Fargo Men's Freestyle division state highlights, with firsts, records and notable achievements

Fargo, North Dakota – We’re not sure who coined the phrase “records are meant to be broken,” but whoever it was could have been a wrestling fan or just a savant of the legendary Detroit Tigers’ Disco Demolition Night, which took place 45 years ago this week.

And not to sound like a broken record, but entry numbers in Fargo reached new positions on the charts in both age groups in men’s freestyle as the two tournaments came to a close on Wednesday. The final tally was 1,816 in the Junior division and 1,698 in 16U, which topped last year’s mark of 1,596 in Junior and 1,596 in 16U. Here are the hits from 2024.

Alabama: The lone All-American in men’s freestyle came in the form of 150-pounder Daishun Powe in the Junior division. Powe finished sixth and kept the Junior men’s freestyle All-American streak alive at three. Powe was a 6A state champion this past season at 165 pounds for Gardendale High School.

Arizona: With seven Junior men’s freestyle All-Americans, the state set a new record, surpassing its previous high mark of six set last year. Sergio Vega won the state’s 12^th championship in the division. The sixth-place finish in the team standings was also the highest in state history. Seven of the eight placewinners across both divisions were returning All-Americans – Junior 106-pounder Daniel Alire finished eighth to pick up his first Fargo medal.

California: The Golden State totaled 17 All-Americans across both age groups, finished third in Junior men’s freestyle and sixth in 16U. Both of the California champions were Juniors as Daniel Zepeda won his first Fargo title after finishing second last year and 215-pound champion Angelo Posada improved significantly from last season where he was eighth at 170 pounds. Zepeda and Moses Mendoza each won their fifth Fargo medals all-time.

Colorado: The state placed four wrestlers in men’s freestyle – two in each age group. 132-pounder Austin Collins finished seventh and earned his second Fargo medal. Collins, a 2A state champion from Wray, was a runner-up in Greco-Roman last year at 120 pounds.

Connecticut: Maximus Konopka and William Henckel both were runners-up in their respective age divisions. It was the second time in state history with two men’s freestyle finalists in the same year. Back in 2013, Zach Murillo (16U) and Angus Cowell (Junior) finished second. Konopka won a Class L state title, the Connecticut All-State championship and the New England championship this past season for Simsbury. Henckel was a National Prep champion at Blair Academy in New Jersey.

Florida: The Sunshine State picked up eight more medals across both age groups in 2024, which was two more than last year. The top placer in men’s freestyle was 132-pounder Jovani Solis, who finished fourth in 16U. Solis is already a two-time Florida 1A state champion, winning titles as a seventh and eighth grader at Somerset Academy. He went 63-0 this past season.

Georgia: Championships by Ariah Mills and Christopher Swann gave Georgia multiple men’s freestyle champions in a year for the third time in the last four years. Mills claimed the 88-pound title in 16U while Swann won a wild Junior final at 106 pounds. It’s also the second straight year the state’s had three finalists as Drew Gorman was the Junior runner-up at 138 pounds.

Guam: While not the first Guamanian to ever compete in Fargo, Koa DeLoach was the first wrestler to officially represent Guam as an association by competing at 113 pounds in 16U men’s freestyle. He will compete this coming high school season in Florida. Read more about DeLoach here.

Hawaii: Analu Woode snapped Hawaii’s six-year men’s freestyle medal drought by finishing fifth at 106 pounds. The last medalist for Hawaii in men’s freestyle was 94-pounder Mason Stefanelli, who finished seventh in 2018.

Idaho: The only medalist in men’s freestyle came in the form of 150-pound Junior Matthew Martino, who finished seventh. It’s Martino’s second medal in Fargo – he was the 106-pound Greco-Roman runner-up in 2021.

Illinois: Every year since 1992, Illinois has placed in the Top 10 in 16U men’s freestyle. This year, the state had 11 16U All-Americans and finished third, while the Juniors had eight All-Americans and finished fifth. The state picked up three champions, including Aaron Stewart at 160 pounds in 16U. Stewart was the Outstanding Wrestler and won his third career stop sign after doubling up with titles last year. Junior runner-up Seth Mendoza continued his solid Fargo career, earning a fourth men’s freestyle medal. His lowest finish was third in Juniors last year.

Indiana: The Hoosier State picked up its highest 16U men’s freestyle finish since 2014 with nine All-Americans and fifth-place as a team. Clinton Shepherd and Lucas Boe won 16U titles, the first 16U titles won by the state since Joe Lee in 2015. Revin Dickman finished fourth at 113 pounds, giving him his highest placement among his five all-time Fargo medals.

Iowa: Iowa claimed three 16U champions for the first time in state history as Hayden Schwab, Justis Jesuroga and Brayden Kester all took gold. Iowa has won multiple titles on numerous occasions before in the age group, yet three sets a new record. As a team, the 16U squad finished third with nine All-Americans.

Kansas: The lone All-American for Kansas was 16U 215-pounder Noah Mathis, who finished in seventh. Mathis was third in 5A this past season at 190 pounds as a freshman at Lansing High School.

Maryland: The four All-Americans in the 16U men’s freestyle division is the most for the state since 2013. The runner-up finishes by Tyler Verceles at 94 and Corey Brown at 100 were also the first time since 2013 the state had two finalists in 16U in the same year.

Massachusetts: Elliott Humphries finished second at 165 pounds and Matthew Botello took fourth at 132 pounds making it the seventh time the state earned multiple Junior men’s freestyle All-Americans in the same year. There’s a greater distinction this year as it’s the first time the Bay State has two wrestlers place in the top four in the same year in the division.

Michigan: Three of Michigan’s All-Americans in men’s freestyle returned to the podium. 16U runner-up Jayden Williams won his first men’s freestyle medal after finishing third in Greco-Roman last year. Blake Cosby finished fifth at 150 pounds. He was eighth at 16U 145 last year and Jarrett Smith won his fourth medal and his third in men’s freestyle.

Minnesota: All eight placewinners across both age groups won their medal matches in men’s freestyle. Of the six Junior men’s freestyle All-Americans, Minnesota scored a champ, three thirds, a fifth and a seventh. Landon Robideau’s title at 150 pounds was his fourth Fargo medal, while Alex Braun’s third place finish at 138 was his fifth. Tyson Charmoli finished third at 144 pounds, avenging a quarterfinal loss to Pennsylvania’s Pierson Manville.

Mississippi: The first official competitor representing Mississippi in the any division or style in tournament history was Bear Bryant Siegal in Junior men’s freestyle. Read more about Siegal and how he put the state on the wrestling map (finally) in Fargo.

Missouri: Seven of the eight All-Americans from Missouri this year were in the 16U division. The lone Junior All-American was heavyweight Rylan Kuhn, who finished fifth. Kuhn has won three medals in Fargo all-time. He was joined on the podium this year by his younger brother Kyler, who finished fifth at 285 in the 16U division. The top placer from Missouri was Chance Ruble, who finished third at 150 pounds in 16U.

Montana: Oklahoma commit Anders Thompson was the only All-American from Big Sky country this year. Thompson finished fifth at 190 pounds in Junior men’s freestyle. Thompson won a Class AA state title this season, finishing 26-0 for Flathead High School in Kalispell, one of the top programs historically in the state.

Nebraska: The seven All-Americans in men’s freestyle combined across both age groups is the second most in state history. Cade Ziola was the top finisher, taking second in Junior men’s freestyle at 190 pounds. Ziola, Riley Johnson and Abdirahman Unle each earned their second Fargo medals. Johnson was sixth at 160 pounds in the 16U division, while Unle was third at 113 pounds in Junior men’s freestyle.

Nevada: The Silver State set a new record for most men’s freestyle All-Americans in a year with five, topping the previous record of four set in 2017. Of the five, three came in the Junior division, which tied the state record there. Of the five – four are from Chase Pami’s Gold Rush Wrestling Club - Brenden Jorden Agcaoili, Antonio Quiroz, Manuel Saldate and Melvin Whitehead. The other All-American was 88-pounder Lucas Forman in 16U.

New Jersey: Despite finishing second behind Pennsylvania in the Junior men’s freestyle standings, the Garden State set a state record for Junior champions with four. Alessio Perentin (165), Ryan Burton (175), Harvey Ludington (190) and Rocco Dellagatta (285) all claimed gold, while Jayden James won a 16U title giving the state five men’s freestyle champions for just the third time ever. Among the 17 All-Americans, four of them came from Delbarton – Perentin, James, P.J. Terranova and Gabriel Logan.

New York: Dunia Sibomana’s title at 113 pounds was the first Junior men’s freestyle title for New York since Brian Realbuto won the 145-pound title in 2011. Of the seven All-Americans, six were first timers. Elijah Diakomihalis finished sixth at 190 pounds in Junior freestyle, the only New Yorker to earn a second career medal.

North Dakota: Nicolas Enzminger was the only placer from host North Dakota, finishing fifth at 113 pounds in junior men’s freestyle. Enzminger is already a four-time state placewinner at Bismarck’s Legacy High School. He won state titles each of the last two years as a freshman and a sophomore.

Ohio: Alex Taylor captured his first individual title in Fargo after finishing second and third last year. Taylor won the 215-pound title, becoming Ohio’s 48^th individual champion in 16U men’s freestyle. Ayden Dodd, the runner-up at 113 pounds, also earned his third medal in Fargo.

Oklahoma: Cason Craft and Richard Thomas each earned their fourth all-time Fargo medals and were two of Oklahoma’s seven Junior men’s freestyle All-Americans. Craft finished fifth at 106 pounds while Thomas was seventh at 285 pounds. Kody Routledge finished third at 157 pounds. He was fifth last year in Junior men’s freestyle and was a 16U champion in 2022.

Pennsylvania: The 19 All-Americans in Junior men’s freestyle tied the state record for most All-Americans in the division and is tied for the third highest output of medals in the tournament’s 53 year history. How does that performance stack up historically? Here’s a full breakdown of how it stacks up.

Rhode Island: Gabriel Bouyssou is just rewriting nearly every record. His seventh place finish at 170 pounds was his sixth all-time medal in Fargo, the most in state history. He’s tied with Patrick Feeley with the most men’s freestyle medals in state history. Bouyssou is a four-time state champion and two-time New England champion from Scituate High School.

South Dakota: The three All-Americans combined is the most for South Dakota since they picked up four medals in 2011. Gage Lohr finished fourth at 16U 126 pounds, the best finish amongst the group. Shea Richter was sixth at 16U 113 pounds, while Keenan Sheridan was the lone Junior placer, taking sixth at 175 pounds.

Tennessee: Both All-Americans from Tennessee were runners-up in the 16U division. Hudson Chittum was second at 88 pounds and earned his third career medal in Fargo while Ryder Smith grabbed silver at 215 pounds.

Texas: The lone All-American from Texas was 16U runner-up Dominic Wilson at 144 pounds. Wilson was the first finalist from Texas in the division since A.J. Ferrari won the 170-pound title in 2017.

Utah: The state had four 16U All-Americans for the second straight year and a combined six men’s freestyle All-Americans, the most since 2016. Noah Bull won the state’s eighth 16U men’s freestyle title. Jay Henderson won his fourth Fargo medal all-time, taking fourth at 285 pounds in Junior men’s freestyle.

Virginia: Heavyweight Parker Ferrell was the state’s top finisher, taking third at in Junior men’s freestyle and winning his fourth all-time medal in Fargo. Benjamin Weader was fifth in Juniors at 157 pounds while the only 16U All-American was 94-pounder Vince Von Bernewitz, who was eighth.

Washington: Smokey McClure became the state’s first Junior men’s freestyle finalist sine 2021. The Utah Valley commit finished second at 144 pounds. The only other All-American was 16U 120-pounder Czar Quintanilla, who was seventh.

West Virginia: Stephen Myers became the state’s first 16U champion in men’s freestyle since Braxton Amos in 2017. Myers claimed gold at 126 pounds. Eli Knight finished fourth at 190 pounds, giving the state two 16U All-Americans in the style for the first time since 2018.

Wisconsin: Hunter Stevens and Makhi Rodgers were the top finishers for Wisconsin, both finishing as runners-up. The state’s 16U wrestlers hit the podium seven times and finished ninth for a sixth straight Top 10 finish. Charlie Millard finished third in Juniors at 165 pounds for his fourth all-time medal in Fargo. Olympian Ben Askren was also named USA Wrestling’s Men’s Freestyle Developmental Coach of the Year.