TOM’s 2010 Cheesehead Preview
Published on December 27, 2010 by viratas · 2 Comments Field Features Top Individuals, Teams
Willie Saylor, Editor
The Cheesehead, staged at Kaukauna High School in Wisconsin has become one of the premier prep wrestling competitions.
Last year’s tournament included four of our Top20 teams and an honorable mention, while this year’s field ups that to seven of the Top20.
With last year’s edition of The Cheesehead, held on the first two days of 2010, and this year’s tournament slated for the last two, maybe it’s poetic that Blair Academy gets a shot at redemption in the same calendar year.
To understand how we got to a place that has the most sincere national title implications, let’s revisit how this year’s field culminated.
Blair (NJ), then ranked #1 in the country, won the 2009 Ironman and looked to be on the precipice of yet another team title as the best squad in the country. Meanwhile, then-#2Apple Valley (MN) was rolling along, posting tournament victories at The Cheesehead and The Clash. So when then-#3St. Paris-Graham (OH) upset Blair in their dual, TheOpenMat amed Apple Valley the new top dog in the land, and subsequently 2010 National Champions.
With AV having almost their entire squad back and being the incumbent titlist, they were a no-brainer to begin this year as the Preseason #1. What did that mean for the Cheesehead?
For Blair to unseat Valley they’d need to knock them off head-to-head. Coach Buxton and the Bucs chose to attempt that in Wisconsin.
And with the Cheesehead’s unique hybrid tournament bracketing and scoring system, extrapolating tournament points is a dynamic situation. With credit given for places 9th and lower, The Cheesehead measures not only tournament-team prowess, but also dual-like balance.
In TOM’s Official 2010 Cheesehead Preview, we’ll list the competitors from all 24 schools at each weight, highlighting the contenders and their achievements and making our picks.
Follow along with us as we prepare for what figures to be an interesting competition, and a compelling argument for national supremacy.
And stay tuned for our continuing coverage which will include game-day live blogs and daily recaps.
***NOTE: With registration not yet completed, some line-up changes may occur. Check back for updates throughout the day Tuesday.
Weight Class Capsules:
**TOM National rank preceds name, state rank follows.**
Team Legend: Apple Valley (AV), Archbishop Moeller (AM), Arrowhead Union (AU), Blair Academy (BA), Clovis, (CLO), Deforest (DEF), Hartford (HAR), Kaukauna (KKA), Kennesaw Mountain (KM), Kenyon-Wananmingo (KW), Lockport (LP), Marmion Academy (MA), Milton (MIL), Montini Catholic (MC), Muskego (MUS), Pewaukee (PWK), Plainfield Central (PC), Port Washington (PW), Sheboygan Falls (SF), Simley (SIM), Stoughton (STO), Wisconsin Rapids (WR), Wrightstown (WTN), Wyoming Seminary (WS), Yorkville (YRK)
103
LY Final: Jordan Kingsley, AV, dec. Joe Umlauf, Wasau West, 2-1
The Field:
AV: Seth Gross, #2
BA: #6 Joey McKenna
CLO: Andy Ia
HAR: #16 Bobby Nachreiner , #2
KKA: Riley Refke
MA: #12 Johnny Jimenez, #2
MC: Tommy Pawleski, #9
SIM: #8 Klye Gliva, #2
WR: Jason Munoz, #1
WS: Tyler Ponte
Notes:
There’s been a good deal of anticipation for Valley’s Gross, who’s supposed to be very talented. He’s yet to get down to 103, but will be here.
Joey McKenna, the highest ranked in this field, has been wrestling lights-out. He’s this summer’s Cadet Greco Champ, and is coming off a Beast of the East finals appearance.
Also wrestling well is Johnny Jimenez who won the Dvorak in a weight that had three nationally ranked participants.
Nachreiner is back down at 103 after starting the year at 112. He’s won several Fargo medals and was this year’s Fila Cadet GR Champ with a win over McKenna.
Kyle Gliva was 5th here last year and is a 2x Fargo All-American.
Watch to see how Clovis’ Andy Ia does. He’s a senior and hasn’t been able to crack the line-up until now. He’s been stuck behind state ranked wrestlers his entire career. He could prove to be a force.
TOM’s Picks: 1.McKenna 2. Jimenez 3. Gliva
112
LY Final: Dom Malone, WS, dec. Juan Torres, Simley, 6-1
The Field:
AV: #20 Jordan Kinglsey, #1
BA: HM Max Hvolbeck
CLO: Jonas Gaytan
MA: #4 Jared Cortez, #1
MIL: John Wells, #1
MUS: Tyler Sinda, #6
PC: Nick Naseberry, #5
WTN: Brett Beuchler, #2
WS: Evan Botwin
Notes:
The headliner here is Cortez, your Fargo Cadet Champ. He placed 3rd at the Ironman, but sat out the Dvorak for undisclosed reasons. Hopefully we get to see him at Cheesehead.
Kingsley has been wrestling well. He just won the Minnesota Christmas tournament with an impressive 8-2 decision over nationally recognized Nate Thomas.
Hvolbeck is also a formidable foe and is coming off place-finishes at both the Ironman and Beast.
Gaytan was a state qualifier last year, and has the talent to make noise here.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Cortez 2. Hvolbeck 3. Kingsley
119
LY Final: Rossi Bruno, Brandon, dec. Dakota Trom, AV, 3-2
The Field:
AV: Derek Scott, #5
AM: Brian MacVeigh
BA: #9Caleb Richardson
CLO: Daniel Gaytan, #1
KKA: Austin Hietpas
KW: Mitchell Lexvold
LP: Tony Rossi
MA: George Fisher, #2
MC: HM Kevon Powell, #6
PC: Nathan Davis, #5
SIM: Pedro Delao
WS: #6Dom Malone
YRK: Adam Wyeth
Notes:
A very nice group here with two Top10 kids and California’s #1.
Malone is a National Prep and Ironman finalist. He beat Richardson in a close one for 3rd at the Beast.
Kevon Powell was 3rd here last year at 103, but has yet to compete this season.
Watch out for Nathan Davis, who made the Dvorak semifinals, but didn’t make weight for Day II there.
Gaytan was 3rd in Cali states last year.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Malone 2. Richardson 3. Gaytan
125
LY Final: Johnni Di Julius, Walsh Jesuit, dec. Matt Kelliher, AV, 2-1
The Field:
AV: #5Dakota Trom, #1
BA: #3Mark Grey
CLO: Devin Everk, #12
KM: Chris Murdock, #5
MA: Eddie Greco, #1
MUS: Justin Schurkenbach, #2
MC: Michael Sepke, #2
MIL: Landon Shea, #6
PW: Justin Meins, #3
SIM: HM Juan Torres, #2
STO: Nick Urso, #8
WS: Tyler Fraley
Notes:
The two at the top are clear leaders here. Both #3Grey and #5Trom have dropped to 125 and have significant and lengthy national credentials.
While Juan Torres’ results are up-and-down, I’m a fan. I like his talent and his potential to do well here.
Sepke, and Meins, and Schurkenbach, all ranked 2nd in their respective state classes, placed here last year.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Grey 2. Trom 3. Schurkenbach
130
LY Final: Nate Skonieczny, Walsh Jesuit, dec. Colton Rasche, Montini, 6-2
The Field:
AV: Mark Hall
AU: Adam Yde
BA: #14 Todd Preston
CLO: Juan Salas, #7
LP: #13Jameson Oster, #2
MA: #3Ben Whitford, #1
SIM: Cola Jensen, #6
WR: Jake Jaborek
Notes:
Mark Hall might be the talk of the country right now. The oft-traveled prodigy made waves this summer when he beat CA state champion, Alex Cisneros, and again last week when he beat nationally ranked Ben Morgan.
He’s the real deal. But expectations for this competition should be quelled. Meet Ben Whitford, who just might be the best young wrestler in the country. He was your Fargo Champ in the summer, and most recently, your Ironman Champ.
Should Hall do well here, we’ll know he’s ready for primetime NOW. This is a great bracket with, in addition to those already mentioned, Yde, who was 4th here a year ago, Preston, who places in everything, Oster, a 2x state finalist, and a host of depth.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Whitford 2. Oster 3. Preston
135
LY Final: Jake Sueflohn, Arrowhead, dec. Alex Dierenger, Port Washington, 10-6
The Field:
AV: #5Matt Kelliher, #1
AU: Luke Berenz
BA: #2Austin Ormsbee
MA: HM Bryce Brill, #3
MC: Drew Vrbenec, #9
SIM: Mack Short
WR: Keegan Einerson, #5
YRK: Conner Bass, #5
Notes:
Another solid weight here with two nationally ranked guys and three more that are Top5 in their state.
Ormsbee was a finalist at Ironman, Beast and Fargo. Kelliher was a finalist at the Christmas Tournament and Fargo.
Brill is your young gun of the group. He was Runner-Up at Fargo Cadets down at 119.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Ormsbee 2. Kelliher 3. Brill
140
LY Final: Devin Scott, Apple Valley, dec. Jed Lightfoot, Yorkville, 5-2
The Field:
AV: #7Brandon Kingsley, #1
AU: #5Jake Sueflohn, #2
BA: Russ Parsons
CLO: Brady Bersano, #12
HAR: Nick Becker, #1
LP: Chris Tragos, #12
MA: Angelo Silvestro, #4
SIM: #6 Jake Short, #1
WR: Jake Raflik, #2
WS: Cole Fulk
Notes:
Along with 152, this is your premier bracket. Three Top10’s highlight the field, including last year’s OW. #5Jake Sueflohn earned top honors last year after knocking off two ranked individuals.
Short and Kingsley are sitting, nationally, at 6 and 7. The two met last week with Short earning a first period fall.
It will be very interesting to see how the seeds shake out. You’d think Short and Kingsley would meet in semi’s, behind a 1-seeded Sueflohn.
Not to be overlooked is Angelo Silvestro, who just made a Dvorak finals appearance, and Becker, Wisconsin’s #1 who I think will surprise some here.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Sueflohn 2. Kingsley 3.Short
145
LY Final: Joey Uccardi, Plainfield, dec. Clark Glass, Brandon, 5-1
The Field:
AV: HM Dan Woiwer, #1
KM: Alex Bremner, #4
MC: Frank Baer, #1
PW: #1Alex Dierenger, #1
SIM: Nick Wanzek, #2
WR: HM Rylan Lubeck, #3
YRK: Clayton Bass, #11
Notes:
A balanced group with 5 wrestlers in the Top3 of their respective states.
Fargo Junior National Freestyle Champion, Dierenger is the class of the field.
He’ll be pushed by state champion, Woiwer and state runners-up Wanzek and Lubeck.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Dierenger 2. Lubeck 3. Woiwer
152
LY Final: Destin McCauley, AV, dec. Joey Cozart, Brandon, 6-5
The Field:
AV: #1Destin McCauley, #1
BA: Patrick Coover
CLO: Colby Thompson
HAR: Bryar Harper, #4
KM: #14Jonathan Rivera, #1
MC: Shaun’Que McMurtry, #6
MA: Eddie Breen, #8
MC: #12Stephen Robertson, #2
WR: Kasey Einerson, #2
WTN: Jackson Fox, #5
WS: #19Eric Morris
YRK: Steve Pozeg, #5
Notes:
A very deep and balanced weight here.
McCauley, the defending Cheesehead Champ, is your leader and may represent the best recruit in the Class of 2011.
Morris, is tough to score on and has been posting great performances over the last year. He is a National Prep, Fargo, and Beast Runner-Up.
Robertson is another guy wrestling extremely well. He beat Morris in Ironman semi’s and won the Dvorak last week.
Again, seeding will be very intriguing as there’s one more absolute stud waiting in the wings.
Jonathan Rivera, who was 1st and 3rd in his last two state tournaments, is a fine athlete. He was this year’s Super32 Runner-Up, posting a 6-0 win over Ohio’s Felipe Martinez in the semi’s.
Don’t sleep on the others listed, however. Although there are clear leaders here, and placing highly will be tough, there are several high-class guys here. Harper, Einerson, and Fox, are guys I’m particularly keeping an eye on.
TOM’s Picks: 1. McCauley 2. Robertson 3. Rivera
160
LY Final: Steven Keogh, AV, dec. Chris Moon, WS, 5-3
The Field:
AV: #5 Steven Keogh, #1
CLO: Blake Thompson, #9
LP: Tyler Ledbetter, #10
MC: Dmitri Willis, #2
PWK: Nathan Knutson, #5
SIM: HM Dan Dick, #1
WR: HM Zak Benitz, #3
YRK: AJ Messinger, #5
Notes:
One of the country’s best 160lbers, and Minnesota Gopher recruit, Steven Keogh, has been nursing an injury all year. He’ll be in action at the Cheesehead, but it will be interesting to see just how effective he is.
Simley’s Dan Dick has been perennially competitive, as a state runner-up and Fargo AA.
The same can be said of Benitz, who’s looking to make a statement and jump into the next echelon of recognition.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Keogh 2. Benitz 3. Dick
171
LY Final: Noah Budi, Kaukauna, dec. Jake Waste, AV, 6-2 OT
The Field:
AV: #15Jake Waste, #1
BA: Addison Knepshield
CLO: #7 Zach Nevills, #1
SIM: Micah Barnes, #2
WR: Ryan Cone, #2
Notes:
There’s just a small group of contenders here, but there should be some fireworks and tight battles.
Conventional wisdom says it’s a Waste-Nevills battle. But guys like Barnes, another Simley state runner-up, and Cone are more than capable of hanging with the big dogs.
Knepshield was an Ironman placer earlier this month.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Nevills 2. Barnes 3. Waste
189
LY Final: Eric Nelson, Stoughton, dec. Mike Ettore, Brandon, 2-1
The Field:
AV: Matt Hechsel, #1
AU: Shane Hughes, #3
KM: Rashaud Moore, #5
LP: Brad Johnson #1
MUS: #19 Roland Dunlap, #2
WR: #3Devin Peterson, #1
YRK: Brant Corwin, #5
Notes:
89 at the Cheesehead has me excited. The top two guys here are both from Dairyland. Peterson is one of the premier guys at the weight, and one of the top 2012 recruits. Dunlap’s only loss at his state tournament came to the eventual champ, and Dunlap wrestled back to 3rd.
Both of Hughes’ losses in that same state bracket came at the hands of Peterson and Dunlap.
I’m also interested in getting a good look at Johnson, who is the top-ranked guy in Illinois’ 3A class.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Dunlap 2. Peterson 3. Johnson
215
LY Final: Zach Baldwin, Brandon, dec. Chase Letson, Milton, 2-1
The Field:
BA: Willie Wilson
CLO: Taylor Ferguson, #3
LP: Shaquille McMurtry #2
MUS: Jordan Gruettner, #1
WR: Erik Vruwink
WS: AJ Vizcarrando
Notes:
Gruettner, a state runner-up, looks to improve on his 4th place Cheesehead performance from a year ago.
Vizcarrando is an NHSCA season finalist as a Sophomore and, in his first action of the season last week, placed 3rd at the Beast.
Taylor Ferguson won the Zinkin Classic last week.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Ferguson 2. Vizcarrando 3. Gruettner
HWT
LY Final: Mike McMullan, WS, wbf. Henry Chrino, Brandon, 5:19
The Field:
AV: Harold Delancey
BA: #1Brooks Black
CLO: HM Nick Nevills
MA: Alex Fritz, #6
MC: Ross Ferraro, #1
SIM: Matt Kadrlik, #4
WR: HM Curt Fuller, #2
WS: #18Terrance Jean-Jacques
Notes:
A great crop of heavies on tap for the Cheesehead, including the #1 big guy in all the land.
Black has swept Fargo, Ironman, and the Beast.
Jean-Jacques has been in the mix in everything he’s entered as well, placing 4th at Ironman before losing to Black in the Beast finals.
It will be interesting to see if Fuller makes the next step in his progression. Last year, as a junior, he was in the mix at several tournaments . Ferraro, Illinois #1 in 3A, is in the similar mold.
Nevills is receiving a lot of hype. And for good reason. He’s a talented young freshman, and just won the Zinkin with a final’s major. We’ll see how he fares rolling with the bog dogs.
TOM’s Picks: 1. Black 2. Nevills 3. Jean-Jacques
Team Race
In case you missed it, there are seven ranked teams here: #1Apple Valley (MN), #3Blair Academy (NJ), #6Wyoming Seminary (PA), #9Marmion Academy (IL), #11Wisconsin Rapids (WI), #12Simley (MN), and #18 Clovis (CA).
Needless to say, jockeying for position will be hotly contested. Who has the horses to outpace the others?
In hybrid scoring system that rewards points for each of the 25 places, it will be a tall order to displace AV from the top step. If anyone can do it, it looks to be Blair, who have legitimate title contenders in half the weight classes.
If the Bucs can get solid production from their mid-tier guys from 140 through 215, they very well could take home the title.
They seem to be the clearest of favorites. While Wyoming Seminary has impressive balance, they were considerably outdistanced by Blair at both the Ironman and Cheesehead. The Knights appear to be in the next tier of squads in a race for 3rd through 7th that could end up in any number of outcomes.
Marmion, which has placed highly at the Ironman (4th) and is coming off a Dvorak title, could be built for this type of scoring. They have several guys (four to five) that will be in title contention. It’s there next group that might not be able to keep pace enough to propel Marmion to the title.
The X-factor in this tournament will be Clovis. Their upperweights are phenomenal and should keep them hanging around the top teams. Anything they get beyond the top seven (based on rankings) would be considered a mild upset. The Cougars have the ability to play the spoiler role here. If guys like Bersano, Thompson, and Salas, and both Gaytans wrestle at a high level (and they can), they could very well throw a monkey wrench into the designs of other squads.
By far the most complaints in the national team rankings come from the factions of loyal Rapids and Simley fans. And they might have a legitimate gripe. Both squads have an incredibly balanced line-up. The reservations, especially at a tournament like this is, where are the title contenders. Both Simley and Rapids have, on paper, what appears to be less individual title threats than others. But that’s why they wrestle the matches. The Cheesehead will answer a great deal of questions about these two squads, and in their place in the national picture.
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