Zahid Valencia of St. John Bosco, shown here in his state title match in 2014, is our pick as the top 182-pound wrestler in the country this season.
File photo by David Dennis
One of the toughest "in-season" high school wrestling tournaments in the nation gets underway this weekend at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Tournament in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and many of the nation's top wrestlers are expected to attend.
Five of the wrestlers in MaxPreps' Everybody's All-American List plan on attending, including defending tournament champions Spencer Lee of Franklin Regional, Matthew Kolodzik of Blair Academy, Zahid Valencia of St. John Bosco and Michael Johnson of Montini.
MaxPreps calculates its list by combining the national rankings produced by
Intermat,
Flowrestling,
Clinch Gear and
Wrestling Insider Newsmagazine. A total of seven wrestlers were named unanimous No. 1 by all four ranking services.
Many of the wrestlers earned their No. 1 ranking after competing in the Flowrestling Who's No. 1 Tournament held in Lehigh, Pa., in October. While that event was a preseason tournament, the Walsh Jesuit Ironman event is considered the nation's toughest tournament held during the regular season.
St. John Bosco, Blair Academy and Apple Valley all had two wrestlers named to this year's Everybody's Wrestling All-Americans list.
Everbody's Wrestling All-Americans
106 pounds - Cade Olivas, St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.)
Considered the top youth wrestler in the nation by Youth1.com, according to the Long Beach Press-Telegram, Olivas had a record of 292-1 in his youth career while winning seven national titles. He also won a bronze at the Cadet World Championships in Serbia in 2013. He was also a member of the FILA Cadet Team last summer. Olivas was a unanimous choice by the four ranking services and he helps make St. John Bosco one of the favorites in California. Olivas also spent time as a child actor, appearing on Boston Legal and Sons of Tucson, among other shows. He solidified his No. 1 preseason ranking with a win over Gavin Teasdale of Jefferson-Morgan (Pa.) at Flowrestling's Who's No. 1 preseason tournament at Lehigh (Pa.) in October.
113 pounds - Jabari Moody, Rich Central (Olympia Fields, Ill.)
Moody was not even a varsity wrestler his first two years of high school. That's because he sat behind his brother, Nkosi, who was the team's 106-pound wrestler those two seasons and was also a state champion. Last year, Moody got his chance and won the Illinois 106-pound championship. He also won the National High School Coaches Association Folkstyle championship and landed a spot on the FILA Junior World Championship Team. Moody competed in Croatia and finished fifth. He was a No. 1 choice by Intermat and was a No. 2 choice by two other ranking systems behind Spencer Lee (who is ranked here at 120 pounds).
120 pounds - Spencer Lee, Franklin Regional (Murrysville, Pa.)
The reigning Outstanding Wrestler of the Walsh Jesuit Ironman, an award he won as a freshman, Lee is considered the best candidate to be a four-time state champion in Pennsylvania. He dominated his final match at the PIAA championships, winning 15-5. He was even better at the FILA Cadet World Championships in Snina, Slovakia, as he did not give up a point in winning the gold medal. Lee was a unanimous No. 1 choice by all four ranking services.
125 pounds - Kaid Brock, Stillwater (Okla.)
A two-time state champion in Oklahoma, Brock was 41-2 as a junior. He began the season as the No. 3 seed at the Who's No. 1 tournament, but won the tournament with a 3-2 win over No. 1 seed Nick Piccininni of Ward-Melville (N.Y.). That victory was enough to make Brock the No. 1 wrestler in the nation in three ranking services (he was sixth in another).
132 pounds - Luke Pletcher, Greater Latrobe (Pa.)
Winner of two straight state championships in Pennsylvania, Pletcher is in line to become a four-time state champion, something only 12 wrestlers in the state have ever accomplished. He went 41-2 as a freshman and finished undefeated at 43-0 as a sophomore. Pletcher was ranked first by two ranking services and second by two others.
138 pounds - Matthew Kolodzik, Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.)
A defending champion at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Tournament, Kolodzik is a two-time National Prep Champion at Blair Academy. He entered the Who's No. 1 tournament as the second seed, but he defeated Ke-Shawn Hayes of Park Hill (Mo.) to win the event and take over as the unanimous No. 1-ranked wrestler by all ranking services.
145 pounds - Vincenzo Joseph, Central Catholic (Pittsburgh)
Regarded as the No. 2 recruit in Pennsylvania, Joseph recently committed to wrestle for four-time national champion Penn State next season. Joseph won the PIAA state championship last season and has a career record of 105-20. He also finished first at the Who's No. 1 tournament and was a No. 1 pick by three ranking services.
152 pounds - David McFadden, DePaul (Wayne, N.J.)
The defending 145-pound state champion in New Jersey, McFadden entered the Who's No. 1 tournament as the No. 2 seed and defeated No. 1 Isaiah White of Oak Park-River Forrest (Ill.). The tournament win earned him a unanimous No. 1 ranking. The Virginia Tech commit was 42-1 last year and also finished second in the junior division national freestyle championships in Fargo, N.D., last season.
160 pounds - Mason Manville, Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.).
In a tough call over Logan Massa of St. John's (Mich.), Manville gets the nod as the nation's best 160-pound wrestler after winning the Cadet World Freestyle Championships in Slovakia in August. Manville is ranked No. 1 in two ranking services and No. 2 in two others (Massa is also ranked No. 1 in two services and No. 2 in two others). Manville also had a win over McFadden at the junior division national freestyle championships last summer.
170 pounds - Mark Hall, Apple Valley (Minn.)
Hall and St. John Bosco standout Anthony Valencia are two of the top wrestlers in the nation and they also have a quite a history. Valencia defeated Hall in last year's Freakshow tournament in Las Vegas, but Hall returned the favor in October at the Who's No. 1 tournament with a 10-2 victory. As a result, Hall begins the season as a unanimous No. 1 choice in this weight class. Just a junior, Hall is looking to win his fifth state championship this year. He also won the gold medal at the Cadet World Championships in Snina, Slovakia last summer.
182 pounds - Zahid Valencia, St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.)
The brother of Anthony Valencia, Zahid is the unanimous pick at 182 pounds. Like his brother, Zahid is a two-state state champion in California, winning his first state championship at 106 pounds as a freshman and winning at 132 pounds last year. He makes a 50-pound jump this season, but that hasn't kept the ranking services from putting him at No. 1. He captured first place at the Who's No. 1 tournament. Both Zahid and Anthony are committed to Arizona State.
190 pounds - Bobby Steveson, Apple Valley (Minn.)
A two-time defending state champion, Steveson won a state title in Indiana as a sophomore before transferring to Apple Valley last year and winning a state title in Minnesota. He posted a 42-1 record in winning the title last season. A Minnesota recruit, Steveson was a national freestyle champion last summer. He also finished first at the Who's No. 1 tournament and was a unanimous No. 1 by the ranking services.
220 pounds - Jordan Wood, Boyertown (Pa.)
Although Wood has yet to win a state championship in Pennsylvania, he's already the second-best wrestler in the world. Wood vaulted to the top of the 220-pound rankings after finishing with the silver medal at the Cadet World Championships in Snina, Slovakia last summer. He is 87-4 heading into his junior season.
285 pounds - Michael Johnson, Montini (Lombard, Ill.)
A two-time National Prep Champion at Wyoming Seminary (Pa.), Johnson transferred to Montini last year and finished 40-1 with a second-place finish in the Illinois 2A state finals. He begins the season as the No. 1 wrestler in the nation by three ranking services, second by the other.
