Akron Firestone District Preview

Outlook:
It goes without saying that this is by far the toughest district- regardless of division.  Particularly treacherous are the 189, 103, and 152 lb. weights.  189 actually contains the top four ranked wrestlers, while #2, #3, and #4 all will be competing at Firestone at 103.    The consolations at 152 should be compelling as seven of the top 16 will be competing at Firestone for four state berths. 

Quarterfinals:
#5 Brian Dean vs. #9 Chris Romeo:  Dean pinned MIT champion Romeo in the finals of the C.I.T. and therefore must be favored.  Romeo wrestled #4 Stone very tough at Sectionals, however, and should not be counted out.  Both should qualify easily. 

#2 Jamey Srock vs. #4 Joe Knopick:  Srock has historically bounced back well from losses (see the Beast of the East where he won nine straight consolation bouts to place 3rd), which bodes well for him since he just got pinned by John Weakley in less than a minute.  Knopick, like Srock, is  a returning state placer (8th) and has an impressive 32-1 record, with the loss coming to #3 Bill Schindel 

Semifinals:
#2 Matt Walker vs. #6 Marco Caponi:  Walker is a legitimate state title contender and has to be the favorite here. Caponi is an undersized 215 with a lot of heart.  Winning the District crown will be key here- as the District Champion will be twice as likely to be in the opposite bracket as #1 ranked Ryan Nachtrab. 

#2 Jamey Srock vs. #3 Bill Schindel:  It’s safe to say that no wrestler faces a tougher road this weekend than Srock, who must go through the #4, #3, and #1 wrestlers in the state to capture the District Crown.  Then again, he went a much tougher road than that at Beast.  Schindel is a retuning 5th place finisher who beat Knopick 9-7.  His only in-state losses have been to guys ranked #1 (Weakley and Robertson), though both have been by lopsided margins.

Finals:
103: #4 Kyle Gilchrest vs. #2 Johnny Papesh:  These outstanding sophomores come in undefeated, Gilchrest at 38-0, Papesh at 37-0.  Returning state placewinner Papesh has not been challenged all year while Gilchrest’s only close match was a 6-4 win over Kyle Lang (#4 in Division I).  Papesh was thought to be a clearcut #2 choice at this weight, but Gilchest has put that into doubt by defeating 3rd ranked Cribari at sectionals last weekend 6-0.  Papesh will have to get by Cribari to make the finals.  The importance of winning the district cannot be overstated, as the district chance will be twice as likely to be in the opposite bracket from David Taylor at state.

112:  #4 Travis Bernard vs. #1 Dennis Roche: Bernard made liars out of Ohio Wrestling Site by dispatching Roche 7-2 in the sectional finals.  Bernard was 4th in the state at 112 last year while Roche was 3rd at 103.  Should Bernard defeat Roche again he would become the clear favorite to win state at this weight.

130: #3 Adam Kriwinsky vs. #4 Chase Skonieczny:  These two national-caliber wrestler will square off in what could be a state finals preview.  The talented Kriwinsky will be looking to avenge his loss from Ironman.  I think Skonieczny is slightly better on his feet, so a close, low-scoring bout would tend to favor him,  as it did at Ironman.  Kriwinsky may need to get his offense going from the top position- Gardella of Bedford Chanel showed that Skonieczny can be turned. 

152: #1 Josh Rohler vs. #3 Jared Kusar:  The powerful sophomore Kusar gave Rohler all he could handle in a 15-13 Sectional final.  Rohler beat Kusar 16-5 at Solon, so the question is whether Kusar has closed the gap or if this was just one of the inexplicable bad matches that Rohler has from time to time.  The bet here is that Rohler wins much easier this time.

189: #1 John Weakley vs. #2 Jamey Srock:  Jamey Srock is a very tough wrestler, yet you would know it when he wrestles Weakley.  In their first meeting, Weakley prevailed 9-4 with all of Srock’s points coming in the form of escapes.  In the Sectional finals, Weakley pinned him in 54 seconds.  There is no reason to expect a different result this time as it appears that Weakley has returned to form after a midseason funk.  Look for Weakley, Ohio’s most explosive wrestler, to put on a show. 

Projected Champions
103: Papesh
112: Roche
119: Stone
125: Keyes
130: Kriwinsky
135: Connelly
140: Teter
145: LaMancua
152: Rohler
160: Rella
171: Tripp
189: Weakley
215: Walker
285: Sharp

Goshen District Preview

Outlook:
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As Brian Brakeman might say, “the cupboard is bare.”  This district features the superb St. Paris Graham squad and little else.  Many weights have a Graham star and 15 other guys who will would stand little to no chance to place at state.  Regardless, here are the highlights of what you can expect.

The Amazing Zac Thomusseit-
You might remember Thomusseit as St. Paris Graham’s 103 from last year (a state placer at that).  Yes, that is really the same guy you now see at 160.  Here’s the story I have gotten from a very knowledgeable source:  Thomosseit grew a lot over off-season (obviously) but was still hoping to wrestle 119 this season.  When Aaron Hart elected to go 119 instead of 112, he found himself in a log-jam:  State Champions at 119 (Hart) and 125 (Jordan), a FILA Cadet National Champion (Boyd) at 130.  He therefore decided to wrestle 135 and competed there much of the season with success.  However, Joe Newland came back from injury and beat him in wrestle-offs.  140 was not an option with #1 ranked  Jake Kyle there, and evidently he could not beat (probably due to size) state ranked James Mannier or Josh Luster at 145 and 152.  So, he moved to the open spot, 160, and just took 2nd at his sectionals!  However, 160 the deepest weight at Goshen, so don’t plan on seeing Thomusseit in Columbus.

Quarterfinals:

130- #12 Matt Cozad vs. #14 Matt Cunningham:  Cozad has a very impressive record (28-2) but against a fairly weak schedule.  In the sectional finals he was defeated 8-4 by Stevenson, whom he defeated 8-1 earlier in the season.  A loss to Cunningham will most likely set the state for a “rubber match” between Cozad and Stevenson with a state birth on the line in the consolation semifinals (Stevenson is pretty much a guaranteed semifinal loser to #2 Coby Boyd).  This is of course presuming that Cozad can get past 38-5 Jeff Thompson in his first round match.  Cozad and Stevenson both lost in the heartbreaking consolation semi-finals round last year. Cunningham was a 2004 state qualifier but eliminated by Stevenson two rounds from qualification last year.

Semifinals:

103- #1 David Taylor vs. #5 Kyle Quickle: Taylor has already pinned Q103- #1 David Taylor         vs. #5 Kyle Quickle: Taylor has already pinned Quickle in the finals of GMVWA.  This is a highlighted match not so much because the outcome is in doubt as because it will be good to see Taylor’s amazing skills against a semi-competitive opponent.

215: Dustin Winters 42-0 vs. Nick Hess 43-0:  First, an explanation of how two wrestlers who are a combined 85-0 did not get ranked.  Winters I recall placing in my rankings, his name must have been inadvertently deleted while moving names around in my spreadsheet.  I would have had Winters at about #6.  As for Hess, there were several schools (mostly in Division III) in the state that I simply was unable to find results for- Hess’s school, Urbana, was one of those.  Interestingly, Brakeman rated Hess only #24.  It’s a safe bet that no 43-0 wrestler has ever gotten so little “love” from those producing rankings- I’m guessing Brakeman had the same difficulty (finding Urbana results).  Of course, the fact that you can’t find results for Urbana is because, with all due respect, they don’t exactly compete in major tournaments.  Nonetheless, Hess was a match from state last year and dominated his Sectional so he may be for real. 

 Finals:
171: #4 David Thompson vs. #5 Cody Van Buskirk:  After many close losses to Thompson, Van Buskirk finally defeated him at Sectionals by a 3-2 count.   Despite their rankings, either of these wrestlers could be state champion- should the hot-and-cold Jeremy Foster of Eastwood falter, the next 4-5 guys are all about equal.  Both of these wrestlers are returning state placers, with Thompson being a 2x state placewinner. 

Projected Champions
103: Taylor
112: Penny
119: Hart
125: Jordan
130: Boyd
135: Morrison
140: Kyle
145: Mannier
152: Egan
160: Ray
171: Thompson
189: Blakely
215: Winters
285: Davis

Ontario District Preview

Outlook:

A tough district with Eastwood and Clyde leading the way.  The toughest weight by far is 145 lbs. where four of the top seven in the state will come of this district:   Friery, Michaels, Tank, and Cubberly.  Friery is the defending state champion and Michaels is 32-0.  Friery defaulted his sectional finals match with an injury.  As a result, one of these four stellar wrestlers will not be going to state.  At this time, the seriousness of Friery’s injury is unknown. 

Quarterfinals:

112- #3 Adam Tinnel vs. #5 Rudy Corpus: Corpus has quietly amassed a 38-3 record with very little fanfare (he is actually unranked in the Brakeman report).  Among his wins is an 8-1 triumph over Jack Lichtenberg (#6 in Division I).  Tinnel has transferred from Edison where he was the Division III runner-up at 119 lbs.  Look for Tinnel’s tough schedule to make the difference. 

Semifinals:

145: #6 Kirk Tank versus #7 Eric Cubberly: Outstanding sophomores Kirk Tank or Eric Cubberly meet in what could be the beginning of a great rivalry.  Ironically, what they should really do to ensure qualification is forfeit their quarterfinal matches.  Before you think that Ohio Wrestling Site has lost their mind hear us out.  Tank and Cubberly are a virtual toss-up.  However, the loser will be a decided underdog against either state champ Friery or the unbeaten Michaels in the consolation semis.  Thus, the loser of this match will almost certainly not qualify- provided Friery is healthy.  However, by forfeiting their quarterfinal match, they would end up with one of four unranked wrestlers in the go-to-state match- a scenario in which they would be almost a slam-dunk for qualification.  Would you want to wrestle a state champ/undefeated wrestler in your go-to-state match or an unranked guy?

Finals:

135:  Ryan Cubberly versus Pat McLemore: This match will almost certainly be a preview of what is one of the most widely anticipated state finals- McLemore versus Cubberly.  McLemore was state champion at 103 as a freshman in dominating fashion- but has not been back on the podium since.  He was considered a possible state favorite last year but was injured before the tournaments.  Cubberly has twice been state runner-up to 3x State Champion Cameron Doggett.  Both of these wrestlers are exceptional mat wrestlers- this one is really too close to call.

171: #1 Jeremy Foster versus #3 Cody Magrum:  Here we have another great glimpse into the future, with rare elite sophomore upperweights meeting in the finals.  Both competitors have been on the fast-track to success for years- both were junior high state champions, and then rare middle/upperweight state placewinners as freshman.  Foster got off to a rocky start at 160 and then struggled at Brecksville at 171, but has been superb since, dominating David Thompson and Travis Popham, pinning Dustin Kilgore, and suffering only a close loss to Brian Roddy.  Foster seem to live for the big match and is very dangerous- look for him to take this one and ride the momentum to a state title. In a weight class with approximately six equal wrestlers, coming out as District Champ will be pivotal for the state tournament. 

Projected Champions

103: Roly Corpus
112: Adam Tinnel
119: Jeffrey Pelton
125: Travis Salyer
130: Danny Michaels
135: Ryan Cubberly
140: Tim Putnam
145: Robbie Michaels
152: Pat Archer
160: Kyle Baker
171: Jeremy Foster
189: Zach McGrain
215:  Ryan Nachtrab
285:  Matt Guhn

                                    Watkins Memorial District Preview

Outlook:

In Division II there are two very strong districts (Firestone in particular) and two weaker ones.  This would fall in the latter category, though it is much better than Goshen. 

Quarterfinals:

#2 Jimmy Bowersock vs. #5 John Nicolozakes:  OVAC champ Bowersock put his name on the map by taking defending state champ Matt Guhn into double overtime at Lorain Southview.  However, he is coming out of his sectionals as a 4th place finisher.   Nicolozakes of Cambridge has seemingly rebounded from a poor showing at the OVAC by winning his sectionals.  However, should he lose here he would likely face Eric Diagosta in his go-to-state bout, a wrestler who defeated him soundly at OVAC. 

Semifinals:

#2 David Bowman vs. #6 Kyle Henry:  Bowman looks a lot more beatable than when we compiled the rankings, since he was beaten at Olentangy by the #14 wrestler in Division III, Corey Braden.  Winning this District is extremely important- since the there is only a 33% chance the champ will be in the same half-bracket as Dave Rella (a virtually unwinnable match)- as compared to a 67% chance for a 2nd or 3rd place finisher. 

#4 Matt Manful vs. #5 Matt McGovern:  Returning state qualifier Manful has the edge after a brilliant season that has seen him win by major decision over #3 in Division I Michael Lybarger, among other achievements.  Manful also lost by a point to state champion Llanas.  Junior Matt McGovern (5th at state at 119 last year) has had a good season, but seems to come up a little short against wrestlers at Manful’s level.  Regardless, these two are by far the class of the District at this weight. 

Finals:

135:  #3 Chris Andrews vs. #7 Brad Tanzillo:  Returning Division III state runner-up Andrews is a strong favorite here given that he beat Tanzillo 6-1 at Medina.  However, state qualifier Tanzillo is as dangerous a wrestler as you will find- with a very high percentage of pins- so Tanzillo pulling off the upset would hardly be shocking.

152:  #1 Colt Sponseller vs. #5 Bret Terry:  Simply put, the non-stop Sponseller puts on a show out on the mat and may be the top senior in Ohio next season (along with Nemec).  Bret Terry is already a 3x state qualifier who placed 4th as a sophomore but he the best case scenario for him here will be to hold Sponseller to a decision. 

Projected Champions
103: McClure
112: Vaughn
119: Morton
125: Manful
130: Saxton
135: Andrew
140: Fisher
145: Schuller
152: Sponseller
160: Bowman
171: Neptune
189: Knapp
215: Meyer
285: Hiles

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