The regular season is coming to a close. With that being said, it’s time for the Pete Wilson Invitational. Pete Wilson Invite is the longest running and toughest small college tournament in America. This tournament started in 1938 and has seen some of Wisconsin’s best over the years. Thirty two of our nation’s best programs meet in Wheeling, IL. This is a deep tournament which calls for a lengthy article. Well discuss top wrestlers and teams to watch as we highlight Wisconsin ties. The ranking I use for teams will be tournament rankings via NWCA.
We have the WIAC minus Oshkosh in attendance. We also have Milwaukee School of Engineering and Concordia representing our private schools. The top ranked teams in the field are #2 Roanoke, #4 Lacrosse and #6 North Central. Side note, if you haven’t read coach Joe Norton’s response to Division three women’s programs hosting its own national championship, I’ll leave it here for you, I love it! “If we had to choose between going toe-to-toe with the Hawkeyes and losing, or winning the Division three national championships by 145 points, our girls would choose losing.”
Other ranked programs competing are: #12 Whitewater, #21 Eau Claire and #23 Case Western. We will begin our preview with dual meet national champions Roanoke. What a story they are, at this time last year they were ranked 20th in the country. If you would have told me they would beat the Burgs in 2026 this time last year, I would have asked you where you buy your weed from? Roanoke has 8 nationally ranked wrestlers including: #2 Mac Cafurello 125, #12 Jude Robson 133, #1 Mark Samuel 141, #5 Taylor Smith 149, #9 Casey Smith 157, #9 Cade Parent 165, #9 Xavier Preston 174 and #3 Lorenzo Pellot-Vasquez at 197.
Roanoke is 12-0 this year in dual meets. What makes their story even more impressive to me is that the program launched in 2020! What is in the water in Salem? The Maroons have no Wisconsin ties. Most of their program is from the South or Northeast or our great nation. Lacrosse is next with 5 ranked wrestlers including: #12 Talan Shutte 141, #3 Tanner Gerber 165, #2 Noah Leisgang 174, #3 Tate Flege 184 and #10 Markos Mihalopoulus. The Eagles have been well documented by us throughout the season. We all know Malacek and company are the best in the business and will push for a team national championship in March.
North Central is our next squad on the list. Before I tell you how good NC is, I need to highlight #13 ranked Chicago beating them in a dual meet Saturday 24-14. North Central is a much better tournament than dual team. The Cardinals have no ties to Wisconsin, but have ranked wrestlers including: top ranked Christian Guzman 125, top ranked Ethan Spacht 133 and #6 Joshua Robinson 141. Whitewater comes in next with two ranked wrestlers at: #9 Justin Fortugno 141 and top ranked Dom Mallinder at 149.
Eau Claire is wrestling in Wheeling. Coach Fader’s bunch has ranked wrestlers including: #12 Izzy Balsinger 125, #15 Landon Church 149, #5 Ian Pepple and #9 Sloan Welch. Case Western Reserve is our last ranked team to debrief on. Initially, I thought this school was sending a reserve or backup squad. I was pleased to find out Reserve is part of this Ohio University’s name and their starters are wrestling. Case’s ranked wrestlers include: #2 Art Martinez 133.
The Alma Scots make the trip from Michigan. They have no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin ties. I enjoyed that their coaching staff is all alumni and have their graduating class listed next to their names. Arcadia out of Pennsylvania is coming with a ranked wrestler: #6 Jacob Blair 133. The Knights have no Wisconsin ties and honestly if you’re in PA you don’t have to search far for quality wrestlers.
Augustana makes the short trip from southern Illinois. The Vikings have no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin connections, they do have a handful of foreign wrestlers which is notable. Iowa’s Beuna Vista has no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin affiliations. Concordia-Moorhead is coming with ranked wrestler #13 Mason Swanson. They have Wisconsin preps Kaleb Lodahl and Anthony Strong Jr. both wrestling at 125. Concordia Wi has no ranked wrestlers. The Falcons have five Wisconsin preps on roster led by Hunter Burr at 165.
MSOE is led by ranked wrestler #13 Toren Vandenbush at 174. The Raiders have 5 Wisconsin preps on roster led by senior Gavin Graham at 184. I like the two piece tops in the roster photos and listing of which engineering pathway they are studying, solid teamsite. Stevens Point has two ranked wrestlers #14 Riese Thornberry at 149 and #15 Carson Trotzer at 174. Next up for the Pointers is a dual with Lacrosse that will close out the regular season of the WIAC.
Platteville is led by ranked wrestler #13 Luke Kamish at 149. They also have Kain Killmer at 197 who has picked up some big wins this year if you’re a fan of darkhorses. Cornell College of Iowa is coming with a middleweight duo of ranked wrestlers: #13 AJ Parrish at 157 and #11 Brian Petry at 165. The Rams also have a duo Wisconsin preps on roster: Owen West and Ethan Hady.
Another Illinois program in attendance is Elmhurst led by #4 Rhenzo Augusto. Representing Ohio is Heidelberg University. The Knights have no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin links. Ohio’s John Carroll also has no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin ties. What they do have is a cool mascot name, Go Blue Streaks. Messiah College of Pennsylvania is coming in hot with three ranked wrestlers in the mid-upper weight classes. They are #7 Keegan Demarest at 165, #14 Zach Needles at 174 and #7 Austin Brass at 184. The Falcons have no Wisconsin presence.
The Ohio delegation is bringing Mount Saint Joseph. The Lions have no Wisconsin links or ranked wrestlers. Nebraska Wesleyan is led by nationally ranked #4 Hayden Myers. The Prairie Wolves have no Wisconsin roots. Ohio Northern are coming with #12 Myles Johnson. I had to double check the team rankings to make sure the Polar Bears were not in there. They had a powerful team last year and seem to be in a rebuilding phase. They have no connections to Wisconsin.
Otterbein out of Ohio is coming to wrestle. They have no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin ties. Olivia Shore had a breakout performance becoming the schools first national champion last season. Is there a male capable of putting himself in the history books this year? Illinois Millikin has no ranked wrestlers. The Big Blue have Sabri Sino, transfer from William Penn on roster at 149. Wilkes of Pennsylvania comes with #15 Jaryn Hartranft. They have no connection to Wisconsin, but once again tip of the hat for having an all alumni coaching staff with graduating years listed.
The Ozarks make the farthest trip with no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin affiliations. The Eagles have a roster of mostly southern men. Rhode Island makes another far trip for tough competition. The anchormen have no ranked wrestlers or Wisconsin ties. University of Chicago, the ivy league of division three has some tough wrestlers. Ranked Maroons include: #15 Matthew Barlay at 125, #14 Jackson Rustad at 133, #8 Sean Conway at 141, #12 Max Mukhamedaliyev at and #8 Gunnar Garriques at heavyweight. University of Chicago features one of the best coaching staffs assembled and Franklin’s Matthew Barlay at 125 on the roster.
The last Ohio team we’ll discuss is Mount Union. The Raiders feature no Wisconsin connections, but have ranked wrestler #12 Steven Marra at heavyweight. We have saved our hosts Wheaton for last. The Thunder have no ranked wrestlers. A Wisconsin tie is coach Jim Gruenwald. I have written about him extensively in the past, a wonderful human being who changed my life. You’ll never find a team who promotes the love of Jesus Christ better than Wheaton. God bless, coach.
Individual Weight Predictions:
125:
Gold- #1 Christian Guzman- North Central
Silver- #2 Mac Cafurello Roanoke
Bronze- #12 Izzy Balsiger Eau Claire
133:
Gold- #2 Art Martinez Case Western
Silver- #1 Ethan Spacht North Central
Bronze- #12 Jude Robson Roanoke
141:
Gold- #1 Mark Samuel Roanoke
Silver- #6 Joshua Robinson North Central
Bronze- #8 Sean Conway Chicago
149:
Gold- #1 Dominik Mallinder Whitewater
Silver- #12 Max Mukhamedakiyev Chicago
Bronze- #5 Taylor Smith Roanoke
157:
Gold- #4 Rhenzo Augusto Elmhurst
Silver- #9 Casey Smith Roanoke
Bronze- #13 AJ Parrish Cornell
165:
Gold- #3 Tanner Gerber Lacrosse
Silver- #8 Jon Harvey Eau Claire
Bronze- Brayden Peet Whitewater
174:
Gold- #2 Noah Leisgang Lacrosse
Silver- #13 Toren Vandenbush MSOE
Bronze- #15 Carson Trotzer Stevens Point
184:
Gold- #3 Tate Flege Lacrosse
Silver- #7 Austin Braggs Messiah
Bronze- Gavin Koehl Whitewater
197:
Gold- #5 Ian Pepple Eau Claire
Silver- #3 Lorenzo Pellot-Vazquez Roanoke
Bronze- #4 Tyler Dormanen Lacrosse
285:
Gold- #9 Sloan Welch Eau Claire
Silver- #10 Markos Mihalopoulos Lacrosse
Bronze- #13 Mason Swanson Concordia Moorhead
Thank you for reading this far. I will leave you with some words from Garry Tan, “Always play the hand you have, not the one you wish you had.”
