Complete brackets
2015 FloNationals brackets
NHSCA Tournaments
Connecticut entrants
Seniors
Brandon Caffrey, Pomfret, 120, 1-2
Kyle Lindner, New Milford, 120, 5-2, 7th, All-American
Jacob Martin, Windham, 120, 2-2
Sebby Ruffino, Windham, 126, 0-2
Cross Cannone, Trumbull, 132, 4-2
Mason Rambarose, Portland, 132, 0-2
Zach Arnold, New Milford, 138, 1-2
Lyiam Mathis, Old Lyme, 138, 0-2
Chris Barrett, Old Saybrook,145, 3-2
Graysen Deluca, Woodstock Academy, 152, 3-2
Ashton Gyenizs, Hand, 145, 4-2
Jordan Balskus, Portland, 152, 0-2
Stephen Briganti, Trumbull, 160, 2-2
Charles Lomanto, Staples, 160, 1-2
Juan Garcia, Danbury, 182, 5-2, 7th, All-American
James Planeta, Portland, 182, 0-2
Khamri Thomas, Windsor Locks, 195, 4-3, 6th, All-American
Juniors
Alex Starr, Lyman Memorial, 106, 4-2
Matt Dowler, St. Bernard, 113. 3-2
Matthew Foster, NFA, 113, 2-2
Alec Opsal, New Fairfield, 113, 4-3, 8th, All-American
Matt Conte, Westhill, 126, 1-2
Joey Hulse, Danbury, 120, 1-2
Braden Lohbusch, Lyman Memorial, 120, 3-2
Austin Sherman, Fairfield Ludlowe, 120, 0-2
Jarrett Debowsky, East Hampton, 132, 0-2
Jeremy Fields, Danbury, 126, 4-2
Justin Peterson, Danbury, 132, 2-2
Bryan Rojas, New Milford, 138, 1-2
Charles Kane, Fairfield Warde, 138,
5-2
Dante Montanaro, Trumbull, 138, 0-2
Jordan Baker, Middletown, 138, 0-2
Emmett Licastri, Joel Barlow, 145, 0-2
A.J. Ryan, Pomperaug, 145, 3-2
Tyler Burlinson, New Fairfield, 152,
0-2
Brett Leonard, New Milford, 152, 2-2
Taylor Shay, New Fairfield, 152, 3-2
Jacob Berry, Somers, 160, 2-2
Dakota Carden, Branford, 160, 2-2
Justin Garden, New Fairfield, 160, 0-2
Mitchell Laflam, Lyman Mem, 160, 2-2
Austin Caffrey, Killingly, 170, 3-2
Andy Hubina, Newtown, 195, 1-2
Daric Johnson, Jr., Ledyard, 195, 0-2
Seiji Arzuaga, Windham, 220. 5-2, 5th, All-American
Antonio Baratta, Danbury, 220, 0-2
Sophomores
Gino Esposito, Foran, 106, 1-2
Robby Hartling, E.O. Smith, 106, 1-2
Kasim Khah, Fairfield Prep, 106, 0-2
Rodric Grant, Portland, 113, 1-2
Tristan Haviland, Trumbull, 113, 1-2
Thomas Leuci, Newtown, 113, 1-2
Shaun Williams, Danbury, 113, 1-2
John Grasis, Middletown, 113, 1-2
Daniel Clark, Old Lyme, 120, 0-2
Baltazar Gonzalez, Ellis Tech, 120,
3-2
Andrew Blum, Westhill, 126, 0-2
Anthony Devanny, Ellis Tech, 126, 0-2
Edward Lovely, Newtown, 126, 4-3, 8th, All-American
Peterson Souza, Danbury, 126, 2-2
Charles Schultz, New Milford, 126, 3-2
Brandon Chejin, Westhill, 132, 1-2
Avery Shay, New Fairfield, 132, 4-3, 8th, All-American
Cameron Berger, N. Milford, 138, 1-2
Michael Ross, Bunnell, 138, 4-3, 8th, All-American
Grayson Adler, Haddam-Killingworth, 145, 2-2
Tom Gatti, Middletown, 145, 1-2
Alexander Stavola, Newtown, 152, 1-2
Joseph Accousti, Newtown, 152, 5-2
Anthony Falbo, Newtown, 160, 5-0, 1st, national champion
Jordan Goins, Westhill, 160, 0-2
Andrew Marquis, Danbury, 160, 0-2
David Verizzi, Lyman Memorial, 170, 0-2
Daniel Contino, Ledyard, 182, 3-2
Gavin Thoutte, Ellis Tech, 182, 0-2
Thomas Long, Newtown, 220, 0-2
Lachlan Rosato, Brunswick-Greenwich, 220, 1-2
Freshmen
Jakob Camacho, Danbury, 106, 3-2
Noah Caskey, Montville, 106, 2-2
Peyton Debowsky, East Hampton, 106, 0-2
Brandon Leonard, New Milford, 106, 1-2
Colin Lindner, New Milford, 106, 3-2
Nicolas Savo, Danbury, 106, 2-2
Nick Violissi, Portland, 106, 0-2
Gabe Knittel, East Hampton, 113, 0-2
Aaron Occhipinti, Danbury, 120, 4-2
Ryan Luth, Foran, 120, 5-1, 2nd, All-American
Jason Vitrit, New Fairfield, 120, 1-2
Zachary Bohenko, New Milford, 126, 1-2
Sam Kury, Montville, 126, 2-2
Caleb Marsh, St. Bernard, 126, 1-2
Christopher Tyler Schultz, New Milford, 126, 2-2
Jeff Suschana, Somers, 132, 0-2
Dylan Vertefeuille, Lyman Memorial, 132, 0-2
Mason Laflam, Lyman Memorial, 138, 2-2
Gino Baratta, Danbury, 152, 3-2
Jonathan Noyes, Old Saybrook, 160, 0-2
Middle School
Jacob Marselli, Tolland, 75. 0-2
Ryan Jack, Danbury, 85, 4-2, 7th, All-American
Sean Johnson, Ashford, 85, 1-2
Max Lynch, Danbury, 90, 0-2
Ben LeBlanc, Danbury, 95, 4-2, 4th, All-American
Jaqvon Priar, New Milford, 105, 6-2, 4th, All-American
Grant Barber, Colchester, 112, 0-2
Kyle Fields, Danbury, 112, 6-2, 4th, All-American
Gabriel Reyes, New Milford, 127, 1-2
A.J. Kovacs, Danbury, 127, 4-2
Falbo is 2nd state wrestler to bring home a NHSCA national title
VIRGINIA BEACH, March 29 – Newtown’s Anthony Falbo was frankly a little stunned after his New England championship loss at 160 pounds to Fritz Hoehn of North Andover, Mass., by a 13-4 score. Falbo was taken down for the first time all year and not just once but five times.
Falbo vowed to get back to work on the mat. His work paid off Sunday with a national championship. Falbo (53-1, 5-0 NHSCA) rolled through the National High School Coaches Association Sophomore Nationals tournament.
Falbo became just the second Connecticut wrestler to bring home a NHSCA national title with a 6-4 win over Brandon Kui of DePaul Catholic in New Jersey. The first wrestler to do that was Ledyard’s T.J. Hepburn who won a Junior National title at 135 pounds in 2006.
Foran freshman Ryan Luth finished second at 120 pounds while eight other Connecticut wrestlers earned All-American honors for finishing in the top eight of their respective weight classes.
Senior Juan Garcia (182) of Danbury became just the second Connecticut wrestler to earn NHSCA All-American honors for four years by taking seventh. New Milford’s Kyle Lindner (120) was seventh while Windsor Locks’ Khamri Thomas was sixth at 195.
Windham junior Seijia Arzuaga (220) was fifth and New Fairfield’s Alec Opsal (113) was eighth in the Junior National tournament.
In the Sophomore Nationals, Bunnell’s Michael Ross (138), Newtown’s Ed Lovely (125) and New Fairfield native Avery Shay (132) each finished eighth to earn All-American honors.
Falbo earned All-American honors for the second straight year. He pinned George Walton of New Jersey in 1:30 in the quarterfinals and beat Angel Solis of California, 10-3 in the semifinals. Falbo finished the tournament with two pins and two major decisions. His two-point win over Kui was his closest bout of the tournament.
Luth (55-7, 5-1 NHSCA) won his first two bouts by technical fall. He beat Anthony New of Virginia, 7-3 in the quarterfinal before outlasting Joey Brillo of New York, 8-6 in the semifinals. He dropped a 9-4 decision to Malcolm Robinson of Washington, D.C. in the final.
Lindner (46-6, 5-2 NHSCA) won three straight matches to begin the tournament before getting pinned in the quarterfinals. He earned All-American honors for the second straight year with a 5-3 win over New Jersey’s Freddy Terranova. Lindner lost a 7-4 decision in OT to Eddie Matyka of Riverhead, N.Y., before beating Kyle Quinn of Wantagh, N.Y., 5-1 to finish seventh.
Thomas (46-4, 4-3 NHSCA) won four of his first five matches to earn All-American honors for the first time. He beat Nevada’s Hunter Brown, 3-1 and South Carolina’s Matthew Rudy, 6-1 to earn a spot in the consolation semifinals. But he lost to California’s Austin Caleb Flores, 6-1 and lost in triple overtime to Wyoming’s Tevis Bartlett, 2-1 to finish sixth.
Garcia (47-4, 5-2 NHSCA) won four of his first five bouts to earn All-American honors for the fourth straight year. He is the first Connecticut wrestler to do that since Shelton’s Patrick Gillen from 2008-11.
He opened the tournament with three straight wins before dropping a 7-2 loss to Maryland’s Jaron Smith in the quarterfinals. Garcia rebounded with a 5-3 victory over Derek Spachman of Hazelton, Pa., before losing in double overtime to David Hamil of Deer Park, N.Y., 6-4. Garcia beat New Jersey’s Chris Morgan to finish seventh.
Arzyaga (52-8, 5-2 NHSCA) had a pair of two-point victories and a three-point victory to earn a spot in the semifinals at 220 in the Junior Nationals. He was pinned in the semifinals and went 1-2 in the consolation bracket to take fifth.
Opsal (43-9, 4-3 NHSCA) won his first three bouts of the tournament before suffering a 5-1 loss in the quarterfinals. A win by technical fall earned him All-American honors. He dropped a 3-1 decision to Indiana’s Drew Hildebrandt to finish eighth.
Ten Connecticut wrestlers earn NHSCA
All-American honors
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., March 28 – Ten Connecticut wrestlers have earned All-American honors by finishing In the top eight of their respective weight classes at the National High School Coaches Association’s (NHSCA) annual national tournaments.
Two state wrestlers will vye for national championships on Sunday. Newtown sophomore Anthony Falbo (52-1, 4-0 NHSCA) will face Brandon Kui of New Jersey in the final. At the Freshman national tournament, Foran’s Ryan Luth (55-6, 5-0 NHSCA) will face Malcolm Robinson of Washington, D.C. in the title bout.
Falbo is looking to become the first Connecticut wrestler to win a Sophomore National title while Luth would become the first Connecticut wrestler to capture a Freshman National title. Luth is the first state wrestler to earn a spot at the Freshman Nationals, which began in 2007. The only Connecticut wrestler to win a NHSCA wrestling championship was Ledyard’s T.J. Hepburn, who won the 135 pound weight class at the 2006 Junior Nationals.
Eight other Connecticut wrestlers earned All-American honors and their final awards will be determined on Sunday.
Danbury senior Juan Garcia (182) became the second Connecticut wrestler to earn NHSCA All-American honors four times. He won his first three matches in the tournament before losing in the quarterfinals. He’ll be facing Chris Morgan of West Orange, N.J. for seventh place.
Garcia was third at 152 as a freshman, second at 160 as a sophomore and second at 170 as a junior. Shelton's Patrick Gillen, now at Virginia, was the first Connecticut four-time NHSCA All-American from 2008-11.
Windsor Locks senior Khamri Thomas (195) will wrestle twice Sunday. He is in the consolation semifinals could finish as high as third. New Milford senior Kyle Lindner (120) is also in the consolation semifinals.
In the Junior National tournament, Windham’s Seiji Arzuaga (220) advanced to the semifinals with four straight wins to earn All-American honors. But he lost to Toby McBride of Colorado by pin in 5:32 to drop into Sunday’s consolation semifinals.
New Fairfield junior Alec Opsal (113) is 4-2 in the tournament and will wrestle for seventh place.
Three Connecticut sophomores will be wrestling for seventh place – Newtown’s Ed Lovely (126), New Fairfield native Avery Shay (132) and Bunnell’s Michael Ross (138).
More than 100 Connecticut wrestlers participated in the four tournaments. Hand’s Ashton Gyenizs (145) and Trumbull’s Cross Cannone (132) each won four matches and Old Saybrook’s Chris Barrett (145) each won three matches. Cannone was one win shy of earning All-American honors.
In the Junior national tournament, Fairfield Warde’s Charles Kane (138) went 5-2 and came up one win short of earning All-American honors. Kane lost his tournament opener and then rattled off five straight wins before dropping a 4-2 decision to Jaron Jensen of Utah.
Lyman Memorial’s Alex Starr (106) and Danbury’s Jeremy Fields (126) each won four matches and were one win away from All-American honors. St. Bernard’s Matt Dowler (113), Lyman Memorial’s Braden Lohbusch (120), Pomperaug’s A.J. Ryan (145), New Fairfield native Taylor Shay (152) and Killingly’s Austin Caffrey (170) each won three bouts.
In the Sophomore tournament, Newtown’s Joseph Accousti (152) lost his opening round bout but won five straight bouts to finish with a 5-2 record. He was eliminated one win shy of All-American honors after a 4-2 loss to A.J. Meyers of New Jersey.
Ellis Tech’ Baltazar Gonzalez (120), New Milford’s Charles Schultz, Jr. (126) and Ledyard’s Daniel Contino were each 3-2 in the tournament.
In the Freshman tournament, Danbury’s Aaron Occhipinti (120) went 4-2 with four wins in the consolation bracket while Danbury’s Jakob Camacho (106), New Milford’s Colin Lindner (106) and Danbury’s Gino Baratta (152) each won three bouts.
Connecticut wrestlers set for national tournament
VIRGINIA BEACH, March 26 – More than 100 Connecticut wrestlers will be in Virginia Beach this weekend to participate in the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA)’s national tournaments. Nineteen seniors, 28 juniors, 30 sophomores, 21 freshmen and 11 middle school students from the Nutmeg State are signed up to wrestle.
Wrestling begins on Friday and runs through the weekend. Several Connecticut wrestlers earned All-American honors last year and will try again this weekend. New Milford’s Kyle Lindner was fifth at 113 in the junior nationals with Danbury's Juan Garcia was second at 170 last March.
With a top eight finish this weekend, Garcia could be the first Connecticut high school wrestler to earn All-American honors for four consecutive seasons. He was second at 160 as a sophomore and third at 152 as a freshman.
A year ago, St. Bernard’s Matthew Dowler (106) and New Milford’s Brett Leonard (145) were each eighth at the Sophomore Nationals.
Newtown’s Anthony Falbo (152) was fourth in the Freshman Nationals last year along with New Fairfield native Anthony Shay (120). Danbury’s Jakob Camacho won a national title at 90 pounds at the Middle School Nationals.
