 2: Arizona State, Illinois, Iowa State, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, West Virginia 1: Air Force, Bucknell, California Baptist, Cornell, Iowa, Lock Haven, Missouri, NC State, Nebraska, Purdue, South Dakota State, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, Wyoming Top 100 recruits by College 6: North Carolina, Penn State, Stanford 5: Missouri, NC State, Rutgers 4: Iowa State, Michigan, Oklahoma, Virginia Tech 3: Air Force, Cornell, Iowa, Ohio State, Penn, West Virginia 2: Arizona State, Illinois, Indiana, Lehigh, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, South Dakota State, Wyoming 1: Brown, Bucknell, California Baptist, Campbell, Edinboro, Lock Haven, Maryland, Michigan State, North Dakota State, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Purdue, SIU Edwardsville, Virginia, Wisconsin Top 100 recruits by State 18: Pennsylvania 13: California 8: Ohio, Oklahoma 7: Illinois 6: Wisconsin 4: Minnesota, New Jersey 3: Georgia, Michigan, Missouri 2: Arizona, Florida, Iowa, New York, North Carolina, Texas 1: Connecticut, Idaho, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, North Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia

Robbinsville

West Essex

Cherokee

Gooding

Last Friday brought us plenty of news relating to Penn State alums in the coaching world, now there’s more this week. Two-time NCAA champion and three-time national finalist Vincenzo Joseph will join North Carolina’s Tar Heel Wrestling Club as the head coach of the RTC. Joseph recently wrapped up his competitive career at the Olympic Trials where he was beaten in the opening round by Missouri alum Jarrett Jacques and forfeited out of the tournament. Joseph earned a spot at the Olympic Trials by defeating Yayha Thomas in the finals of the Last Chance Qualifier. The move to Chapel Hill reunites Joseph with Rob Koll who hired him for his first Stanford staff prior to the 2021-22 season. Joseph appeared to be done competing; however, he entered the 2022 US Open and advanced to the finals at 79 kg. At the 2022 World Team Trials, Joseph fell in an epic, three-match series to Chance Marsteller, who then went to Final X. After that showing at the Open and Trials, Joseph stepped away from coaching and moved to Arizona State to train with the Sunkist Kids. He would make the Open finals in 2023 - this time at 79 kg. Joseph caught the attention of the wrestling world at the 2017 NCAA Championships when he made the finals, as a redshirt freshman, and stunned two-time national champion Isaiah Martinez with a fall early in the third period. The two would meet in the 2018 national finals and Joseph prevailed again. Joseph was a senior in the 2019-20 season who had his final NCAA Tournament canceled at the onset of the COVID pandemic. During his career at Penn State, Joseph made three NCAA finals, three Big Ten finals, and amassed an 89-9 record. Throughout his freestyle and folkstyle career, Joseph proved to be one of the more exciting and dangerous wrestlers of his era. The Tar Heel Wrestling Club recently had a pair of its wrestlers compete at the Last Chance Qualifier for a trip to the 2024 Olympic Games. Neither Lachlan McNeil (Canada) nor Kizhan Clarke (Germany) was able to qualify; however, they have had success on the international stage. In addition to Joseph joining as the program's head coach, Dom Lajoie will also be added as the director and former UNC/Stanford wrestler Tyler Eischens will be a Senior level athlete with the club.

Not only is the coaching carousel moving at a rapid pace with excellent positions available, there are also plenty of very experienced coaches who are looking for a new home. Those high-quality coaches should make for more movement as they assume some of the open positions below or take an opening that doesn’t appear to be vacant to the public eye. Late Friday afternoon, a pair of notable hires were announced. Nick Lee will have an official position on the Penn State coaching staff and David Taylor’s collegiate teammate, Bryan Pearsall, will join his first staff at Oklahoma State as a recruiting coordinator. Last week saw Pearsall and former Penn staffmate, Mark Hall, assuming positions are technically not a part of the coaching staff. With that being said, we’ve included them in a separate area and will add new Director of Operations and such to that grouping. Pictured is Scottie Boykin who is officially a part of Mike Grey’s Cornell staff. Boykin spent the past two years as a volunteer assistant at the Air Force Academy. Being an upperweight, Boykin undoubtedly worked closely with two-time All-American Wyatt Hendrickson (who made news yesterday). Boykin also used to coach the Spartan Combat RTC out of Cornell and is highly thought of in Ithaca. He also served as a volunteer assistant at his alma mater, Chattanooga. Expect news to come out this week regarding both of Princeton’s hires. They have been signed and agreed upon, they are just pending a university background check. Offseason Coaching Movement Binghamton: Louie DePrez - Assistant Coach (Binghamton athlete) Brown: Micky Phillippi - Assistant Coach (Brown Director of Ops) Buffalo: Donnie Vinson - Head Coach (Cornell Associate Head Coach) Buffalo: Hunter Richard - Assistant Coach (Appalachian State Assistant Coach) Campbell: TJ Dudley - Assistant Coach (Brown Assistant Coach) Central Michigan: Ben Bennett (Central Michigan Associate Head Coach) Cornell: Scottie Boykin (Air Force Assistant Coach) Edinboro: AJ Schopp - Head Assistant Coach (Purdue Assistant Coach) NC State: Zack Esposito - Associate Head Coach (USOPTC) Oklahoma State: David Taylor - Head Coach (USAW Athlete) Oklahoma State: Thomas Gilman - Assistant Coach (USAW Athlete) Oklahoma State: Jimmy Kennedy - Associate Head Coach (Penn State Assistant Coach) Penn: Matt Valenti - Associate Head Coach (Penn athletic administration) Penn State: Nick Lee - Assistant Coach (NLWC athlete) Pittsburgh: Lou Rosselli - Assistant Coach Princeton: Cody Brewer - Head Assistant Coach (Virginia Tech Assistant Coach) Utah Valley: Adam Hall - Head Coach (NC State Associate Head Coach) Utah Valley: Andrew Hochstrasser - Unannounced Role (Utah Club Coach) Virginia Tech: Zach Tanelli - Associate Head Coach (Columbia Head Coach) Non-Coaching Roles Oklahoma: Mark Hall - Director of Operations (Penn Assistant Coach) Oklahoma State: Bryan Pearsall - Recruiting Coordinator (Penn Associate Head Coach) RTC's and Wrestling Clubs Tar Heel WC Head Coach: Vincenzo Joseph (SKWC Athlete) Tar Heel WC Director: Dom LaJoie Current Openings Air Force: Assistant Coach Appalachian State: Assistant Coach (x2) Army West Point: Assistant Coach Binghamton: Assistant Coach Buffalo: Assistant Coach Campbell: Assistant Coach Central Michigan: Assistant Coach Columbia: Head Coach Davidson: Assistant Coach Hofstra: Head Coach Navy: Assistant Coach Penn: Assistant Coach (x2) Princeton: Assistant Coach (x2) Purdue: Assistant Coach Stanford: Assistant Coach Utah Valley: Assistant Coach(es?) Wisconsin: Assistant Coach

Rockwall

Bixby

Bethel-Tate