Region 2A-1: Preview and Predictions
FRIDAY-SATURDAY FEBRUARY 23-24, 2024 - At Clay High School
Welcome to one of my favorite traditions - the region previews.
This is the sixth season I've written these but for those that are reading one for the first time, here's a quick summary of what the region preview is.
I start first by printing out each bracket - yes, this is one of the things I'm old school on.
I notate where wrestlers are ranked in the Kabra Wrestling Rankings and then start to break it down even more.
I look for head-to-head matchups, common opponents, and how each wrestler has been trending in the stretch run.
I then question my rankings - and myself - and play out the entire bracket.
What follows is my best guess for how 2A-1 will play out.
You can print the 2A-1 region bracket here. (PDF)
I've carefully predicted the four state qualifiers in the order that I think the will finish. I've also listed wrestlers that could prove me wrong and make it to Kissimmee.
I will be wrong with these picks, and I'm okay with that. In fact, I love when kids prove me wrong (or prove me right).
These previews and predictions are meant to bring excitement to one of the exhilarating and heartbreaking weekends in sports.
I assure you that I have no bias in my picks and truly wish the best for every wrestler competing this weekend.
And as always, these picks are for entertainment purposes only.
Now onto the preview:
Teams to watch
3. Fleming Island, 11. Middleburg, 12. Lincoln, 13. Clay, 17. New Smyrna Beach
Kabra's Picks
1. #4 Garrett Ferguson (Gulf Breeze)
2. #5 Gavin Fisher (Middleburg)
3. #9 Preston King (Lincoln)
4. #11 Connor Barnes (Oakleaf)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #15 Calvin Wells (Fleming Island); #20 Jason Marsala (Chiles)
Opening round match to watch: Gabrielle Walker (Belleview) vs. Alexi McGowan (Tate)
Kabra says: Ferguson and Fisher have not met this season and that would add even more intrigue to a finals meeting between them, but neither of them have a completely smooth road there. The match to watch in the top half of the bracket is between Barnes and Wells in the quarterfinals. If they’re both there, the loser would have a much tougher road to state qualification.
Kabra's Picks
1. #1 Jacob Bucci (Clay)
2. #5 Matthew Newman (Fleming Island)
3. #6 Vaniel Caceres (Lincoln)
4. #17 Jacob Jackson (Westside)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #10 Gavin Samons (Gulf Breeze); #18 Nathan Harvey (Middleburg)
Opening round match to watch: Daniel Cavaleanti (Pace) vs. Christian Sanchez (Beachside)
Kabra says: Bucci is back from an injury and wrestling well. He’s become one of the favorites in the state in Class 2A and he’ll be the one to watch here. Caceres could make for a tough semifinal before a potential finals meeting with Newman. The two have faced each other in the past four postseason tournaments, with Bucci holding a 3-1 lead and on a three-match postseason win streak between the two.
Kabra's Picks
1. #3 Jordan Mukaddam (Fleming Island)
2. #5 Zak Vosburgh (Fort Walton Beach)
3. #7 Vonte Burke (Clay)
4. #10 Jaiden Zajni (Ponte Vedra)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #11 Grady Woodard (Middleburg); #14 Joe Tucker (Lincoln)
Opening round match to watch: Patrick Brooks (Chiles) vs. Joshua Waring (Pace)
Kabra says: There are seven wrestlers in this bracket that are ranked in the Top 15 by Kabra Wrestling. If all 7 of them win their opening round match, that means three quarterfinals between two Top 15 wrestlers. This bracket is loaded. Mukaddam enters the weekend as the favorite. This will be one bracket were the consolation rounds will be as interesting as the final and the blood round will be ruthless, with so many worthy wrestlers here not getting to go on to next week.
Kabra's Picks
1. #2 Sebastian Boncachea (Oakleaf)
2. #7 Rylan Herrera (Clay)
3. #9 Coby Shields (Gulf Breeze)
4. #18 Ethan Jackson (Chiles)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: William Sites (Seabreeze); Poulo Milea (Ponte Vedra)
Opening round match to watch: Jayden Brown (Arnold) vs. Roman Ortez (Ridgeview)
Kabra says: The three top 10 wrestlers in this bracket have not faced each other as far as our records show and that leaves us looking for comparisons. Bonachea has had some big wins this year and he’ll be the favorite but not easy to know who he’ll face. Herrera and Shields in the semifinals will be the one to watch here.
Kabra's Picks
1. #10 Drew Holmquist (Clay)
2. #18 Braylon Meyer (Arnold)
3. #15 Zakary Jurado (Lincoln)
4. #19 George Selmeister (Gulf Breeze)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #20 Garrett Jarvis (Niceville); Bryson Hubbards (Ponte Vedra)
Opening round match to watch: Pedro Masso (Crestview) vs. Dylan Johns (Middleburg)
Kabra says: The top two ranked wrestlers in this bracket find themselves on the bottom half where Holmquist owns a 6-4 victory over Jurardo. Who that will will face should be a battle with Meyer, Selmeister and Hubbard all capable of big things when they’re clicking.
Kabra's Picks
1. #5 Caleb King (Lincoln)
2. #6 Laird Duhaylungsod (Fleming Island)
3. #7 Jonathan Bruner (New Smyrna Beach)
4. Landon Burbidge (Fort Walton Beach)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: Daniel De Almeida (Ponte Vedra); David Crilly (Arnold)
Opening round match to watch: Sean Blouin (Middleburg) vs. Aiden West (Mainland)
Kabra says: This weight class won’t take long to get interesting with King and Bruner slated for a quarterfinal meeting. King’s offense makes him the favorite here. The bottom half the of the bracket seems more manageable for the sixth-ranked Duhaylungsod.
Kabra's Picks
1. #5 Wyatt Leduc (Middleburg)
2. #8 Keon Barrientos (Oakleaf)
3. #11 Michael Mancuso (Gulf Breeze)
4. #12 Jacob Johnston (Chiles)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #15 Merrick Miller (New Smyrna Beach); #19 Michael Fries (Matanzas)
Opening round match to watch: Carter Lukes (St. Augustine) vs. Nolin Ellis (Milton)
Kabra says: On paper it looks Leduc and Barrientos in the final. They both reached the 2A-3 district final last week but didn’t wrestle. There are potential potholes on both ends with Miller and Mancuso potentially lined up back-to-back for Barrientos while Leduc could also face two ranked wrestlers before the finals.
Kabra's Picks
1. #2 Kaden Schaefer (Fleming Island)
2. #6 JJ Martinez (Fort Walton Beach)
3. #7 Aidan Sutton (New Smyrna Beach)
4. #18 Kellon Duncan (Oakleaf)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #17 Jermaine Yarborough (Lincoln); Grady Smith (Beachside)
Opening round match to watch: Hunter Martin (Menendez) vs. Arthur Vanderpool (Columbia)
Kabra says: Undefeated Schaefer enters as one of the bigger favorites in the region. The place to watch here is in the top bracket where you could have #6 vs. #7 in the state facing off in the quarterfinals.
Kabra's Picks
1. #7 Cooper Hill (Chiles)
2. #13 Ghais Cooper (Oakleaf)
3. #14 Landon Martin (Clay)
4. #15 Jeffrey Brown (Terry Parker)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #18 Matthew Sinclair (Fort Walton Beach); Braden Strohl (Niceville)
Opening round match to watch: Preston Lewis (Ridgeview) vs. Dylan Beck (Fleming Island)
Kabra says: Hill comes in as the highest-ranked wrestler in the weight class, but there is no guarantee here. The bottom half will see Cooper and Martin possibly in the semifinal and that winner would be a legit contender to win it all on Saturday evening. Cooper does have a 7-1 win over Martin this season.
Kabra's Picks
1. #4 Matthew Kotler (Fleming Island)
2. #13 Andrew Yeats (Mosley)
3. #14 Vincent Crump (Lincoln)
4. #17 Bryce Alli (Menendez)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: Malachi Lewis (Niceville); Jerimiah Baker (Oakleaf)
Opening round match to watch: Luke Pickels (Chiles) vs. David Hall (Middleburg)
Kabra says: We haven’t seen Kotler much this season but when we have, he’s been strong and he’s the solid favorite here. Yates’ 8-7 win over Crump in last week’s district final got him on the other side of the bracket from Kotler and he’s our pick to reach the finals.
Kabra's Picks
1. #4 Christopher Chop (Fleming Island)
2. #10 Edward Craig (Beachside)
3. #11 Anthony Kearney (Riverside)
4. Langston Tillman (Chiles)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: James Optiz (Niceville); James Laycock (Ridgeview)
Opening round match to watch: Maddoxx Lehman (Menendez) vs. Nick Blanca (Lincoln)
Kabra says: The steady Chop is lined-up for his second consecutive region title. He’ll have a few worthy challengers along the way, but we are pretty confident in picking the Fleming Island senior here.
Kabra's Picks
1. #1 Jordan Mills (Matanzas)
2. #2 Sawyer Van Rider (New Smyrna Beach)
3. #5 Issac Waters (Pace)
4. Santana Harris (Leon)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: William Kelly (Clay); Talan Babin (Ponte Vedra)
Opening round match to watch: Rayhn Hutchinson (Ridgeview) vs. Kelly
Kabra says: Mills topped Van Rider 4-2 in last week’s district final and a rematch between the two would be one of the finals to watch here. Waters would love to mess that up and he’ll likely be waiting for Van Rider in the semifinals.
Kabra's Picks
1. #1 Tucker Cody (Middleburg)
2. #10 Aaron Stacey (Clay)
3. #12 Kyle Nilsson (New Smyrna Beach)
4. #16 Noah Summerlin (Leon)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #20 London Taylor (Gulf Breeze); Evan Brown (Oakleaf)
Opening round match to watch: Jordan Baker (Lincoln) vs. Brown
Kabra says: Cody has been one of the most steady big men wrestlers in the state this season, with his only loss coming to 2A #1 at 190 pounds, Jordan Mills. The rest of this backet has some intrigue with Nilsson likely heading to the top half for the consolations with a potential quarterfinal meeting with Cody.
Kabra's Picks
1. #1 Ryder Luck (Lincoln)
2. #4 Logan McAlister (Mosley)
3. #5 Kevin Reyes (Fleming Island)
4. Demontra Burnett (Riverside)
Wrestlers who could prove me wrong: #7 Alejandro Sanchez (Ed White); Asa Adams (Niceville)
Opening round match to watch: Franco Ravendo (Pace) vs. Daquan Beachham (Oakleaf)
Kabra says: In a weight class where conformity to the norm has been impossible to find this year with no major favorites across the state, Luck has emerged as one of the guys to beat. This won’t be an easy bracket for anyone to win. Luck topped Reyes 3-2 at the state duals tournament in January and if he beat McAlister by a single point in last week’s district final. As Winter Springs AD and former wrestling coach once famously told me “anyone can fall on anyone at heavyweight”, this podium could look so many different ways.