OHSAA wrestling district preview: What to watch, returning team and individual champs
The step before the state wrestling tournament is arguably the most important two-day stretch of the season in terms of cementing legacies.
A good run at district sets up individuals and teams for titles as bracketing becomes important down the stretch.
State team championships can be won and lost this weekend, and that makes the four Northeast Ohio Districts must-see action.
The USA Today Network broke down each bracket with returning team champions, returning individual titlists and what we think might play out.
Take a look:
OHSAA Hoover Division I District
When: 5 p.m. Friday; 9 a.m. Saturday
Teams: Akron North, Aurora, Austintown-Fitch, Avon, Brecksville, Brunswick, Brush, Canton McKinley, Dover, Eastlake North, Ellet, Euclid, Firestone, Garfield, Green, Hoover, Hudson, Jackson, John Adams, Lakeside, Lakewood, Maple Heights, Massillon, Mentor, Nordonia, Normandy, Perry, Riverside, Rhodes, Solon, Stow, Valley Forge, Wadsworth, Walsh Jesuit, Wooster
Returning team champion: Brecksville
Returning individual champions: Rylan Seacrist (Brecksville, 113 pounds), Liston Seibert (Perry, 113), Mason Rohr (Perry, 120), Jaxon Joy (Wadsworth, 150), Brock Herman (Walsh, 190), Aidan Fockler (Perry, 285)
Outlook: Perry did itself a gigantic favor with 13 champions and a runner-up last week at its own sectional. That should help distance the Panthers from the field. Expect Brecksville (13 qualifiers) and Wadsworth (13) to challenge for the team title with Nordonia and Walsh as players on Day 1.
OHSAA Perrysburg Division I District
When: 4:30 p.m. Friday; 9 p.m. Saturday
Teams: Amherst, Anthony Wayne, Ashland, Avon Lake, Barberton, Berea-Midpark, Boardman, Bowsher, Chardon, Cleveland Heights, Elyria, Findlay, Fremont Ross, GlenOak, Highland, Holland Springfield, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Midview, North Olmsted, North Ridgeville, North Royalton, Olmsted Falls, Oregon Clay, Perrysburg, Shaker Heights, St. Edward, St. Ignatius, Start, Strongsville, Sylvania Northview, Sylvania Southview, Toledo St. Francis, Toledo St. John’s Jesuit, Toledo Waite, Toledo Whitmer, Twinsburg, Westlake
Returning team champion: St. Edward
Returning individual champions: Cole Evans (Perrysburg, 126), Marcus Blaze (Perrysburg, 132), Ryan Bennett (St. Edward, 144), Jeremy Ginter (Whitmer, 157), Bradley Eaton (St. Edward, 157), J.R. Miller (St. Edward, 190), Jonny Slaper (St. Edward)
Outlook: Expect this to become a dual between St. Edward and Perrysburg from the opening whistle. The Eagles won all 14 weight classes at their own sectional to secure a substantial stake for the district title. The Yellow Jackets bring their entire lineup as well and have 10 sectional champs in the field as well as three runners-up. From a local angle, Highland brings 12 qualifiers and six champs, but the best the Hornets can likely hope for is a third-place team finish.
OHSAA Kenston Division II Sectional
When: 5:15 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m./4 p.m. Saturday
Teams: Akron Springfield, Alliance, Ashland Edgewood, Bay, Bedford, Benedictine, Brookside, Buckeye, Canfield, Canton South, Copley, Coventry, Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, Field, Firelands, Geneva, Girard, Harvey, Hawken, Hoban, Holy Name, Howland, Hubbard, Jefferson Area, Kenston, Kent Roosevelt, Louisville, Lutheran West, Madison, Marlington, Northwest, Norton, Notre Dame Cathedral Latin, Orange, Padua, Poland Seminary, Ravenna, Revere, Rocky River, Salem, Shaw, St. Vincent-St. Mary, Streetsboro, University School, West Branch, West Geauga, Woodridge, Villa Angela-St. Joseph
Returning team champion: Buckeye
Returning individual champions: Colyn Limbert (Buckeye, 120), Kaden King (Buckeye, 157), Steven Duffy (Woodridge, 175), Eddie Neitenbach (Buckeye, 190)
Outlook: Buckeye is the cream of the crop here as the State Duals runner-up has 12 district qualifiers with half of them coming in as sectional champions. Of those, Blake Bartos (113), Limbert, King and Neitenbach are projected to be state champions. Expect STVM to make a push on Day 2.
OHSAA Independence Division III District
When: 4 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m./4 p.m. Saturday
Teams: Ashtabula St. John, Beachwood, Berkshire, Berlin Center Western Reserve, Black River, Brookfield, Canton Central Catholic, Cardinal, Chagrin Falls, Chippewa, Clearview, Columbia, Conneaut, Crestview, Crestwood, Dalton, East Palestine, Elyria Catholic, Fairview, Fairless, Garrettsville Garfield, Grand Valley, Hillsdale, Independence, Jackson-Milton, Keystone, Lake Catholic, Liberty, Loudonville, Manchester, Mapleton, Mogadore, Norwayne, Orrville, Perry, Pymatuning Valley, Richmond Heights, Rittman, Rootstown, Saline Southern, South Range, Southeast, Trinity, Tuslaw, United, Waterloo, Waynedale, Wellington, West Salem Northwestern
Returning team champion: Rootstown
Returning individual champions: Parker Pikor (Lake Catholic, 120), Joey Romano (Lake Catholic, 132), Brock Durbin (Mapleton, 144), Tristin Green (Keystone, 157), Keegan Sell (Garfield, 190)
Outlook: Of all the districts, this could be the most contested as far as a team title goes. With nine district qualifiers, five sectional champs and three runners-up, Waynedale seems to be the cream of the crop. That said, Rootstown (10 district qualifiers, seven sectional champs, one sectional runner-up), Perry (13, seven, four), Dalton (10, five, one) and Lake Catholic (nine, four, zero) could all lay claim to the title and more importantly send a gaggle of wrestlers to state.
Contact Brad Bournival at bbournival@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @bbournival
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: OHSAA district wrestling preview 2024 as we approach state tournament
