Who had their stock rise over the weekend at Super 32? 

 

North Carolina: 

As a state, we performed well! We are proud of our performance! As we stated in the previews, North Carolina took another step in proving we are improving on the national scene and this was another data point to prove that. We had 1 Men's AA, 2 Men's blood rounders, 3 Women's AAs, 3 Women's blood rounders, 5 middle school AAs and our athletes collected a ton of nationally ranked wins.  All this to say, NORTH CAROLINA RIDE OR DIE!!!

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Bentley Sly: 

How can we not start with Bentley? He looked the best he ever has. His hand fighting has improved a ton and was moving people all over the place. His fourth-place finish was the first All-American for NC in the Men's division since Nathan Carnes. Along the way he beat the #14, #15 and #9 kids in the country (rankings by Matscouts).  An overall impressive performance for one of North Carolina's all-time greats. 

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Cael Dunn: 

He beat the #8 ranked kid in the country (Matscouts). However, that isn't the only reason why his stock is up. His move up to 215 is going to be a great one for him. He stays in great position, is tough in the top position and is gritty. All these skills are considerably improved since the state tournament. Essentially, he is getting better at his best skills. Which is hard to do. 

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Lorenzo Alston: 

So smooth! He finished in the blood round, beat the #11 kid in the country (Matscouts) and improved on pieces of his game. The sky really is the limit for this kid. 

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Faith Bane: 

She had to dig deep to make this AA happen. She was behind in several matches, had to hold position to win and gut it out through some pain. She did it all! 

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Lauren Samuel: 

Eighth grader!!!!! One of the biggest takeaways for NC this weekend was that Lauren has arrived. Even though she is still a year out from High School, she is one of the best wrestlers in the state. She proved that with an AA performance and a statement win over a Fargo Champ. The Lauren Samuel era has begun. 

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Taylor Williams: 

Her movement is unreal. She has the ability to get to legs at will once she trusts herself to do so. Following up her NHSCA title with a blood round finish here. She was super impressive. 

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Isabella Hernandez: 

We knew she was good. She won a state title. However, this weekend she up-ed her game scored a nationally ranked win and finished in the blood round. Her short offense was on display and was next level. 

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Riley Paden: 

An impressive 2-2 performance that is a good indicator for the season ahead. 

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Gabe Rogers: 

Another deep run at a national tournament for Gabe. He shows up, wrestles hard and competes with everyone. It is only a matter of time before he punches through and AAs. 

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Eli Horton: 

We wrote in the Men's preview that he was going to be dangerous here. That proved to be true. The deep run wasn't a surprise. The impressive part was the grit and composure he showed in comeback wins and having to wrestle matches really close together. 

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Sammy Gantt: 

The most underrated performance of the weekend? He quietly won several matches and put together a nice run. Watch out for Sammy G this year. 

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Aiden White: ​

Walked away with a nice nationally relevant win and a win over fellow state champion, Garrison Raper. Every time we see him wrestle we continue to be impressed by all the intangibles. 

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Mac Johnson: 

Mac moved all the way up to 132. He looked great and the most notable difference was his head/hands defense. He was holding people off his legs and hand fighting really well. 

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Aaron Ellison: 

The Fargo All-American continues to improve, he collected wins and looked like he has improved his leg attacks, which is saying something.  

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Connor Reece: 

The finishing ability on his leg attacks was much improved. As only a sophomore he earned wins at Super 32 and proved once again that he is a national level wrestler.  

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Danny McDermott: 

He was undersized but has so many skills that are next level. We are very high on the abilities that this kid brings to the table. 

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Colt Cambruzzi: 

Watch out for this kid at 8A 132. He is explosive! 

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Mason Brown: 

The future of NC wrestling is bright. Mason earned a runner-up finish and beat several talented wrestlers along the way. Even though he is a year away from entering high school, he is already among the best in our state. He is a very exciting prospect moving forward. 

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Ethan Halstead: 

Speaking of exciting prospects.....Ethan is an offensive dynamo. We were impressed with the variety of ways he can score. After dropping his quarters match, he wrestled back to take 3rd, beating the wrestler who beat him. That is character. 

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Lukas Cala: 

An All-American! Part of the Next Gen crew at Darkhorse, Lukas is a tough kid who is going to be a part of the middle school group that we keep mentioning. 

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Benex Velasco: 

Another middle school AA. These kids are hammers. He is going to real problems for opponents over the next several years. 

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Steven Faubion: 

Steven is another AA in the middle school divison. The difference is that he is in the middle weights. We find it particularly exciting when we have kids who are young but perform at these weight classes. 

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Carson Raper: 

​We know Carson only won one match this weekend. However, he was right there in OT to keep advancing in the consolation rounds. He is still undersized for 106 and as he continues to grow, he is going to be very tough to beat. His toughness is pretty much unmatched and wrestles very hard each time out. 

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Kellen Gue: 

This kid scraps! He is very undersized for 106 but that won't stop us for inserting him straight into the state title picture. The technique and will to win is there, it is just a matter of growing into 106. 

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Nola Walker: 

She didn't win a match this weekend and her stock is still rising. Why? Character. She is a great kid who showed lots of character on and off the mat with how she handled herself. She is going to wrestle hard regardless of the situation or score.  As she continues to figure out this wrestling thing, she is going improve very rapidly. 

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Jake Amiott: 

Jake looks like he is coming into his own as he moved up a few weights. He looked much improved in the short offense position and in his positioning. 

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Khalif Rhodes: 

Rhodes is a title favorite come February. He proved that with a win at Super 32. The skillset is there, and he is steadily making gains. 

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Tyton Kostoff: 

​This dude scraps! His technique is so crisp and clean. We just think that every move he hits looks like it is straight out of a textbook. 

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