Michigan Grappler's 2009 MWA Classic Preview
Michigan Wrestling Association Classic
June 17th
7:00pm (introductions @ 6:30)
Hartland, MI
6/15 - This Wednesday many of the state's top Seniors will do
battle at the MWA Classic.
21 of Michigan's Top 50 seniors (according to our recruiting
rankings) are on the ticket to compete this week at the Classic,
including 4 top 10 recruits.
There will be three matchups of state champions, most notably
at 160lbs where 3x D4 state champ/Senior National Champ/Michigan Grappler Wrestler of the Year Dan Yates of Hesperia will square off with 2x Division 2 state champ/Super 32 runner up Adam Miller of Sparta.
The other weights with two state champs going at it will be 125lbs and 140lbs. At 125 D3 champ JT Gustin will wrestle D4 champ Allen Krupp and at 140lbs D1 champ Billy Osborne will meet D2 champ Craig Eifert.
For more information on the MWA Classic, click the event website by clicking here.
Match-by-Match Preview
103lbs - Brenan Lyon (Ithaca) vs Adrian Rios (Muskegon Orchard View)
Lyon is the heavy favorite here after going undefeated this year en route to the Division 4 state title. Lyon, who also won the Senior National title and has claimed 6 all-american plaques over the past three summers in Fargo, is one of the top lightweights in the country. Rios is a solid 103lber, however, he may be overmatched. After qualifying for the Division 3 state meet as a junior, Rios did not advance to the state tournament this year. He has won 140 matches in his prep career and he should put up a fight, however, Lyon should win this one with relative ease.
MIG Prediction: Lyon wins by major decision
112lbs - Chris Lyon (Ithaca) vs Matt Raysin (Corunna)
112lbs will feature the 2nd half of the Lyon brother state championship tandem. The bigger of the two, Chris Lyon was the Division 4 state champ at 112lbs and will square off with 2x state placer Matt Raysin of Corunna. Raysin finished 5th in the state this year in Division 3. While Lyon is a state champ and should be considered the favorite, this match should be closely contested. Raysin finished 5th in a very tough weight class at states, while one could argue that D4 112 was not the deepest. Raysin's length makes him difficult to wrestle and he should make scoring difficult for Lyon.
MIG Prediction: Lyon wins by decision
119lbs - Grant Pizzo (Brighton) vs Brad Jones (Fremont)
This should be an interesting matchup as Division 1 state runner-up Grant Pizzo will square off 2x state placer Brad Jones of Fremont. Jones did not place this year in the Division 3 state meet, however, he was competing at 130lbs. Pizzo, a natural 119lber all year long, should be a little undersized here which could make things interesting. Pizzo, who wrestled well at Senior Nationals following the state meet and finished just short of placing, appears to be the more accomplished wrestler, however, Jones is solid and has the size factor on his size.
MIG Prediction: Pizzo by decision
125lbs - Cameron Amaties (Lanse Creuse) vs Jared Germaine (Swan Valley)
This should be one of the marquee matchups of the night as 2x Division 1 state champ Cam Amaties will square off with Senior National All-American Jared Germaine. This match should be a matchup of styles as both wrestlers have pretty wide open styles. Germaine has never won a state title, however, he has proven he can wrestle at the highest levels with solid national performances. Expect to see Germaine come out firing, however, Amaties usually defends well and is difficult to score on, so expect to see some exciting flurries between these two. These guys are both top 20 recruits, Germaine is #10, Amateis #19.
MIG Prediction: Germaine by decision
125lbs - Allen Krupp (New Lothrop) vs JT Gustin (Kellogsville)
The first battle of state champs of the night will go down here with the 2nd 125lb match. Krupp won his third Division 4 state title this year and Gustin won his first in Division 3, scoring a huge pin over Germaine in the finals. These two are polar opposites in terms of style and build. Krupp is tall, difficult to score on, and a great mat wrestler while Gustin is a short, explosive, and good upper-body wrestler who can put up big points from just about anywhere. Gustin will want to push the pace here and look for Krupp to try and slow him down and win the match on the mat in the final two periods.
MIG Prediction: Krupp by decision
130lbs - Sean Turner (Monroe) vs Jared Stephens (Westland John Glenn)
Turner and Stephens are both Division 1 state finalists from this year. Turner won it at 130lbs and Stephens finished 2nd at 135lbs. Turner is very strong and explosive for his weight, so size should not be too much of a factor. These two should be pretty evenly matched and this could be one of the better matchups of the night.
MIG Prediction: Turner by decision
130lbs - Tommy Kozak (Belleville) vs Josh Freitas (Linden)
A Division 1 vs. Division 2 battle at 130lbs, Freitas was 7th this year in a very tough Division 2 weight class while Kozak fell a match short of placing in Division 1 after winning his Regional and advancing to the state quarterfinals. While Kozak did not place in the state tournament, he beat the state champ Sean Turner at Regionals in a wild 14-11 affair, which shows his ability to score big points on anyone. Freitas is a counter wrestler who controls people on top and is very tough to get away from on the mat.
MIG Prediction: Kozak by decision
135lbs - Jeff Sabin (Kent City) vs Mike LeHolm (Jackson Northwest)
This should be a good matchup of top guys from D2 and D4 going at it. Mike LeHolm expierenced a dissapointing end to his career, however, the EMU recruit was a state champ and Junior Freestyle All-American during his junior season, so he could still be looked at as the favorite. Sabin was a Division 4 state runner-up this year and is a 2x state placer. Neither of these guys are real fancy, but both usually go pretty hard and push the pace, so expect to see action from beggining to end in this match.
MIG Prediction: LeHolm by decision
135lbs - Andrew Schutt (Yale) vs Eric Telford (Durand)
This match will be a Regional Finals rematch, where Schutt beat Telford 8-6. Telford finished higher at the state meet, however, losing to Pete Rendina in the finals while Schutt fell to Rendina in the semis and ended up 3rd. Schutt is a Senior National All-American and was a 2008 State Champ. He is also the #13 ranked wrestler in this senior class and will be wrestling for Buffalo next year. These two are familiar with each other and there should be no surprises from either end, so expect to see another score similiar to their regional match.
MIG Prediction: Schutt by decision
140lbs - Craig Eifert (Mason) vs Billy Osborne (Bedford)
This is one of those matchups that shows what this event came bring to the table. Here we have the state champs from Division 1 and Division 2 going at it. Eifert has the stronger resume with three state titles and a Senior National All-American to his name, however, Osborne scrambles well and rides tough, so he could give Eifert some troubles. These two met during their junior years when Eifert downed Osborne in the Marquette Challenge finals. If Osborne can slow Eifert down on their feet, he could make this a close match, but an upset over the Cornell-bound all-american doesn't seem likely.
MIG Prediction: Eifert by decision
145lbs - Jake Jeske (Swan Valley) vs Alex Popp (Clarkston)
Division 3 state champ Jeske is the favorite to win this weight, however, he and Popp are similiar in terms of build and style. Popp was 4th this year in a tough D1 145lb bracket and the Clarkston senior is strong and tough to move at this weight class. Jeske, who will be wrestling at CMU next fall, should have more of an arsenal to work with, however, don't be surprised if Popp keeps this thing close at least in the beggining.
MIG Prediction: Jeske by decision
152lbs - Robert Nash (Roseville) vs Zack Carr (Mt Pleasant)
Nash went on a tear to end his career this year as he won the Divsion 1 state championship and placed top 4 at Senior Nationals in the same month. The 3x all-stater will meet 3x Division 2 state placer and 2009 runner-up Zack Carr of Mt Pleasant. These two share a common opponent this year in Koort Leyrer of Holt. Nash beat Leyrer in the state finals and Carr lost to Leyrer at the Holt invite, which solidifies Nash as the favorite to win.
MIG Prediction: Nash by decision
160lbs - Dan Yates (Hesperia) vs Adam Miller (Sparta)
This is the match of the night and without doubt the most high profile match so far at the MWA Classic. There backgrounds are no secret: Yates is a 3x D4 champ and Senior National Champ. Miller is a 2x D2 champ and Super 32 Runner-Up. After winning Senior Nationals Yates has soared in the national rankings to as high as 2nd in some polls. He has been riding high since his Senior National win, however, Miller has proven himself on the national stage as well with his Super 32 performance last fall and he knows how to win.
MIG Prediction: Yates by decision
171lbs - Chris Lucas (Grand Haven) vs Billy Fate (Chippewa Hills)
Both of these guys were right in the hunt of winning state titles in their respective divisions this year. Lucas lost in the Divisoin 1 state finals to Jake Dorulla and Fate finished 3rd in a very tough Division 3 bracket behind Mike Curby and John Rizgallah. Both of these guys are athletic for the weight class and they will both be wrestling next year in college, Lucas for Muskegon and Fate for SW Minnesota State. In terms of style, this match will be interesting as Lucas uses his length and is tough on top, while Fate is more convential, straight forward type of wrestler.
MIG Prediction: Lucas by decision
189lbs - Evan Gros (Lake Orion) vs Logan Renas (Big Rapids)
Good D1 vs D3 matchup here, Gros was a Division 1 state champ this year after finishing runner-up last year and he is the 14th ranked guy in this class. Renas finished 3rd in Division 3 and actually lost during the season to Corbin Boone of Holt, who Gros pinned in the Division 1 semfinals. While Gros is the clear favorite on paper, Renas' length and unorthodox style could keep him in the match. It will be interesting to see how Gros, one of the strongest 189lbers in the state, will deal with Renas, possibly the tallest 189lber in the state.
MIG Prediction: Gros by decision
189lbs - Dillon Kern (Fowlerville) vs Nick Whitenburg (Bedford)
This is a re-match of the Lansing Eastern Invite way back on the opening weekend of the season when Whitenburg beat Kern in the semifinals. Kern went on to win the Division 2 state title and Whitenburg finished runner-up in Division 1 to Gros. These guys are similiar in terms of build and size, they both have some length, but are also strong and technical guys who can wrestle well from all positions. Another interesting note, they may be seeing each other a lot in the future as Kern is going to Central Michigan and Whitenburg will be wrestling for Eastern Michigan. This will likely be one of the closest matches of the night.
MIG Prediction: Kern by decision
215lbs - Zack Ritter (Byron) vs Colt Miller (Chippewa Hills)
The whole idea behind the MWA Classic is to see different matchups than we typically see during the regular season and this fills that criteria with 2x Division 4 State Runner-Up Ritter against Miller, who finished 4th at 189lbs in Division 3. Miller was a 215lber as a junior, so he has expierence wrestling against the bigger guys and should be capable of competing with Ritter.
MIG Prediction: Miller by decision
285lbs - Jesse Somsel (Rockford) vs Dylan Smith (Oxford)
This is a marquee big man matchup with Division 1 runner-up Somsel and Division 2 state champ Smith. Somsel was highly ranked all-year and he dominated most heavyweights he came across, with all his losses on the year coming to Division 1 state champ and Senior National All-American Mike McClure. Smith, meanwhile, took 3rd at regionals and entered the state meet with 6 losses. He pulled off a string of big upset wins en route the state title and now will have a chance for another with his matchup against Somsel. Somsel is a very big heavyweight who could be hard to handle for the somewhat smaller Smith, however, he has shown in the past that he can beat just about anybody in this weight.
MIG Prediction: Somsel by decision
285lbs - Cody Vondekelaar (Orchard View) vs Brandon Kesterson (Hartland)
The 2nd 285lb match and the final match of the night will feature 2x D3 state placer Cody Vondekelaar against D1 state qualifier Kesterson. Kesterson will be the only Hartland grappler competing in front of the home crowd Wednesday night, so expect him to come out firing. Vondekelaar never finished higher than 5th at the state meet, however, he has been in the hunt the past two years, wrestling very close with the top guys.
MIG Prediction: Vondonkelaar by decision
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