18 ranked wrestlers and 7 of those 18 ranked in the top 10. 157 lbs is loaded with talent, as four place-winners return. A good opportunity for many wrestlers to make their mark and have a good tournament.
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| #2 Meyer Shapiro Cornell |
'23-'24 was an outstanding season for Meyer Shapiro. He looked great nearly every time he stepped out onto the mat, capturing a very impressive 3rd place finish at the NCAA Division I championships. Matter of fact, the only time he didn't look great last year, was ironically enough, at CKLV! Chalk it up to the fact that everyone has a bad day once in a while if you want, it is still a testimony to how incredibly tough this tournament can be. This weekend Shapiro should receive the *1 seed.
*NOTE* - Shapiro was injured at the Journeyman Classic here a few weeks ago. Hopefully he's healed up and 100%.
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| #3 Antrell Taylor Nebraska |
Competing at 165 lbs last season, 8th in the NCAA DI nation, Antrell Taylor provides more testimony to just how incredibly tough CKLV can be as he went 2-2 at last year's championships. Now he's down at 157 lbs, with a very high ranking, that should translate into a very high seed. It'll be fun to see how he fares against other top 157 lbs'ers.
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| #5 Peyten Kellar Ohio |
Even MORE testimony to just how incredibly tough CKLV can be, Peyten Kellar is yet another NCAA DI All American (5th) who came up short of a medal last season! A champion contender this year, Kellar does own a 2:50 fall over Antrell Taylor. He owns both a 7-4 s.v. & a 1:03 fall over Ed Scott, and he majored Trevor Chumbley 9-1.
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| #6 Ryder Downey Northern Iowa |
Ryder Downey was one match shy of a medal at both CKLV & the NCAA DI championships last season. The ultimate lover of purple and gold looks to capture medals at both illustrious tournaments this year & it starts with capturing one in Vegas this weekend. Among his many impressive wins, an 8-2 victory over Trevor Chumbley, an 8-5 decision over Paddy Gallagher & a 4-1 decision over Teague Travis.
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| #8 Ed Scott North Carolina State |
The Wolfpack starter here will be Ed Scott. Jackson Arrington is currently redshirting. I simply like letting you know how much tougher this bracket would be, if Arrington were a part of it. One of the best wrestlers in the DI nation yet to All American, the two time NCAA DI R12'er, would be a threat. And......
So IS Ed Scott. The master of the headlock, Scott has collected back to back CKLV bronze medals. He has his up and down moments, but when he has his up moments, they are UP. Scott owns both a 7-6 & 4-1 win over Ryder Downey. He owns a 4-2 win over Paddy Gallagher and he's defeated Trevor Chumbley by an 11-1 major decision.
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| #9 Paddy Gallagher Ohio State |
7th at last year's CKLV championships, here's a guy that I feel could really showcase his talents at this year's tournament. Paddy Gallagher owns two victories over Peyten Kellar by 7-5 & 6-5 decisions. He's also defeated Ryder Downey by a 4-1 decision & he owns a 9-5 win over Trevor Chumbley.
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| #10 Paniro Johnson Iowa State |
I've been dying to see just how good this guy is going to be at 157 lbs for quite some time now. Unfortunately an injury robbed us from seeing how he was going to truly fare against #1 ranked Jacori Teemer of Iowa. That was unfortunate. However, there is plenty of competition, highly ranked competition here in Vegas to let us know exactly how the young Cyclone matches up in the 157 lbs weight class. This is a guy that defeated Austin Gomez 9-4 & took Yianni Diakomihalis into sudden victory competing at 149 lbs. If he can wrestle like that 8 lbs of muscle up, look out!
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| #11 Trevor Chumbley Northwestern |
If you're looking for your bracket buster, I may have found him. Trevor Chumbley has his fair share of losses against the competition but he also has his fair share of wins. He's one of those guys that somehow or another digs deep down inside and avenges losses (even sometimes really ugly losses) during opportune times. 5th & 8th thus far in the CKLV championships, it was he who upended Meyer Shapiro last season with a 2-1 decision. The Wildcat also owns a 5-3 s.v. over Paddy Gallagher & both a 3-2 decision as well as a 6:43 fall over Cobe Siebrecht. Not to mention he's taken Ed Scott into sudden victory & he's taken Peyten Kellar into the tiebreakers.
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| #12 Chase Saldate Michigan |
Former Spartan, now Wolverine, Chase Saldate is on a mission to prove himself an All American candidate for the '24-'25 season & what better place to make that statement than Cliff Keen Las Vegas? Saldate owns a 4:16 fall over Antrell Taylor, both a 2:06 fall as well as a 8-5 decision over Trevor Chumbley, a 5-4 decision over Paddy Gallagher & a 9-2 decision over Cobe Siebrecht.
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| #15 Joey Blaze Purdue |
Marcus, Marcus, Marcus! You can't go onto Twitter, Facebook, or any wrestling message board without seeing the name Marcus Blaze mentioned and discussed multiple times per day. the wrestling community is absolutely fixated with the high school phenom. I'm sure Joey is very supportive and proud of all the attention that his brother is receiving, but I'd also wager to think he wouldn't mind a little attention himself. He wrestles well this weekend, he'll receive it. Blaze owns 4-1 sudden victories over both Ed Scott and Trevor Chumbley.
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| #18 Teague Travis Oklahoma State |
Making the jump from 141 lbs to 157 lbs last year, I was impressed with how quickly Teague Travis adjusted to life two weight classes up. An NCAA DI qualifier last season, among his wins, a 7-6 decision over Ed Scott. The Cowboy will be among the place-winner candidates this tournament & like many others wearing the orange and black, I'm excited to see how David Taylor leads his team through his first major tournament as head coach.
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| #19 Cobe Siebrecht South Dakota State |
I hear varying opinions on the whole transfer portal process on a daily basis. It has its pros and it has its cons. Looking at it from the positive, it gives guys like Cobe Siebrecht an opportunity to shine that they might not have had otherwise. Siebrecht is a tough wrestler and I'm glad that the rules allowed him to be able to transfer out in order to compete. This weekend he could very well pick up a medal at NCAA DI's toughest in-season tournament. Credentials such as an 8-0 decision over Paddy Gallagher & a 6-3 victory over Trevor Chumbley provide the evidence.
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| #20 Colton Washleski Rider |
Talk about a guy that has made serious improvements. Two years ago as a freshman, Colton Washleski went 6-16 on the year. 6-16. Then last year, he turned that into a 31-10 record, earning himself his first trip to the NCAA DI tournament. He's the kind of wrestler where you aren't exactly sure what to expect, but when it's his turn to walk onto the mat, you'll be watching.
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| #21 Jared Hill Wyoming |
The two time NCAA DI qualifier is thus far undefeated as he enters his first major tournament competing for his new team.
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| #23 Rafael Hipolito Virginia Tech |
Thus far the redshirt freshman is undefeated in his first season of DI varsity wrestling. I'm anxious to see how he fares against the competition here in Vegas & I'm interested to see how his Brazilian jiujitsu may or may not come into play on the mat. Often seen how wrestling translates very well to BJJ, but haven't seen a lot of it the other way around.
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| #24 Ethan Stiles Oregon State |
We haven't seen a whole heck of a lot out of Ethan Stiles yet, but we've seen enough of the young Beaver to know that it's a real possibility that he could make some serious noise here in Vegas. A 7-4 sudden victory over Teague Travis, he also took former teammate Antrell Taylor into sudden victory recently as well.
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| #29 Grigor Cholakyan Stanford |
The starter here for the Cardinal is going to be Grigor Cholakyan. I simply like to point out how much tougher the bracket would be, if Dan Cardenas was also a part of it. 5th in last year's championships, I'd personally call him a CKLV title contender.
Back to Cholakyan....
I can't help but think that Cholakyan is a much better wrestler than what he is currently ranked. And, I can't help but feel that we could very well find that out this weekend in Vegas. His 15-2 dismantling of Legend Lamer really sticks out to me. Anxious to see what he does this weekend.
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| #31 Jimmy Harrington Havard |
The upset. A favorite happening among wrestling fans everywhere. I've said it in every write-up thus far and I'll say it again here at 157. There ARE going to be upsets this tournament. No doubt about it. When or where they will happen is completely at random. Still fun to try and predict though. Jimmy Harrington has already proven that he's capable of pulling off some upsets. Recently he defeated Ed Scott 12-9.
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| U.R. Legend Lamer Cal Poly |
It's been a rough start thus far in '24-'25 for Legend Lamer. Yet if there is anyone Unranked in the 157 lbs bracket that could potentially make some noise, it is the Mustang. Keep in mind that despite things looking damper at the moment, we are dealing with a three time NCAA DI qualifier here. We're also dealing with a guy that took 7th at these very championships three seasons ago. Guys who haven't been wrestling well, suddenly get hot at different times. It wouldn't be the first time it happened in Vegas either.
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