The Div I regular season has come to a close. With the post season looming, I wanted to take a look at some of the bright young stars in the sport that didn’t get a chance to shine under the bright lights this season as they are competing unattached. 

Below is a list, broken down by weight, of wrestlers who had excellent redshirt seasons. Some big names are missing from here as they either did not compete this season or only in one open tournament for less than five matches. The following wrestlers all wrestled in multiple competitions for double-digit season match totals.

125: Eddie Ventresca, Virginia Tech

Record: 15 - 6

Best Win: Greg Diakomihalis

Eddie Ventresca solidified himself as the favorite to take over Sam Latona’s 125 lbs spot next season with a solid redshirt campaign. The New Jersey native defeated highly touted recruit and teammate Cooper Flynn twice, albeit by one point each time. Ventresca also notched wins over other solid young guys like Spencer Moore, Tristan Lujan, Braxton Brown, and James Joplin.

Watch Eddie Ventresca beat Greg Diakomihalis at the Southern Scuffle below.

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Honorable Mention: James Joplin, Stevo Poulin

133: Vance Vombaur, Minnesota

Record: 13 - 3

Best Win: #21 Kyle Biscoglia

I’m convinced Kevin Dresser got his hunting Panthers bit from Vance Vombaur. The Minnesota freshman went 5-0 against UNI wrestlers this season beating Kyle Biscoglia, Jack Skudlarczyk, Jack Wagner, and Julian Farber X2. Unfortunately for Vombaur, he did take a loss to current Gopher starter Jake Gliva, and Gliva still has several years of eligibility. So it could be an uphill battle for him to see the starting lineup next year.

Watch Vance Vombaur beat Kyle Biscoglia at the Daktronics Open below.

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Honorable Mention: Carter Bailey, Dylan Chappel, Andres Gonzales

141: Wyatt Henson, Iowa

Record: 18 - 2

Best win: Quinn Kinner

The Hawks look like they’ll be alright next year after the departure of Jaydin Eierman. Wyatt Henson had an excellent freshman campaign only losing to Allan Hart and Andrew Alirez. Hawkeye fans will enjoy hearing that Henson beat tough Oklahoma State freshman Teague Travis in a close early season match.

Honorable Mention: Lachlan McNeil, Teague Travis, Ethen Miller

149: Victor Voinovich, Oklahoma State

Record: 16 - 1

Best Win: Chris Sandoval

The #12 overall recruit in the class of 2021 came as advertised. Ohio native Victor Voinovich went 16-1 overall with the only loss coming to 3X national qualifier Josh Finesilver of Duke in the Southern Scuffle semifinals. Voinovich came back for 3rd place, the highest finish for a true freshman Cowboy since Kaden Gfellar in 2018.

Honorable Mention: Anthony White, Luka Wick, Brock McMillen

157: Paddy Gallagher, Ohio State

Record: 17 - 2

Best Win: Cam Robinson

While blue-chip recruit Paddy Gallagher wasn’t able to get a big signature win this season, he beat almost everybody in his path. Competing in four opens, Gallagher went 17-2 losing to national qualifier Michael Petite and Cadet World Teamer/PA state champion/2022 Penn State commit Levi Haines.

Honorable Mention: Jared Hill, Luke Mechler

165: Michael Caliendo, NDSU

Record: 14 - 2

Best Win: #15 Austin Yant

Roger Kish and co. got a good one in Michael Caliendo. While the Illinois native went 0-2 at the Illinois Matmen Open, he won the other four opens he competed in. His best performance came at the Daktronics Open where he beat Austin Yant, Tanner Cook, Grant Stotts, and Austin Kraisser.

Watch Michael Caliendo beat Austin Yant at the Daktronics Open below.

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Honorable Mention: Patrick Kennedy, Alex Facundo

174: Cael Valencia, Arizona State

Record: 12 - 4

Best Win: Hayden Hastings

He’s got the name and Cael Valencia showed some promise in his first year as a Sun Devil. He got off to a hot start winning his first two tournaments and eight matches. One of those came over 3X national qualifier, Hayden Hastings of Wyoming, in his home gym. Now, Hastings did get revenge at the Reno Tournament of Champions. His other losses came to Mason Reinche, Jared Krattiger, and Julien Broderson.

Watch Cael Valencia beat Hayden Hastings below.

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Honorable Mention: Luca Augustine, Dylan Reinert

184: Joey Milano, NC State

Record: 23 - 6

Best Win: Deandre Nassar

No one on this list wrestled more than NC State’s Joey Milano. The PA native wrestled in seven open tournaments this season, bringing home titles in three of them. One of his early season losses came to Virginia redshirt Hadyn Danals, but Milano avenged that loss by 15-0 tech fall at the Appalachian Open in January. Milano’s other five losses came to Div I starters.

Honorable Mention: Nathan Haas, Hadyn Danals

197: Jaxon Smith, Maryland

Record: 23 - 6

Best Win: Garrett Joles

Terp fans might get confused next year when a new Ja. Smith takes over the 197 lbs starting spot. They shouldn’t worry, however, as they won’t be taking a step back. After losing to Jaron Smith at the Southern Scuffle, Jaxon Smith won his last 11 matches. One of those wins came over 2021 Minnesota sarting 197 pounder Garrett Joles.

Honorable Mention: Lucas Cochran

285: Ethan Laird, Rider

Record: 11 - 1

Best Win: #16 Luke Luffman

Ok, this one is cheating a bit as Ethan Laird is 3X national qualifier who is taking a redshirt in his fifth year at Rider, but with the struggles a lot of younger guys have a heavyweight, Laird was head and shoulders above the rest. His only loss came to Trent Hillger in the Illinois Matmen Open finals.

Honorable Mention: Hunter Catka, Nathan Taylor