It shouldn't come as any surprise that when it comes to determining the best wrestlers in the country for 2011, the state of Pennsylvania, and New Jersey's Blair Academy are both major players.
In a compilation of the national high school wrestling rankings produced by the five ranking services - Intermat, The Openmat, USA Wrestling, Amateur Wrestling News and WIN Magazine - Blair Academy came up with three wrestlers ranked No. 1 in the nation and Pennsylvania, which regularly produces some of the top wrestlers in the country, also had three.
Blair Academy, the National Prep champion last season, has three wrestlers ranked No. 1 including Evan Silver at 112 pounds, Austin Olmsbee at 140 pounds and Brooks Black at heavyweight. Pennsylvania's trio of No. 1's include Darian Cruz of Bethlehem Catholic at 103, Mason Beckman of Reynolds at 119 and Nico Megaludis of Franklin Regional at 125.
The rest of the weight classes were spread out with California and Wisconsin each getting two wrestlers and Ohio, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Idaho all getting one apiece.
Following is a closer look at the top-ranked wrestlers in each of the 14 weight classes.
EVERYBODY'S ALL-AMERICANS
103 pounds - Darian Cruz, Bethlehem Catholic (Pa.), Sophomore - Cruz finished 23-3 last year as a freshman before missing the final part of the season due to injury. He was a state freestyle champion and finished second at the Cadet National Championships in Fargo, N.D. during the summer. He opened his season with a first-place finish at the Super 32 Challenge in North Carolina. Ranked No. 1 in the country by USA Wrestling, and Intermat. Cruz is ranked behind Phil Laux of Iowa, who defeated Cruz at the Cadet Nationals, by The Openmat.
Morgan McIntosh, Calvary Chapel
File photo by Craig Morley
- Ranked No. 1 by USA Wrestling and Intermat, Silver is a three-time defending National Prep Champion after finishing first at 112 pounds as a junior and sophomore and 103 pounds as a freshman. Also won the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Tournament, defeating Selma's Alex Cisneros 10-4 in the championship match. Claimed first place in the Beast of the East Tournament as well. Finished second at the Junior Nationals behind Freddie Rodriguez of Grand Ledge (Mich.) but is ranked ahead of Rodriguez by several ranking services. Only Amateur Wrestling News has Rodriguez ranked ahead of Silver.
119 pounds - Mason Beckman, Reynolds (Greenville, Pa.), Senior - Ranked No. 1 in the nation by The Openmat and USA Wrestling, Beckman defeated Hunter Stieber of Monroeville to win the Walsh Jesuit Ironman last year. He also won a AA state championship in Pennsylvania and posted a 49-0 record. He has committed to wrestle next season at Lehigh. Finished second at 103 pounds at the AA state meet as a freshman and third at 112 pounds as a sophomore.
125 pounds - Nico Megaludis, Franklin Regional (Murrysville, Pa.), Senior - Ranked No. 1 by USA Wrestling, The Openmat and Intermat and No. 2 by Amateur Wrestling News, Megaludis was undefeated last year in winning the 119-pound weight class at the AAA meet in Pennsylvania. He posted a 36-0 record and will wrestle at Penn State next year. He has posted a three-year record of 119-1 with the only loss coming during his freshman year in the state 103-pound semifinals.
130 pounds - Jesse Thielke, Germantown (Wis.), Senior - One of the few consensus All-Americans, Thielke is ranked No. 1 by Amatuer Wrestling News, USA Wrestling, Intermat, WIN Magazine and The Openmat. Already committed to Wisconsin, Thielke plans to train for the 2012 Olympics before becoming a Badger, according to the Journal Sentinel. He is a three-time state champion in Wisconsin and a two-time Fargo Champion in Greco-Roman and two-time junior national champion in folkstyle.
135 pounds - Hunter Stieber, Monroeville (Ohio), Senior - Ranked No. 1 by USA Wrestling, Intermat and The Openmat and No. 2 by Amateur Wrestling News and WIN Magazine, Stieber is headed to Ohio State next year. He's a three-time state champion, losing only once as a sophomore and once as a junior after going undefeated as a freshman. He is 129-2 in three seasons and is a former Cadet Nationals champion.
140 pounds - Austin Ormsbee, Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.), Senior - Ranked No. 1 by all five ranking services, Ormsbee is a three-time National Prep champion, a Beast of the East champ and a Fargo Junior Freestyle Champion. He will wrestle at Oklahoma State next season.
145 pounds - Alex Dieringer, Port Washington (Wis.), Senior - Ranked No. 1 by all five ranking services, Dieringer was a first-place finisher at the Fargo Junior National freestyle championships. Recently signed by Oklahoma State, Dieringer is a two-time state champion, winning the gold as a freshman at 103 pounds and last year as a junior at 140 pounds. He was second as a sophomore at 125 pounds. He was 45-1 last season and has a 128-4 overall record.
152 pounds - Destin McCauley, Apple Valley (Minn.), Senior - Already a four-time state champion, McCauley is one of the most coveted senior wrestlers in the nation. He has committed to wrestle at Wisconsin but is also reportedly intent on trying out for the 2012 Olympic team. He was 50-0 as a junior, 47-3 as a sophomore, 49-0 as a freshman, 49-1 as an eighth grader, and 47-3 as a seventh grader. Won the Junior National Freestyle Championships at Fargo last July. Ranked No. 1 by all five ranking services.
160 pounds - Bryce Hammonds, Bakersfield (Calif.), Senior - A California state champion as a junior and a fourth-place finisher as a sophomore, Hammond recently committed to wrestle at CSU Bakersfield. He is ranked No. 1 by Amateur Wrestling News, Intermat and The Openmat.
171 pounds - Logan Storley, Webster (S.D.), Senior - Storley was the clear choice over Monroeville standout Chris Phillips for the No. 1 spot at 171 pounds. Storley was a unanimous No. 1 among the five ranking services after taking first place at the NHSCA Junior Nationals and the Junior National Freestyle Championships in Fargo in July. Committed to Minnesota, Storley is a five-time South Dakota state champion and will be aiming for a record sixth title this year. He was 44-0 as a junior with a career record of 217-2 with a 163-match win streak. Also a member of Team USA Junior National Team.
189 pounds - Morgan McIntosh, Calvary Chapel (Santa Ana, Calif.) - Another consensus pick, McIntosh is ranked No. 1 across the board. He is a two-time California state champion and a member of the Team USA Junior National Team. Captured first place at the Fargo Junior National Freestyle Tournament in July. The Penn State commit edges out a strong group that includes three-time state champion Andrew Campolattano of Bound Brook (N.J.) and Kenny Courts of Central Dauphin (Pa.), who has a 96-4 career record.
215 pounds - Tanner Hall, Meridian (Idaho), Senior - Ranked No. 1 by USA Wrestling, Amateur Wrestling News and WIN Magazine, Hall is a two-time state 5A champion in Idaho and was the national champion at 215 pounds at the Junior National Freestyle Championships at Fargo in July.
285 pounds - Brooks Black, Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.), Sophomore - One of just two sophomores in the group (Cruz is the other), Black was ranked No. 1 by USA Wrestling, The Openmat and WIN Magazine. A National Prep runner-up as a freshman, Black also finished third at the Beast of the East and third at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman. Won both the freestyle and Greco-Roman national championships at the USA Wrestling Cadet Nationals in Fargo in July.
