WHAT: Walsh Ironman
WHEN: Friday 12/5 (1 PM) and Saturday 12/6 (10 AM, 6:30 PM)
WHERE: Walsh Jesuit High School, Cuyahoga Falls OH
TOURNAMENT WEBSITE: http://www.walshironman.com

Author's Note
For purposes of this preview, only wrestlers listed as top 12 seeds per the tournament website will be listed as seeded. Weights will be seeded up to 12 wrestlers (at least), with more wrestlers seeded should circumstances bear out. Also note, that any scratches or weight changes will render some portions of this preview moot.

103 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #1 Mark Grey (Blair Academy NJ)
Other seeded notables: Nick Brascetta (Graham OH), Dominick Malone (Wyoming Seminary PA), Corey Keener (Blue Mountain PA)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: none really
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: Malone v Mitch Baran (Brecksville OH)
Predicting a final: Brascetta v Grey
Commentary: Unlike in past years, the opening weight class of the Walsh Ironman is remarkably thin. Only the incoming freshman Grey is a national star. In the team race, if Brascetta can hit the final, it would really benefit Graham. However, the freshman Keener could easily knock him off in Saturday morning’s quarterfinals.

112 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #2 Hunter Steiber (Monroeville OH), #6 Devin Carter (Christianburg VA), #10 Jerome Robinson (St Ignatius OH), #12 Gus Sako (St Edward OH), #13 Evan Silver (Blair Academy NJ)
Other seeded notables: Ty Mitch (Aurora OH), Mason Beckman (Reynolds PA), Kagan Squire (Wadsworth OH)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: David Jeffrey (Parkersburg South WV), Isaac Jordan (Graham OH)
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: Mitch v Squire
Predicting a final: Steiber v Robinson
Commentary: After the rail thin opening weight, man do the fireworks begin here. Defending champion Steiber finished his freshman year undefeated, but it could be very tough for him to come out of this weekend without a blemish. Steiber, Silver, Mitch, and Squire populate the top half of the draw; Carter, Sako, Robinson, and Beckman are down low. In addition to these eight, you have a two-time national prep placer (Johnson, Wyoming Seminary PA); as well as the two freshmen sensations, Jeffrey and Jordan, whom are sure to make a dent in their opening weekend of high school wrestling.

119 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #3 Jamie Clark (St Edward OH), #7 Sean Boyle (Blair Academy NJ), #16 Jesse Delgado (Gilroy CA)
Other seeded notables: Shane Gentry (Colonial Forge VA)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: none really
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: maybe Gabe Gomez (Broomfield CO) v Jake Corrill (Moeller OH)
Predicting a final: Clark v Boyle
Commentary: Having done about everything there is to do in a high school wrestling career during his first two campaigns, there is one key item left on the resume of the very talented junior Clark – win the Ironman. In what is a weight full of solid kids, but not many that jump out in the nationally elite conversation, Clark is a well-reasoned favorite.

125 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #2 Sam White (Massillon Perry OH), #5 Zach Neibert (Graham OH), #8 Brandon Roccha (LeMoore CA), #13 @ 119 Simon Kitzis (Wyoming Seminary PA)
Other seeded notables: Brandon Westerman (McEachern GA), Garrett Frey (Blair Academy NJ)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Matt Tadich (Shady Side Academy PA)
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: Frey v Jordan Rich (Central Mountian PA), and Roccha v Stephen Robertson (Montini IL)
Predicting a final: White v Neibert
Commentary: Even in a weight missing Logan Steiber (Monroeville OH), national #1 in this weight class and three-for-three in Fargo freestyle titles, there is more than enough depth in this field. Though White and Neibert is my projected final, which would be a rematch of a quarterfinal from last year at 119 pounds, each will be challenged early in the tournament. Projected quarterfinal for White is against state runner-up Roccha, and for Neibert against Frey in a Graham/Blair matchup. In addition to those listed here, three freshmen will look to make a slight dent into this weight class – Nate Skonieczny (Walsh Jesuit OH), Brent Fickel (Padua OH), and Case Garrison (Bishop Lynch TX).

130 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #1 Tony Ramos (Glenbard North IL), #4 @ 135 Chris Villalonga (Blair Academy NJ), #11 @ 125 Michael Garofalo (Colonial Forge VA), #14 Cam Tessari (Monroeville OH), #16 Cortlandt Choate (Blue Mountain PA)
Other seeded notables: Luke Goettl (Mingus AZ), Cody Kelly (Reynolds PA), Devon Brown (Wyoming Seminary PA)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Felipe Martinez (Graham OH), Colton Rasche (Montini IL)
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: whenever Martinez hits a seed, Choate v Brown
Predicting a final: Ramos v Villalonga
Commentary: Looking at this weight on its face, you would say, “Gee, this is an easy finals pick.” Yes, it’s the one made here, which is a rematch of the 2006 final in the 112 pound weight class (Ramos won that one). However, dig deeper, and there are roadblocks at every single corner. The debut of Martinez has the potential to be one for the ages, and quite frankly, Graham needs some of that steam if they have visions of retaining their championship from last year.

135 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #1 David Taylor (Graham OH), #3 Josh Kindig (Blue Mountain PA), #7 @ 140 Austin Ormsbee (Blair Academy NJ), #9 Jimmy Chase (Glenbard North IL), #16 Nicky Gordon (Wyoming Seminary PA)
Other seeded notables: Ian Squires (Colonial Forge VA), Joe Waltko (North Allegheny PA), Andrew Williams (Tabb VA), Zac Hancock (Troy Christian OH), Austin Ormsbee (Blair Academy NJ)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Ian Miller (Oak Harbor OH)
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: Williams v Ormsbee, Josh Chang (Mingus AZ) v Hancock
Predicting a final: Taylor v Kindig
Commentary: Like the previous weight, what seems like a clear finals pick has many hurdles in front of it. Of the two sides, Taylor has the much clearer path to the final; Chang/Hancock winner in the quarterfinal with probably Waltko in the semifinal. On the other hand, Kindig has to face the winner of Williams/Ormsbee in the quarterfinal, and then Gordon or Chase in the semis. If the Taylor v Kindig final does emerge, these two met in a very entertaining and intense final bout at the preseason Super32 one month ago; with Taylor winning 1-0.

140 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #1 Andrew Alton (Central Mountain PA), #2 Collin Palmer (St Edward OH), #8 Kyle West (Oak Ridge CA), #10 @ 145 Vlad Dombroski (Natomas CA), #10 @ 130 Dane Johnson (Shady Side Academy PA)
Other seeded notables: Cullen Isenberg (Wyoming Seminary PA), Drew Squires (Colonial Forge VA), Jordan Thome (Troy Christian OH), Matt Stephens (Graham OH)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Tony Buxton (Blair Academy NJ)
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: Thome v West, Squires v Stephens
Predicting a final: Alton v Palmer
Commentary: This will arguably be one of the matches of the high school season, and it’s going to happen during the first weekend. Even with this final being very likely to occur, there is superlative depth in this weight class, and it is one to follow throughout the weekend. It will be interesting to see how close the other nationally ranked wrestlers compete against Alton and Palmer.

145 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #1 Dylan Alton (Central Mountain PA), #16 Seth Horner (Massillon Perry OH)
Other seeded notables: Brad Squire (Wadsworth OH), Brian Stephens (Graham OH), Pierce Harger (Moeller OH), Harrison Hightower (University School OH),
Cody Bye (Bishop Lynch TX)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Vince Waldhauser (Oak Ridge CA)
Pre-Quarterfinal match to watch: Justin Martinez (Wyoming Seminary PA) v Hightower
Predicting a final: Alton v Horner
Commentary: This weight class features incredible balance across the board. However, one wrestler in this field clearly trumps all of that balance – and that is Junior National double runner-up Alton. An interesting note is that there five of the seeded wrestlers, all from Ohio, thrived last season three or more weight classes lower than this one. The bottom half could feature a gauntlet that is replicated in the month of March in Columbus with Harger/Squire as an Ironman quarterfinal and the winner projected to meet Horner in the semis.

152 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #4 Brandon Rolnick (Lawrenceville NJ), #15 @ 145 David Habat (St Ignatius OH)
Other seeded notables: Zach Skates (Broken Arrow OK), Nick Sulzer (St Edward OH), Adam Hogue (Blair Academy NJ), Jon McGookey (Perkins OH), Issah Meade (Caesar Rodney DE), Jason Luster (Woodberry Forest VA), Huston Evans (Graham OH)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Travis Gallegos (Foothill CA), Joey Grainger (Great Bridge VA)
Pre-Quarterfinals match to watch: Sulzer v Evans, Hogue v McGookey
Predicting a final: Habat v Rolnick
Commentary: There are two very interesting storylines in this weight class. First is that two freshmen are seeded, which can mean one of two things – or maybe both. Luster and Evans are incredibly good and/or there is a paucity of credentialed talent present. Second is that despite the top seed, Habat’s path to the final is measurably tougher – Hogue or McGookey in the quarterfinal, and then probably Sulzer in the semifinal. Maybe it’s a subliminal message that Rolnick is the best kid in the weight.

160 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #5 @ 152 Zach Toal (Troy Christian OH), #10 Kyle Lang (Brecksville OH), #14 Justin Armstrong (Bishop Lynch TX)
Other seeded notables: Riley Kilroy (Padua OH), Isaiah Gonzalez (Montini IL), Alex Utley (CVCA OH), Zach Goins (Elyria OH), Marc Bryan (St Ignatius OH), Jesse Shanaman (Blair Academy NJ)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Adam Walters (West Geauga OH), Ian Roy (Poway CA), Kyle Ryan (Graham OH), Darren Tate (Akron SVSM), Courtland Harrison (Massillon Perry OH)
Pre-Quarterfinals match to watch: Utley v Armstrong, Goins v Shanaman
Predicting a final: Lang v Toal
Commentary: This might as well be called the Ironman’s red-headed stepchild weight class. It is going to be underappreciated because the star quotient is low compared to other weight classes. However, the quantity of good to great wrestlers is abundant. It would be wise for fans to be paying attention from the first whistle of wrestling in this weight class – you’ll be missing a bout that is comparable to one deep in a state tournament. Not conincidentally, the two anchors of this weight class – Lang and Toal – go underappreciated in the face of the other stars of Buckeye State wrestling, both in the senior class and nationally.

171 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #1 Chris Phillips (Monroeville OH), #2 Ethan Lofthouse (Mountain Crest UT), #3 Ed Ruth (Blair Academy NJ), #14 @ 189 Ian Daube (Poway CA)
Other seeded notables: James Mannier (Graham OH), Nick Heflin (Massillon Perry OH), Braden Carter (Christianburg VA)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: none really
Pre-Quarterfinals match to watch: none really
Predicting a final: Lofthouse v Phillips
Commentary: There are four bona fide stars in this weight class, three of them are superstars on the national scene, and two of them have mega-credentials. However, the rest of this weight class is slim pickings. In fact, the quarterfinals will be the featured round in this weight class. Current seeding pairs Lofthouse against Daube, and Phillips v Ruth. In fact, one of Phillips’ two most recent “competitively relevant” losses (yes, an incredibly ambiguous term) was to Ruth at Disney Duals in June 2007. Since then, Phillips has been on a roll – undefeated as a freshman, including MOW honors at the Ironman, and Cadet Freestyle titles in July 2007 and 2008.

189 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #6 Max Huntley (Blair Academy NJ)
Other seeded notables: Nick Mills (University School), Max Thomusseit (Graham OH), Roman San Doval (Shady Side Academy PA), Donald McNiell (Wyoming Seminary PA), Carl Foreside (Montini IL)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Billy Curling (Great Bridge VA)
Pre-Quarterfinals match to watch: none really
Predicting a final: Huntley v Foreside
Commentary: Despite the gap in the national rankings of Huntley and the rest of the field, this six-pack of wrestlers is pretty darn even. San Doval v McNiell and Thomusseit v Foreside look to be interesting quarterfinals. Projected semifinals would have Huntley v the San Doval/McNiell winner, and Mills v the Thomusseit/Foreside winner.

215 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #4 Joe McMullan (Wyoming Seminary PA)
Other seeded notables: Ryan Nelisse (Elyria OH), Terry Williamson (Broken Arrow OK), Logan White (Graham OH), Ben Krakower (Blair Academy NJ), Mike Green (St Edward OH), Glenn Barnes (Central Mountian PA)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Nick Tavanello (Wadsworth OH)
Pre-Quarterfinals matches to watch: Barnes v Beattie
Predicting a final: McMullan v Nelisse
Commentary: This is arguably the least intriguing weight of the Walsh Ironman, as there is both a prohibitive favorite and a lack of high-profile wrestlers. You can argue that the story then becomes who will emerge as key players in the 215-pound weight class in their respective states, as they build upon an Ironman placement. Younger wrestlers could rule the roost here with the freshman Tavanello and sophomore Brian Beattie (Burrell PA) as potential breakout figures.

285 pounds
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #12 Jeremy Johnson (Brecksville OH)
Other seeded notables: James Meder (Valley Forge OH), Will Ringer (Reynolds PA), Ben Buzzelli (Wadsworth OH), Mike McMullan (Wyoming Seminary PA), Josh Jackson (Claymont OH), Zach Hanson (Parkersburg South WV)
Unseeded wrestlers to watch: Andrew Lajara (Blair Academy NJ)
Pre-Quarterfinals matches to watch: McMullan v Hanson
Predicting a final: Johnson v Meder
Commentary: There are two significant caveats in analyzing this weight class. First, if Buzelli advances to meet Johnson in the semifinals – the seeds currently project this – Buzelli would be the favorite based on past head-to-head. However, Johnson is picked here as the projected finalist based on their histories against the greater “field”. Second, despite not being unranked, Meder is probably the most talented wrestler in this field with his runner-up finish at the Ironman last year.

Team Analysis

In terms of the national rankings, this is the only time that preseason number one and number two (WIN and AWN) see each other. There is no other common event between Blair Academy NJ and Graham OH. It’s kind of like NASCAR in this way – the main event of the season (Daytona 500) is the opening one. Top-ranked Blair Academy is the favorite to reclaim the national title, which has been out of their hands the last two years, because of their greater level of proven depth. In order for Graham to repeat as Ironman – and national – champions, the Falcons will have to have their freshmen (Jordan, Martinez, and Evans) and less credentialed (Kegley, Ryan) step up to the plate somewhat above expectations.

The third place battle between St Edward OH and Wyoming Seminary PA is also one to keep an eye on as well. These two squads built upon deep cores will duke it out.

Final Thought

For those of you lucky enough to be able to attend the event this weekend - do so. As always, it will be electric, and some of the best high school wrestling you can see in this great country.