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14 boys crowned high school division champions and Mesenbrink earns outstanding wrestler honors at the USAW High School National Recruiting Showcase

by Mike Willis, USA Wrestling

Photo of the tournmanet's outstanding wreslter Mitchell Mesenbrink by Mark Lundy/ Lutte Lens.

The 2021 USAW High School National Recruiting Showcase concluded this afternoon, with 14 wrestlers earning titles in the boy’s high school division. 152 pound champion Mitchell Mesenbrink was named the tournament’s outstanding wrestler. He advanced to the finals with two pins, a technical fall and a major decision. To claim his title, he defeated No. 8 ranked at 145 M.J. Gaitan, 5-4. Entering the finals, Gaitan was 4-0 with three pins and a major decision.

At 106 pounds, U15 Greco-Roman and freestyle World champion Aden Valencia capped off a stellar tournament with a, 17-2, technical fall over Isaac Hampton. Aden’s sister Nyla won the 106 pound bracket in the girl’s high school division.

Two-time Alabama state champion Yanni Vines brought home the title at 113 pounds. Vines, the No. 1 seed, defeated Ethan Perryman, the No. 3 seed, 7-5 in the finals.

Three-time Louisiana state champion Evan Frost wrapped up a dominant tournament at 120 pounds with a decisive 17-4 major decision victory over Markel Baker. Frost earned bonus point wins in all five matches he wrestled this tournament.

At 126 pounds, Dario Lemus downed Samuel Cartella, 12-5. The California native bested two state champions and the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds yesterday to earn his trip to the finals.

Kole Brower ran the gauntlet at 132 pounds, earning five wins over five state champions to earn the title. In the finals, he utilized a key reversal to take out Pierson Manville in a tight, 2-1, match.

The 138 pound champion Tagen Jamison, a Texas state champion, also knocked off five state champs en route to the title. In the finals, he gutted out an, 8-6, sudden victory win over Tennessee state champ Brayden Ivy.

The No. 1 seed at 145 pounds Tommy Curran earned a title with a 5-3 victory over Oregon state champion Daschle Lamer. Curran is a 2017 Fargo 16U All-American in freestyle and Greco-Roman.

Michael Caliendo, who is currently ranked 13th in the country, won the 160 pound final over Adam Thebeau, with a commanding 8-2 decision. This ended Thebeau’s impressive run through the tournament which included victories over two state champions.

Brayden Thompson, a 2019 Fargo 16U freestyle All-American and Brian Keck Preseason Nationals champion, won the title at 170 pounds. Thompson put on a strong performance against Lowell Arnold, picking up a 10-2 major decision in the finals.

No. 18 nationally ranked Jared Simma finished off a strong tournament with a 10-3 decision over Oregon state champion Brook Byers in the 182 pound finals. Simma is a two-time Kansas state champion.

The No. 5 seed at 195 pounds, Evan Anderson took out No. 2 seed Ryan Cody, 7-4, to earn his title. Anderson knocked off the No. 1 seed in the semifinals as well.

At 220 pounds, top-seeded Dzhabrail Khurshidov concluded his tournament with a 5-4 decision over Gunner Hoffmann, who had pinned his way into the finals. Prior to the finals, Khurshidov also only scored bonus point victories, earning two pins and a major decision.

Apollo Gothard wrapped up the tournament at 285 pounds with a 5-0 victory over Jacob Johnson. Gothard earned pins in his other two matches this tournament and only surrendered one point.

Izzy Style Wrestling crowned the most champions of any team with five, coming in at 145, 160, 170, 220 and 285 pounds.

Medal Matches

106
1st - Aden Valencia (Greco-Roman Development) TF Isaac Hampton (Newberg High School Wrestling), 17-2
3rd -Saoul Prado (Aniciete Training Club) DEC Nate Smith (Southport Wrestling Club), 4-0
5th - Keyan Hernandez (Team Champs Wrestling Club) DEC Jackson Heaston (Indian Creek Wrestling Club), 5-1
7th - Marcus Williams of Rio Rancho High School Wrestling MD Landon Reaux (Jr. Spartans Wrestling Club), 11-3
113
1st - Yanni Vines (Alabama) DEC Ethan Perryman (Temecula Valley High School Wrestling), 7-5
3rd - Dominic Mendez (Righetti High School Wrestling) DEC Luke Dux (Crass Trained-The Weigh In Club), 5-1
5th - Dawson Johnson (Crass Trained-The Weigh In Club) DEC Landon Smith (Bethel Freestyle Wrestling Club), 5-1
7th Ethan Boudreaux (Bayou Elite Wrestling Club) DEC Tyler Evans of Wolves Wrestling Club, 6-5
120
1st - Evan Frost (Bayou Elite Wrestling Club) MD Markel Baker (Alber Athletics Wrestling Club), 17-4
3rd - Isaiah Powe DEC Grigor Cholakyan (St. John Bosco High School Wrestling) Isaiah Powe (Alabama), 9-7
5th - Joseph Fernau (Izzy Style Wrestling) DEF Nicholas Gonzalez (Izzy Style Wrestling), MFF
7th - Dj Gillett (Mat Sense Wrestling) MD Billy Meiszner (Elite Athletic Club), 8-0
126
1st - Dario Lemus (Red Wave Wrestling) DEC Samuel Cartella (Ohio), 12-5
3rd - Carter Bailey (Livermore Elite Wrestling Club) DEC Jacob Frost (Bayou Elite Wrestling Club), 7-3
5th - Nash Singleton (Roseburg High School Wrestling) DEC Easton Hilton of (Victory Wrestling), 7-2
7th - Phoenix Blakely (Dakota Wrestling Club) DEC Jacob Macatangay (The Wrestling Academy), 4-3
132
1st - Kole Brower (Young Guns Wrestling Club) DEC Pierson Manville (Pennsylvania), 2-1
3rd - Ayden Garver (Newberg High School Wrestling)Eric Almarinez (Vacaville Wrestling Club)
5th - Q`veli Quintanilla (Inland Northwest Wrestling Training Center)DEC Tanner Gerber (CrassTrained: Weigh In Club), 9-2
7th - Weston Dalton (Colorado) DEC Dominic Hargrove (Betterman Elite Wrestling), 10-4
138
1st - Tagen Jamison (Texas Pride Wrestling Club) DEC Brayden Ivy (Tennessee), 8-6 (SV-1)
3rd - James Latona (Warrior Wrestling Club) DEC Cash Stewart (Poynette Panther Youth Wrestling), 4-2
5th - Hoyt Blaskowski (Marshfield Wrestling Club) DEC Matthew Rodriguez (Righetti High School Wrestling), 8-4
8th - Kaden Keiser (South Dakota) DEC Antonio Rodrigues (MD Maniacs Wrestling Club), 7-3
145
1st - Tommy Curran (Izzy Style Wrestling) DEC Daschle Lamer (Mat Sense Wrestling), 5-3
3rd - Avery Allen (Big Game Wrestling Club MT) DEC Logan Rathjen (Victory Wrestling) , 1-0
5th - Dillon Carlson (Team Poeta) DEF Christopher Moore (Illinois), MFF
7th - Jacob Ramirez (Louisiana) FALL Melton Powe (Alabama), 1:37
152
1st - Mitchell Mesenbrink (Askren Wrestling Academy Lake Country) DEC M.J Gaitan (Temecula Valley High School Wrestling), 5-4
3rd - Will Miller of Warrior Wrestling Club DEC Timothy Cowan (Livermore Elite Wrestling Club), 6-4
5th - Evan Ivaldi (USA Gold) DEC Michael Bobola (Massachusetts), 6-4
7th - Kendrick Hodge (Project Grapple) FALL Benjamin Shvartsman (Izzy Style Wrestling), 1:57
160
1st -Michael Caliendo (Illinois) DEC Adam Thebeau (Greenfield Wrestling Academy), 8-2
3rd - Aeoden Sinclair (Askren Wrestling Academy Lake Country) DEC Nicholas Hall (Delaware), 5-4
5th - Daniel Magayna (Immortal Athletics WC) DEC Braeden Ott (Askren Wrestling Academy Lake Country), 5-1
7th - Sam Beckett (Team Renegade) DEC Barker Luke (Dodge City High School Wrestling), 10-8
170
1st - Brayden Thompson (Izzy Style Wrestling) MD Lowell Arnold (Portage Youth Wrestling Club), 10-2
3rd - Caden Ernd (Team Poeta) DEC Lucas Daly (Carbondale Wrestling Club), 3-0
5th - Justin Rademacher (West Linn High School Wrestling) DEC Caleb Roe (Warrior Wrestling Club), 8-2
7th - Carson Manville (Pennsylvania) DEC Jackson Rosado (Mat Sense Wrestling), 6-4
182
1st - Jared Simma (Kansas) DEC Brook Byers (Oregon), 10-3
3rd - Caleb Uhlenhopp (Aniciete Training Club) DEC Kingsley Menifee (Birds of Prey), 2-0
5th - Christian Smoot (Sanderson Wrestling Academy) FALL Gunnar Garriques (Illinois), 5:09
7th - Mauro Pellot-Vazquez (Virginia) DEC Liam Volk-Klos (Pennsylvania), 3-1
195
1st - Evan Anderson (Ohio) DEC Ryan Cody (The Masters Academy Wrestling), 7-4
3rd - Andrew Wenzel (Izzy Style Wrestling) DEC Nathan Wemstrom (Izzy Style Wrestling), 5-2
5th - Joshua Negron (Delaware) DEC Caden Weber (Crass Trained-The Weigh In Club), 7-3
7th - Raife Smart (CrassTrained: Weigh In Club) MD Noah Rowlett (Indiana), 21-12
220
1st - Dzhabrail Khurshidov (Izzy Style Wrestling) DEC Gunner Hoffmann (CrassTrained: Weigh In Club), 5-4
3rd - Carter Grewe (Crass Trained-The Weigh In Club) TF Stone Combs (Utah), 19-4
5th - Tyler Crossno (Arkansas) FALL Gentry Bowles (Riverton Wolf Pack), 5:07
7th - David Polaski (Illinois) DEC Victor Rodriguez (Indiana), 7-2
285
1st - Apollo Gothard (Izzy Style Wrestling) DEC Jacob Johnson (Franklin Wrestling Club), 5-0
3rd - Jake Andrews (Elite Force Wrestling Club) DEC Aiden Butler (512 Outlaw Wrestling), 7-1
5th - Javier Martinez (Dinuba Wrestling Club) FALL Ryan Benca (NB ELITE), 3:56
7th - Jay Hanson (Wisconsin) DEF Ashton Miller (Prince George Youth Wrestling Association Inc.), MFF