Top teams, wrestlers to watch at the Cheesehead Invitational high school wrestling tournament

Ricardo Arguello, Appleton Post-Crescent
·5 min read
Kaukauna's Greyson Clark, left, will be one of the top wrestlers at the 24th annual Cheesehead Invitational held at Kaukauna high school this weekend.
Kaukauna's Greyson Clark, left, will be one of the top wrestlers at the 24th annual Cheesehead Invitational held at Kaukauna high school this weekend.

There will be 38 teams from Wisconsin and around the nation descending on Kaukauna for the 24th annual Cheesehead Invitational this weekend.

The three-day event features select dual matches Thursday at River View Middle School with the individual event beginning Friday evening and running all day Saturday at Kaukauna High School.

Kaukauna wrestling coach Jeff Matczak said the tournament has evolved since its inception and noted a big reason for its success is tournament director Scott Kluever.

"I don't want to say we keep outdoing ourselves, but this tournament we've been doing it a long time," Matczak said. "When we got to 20-plus schools and having some programs like Apple Valley (Minn.) here ... we've kept it at a high level. We lost some schools and gained some schools but really that list has become the standard.

"It's amazing and we've been able to do it that long. Scott has so many connections with the other states. He's able to talk to a lot of coaches (at national tournaments). It's 24 months, 24/7, 365 days a year and it ends up taking shape during the school year. He's put a nice field together."

There will be 22 teams from out of state, with five ranked nationally in the top 50 by Mat Scouts, including No. 20 Simley (Minn.), No. 25 St. Charles East (Ill.), No. 29 Ponderosa (Colo.), No. 33 Southeast Polk (Iowa) and No. 42 Millard South (Neb.).

The field features 246 wrestlers ranked in their respective state's listings, with 88 of those athletes ranked in the top three. Of those top grapplers, 20 are ranked nationally by Mat Scouts.

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There will be 12 mats for the wresters to compete on − 10 in the main fieldhouse and two in the school's auxiliary gym, according to Matczak.

"It's a fundraiser for our program and our school," he added. "We have so many volunteers working so many hours. Our IT department, they've really been going at it and it isn't just the WiFi. There's the livestreams and the scoring and we have so many (video) boards around the facility and projectors ... you can see every mat and what's happening and what's on deck."

Here's some of the top wrestlers to watch during this weekend's tournament.

Joel Adams, Millard South (Neb.): Ranked No. 1 in Nebraska and No. 4 nationally in the 144-pound weight class.

Ben Bast, West Bend West: Ranked No. 1 in Wisconsin and No. 14 nationally at 120.

Will Baysingar, Prospect (Ill.): No. 3 in Illinois and No. 10 nationally at 132.

Jake Bostelman, Ponderosa (Colo.): Ranked No. 1 in Colorado and No. 12 nationally at 150.

Brandon Cannon, Ponderosa (Colo.): Ranked No. 1 in Colorado and No. 5 nationally at 138.

Greyson Clark, Kaukauna: Three-time WIAA state champ, top-ranked in Wisconsin and No. 4 nationally at 138.

Ben Davino, St. Charles East (Ill.): Ranked No. 1 in Illinois and No. 2 nationally at 126. Also ranked No. 11 in the nation "pound-for-pound."

Tyler Eise, Ponderosa (Colo.): Ranked No. 1 in Colorado and No. 4 nationally at 175.

Cole Glazier, Kasson-Mantorville (Minn.): Ranked No. 2 in Minnesota and No. 18 nationally at 165.

Cole Han-Lindmeyer, Farmington (Minn.): Ranked No. 1 in Minnesota and No. 12 nationally at 195.

Koy Hopke, Amery: Ranked No. 1 in Wisconsin and No. 2 nationally at 215. Also ranked No. 7 "pound-for-pound" nationally.

Dom Munaretto, St. Charles East (Ill.): Ranked No. 1 in Illinois and No. 2 nationally at 106.

Carter Pearson, Southeast Polk (Iowa): Ranked No. 1 in Iowa and No. 3 nationally at 106.

Nate Jesuroga, Southeast Polk (Iowa): Ranked No. 1 in Iowa and No. 1 nationally at 126.

Cole Mirasola, West Bend West: Ranked No. 1 in Wisconsin and No. 5 nationally at 195.

Connor Mirasola, West Bend West: Ranked No. 1 in Wisconsin and No. 5 nationally at 182.

Noah Mulvaney, Arrowhead: Ranked No. 1 in Wisconsin and No. 12 nationally at 165.

Gavin Nelson, Simley (Minn.): Ranked No. 1 in Minnesota and No. 3 nationally at 215. Also ranked No. 3 nationally "pound-for-pound."

Logan Swensen, Wayzata (Minn.): No. 2 in Minnesota and No. 17 nationally at 126.

Brayden Thompson, Lockport (Ill.): Ranked No. 1 in Illinois and nationally. Also listed as the No. 2 wrestler in the nation "pound-for-pound."

IF YOU GO

What: 24th annual Cheesehead Invitational and 2nd annual Cheesehead Duals

Where: Kaukauna High School and River View Middle School

When: Select dual meets Thursday (5:30 p.m.) at River View with the individual tournament Friday (5:15 p.m.) and Saturday (8:30 a.m.)

Additional info: www.cheeseheadwrestling.com

TEAMS COMPETING

Wisconsin: Amery, Arrowhead, Fennimore, Freedom, Hudson, Kaukauna, Marshfield, Mineral Point, Mukwonago, Oconomowoc, Pewaukee, Stoughton, Waterford, West Bend West, Wisconsin Rapids, Wrightstown

Illinois: Carl Sandburg, DeKalb, Edwardsville, Grant, Lockport, Nequa Valley, Prospect, St. Charles East, Warren Township, Yorkville, Yorkville Christian

Minnesota: Farmington, Kasson-Mantorville, Saint Thomas, Simley, Wayzata

Colorado: Chaparral, Ponderosa

Arizona: Desert Vista

Iowa: Southeast Polk

Missouri: Smithville

Nebraska: Millard South

Thursday's dual matches: Round 1 - Southeast Polk vs. Lockport; Desert Vista vs. Simley. Round 2 - Southeast Polk vs. Simley; Desert Vista vs. Lockport

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Top teams, wrestlers to watch at the Cheesehead Invitational