The Winds of Change: Graham remains ranked #1 But……Little Else Remains the Same- Division II Team Projections

Rewind to 2001.  That year, St. Paris Graham knocked perennial champion Cuyahoga Falls Walsh Jesuit out of the #1 spot.  They have never looked back. Under the guidance of former 4x state champion and 2x NCAA All-American Jeff Jordan (himself a former Graham wrestler), Graham has won six straight state team titles.  Walsh Jesuit, meanwhile, finished 2nd three times and 3rd twice from 2001-2005 before fading in 2006.  Eastwood emerged as a challenger last year, though Graham beat back that challenge in convincing fashion. 

Fast-forward to 2006- in Division II, St. Paris Graham will have no challenger.
Like in Division I, the real race will be for 2nd place.  There is a clear “2nd tier” consisting of four nearly equal teams this season, with all other teams in the state a considerable distance behind the new top five, at least on paper.  What’s interesting is that this year represents a true “changing of the guard” from last season, in that the three of the those top five teams finished 8th, 11th, and 12th last year, while last year’s #3 and #4 teams will not begin this season in the top ten.  Ohio Wrestling Site’s picks: 

#1 St. Paris Graham:

Last season, Graham responded to the challenge of Eastwood be outdistancing them at the state tournament 152.5-101.5.  No team will come nearly that close to Graham this year.  When the individual rankings come out, St. Paris Graham will have a wrestler ranked in the top eight in every weight class except 189 and 215, with as many as four wrestlers ranked #1.  There isn’t a better team in the nation below 145 lbs.

Leading the way will be three wrestlers, David Taylor, Ben Jordan, and Coby Boyd.  David Taylor is is without question one of the top two 103’s in the nation (along with Logan Stieber of Monroeville High School.  Last year, Taylor won the Ironman and Beast of the East tournaments despite being greatly outsized by his opposition.  His performances were truly a tribute to his outstanding technique, and perhaps even more to his relentless pursuit of victory.  Taylor’s opponents literally don’t have a single moment to rest in their matches.  Taylor got even better  as the year went on, capped off by a state tournament performance which saw him take apart the outstanding trio of Dominic Cribari (amazing technical fall in about three minutes), Johnny Papesh (fall), and the unbeaten Kyle Gilchrest (9-3).  This year, Taylor will be a full 103 rather than giving up approximately ten pounds to his opponents.  It will be a surprise if anyone in Division II can go the full six minutes against him.

Ben Jordan is halfway to doing what his father and uncle did: win four state titles.  As solid technically on his feet as anyone in the state, Jordan appears to be almost a “lock” for his 3rd state title unless he ends up in the same weight class as Walsh Jesuit’s 2x state placewinner Chase Skonieczny, in which case he would be only the slight favorite (Jordan defeated Skonieczny to win junior high states in 2004).   Jordan has perhaps not gotten his due, mainly because he lacks the flashiness of some competitors and does not compete in “Fargo” in the off-season.  However, the way he handled Quentin Keyes in two separate bouts (the first time with offense, the second time with defense), and also defeated junior national freestyle champion Kellen Russell handily at Ironman shows, in my view, that Jordan can run with anyone in the nation.

Coby Boyd is expected to jump up to 140 lbs. this season after wrestling 130 the past two years.  Boyd is already a two-time state placewinner heading into his junior year.  Last year he was a controversial call away from the state finals as he fell to former state champion and 3x state finalist Adam Kriwinsky in the semis.  He then handled Chase Skonieczny for the 2nd time in as many meetings.  On paper, only one wrestler appears to be a serious threat to Boyd: state runner-up Chris Andrews of New Albany (should he compete at 140).

Perhaps the biggest story for Graham was the two outstanding transfers they picked up.  Brian Stephens transferred in from Piqua, where he placed 5th in the state in 2006. Stephens would go on to place 5th at Cadet National Freestyle, defeating several state champions and highly regarded national competitors along the way.  Should he make 119, he will be the favorite. Almost as good of a pickup was Zach Neibert of Beavercreek.  Neibert finished 6th in Division I at 103 as a freshman and also had a very good showing in “Fargo”, very nearly making All-American status.  Neibert is expected to compete at 112.  The flipside of that was Graham lost Cody Smith, a state qualifier as a 189 lbs. freshman.  Smith will now be at Beavercreek.
 
Coach Jordan has indicated that Graham’s 2006-2007 lineup remains uncertain, but the best guess at this time appears to be.

103- David Taylor
112- Zach Neibert
119- Brian Stephens/Cordell Longstreath
125- Longstreath/Stephens
130- Ben Jordan
135- Joe Newland
140- Coby Boyd
145- James Mannier
152- Zac Thomusseit
160- Josh Luster
171- David Thompson
189- Ivan Vest/Logan White
215- ???
275- Adam Wall

Nine wrestlers in that lineup have placed at state.  The 145-160 range remains somewhat murky at this point in terms of which wrestlers will be at what weights- but all three weights will be manned by likely state placers.  The only real question marks are at 189 where Graham has two talented underclassmen that would probably be better suited for 171 lbs., and 215, where the loss of Smith will really be felt.

#2  Pemberville Eastwood:  
To paraphrase Mark Twain,  “the reports of Eastwood’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.”  It’s true that this year’s team won’t be as strong as last year’s squad which finished 2nd to Graham.  Gone from the 2005-2006 squad (which upset Graham at the state duals) are the superb trio of Ryan Cubberly, Ben Llanas, and Ryan Nachtrab.  Also graduated is state qualifying heavyweight Colton Schulte. To make matters worse, state runner-up Adam Tinnel and 5th place finisher Bryan Smith are no longer with the team due to disciplinary reasons.  However, the team will have three returning state placewinners who are likely finalists, an outstanding transfer at 119 in Justin Flores, quality wrestlers looking to place at 140 and 145, and some young upperweights looking to make their mark.  Who to watch for:  

152- Eric Cubberly- Cubberly went from an impressive 3rd place state finish in a loaded weight class, to a summer in which he was simply brilliant.  The highlights was finishing 2nd in Cadet freestyle nationals (and 3rd in Greco) with wins over some outstanding national competition.  A non-stop attacker, Cubberly also defeated Division I state runner-up Jedd Moore in the spring.  Cubberly would look like a sure-fire favorite in most years, unfortunately, with 2x state champion Colt Sponseller likely in his weight, this isn’t most years.  Look for Cubberly to step up into the national elite this year, and his matchup with Sponseller could be one of the most exciting matches of the year.

171- Jeremy Foster- One of the most talented and exciting wrestlers in the state, Jeremy Foster should rebound from a disappointing state performance last year with a trip to the finals this year.  Should Cody Magrum of Oak Harbor move up to 189, Foster would become a huge favorite at this weight.  Among Foster’s brilliant performances in the past were the unforgettable pin of Dustin Kilgore at Alliance Top Gun, his absolute domination of David Thompson at state duals, and of course, his 4th place state finish as a freshman 152 (with very respectable losses to Dave Rella and Josh Rohler).  The only question with Foster is consistency- in addition to his lackluster state performance, his showings at the Beast of the East and Brecksville Invitational were very forgettable.

125- Jan Ulinski: After chasing defending state champion Ben Llanas to 125, the final finish of Jan Ulinski last year may have been somewhat disappointing.  However, after a great summer of wrestling that saw him come within a match of All-American in the junior national Greco tournament, Ulinski appears to be a sure bet for a top three finish  in a weight class that looks to be very thin this year. 

119- Justin Flores:  Flores transfers in from Oregon Clay where he finished 1-2 at the state tournament last year.  Competing at what appears to be a very thin 119 lb. class this year, the junior Flores should begin the year ranked among the top three, and even be a possible surprise state champion should Brian Stephens and Jacob Vaughn compete at 125.

145: Kyle Taylor: The two-time state qualifier will move up three weights from last season.  Though he won only one match at state last year, he was hampered by a cut to 130 which extremely difficult for him.  Taylor should be a low to middle state placer now that he will be competing at a more appropriate weight class.

According to Coach Ralph Cubberly, other wrestlers that should surprise people are Andrew Long (140), Grant Hale (215), Luke Eschenbrenner (189), and David Eaton (130).   Long was behind Ryan Cubberly last season, but hung tough with great competition in limited varsity action.  Hale is a sophomore who was behind Nachtrab but finished an impressive 3-2 at cadet national freestyle.  Eschenbrenner is another tough sophomore who finished posted a 36-4 record in junior varsity action while backing up Jeremy Foster.  One to look for in the future is freshman Seth Hoffman (160), a junior high state placewinner with a bright future.

#3 CVCA

The Royals of Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy look to be one of the most improved teams in the state.  From 145-215, this team will field a virtual “Murderers’s Row”, more specifically:

145: Thomas Windom- Windom is a state 5th place finisher and former Cadet All-American.  Wrestling in a weight with no clear favorite, Windom will be one of 3-4 wrestlers who will be “in the hunt” for a state title.  A Windom title would virtually guarantee a top three finish for CVCA.

152- Joe Hickin: Hickin put together a very solid season for a freshman middleweight.  With such great workout partners, look for him to be vastly improved in his sophomore campaign.

160- Jared Kusar:  Presuming that Colt Sponseller is at 152, Kusar will begin his junior year as the favorite at 160.  As powerful “pound for pound” as any wrestler in this state other than teammate Weakley, Kusar really elevated his status by pushing Josh Rohler to the wire at both Sectionals and Districts.  The former junior high state champion would prove to be outmatched by Sponseller in the quarterfinals, but battled back for a very solid 3rd place state finish behing Sponseller and Rohler.  Look for him to become a dominant force at this weight this year.

171- John Sinchok: Sinchok moves all the way up from 145 to 171 this year.  Despite that jump, and the fact that he did not qualify for state last year (one match away at Firestone), Sinchok looks to be a good bet for state placement.  A close look at his season indicates a tremendous improvement throughout the year, capped off by wins over state ranked Kenny Coleman (10-3) and Adam Harris (7-5) at Districts.  A tremendous “thrower”, Sinchok defeated three state qualifiers last season.  In addition, the CVCA coaching staff indicated to me that Sinchok would be one guy they expected to “turn the corner” this year after a very solid summer of work.  Certainly, having Kusar and Weakley as workout partners cannot hurt.

189- John Weakley: What can be said about Weakley that has not already been said?   Weakley bring perhaps the most feared offensive weapon in the state to every match, that being his “freight train” double-leg takedown.  With the possible exception of Jamey Srock (unless he is at 215) Weakley will not even be pushed by anyone in Division II this season.  The only real mystery to his season will be whether Weakley can win a national title amongst an outstanding national group of 189’s.  Weakley, along with Colt Sponseller, Tony Jameson, Collin Palmer, and David Taylor, is one of those guys whose matches you just don’t want to miss.

215- Ryan Oddo- Oddo is another of the wrestlers on the squad singled out by the coaching staff for a breakout year.  The coaching staff pointed to his great off-season of strength training and brilliant performance at the Disney Duals.  Like Windom and Kusar, he will benefit from competing in a weight class with no true favorite.  While some may believe that the Ohio Admin has lost his mind in contending that a wrestler who has never been to state and suffered 13 losses last year could win state, it is my view that Oddo could be this season’s Jarrid Rodriguez (i.e. a wrestler who has never qualified for state that wins state his senior year).  Oddo’s record was due in large part to a rugged schedule that included the Walsh Ironman, Solon, and Alliance Top Gun, (all of which he placed at).  In fact, 12 of his 13 losses were to state placers or qualifiers.  Oddo’s improvement was shown in dramatic fashion when he shocked #2 ranked Matt Walker in the first round of Districts.  He met Walker again in the “go-to-state” match, losing on a very controversial call in that round.   Like Windom, a state title by Oddo would likely clinch top three status in Divsion II for CVCA.  

CVCA does not have nearly the strength in the lower weights as they do in their middle to upperweights.  However, Ravenna transfer Tyler Powers will be very solid at 119 lbs. for the Royals.  Powers was a junior high state runner-up two years ago to Collin Palmer. While he was behind state qualifier Scott Meyer last year, look for Powers make it to Columbus and possibly place this season.  

#4 Columbus Desales-

Though they finished only 12th in the team race last season, Columbus St. Francis Desales may have the 2nd best dual team in the state, returning seven state qualifiers.  They may turn out to be underrated at #4.  Leading this team is the outstanding junior John Hiles at 275.   Hiles followed up a great third place state finish with an excellent summer of wrestling, including winning NHSCA Sophomore Nationals and finishing as a junior national all-american in greco-roman in Fargo. A state title is not out of the question here- given that Hiles pinned defending state champ Nathan Sharp at freestyle states.

Jacob Vaughn will be a legitimate state title contender should he be able to make 119, and would probably a top four finisher at 125 as well.   Vaughn was brilliant last season as a freshman, finishing 5th at 112 lbs.  Vaughn’s state title chances would be greatly improved by Brian Stephens of Graham electing to go 125.

Perhaps Desales best chance for a state title will come from two-time state placewinner David Fisher- a transfer from McConnelsville Morgan.   For the past two seasons Fisher has advanced to the semifinals, only to lose three straight bouts and a place sixth.  Don’t look for that to happen again.  Fisher missed the entire season up to the tournaments last year- and still defeated eventual state runner-up James Myers in the District Finals.  Myers and Fisher will likely be among 3-4 wrestlers in the hunt for a title at 145 lbs. this season as well.

Alex Croasman (152-160) failed to place at state last year, but defeated three eventual state placewinners during the season.  He could be a low to middle state placer this year, or better.

Desales will also count heavily on Chris Canty at either 125 or 130.  Canty won only one match at state last year, but actually had a much better showing at cadet nationals than teammate Vaughn- coming within a single win of All-American status.  A top four place finish is not out of the question.

Perhaps the biggest question mark for Desales will be Matt McGovern (130-135).  A 2005 state placewinner at 119 lbs, McGovern’s 2006 season was hampered by injuries.  A return to form would very likely vault Desales into 2nd place.

Other wrestlers who could score at the state level include Kyle Steigler (160-171) and state alternate Jared Brankamp (189-215).  Look for both of these wrestlers to be much-improved this year- either placing at state would give Desales a great chance at the runner-up spot.

#5 Oak Harbor

Oak Harbor may have the 2nd most talent of any team in Division II; however, the problem they face that too much of their talent is in the 152-171 range, which could result in difficulty getting all their talent into the lineup.  Included in that range are: Kirk Tank (State 4th) Keith Witt (State 7th), Tom Baker (state qualifier), and Aaron McCune (ranked #8 before being replaced by Baker), and of course, junior state champion Cody Magrum- that’s five likely state placers, three weights. The idea scenario would be to have Kirk Tank return to 145 (where he would likely be ranked #1), Keith Witt to return to 152, McCune and Baker at 160/171, and Magrum at 189.  Magrum was impressive as a light 189 in summer competition, but was simply taken apart in his match against 189 state champion John Weakley at freestyle states.  One would have to wonder if he might not want to return to 171 to avoid Weakley, though having him at 189 would be much better from a team standpoint.  If Tank cannot make 145, or Witt cannot make 152, this team will have a real log-jam.

Other potential scorers for Oak Harbor at the state level include Ryan Sigurdson (130-135), Brent Scherf (189-215), state alternate Zach Pressley (140-145), Josh Maloney (215-275), and Brandon Waters (130-135). 

Magrum, Tank, Witt, Baker, Pressley, and Waters are all juniors this year- so this team should be even better next year.

The best of the rest:
6. Ravenna
7. Millersburg West Holmes
8. Cambridge
9. Willard
10. University School

Other strong teams to watch for this year include Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, Clyde, Miami Trace, Walsh Jesuit, Hillsboro, and Bellevue.

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