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    2010 IndianaMat.com Individual Rankings Preview

    The 2010 wrestling season is almost upon us and the crispness of the fall air will soon be turning into a cold and dreary Indiana winter. While it may be cold outside, wrestling rooms and gyms across the state will be heating up full of hard working athletes beating each other up for the same goal…to wrestle under the lights at Conseco Fieldhouse. This year 118 wrestlers return that have wrestled at Conseco with 14 of them having experienced wrestling under the spotlight. The champions from last year face the formidable task of parading around with a bulls-eye on their back all season long. One by one, wrestlers across the state will try to knock off the returning champion, with very few, if any, succeeding. The wrestler with the biggest bulls-eye is probably Portage’s Sean McMurray. He recently committed to wrestle for the Michigan State Spartans next year and is looking to bring home state title number three this year to put him in some very elite company. Another returning champion to look out for is Union County’s Cody Phillips. He was undefeated en route to his 103lbs championship last year and looks to continue that streak this season.

     

    Senior Brandon Wright, formerly of Cathedral, but now wrestling for Warren Central will be fun to watch. He has wrestled under the lights all three years, but has only won once under them. He will look to close out his spectacular career with one last victory under the lights. Last year’s freshmen sensation Jason Tsirtsis will look to continue to follow in the enormous shadow his older brother left for him. Last year he upended the hands on favorite in the semi-finals. This year however, he will be the hands on favorite.

     

    Frankie Porras of Hobart is returning this year looking to defend his title from last year. He faced stiff competition all year long and came away with a title. Another Crown Point wrestler, Anthony Hawkins is looking to capture his second straight title after coming away with the 112lbs title in a loaded weight class last year. He will most likely have to beat some of the same faces this year that he did last year on his way to a championship. Last, but not least is another Union County wrestler in Michael Duckworth. Duckworth is extremely talented and looks to close out his career with yet another title.

     

    Here is a breakdown of the returners from each weight class.

    *Note this is based on last year’s weight classes

     

    103lbs

    Fourteen state qualifiers return including all of last year’s state placers. You can also add in Brenden Campbell of New Castle who was undefeated before bowing out of the state tournament due to appendicitis. Returning champion Cody Phillips will look to not only defend his title, but keep his unbeaten streak alive.

     

    112lbs

    Sixteen wrestlers return here that have previous experience at Conseco Fieldhouse. Included in the returners are the 1st through 7th place finishers from last year. Anthony Hawkins of Crown Point leads the way, but with the talent in this weight class, nothing is a given.

     

    119lbs

    Eleven wrestlers with previous experience return to 119lbs. Only four wrestlers return that placed at this weight last year however. Brandon Wright is the consensus #1 after his arch nemesis Camden Eppert graduated.

     

    125lbs

    Eleven wrestlers also return to 125lbs with experience at state with five of them returning with medals from last year. Jason Tsirtsis of Crown Point is the returning champ, looking for his second title.

     

    130lbs

    An amazing fourteen wrestlers return to 130lbs with state experience this season. However, only three have wrestled on Saturday. Defending champion Frankie Porras of Hobart will look to continue the strong Brickie wrestling tradition with his second title this season.

     

    135lbs

    Only three previous state qualifiers return to this weight class. Gone is defending champion Taylor March of East Noble. The highest returning placer and preseason #1 is Eric Roach of Crown Point.

     

    140lbs

    Ten wrestlers return with previous state experience at 140lbs with four of them returning state placers. Gone however, is two-time champion Steven Sandefer of Mishawaka. Leading the way this year is Ryan Stahl who now attends Mishawaka.

     

    145lbs

    Five wrestlers return to 145lbs with previous experience at state. Three of them brought home medals last year. Culver Academy’s first state champion Daniel Young has graduated opening the door for preseason #1 Sammy Bennett of Anderson Highland.

     

    152lbs

    Five returning wrestlers are at 152lbs, including four returning placers. Leading the way is two-time champion Sean McMurray of Portage.

     

    160lbs

    Nine wrestlers come back to 160lbs with experience at Conseco Fieldhouse. Of those wrestlers, only one has some hardware to show for their experience. Gone are seven of the eight placers from last year including state champion Briar Runyan of Martinsville. Tyler Willis of Cathedral is the preseason #1 after a 7th place finish last year.

     

    171lbs

    Six wrestlers return to 171lbs with previous state experience, but only two of them have placed previously. Defending champion Michael Duckworth of Union County returns in hopes of capturing his second straight title.

     

    189lbs

    Four wrestlers return to 189lbs this year with state experience. Last year’s champion Marcus Shrewsbury of Crown Point has graduated and moved on to wrestling in the Big 10. Two of the returning placers have come home with medals including preseason #1 Aaron Stevenson of Indian Creek.

     

    215lbs

    Only three wrestlers return to 215lbs with previous experience, but all three are returning placers. Gone is last year’s champion Billy Baker of Bellmont, but his opponent in the finals last year is back. Christian Lentz of Mishawaka is the preseason #1 after a second place finish last year.

     

    285lbs

    Seven wrestlers return to the heavyweight division with experience at Conseco. However, only one of those wrestlers came away with a medal from last year’s experience. Gone is champion Adam Chalfant of Winamac. The highest returning placer and preseason #1 is James Travis of Merrillville.

     

    Click here for the full rankings

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