Pennsylvania and New Jersey Wrestlers to Watch at Fargo 2026

Pennsylvania and New Jersey have some of the deepest wrestling traditions on the East Coast, and their prep school pipelines produce talent that shows up nationally at Fargo every summer. Pennsylvania has more than 12,000 rostered wrestlers, and New Jersey adds roughly 10,000 more. Both states are known for folkstyle dominance, but the freestyle and Greco-Roman development infrastructure has grown significantly in recent years. Here is who the data says to watch from both states heading into the 2026 U.S. Marine Corps Junior Nationals.

Pennsylvania's top wrestler is Freddy Bachmann of Faith Christian Academy, who carries a 2521 overall rating on a 41-1 record. Faith Christian is a genuine factory — Nick Singer (2354, 44-6), Cruz Little (2309, 27-2), and Riley Crandall (2305, 25-4) all come from the same program. The Savage Black club is another Pennsylvania pipeline: Jake Nieto (2356, 77-9) leads with a 2038 freestyle and 1977 Greco-Roman rating that makes him a dual-style contender, and teammates Anthony Severino (2322, 89-17) and Kymah Gummow (2318, 86-16) add volume. Malvern Prep contributes depth of its own with Jusin Farnsworth (2334, 21-2) and Tyler Conroy (2316, 76-14). Arment Waltenbaugh of The Hill School (2306, 96-19) has the most matches among Pennsylvania's top boys and carries a 2041 freestyle rating.

New Jersey's prep school tradition is just as deep. Ryan Burton of St. Joseph Montvale leads the state at 2483 on a 35-1 record, and his St. Joseph teammates Johnathon McGinty (2391, 58-6), Mikey Bautista (2343, 87-13), and Cristian Alvarez (2326, 44-5) give the program four wrestlers on this list. Blair Academy is equally loaded: Michael Batista (2384, 39-7), Will Henckel (2384, 39-1), and Vincenzo Anello (2356, 55-11) represent three of New Jersey's top fifteen rated wrestlers from one school. Don Bosco Prep adds Joe Monticello (2331, 54-8) and Dante DeLuca (2304, 40-4). Braylon Peters of Westwood (2400, 77-2) and Killian Coluccio of Lacey Township (2376, 72-9) round out the boys elite outside the prep school circuit.

Both states are developing stronger girls programs than the traditional East Coast reputation suggests. In New Jersey, Cameron Sontz of Delbarton School (2440, 58-8) carries a 1953 freestyle rating. Maurice Worthy (2438, 31-1) is nearly as highly rated. Elle Changaris of High Point Regional (2353, 87-10) and JoJo Burke of St. Joseph Montvale (2295, 46-7) add depth, with Burke carrying a 2171 freestyle rating that makes her a serious Fargo freestyle threat. In Pennsylvania, Talon Weaver (2304, 122-11) has logged 122 wins — far more than any other Pennsylvania wrestler on this list — and Savannah Witt of Palisades (2306, 68-6) adds another girls contender. JoJo Igneri (2325, 79-8) competes across both states and brings further depth.

What makes Pennsylvania and New Jersey unique in the Fargo conversation is the role of prep schools and club programs in year-round development. Faith Christian, Savage Black, and Malvern Prep in Pennsylvania; St. Joseph Montvale, Blair Academy, and Don Bosco Prep in New Jersey — these programs produce clusters of rated wrestlers in ways that public school programs rarely can. The result is a depth chart that may not have the single highest-rated athlete in the country, but sends wave after wave of prepared wrestlers to Fargo who have been competing at a high level all season.

For the full profiles on any of these wrestlers — including WPR scores, archetype breakdowns, rating trajectories, and complete match histories — click through to their MatMetrics profile. June qualifiers will continue to refine these ratings, but the foundation is set: Pennsylvania and New Jersey are sending deep, well-prepared rosters to Fargo 2026.