150
150 is the most wide-open weight class in the tournament making it extremely hard to rank. There are five wrestlers all mentioned that could place anywhere from first to fifth as their skill levels are all fairly close together.
The wrestler I believe has the ability to edge the rest of the competition out is Henry Graham of Middletown. Although Graham was a JV guy for most of the season last year, when he did find his way in the lineup his talent was shown. Graham is a tough wrestler that I could see winning 30 plus matches this season and coming away with gold at Counties.
Second at 150 I have Matt Sandy of Oakdale. Matt Sandy was 32-10 his junior season heading into counties. He took a fourth-place finish at counties and failed to move on further into the post season. Sandy’s talent and ability is shown in his record from last season. Sandy should have another dominant regular season and he is hopeful for more post season success, starting with a second-place finish at counties.
Finally, for third place at 150, I have Jack Birth of Walkersville. Birth is going into his junior year following a third-place finish at counties last season as well. Birth went into counties with a record of 28-10 last season. Birth should be on the brink of state qualifications this year while leading a much improved Walkersville Lions team.
Quick Guide
1st) Henry Graham (Mid)
2nd) Matt Sandy (Oak)
3rd) Jack Birth (Walk)
Honorable mention) Christian Ibarra (Ling)
Honorable mention) John Mott (Fred)
157
This weight-class has one of the top wrestlers in the whole county followed by a handful of solid wrestlers that could all claw their way into a second or third place finish. Going with the obvious choice, my first-place prediction is Morgon Corwine of Brunswick. Corwine won counties last year and placed fifth at states. Corwine had a perfect record of 40-0 before taking his first loss of the season which came in the regional tournament. Corwine is a shoe in for a county championship and should be a favorite to reach the state finals as well. He is already off to a hot start including a first-place finish at the Battle in the Boro.
My second-place prediction is Peyton Pickett. Pickett was a vital part to Linganore's state championship run last season. Pickett took third in counties and fifth in regionals last year, falling just short of a state qualification. Pickett is now a junior with the potential to make a run to qualify and maybe even place at states.
The third-place medal at 157 could go to a handful of wrestlers but my pick is Urbana’s Carter Kuhar. Kuhar was only a freshman last season who built up 21 wins over the course of the season. Kuhar has a lot of room to improve as he is still very young. Look out for a potential thirty plus win season for this young gun.
Quick Guide
1st) Morgon Corwine (Brun)
2nd) Peyton Pickett (Ling)
3rd) Carter Kuhar (Urb)
165
165 is bound to be an interesting weight class within the county. I would expect to see a handful of guys drop down from 175 in an attempt to dodge Ethan Arneson who will be mentioned later. As of now the weight class includes a returning state place winner and three other competitors all looking to climb the rankings within the state.
The champion at 165 is an obvious choice. A returning state place winner in the weight-class, Vince Corso of Urbana. Corso is going to be a junior this year and he has already earned two county titles, a regional championship and a fifth-place finish at states last year. Corso is jumping up three whole weight-classes from 145 where he fell just one point shy from punching his ticket into the state finals.
Coming in second once again I have Hunter Bradshaw of Catoctin. Bradshaw is a junior from Catoctin who took second in the 152 pound bracket in counties last season. Bradshaw has been improving every season and should continue to improve as he has talented wrestling partners in the room to work with. Bradshaw finished last season with a record of 36-9 after two tough losses within a stacked regionals bracket. It should not be a shock to anyone if Bradshaw makes an appearance at states this season.
Taking third I have Koen Burdette of Tuscarora. Burdette had a 20-7 record going into counties last season before taking second behind Cole Kuhar. Burdette is now in his senior year and hoping to improve as he has been doing since he was a freshman. Burdette has already started the season with a fourth place finish at the Battle in the Boro, and plans to continue building his resume.
Quick Guide
1st) Vince Corso (Urb)
2nd) Hunter Bradshaw (Cat)
3rd) Koen Burdette (Tusc)
Honorable mention) Camden Scarborough (Ling)
175
The 175 weight-class has the potential to be one of the most competitive brackets at the tournament. With a returning state place winner and depth below that as well, 175 is definitely a weight-class to keep an eye out for.
The favorite at the weight-class, as well as who I am going to pick for a first place finish, is Ethan Arneson of Linganore. Arneson was a state finalist last season as well as a county and regional champ. He showed little to no struggle in a majority of his matches. He ended last season with a 42-4 record which includes his state finals loss. Arneson is the clear favorite for not only counties but states as well. He has already started his season off strong with a first-place finish at the Knightmare Invitational only a week after finishing his football season.
My pick for second at the weight-class is Kashton Dolhouse from Middletown. Dolhouse has a unique style that gives many great wrestlers trouble. Dolhouse did not get the chance to compete in counties last year despite an impressive regular season. Dolhouse garnered over 30 wins including a decision over state finalist James Brasheers from Smithsburg, showing that Dolhouse can wrestle with the best. This past week, Dolhouse had an impressive win over Jacob Bell (Catoctin) which is a rematch the community should be excited to see in the future.
Third place at 175 I have Bell. As a sophomore, Bell had a 20-6 record heading into counties. He made it all the way to the county finalist before losing to Ethan Arneson. Bell started this season out 8-0 including a 7-5 victory over Trevor Sowers of Boonsboro. Bell has since seen a decline taking four losses to high level wrestlers, despite this I fully plan on Bell bouncing back and having a third-place finish at counties as well as a run to qualify for states.
Quick Guide
1st) Ethan Arneson (Ling)
2nd) Kashton Dolhouse (Mid)
3rd) Jacob Bell (Cat)
Honorable mention) Ian Tumi (Fred)
Honorable mention) Sean Foo (GTJ)
190
This weight-class is a total wild card with four experienced wrestlers, however none of them have touched a county podium in their careers yet. Despite the lack of accolades, the talent is there, and I am expecting big things from the wrestlers talked about below.
In first place is an unproven wrestler who has shown promise in the start of his season. This wrestler is Hayden Smith of Middletown. Hayden has already captured more than seven wins this season. Middletown has another solid team this year and has shown they know how to develop wrestlers for over a decade. Hayden could potentially be a dark horse to place even higher on the podium but as of right now I have him slotted at third.
My second-place finisher, Catoctin’s Lucas Reeder, is unique in the fact that he did not wrestle last season. He grew up wrestling for Frederick County Mat Club, having much success at the youth level. He made waves his freshman year as a young talent in the 152 pound division. He did not come out for the wrestling team his sophomore year, but now he is back and looking like a potential state qualifier. Reeder has had a very strong start to the season despite a tough last to Hayden just a few days ago. Reeder is a fresh face that everyone around the county should be keeping an eye on.
For my third place finish I have Tatum Hughes of Walkersville. Hughes is unique in the fact that he is only a freshman and has been seeing success at such a high weight class. Hughes has been wrestling 215 but is bound to drop down to 190 very shortly. Hughes has already racked up double digit wins and should be a face of the higher weights in the county for years to come.
Quick Guide
1st) Gerald (Hayden) Smith IV (Mid)
2nd) Lucas Reeder (Cat)
3rd) Tatum Hughes (Walk)
Honorable Mention) Ivan Tumi (Fred)
215
215 is mapped out to be an intriguing weight-class because it contains a state champ favorite but limited proven wrestlers beyond that point. There are only two wrestlers I can confidently place on the podium as so little is known about the other wrestlers at 215 within the county.
The obvious first place choice at 215 is Alex Hoy. Hoy was a county and regional champ last season as well as taking third at states at 195. He had a staggering 57 wins by the end of it all and only three losses. He even had a win over the state champ at 195 in his regional finals match. Hoy has started the 2024 season 10-0 and I don’t see his dominance slowing down. Do not be surprised if Hoy wins not only counties, but states as well without a loss ever being put on his record.
Second in the county, I have Austin Curry of Brunswick. Curry has started his season with a third place finish at Battle in the Boro. Curry was 19-12 going into counties his sophomore season and we can expect improvement moving forward. He and Lane mentioned later should make good practice partners and I expect to see large improvements from both of them.
Quick Guide
1st) Alex Hoy (Mid)
2nd) Austin Curry (Brun)
Heavyweight
There are only two heavyweights on my radar right now that I can confidently say are going to place at counties this season. Only one heavyweight from last season's tournament is expected to return.
Looking at the bracket from last season, Lane Riggleman of Brunswick seems like the favorite. He took fourth at counties last year with everyone above him graduating. Despite this, I have Riggleman as my prediction to place second at this year's tournament. Riggleman can have a bright future in the heavyweight division as one of the very few who started in the 285 weight-class as a freshman last season.
My pick for first place is Landon Hofgesang of Middletown. Hofgesang is a sophomore as well that wrestled on JV last season, stuck behind two state place winners on his own team. Hofgesang was a JV county champ with ease, as well as filling in and winning varsity matches for Middletown a handful of times last season. Hofgesang has started his season 9-1 with his only loss being to a returning state finalist. I think Hofgesang will win counties with ease and has the ability to be a state place winner as well if he continues to develop. Besides the two mentioned wrestlers, the weight-class is wide open for a new wrestler to come in and steal that third podium spot.
Quick Guide
1st) Landon Hofsgang (Mid)
2nd) Lane Riggleman (Brun)
Conclusion
I would like to say thank you to anyone who even opened this article, especially anyone that has made it this far. I made this article hoping to shine light on the talent that Frederick County wrestling has to offer. Remember that the season has just started and weights are going to change all throughout the season. I hope everyone enjoyed reading the article and maybe even learned something about the depth that so many of these weight-classes have. This season is looking to be exciting once again, not only in the individual race but in the team race as well.
Team Outlook
Teams 1st 2nd 3rd Honorable mention
Middletown 6 1 0 1
Linganore 2 4 0 2
Brunswick 3 3 0 0
Urbana 1 0 4 1
Walkersville 0 1 3 1
Oakdale 1 2 0 2
Catoctin 0 2 1 0
Tuscarora 1 1 2 1
Thomas Johnson 0 0 0 1
Frederick 0 0 1 3
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