2026 Colter Abely Classic Preview
- Jan 15
- 4 min read
Updated: Jan 17
This weekend, Xavier (CT) hosts the Colter Abely Mid-Season Classic at its sister school, Mercy, in Middletown, Connecticut. The tournament follows a Journeyman-style format, with wrestlers divided into pools of four. Each wrestler competes in three round-robin matches, and the winner of each pool advances to the semifinals to determine the 1st–4th place finishers.
Team Outlook
This tournament consistently brings together heavy hitters, and this year’s field features top teams from four of the six New England states.
(3) Xavier (CT)
(6) Scituate (RI)
(10) Newtown (CT)
(19) Bishop Hendricken (RI)
Agawam (MA)
Brookfield/Shepaug (CT)
Burlington (MA)
Cheshire (CT)
Guilford (CT)
Hamden (CT)
Lyman Hall (CT)
North Haven (CT)
North Providence (RI)
Sheehan (CT)
Simsbury (CT)
Spaulding (VT)
Springfield Central (MA)
Suffield/Windsor Locks (CT)
Trumbull (CT)
Xaverian (MA)
No. 3 Xavier (CT) could be the favorite to win on its home mats, but No. 6 Scituate (RI) is ready to challenge them. No. 10 Newtown (CT) may be a lock for two individual champions with Antonio Arguello (157) and Jake Maddox (175), but the question remains whether the rest of the lineup can provide enough support.
No. 19 Bishop Hendricken (RI) finished second last year by just half a point to a Ridgefield (CT) team that is not attending this season. With arguably the most complete lineup from top to bottom, Hendricken will look to capitalize and make a serious push for the team title.
A few dark-horse teams could also contend for a top-three finish. Spaulding (VT) brings a lineup capable of competing with the usual New England powers. North Providence (RI) features several standout wrestlers along with solid depth, while Connecticut mainstay Trumbull (CT) could make noise behind a strong duo in Shane Ryan (157) and Hubert Syzmko (165).
Schwartz’s Predicted Top 5
No. 3 Xavier (CT)
No. 6 Scituate (RI)
No. 19 Bishop Hendricken (RI)
No. 10 Newtown (CT)
Spaulding (VT)
Ranked Wrestlers Competing + Dark Horses
January 6th Rankings used.
106
No. 1 Sam Floody (Scituate, RI)
No. 4 Max Shvartsman (Burlington, MA)
No. 7 Josh Perez (Xavier, CT)
No. 12 Noah Blair (Newtown, CT)
No. 13 Alex Gemma (Bishop Hendricken, RI)
Dark Horses: Alyssa Marciano (North Providence, RI), Mason Radtke (Agawam, MA)
113
No. 7 Peter Annis (Suffield/Windsor Locks, CT)
No. 10 Mike Newton (Scituate, RI)
No. 15 Treydan Beam (Xavier, CT)
No. 16 Luke Dwyer (Xaverian, MA)
Dark Horses: Evan Langford (Xavier, CT), Owen Blair (Newtown, CT), Dante Viera (North Providence, RI), Jalen Streeter (Springfield Central, MA)
120
No. 5 Zach Dixon (Xavier, CT)
No. 7 Logan Barry (Scituate, RI)
Dark Horses: Ben Bolduc (Xaverian, MA), Nicholas Vives (Trumbull, CT), Andrew Brier (Spaulding, VT)
126
No. 8 Jack Gedney (Lewis Mills, CT)
No. 15 Alex DePratti (Xavier, CT)
Dark Horses: Mikhail Hulkow (Bishop Hendricken, RI), Logan Despard (Agawam, MA)
132
No. 5 (138) Zephyr Musshorn (Xavier, CT)
No. 7 Robby Newton (Scituate, RI
)No. 10 Matt Bray (Brookfield/Shepaug, CT)
Dark Horses: Luke Savage (Cheshire, CT), Kaleb Proguske (Agawam, MA)
138
No. 6 Scott Cole (Scituate, RI)
Dark Horses: Giuliano Sirianni (Simsbury, CT), Nathan Soto (North Providence, RI)
144
No. 1 Braylon Gonzalez (Xavier, CT)
No. 4 Alex Uzzo (Guilford, CT)
No. 7 Jordin Agosto (Agawam, MA)
No. 20 Michael Grasso (Spaulding, VT)
Dark Horses: Lucas Santo (Bishop Hendricken, RI), Nathan Giusti (North Providence, RI), Ryder Symes (Newtown, CT)
150
No ranked wrestlers competing.
157
No. 3 Antonio Arguello (Newtown, CT)
No. 20 (165) Shane Ryan (Trumbull, CT)
Dark Horses: Logan Ross (Bishop Hendricken, RI), Colby Owen (Spaulding, VT)
165
No. 5 Matthew Pappas (Bishop Hendricken, RI)
No. 11 (175) Hubert Syzmko (Trumbull, CT)
No. 15 Noah Dunster (Spaulding, VT)
No. 17 Cameron Bonnell (Burlington, MA)
Dark Horses: Aiden Grover (Scituate, RI), James Haslam (Xavier, CT)
175
No. 3 Jake Maddox (Newtown, CT)
No. 12 Gianni Santo (Bishop Hendricken, RI)
Dark Horses: Kaiden Brown (Springfield Central, MA), Levi Laramore (Spaulding, VT)
190
No. 4 (175) Chase Catalano (Xavier, CT)
No. 11 Cahni Dyer (Springfield Central, MA)
No. 20 Max LaPerle (Spaulding, VT)
Dark Horses: Trace Dumont (Scituate, RI)
215
No. 6 William Francis (North Providence, RI)
No. 8 Jackson Bowdon (Scituate, RI)
Dark Horses: Jonathan Leavitt (Burlington, MA), Desiah Anderson (Springfield Central, MA)
285
No. 11 Ethan Bachand (Spaulding, VT)
Dark Horses: Joaxis Medina (Springfield Central, MA), Yasin Afrailov (Suffield/Windsor Locks, VT)
The Weight That Can Swing The Event?
165lbs may be the weight that plays a part in deciding the team race. With ranked wrestlers from several tournament title-contending programs packed into a round-robin pool format, there is little margin for error. One upset can eliminate your semi-final chances or even an opponent that you beat getting a bonus point win over someone that beat you giving them the tiebreaker. Teams like Xavier, Bishop Hendricken, Spaulding, and Trumbull all have key contributors here, making 165 a pressure point where placement and bonus points could decide the final order.
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