The 2023 PIAA State Championships kick off on Thursday in the Giant Center. First off, for brackets, visit my bracket hub. Now, let’s look at the upper weights for AA and who we should look out for.

152 LBS

Favorite

(NE-1) Conner Harer (Montgomery)

Top Contenders

(SE-1) Cael Weidemoyer (Faith Christian)

(NE-2) Cameron Milheim (Warrior Run)

(SE-2) Liam Scrivanich (Saucon Valley)

“Land Mines”

(SW-2) Ryan Celaschi (Frazier)

Top Potential Matchups

Quarterfinals – Ryan Celaschi (Frazier) vs Cael Weidemoyer (Faith Christian)

Quarterfinals – Steffan Lynch (North East) vs Cameron Milheim (Warrior Run)

Quarterfinals – Liam Scrivanich (Saucon Valley) vs Ty Watson (Penns Valley)

Coner Harer

Two-time state placer and returning state champion Coner Harer is the favorite at 152 LBS. Harer is an impressive 45-1 on the year. His lone loss is coming to fellow AAA state champ at 152 LBS Ty Watters (West Allegheny) at the Mid-Winter Mayhem. Despite that loss, Harer has won over guys like Cael Weidemoyer, Anthony Evanitsky, and Cameron Milheim five times.

The Field

Weidemoyer is a very talented freshman who has been dominant despite a 10-5 loss to Harer at the Cumberland Valley Kickoff Classic. Milheim and Scrivanich are obstacles for opponents in the bottom half of the bracket and look to be top contenders to come out and challenge Harer. Milheim is a returning state placer as he finished 7th place last year as a freshman. Scrivanich is a three-time state qualifier but has yet to place on previous trips. However, he has looked outstanding this year and challenged Weidemoyer in the Southeast AA finals last weekend.

160 LBS

Favorite

(SW-1) Grant MacKay (Laurel)

Top Contenders

(SW-2) Zeke Dubler (Glendale)

(NW-1) Hunter Hohman (Grove City)

“Land Mines”

(SE-3) Justice Hockenberry-Folk (West Perry)

(SW-3) Andrew McMonagle (Huntingdon)

Top Potential Matchups

Quarterfinals – Collin Hearn (Conneaut Area) vs Jaggar Gray (Trinity)

Semi-Finals – Zeke Dubler (Glendale) vs Hunter Hohman (Grove City)

Grant MacKay

Returning state runner-up and former state champion Grant MacKay is the favorite at 160 LBS. MacKay is 43-1 on the year with some wins over guys in this field like Collin Hearn, Chance Kimmy, Hunter Hohman, and Zeke Dubler to name a few. His loan loss came, just like Conner Harer’s did, to a talented West Allegheny wrestler at the Mid-Winter Mayhem finals in a tight 2-1 loss to Shawn Taylor.

The Field

Dubler and Hohman are the best contenders at this weight since MacKay should have little to no issues in his side of the bracket. Dubler is a returning state placer, finishing 4th place last year but does hold a loss to the other contender Hunter Hohman in an 8-4 bout. Hohman was also a returning state placer with a 7th-place finish last year. He only has one loss on the year, which was to MacKay at the Fred Bell Tournament in a 5-1 bout. The Semi-Final between Dubler and Hohman could be the best match in the weight.

172 LBS

Favorite

(SE-1) Adam Waters (Faith Christian)

Top Contenders

(SE-2) Holden Garcia (Notre Dame-GP)

(NE-1) Caden Finck (Montgomery)

(NW-1) Conner McChesney (Ft LeBoeuf)

“Land Mines”

(SE-4) Gabe Davis (Berks Catholic)

Top Potential Matchups

Round of 16 – Gabe Davis (Berks Catholic) vs Conner McChesney (Ft LeBoeuf)

Quarterfinals – Jalen Wagner (Reynolds) vs Caden Finck (Montgomery)

Semi-Finals – Holden Garcia (Notre Dame-GP) vs Caden Finck (Montgomery)

Semi-Finals – Adam Waters (Faith Christian) vs Conner McChesney (Ft LeBoeuf)

Finals – Holden Garcia (Notre Dame-GP) vs Adam Waters (Faith Christian)

Adam Waters

Freshman standout Adam Waters is the favorite at 172 LBS. Waters is 40-1 on the year, with multiple wins over Holden Garcia this year. Waters also has wins over Gabe Davis, Conner McChesney, and a very talented Bekhruz Sadriddinov (Council Rock South). His main contender will be returning state champion and two-time state placer, Holden Garcia.

The Field

It is funny to say that Garcia is a contender for a freshman, but with Waters beating him twice this season, it fits. Caden Finck has had a standout year and emerges as another contender in this weight. He will have to run through Garcia to make it to the Semi-Finals, which could prove difficult. McChesney is a returning state qualifier but is paired with Adam Waters in the Semi-Finals, where he suffered a loss to Waters by fall at team states. Watch out for Jalen Wagner, as he has split matches with McChesney and could give Finck some trouble in a potential Quarterfinal matchup.

189 LBS

Favorite

(SW-1) Rune Lawrence (Frazier)

Top Contenders

(SE-1) Jake Gilfoil (Bishop McDevitt)

(NW-1) Jackson Zimmerman (Brookville)

“Land Mines”

(SE-2) Jacob Jones (Saucon Valley)

(NW-2) Magnus Lloyd (General McLane)

Top Potential Matchups

Quarterfinals – Magnus Lloyd (General McLane) vs Paul Renner (Honesdale)

Semi-Finals – Jake Gilfoil (Bishop McDevitt) vs Jackson Zimmerman (Brookville)

Rune Lawrence

Two-time state champion Rune Lawrence is the favorite to three-peat as champion at 189 LBS. The Junior has had another great season going 41-3 on the year. He only has one loss in a match that he wrestled, which came to last year’s Ohio state runner-up Camden McDanel at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman. His other two “losses” came by forfeit. Lawrence has recorded 23 straight pins in the last 23 contested bouts.

The Field

We have to go to the bottom half of the bracket to find the contenders at this weight, and it starts with now three-time state qualifier Jake Gilfoil. Gilfoil has had an excellent season and capped off a great run in the Southeast AA Regional finals with a big 6-0 win over Jacob Jones. The other contender is Jackson Zimmerman, who has massively improved since last year when he failed to place at the state tournament. Zimmerman and Gilfoil look to be on a collision course for a Semi-Final matchup on Friday.

215 LBS

Favorite

(NE-1) Austin Johnson (Muncy)

Top Contenders

(SW-1) Brenan Morgan (Central Valley)

(SE-1) Brody Kline (Berks Catholic)

(NW-1) Danny Church (Ft LeBoeuf)

“Land Mines”

(SE-2) Mark Effendian (Faith Christian)

(NE-3) Cole Yonkin (Montoursville)

(SE-4) Jared Blobe (Notre Dame-GP)

Top Potential Matchups

Quarterfinals – Mark Effendian (Faith Christian) vs Danny Church (Ft LeBoeuf)

Quarterfinals – Cole Yonkin (Montoursville) vs Brody Kline (Berks Catholic)

Semi-Finals – Austin Johnson (Muncy) vs Danny Church (Ft LeBoeuf)

Semi-Finals – Brenan Morgan (Central Valley) vs Brody Kline (Berks Catholic)

Austin Johnson

Sophomore and returning state runner-up Austin Johnson is the favorite at 215 LBS. Johnson wrestled last year at 285 LBS, where he lost to one of the best-ranked heavyweights in the country, Riley Robell, 5-0. That was the last time he lost, and he is at an optimal weight of 215 LBS. Johnson is 35-0 on the year, including championship wins at the Top Hat Tournament, King of the Mountain, Powerade, and Mid-Winter Mayhem. Johnson has 29 bonus point wins on the season, with two wins by regular decision to Danny Church and AAA standout Eli Makel (Waynesburg).

The Field

We would likely have to look to the bottom half of the bracket for our contenders, and it seems to be between Brenan Morgan and Brody Kline. Morgan is a two-time state qualifier and has had a very impressive season. His last loss came at Powerade and had a high bonus rate. Brody Kline is another multiple-time state qualifier but has failed to place at the tournament. However, Kline has had a standout season with a ton of quality wins and a lot of overtime wins.

285 LBS

Favorite

(SE-1) Riley Robell (Bishop McDevitt)

Top Contenders

(NW-1) Carson Neely (Port Allegany)

(SW-1) Gunner Singleton (Huntingdon)

(SE-2) Aiden Compton (Notre Dame-GP)

(NE-1) Emmanuel Ulrich (Mifflinburg)

“Land Mines”

(NE-2) Mason Nelson (Canton)

(NE-3) Andrew Wolfe (Benton)

Top Potential Matchups

Quarterfinals – Mason Nelson (Canton) vs Carson Neely (Port Allegany)

Quarterfinals – Gunner Singleton (Huntingdon) vs Aiden Compton (Notre Dame-GP)

Semi-Finals – Aiden Compton (Notre Dame-GP) vs Emmanuel Ulrich (Mifflinburg)

Finals – Riley Robell (Bishop McDevitt) vs Emmanuel Ulrich (Mifflinburg)

Riley Robell

Two-time state placer and returning state champion Riley Robell is the clear favorite at 285 LBS. Robell is one of the country’s top-ranked heavyweights by many sources, and he showed it this season. Robell is 33-2 on the year, with his two losses coming to New Jersey studs Jimmy Mullen at Powerade and Carter Neves at Escape the Rock. Despite the losses, Robell has had a monster season, including two wins by major decision over Aiden Compton and a fall.

The Field

Aiden Compton has an extraordinarily high bonus percentage, including a whopping 25 pins on the year. Aiden Compton and Emmanuel Ulrich are the top contenders from the list above. Compton has had a terrific year despite losses at national tournaments and his stumbles with Robell. Compton holds a big win over another contender in Gunner Singleton. Ulrich, a two-time state placer, has had an incredible season. He is undefeated at 30-0 with 25 wins coming by fall. He also holds a win over Gunner Singleton when he defeated him by a 7-3 decision at the Panther Holiday Classic. Watch out for Mason Nelson and Andrew Wolfe because they can catch their opponent and put them on their back.

Records and stats were collected at pa-wrestling.com