Morse makes statement with Super 32 win
Lowell junior becomes 3rd Michigander to win Super 32, Massa and Miller finish 2nd
11/3 - Impressive would be an understatement for Jackson Morse's
performance this weekend. The Lowell senior wrestled at the Super 32
Championship in Greensboro, NC and won the 145lb title. His weight class
featured a total of 76 wrestlers with 12 state champions, 8 state runners-up,
and 40 state placers from across the country as well as 6 wrestlers currently
ranked nationally by InterMat or Amateur Wrestling News.
After winning his first four bouts, the Lowell junior knocked off 3x Florida
State Champ Joe Cozart, ranked 10th by AWN, in the quarterfinals. Then, in
the semifinals he pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament when
he downed reigning Fargo Junior double champ and #1 ranked Dylan Alton of
Pennsylvania. To cap off his day Morse defeated WIN Magazines #13
wrestler at 145lbs, Pennsyvlania state champ Joey Napoli.
Morse, who won his 1st state title last year as a sophomore, did not enter
the tournament as an unknown, however, nobody would have predicted this.
He defeated Senior National All-American Brennan Brumley in last year's state finals and he upset 4x Michigan state champ Mark Weber last year during the regular season, which earned him the #19 ranking in the country. However, this was Morse's first real breakout on the national stage as he became just the 3rd Michigan native ever to win this event.
Two other Michigan preps advanced to the Super 32 finals, but fell in their final match. Freshman phenom Taylor Massa entered the tournament as a favorite to contend after winning a Cadet double title in Fargo last summer and he held true to form, advancing to the championship finals by downing Missouri state runner up and eventual 3rd place finisher Drake Houdashelt 5-1 in the semifinals. In the finals, however, Massa squared off with Junior National double champ Andrew Alton of Pennsylvania and fell short, losing 15-5.
Division 2 state champ Adam Miller of Sparta, who recently commited to Central Michigan, made an impressive run as well, advancing to the 160lb finals. In the finals Miller's end came to an end when he fell to Justin Armstrong of Bishop Lynch, TX. Miller's performance could be viewed as a breakout for him nationally as he has been succesfull in the state, but failed to place nationally until this weekend.
Jake Walters of St Johns followed up his impressive Fargo performance last summer with a strong showing last weekend, finishing 5th at 130lbs. Walters won his first 5 matches before falling to eventual champion and nationally ranked Zach Neibert of Ohio 6-2. In the 5th place match Walters pinned New Jersey state runner up Taylor Walsh just 43 seconds into the first period.
The 5th and final Michigander to place was Fowlerville's Nick McDiarmid, who finshed 3rd at 215lbs. McDiarmid, a returning D2 state finalist, fell in the semifinals to nationally ranked Antonio Giorgio of PA, but bounced back and won out to finish 3rd. McDiarmid beat a Florida and Virginia state placer along the way.
There were a number of Michigan preps who put together strong showings on the day, but failed to place. Detroit Catholic Central freshman Alec Mooradian lost his first match of the day, but came back to rattle off six wins in a row, including a win over Ohio state runner-up Korey Mines, who defeated 2x MI state champ BJ Suitor last summer in Disney. Mooradian finished a round from placing in a very deep weight.
At 130lbs Michigan had a few kids who did quite well. Aside from Walters finishing 5th, Dan Osterman of St Johns and Zach Crim of Haslett both put together solid performances. Osterman received a tough draw as he fell to Georgia state champ and nationally ranked Joey Lazor in the 3rd round. After winning four matches in the consolation rounds Osterman then fell to Texas state champ Eric Spjut and #6 ranked Eric Spjut 2-0 in OT. Osterman was one match from placing. Crim went 6-2 as he won four matches in the wrestleabacks as well before losing to Illinois state placer Chris Dardanes 7-2.
Rochester senior Nick Kacznowski wrestled well at 152lbs, winning 3 matches in the blood round including a win over Indiana state runner-up Sam Bennett. Anchor Bay's Nick Licari went 3-2 as well at 171lbs before losing to Cadet national freestyle runner up Ethan Blackstone of Georgia.
In a loaded 103lb weight class two talented Michigan youngsters competed as Holt freshman and Cadet National runner up Freddie Rodriguez and St Johns 8th grader Ben Whitford ended up meeting in the consolations. Whitford won his first two before falling to eventual champ Alex Cisneros 3-2. Rodriguez, meanwhile, won two matches before losing to eventual runner-up Jacob Crawford of Virginia. After winning a match in the consolations, Rodriguez met Whitford and came away with a close 5-3 win in a battle of two of Michigan's promising up and coming grapplers.
