B1G Announces Pre-Seeds for 2023 Wrestling Championships
2/27/2023 1:10:00 PM | Wrestling
Four Spartans Garner Top-Six Pre-Seeds
ROSEMONT, Ill. – Michigan State wrestling landed four individuals as top-six pre-seeds in the 2023 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, the league office announced on Monday afternoon.
The pre-seeds, as voted on by the league's coaches, rank all 14 starters at each of the 10 weight classes based on their season record, NCAA Individual Ranking and head-to-head performances against other members of the tournament field. The complete tournament brackets and official seeds for this season's championships will be released by the league office following the Big Ten coaches meeting later this week.
Junior 157-pounder Chase Saldate and graduate 197-pounder Cameron Caffey headline the 10 pre-seeds for MSU, with both wrestlers coming in at No. 4 in their respective weight classes. Saldate completed the 2022-23 dual match slate with a blistering 15-1 overall record coupled with an untouched 8-0 mark in Big Ten Conference dual action. The Gilroy, California, native became the second-straight Spartan to complete a B1G dual calendar undefeated, joining Caffey's 14-0 dual match ledger from a season ago. Saldate is ranked 11th in the nation at 157 per the latest NCAA Individual Rankings and boasts a 5-2 record against the members of this season's B1G Championship field.
Caffey returns to the mat for his fifth and final Big Ten Championships, garnering a No. 4 seed at 197 pounds. The Carbondale, Illinois, native Spartan compiled an 18-3 overall record this season with a 13-3 mark in duals and a 6-2 mark in Big Ten dual competition. MSU's graduate captain earned his best finish at the Big Ten Championships in 2020, placing second at 184 pounds before the NCAA Championships were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Caffey is 5-2 against the B1G Championship field and owns the No. 14 ranking in the country at 197 per the NCAA's Feb. 23 ranking release.
Junior 165-pounder Caleb Fish prepares for his second Big Ten Championships, earning the No. 6 pre-seed following a 24-6 overall campaign this season coupled with an 11-4 dual meet record and 5-3 dual season in Big Ten play. Fish, a native of Eaton Rapids, Michigan, placed eighth in last season's championships and looks to improve upon that finish this year. Fish is the nation's 25th-ranked wrestler at his weight and maintains a 5-3 record against this season's championship field.
Redshirt senior 184-pounder Layne Malczewski gears up for his fourth appearance at the Big Ten Championships this season, gleaning the No. 6 seed in this week's release. The Macomb, Michigan, native leads the Spartan roster in pins this year with 10, and has published bonus point wins in over half of his victorious matches. Malczewski boasts a 21-3 overall record, 13-2 dual match record and a 4-2 mark against the 2023 B1G Championship field. The Spartan captain is currently ranked at No. 13 nationally according to the NCAA.
Graduate Rayvon Foley garnered the No. 9 pre-seed at 133 pounds and freshman Ceasar Garza earned the No. 11 spot at 174 pounds. Three members of the Green & White appeared as No. 12 pre-seeds, with junior Tristan Lujan, redshirt junior Jordan Hamdan and graduate Ryan Vasbinder landing at those spots at 125, 141 and 285 pounds, respectively. Redshirt junior Peyton Omania rounded off the list of pre-seeded Spartans, coming in at No. 13 at 149 pounds.
Michigan State heads down the road to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for the 2023 Big Ten Championships on Saturday and Sunday, March 4-5. The Spartans have won eight Big Ten team titles in the program's storied history, while 67 individuals have captured titles at their respective weight classes.
The tournament's first two sessions take place on Saturday, with first round, quarterfinal and wrestleback matches beginning at 10 a.m. Session two features consolation matches and wrestlebacks at 5:30 p.m. before semifinal action begins at 7 p.m. Sunday features sessions three and four, with consolation semifinals and seventh-place matches starting at 1 p.m. The final session of the 2023 Big Ten Championships is slated to begin at 4:30 p.m., with first, third and fifth-place matches on tap.
Big Ten Network and B1G+ will provide live linear and streaming coverage of all four sessions, with Big Ten Network linear coverage also available on the FOX Sports App, while Big Ten Network+ matches can be streamed at bigtenplus.com.
B1G CHAMPIONSHIP PRE-SEEDS
2023 Big Ten Wrestling Championships
Saturday and Sunday, March 4-5, 2023
Crisler Center – Ann Arbor, Mich.
125 | #12 Tristan Lujan
133 | #9 Rayvon Foley
141 | #12 Jordan Hamdan
149 | #13 Peyton Omania
157 | #4 Chase Saldate
165 | #6 Caleb Fish
174 | #11 Ceasar Garza
184 | #6 Layne Malczewski
197 | #4 Cameron Caffey
285 | #12 Ryan Vasbinder
FOLLOW THE SPARTANS
Visit MSUSpartans.com for more information on Michigan State wrestling. Fans can keep up to date with the Spartan wrestling team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter by following @MSU_Wrestling.
The pre-seeds, as voted on by the league's coaches, rank all 14 starters at each of the 10 weight classes based on their season record, NCAA Individual Ranking and head-to-head performances against other members of the tournament field. The complete tournament brackets and official seeds for this season's championships will be released by the league office following the Big Ten coaches meeting later this week.
Junior 157-pounder Chase Saldate and graduate 197-pounder Cameron Caffey headline the 10 pre-seeds for MSU, with both wrestlers coming in at No. 4 in their respective weight classes. Saldate completed the 2022-23 dual match slate with a blistering 15-1 overall record coupled with an untouched 8-0 mark in Big Ten Conference dual action. The Gilroy, California, native became the second-straight Spartan to complete a B1G dual calendar undefeated, joining Caffey's 14-0 dual match ledger from a season ago. Saldate is ranked 11th in the nation at 157 per the latest NCAA Individual Rankings and boasts a 5-2 record against the members of this season's B1G Championship field.
Caffey returns to the mat for his fifth and final Big Ten Championships, garnering a No. 4 seed at 197 pounds. The Carbondale, Illinois, native Spartan compiled an 18-3 overall record this season with a 13-3 mark in duals and a 6-2 mark in Big Ten dual competition. MSU's graduate captain earned his best finish at the Big Ten Championships in 2020, placing second at 184 pounds before the NCAA Championships were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Caffey is 5-2 against the B1G Championship field and owns the No. 14 ranking in the country at 197 per the NCAA's Feb. 23 ranking release.
Junior 165-pounder Caleb Fish prepares for his second Big Ten Championships, earning the No. 6 pre-seed following a 24-6 overall campaign this season coupled with an 11-4 dual meet record and 5-3 dual season in Big Ten play. Fish, a native of Eaton Rapids, Michigan, placed eighth in last season's championships and looks to improve upon that finish this year. Fish is the nation's 25th-ranked wrestler at his weight and maintains a 5-3 record against this season's championship field.
Redshirt senior 184-pounder Layne Malczewski gears up for his fourth appearance at the Big Ten Championships this season, gleaning the No. 6 seed in this week's release. The Macomb, Michigan, native leads the Spartan roster in pins this year with 10, and has published bonus point wins in over half of his victorious matches. Malczewski boasts a 21-3 overall record, 13-2 dual match record and a 4-2 mark against the 2023 B1G Championship field. The Spartan captain is currently ranked at No. 13 nationally according to the NCAA.
Graduate Rayvon Foley garnered the No. 9 pre-seed at 133 pounds and freshman Ceasar Garza earned the No. 11 spot at 174 pounds. Three members of the Green & White appeared as No. 12 pre-seeds, with junior Tristan Lujan, redshirt junior Jordan Hamdan and graduate Ryan Vasbinder landing at those spots at 125, 141 and 285 pounds, respectively. Redshirt junior Peyton Omania rounded off the list of pre-seeded Spartans, coming in at No. 13 at 149 pounds.
Michigan State heads down the road to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for the 2023 Big Ten Championships on Saturday and Sunday, March 4-5. The Spartans have won eight Big Ten team titles in the program's storied history, while 67 individuals have captured titles at their respective weight classes.
The tournament's first two sessions take place on Saturday, with first round, quarterfinal and wrestleback matches beginning at 10 a.m. Session two features consolation matches and wrestlebacks at 5:30 p.m. before semifinal action begins at 7 p.m. Sunday features sessions three and four, with consolation semifinals and seventh-place matches starting at 1 p.m. The final session of the 2023 Big Ten Championships is slated to begin at 4:30 p.m., with first, third and fifth-place matches on tap.
Big Ten Network and B1G+ will provide live linear and streaming coverage of all four sessions, with Big Ten Network linear coverage also available on the FOX Sports App, while Big Ten Network+ matches can be streamed at bigtenplus.com.
B1G CHAMPIONSHIP PRE-SEEDS
2023 Big Ten Wrestling Championships
Saturday and Sunday, March 4-5, 2023
Crisler Center – Ann Arbor, Mich.
125 | #12 Tristan Lujan
133 | #9 Rayvon Foley
141 | #12 Jordan Hamdan
149 | #13 Peyton Omania
157 | #4 Chase Saldate
165 | #6 Caleb Fish
174 | #11 Ceasar Garza
184 | #6 Layne Malczewski
197 | #4 Cameron Caffey
285 | #12 Ryan Vasbinder
FOLLOW THE SPARTANS
Visit MSUSpartans.com for more information on Michigan State wrestling. Fans can keep up to date with the Spartan wrestling team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter by following @MSU_Wrestling.
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