Stanford Wrestling Fan,
We had two great dual meets last Friday against Utah Valley and Bakersfield that were well attended (our efforts around community engagement are working!). As a coach, the first set of duals is always a bit nerve-wracking, as you are not exactly sure where the team is from a competitive standpoint. So, heading into the duals, I was anxious to see where we really were as a team. Watching the team just beat on each other at practice every day gives you a decent idea of where you stand, but there is always a little concern that your assessment might be off. For example, if a bunch of the guys are doing a really good job on top in practice, riding and turning their partner, the question is: are we really good on top, or do we just stink on the bottom? The challenges heading into the first competition are real. Fortunately, we wrestled well, and there were no glaring team issues in relation to competition.
For you stat geeks out there, in our duals with Utah Valley and Bakersfield, we…
…were 14-4 in contested matches
…had 2 pins, 4 tech falls, and 2 major decisions
…scored 42 takedowns to our opponents’ 8
…got back points 5 times and gave up none
For a quick breakdown:
125: Unfortunately, we don’t have depth here, so it is Nico Provo or no one. Help is on the way with the HS graduating class of 2025, but we have to wait a year. Nico will be back soon.
133: Knox looked solid. He needs to get more offense going on his feet, but he is a magician in scrambles and an absolute terror on top. If we can help him develop a more solid attack on his feet, he will be in the conversation as one of the best in the country at 133. Two good wins. He controlled things (even if it didn’t look like he was controlling things).
141: It’s fun that we get to wrestle freshmen in 5 events, and they don’t lose a redshirt (a relatively new rule). Jack Consiglio got the nod for Friday and competed well. While he dropped a match against Utah Valley, he bounced back and picked up a strong win against Bakersfield. Jack has improved a lot since he first arrived on campus and made some great technical adjustments in both matches.
149: The “old dog” on the team is still learning new tricks. I’m amazed at how much Jaden Abas has been willing to learn and grow since I arrived last September. He is a true student of the sport, and every time he goes out to compete, he is working to improve. I know he would have liked to score more points in his matches, but he is working on some new things, and I appreciate that he is willing to do it in the heat of competition. While the scores were a little close, I was never concerned that Jaden wouldn’t get his hand raised.
157: Grigor!!!!!! Wow. Grigor Cholakyan put on quite a show with a major decision and a pin in his debut wearing Stanford across his chest. I love the way he just lets it fly, from headlocks to flying headlocks…if you were there, you know what I’m talking about. Grigor was awarded the distinguished “wrestler of the day” for his efforts in the duals (an award I made up in the team huddle after the last dual). What you didn’t get to see is that this kid has “fight.” He is in a room of hammers around his weight, and he never, ever backs down, which is going to make him very, very good.
165: Seven days prior to the duals, Hunter Garvin was just getting back from Albania, where he represented the USA in the U23 World Championships. So, we were fully prepared to compete without him if he decided he wasn’t ready. What I love about Hunter is that he wants to compete for Stanford every chance he gets. So, when I asked him if he wanted to wrestle against UVU and Bakersfield, it was a confident yes! He dropped a tough match to Utah Valley’s best wrestler, and it was a great learning experience. Hunter is now solely focused on folkstyle, and when March rolls around, I am confident he will be in a position to possibly win a National title for Stanford.
174: Lorenzo Norman is impressive. In practice, he has been dominant, and that carried over to competition with two tech falls. In Lorenzo’s case, I’m a little disappointed with the 3-point takedown rule, as I wish it were 2 points, just so I could watch him continue to get takedowns. He will be fun to watch this year!
184: Luke Duthie missed most of last year due to injury, so it is great to have him healthy and wrestling at a high level. He wrestled a little tight in his first match but was able to get a good win against a tough competitor. After his first match, he communicated with the coaches that he needed to open up more, so it was really neat to watch him really open up in his second match and wrestle hard for the whole 7 minutes. Luke hasn’t wrestled a folkstyle match in well over a year, and if this is him being a bit “rusty” in competition, I’m feeling great about where he will be once he gets the rust off.
197: Nick has made a pretty big jump this preseason, and I was excited to see him face former NCAA champion AJ Ferrari to get a sense of where we stood with one of the best in the weight class. While Nick didn’t get the win, he was able to compete at a high level in the match, closing the gap from the last time they met. We can certainly make some adjustments to get the win next time. Nick has the focus and determination to make something big happen this year.
285: It was good for Jackson to get the “W” against Utah Valley, but I know Jackson is frustrated he let the match against Bakersfield get away. It was a winnable match, and Jackson has to learn to stay in the fight for the whole 7 minutes. Anyone who has wrestled in college knows how tough this can be, and if you didn’t, trust me, it’s freakin’ hard. Jackson is easily the best athlete on the team (always picked first for handball), so we have to continue to get him to focus on scoring for the whole 7 minutes, and we will have a great 285.
Menlo Open Results:
149- Jack Desena- 2nd
165- Zach Hanson-3rd
184- Tye Monteiro-2nd
184- Abe Wojcikiewicz-3rd
184- Lars Michaelson-4th
197- Cole Han-Lindemeyer-2nd
197- Brook Byers-3rd
We take on #7 Iowa State this Friday, November 8, 7:00 CT and #2 Iowa Saturday, November 9, 1:00 CT. These are our first top 10 ranked tests of the season and we are excited to show what Stanford wrestling is capable of in front of some great crowds.
You can watch the Iowa State match on ESPN+ – Click Here
The Iowa match will be on TV via the Big 10 network.
Best,
Coach Ayres
