Challenging the King: Wadsworth and Massillon Perry look to Seize the Division I Throne from St. Edward this Weekend

(above): The success of Brad Squire's quest to unseat 3x state champion Collin Palmer is the single biggest key to Wadsworth's Team Chances this weekend. Photo Credit: Bob Tuneburg, Villager News

The Eagles of St. Edward have had as tight of a grip on the Division I Throne as a team possible could for this entire decade.  Quite literally, in four of the nine years they have doubled the score of the second place team.  They have never been seriously challenged in the state tournament team race.

Until now.  The superb squad from Wadsworth threw down the gauntlet to the Eagles by defeating them at the state duals on the Grizzlies’ gym floor back in January, and for good measure, they did it again in February at St. Edward High School.  The general consensus has long been that Wadsworth- with few if any weak spots in their lineup, was a dual meet team, while St. Edward their other major challenger, Massillon Perry, were tournament teams as they had more wrestlers who could be state finalists and thus generate a lot of points in Columbus.  However, that equation may have been thrown into doubt by the rise of several Wadsworth wrestlers to an entirely new level over the course of the season.  Casualties of the Incredibly tough Massillon Perry District Tournament hurt both Perry and Wadsworth, as did the broken hand of one of the Grizzlies’ key starters.

A breakdown of each team’s title chances:

103 LBS ANALYSIS

Here, neither St. Edward, Perry, or Wadsworth managed to qualify their 103.  This was perhaps the toughest blow to the Grizzlies’ chances.  While Gray managed just 5th place, the Massillon Perry District was in truth as tough as the state tournament will be.  Should he have qualified, it’s absolutely likely that he would have grabbed a low or even middle place at the Schott- in essence, it’s about an 8-10 point loss for Wadsworth.

112 LBS ANALYSIS

Perhaps no weight will be more crucial to the team standings than this one.  For the first half of the season, Gus Sako of St. Edward seemed to be the “almost” wrestler, losing by a point or two to every top wrestler he faced, but losing nonetheless.  After a loss to Kagan Squire that decided the team winner at state duals, something clicked, and victories followed over Beast Champ Evan Silver (who many felt was the nation’s best 112 at that point), a very tough Isaac Jordan of Graham, and Squire in the second dual between these teams.  So, it seems that he’s learned to win the close ones, despite recently losing to an “en fuego” Jerome Robinson for the second time.

I really like Kagan Squire.  With his great defense, ability to scramble, and superb mat wrestling, he established himself as a state title contender from the first week of the season.  Despite his recent surprise loss to Leslie Polley- I think he could be the champ in what is surely one of toughest weight classes in Ohio.  Sako and Squire is really too close to call, but with the dual meet riding on their match before, Squire got the victory and I think he will do so again (but it’s like a 51% chance in my mind).  This assumes he gets past a very tough Jake Martin, the tough frosh from St. Francis Desales who upset him at Junior High State last year.

Should Squire advance to the finals, he will mostly likely meet Robinson.  Robinson has to be the favorite here, though a kernel of doubt resides in my mind.  Since losing to Hunter Stieber at Brecksville in a match where he got the only takedown, Robinson has been absolutely on fire, beating Sako 9-6, and winning by technical fall over the very tough trio of Inchaurregui, Romanchik, and Martin.  He finally seems to have regained the form he showed freshman year.  That being said, I’ve noted that Jerome Robinson is prone to making mental errors in close, low-scoring bouts, and that has cost him in the past.  Against Squire, he will be forced to wrestle this style of bout, and Squire is certainly adept at capitalizing on mistakes.  However, given just how red-hot Robinson has been- and his 4-3 victory of Squire at Ironman- he must be the choice.

Projected Placements: Squire (Wadsworth) 2nd, Sako (St. Edward) 3rd 

Projected Points: Wadsworth: 19  St. Edward: 17

(above): Look for Jamie Clark of St. Edward to dominate all comers this weekend. Photo Credit: Bob Tuneburg, Villager News

119 LBS ANALYSIS

Here the St. Edward Eagles roll out one of Ohio’s best regardless of weight in Jamie Clark.  Considered by many the nation’s best 119, Clark’s relentless attacks have overwhelmed opponent after opponent.  Only twice this year has Clark failed to score bonus points, and I look for bonus in every round this weekend.

The performances of Gray of Wadsworth and Hannon of Perry will be absolutely crucial to their team’s chances.  In a weight with so much parity, on the right weekend either could place as high as 3rd, or not at all.  The raw athleticism of Gray impresses me, and I look for him to do particularly well.   Gray faces 2x state placer Farber in the first round (whom he has already beaten).  He then runs head first into Clark in the quarters.  After bouncing to the consis, Gray is an almost guaranteed placer, as he is likely to face either unranked Bauer of Western Brown or #19 Alex Marzec. In the consolation quarters, Gray projects to have Dan McNulty of Mayfield.  McNulty placed 5th last year, but looking at this year’s results Gray seems to have a slight edge, and Gray did beat him head-to-head last year 7-2.  If not McNulty, he could face Sean Jordan of Teays Valley. Jordan comes in at 45-1, albeit with a soft schedule.  His series with a solid but unspectacular Jay Kunzi (lost by fall, won 11-8) doesn’t lead me to believe he can beat Gray. That would put Gray into the consolation semis, where he projects to face Nick McSorley, who also comes in with a sparkling 34-1 record albeit against weak competition like Jordan.  Still, McSorley was dynamite at Districts and I am giving him the edge here. 

Nick Hannan of Perry faces Jacob Corrill of Moeller in the first round, against whom he has previously lost two close bouts.  I think he loses again here though a victory is possible.  He looks to have a relatively easy road to state placement in the consolations (though he should have to beat Kunzi), a road which will get tougher when he meets 2x state placer Jake Farber in the consolation quarters.  I look for Hannan to have the slightest of edges there, but then he should face Corrill again, since Corrill will have Clark in the semis.  That would pit Hannan against Gray in what could be the most important 5th place match of the day.

Projected Placements: Clark 1st, Gray 5th, Hannan 6th

Projected Points: St. Edward: 29, Wadsworth: 10  Massillon Perry 6

(above): Look for Sam White of Massillon Perry- Shown here against Zach Neibert of Graham at Ironman- to win his second state title in convincing fashion. Photo Credit: Bob Tuneburg, Villager News

125 LBS ANALYSIS

Big Edge to Perry here, where 2007 state champ Sam White has established himself as one of the Ohio’s top five seniors.   With long-time archrival Jamie Clark at 119, there is nobody who stands much of a chance of unseating White- even in this great field- though I look for several of his matches to be somewhat close perhaps on the scoreboard if not in the action. 

Jon Cobos of St. Edward has seemingly had an up-and-down career that at times has been plagued by injury.  His first round match is the same last year’s, against Cody Shivener of Springboro.  Last year, Cobos shellacked Shivener 9-3 in a result that stunned me.  I do not look for a repeat of history- the sophomore Shivener has been brilliant for his entire career with the exception of the state tournament last year.  Assuming Cobos loses there, he projects to face Michael Carlone (not to be confused with Michael Corleone), and he should be a slight favorite in that match.  His placement match, then, should be against Tyler Dalton of Barberton.  Dalton has been tough as nails since dropping to 125, and I look for him to upend Cobos though the edge is very slight if any.  Should he win that one, it would not be good for the chances of Perry or Wadsworth, as Cobos could win his next one as well and break into that top six. His next opponent would likely be Drew Hammer of Moeller.  Cobos and Hammer have split this year.

Besides 103, this is the second weight which really hurt Wadsworth.  Sophomore Clay Wenger almost certainly would have gotten out of Perry, and whether I plug him into the second or third or even 4th spot from that District I see him placing. Unfortunately for both him and his team’s chances, Wenger suffered a broken hand late in the season.

Projected Placements: Sam White-1st, Jon Cobos-1-2

Projected Points: Perry 26.5, St. Edward 1.

130 LBS ANALYSIS:  

All year long, this has been one of the most key weights to the state race.  St. Edward and Perry are represented by two of Ohio’s best freshmen, while Wadsworth lost a senior former state place-winner to the Perry District in Danny Foore.

At the end of the day, the edge must go to Perry here I think. I have been very impressed with the tenacity of Zach Dailey all year, particularly this Saturday in watching him rally from a 4-0 deficit to defeat Matt Meuer of Medina for the second time this season.  I’d be very surprised not to see a state title or two from him before his career is over.  As a District Champ, Dailey received a great draw.  He should roll in his first round match, and then meet underrated #16 Ryan Hoyt.  Dailey should prevail there, at which time his run will come to an end when he meets Shawn Fayette of Miamisburg- a state runner-up who has arguably become one of Ohio’s top five juniors.  After losing that one, Dailey should have Ty Davis of Lakota West, whom I also think has the edge over him (though a victory is possible)  I look for him to face #6 Ben Welsh in the 5th place match, and while he could certainly win, I give Welsh the slightest of edges. Dailey cracking the top four would be huge for Perry’s title chances.

I really like Matt Van Curen of St. Edward as well, and like Dailey, it’s tough to not see him capturing a state title someday.  Van Curen has a much tougher road to placement, as he faces Fayette in the quarters, and assuming he loses that match he is cross-bracketed into one of the toughest quarter-brackets in the state (it contains the #3, the #5, and #6 ranked wrestlers, plus Ty Davis who is underrated at #8). I look for Van Curen to face Welsh in the placement match (though it could be Davis as well) and his season to come to an end at that point.  Should he win, he next faces Ryan Hoyt and could end up as high as 5th.

Projected Placements: Zach Dailey 6th, Matt Van Curen 1-2

Projected Points: Massillon Perry- 7  St. Edward- 2

135 LBS ANALYSIS:

It’s tough to go against Anthony Salupo after the season he’s had.  Especially if going against Salupo means going in favor of Scott Mattingly, who has frankly had a disappointing Senior Season to date (by his standards, that is).  While Salupo has rose to every challenge- beating Mattingly (6-3), Jordan Thome (9-8), Matt Stephens (8-4), Loudon Gordon (twice) and most impressively, Austin Ornsbee of Blair (10-4), my feeling is that he’s due to hit a slump and it could happen this weekend at the Schott.  Meanwhile, Scott Mattingly has underperformed at every juncture, but somehow that’s just making me think that he’s due for a great weekend.  Mattingly also has history on his side in that he has historically put together his best performance of the year in Columbus.  His sophomore year he took 4th in a loaded weight, and last year he finished 3rd, with a win over Harger, a win over Dan Genetin, a 7-1 win over Salupo, and only an 11-9 loss to state champ Tommy Pretty.  He also leads the series against Salupo 2-1, though Salupo seems to be competing at an entirely different level this season.

Mattingly knocking off Salupo in the quarters is absolutely key to Wadsworth’s chances of unseating them.  It may sound crazy to say that a guy with ten losses- who took 4th place in his own Sectional- can make the finals, but that is exactly what I see happening.  It begins to look just a bit less crazy when you consider that the wrestler (Loudon Gordon) beat two former state 3rd place finishers this weekend.  A great scrambler with outstanding athleticism, Gordon’s issue is consistency- among his less impressive showings is an 11-4 loss to Paul Funk of Nordonia- so hey may be the linchpin of the Wadsworth team- this wrestler could just as easily fail to place as he could win the whole thing.  However, if he’s “on” he stands at least a 50% chance to win against either Gallagher or Yetzer in the quarterfinals and either Randy Languis, Joe Parra, or Yohe Rojas in a projected semi-final.

Hillock will be another linchpin of Perry’s chances as well.  The former state place-winner has turned it up in the second half, and I can see him doing as well as top four, but more likely, I see him failing to place with a difficult draw.  I think that Hillock emerges from a first round battle with 3x state qualifier Chad Channel, but from there, he meets 2007 state place-winner Robert Shepherd of Mason.  Shepherd’s career and Hillock’s are oddly parallel: both were surprise state place-winners in the very tough 112 lb. class of 2007, both failed to qualify for state the when they were expected to place the next year at 119, and both have moved all the way up to 135 this season.  Should Hillock win, it’s foreseeable to me that he could place as high as 4th, however, if pressed, I must think that Shepherd has the edge.  That would drop Hillock into a placement match where he would face the loser of Joe Parra and Randy Languis.  Hillock split with Parra at Perry, however, Parra has a history of turning it up when he needs to and I look for him to beat Languis in the first round. Languis has himself had an outstanding season and seems to improve by leaps and bounds every year.  I look for him to eliminate Hillock.

Projected Placements: Salupo- 3rd, Gordon- 2nd, Hillock 1-2

Projected Points: Wadsworth: 19   St. Edward: 17    Perry: 2

 140 LBS ANALYSIS:

This is one that you all know about. 3x state champion Collin Palmer and 2007 State Champion Brad Squire will almost certainly reach the finals and have the second meeting of their storied careers under circumstances that could not be any bigger.

Projected Placements:  Collin Palmer- 1st  Brad Squire- 2nd

Projected Points: St.Edward 28, Wadsworth 20

(above): Seth Horner repeating as state champion is a MUST if Perry is going to stay in the team race. Photo Credit: Bob Tuneburg, Villager News

145 LBS ANALYSIS:

A repeat by 2008 state champ by Seth Horner is perhaps the most crucial component in Perry’s chances.  Simply put, no Horner title= no team title for Perry, which comes in with only six wrestlers and thus less margin for error.  Frankly, while it’s not impossible, I don’t think he gets it done. For a defending state champ who won his District, his path to the finals his far from easy.  Horner faces 2008 state runner-up T.J. Rigel in the quarters.  Rigel has not performed at the level we saw last year, when he pinned or teched his way to the state finals and then lead Jameson for two periods, but make no mistake, this is not a good quarterfinal draw.  From there, Horner faces Kevin Drake of Upper Arlington. Drake may not be a household name to northeast Ohio fans, but he comes in with a 50-0 record as so far as I can tell, has yet to be pushed this year albeit against mediocre competition.  This is not someone who can be overlooked.  That said, I do expect to see Horner in the state finals, but I think that David Habat will have the slightest of edges here.  Habat has been untouchable since dropping to 145, and looking at common opponents, while Harger and Horner split two close bouts, Habat beat Harger by a convincing 9-5 tally.  I think that Habat is a little quicker and hungry for that first title.

Nate Ball is a wrestler that I’ve had a lot of opportunities to see compete this year.  One of the most improved wrestlers on this Grizzly squad, I think his future is bright, but this is not the year he reaches the podium.  He runs smack into 50-0 Drake in the first round, and from there is no lock to win his first round consolation bout against 3x state qualifier Trevor Nickolai.   I’ll take him in that one, but he projects to face Lou Greco in his placement round match.  Greco has previously handled him 4-0 and 5-2, and is just a little too strong and experienced I think.

Projected Placements: Seth Horner- 2nd   Nate Ball 1-2

Projected Points: Massillon Perry: 20  Wadsworth- 1

152 LBS ANALYSIS:

If Wadsworth or Perry is to knock off the Eagles, some help from Andrew Gasber would certainly come in handy.  You could not have a more blatant style contrast than Gasber- a go-for-broke type who is without question Ohio’s most dangerous wrestler- and the methodical Sulzer.  My feeling is that Sulzer has quietly become one of Ohio’s best wrestler- greatly improving the one area where he was perhaps lacking in the past- leg attacks from the neutral position.  Among his great wins this year are a 3-2 win over Demas, 5-3 over Habat in a match he controlled from start to finish, and 9-8 win over Junior National All-American Steve Monk of Wisconsin. At 152, his only blemish is a 4-2 Ironman Finals loss to Brandon Rolnick of New Jersey, one of the nation’s very best at this weight.  Sulzer is a wrestler that I have never seen give up the big move, and frankly, I think his style is too measured and methodical to do so- especially when he and the St. Edward staff know EXACTLY what is coming from Gasber.  That said, Gasber has an uncanny ability to put people on their backs in situations that mere mortals don’t even see an opening, so you never say never.  If it’s a close, low-scoring bout though- Nick Sulzer is your winner.  Of course, his work will be far from done at that point.  Josh Demas of Westerville North placed 2nd as a freshman and 3rd as a junior- the exact same as Sulzer- and has mentioned, their bout was 3-2 Sulzer last time.  I give the edge to Sulzer not only because he won last time but because he gets to wrestle these type of close bouts so much more frequently than Demas does.

Wadsworth counters with the surprising Sheldon Brandenburg.  I expected big things from Brandenburg at 140 this year, only to watch him falter from the outset and eventually get removed from the lineup when Squire returned at 140 and Nate Ball locked down 145. Reports then were that the cut to 140 was just too much for him- and certainly energy level appeared to be an issue- so perhaps it’s not surprising that his performance up two weights is dramatically better. Nevertheless, the odds of this sophomore placing are very low.  Brandenburg opens with Sulzer, and after that loss he should face the previously unranked Kyle Bryant of Piqua next.  I think that Brandenburg wins here, but a match-up with the loser of Kevin Campbell and Aron Brenner should spell the end for him.  Like Ball, placement by Brandenburg would be a pleasant surprise for the Grizzlies.

Projected Placements: Nick Sulzer 1st, Sheldon Brandenburg 1-2

Projected Points: St. Edward- 25, Wadsworth- 1

160 LBS ANALYSIS

Nobody qualified here for any team.   The loss of #7 Courtland Harrison at this weight was perhaps the biggest disappointment for Massillon Perry at Districts.  With Skoberne of Twinsburg knocking him out, and Labry of Twinsburg knocking out Alfredo Gray- it’s safe to say that Twinsburg is Greg Urbas’s favorite team (other than the Eagles, that is).

171 LBS ANALYSIS

Analysis: Nick Heflin looked like one of the most prohibitive favorites in Division I just a few weeks ago.  Then, Cody Lamberg of Kenmore dropped to 171, and following an 8-7 Heflin win a few weeks ago, it’s anybody’s guess who wins the next one.  If pressed, I must still take Heflin who in my opinion is among the top ten in the nation at this weight class, even if he’s not so recognized in the rankings.

Neither Wadsworth nor St. Edward qualified their wrestler here.

Projected Placements: Nick Heflin- 1st

Projected Points: Massillon Perry- 27

189 LBS ANALYSIS:

This will absolutely be one of the key weights of the tournament.  Rather than a headliner, all three teams have a second-tier wrestler here that is almost a 50/50 proposition to place or not place.

The move to 189 was not a good one for Mike Green in my opinion.  Green is a bit of a “plodder” so to speak, and it was my belief that his flat-footed style would not play well against the quicker opponents at 189 from the time I heard he was dropping.  That seems to be the case, as he has lost to every quality opponent he’s wrestled since dropping to 189- notably Ryan Smugala twice and Tyler Benton once. The problem seems to be a lack of ability to put points on the scoreboard at this weight- probably a result of the superior quickness of his opponents.

Caleb Busson of Wadsworth, in my opinion, offers the best chance of placement.  More athletic than a polished wrestler, the powerful and quick Busson seems to be getting better as the season progresses. In the first round, Busson faces returning state qualifier Ryan Smugala of Westlake in what might be termed a tossup.  If he wins, he should then lose in the quarters to 44-1 Kyle Sanders, and from there, he projects to face, of all people, Mike Green of St. Edward. I think he wins, and if he does, he’s likely to face the surprising Fred Robertson of Maple Heights in his consolation quarterfinals.  I think he wins again.  Even if Busson loses that first round match to Smugala, he could still place, however, as he would likely face Mike Lanigan of Brecksville in his placement match (against whom he’s won once in three very close bouts).

Andrew Phillips is a bit of a mystery to me.  A Junior High State Champ back in 2005, despite four years in the Perry program his skills have progressed very little. Every year, he seems to be a match away from state, and only a draw that allowed him to face an unranked wrestler in the go-to-state match may have saved him this year.   Every year during the season, he looks spectacular at times, and he seems to have all the physical tools.  So what’s missing remains a mystery to me.  I think he has the talent to be top four here in my opinion, but there is something holding him back.  I look for him to lose in the first round to probably champ Greg Isley, win his next match against Bailey of Groveport Madison, and then he should face Robertson of Maple Heights, who beat him for 3rd at Districts.  Odds are, that will be the final match of his career. If he can perform to his potential, he can single-handedly shake up the team race.

Projected Placements: Busson 6th, Green- 1-2, Phillips 1-2.

Projected Points: Wadsworth- 7 St. Edward-1  Massillon Perry- 1

215 LBS ANALYSIS:

I think that those who count out Wadsworth underestimate how much Nick Tavanello has progressed since December.  Case in point- in December, he was pinned by Tyler Houska (ranked #1 in Division II), in February, he loses to him 4-3.  In December and January he wins close bouts with Mike Green, in February, he nearly majors him. This kind of improvement is exactly what you might expect from a freshman phenom who is actually getting pushed regularly for the first time (pretty sure that not many could hang with him in the junior high wrestling scene).  I think that Tavanello has the strength, speed, and attacker mentality that reminds me of a young Luke Fickell- and fans who saw Fickell know there is no greater compliment for a big man. The one question mark remains his size- Tavanello reportedly weighs about 205, so some believe that he may be simply out-horsed by some of the bigger 215’s.  I am not in that camp, as I think his superior speed and hunger to compete will more than offset that.  Plus, it’s a “good” 205 lbs., not a sloppy 220.  

Tavanello’s first round opponent, Cody Smith, returns from a season in which he finished 3rd in the state- which is not too shabby when first and second are Scales and Cogar.  However, reports before the season were that he may not wrestle this year, and his underachievement throughout the season reflects that maybe he has lost the desire to compete. Given that he has defaulted or forfeited  the finals for three weeks in a row, I have to think that some sort of injury may be playing a role.  All in all, while this isn’t exactly the draw Wadsworth wanted for their young District Champion, I think that Tavanello pulls it out.  He should then win against likely quarterfinal opponent Roman Lawson of Shaker Heights, setting up a match against 44-0 Seth “The Lumberjack” Nelson. If anyone is the bigger 215 who is expected to give Tavanello trouble, it’s Nelson.  Nevertheless, I’m picking Tavanello (in a true tossup) to get it done and make the finals where he will lose to Orlando Scales, currently ranked #1 in the nation.

Projected Placements: Nick Tavanello- 2nd

Projected Points: Wadsworth- 18

285 LBS ANALYSIS:

A weight like this just shows why St. Edward should not order those rings just yet.  Ben Buzzelli of Wadsworth was 4th a year ago and seems vastly improved- but so is his competition.  Just this weekend, he beat nationally-ranked Jeremy Johnson for the first time in four matches this season (first time this year, but last year he pinned Johnson once and also beat him 1-0). Realistically, he could win the whole damn thing, or he could fail to place.

Against my better judgment, I will attempt to forecast this bracket. Buzzelli has a very tough fist round draw for a District Champ in Zach Laird of Olmsted Falls. While Laird fell to 4th place in the District- losing to #1 Meder and to #8 Gladstone despite beating him twice previously- he has many great wins this year, including one over Josh Jackson (ranked #1 in an admitted abysmal Division II class). If he should falter in that one, he would project to having a terrible cross-bracket in his placement round match- the loser of Jeremy Johnson and Paul Caldwell. Caldwell didn’t show me much last year, but seems to be an entirely new wrestler this year, most recently winning Districts over returning state 3rd Jordan Beverly and returning runner-up Adam Walls.   Presuming Buzzelli wins the first round- and I think he will- he next faces the aforementioned Jordan Beverly, who checks in at a mere 44-1 following a season in which he finished 3rd at state.  A week ago at this time, Beverly looked like the second coming of Alexander Medved- winning against almost everyone that I’ve seen via first period fall, including many state ranked wrestlers.  Then, he won 9-0 against state runner-up and 3x placer Adam Walls. So, his loss to Paul Caldwell by fall last week is completely unexplainable, but it does indicate that he’s beatable. Nevertheless, you have to go with Beverly given that he pinned Buzzelli at state (for third place) a year ago.  In his next two matches, Walls should face Gladstone and Brooks, two solid wrestlers but guys Buzzelli is expected to beat.  That would put him in the consolation semi-finals, where his projected opponent would be Adam Walls (or it could be Johnson for that matter).  Walls would have been heavily favored a year ago, but in the immortal words of Bill Belicheck “his skills have diminished.”  Among the lackluster performances by Walls- who should become the first four-time state placewinner at heavyweight this weekend- are losses to Josh Morosko and Paul Caldwell, and the loss by major decision to Beverly, plus overtime wins over the 16th and 26th ranked wrestlers.  All of these results would have been unthinkable a year ago, so I think that Buzzelli wins here before losing to Beverly yet again for 3rd.

Projected Placements: Ben Buzzelli- 4th.

Projected Points: Wadsworth-12

Final Projected Team Scores:
St. Edward: 120
Wadsworth: 107
Massillon Perry: 104.5

Analysis- It seems that unseating the Eagles this year is going to be a tall order for either Perry or Wadsworth.  The single biggest thing that could happen to change things would be a Squire upset of Collin Palmer, but that seems to be less than a 10% chance of that occurring in my opinion.  Such an upset would be a 12-point swing and  draw St. Edward and Wadsworth virtually even. Almost as huge would be Nick Sulzer losing to Andrew Gasber.  However, even should these things occur, either Sako or Salupo could capture a title rather than taking 3rd as I’ve projected here, and Van Curen could place. 

At the end of the day for Wadsworth, they’ve got nine going to Columbus, but it’s not the right nine. I’d like the chances of Alfredo Gray, Clay Wenger, or maybe even Danny Foore of getting on the podium better than sophomore middleweights Brandenburg or Ball, quality young wrestlers who are competing in very tough weight classes.  And many of their points I’ve projected are far from a done deal, such as Gordon, Kagan Squire, and Tavanello in the finals.  A title from K.Squire, or a surprising-but-not-impossible title from Gordon or Buzzelli would certainly improve their outlook greatly.

With Perry, once again, losing Wise, Foster, and Harrison at the District level probably doomed their chances.  White is a lock, Heflin a guaranteed finalist and likely champ.  A Horner state title would be huge, as would Andrew Phillips performing up to his potential and grabbing a placement.  Hannon and Dailey could move up a bit in weight classes with great parity- but they could just as easily fail to place.

In summary, the Eagles of St. Edward are once again in the Driver’s Seat, but there is definitely a reason to following the team standings very closely for the first time this decade!

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- OhioWrestlingSite.com