MVP Wrestling Preview 2010
By John Cummings
MVP’S TOP WRESTLERS
Few regions of the country, let alone Ohio, are as blessed with wrestling talent as rich as that of the Miami Valley. Every year the state tournament is decorated with Dayton-area athletes and this year will be no different. Here’s some names you can expect to hear in March…and possibly beyond.
1. Jared Beatty, Arcanum, 130: Beatty was one of two Trojans on the podium last season, but the only one returning. A year after becoming the first Arcanum state placer in school history, he could be the school’s first two time placer.
2. Andrew DeHart, Covington, 152: Signed and sealed to Duke, DeHart seeks to gain the one thing that has eluded him… a state title. DeHart earned his third medal at the state tournament last season, but it was not the one he wanted. The Covington standout lost 5-3 to Kyle Burns of Troy Christian in a tight final.
3. Ethan Hayes, Dixie, 215: Hayes burst onto the scene as a sophomore by bulling his way to a second place finish at state before winning it all as a junior. Hayes will have an even larger target on his back this year as he aims to defend his title.
4. Jordan Marshall, Troy Christian, 140: The Eagle sophomore is the lone wrestler back in the room with state experience, a first for the program in quite some time. After a 1-2 performance at the big meet last year, Marshall should find the podium this year.
5. Thomas Fullenkamp, Versailles, 160: Fullenkamp was third at the state tournament last season, dropping a tough 3-0 decision in the semis. Both of the wrestlers who placed ahead of him graduated. Combine that with the work ethic associated with the Tiger program and Fullenkamp could be the last man standing this year at the state tournament.
6. Will Lebeouf, Oakwood, 160: A terror on his feet last season, Lebeouf battled through a tough district tournament only to go 1-2 at the state meet. This season, the ‘Jack wrestler aims at a spot on the podium.
7. Bryan Day, Valley View, 215: Now the only day on the roster, Bryan Day returns after advancing to the state tournament last season. He also has two more years to match big brothers third place finish at the state tournament. This could be the year that Bryan finds a spot on the podium.
8. Nick Brascetta, Graham, 140: After winning it all as a sophomore, Brascetta was caught by Ty Mitch in the finals at the state tournament. The duo wrestled a trilogy of great matches last year with Brascetta winning all of them except the final one. The Falcon senior should be one of many to leave Columbus with gold around their neck.
9. Bo Jordan, Graham, 145: Jordan cruised to his first state title last season as a freshman en route to posting a 39-1 mark. A physical tactician, Jordan is once again one of the many in the Graham line up who should leave Columbus with gold.
10. Isaac Jordan, Graham, 160: After a third place finish as a freshman, Isaac claimed his first state title last season. He will be one of three Jordan’s in coach Jeff Jordan’s line up. Isaac is a thinking man’s wrestler. Very good at analyzing and using strategy in breaking an opponent down during the course of a match.
11. Huston Evans, Graham, 189: A two-time state champ already, Evans moves up to 189 giving the Falcons a more than suitable replacement for the graduated Matt Thomusseit.
12. Josh Stevens, Beavercreek, 125: His style may not be the prettiest, but the results sure are. Stevens took his funky style to the state tournament last season and came home with a third place finish, highest of the area 125s last season.
13. Kyle Rose, Centerville, 285: Rose was 10 seconds from forcing overtime in the state title match last season before yielding a late takedown. After committing to West Virginia for football, there was some talk he would forego his senior year on the mat. Fortunately, the former junior high state champ, is back to make sure those final seconds in Columbus go a little differently his senior season.
14. Eddie Noble, Lebanon, 103: Noble battled to a third place finish at the state tournament, but wants more. With a family full of state medals, Noble is looking to become the second in the family with a state title.
15. Jordan Branham, Miamisburg, 112: Branham moves up a weight after qualifying for state at 103 last season. A hard worker, Branham gained a lot of experience in the summer by wrestling up.
16. Kyle Bryant, Piqua, 152: Bryant found the podium in Columbus last season for the Indians and looks to move up the steps this season. With a strong group around him to push him, including coach Scott Kaye- Bryant could find himself on the big stage in the last match of the season.
17. Cody Shivener, Springboro, 135: Shivener improved from an eighth place finish as a sophomore to a third place finish last season at the state tournament. He has one season left to reach the top step, but staying healthy and on the mat will be key for him to fine tune everything prior to the state tournament.
18. Matt Denlinger, Fairmont, 135: Denlinger introduced himself to high school wrestling last season by just missing a spot at the state tournament. A junior high state champ, Denlinger had a productive off season where he gained even more experience as he begins his second assault in high school.
19. Garrett Conner, Fairmont, 189: As a freshman, Conner also just missed a spot at the state tournament. However, during his first season, he was one of few in the state who could give Centerville state champ Nick Miller a match. Like Denlinger, Conner gained more valuable experience during the summer and should find himself on the podium in Columbus at the end of the season.
20. Jonah Newburg, Northmont, 171: Newburg had a strong start at the district tournament before dropping a controversial 8-7 decision he could not rebound from. Newburg, however, had a tremendous summer which included All-American status at Nationals. Look for him to break through the district barrier this year and challenge for a spot on the top half of the podium in Columbus.
MVP’S TOP TEAMS
With the cheers of the fall sports season swept away by the wind, the action will begin to heat up in the gymnasiums. The area wrestling scene will unfold with several questions in December and will conclude with a crystal clear image in March at the Schottenstein Center on the campus of The Ohio State University.
Can Graham repeat as National champs? Can any of the Dayton Division I teams bang their way up the leaderboard at the state tournament, or will the Cincinnati schools and Northeast Ohio domination continue at the top half of the big board in Columbus? Who will be the surprise freshmen … or even seniors for that matter? Who were one hit wonders and who was just making their mark.
Here are our “Preseason” Top 10 teams, regardless of division:
1. Graham: Duh. Graham has won 10 straight Division II state titles including a ridiculous 2010 performance where they outscored the second place team by 160 points en route to claiming their second National Championship in three years. The Falcons return eight state placers, including champions Ryan Taylor, Bo Jordan, Isaac Jordan and Huston Evans. Add in newcomers Rusty Maness and Case Garrison – and another Jordan, Micah (119) – and the Falcons could be looking at placing 13 on the podium in Columbus. And, don’t be surprised if they don’t put double digits on the top step – and challenge the 300 point mark. The Falcons will face a stern test on the national level from Apple Valley and Blair Academy (who they travel to this year) in their pursuit of back-to-back titles.
2. Beavercreek: The Beavers enter the season with 11 returning district qualifiers, including state placer Josh Stevens. Add in the transfer of Carroll state qualifier Tommy Willis and a strong off-season by 285-pounder Trey Hill, and the Beavers could make a lot of noise in the Greater Western Ohio Conference and – more importantly – the postseason.
3. Dixie: The Greyhounds return three state qualifiers in Josh Vonbehren, Cody Johnson and Ethan Hayes. Johnson overcame a first round loss in Columbus to win his next two matches to get on the podium at 285, but the biggest hitter for the Greyhounds is Hayes. Hayes bulled his way to the 215 title last season, and should repeat this year. Add in a strong nucleus of underclassmen (Dixie qualified for the State Duals this year) and last season’s “surprise” team enters as one of the stronger teams in the area.
4. Centerville: The Elks return six district qualifers, but perhaps the biggest return is Kyle Rose. Rose, who has committed to West Virginia to play football, was touch and go about wrestling this winter after coming just eight ticks away from going overtime in the 215 pound title match at the state tournament last season. Rose will move up to 285, but the Elks have plenty of other weapons back as well. Brendan Watson was one match from a spot at the state tournament last season. Add in Austin Castro, Dylan Rinderle, Nick Duffy and Jake Carman and the Elks will once again challenge for the top spot among area Division I schools.
5. Springboro: The Panthers return the most state experienced wrestlers, but have a lot of question marks throughout the rest of their line up. Off season move ins have since moved out, the Panthers have a lot of youth and team leader Tyler Riegle graduated. Add in a late uncertainty about head coach Ryan Root, and the Panthers seem to be in a little limbo. Last season, the question was if they could get and stay healthy by the end of the season. The Panthers did, and rolled through the GWOC and Sectional tournaments. This season, there are other questions they have to answer. However, the do return state placer Cody Shivener as well as state qualifiers Josh D’Urso, Brandon Walker and Ryan Jackson to give them firepower.
6. Fairmont: The Firebirds had a incredible journey last season. The Firebirds were the best dual meet team in the area last season, but missed some of the heavy hitters needed to be dominant as a tournament team.
And, their top heavy hitter from last season – Jake Sage – has graduated. Fairmont, however, returns five district qualifiers including the excellent Matt Denlinger and Garrett Conner. Add in the fact that the Firebirds have – perhaps – the most underrated coach in the area in Frank Baxter, and Fairmont will find a way to continue to be one of the top teams in the area.
7. Oakwood: The Lumberjacks were third at the Division II District tournament last season, just 16 points out of second…. the distance from first place Graham was much difference. The good news is Oakwood returns two state qualifiers in Alex Kooser and Will Lebeouf among their four returning district qualifiers.
Kooser battled back from a top opening round loss in Columbus to find the podium while Lebeouf – who had been excellent all season on his feet – finished 1-2. Add in Adam Lee – who won four matches at the district tournament to just miss a spot at state – and Jameson Kordik, and the Lumberjacks have leadership coming back to help the younger wrestlers get into the flow quickly this season.
8. Carlisle: Yes, the Indians lost a lot last season. Gone are four district qualifiers including state runner-up Nick LeForce. However, the Indians return a strong group of wrestlers who learned under fire every day in the wrestling room under coach Daryl Clark and the experience that graduated. Clark stepped down from the head coaching spot, but the Indians hired former Preble Shawnee state champ Brian Carter to take over. Carter, who had built Carroll into one of the area’s Division I powers in the 1990s, brings with him a very intense, attack oriented style which works in nicely with the group on his roster. The combination of it all will once again have Carlisle among the area’s top teams.
9. Greenville: The Greenwave was the team 16 points behind Oakwood last season at the Division II District tournament and also return a strong nucleus to the mat this season. Tanner Hill returns off his first trip to the state tournament while Jon Edwards and Ben Edwards just missed trips to the state tournament. In all, Greenville returns five district qualifiers from last season. Coach John Shutts will build around the returners as he tries to replace wrestlers such as state qualifiers Chris Miller and Selo Ramjattan, and will get a good taste of where the Wave stands heading into the postseason a week early. Greenville enters the GWOC this year in wrestling, and could possibly contend for the title if all the chips fall right for them.
10. Northmont: The T-Bolts may be the surprise team in the top 10. Northmont lost big point scorer Jesse Walker, but return four wrestlers with district experience. Jonah Newburg just missed a spot at the state tournament last season, losing a pair of brutal matches to knock him out of a trip to Columbus. However, Newburg was an All-American this summer in Fargo and is coming off a very productive offseason. Add in returning state qualifier Paul Winkler, and the T-Bolts have a strong group of returners for coach Scott Newburg to build around.
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