2024 Keystone Classic Preview - Top Reasons To Watch
2024 Keystone Classic Preview - Top Reasons To Watch
The top 5 storylines heading into the 2024 PRTC Keystone Classic.
The 2024 PRTC Keystone Classic is set to go down Sunday, November 24 on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. This tournament will feature some of the best wrestlers in the country and has several intriguing storylines to follow. Check out the below article for the biggest stories heading into this year's Keystone Classic.
More Keystone Classic Content
Can Anyone Challenge Caleb Henson?
Caleb Henson is the returning 149-pound NCAA champion and will be the big favorite to win the Keystone Classic at 149 pounds. Henson is an incredible competitor and is one of the most entertaining wrestlers in the country regardless of weight.
Highlights of Caleb Henson's NCAA Finals win over Austin Gomez:
With that in mind, it’s unlikely we see anyone defeat Henson in Philadelphia but the wrestler with the best chance is Penn’s #15 Cross Wasilewksi. The freshman has already jumped to #15 in the rankings based on his early season wins over #16 Jesse Vasquez and #25 Finn Solomon. Wasilewski’s only loss on the year was a wild 8-7 match against #11 Kannon Webster. Obviously, Henson is a completely different challenge but Wasilewski has some really good neutral offense and I think this match could be closer than most expect.
Wasilewski's win over Jesse Vasquez:
Will Anthony Noto Prove Himself At 133?
#13 Anthony Noto has moved up to 133 pounds from 125 where he earned All-American honors in both 2023 and 2024. However, Noto had a bit of a rocky start at his new weight class losing to #24 Ethan Berginc in the opening week of the year. Noto will be tested at the Keystone Classic and could have a potential match against #12 Connor McGonagle. The former Lehigh wrestler is now competing for Virginia Tech and will be a great test for Noto to see if he’s just as much of a threat at 133 as he was at 125.
Highlights of Noto's win over Matt Ramos from the 2024 NCAA Tournament:
While Noto vs McGonagle is the premier match at 133, this is a deep weight at the Keystone Classic. #32 Ryan Miller (Penn), Alex Almeyda (Penn), Mason Leiphart (F&M), Kyle Waterman (Drexel), and John Hildebrandt (Drexel) are all in the field and could spoil the Noto vs McGonagle final.
Connor McGonagle's win over Sam Latona at the 2023 All-Star Classic:
Is Eddie Ventresca Back…For Real?
#13 Eddie Ventresca placed 7th at NCAAs in 2023 with wins over #8 Stevo Poulin, Patrick McKee, Eric Barnett, and Killian Cardinale. Coming into last year, Ventresca looked like an NCAA Title contender until he suffered early season losses to Noah Luna, Dom Mendez, Max Gallagher, Dean Peterson, Jack Maida, and Brendan McCrone before suffering a season-ending injury. This year Ventresca is off to a much better start with wins over Cooper Flynn and Noah Luna and looks to be back to his All-American form.
The Keystone Classic will be a big test for Ventresca, especially considering #18 Max Gallagher is in the field. As noted above, Gallagher defeated Ventresca last season and also has a win over Diego Sotelo this year. Gallagher won the Keystone Classic last season and is more than capable of repeating this year.
Gallagher's win over Ventresca from the 2023 Keystone Classic:
Virginia Tech Roster Battles
The Hokies have interesting roster battles at several weights this year and it looks like two of them could be decided at the Keystone Classic. At 165, Mac Church and Connor Brady are battling for the starting spot. Brady has started for Virginia Tech over the past 4 years and is a 4-time NCAA qualifier. Church has been starting this year for the Hokies and is currently 7-3 with his losses only coming against ranked wrestlers #4 Peyton Hall (1-0), #13 Cam Steed (8-1), and #12 Andrew Sparks (9-3). Because of experience, Brady might be the favorite but Church is capable of winning the spot in Philadelphia.
At 184, Virginia Tech has both Sam Fisher and returning All-American #9 TJ Stewart entered. Stewart is absolutely the favorite to win the Keystone but Fisher is tough and peaked in the rankings at #16 last year before going down with a season-ending injury. It’s also worth noting the Harvard’s #31 Matthew Walsh is also in the field and will be an interesting wrestler to watch based on his win this season over #19 Brian Soldano.
Who Wins 141?
141 at the Keystone Classic might be the deepest weight in the field with All-Americans #16 Sam Latona and #17 CJ Composto set to compete along with two-time national qualifier #23 Wyatt Henson. Latona dropped a match two weeks ago to App State’s #22 Sean Carter but just defeated #13 Josh Edmond last week in Virginia Tech’s win over Missouri. Composto is 2-2 on the year with losses to #1 Andrew Alirez (8-2) and Luke Stanich (8-2) but a win over All-American Ryan Jack. Henson is currently 5-0 on the year but hasn’t been tested to the level that Composto and Latona have. All three are All-American contenders this year and their potential matches in Philadelphia should be phenomenal.
Composto's win over Ryan Jack:
All The Ranked Wrestlers In The Field
Along with the above storylines, there are over 20 ranked wrestlers in the field. Check out every ranked wrestler below currently registered for the Keystone Classic:
125 lbs
#13 Eddie Ventresca (VT)
#19 Max Gallagher (Penn)
133 lbs
#12 Connor McGonagle (VT)
#13 Anthony Noto (LHU)
#32 Ryan Miller (Penn)
141 lbs
#16 Sam Latona (VT)
#17 CJ Composto (Penn)
#23 Wyatt Henson (LHU)
149 lbs
#1 Caleb Henson (VT)
#15 Cross Wasilewski (Penn)
157 lbs
#11 Johnny Lovett (CMU)
#20 Jude Swisher (Penn)
#32 Jimmy Harrington (Harvard)
165 lbs
#17 Connor Brady (VT)
174 lbs
#8 Nick Incontrera (Penn)
#15 Alex Cramer (CMU)
184 lbs
#9 TJ Stewart (VT)
#31 Matt Walsh (Harvard)
197 lbs
#11 Andy Smith (VT)
#28 Hudson Skove (Harvard)
285 lbs
#30 Bryan Caves (CMU)