Every year, the debate rages in wrestling circles: Who is the best high school wrestler in the nation? Perhaps by coincidence, in recent years there has been a clear-cut consensus top three whom fans debated between as the top wrestler — yet their status as the top three was never really disputed. In 2002, wrestling fans argued amongst Zack Esposito, Teyon Ware, and Johny Hendricks — all NCAA champions today. In 2003, they debated between Mark Perry, Roger Kish, and CP Schlatter. In 2004, it was Alex Tsirtsis, Michael Poeta, and Matt Fields that captured the most attention.
Never was there a better example of the “big three “phenomenon than the top trio of 2005, where Dustin Schlatter, Brent Metcalf, and Troy Nickerson entered the season with stunning resumes of success against older competition in Fargo and elsewhere. Metcalf and Schlatter split two epic bouts that settled little other than their equality.
2005-2006 appears to the exception to the “top trio “phenomenon. At the start of this season, there are two competitors who clearly stand out from the pack: David Craig and Henry Cejudo.
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