Freeman Caps Career with 4th Title
March 4, 2017
By Nick Hankins
Special for Second Half
AUBURN HILLS – Ben Freeman stamped his name in Michigan high school wrestling history Saturday with an impressive and technical display of skills that fans across the state have become accustomed to from the talented Walled Lake Central senior.
Freeman became just the 22nd wrestler in state history to win four MHSAA individual championships when he beat Colin Takata of Birmingham Groves by technical fall, 24-7, in the second period of the 140-pound championship match at the Individual Finals on Saturday at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
Freeman ended his senior season with a 34-0 record and a career mark of 163-1.
“I feel great, and I don’t think it has sunk in yet,” Freeman said. “This is crazy. There is really nothing like it. I wrestle all across the country and this (The Palace) is my favorite arena to wrestle in.”
This was a special year for the Freeman family.
Not only did he win his fourth title, but he got to watch his younger brother Nick win an MHSAA title at 135 pounds. And all in front of their father, Al Freeman, who is their coach.
But this night belonged to Ben Freeman.
“This is so much relief winning my fourth state title,” Freeman said. “I never thought I could do it. I pictured it a lot, but never thought I could do it.”
103
Champion: T.J. Daugherty, Walled Lake Central, Fr. (42-5)
Decision, 4-3, over Nick Alayan, Macomb Dakota, Soph. (51-6)
It was sweet revenge for Daugherty, who beat old nemesis Nick Alayan of Macomb Dakota to win the 103-pound championship.
Daugherty beat Alayan 4-3 this time after falling to him two weeks ago.
“My game plan coming in was to wrestle on my feet,” Daugherty said. “He beat me at Regionals 6-0 with a cradle so I had to wrestle on my feet. It feels really good to be a state champion.”
112
Champion: Benyamin Kamali, Detroit Catholic Central, Jr. (41-3)
Fall 3:31, over Bryce Brust, Battle Creek Lakeview, Soph. (44-7)
Kamali left little doubt he would be walking off The Palace floor with another championship.
He earned his second straight by pinning Brust in 3 minutes, 31 seconds.
“I came into the tournament with the mindset of dominating, and I dominated this match; it feels good,” Kamali said.
And like he did in his match, so did the Shamrocks, as for the second year Kamali was one of five individual champions for Detroit Catholic Central.
“Catholic Central’s program is based around domination: go out there and break your opponent,” Kamali said. “We are a family, I would do anything for anyone on our team. It feels great to be a part of something that is bigger than yourself.”
119
Champion: Rayvon Foley, Ann Arbor Pioneer, Sr. (54-3)
Decision, 8-3, over Mikey Mars, Westland John Glenn, Jr. (56-4)
Sometimes underdogs get their due at The Palace, and that is exactly what Ann Arbor Pioneer senior Foley accomplished at 119 pounds.
He beat two-time reigning champion Mikey Mars of Westland John Glenn, 8-3, in their 119-pound final.
“I feel good; I just beat a two-time state champion,” Foley said. “I have lost to that kid so many times in my life, it felt good to beat him. He is a tough kid. My game plan coming into this match was to wrestle on my feet and score points. I had to win this match on my feet, and I did that.”
125
Champion: A.J. Facundo, Davison, Jr. (39-5)
Decision, SV-1 2-1, over Donte Rivera-Garcia, Southgate Anderson, Sr. (49-2)
Facundo learned how it felt to win a Finals match two years ago when he won the Division 1 112-pound title.
Last year he took second at 119.
On Saturday, he capped off another impressive season with another championship, beating Southgate Anderson’s Rivera-Garcia 2-1 in sudden victory.
“I have worked my tail off all year,” Facundo said. “I have been doing two practices a day to prepare for this moment. I came in with the mindset of I am a fierce competitor. My focus coming in was to attack, attack, attack. I pushed the pace to win this match. (Davison coach Roy Hall) does a great job preparing us to be champions.”
130
Champion: Kevon Davenport, Detroit Catholic Central, Soph. (43-3)
Decision, 4-3, over Xavier Graham, Brownstown Woodhaven, Sr. (55-2)
Davenport has a reputation of being solid on his feet, and that came in handy when winning his second straight championship with a 4-3 win over Brownstown Woodhaven’s Graham.
The win avenged Davenport’s loss to Graham two weeks ago at Regionals.
“I would like to thank God, my father and my coaches for preparing me for this tournament,” Davenport said. “I felt if I attacked on my feet and got to my low level single legs that I could win this match.”
135
Champion: Nick Freeman, Walled Lake Central, Jr. (35-1)
Decision, 5-2, over Anthony Gibson, Westland John Glenn, Jr. (53-5)
“All the hard work and hours I have put it, they are starting to pay off,” Freeman said.
Wrestling in older brother Ben Freeman’s footsteps may be daunting, but Nick Freeman wants to make a name for himself and got a great start Saturday night.
“That’s what I’m working towards,” Nick Freeman said. “Every time I have come here I have fallen short. But I kept working on the little things, and now they have paid off.”
145
Champion: Cameron Amine, Detroit Catholic Central Soph. (45-3)
Decision, 9-3, over Danny Pfeffer, Fraser, Sr. (57-1)
There are a lot of motivated wrestlers in the practice room at Detroit Catholic Central. None may be more motivated than Amine, who won his second title with an impressive 9-3 win over previously-undefeated Pfeffer.
With the starting weight set at 145 pounds, Amine was the first of the five individual champions for the Shamrocks on Saturday.
“It feels great to get that second state championship in,” Amine said. “People say you always have a target on your back once you won one, but I use that as motivation to keep going and keep pushing myself everyday in the practice room to be the best. This caps off a great season and offseason. I was a double All-American this summer; this shows all my hard work has paid off.”
152
Champion: Nathan Atienza, Livonia Franklin, Sr. (58-1)
Decision, 4-3, over Kameron Bush, Grandville, Sr. (39-2)
In a battle of returning champions, Franklin’s Atienza beat Grandville’s Bush in an exciting match that drew a lot of the eyes at The Palace to their mat.
“This is my second state title; it is very exciting,” Atienza said. “I was anxious coming into this match as he was a state champ last year. I pushed myself hard all year; I was motivated.
“Kam is a tough opponent. I knew deep down inside my head I had it. I have worked for this my entire life, and nobody was going to take this away from me.”
160
Champion: Kolin Leyrer, Holt, Sr. (41-2)
Decision, 6-4, over William Marano, Dearborn Edsel Ford, Jr. (50-4)
Leyrer ran off the mat and jumped into Holt coach Rocky Shaft’s arms.
It was a great time to experience a huge accomplishment with your uncle.
“This is the most amazing thing I have ever felt in my life,” Leyrer said. “With Rocky being my uncle, this championship just means that much more. He knows how much I wanted this for me and him.”
171
Champion: Tyler Morland, Detroit Catholic Central, Sr. (37-0)
Technical Fall, 17-2 (4:40), over Matthew Heaps, Portage Northern, Sr. (51-1)
Morland left little doubt he would leave his high school wrestling career in impressive fashion.
He ended his senior season with a perfect 37-0 record and second straight championship at this weight.
“I came into the tournament wanting to dominate,” Morland said. “I could have wrestled better in my Quarterfinals match, but this was just the way I wanted to end my career by dominating in the Finals.”
“It is a lot of fun competing at this tournament. This is the biggest stage; it doesn’t get any better than this. There is nothing better than to compete in front of your friends and family.”
189
Champion: Brenden McRill, Davison, Sr. (41-2)
Decision, SV-1 3-1, over Ryan Vasbinder, Grandville, Sr. (21-3)
It may not have been as impressive as his win at the Team Finals a week ago, but McRill’s 3-1 sudden victory win over Vasbinder may have been a little sweeter.
Last week, McRill beat Vasbinder 14-6 with seven takedowns.
“This feels great to come away with a second state championship,” McRill said. “Ryan is a tough kid, and I knew he was going to have a game plan after last week. My mindset was the same as last weekend – to come out and score a lot of points. I wanted to score more than I did today, but I am going to keep working to be the best. I am very happy with the way I performed this weekend.”
215
Champion: Ben Cushman, Flushing, Jr. (56-0)
Decision, 11-6, over Drake Morley, Grand Haven, Sr. (29-5)
Cushman became his school's first individual champion since 2000, beating Morley to finish his junior season with a 56-0 record.
“I came out with the game plan to wrestle on my feet and I did that; I took him down five times,” Cushman said. “I just feel so great for Flushing and our county."
285
Champion: Nicholas Jenkins, Detroit Catholic Central, Sr. (46-1)
Decision, 3-2, over Austin Emerson, Temperance Bedford, Jr. (49-2)
Jenkins makes very few mistakes.
The Detroit Catholic Central senior heavyweight makes his matches a strategic battle every time, and he usually comes out on top, just like he did Saturday night when he won his second straight title.
“This feels great to be able to come in here and have the confidence and work on my offense and work on my shots and hit a peak out in the Finals,” Jenkins said. “It feels great to be able to be at that level. “
It’s been a good two weeks for Jenkins. His team also won a title last week at Central Michigan University.
“The team state championship was great, probably the best because you get to enjoy it with all of your friends and family and the rest of the community,” Jenkins said. “But there are not a lot of things that top winning two individual state championships.”
PHOTO: Walled Lake Central’s Ben Freeman wrestles Colin Takata of Birmingham Groves on the way to a fourth MHSAA individual title Saturday. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Latest Championship Chapter of DCC/Davison Goes Shamrocks' Way
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
February 22, 2025
KALAMAZOO – Connor Bercume’s Detroit Catholic Central wrestling career came full circle Saturday.
Three years ago, Bercume lost the opening match of the Division 1 Final against Davison in a dual meet the Shamrocks lost by eight.
In his final match at Wings Events Center, however, the senior closed his team wrestling career by winning the clinching match in Catholic Central’s 50-18 victory against Davison.
“That’s a pretty cool feeling,” Bercume said. “I kind of started my career here at the team state championships, it was the first match my freshman year. I lost and we ended up losing that dual. So, that was definitely tough on me. This year, it’s pretty awesome to clinch it up. It still hasn’t really sunk in that this was actually my last time representing CC as a team. But, yeah, it feels good.”
Bercume and the Shamrocks have now won three straight Division 1 Finals titles, seven of the past nine and 11 since 2010, all under coach Mitch Hancock. In three of the five years the Shamrocks didn’t win the title, they were a finalist.
“It doesn’t,” Hancock said when asked if the feeling of winning ever changes. “You’d think it would. You’re so in the process throughout the year of prepping and prepping and prepping, but when it finally comes to fruition, you look at their faces and get the chance to embrace the coaches who have spent so much time and energy with these guys – it doesn’t (change). It’s a special moment. We do the team state tournament right here in Michigan, it means something. Other states, not so much; it’s the individual tournament. But look around. So many communities that are invested in wrestling – it’s special.”
Saturday was the seventh time Davison and CC had met in the Final since 2013, and the first time the Shamrocks had come out on top in that scenario since 2020.
The rivalry added another layer this season, as Hancock’s former Central Michigan University teammate Jason Mester took over the Davison program.
“Jason’s one of my closest friends. I talk to him every day,” Hancock said. “It’s an honor (to compete against him in the Final). It’s his first year at the helm, you can see the progress they made throughout the year. There’s no bigger competitor than Jason Mester, so I know we’re going to see his butt next year. … The Davison/CC rivalry is the best one in the state of Michigan, and you felt that tonight. Kudos to that coaching staff, Coach Mester, they’re going to be around for a long time with him at the helm. I can’t say enough about that team. But our guys stepped up tonight, and that starts with our freshman Braxton Roche at (157). What a remarkable display of talent.”
Roche’s match was one of several between ranked wrestlers in the dual, as he defeated Davison’s Julius Pacheco, who is ranked No. 5 at 150 and bumped up to face the sixth-ranked Roche. The back-and-forth affair ended with an 8-4 decision in favor of Roche, giving the Shamrocks a 26-12 lead with the heart of their lineup still to go.
While Kyle Jelinek would get a pin for Davison in the following match at 165, Catholic Central closed out the dual with five straight wins.
“I thought our guys competed,” Mester said. “The score really doesn’t tell the tale of how well our guys competed today or yesterday or all year, really. Our guys went out there and fought hard. We got beat in a number of positions where the swing matches could have gone either way, and it went their way today. My hat’s off to them – they wrestled a great dual and wrestled a great season.”
Davison (19-4) did get some big pins, as Jelinek was joined by Steve Vaughn (113) and Calvin Martz (138). But those were their only victories on the night.
“We had two seniors who got pinned tonight, and that typically doesn’t happen in our lineup,” Hancock said. “But I looked at both those young men and I said, ‘This team will pick you up.’ And those guys did, so I’m really proud of the other guys who stepped up and found a way to pick those two seniors up.”
Ryan Totten (120), Wyatt Lees (126), Benny Eziuka (285) and Richard Mogle (106) all won by fall for Catholic Central (27-5), while Bercume won by technical fall at 215.
Mack Moskovic (132), Alexander Buskirk (150) and Caden Krueger (175) won major decisions, while Grayson Fuchs (144) and Lee Krueger (190) joined Roche with wins by decision.
“We took some tough Ls (earlier in the season) to Lowell, St. Ed’s (Ohio), all the nationally-ranked teams that we wrestled,” Eziuka said. “That just prepared us for this moment to come out and put on a performance like this.”
Click for this weekend’s Division 1 meet summaries.
PHOTOS (Top) Detroit Catholic Central's Connor Bercume (blue) wrestles Davison's Brandon Glisson at 215 pounds during Saturday's Division 1 Final. (Middle) The Shamrocks' Benny Eziuka has his hand raised in victory after his match at 285. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)