Takedown Report

Wisconsin’s Hamiti named OW, Penn earns first Ken Kraft Midlands Championships team title

BY RICHARD IMMEL, USA WRESTLING
HOFMANN ESTATES, Ill. – A stellar set of finals on Saturday evening concluded the 59^th Ken Kraft Midlands Championships at NOW Arena—Wisconsin’s Dean Hamiti was presented with the Jack Leese Champion of Champions Award and the Dan Gable Outstanding Wrestler Award after earning the 165-pound title, while the Penn Quakers bagged the programs first team title at the prestigious holiday event. Already a two-time NCAA All-American and Big Ten champion for head coach Chris Bono and the Badgers, Hamiti looked every big a NCAA title contender as he blitzed the 165-pound bracket with three pins on Friday, followed up by a pair of shutout major decisions in the semis and finals. It was a 12-0 win over West Virginia’s Peyton Hall, a three-time NCAA qualifier and 2022 All-American, that cemented Hamiti’s claim as the event’s top wrestler.
Wisconsin picked up a second individual champion from 184-pound graduate transfer Shane Liegel who was a four-time NCAA Div. III All-American and national champion at Loras College. He fought to a 9-6 win in sudden victory against Penn’s Maximus Hale in the championship bout.
The only program to match Wisconsin’s two champions was Lehigh, who bagged first place finishes from NCAA All-American Michael Beard at 197 pounds and true freshman Luke Stanich at 125 pounds. Beard ousted two-time NCAA qualifier Luke Stout of Princeton in a 15-0 final. Stanich, who wrestled unattached, needed overtime tiebreakers to surpass Elijah Griffin of Cal Baptist in an exciting 8-7 championship contest.  An upstart West Virginia crew was the lone team to push three athletes into the finals and picked up a stunning win at 141 pounds. NCAA qualifier Jordan Titus decked All-American and No. 1 seed CJ Composto of Penn 18-3 to bring home the title. In addition to Hall and Titus, the Mountaineers saw freshman Ty Watters make the finals. The two-time Pennsylvania state champion was topped by unseeded, unattached competitor Ty Whalen in a 5-1 final at 149 pounds. 
Reigning U23 World champion Isaac Trumble of North Carolina State looked every bit a contender at heavyweight this weekend. He posted three pins and a major decision prior to a 2-1 win in the finals over No. 1 seed Luke Luffman of Illinois, who is a three-time NCAA qualifier. 2017 Cadet World bronze medalist and two-time NCAA All-American Jacori Teemer of Arizona State earned a five-point win over defending Midlands champion Trevor Chumbley of Northwestern in the 157-pound finals. Two-time age-group U.S. World Team member Dylan Ragusin, wrestling unattached for Michigan at 133 pounds, and NCAA qualifier Edmond Ruth of Illinois round out the list of individual champions.
Although it didn’t gain an individual champion, the Penn collective put up 127.5 team points with eight place winners. Wisconsin pushed up to second place with a strong day two at 104.5 team points. West Virginia found itself in third place with 100.5 team points. … story at … Themat.com/Wisconsin-s-hamiti-named-ow-penn-earns-first-ken-kraft-midlands-championships-team-title

And
Two High School Freshmen Win Midlands Championships
Ten high schoolers placed in the top five at Midlands, including freshmen champions Kayla Batres and Taina Fernandez
It’s one thing to win the Midlands Championships. It’s another to do it as a high school freshman. That’s what prep stars Kayla Batres and Taina Fernadez did in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, on Saturday. Batres won the 109-pound bracket with a 7-2 win over McKendree NCWWC (NCAA) champion Pauline Granados, a 10-4 win over prep star Rianne Murphy in the semis before securing a 4-2 win over Lock Haven’s Kaelani Shufeldt in the finals. Shufeldt is a returning All-American who recently placed fourth at US Nationals to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Trials. 
Fernandez blitzed through the 130-pound bracket with 10-0 techs over Jimena Serna of Morton and Nichole Moore of McKendree. Moore is a 2022 U23 National champion, a 2023 U23 World teamer, and a two-time NAIA All-American for Baker. 
The Bowie, Maryland, native notched a 12-1 tech over Aurora’s top-seeded Lexi Janiak, a 2023 U20 World bronze medalist and 2023 NCWWC (NCAA) finalist, before defeating North Central All-American Salome Walker, 10-0, in the finals.  … story at … Flowrestling.org/Two-high-school-freshmen-win-midlands-championships

January 6, 2024 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized