USA Wrestling holds three regional tournaments as FRECO season continues

Reviewing action from the Northeast, Northern Plains and West

Kenosha Indian Trail High School's Sullivan Ramos (165) was one of four Wisconsin wrestlers to win gold medals at USA Wrestling's Northern Plains regional in Rochester, Minnesota. / Tork Mason / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The FRECO wrestling season continued this past weekend with USA Wrestling hosting three regional tournaments across different locales, spread around the country, allowing wrestlers from the 8U age group to Junior Division, as well as Girls, participate in Freestyle and Greco Roman competitions. From here the younger wrestlers go to the Kids’ Nationals. 16U and Junior will converge in Fargo in July for their national shot.

The Phil Portuese Northeast Regional was held at Kalahari Resorts in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, the Northern Plains Regional took place at the Sports Center in Rochester, Minnesota, with the Western Regional unfolding at Zions Bank Real Academy in Herriman, Utah.

For brevity, we will limit our focus on the high school age groups (16U and Junior) and narrow it down farther to wrestlers that appear in the High School on SI National Wrestling Rankings or did something notable that merits inclusion in our recap.

NORTHEAST

We will begin the notebook with the Northeast combatants, where two unranked Pennsylvanians won Junior Freestyle crowns over nationally ranked foes in their respective finals matches. Jackson Butler (150 pounds) and Dominic Sumpolec (190).

Butler competes for Bishop McCort during the season and placed eighth at the AA states as a sophomore but did not have a position in the lineup for his junior campaign. Butler gave a glimpse of just how deep the Crusher lineup is by downing Maryland’s No. 26 Evan Boblits, 6-3. Boblits is a multi-time National Prep placer, who won a Junior Greco crown here with a fall over Luis Alberto-DeSilva (PA), 1:08.

Sumpolec was a fixture in the 175-pound national rankings before moving up to 190 for the state tournament series. Sumpolec placed fifth in the AAA states and faced New Jersey’s No. 25 Alexander Reyes, who was fifth in New Jersey’s single class state tournament.

Sumpolec took control of this bout early on and had a 6-0 lead when he got in deep with a double leg shot with such force that when they came up Reyes tried a weak throw but couldn’t overcome Sumpolec’s momentum and was planted right on his back for the fall at 2:32.

Five other ranked grapplers from the Keystone State secured Junior Freestyle golds, No. 24 Brock Rothermel (126), Honorable Mention Dale Corbin (138), No. 14 Camden Baum (144), No. 23 Reagan Milheim (157), and Liam Lawler (285, No. 10 at 215).

Rothermel handled fellow Pennsylvania wrestler Jack Baron, 5-2, in a match that was essentially 3-2 with Rothermel’s final points coming on a last gasp throw attempt from Baron. Rothermel defeated Massachusetts’s Isaac Novod (No. 15 at 120 pounds) en route to the finals.

Corbin posted a 10-0 technical fall of New Jersey’s Brian Little in his final. In the quarterfinals, Corbin stuck Jersey’s No. 26 Adrian DeJesus, 1:29. Corbin picked up the 138-pound Greco title with a pin of Pennsylvania’s Collier Hartman, 3:26. In the Greco brackets, Corbin flattened DeJesus again, also in the opening frame, 1:17.

Baum’s match with Robert Duffy of New Jersey was close to ending early a few times before its conclusion by fall in 3:35 by Baum over Duffy. About one minute in, Baum hit a low shot and caught Duffy, who had his head down, with a square shot to the dome that really rang Baum’s bell as he went down first after initially staggering around. Duffy followed, voluntarily sitting down, visibly out of sorts.

After examinations for each by the trainers, the green light was given to continue and Baum got a quick exposure turn for the first points, 2-0. Duffy countered with a takedown he parlayed into two roll-throughs for a 6-2 advantage. Despite, the positive turn for Duffy, something in his behavior spurred the referee to call for a second examination from the trainer.

Upon the restart, Baum got a quick takedown and used a series of quick tilts and rolls to build a 14-6 lead. A challenge from Duffy’s party ensued and the score was adjusted to 8-6 in favor of Baum. After a first period that seemed to be an eternity, Baum produced a brief second period after securing a cradle and decking Duffy in 35 seconds.

Milheim’s championship was earned with a 13-2 tech fall of New Jersey’s Blasé Mele (No. 8 at 150). Lawler posted a 10-0 tech of Bradyn McConneha of Pennsylvania.

Maryland’s No. 6 Salah Tsarni headed home with 175-pound wall charts in both disciplines, taking out Pennsylvania’s Jackson Angelo, 10-0, in Freestyle, and using another tech, 9-0, in Greco over Cash Morrell of Pennsylvania. Another Junior Double Champ was New York’s No. 14 Dunia Sibomana, who won a one-point decision with Pennsylvania’s Brayden Wenrich (No. 20 at 113), 8-7, in the 120-pound Freestyle finals and posted a tech, 11-3 of Kael Davis (PA), in Greco Roman.

At 215 pounds, New York’s Devin Downes (No. 20 at 190) won a 6-4 match with New Jersey’s Salvatore Marchese for the gold. Honorable Mention Anthony DiAndrea (New Jersey) took out Pennsylvania’s Dominic Deputy (No. 16 at 126), 10-7, on the way to the 132-pound finals where he won on criteria, 4-4, versus another Jersey Boy, Dalton Weber. Eric Bocanegra took an unexpected title home for the Garden State when he got by Maryland’s Honorable Mention, Liam McGettigan, 6-4, in the 113-pound final.

There were five nationally rated 16U Freestyle champs, Pennsylvania’s Braiden Lotier (113), Maryland’s Corey Brown (120), New Jersey’s Tommy Marchetti (126), Ohio’s Weston Borgers (144), and New York’s Camryn Howard (150).

Of those wrestlers, only Brown (No. 15 at 113) doubled up on gold medals, winning the Freestyle title 10-0 over Pennsylvania’s Rocco Lombardo and decking Honorable Mention Wyatt Spencer of Pennsylvania in 23 seconds for his Greco title.

Lotier is rated No. 5 at 106 pounds after winning the AA state title, and beat fellow state placer, Chase Karenbauer (No. 6 at 106), 13-2, in the finals. Lotier teched honorable mention Tyler Verceles of Maryland, 10-0, in Freestyle. Karenbauer won the Greco gold by fall over Verceles, 1:48. In Greco, Verceles stuck Lotier, 1:43.

Marchetti’s title was earned with a 9-7 tally over Pennsylvania’s Jordan Manyette. Manyette, who is unranked nationally, beat Mateo Gallegos (No. 29 at 120), 1-1, in the semifinals, and New Jersey’s JoJo Burke (No. 2 at 106), 2-0, in the quarters.

Borgers, who wrestles at Blair Academy in New Jersey, won a battle of honorable mention entries, 9-7, with Pennsylvania’s Greyson Music for top honors in freestyle. Music captured the Greco gold with a 9-1 tech of New York’s Chris Morris. Howard is an honorable mention entrant that won his freestyle gold on a medical forfeit from Montana’s Jerin Coles. Coles beat Pennsylvania honorable mention grappler Jason Dube, 4-0, as he advanced through the bracket.

NORTHERN PLAINS

Four Wisconsin guys pocketed Junior Freestyle golds, all of them unranked with three pulling off an upset somewhere along the way, Hunter Stevens (144), Sullivan Ramos (165), Eli Leonard (175), and Cael Leisgang (285). Leonard’s win came on an 11-1 tech fall of Illinois’ Lyndon Thies.

Stevens had the biggest upset of the remaining trio as he took on No. 17 Charles Vanier of Minnesota in the finals. Vanier went up 2-0 then fell behind 4-2 after a big throw from Stevens. Varnier ended the period with a takedown and held a 5-4 lead as action opened in the final frame.

A four-point lift and dive from Stevens put him in front, 8-5. Varnier answered with six straight points to go up, 11-8. A Stevens reversal followed to draw within two, 11-9. Back on their feet, Stevens secured the winning takedown to take the match on criteria, 11-11. Leisgang downed a Wisconsonite, honorable mention Tanner Gormanson, 9-3, in his final.

Ramos put a 10-0 tech of Minnesota’s Kyler Walters on the last line of the bracket. To do so, Ramos decked Honorable Mention Maximus Dhabolt (Iowa) in the semis, 1:49. Ramos also claimed a Junior Greco gold with an 8-0 tech of Gabriel Cohn (Minnesota).

Wisconsin’s Colton Weiler, who is ranked seventh at 150 pounds nationally, is known more for his Greco Roman prowess than Freestyle and that played out here as he locked down the 157-pound Greco crown with a 10-0 tech of Iowa’s honorable mention Nolan Fellers. After falling to the eventual champ, Iowa’s Bas Diaz, 12-2 in the Freestyle semis, Weiler forfeited into sixth place. Diaz beat Fellers, 7-4, in the freestyle final at 157.

Two other ranked Iowans took home top honors in Junior Freestyle, No. 9 Nico DeSalvo (120) and No. 20 Timothy Koester (132). Koester was declared the victor on criteria, 3-3, with Minnesota’s Trey Beissel. Koester downed No. 21 Liam Neitzel (Wisconsin), 6-0, in the semis. DeSalvo placed a 6-4 score on the board over North Dakota’s Nicolas Enzminger. Enzminger shocked U20 U.S. Open Greco Roman champion, Caleb Noble of Illinois (No. 6 at 113), 10-4, to grab the 120-pound Greco supremacy.

Illinois’ Deven Casey (No. 24 at 132) won two titles at 138 pounds over Minnesota foes, 10-7, with Bennett Kujawa in Freestyle and 5-1 over Chase Mills in Greco. No. 12 Micah Hach (South Dakota) stuck Kansas’ Brayden Hill in 44 seconds to gain gold in Greco at heavyweight.

The 190-pound finals presented two wrestlers that are nationally ranked squaring off, No. 7 John Murphy (Minnesota) and No. 28 Victor Marks-Jenkins (Maryland). Murphy took control early, going up 4-0 on a takedown and Gut Wrench, then Marks-Jenkins evened it up at four, with Murphy getting two more from a snap down for a 6-4 count at the break.

A shot from Marks-Jenkins led to a spin behind for Murphy and an 8-4 edge. Marks-Jenkins would get two back but come up short, 8-6. The Greco outcome would be a one-sided affair in Marks-Jenkins’ favor as he authored an 11-3 tech of Murphy.

The 150-pound weight played out the same as 190, with the same two in the finals and a different champ in each style. Missouri’s Jet Brown won the Freestyle bout on a 14-3 tech of Nebraska’s Mason Peterson. To reach the final, Peterson beat Honorable Mention Mac Crosson (Iowa), 14-8. Peterson blanked Brown, 6-0, in the Greco finals.

No. 29 Gage Lohr of South Dakota won a Freestyle gold at 138 pounds in the 16U Division over Oklahoma’s Brooks McCollom, 11-0.

WESTERN REGIONAL

Considering this region was held in Utah, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they crowned quite a few champions with four of them doubling down on the collecting of junior gold, Jantz Greenhalgh (100), Kaden Oldroyd (106), Jason Worthley (150), and Ladd Holman (175). Greenhalgh also staked a claim to the 16U Freestyle crown at 100 pounds, giving him three titles.

Worthley (No. 28 at 144) was up in weight from the U.S. Open and handled No. 15 Gus Cardinal of Arizona, with relative ease, posting a 10-0 tech in Freestyle. Holman also won his Freestyle title on a 10-0 tech of Honorable Mention Trae Rios (Oklahoma).

Austin Ellis pinned Idaho’s Sean Hall in the 144-pound Freestyle finals, 2:56, and took out California’s Ames Michael Hoevker (No. 22 at 138), 4-0. Hall beat Hoevker in the Greco finals, 10-0, while Ellis placed fourth in Greco. Unranked like Ellis, Ben Koehler won an unlikely Freestyle crown at 132 with a wild 23-15 outcome versus California’s Siraj Sidhu (honorable mention).

Honorable Mention Lander Bosh secured the 126-pound Freestyle bracket with an 11-0 technical fall of Arizona’s Remington Judd. Bosh pinned his in-state rival, Tanner Telford, in the semis. Bosh beat Telford by a point in the state finals then Bosh majored him at USA Wrestling’s Folkstyle Nationals. Telford finally bested Bosh in the Greco finals, coming out ahead, 7-4.

No. 13 Tucker Roybal won a Junior Greco title for Utah at 165 pounds. Honorable Mention Mason Carlson came up short in his Greco title quest at 132, falling to California’s Tas Storer, by tech, 14-5.

California’s No. 12 Jonathan Rocha won the 190-pound Freestyle title bout 12-6 over Utah’s Elijah Hawes. Two from the Golden State finished as Freestyle runners-up, Jax Vang (113) and Michael Terrell (138). Terrell lost to Honorable Mention Drake Hooiman (Nevada), 10-0, at 138 pounds.

Vang (No. 26 at 106) lost on criteria to Arizona’s Carson Miles, 3-3. Vang took the top spot at 113 in Greco Roman with a 6-1 win over Utah’s Easton Olson.