Best Opening Acts In Super 32 History
Best Opening Acts In Super 32 History
The lightest weight class is often the most talented of them all, it just takes a few years for the young wrestlers to prove their mettle at the college level. We look back at a few of the best 106 or 103 pound brackets in history.
By Brock Hite
When Super 32 kicks off this weekend in Greensboro, NC, the tournament's 106lb bracket will be filled with mostly young and unknown wrestlers. But don't let this fool you into the misconception that 106lb (or even 103lb in the recent past) is a weak weight class.
Given the advantage of hindsight, it's clear that this weight class is a breeding ground of future stars. Let's take a look at some of the best 103lb brackets from previous Super 32 tournaments.
I selected brackets to represent different eras of the Super 32 Challenge that best displayed depth and top-end talent. The 2010 event was my cutoff, because we have not had the ability to see the participants reach their potential at the NCAA level in any of the more recent brackets. Even the 2010 participants have barely dug into their NCAA eligibility.
Once you go through the brackets from years past, it should become clear that odds are in favor of this field producing multiple NCAA All-Americans and probably a national champion. Keep in mind those accolades are just as likely to come from the wrestlers battling on the back side of the bracket as they are from the finalists.
1st: Darian Cruz, PA
2nd: Nathan Tomasello, OH
3rd: Richie Bliss, FL
4th: Ryan Diehl, WV
5th: Dalton Macri, PA
6th: Zac Hall, MI
7th: Billy Rappo, PA
8th: Aaron Assad, OH
DNP:
Tanner Shoap, PA
Ryan Millhof, GA
Nick Picininni, NY
Jake Gromacki, PA
Colby Ems, PA
Sean Russell, GA
Logan Massa, MI
Dom Forys, PA
Coy Ozias, MD
Understanding the growth of the Super 32 Challenge, it should come as no surprise that the most recent bracket is the deepest in my opinion. This crew is just starting to make its mark on the NCAA landscape but already has locked down an All-American finish and an NCAA title.
After Darian Cruz won a national championship in March 2017, his All-American finish as a true freshman in 2014 is often overlooked. But he showed at Super 32 that he had the skills to be successful immediately at the next level. Nathan Tomasello added the NCAA championship to the field's resume in 2015. This final is poised to be the most credentialed final in Super 32 history, as Cruz and Tomasello will compete against each other one last time in the NCAA in 2018.
Keep in mind that lots of these guys have NCAA eligibility yet to burn.
Credentials:
Darian Cruz: 2x PIAA state champion, NCAA champion at Lehigh
Nathan Tomasello: 4x Ohio state champion, NCAA national champion at Ohio State
Richie Bliss: 3x Florida state champion
Ryan Diehl: 2x PIAA 2x West Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Maryland
Dalton Macri: PIAA state champion, NCAA qualifier, wrestles at North Carolina
Zac Hall: 4x Michigan state champion, NCAA qualifier at Michigan
Billy Rappo: 2x PIAA state champion, NCAA qualifier at Maryland
Aaron Assad: Ohio state champion, wrestled at Purdue
Tanner Shoap: 3x PIAA place-winner, wrestles at Drexel
Ryan Millhof: 3x Georgia state champion, NCAA All-American at Oklahoma now at Arizona State
Nick Picininni: 4x New York state champion, NCAA All-American at Oklahoma State
Jake Gromacki: 3x PIAA place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Clarion
Colby Ems: PIAA place-winner, wrestles at Edinboro
Sean Russell: 4x Georgia state champion, NCAA All-American at Edinboro
Logan Massa: 3x Michigan state champion, NCAA All-American at Michigan
Dom Forys: 2x PIAA place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Pitt
Coy Ozias: 4x Virginia state champion, wrestles at Princeton
1st: Sean Boylan, DE
2nd: Max Nowry, IL
3rd: AJ Schopp, PA
4th: Devin Carter, VA
5th: Stephen Spradlin, GA
6th: Cameron Throckmorton, PA
7th: Christopher Mears, TX
8th: Tyler Biscaha, NJ
DNP:
Joey Dance, VA
Ronnie Garbinsky, PA
Rossi Bruno, FL
Eric Morris, PA
Brandon Jeske, VA
Shelton Mack, PA
Coltin Fought, PA
Robert Dyar, AL
Lou Mascola, NJ
Laike Gardner, PA
Caleb Richardson, VA
With the advantage of hindsight, the third-place match would be everyone's pick to be the final when you see the list of entrants. It doesn't change the fact Sean Boylan was an absolute superstar coming out of Delaware. Boylan dominated Carter in the semifinal 9-1. Boylan had a solid career at Bloomsburg and backed up this Super 32 performance throughout high school with many major championships. Max Nowry took the Greco path post-high school and doesn't have the household folkstyle name. That didn't stop him from having enough mat wrestling to get past Schopp in the semifinal 2-1.
The depth of this weight is impressive when you see how many guys competed at the Division I level. Eleven of them were good enough to qualify for the NCAA tournament. The credential list for this field is still growing as many of the DNPs were in junior high or just freshmen.
Credentials:
Sean Boylan: 3x Delaware state champion, wrestled at Bloomsburg
Max Nowry: Illinois state champion, Greco-Roman National Team member
AJ Schopp: PIAA state champion, 3x NCAA All-American at Edinboro
Devin Carter: 3x Virginia state champion, 3x NCAA All-American at Virginia Tech
Stephen Spradlin: GA state champion
Cameron Throckmorton: 3x PIAA place-winner, Division II NCAA qualifier at Shippensburg
Christopher Mears: 2x National Prep runner-up, wrestled at North Carolina
Tyler Biscaha: New Jersey state champion, wrestled at Cornell
Joey Dance: 4x Virginia state champion, NCAA All-American at Virginia Tech
Ronnie Garbinsky: 4x PIAA place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Pitt
Rossi Bruno: 5x Florida state champion, NCAA All-American at Michigan
Eric Morris: 2x National Prep champion, wrestles at Harvard
Brandon Jeske: 2x Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Old Dominion
Shelton Mack: PIAA qualifier, Round of 12 at Pitt
Coltin Fought: PIAA state champion, NCAA qualifier at NC State
Robert Dyar: 3x Alabama state champion, wrestled at Columbia
Lou Mascola: New Jersey state place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Maryland
Laike Gardner: PIAA runner-up, NCAA qualifier at Lehigh
Caleb Richardson: 2x Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Pennsylvania
1st: Eric Grajales, FL
2nd: Steve Mitcheff, OH
3rd: Nic Bedelyon, PA
4th: Zeke Hofer, CO
5th: Andrews Williams, VA
6th: Tommy Bennett, FL
7/8th: Eric Dunnet, NJ
7/8th: Joey Lazor, GA
DNP:
Matt Snyder, PA
Kenny Courts, PA
Ian Squires, VA
Riley Adamson, TX
In 2005, the Super 32 boom was in full swing. Competitors were now traveling great distances to get the best competition leading up to the season. The tournament now had the depth to go along with the top-end talent.
Eric Grajales is an all-time great wrestler when only looking at prep careers. He earned four state titles in Florida and was a member of two Fila Junior World teams. He earned All-American honors at Michigan, but many expected so much more. Grajales defeated Steve Mitcheff in the final 7-0. Mitcheff went on to be an NCAA qualifier at Kent State.
Mitcheff had an impressive run to the finals defeating future college stars Matt Snyder and Nic Bedelyon. Bedelyon would become Mitcheff's teammate at Kent State.
One of the cool things about the lighter weight classes is that you get to see junior high phenoms compete against the big dogs. Kenny Courts won a match as a seventh-grader before being dropped into the consolations by Ian Squires.
Credentials:
Eric Grajales: 4x Florida state champion, NCAA All-American
Steve Mitcheff: Ohio state champion, NCAA qualifier at Kent State
Nic Bedelyon: PIAA runner-up, 2x NCAA All-American at Kent State
Joey Lazor: 2x GA state champion, NCAA All-American at UNI
Kenny Courts: 2x PIAA state champion , NCAA All-American at Ohio State
Matt Snyder: PIAA runner-up, 2x Round of 12 at Virginia
Riley Adamson: 2x Prep National Champion, wrestled at Duke
Ian Squires: Virginia state champion, wrestled at Boston and Maryland
Eric Dunnet: New Jersey state runner-up, wrestled at Old Dominion
Andrew Williams: 4x Virginia state champion
Zeke Hofer: Colorado state champion
1st: Tyler Nauman, PA
2nd: Scotti Sentes, FL
3rd: Matt Rosen, VA
4th: Colton Palmer, NC
DNP:
Eric Olanowski, VA
Connor McDonald, DE
In 2003, the Super 32 Challenge was on the verge of exploding into the national tournament it is today. The entrants had expanded beyond the North Carolina and Virginia borders. The field entered was from up and down the East Coast.
To have two future NCAA All-Americans in the finals today is commonplace. I believe the final between Tyler Nauman and Scotti Sentes to be the first matchup of that kind. Nauman took care of Sentes before moving onto a PIAA championship and two All-American finishes later in his career. Sentes accumulated four Florida championships and matched Nauman's two appearances on the podium at NCAAs.
Credentials:
Tyler Nauman: PIAA state champion, 2x NCAA All-American at Pitt
Scotti Sentes: 4x Florida state champion, 2x NCAA All-American
Eric Olanowski: Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Michigan State
Matt Rosen: 4x Virginia place-winner, 46-36 as a Hokie at Virginia Tech
Colton Palmer: 2x North Carolina state champion, NCAA qualifier at NC State
Connor McDonald: 3x Delaware state champion, Division II All-American at Newberry
When Super 32 kicks off this weekend in Greensboro, NC, the tournament's 106lb bracket will be filled with mostly young and unknown wrestlers. But don't let this fool you into the misconception that 106lb (or even 103lb in the recent past) is a weak weight class.
Given the advantage of hindsight, it's clear that this weight class is a breeding ground of future stars. Let's take a look at some of the best 103lb brackets from previous Super 32 tournaments.
I selected brackets to represent different eras of the Super 32 Challenge that best displayed depth and top-end talent. The 2010 event was my cutoff, because we have not had the ability to see the participants reach their potential at the NCAA level in any of the more recent brackets. Even the 2010 participants have barely dug into their NCAA eligibility.
Once you go through the brackets from years past, it should become clear that odds are in favor of this field producing multiple NCAA All-Americans and probably a national champion. Keep in mind those accolades are just as likely to come from the wrestlers battling on the back side of the bracket as they are from the finalists.
2010 -- 103lb:
1st: Darian Cruz, PA
2nd: Nathan Tomasello, OH
3rd: Richie Bliss, FL
4th: Ryan Diehl, WV
5th: Dalton Macri, PA
6th: Zac Hall, MI
7th: Billy Rappo, PA
8th: Aaron Assad, OH
DNP:
Tanner Shoap, PA
Ryan Millhof, GA
Nick Picininni, NY
Jake Gromacki, PA
Colby Ems, PA
Sean Russell, GA
Logan Massa, MI
Dom Forys, PA
Coy Ozias, MD
Understanding the growth of the Super 32 Challenge, it should come as no surprise that the most recent bracket is the deepest in my opinion. This crew is just starting to make its mark on the NCAA landscape but already has locked down an All-American finish and an NCAA title.
After Darian Cruz won a national championship in March 2017, his All-American finish as a true freshman in 2014 is often overlooked. But he showed at Super 32 that he had the skills to be successful immediately at the next level. Nathan Tomasello added the NCAA championship to the field's resume in 2015. This final is poised to be the most credentialed final in Super 32 history, as Cruz and Tomasello will compete against each other one last time in the NCAA in 2018.
Keep in mind that lots of these guys have NCAA eligibility yet to burn.
Credentials:
Darian Cruz: 2x PIAA state champion, NCAA champion at Lehigh
Nathan Tomasello: 4x Ohio state champion, NCAA national champion at Ohio State
Richie Bliss: 3x Florida state champion
Ryan Diehl: 2x PIAA 2x West Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Maryland
Dalton Macri: PIAA state champion, NCAA qualifier, wrestles at North Carolina
Zac Hall: 4x Michigan state champion, NCAA qualifier at Michigan
Billy Rappo: 2x PIAA state champion, NCAA qualifier at Maryland
Aaron Assad: Ohio state champion, wrestled at Purdue
Tanner Shoap: 3x PIAA place-winner, wrestles at Drexel
Ryan Millhof: 3x Georgia state champion, NCAA All-American at Oklahoma now at Arizona State
Nick Picininni: 4x New York state champion, NCAA All-American at Oklahoma State
Jake Gromacki: 3x PIAA place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Clarion
Colby Ems: PIAA place-winner, wrestles at Edinboro
Sean Russell: 4x Georgia state champion, NCAA All-American at Edinboro
Logan Massa: 3x Michigan state champion, NCAA All-American at Michigan
Dom Forys: 2x PIAA place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Pitt
Coy Ozias: 4x Virginia state champion, wrestles at Princeton
2007 -- 103lb:
1st: Sean Boylan, DE
2nd: Max Nowry, IL
3rd: AJ Schopp, PA
4th: Devin Carter, VA
5th: Stephen Spradlin, GA
6th: Cameron Throckmorton, PA
7th: Christopher Mears, TX
8th: Tyler Biscaha, NJ
DNP:
Joey Dance, VA
Ronnie Garbinsky, PA
Rossi Bruno, FL
Eric Morris, PA
Brandon Jeske, VA
Shelton Mack, PA
Coltin Fought, PA
Robert Dyar, AL
Lou Mascola, NJ
Laike Gardner, PA
Caleb Richardson, VA
With the advantage of hindsight, the third-place match would be everyone's pick to be the final when you see the list of entrants. It doesn't change the fact Sean Boylan was an absolute superstar coming out of Delaware. Boylan dominated Carter in the semifinal 9-1. Boylan had a solid career at Bloomsburg and backed up this Super 32 performance throughout high school with many major championships. Max Nowry took the Greco path post-high school and doesn't have the household folkstyle name. That didn't stop him from having enough mat wrestling to get past Schopp in the semifinal 2-1.
The depth of this weight is impressive when you see how many guys competed at the Division I level. Eleven of them were good enough to qualify for the NCAA tournament. The credential list for this field is still growing as many of the DNPs were in junior high or just freshmen.
Credentials:
Sean Boylan: 3x Delaware state champion, wrestled at Bloomsburg
Max Nowry: Illinois state champion, Greco-Roman National Team member
AJ Schopp: PIAA state champion, 3x NCAA All-American at Edinboro
Devin Carter: 3x Virginia state champion, 3x NCAA All-American at Virginia Tech
Stephen Spradlin: GA state champion
Cameron Throckmorton: 3x PIAA place-winner, Division II NCAA qualifier at Shippensburg
Christopher Mears: 2x National Prep runner-up, wrestled at North Carolina
Tyler Biscaha: New Jersey state champion, wrestled at Cornell
Joey Dance: 4x Virginia state champion, NCAA All-American at Virginia Tech
Ronnie Garbinsky: 4x PIAA place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Pitt
Rossi Bruno: 5x Florida state champion, NCAA All-American at Michigan
Eric Morris: 2x National Prep champion, wrestles at Harvard
Brandon Jeske: 2x Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Old Dominion
Shelton Mack: PIAA qualifier, Round of 12 at Pitt
Coltin Fought: PIAA state champion, NCAA qualifier at NC State
Robert Dyar: 3x Alabama state champion, wrestled at Columbia
Lou Mascola: New Jersey state place-winner, NCAA qualifier at Maryland
Laike Gardner: PIAA runner-up, NCAA qualifier at Lehigh
Caleb Richardson: 2x Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Pennsylvania
2005 -- 103lb:
1st: Eric Grajales, FL
2nd: Steve Mitcheff, OH
3rd: Nic Bedelyon, PA
4th: Zeke Hofer, CO
5th: Andrews Williams, VA
6th: Tommy Bennett, FL
7/8th: Eric Dunnet, NJ
7/8th: Joey Lazor, GA
DNP:
Matt Snyder, PA
Kenny Courts, PA
Ian Squires, VA
Riley Adamson, TX
In 2005, the Super 32 boom was in full swing. Competitors were now traveling great distances to get the best competition leading up to the season. The tournament now had the depth to go along with the top-end talent.
Eric Grajales is an all-time great wrestler when only looking at prep careers. He earned four state titles in Florida and was a member of two Fila Junior World teams. He earned All-American honors at Michigan, but many expected so much more. Grajales defeated Steve Mitcheff in the final 7-0. Mitcheff went on to be an NCAA qualifier at Kent State.
Mitcheff had an impressive run to the finals defeating future college stars Matt Snyder and Nic Bedelyon. Bedelyon would become Mitcheff's teammate at Kent State.
One of the cool things about the lighter weight classes is that you get to see junior high phenoms compete against the big dogs. Kenny Courts won a match as a seventh-grader before being dropped into the consolations by Ian Squires.
Credentials:
Eric Grajales: 4x Florida state champion, NCAA All-American
Steve Mitcheff: Ohio state champion, NCAA qualifier at Kent State
Nic Bedelyon: PIAA runner-up, 2x NCAA All-American at Kent State
Joey Lazor: 2x GA state champion, NCAA All-American at UNI
Kenny Courts: 2x PIAA state champion , NCAA All-American at Ohio State
Matt Snyder: PIAA runner-up, 2x Round of 12 at Virginia
Riley Adamson: 2x Prep National Champion, wrestled at Duke
Ian Squires: Virginia state champion, wrestled at Boston and Maryland
Eric Dunnet: New Jersey state runner-up, wrestled at Old Dominion
Andrew Williams: 4x Virginia state champion
Zeke Hofer: Colorado state champion
2003 -- 103lb:
1st: Tyler Nauman, PA
2nd: Scotti Sentes, FL
3rd: Matt Rosen, VA
4th: Colton Palmer, NC
DNP:
Eric Olanowski, VA
Connor McDonald, DE
In 2003, the Super 32 Challenge was on the verge of exploding into the national tournament it is today. The entrants had expanded beyond the North Carolina and Virginia borders. The field entered was from up and down the East Coast.
To have two future NCAA All-Americans in the finals today is commonplace. I believe the final between Tyler Nauman and Scotti Sentes to be the first matchup of that kind. Nauman took care of Sentes before moving onto a PIAA championship and two All-American finishes later in his career. Sentes accumulated four Florida championships and matched Nauman's two appearances on the podium at NCAAs.
Credentials:
Tyler Nauman: PIAA state champion, 2x NCAA All-American at Pitt
Scotti Sentes: 4x Florida state champion, 2x NCAA All-American
Eric Olanowski: Virginia state champion, NCAA qualifier at Michigan State
Matt Rosen: 4x Virginia place-winner, 46-36 as a Hokie at Virginia Tech
Colton Palmer: 2x North Carolina state champion, NCAA qualifier at NC State
Connor McDonald: 3x Delaware state champion, Division II All-American at Newberry