D1 Preview: Seasoned Contenders Return
February 27, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Six returning champions and 10 wrestlers who finished runners-up at the MHSAA Individual Finals in 2018 get this weekend’s Division 1 brackets at Ford Field off to an incredible start.
But they represent just one layer of elite contenders attempting to make history.
Detroit Catholic Central senior Kevon Davenport leads the headliners, hoping to become the 25th or 26th four-time champion in MHSAA history (Hudson’s Jordan Hamdan is wrestling for the same in Division 4).
Below, we look at 10 contenders to watch in Division 1, plus list everyone who finished at least as a runner-up in 2018 and all of the top seeds heading into this weekend. Surely we still missed a few who will end up rising to the top of the podium Saturday – but come back to Second Half early Sunday as we’ll interview and report on all 56 champions.
The “Grand March” on Friday begins at 11 a.m., with five rounds wrestled throughout the day including the semifinals at 7:30 p.m. Wrestling picks back up with consolation rounds at 9 a.m. Saturday, and concludes with the championship matches that afternoon at 3 p.m.
Follow all matches on a subscription basis live on MHSAA.tv, and click here for results at MHSAA.com.
119: Andrew Chambal, Davison junior (35-4) – The top seed at 119 pounds is seeking his second championship after winning 112 last year and finishing third at 103 as a freshman. He’s wrestled up most of the season but is 7-0 at 119.
125 Eddie Homrock, Brighton junior (52-2) – The top seed at 125 has lost only to two out-of-state opponents and dealt Chambal one of his defeats this past weekend. Homrock was fourth at this weight last season.
130 Kyle Kantola, Hartland senior (46-0) – After finishing runner-up at 125 a year ago, Kantola is the top seed at 130 and looking for his first title after also finishing seventh at 119 as a sophomore and fifth at 103 as a freshman.
135: Joshua Edmond, Detroit Catholic Central junior (36-2) – Last season’s champion at 130 and the 2017 Division 2 runner-up at 135 (for Orchard Lake St. Mary’s) is the top seed in Division 1 at 135. His two defeats came to out-of-state opponents, and he’s unbeaten in 2019 and undefeated against Michigan opponents the last two seasons.
140 Derek Gilcher, Detroit Catholic Central junior (31-2) – The top seed at 140 won the championship last season at 135 and finished fourth at 119 as a freshman. He too is undefeated against in-state opponents this season.
145 Kevon Davenport, Detroit Catholic Central senior (34-1) – As noted, he’s on the cusp of possible history after claiming titles at 145 last season, 130 in 2017 and 119 in 2016. His only defeat this winter came in overtime to an Ohio opponent while wrestling up, and he enters the weekend with a 167-10 career record.
152 Cameron Amine, Detroit Catholic Central senior (36-0) – Amine is the top seed at this weight after finishing runner-up a year ago, falling 4-2 to Davison’s Alex Facundo (see below) in the final. Amine won 125 as a freshman and 145 as a sophomore, and beat Facundo 2-1 in an ultimate tie-breaker at the beginning of January.
160 Alex Facundo, Davison sophomore (35-2) – After winning 152 last season, Facundo is the top seed at 160 and someone forecast to possibly join the four-championship club in 2021. His only defeats this winter – and for his high school career – were to Amine as noted above and by injury default at his league tournament.
189 Cal Stefanko, Davison senior (30-2) – Last season’s runner-up at 171 also took fifth at 160 as a sophomore. He enters this weekend as the top seed at 189 with a win over Turner (below) and losses only to out-of-state opponents.
189 Eaton Turner, Detroit Catholic Central senior (37-3) – Turner won 215 last season but lost to Davison’s Stefanko (above) during a December dual that likely cost him the top seed. Turner’s only other losses came to out-of-state opponents, and he could see Stefanko in the championship match this weekend.
Other 2018 runners-up: 119 Nick Alayan, Macomb Dakota senior (45-3, 112 in 2018); 125 Mark Brado, Waterford Kettering senior (39-2, 119 in 2018); 135 Jared Riggins, Jackson senior (35-2, 130 in 2018); 145 Vic Schoenherr, Bay City Western senior (46-0, 145 in 2018); 171 River Shettler, Brighton (48-3, 160 in 2018 wrestling for Hartland); 215 Blake Wingate, Temperance Bedford (38-3, 215 in 2018); 285 Steven Kolcheff, Detroit Catholic Central junior (35-3, 285 in 2018).
Additional No. 1 seeds: 103 Kavan Troy, Rochester sophomore (46-0); 112 Brendan Ferretti, Macomb Dakota sophomore (50-0); 171 River Shettler, Brighton senior (48-3); 215 Brendin Yatooma, Detroit Catholic Central junior (38-3); 285 Steven Kolcheff, Detroit Catholic Central junior (35-3).
Also undefeated: 130 TJ Daugherty, Waterford Kettering junior (37-0); 285 Brady Riggs, Grand Ledge senior (42-0).
PHOTO: Hartland’s Kyle Kantola works toward a pin during his team’s Division 1 Quarterfinal match against Westland John Glenn on Friday at Wings Event Center. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Gonzalez Locks Down Emeralds' 1st Title
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
March 10, 2017
MANISTIQUE — It was a celebration nearly fit for a king Sunday as the city of Manistique welcomed home its first MHSAA Finals champion.
Senior Tanner Gonzalez became the first Manistique wrestler to capture an individual title by taking a 5-4 double-overtime decision from Dansville’s Johnathon Stid last Saturday night in a Division 4 160-pound Final at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
“It was awesome,” he said. “When I came out (at the high school), the whole community and people from all over the U.P. were there. We also had the cop cars, fire trucks, ambulance and the chief of police were there.”
Gonzalez secured the title on a reversal shortly after Stid took a 4-3 lead with an escape.
He became only the third Upper Peninsula grappler to take an MHSAA wrestling title, four years after Joe Ostman and Galloway Thurston of St. Ignace were crowned champions. Ostman also captured Division 4 titles in 2012 and 2011, and Thurston additonally was a champion in 2012 and runner-up in 2011.
Gonzalez began wrestling when he was in kindergarten, but said it took him a while to really get into it.
“I always liked football, but didn’t like wrestling when I was a little kid,” he added. “I did it because my brothers were doing it, and it kind of rubbed off on me. Things started coming together during my sophomore year, and I started taking practices more seriously. I started working at it harder.”
Gonzalez came up through the ranks in the Manistique youth wrestling program, but transferred to Norway before his freshman year.
After spending two years in Norway, he returned to Manistique for his junior and senior years.
“My dad had a job in Norway which was the reason for the transfer,” he said. “Then, he got a job in Manistique as a truck driver and now owns his own company. While we were in Norway, it was nice to go to Wisconsin and see different competition. It was different once we came back to Manistique because we didn’t have (brothers) Cole or Zavier on our team. I felt a lot of kids looked up to me.”
Tanner qualified for the Individual Regional as a freshman. As a sophomore, he placed seventh in the MHSAA Finals and moved up to sixth in his junior year.
“Losing in the state tournament is a bad feeling because it’s so final,” he said. “I wasn’t putting in the extra time. I worked all of last summer and my brother Matt helped me a lot with my strength program. There was more sense of urgency this year.”
His first tournament last summer took place in early June at Disney World in Orlando, Fla.
“The first kid I had to wrestle was ranked 11th in the nation and he pinned me in about 1:30,” said Tanner. “It was kind of an eye-opener because there’s always somebody better out there. I was more calm down there because there was no pressure. I tried moves I normally wouldn’t try in a high school match and got better at finishing my shots and cradling. I finished 4-4, then I got a concussion and was out for about a month. I didn’t wrestle too much the rest of the summer. My wrestling became a little more rusty.”
Gonzalez, who finished 49-0 this season, says he had a close call with Gladstone senior Austin Demeuse at St. Ignace. Demeuse held a five-point lead before Tanner rallied for a 9-5 victory.
“That motivated me to get into better shape,” he added. “I wasn’t moving my feet as well as I did all summer and had to get my weight down. I realized I wasn’t disciplined enough and picked up my intensity level. I raised the bar after losing to him in the U.P. Finals as a junior.”
Tanner says he worked a lot with youth wrestling coach Tim Nixon prior to his transfer to Norway.
“I worked with him a lot when I was in eighth grade and learned the importance of staying disciplined and working hard,” he added.
Tanner is undecided about his college choice, but is looking at Ellsworth Community College, a wrestling power in Iowa Falls, Iowa. He plans to major in criminal justice.
“I visited the college and really liked it,” he said. “It’s a little town and I feel comfortable with the small town setting. Their team took fourth in the (National Junior College Athletic Association) national tournament. They have five All-Americans and one was a national champion.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Manistique's Tanner Gonzalez celebrates his MHSAA Division 4 title Saturday at The Palace of Auburn Hills. (Middle) Gonzalez (left) locks up with championship match opponent Johnathon Stid of Dansville. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)