2025 Pete Willson Invitational - 125 lbs - (Fri Jan 31-Sat Feb 1)

DI had the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
DII had the Midwest Classic
NAIA had the Missouri Valley Invitational 
Now it is time for NCAA Division III's toughest in-season tournament of year!

Hosted by Wheaton, The Pete Willson Invitational has been a staple in D3 wrestling for many years.  This season we have 5 ranked programs, 45 ranked wrestlers and among them, 17 All Americans, 6 R12'ers & 4 more NCAA DIII qualifiers from last season.  This is going to be a great tournament.  One worth paying attention to! 

Here at 125 lbs, we have 6 ranked wrestlers, including last year's NCAA DIII finalist!  Going to be some great wrestling in this bracket. 

#2
Christian Guzman 
North Central

22-0 on the season, Christian Guzman is gunning for the national title after having posted 3rd & 2nd place finishes in the D3 nation the past two seasons.  Against the competition he'll face here at Pete Willson, He's had his way with Jalen Dunson a likely finals opponent on four occasions.  17-2 & 15-0, he's tech'd the Warhawk twice.  He's also pinned him, at the 4:02 mark.  Their other meeting, was much closer 11-9.  Guzman also owns a 1:51 fall over Isiac Paladino.

#5
Jalen Dunson
UW-Whitewater 

One match shy of NCAA D3 All American honors last season, Jalen Dunson will be in the fight here to make the Pete Willson Invitational finals.  He's had some close matches with Izzy Balsiger, 9-7 & 8-6.  He's also defeated Quinton Wolbert on four occasions by scores of 16-7, 13-6, 6-3 & 14-6.  

#6
Izzy Balsiger
UW-Eau Claire

An NCAA DIII qualifier last season, Izzy Balsiger will be among those in the fight here at the Pete Willson Invitational.  Balsiger owns both a 12-7 decision, as well as a 19-4 tech over Quinton Wolbert.   A likely semi-final with Dunson should prove to be most exciting. 

#9
Zach Beckner
Ferrum

Zach Beckner had a standout season last year competing at 133 lbs.  Was one match shy of placing at both the Pete Willson Invitational and the NCAA DIII championships.  Now he's down at 125 lbs, looking to be even more successful at his new weight class than what he was last year.  Thus far he's 12-1, looking for a top spot in D3's toughest in-season tournament. 

#10
Isiac Paulino
Roanoke

After two seasons with Springfield, Isiac Paulino has transferred to compete for the Maroons with little brother (or should I say younger brother) Jonah.  Against the competition, Paulino owns two impressive victories over Fred Luchs by scores of 11-3 & 9-2. 

#14
Quintin Wolbert
UW-La Crosse

The Eagle had an outstanding Pete Willson last season finishing 3rd and truthfully, that's all it takes in DIII wrestling to go from bottom of the rankings to top of the rankings in the wink of an eye, as far as rankings are concerned.  Wolbert is going to have to pull off some upsets, but when isn't that the case in a tournament like this one? 

U.R. 
Fred Luchs
Rhode Island College

I've always thought with as many wrestlers as there are in NCAA DIII wrestling that rankings should at least go to 25.  I mean really, with 18 qualifiers for such a long period of time, we should've had at least 18 in the rankings.  Now that we have 21 qualifiers, we should have at least 21, but I'm still thinking 25.  15 in my opinion just isn't enough.   Off my tangent now, I trust that if we did have 25 per weight rankings, that Fred Luchs would be ranked somewhere in the top 25.  5th in last year's Pete Willson Invitational, he owns a 7:00 fall over Isiac Paulino. 

**NOTE**
Luca Paladino is on the roster for the Pointers this season, listed as a senior, but we have yet to see him compete.  I don't think we're going to here.  If so, he's most certainly a threat to medal status.  A match shy of placing at last year's championships, he owns a 6-4 decision over Jalen Dunson.