Wrestlers are known for their toughness and intensity, but something that might get overlooked is their intelligence.
The Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association is more than happy to put that in the spotlight. The IHSWCA recently released its Senior and Junior Academic All-State team, and the list of athletes on those teams is a long one. A total of 146 student-athletes made the Senior Academic All-State First Team, with another 175 wrestlers earning Honorable Mention.
The Junior Academic All-State First Team is just as long, with 113 wrestlers on the list. Another 155 received Honorable Mention.
A wrestler must have a grade-point average of at least 3.75 to make First Team, while those with GPAs between from 3.25 to 3.74 are placed on the Honorable Mention list. Seventy-two seniors and 50 juniors had GPAs of 4.00 or better.
Hamilton County wrestlers are well-represented on both the senior and junior lists, with 39 total wrestlers receiving on the First Team or Honorable Mention lists. Carmel had 17 wrestlers place across the four lists. Hamilton Southeastern had six wrestlers on the lists, Hamilton Heights five, Westfield and Guerin Catholic four each and Noblesville three.
Here is a list of county wrestlers named to the IHSWCA Academic First Team and Honorable Mention, along with each of their grade-point averages:
SENIORS
First team
Suhas Chundi, Carmel, 4.50
Carson Eldred, Westfield, 4.40
Laurel Williams, Carmel, 4.39
Andrew Irick, Hamilton Southeastern, 4.26
Samuel Crousore, Hamilton Southeastern, 4.24
Garrett Sharp, Carmel, 4.16
Luke Stohler, Hamilton Heights, 4.15
Ethan Ward, Carmel, 3.96
Joshua Evans, Noblesville, 3.89
Reece Luhmann, Hamilton Southeastern, 3.84
Jeffrey Dunasky, Guerin Catholic, 3.82
Brendan Mattingly, Carmel, 3.80
Jeffrey Iles, Noblesville, 3.79
Hayden Clark, Carmel, 3.79
Ronan Hiner, Hamilton Southeastern, 3.77
Honorable Mention
Paul Ginella, Carmel, 3.71
Joseph Langerman, Carmel, 3.67
Haakon Van Beynen, Carmel, 3.62
Jackson Mitchell, Carmel, 3.59
Joseph Fremion, Guerin Catholic, 3.56
Gabriel Davin, Carmel, 3.48
Michael Richey, Carmel, 3.42
Sophia Pecoraro, Carmel, 3.39
Alexander Hubbard, Guerin Catholic, 3.39
Alexander Naylor, Hamilton Heights, 3.35
Robert Williams, Hamilton Heights, 3.33
Jonathan Williams, Carmel, 3.32
Chloe Etgen, Carmel, 3.25
JUNIORS
First Team
Jacob Lemieux, Hamilton Southeastern, 4.20
Joseph Lafiosca, Guerin Catholic, 4.15
Dakota Arvin, Westfield, 4.13
Gabriel Arvin, Westfield, 4.13
Hayley Jones, Hamilton Heights, 4.05
Ian Watson, Westfield, 4.03
Timothy Alexander, Noblesville, 3.84
Honorable Mention
Jacob Shafer, Carmel, 3.66
Cooper Mansfield, Hamilton Heights, 3.49
Devin Dudley, Hamilton Southeastern, 3.38
Devonte Henson, Hamilton Heights, 3.37
Noblesville’s Timothy Alexander was named to the IHSWCA Junior Academic All-State First Team for the 2019-2020 season. Wrestlers are eligible for the First Team if they have a grade-point average of 3.75 or higher. (Richie Hall/File photo)