With each passing year the Cadet portion of what is now referred to as “Akron” seems to gain greater import not only to the country’s young wrestlers, but also in the consciousness of the fans.

In 2011, after a 13-year break, UWW (then, FILA) re-instituted Cadet Worlds. And the United States has been particularly successful at them, placing 5th, 8th, and 9th until last year when we took home a team bronze with four finalists. We have had a Cadet World Champion each of the last four years.

Whether it’s the work that USAWrestling is doing in preparing younger athletes, or the success they are having, it seems certain more eyes will be on Akron then ever this weekend.

And looking for continued success, the USA Cadet Team should be in good hands and extremely experienced as six of the ten 2014 Cadet World Team Members return.

Highlighted by the 54kg bracket which features four former World Team Members, the Cadet World Team Trials begin on Saturday with finals on Sunday. Below are the weight class capsules and notes.

All the action - Cadet and University GR and FS World Team Trials can be viewed live in its entirety on FLO PRO here.

*Credentials limited to USAW/UWW/FILA FS/Folk events

42KG

Last Year’s Final - Gavin Teasdale, PA dec. Peter Ogunsanya, IL, 10-1   
2010 Final - Zach Howell, DE over Jarred Oftedahl, MN

Contenders:
Malik Heinselman, CO - 2014 Fargo Cadet Champ
Mosha Schwartz, CO - Central Regional Champ
Val Park, OK
Conrad Braswell, IA

Commentary: In a small bracket, both contenders come from Colorado, both of whom won their state FS championship: Heinselman at 94lbs, and Schwartz at 100. Heinselman won Fargo last year at 88lbs. after not placing in Akron.
Schwartz, who’s #29 on the JR HS Big Board, has won a bevy of Roller events. I like him here, as I think Heinselman will still be undersized.

Predictions: Schwartz over Heinselman


46KG

Last Year’s Final - Cade Olivas, CA tf. Louie Hayes, IL, 10-0
2010 Final - Nathan Tomasello, OH over Jacob Schmitt, MI

Contenders:
#9-Kyle Biscoglia, IA - USAW Folk Champ
#10-Cody Phippen, KS - USAW Folk Runner-Up (to Biscoglia)
#12-Nico Aguilar, CA - 2014 Fargo Cadet Champ
#14-Rhett Golowenski, OK - Fargo 4th
Mike Madara, PA
Travis Ford-Melton, IL

Commentary: Phippen, Biscoglia, Aguilar, and (to a lesser extent) Golowenski, all represent guys that were undersized 106lb freshmen this season. Aguilar won Fargo at 94lbs last summer. Golowenski was 4th in the same bracket. I’m riding the hot hand here with Biscoglia, who just beat Phippen in Folk finals.
Also watch for Madara, who was a JR HS Big Board honorable mention, and Ford-Melton, who is currently #17.

Predictions: 1. Biscoglia 2. Phippen 3. Melton 4. Golowenski


50KG

Last Year’s Final - Spencer Lee, PA tf. Joey Prata, VA, 11-1
2010 Final - Freddie Rodriguez, MI over Jered Cortez, IL

Contenders:
#3-Gavin Teasdale, PA - 2014 Cadet World Team Member
#4-Drew Mattin, OH - Returning 5th, Fargo 4th
#5-Brandon Courtney, AZ - UWW JR 3rd, Returning 4th
#6-Ian Timmins, NV - 2014 Fargo Runner-Up (to Paul Konrath)
Dom Lajoie, MI - Central Regional Runner-Up
Mason Naifeh, OK - Fargo JR 5th
Peyton Robb, MN -USAW Folk Runner-Up
Connor Brown, MO
Jaden Abas, CA
Van Schmidt, NE
Quinn Kinner, NJ
Logan Macri, PA

Commentary: A lot of talent here that may not be household names. I’m interested in seeing Schmidt and Abas, who have both appeared on the Big Boards. Just an 8th grader, Abas could be a breakout star here.
Two months ago, the consensus pick in this group would have been Timmins. But he had a good, not great, showing at FloNationals, where he was wrestling bigger guys. I still like him as a serious threat for the world team spot.
I especially liked what I saw out of Courtney in Vegas when he pushed Devin Brown. But I have to go with Teasdale here. He’s the kind of kid that I think a bump in weight and natural growth will do wonders for.

Predictions: 1. Teasdale 2. Courtney 3. Mattin 4. Timmins


54KG

Last Year’s Final - Daton Fix, OK dec. Nick Suriano, NJ, 1-1
2010 Final - Jack Clark, NJ over Thomas Gilman, IA

Contenders:
#1-Spencer Lee, PA - 2014 Cadet World Champion
#2-Daton Fix, OK - 2014 Cadet World Team Member
#3-Austin Gomez, IL - 2013 World Team Member
#4-Cade Olivas, CA - 2014 Cadet World Team Member
#12-Joey Silva, FL
#17-Paul Konrath, IN - 2014 Fargo Champion
#17-(at 126)-Kyran Hagan, MO
#18-Max Murin, PA - 2014 Fargo Runner-Up (to Roman Bravo-Young)
Brent Jones, MN - Fargo Cadet 8th
Jeremiah Reitz, IN
Daniel Planta, MD
Bryce West, IA
Nick Raimo, NJ

Commentary: Geez! What a bracket. When is the last time you saw a weight class in any tournament, in any style, that had four World Team Members in it?!
Oh, and two others that made the big stage in Fargo.
Spencer Lee has become a sort of larger than life figure. And for good reason - he smashes everyone. And a month ago, most people would have taken Lee without a second thought.
But then Daton Fix and Austin Gomez turned in awesome performances in Vegas. Fix was the Champ with wins over three Division I studs; Gomez was 4th. Coincidentally, they both beat 2013 Cadet World Team Members (Micic and Fausz).
Olivas is coming off a JR Pan Am title. And the question for maybe both he and Spencer is one of size. Will they be big enough? I would say the answer to that is ‘absolutely’.
The interesting dynamic is that Lee has never beaten American talent as good as Fix just has. Does that mean he can’t? Certainly not. It’s just that he hasn’t faced them. The word out of Young Guns for quite a while now has been that the only people that can go with Lee are Nolf and Kemerer and Jody Strittmatter himself. But the fact that Fix has proven it might make some lean in his direction. While I wouldn’t blame them, I have to pick Lee until proven otherwise. In the last year or so, I’ve never seen anyone able to not succumb to his heavy hands, freakish pace and transitions.
Gomez is probably regarded as the ‘other guy’ at this weight. But don’t be surprised if he upsets the apple cart. Sure he’s lost a match here and there, but when he’s on, he’s jaw droppingly good.
Also keep an eye on Joey Silva. I don’t know that anyone can break through the big four here. But Akron is often a scene of upsets and I like Silva and Konrath as sleepers.

Predictions: 1. Lee 2. Fix 3. Gomez 4. Olivas


58KG

Last Year’s Final - Carter Happel, IA dec. Nick Lee, IN, 12-7
2010 Final - Brandon Jeske, VA over Kevin Norstrem, FL

Contenders:
#2-Yianni Diakomihalis, NY - 2014 Fargo Runner-Up (to Dylan Duncan)
#6-Taylor Lamont, UT - Fargo 3rd
#7-(at 132)-Vitali Arajau, NY - Fargo 3rd
#9-Kaden Gfeller, OK - Fargo 3rd
#10-(at 132)-Dylan Duncan, IL - 2014 Fargo Champ
#15-(at 132)-Ben Freeman, MI - Fargo Runner-Up (to Austin Gomez)
#18-(at 132)-Jaden Enriquez, CA - Fargo Runner-Up (to Chad Red)
Alex Lloyd, MN - Fargo 5th
Jake Bergeland, MN - Fargo 8th
JJ Figueroa, CA - USAW Folk Runner-Up (to Jon Trowbridge)
Navonte Demison, CA - USAW Folk Champ
Zander Silva, CA - USAW Folk Champ
Requir Van der Merwe, NJ - NE Regional Champ
Parker Kropman, NY
Corbin Nirschl, MO
Alec Hagan, MO

*Note: #5-Nick Lee (IN) has scratched with injury.

Commentary: Yianni gives about everyone fits. And as he gets more adjusted to freestyle, he's going to be increasingly tough to figure out. His Fargo loss last year in the finals was almost completely style specific. In that way, I like Gfeller to be the guy to push Yianni. He's extremely freestyle savvy, and like previously stated about Teasdale, I think the rise in weight benefits the lanky Gfeller.
Taylor LaMont represents a stiff challenge. And though Enriquez placed just 6th in Folk, I love his skill set and his freestyle game.
Speaking of Enriquez, he’s part of a very strong Cali contingent. Figueroa, Demison, and Silva will all likely be ranked soon, and will play a part here.

Predictions: 1. Yianni   2. Gfeller   3. Arajau   4. LaMont


63KG

Last Year’s Final - Jared Verkleeren, PA dec. Austin Kraisser, MD, 5-1
2010 Final - Jason Tsirtsis, IN over Blaise Butler, IL

Contenders:
#2-(at 145)-Jarod Verkleeren, PA - 2014 Cadet World Team Member
#6-Quentin Hovis, AZ
#11-Shayne Oster, IL - 2014 Fargo Runner-Up 
#11-(at 132)-Kanen Storr, MI - Fargo 4th
#14-Joe Lee, IN 
#15-Anthony Artalona, FL - Southeast Regional Champ
Jon Trowbridge, KS - USAW Folk Champ
Corey Shie, OH - Fargo 4th
Jaime Hernandez, IL - 2014 Fargo Runner-Up (to Nick Lee)
Jaron Jensen, UT - Western Regional Runner-Up (to Johnny O’Hearon)
Justin Ruffin, GA - Southeast Regional Champ
Phil Conigliaro, MA - Northeast Regional Champ
Lane Stigall, OR

Commentary: Jarod Verkleeren came out of nowhere last year to make the World Team and he really hasn’t looked back. Just a Sophomore, he’s one of the country’s elite middleweights, and, back at the same weight, a favorite to make the team again.
I like Hovis and Storr as the main challengers to Verkleeren. But there’s a great number of guys who have the potential to up there stock this weekend. Jensen should play a factor. And then there are the youngsters. Lee, Artalona, Ruffin, and Trowbridge are all amazing freshmen.
Stigall has been up and down, but is a capable.
Here’s a new name for you - Conigliaro. He was 4th at National Preps as just a freshman and won NE Regionals.
At the end of the day, this will be one of the most dynamic weights of the tournament. You might not know a lot about these guys today, but you will going forward. The results here will pay a huge part in the rankings.

Predictions: 1. Verkleeren  2. Storr  3. Oster  4. Hovis


69KG

Last Year’s Final - Mason Manville, NJ dec. Trace Carello, IL, 7-0
2010 Final - Justin Koethe, IA over Chris Castillo, WA

Contenders:
#3-Brady Berge, MN - Fargo 3rd
#6-Layne Van Anrooy, OR - 2014 Western Regional Champ
#8-(at 160)-Luke Troy, CA - USAW Folk Champ
#9-Frankie Gissendanner, NY
#9-(at 145)-Jake Allar, MN - USAW Folk Champ (to Ethan Karsten)
#13-(at 160)-Johnny Blankenship, MO - 2014 Fargo Runner-Up (to Trey Meyer)
#17-Anthony Mantanona, CA - Fargo 4th
Braeden Redlin, TX - PSN Champ
Adrian Ojeda, NV - Fargo 5th
Travis Wittlake, OR - USAW Folk Champ
Jake Henderson, OH - Central Regional Champ
Max Wohlabaugh, FL - Southeast Regional Champ
Bill Janzer, NJ
Josiah Rider, CO

Commentary: As a Top 5 guy, Berge comes in as the favorite. Last year at Fargo, he had wins over Van Anrooy, Mantanona, and Redlin. That being said, I loved what I saw out of Van Anrooy at NHSCA’s and Gissendanner at FloNationals this spring. While Van Anrooy looked every bit big enough for 152, Gissendanner is up considerably from his 138 state title.
Troy and Mantanona, who have long been on their class’s big board, are two others to keep an eye on. They split matches this year, with Troy winning in folk and Mantanona in FS. Mantanona beat Van Anrooy in Folk finals in 2014.
Two frosh you HAVE to keep your eyes on are Wittlake, the #6 pound-for-pound guy on the big board, and Rider, who’s at #19. I’ve been dying to get a look at both kids.

Predictions: 1. Berge 2. Gissendanner 3. Van Anrooy 4. Troy


76KG

Last Year’s Final - Mark Hall, MN dec. Beau Breske, WI, 4-1
2010 Final - Jordan Rogers, WA over Kyle Crutchmer, OK

Contenders:
#4-Brandon Dallavia, NJ - 2014 Fargo Cadet Champ
#6-Louie DePrez, NY
#8-Joe Grello, NJ - Fargo 4th
#13-Jacob Warner, IL - Fargo 5th
#17-Jelani Embree, MI
#17-(at 160)-Elijah Cleary, FL
#19-(at 152)-Ryan Karoly, NJ - Northeast Regional Champ
Andrew Berreyesa, NV - Fargo 6th
Brandon Kui, NJ - Northeast Regional Champ
Jeremiah Moody, WI - Fargo 4th
Spencer Carey, NJ

Commentary: The New Jersey show. Fargo Champ Dallavia leads a pack of Garden State talent. And you really have to be encouraged with the development of Grello, a state champ this year, and Kui. Karoly is an incoming freshmen.
Two others I really like despite lacking FS credentials are Embree and DePrez.
At the end of the day, you have to go Dallavia here. Something didn’t look quite right with him during the regular season, but he seems to be all systems go now. He torched everyone at the Northeast Regional.
Grello had an up-and-down year until Atlantic City. If he can pull this off, his stock goes through the roof.

Predictions: 1. Dallavia 2. Grello 3. DePrez 4. Embree


85KG

Last Year’s Final - Hunter Ritter, MD dec. Sammy Colbray, OR, 10-7
2010 Final - Austin Marsden, IL over Lucas Sheridan, CA

Contenders:
#1-Keegan Moore, MN - 2014 Double Fargo Champ
#8-Wyatt Koelling, UT - 2014 Double Fargo Runner-Up (both to K. Moore)
#10-Christian Brunner, IL - Fargo 7th
#15-Haydn Maley, OR - Fargo 3rd
#17-Casey Cornett, KY
#18-Noah Adams, WV - Central Regional Champ
Dean Drugac, NJ - NE Regional Runner-Up
Luke Drugac, NJ - Fargo 7th
Andrew Buckley, MO

Commentary: I thought I had a sneaky good contender in the relatively unknown Noah Adams. But then Keegan Moore registered. #1 in the country when the new rankings are unveiled, Moore is the clear favorite to represent the U.S.
Maley’s only loss in Fargo last year was by tech to Moore.
Brunner has had a great start to the FS season with a win over Nathan Traxler.
Koelling’s Fargo final loss to Moore was 7-0 and I expect a result in that ballpark this go round.

Predictions: 1. Moore 2. Koelling 3. Brunner 4. Maley


100KG

Last Year’s Final - Jordan Wood, PA dec. Lucas Warren, IL, 9-4
2010 Final - Tanner Hall, ID over Gage Harrah, IL

Contenders:
#1-Jordan Wood, PA - 2014 Cadet World Silver Medalist
#4-Gable Steveson, MN - Northern Plains Champ
#8-Cohlton Schultz, CO
#9-Luke Ready, MI - Fargo Runner-Up (to Gannon Gremmel)

Commentary: What a great weight! It’s not often you get this many top flight big men in one tournament. Jordan Wood is the #1 wrestler in the country at 220. He was a Cadet World finalist last year, a feat more impressive considering he’s still young enough to be a Cadet this year again.
But he’ll face some of the most talented competition he could possibly get stateside. Gable Steveson is a phenom and will be ranked 4th in the country when the new ones come out.
Ready and Schultz were 2nd and 3rd at FloNationals. Schultz, the #1 JR High wrestler in America was the only one to keep it close with the eventual champ, Austin Myers, at Flonats, dropping an 8-3 decision. To further illustrate how good Schultz is as an 8th grader, he owns a win over Jacob Seely this spring. The same Jacob Seely that made the finals in JR’s at Vegas earlier this month.

Predictions: 1. Wood 2. Steveson 3. Schultz 4. Ready


United States Since Cadet Worlds Reinstated (2011)

	2014	Snina,	Slovakia		2013	Zrenjanin,	Serbia
42KG	Gavin Teasdale	PA	5th		Austin Gomez	IL	16th
46KG	Cade Olivas	CA	7th		Devin Brown	PA	13th
50KG	Spencer Lee	PA	Gold		Spencer Lee	PA	7th
54KG	Daton Fix	OK	10th		Stevan Micic	IN	15th
58KG	Carter Happel	IA	21st		Sean Fausz	KY	9th
63KG	Jared Verkleeren	PA	16th		Aaron Pico	CA	Gold
69KG	Mason Manville	VA	Gold		Jon Jay Chavez	ID	10th
76KG	Mark Hall	MI	Gold		Bo Nickal	TX	5th
85KG	Hunter Ritter	MD	16th		Angus Arthur	MI	17th
100KG	Jordan Wood	PA	Silver		Lance Benick	MN	18th
	Team USA		Bronze		Team USA		9th
	2012	Baku,	Azerbaijan		2011	Szombathely,	Hungary
42KG	Andrew Nieman	OK	12th		Gannon Volk	MN	7th
46KG	Mitchell McKee	MN	12th		Tommy Thorn	MN	7th
50KG	Tommy Thorn	MN	16th		Dalton Brady	AZ	5th
54KG	Joey McKenna	NJ	8th		Thomas Gilman	IA	10th
58KG	Seth Gross	MN	13th		Zane Richards	IL	7th
63KG	Zain Retherford	PA	Gold		Joey Lavallee	NV	5th
69KG	Jack Bass	TX	11th		Oliver Pierce	TX	5th
76KG	Chance Marsteller	PA	5th		Jordan Rogers	WA	17th
85KG	Mitch Sliga	IN	5th		Sammy Brooks	IL	Bronze
100KG	Garrett Ryan	AZ	5th		Adam Coon	MI	Gold
	Team USA		8th		Team USA		5th