2017 Super 32 Upperweight Preview

2017 Super 32 Upperweight Preview

2017 Super 32 Upperweight Preview

Oct 26, 2017 by Willie Saylor
2017 Super 32 Upperweight Preview
It's Super 32 week.

The toughest folkstyle tournament in the country gets started Saturday at 8 AM Eastern time, and we're running through all of the weight classes before this year's event returns to Greensboro, NC.

Super 32 brackets are so big and chock-full of studs that we're breaking our tournament preview into three-part series for lightweights, middleweights, and heavyweights.

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Today's preview covers 132 through 160. For the lightweight preview, CLICK HERE. For Middleweights, CLICK HERE.

We listed out all the ranked guys registered and some unranked names to keep an eye on this weekend. Below each weight, you'll see last year's final result as well as a trip down memory lane from 10 years ago.

Without further ado, check out the full preview below. WATCH LIVE HERE.

170lb

2016 Finals: Bryce Rogers (Lake Highland Prep, FL) decision Jake Allar (St. Michael-Albertville, MN) 7-3
2006 Finals: Dustin Kilgore (Berea, Ohio) d. Jordan Blanton (Richmond-Burton, IL) 3-0

The Contenders

No. 1 - Sr. Trent Hidlay, PA - Returning 3rd
No. 6 - Jr. Chris Foca, NJ - Returning 5th
No. 7 - So. Patrick Kennedy, MN - Akron 3rd
No. 9 - Sr. Emil Soehnlen, Ohio - Returning 7th
No. 16 - Sr. Michael O'Malley, NJ - Akron 5th
No. 17 -Sr. Zac Braunagel, IL - Fargo 4th
No. 19 - Jr. Zach Glazier, MN - Fargo 5th
No. 20 - Sr. Robby Patrick, PA - State Runner-Up

Grant Cuomo, NY
Jackson Turley, VA
Jimmy Noel, AR
Kyle Homet, PA
Noah Liles, GA

Commentary: I've been calling Chris Foca "high upside" and Patrick Kennedy "underrated" for a couple years now. But Trent Hidlay is the man; his combo of talent and toughness will be too much to overcome in my opinion.

Foca has gone from 132 to 152 and now to 170. He just looked silky smooth in his Journeymen title over Erich Byelick.

How good is Kennedy? He won a Minnesota state big school title as a freshman in February, then went to Akron and placed third -- where his only loss was 4-3 to No. 1 Travis Wittlake. That being said, Kennedy did have an unranked loss last year at Cheesehead.

I really like Zach Braunagel as well. He placed fourth at Fargo losing to Hidlay and splitting with Max Wohlabaugh.

Other guys that could be in the mix for a finals spot opposite Hidlay include the blue-collar Emil Soehnlen and Michael O'Malley, who was third in Jersey last year.

Willie's Dark Horse: A month ago, Peyton Robb was in the conversation at the top of the 152lb rankings. Last week, Zach Glazier knocked him off.

Picks
Willie - 1) Hidlay, PA 2) Foca, NJ 3) Braunagel, IL 4) Kennedy, MN
Nomad - 1) Hidlay, PA 2) Foca, NJ 3) Kennedy, MN 4) Patrick, PA
Spey - 1) Hidlay, PA 2) Foca, NJ 3) Kennedy, MN 4) O'Malley, NJ


182lb

2016 Finals: Louie Deprez (Hilton, NY) decision Nino Bonaccorsi (Bethel Park, PA) 6-0
2006 Finals: Jamelle Jones (Dover, DE) d. Christopher Honeycutt (St Ed's, Ohio) 4-2

The Contenders

No. 3 (at 195) - Sr. Cody Mulligan, PA - FloNationals Runner-Up
No. 5 - Sr. Jared Krattiger, WI - Fargo AA
No. 6 - Sr. Anthony Montalvo, CA - 2x State Finalist
No. 14 - Jr. Jacob Cardenas, NJ
No. 15 - Sr. Dalton Group, PA - State Runner-Up
No. 18 - Jr. Christian Knop, AL - Fargo 5th
No. 19 - Jr. Jake Logan, NY - Fargo Runner-Up

Ashton Elyer, Ohio
Darrien Roberts, PA
Grant Parrish, MN
Josh Stillings, PA
Julian Gorring, PA
Ryan Yarnell, MO
Victor Marcelli, Ohio

Commentary: People just keep sleeping on Mulligan and I'm not quite sure why. Although he's not a lock for the belt by any means, he should be considered the front-runner. A state champ, Mulligan was the FloNats runner-up to Jelani Embree and also has a win over Jacob Raschka.

Krattiger bumped up late last year and lost at states to fellow top-ranked Jackson Hemauer. Krattiger was out for much of the summer with an injury.

Oklahoma State signee and Cali champ Anthony Montalvo is squarely in the mix. He lost just once last year -- to Bryce Rogers at the Clash.

Jacob Cardenas beat Dalton Group recently and then won a Journeymen bracket with wins over Christian Knop and Jake Logan.

Willie's Dark Horse: Senior Ashton Eyler has the ability to upset the applecart. He was third at the state tournament, where he lost to Georgio Poullas. And he just won Grappler Fall Classic and Indiana PreSeason Open.

Picks
Willie - 1) Mulligan, PA 2) Montalvo, CA 3) Cardenas, NJ 4) Krattiger, WI
Nomad - 1) Montalvo, CA 2) Mulligan, PA 3) Cardenas, NJ 4) Stillings, PA
Spey - 1) Montalvo, CA 2) Cardenas, NJ 3) Mulligan, PA 4) Krattiger, WI


195lb

2016 Finals: John Borst (Sherando, VA) decision Gavin Hoffman (Montoursville, PA) 4-3

The Contenders

No. 6 - Sr. Lucas Davison, IN - Returning 3rd
No. 8 - Sr. Jared Ball, Ohio - FloNationals 4th
No. 19 - Jr. Wyatt Hendrickson, KS - Fargo 3rd

Blake Barrick, PA
Brandon Hoselton, IL
David Jones, VA
Jacob Henderson, GA
Konner Doucet, OK
Tommy Brackett, TN
Tony Wuest, DE

Commentary: The 195 weight class was hurt with Cody Mulligan moving to 182 and Gavin Hoffman withdrawing.

It leaves Lucas Davison, a Michigan recruit and former Fargo Runner-Up (to Karoly) as the front-runner.

Ask around and college scouts will tell you they love the upside of Jared Ball, who started off raw but has continued to refine his game and post solid results. At FloNationals he beat Georgia state champ Noah Liles, Pennsylvania runner-up Dalton Group, and former Fargo champ Tyler Barnes.

Jacob Hendrickson's only loss in Fargo was to Matt Cover, and he beat solid guys in Peter Christensen and Santos Cantu, who was ranked at the time.

Willie's Dark Horse: Doucet, who's just a sophomore, has been inconsistent but certainly shown flashes. He was a state champ as frosh, knocking off a fringe rankable Dan Baker in the finals. Doucet was sixth in the Fargo Cadet bracket with Hendrickson. He also beat Fargo runner-up Matt Cover at Cadet Duals.

Picks
Willie - 1) Ball, OH 2) Davison, IN 3) Wuest, DE 4) Doucet, OK
Nomad - 1) Ball, OH 2) Davison, IN 3) Doucet, OK 4) Hoselton, IL
Spey - 1) Davison, IN 2) Ball, OH 3) Hendrickson, KS 4) Doucet, OK


220lb

2016 Finals: Brian Kennerly (Upper Darby, PA) decision Cole Nye (Bishop McDevitt, PA) 5-4 TB
2006 Finals: Trever Collins (Nixa, MO) d. Jacob Tubbs (Lancaster, SC) 12-1

The Contenders

No. 2 - So. Braxton Amos, WV - 2x Fargo Champ
No. 7 - Sr. Josiah Jones, PA - State Runner-Up
No. 8 - Sr. Antonio McCloud, OH - Fargo 4th
No. 12 - Sr. Peter Acciardi, NJ - Returning 4th
No. 13 - Sr. Ben Goldin, FL - 2x State Champ

Collin Lawler, Texas
Dan Conley, MO
David Aranda, CA
Josh Heindselman, OK

Commentary: I love Braxton Amos. I mean, who doesn't? He's the best thing from West Virginia since Kyle Bratke and Paul Newman's "Slap Shot." We lost the pleasure of watching him in Folk last year because of injury, but the four-time Fargo champ is a special blend of feel and athleticism.

Josiah Jones was fifth at FloNats with losses to postgrad Abdul-Malik and 2016 Super 32 champ Brian Kennerly. It was the Super 32 runner-up, Cole Nye, who beat Jones in state finals.

Peter Acciardi has quietly put together a great resume. Fourth here a year ago, he was a state runner-up as a junior. He crushed everyone at Journeymen until he got to the finals and beat Ben Goldin 3-2.

Antonio McCloud beat Jace Punke and Max Darrah in Fargo, losing both times to Francis Duggan.

Willie's Dark Horse: Watch for Josh Heindselman. He's inconsistent but has flashes.

Picks
Willie - 1) Amos, WV 2) Acciardi, NJ 3) McCloud, Ohio 4) Jones, PA
Nomad - 1) Amos, WV 2) Jones, PA 3) Goldin, FL 4) Heindselman, OK
Spey - 1) Amos, WV 2) Acciardi, NJ 3) Jones, PA 4) McCloud, OH


285:

2016 Finals: Brendan Furman (Canon-McMillan, PA) decision Sammy deSeriere (Mullen, CO) 3-1
2006 Finals: Sam Brownlee (Mt Lebanon, PA) d. Zack Potter (Elizabethton, TN) 1-0

The Contenders:
No. 4 - Sr. Anthony Cassioppi, IL - Fargo Champ
No. 10 - Sr. Max Darrah, MO - Fargo 8th
No. 11 Keaton Kluever, WI - Returning 5th
No. 12 Paul Robinson, GA - Returning 8th
No. 15 Jordan Earnest, Ohio - Akron Champ
No. 16 Eli Pokorney, IN - Fargo 3rd
No. 19 Michael Kramer, TN - Returning 6th

Louden Haga, WV
Mike Burchell, CT

Commentary:
Anthony Cassioppi is on a roll, and man does he love to compete. The 2017 Fargo champ has won Indiana PreSeason (over Keaton Kluever), Night of Conflict, and JJ Classic already this fall.

Max Darrah moves up from 220 where he AA'd in Fargo.

Kluever, who placed at all the majors (S32, FloNats, and Fargo) beat Michael Kramer and Paul Robinson here last year.

Jordan Earnest beat Eli Pokorney in Akron.

Dark Horse: Louden Haga doesn't have the most robust resume, but he's showing gains. He went 0-2 at S32 last year, 1-2 at Ironman, and 1-2 at Flo. Then he made Fargo finals, losing only to Nash Hutmacher. He's improving, and he works out every day with Braxton Amos.

Also watch for Mike Burchell, who just picked up wrestling a couple years ago, and placed at NHSCAs. He's a horse. And though the field wasn't talent laden at heavyweight, Burchell pinned everyone at Journeymen within the first 44 seconds. I think he's real. We'll find out Sunday.

Picks:
Willie - 1) Cassioppi, IL 2) Earnest, OH 3) Kluever, WI 4) Burchell, CT
Nomad - 1) Cassioppi, IL 2) Robinson, GA 3) Kluever, WI 4) Kramer, TN
Spey - 1) Earnest, OH 2) Cassioppi, IL 3) Pokorney, IN 4) Haga, WV