Photo: Kaela Belingon
The 2026 Super 32 Challenge is in the books. The #1 seeds lost the first two finals of the day, a freshman never let a match go the distance, and Melvin Miller added a third high school Super 32 title. Here's every final from Greensboro and the storylines behind them.
The Champions
- 106: #2 Nelson Villafane III pinned #1 Luke Loren, 2:24
- 113: #7 Caleb Noble dec. #1 Kooper Deputy, 15-10
- 120: #1 Cameron Sontz dec. #3 Anthony Garza, 6-2
- 126: #3 Mateo Gallegos dec. #4 Miklo Hernandez, 4-2
- 132: #1 Israel Borge dec. #3 Paul Ruiz, 5-2
- 138: #1 Dean Anderson dec. #3 Dawson Youngblut, 7-1
- 144: #1 Matthew O'Neill dec. #2 Jovani Solis, 2-0
- 150: #5 Arseni Kikiniou dec. #3 Peyton Hornsby, 4-1 (SV)
- 157: #1 Mac Crosson dec. #2 Cam Howard, 2-1 (TB2)
- 165: #1 Melvin Miller dec. #2 Matthew Staples, 7-3
- 175: #2 Lucas Boe dec. #4 Maximus Fortier, 6-5
- 190: #1 Tanner Hodgins dec. #2 Mario Hutcherson, 5-4
- 215: #1 Maximus Konopka dec. #2 Ladd Holman, 5-0
- 285: #2 Satoshi Davis dec. #4 Kendahl Hoare, 4-2
A Freshman Who Never Went the Distance
Nelson Villafane III teched and pinned his way through the entire 106 bracket. He went 7-0 with six tech falls and a pin, outscored opponents 131-27, and only one of his matches lasted past the four-minute mark. He finished it by pinning #1 seed Luke Loren in 2:24 while leading 12-2. He's a freshman.
Back-to-Back #1 Seeds Go Down
Last year, 9 of the 10 #1 seeds who made the finals won. This year the first two finals both went the other way. Right after Villafane's pin, #7 Caleb Noble beat #1 Kooper Deputy 15-10 at 113. Noble also won Super 32 at 106 in 2024, so he leaves Greensboro a two-time champ, and as the lowest seed to win a title this year. The Warren Township (IL) senior and Arizona State commit is also a three-time Illinois state champion.
Crosson Holds the #1 Spot
The 157 final between the top two wrestlers in the country went the full distance and then some. Mac Crosson beat Cam Howard 2-1 in the second tiebreaker, his second win over Howard this year after the U20 World Team Trials. It was Crosson's second straight double-overtime match after a 6-1 tiebreaker win over #5 Aiden Arnett in the semis. The Indianola (IA) senior and Nebraska commit has now won both Who's #1 and Super 32 this fall.
The bracket got even tougher before it started: Jesse Grajeda, the #1-ranked wrestler at 144, moved up to 157 and was reseeded #3. He lost in the round of 16 to #14 Chris Arreola and finished without placing.
Melvin Miller Wins His Third Super 32 Title
Melvin Miller defended his 165 belt with a 7-3 win over #2 Matthew Staples, a two-time undefeated Indiana state champ who made him work for it. Miller also won 144 in 2023, which makes this his third high school Super 32 title (he won the middle school division at 80 pounds too). Before the final, the McCort senior and Virginia Tech commit had six straight bonus-point wins, including a 48-second pin.
The #5 Seed Who Wouldn't Lose in Overtime
Arseni Kikiniou won 150 from the #5 seed with back-to-back overtime wins against top-three seeds: 3-2 in double overtime over #1 Jason Dube in the semis, then 4-1 in sudden victory over #3 Peyton Hornsby in the final. The Poway (CA) senior and Cornell commit was a U17 World silver medalist in freestyle and bronze medalist in Greco last year.
More From the Finals
- Dean Anderson finished 4th here a year ago. This time the #1 seed went 7-0 with three tech falls and beat #3 Dawson Youngblut 7-1, a Northern Iowa commit over an Iowa commit. It caps a 2026 that included U20 Pan American gold at 61kg.
- Israel Borge was the 132 runner-up last year. The Bixby (OK) senior and Iowa commit got it done this time, 5-2 over Paul Ruiz.
- Matthew O'Neill and Maximus Konopka both shut out their opponents in the final, 2-0 at 144 and 5-0 at 215.
- Lucas Boe (Cornell commit) edged Virginia Tech commit Maximus Fortier 6-5 at 175, and Tanner Hodgins (Oklahoma State commit) held off Mario Hutcherson 5-4 at 190.
By the Numbers
- #1 seeds in the finals: 8 for 10, with both losses in the first two finals of the day. Last year: 9 for 10.
- Lowest seed to win: #7 Caleb Noble (113).
- Overtime finals: two, at 150 and 157.
- Pennsylvania champions: four (Villafane, Gallegos, O'Neill and Miller), up from three last year.
- College commits among the champions: Cornell (Kikiniou, Boe) and Virginia Tech (Miller, Konopka) have two each, with one each for Iowa (Borge), Northern Iowa (Anderson), Nebraska (Crosson), Oklahoma State (Hodgins), Lehigh (Sontz) and Arizona State (Noble).
Full brackets and results are on our Super 32 hub. College wrestling opens next weekend, and the Senior World Championships continue in Astana all week. We'll break it all down on Basch & The Brain. Subscribe on YouTube so you don't miss an episode.