Simsbury’s Max Konopka wins second NHSCA national title

SImsbury’s Max Konopka (blue singlet) won his second National High School Coaches Association national championship Sunday in Virginia Beach, Va.

Simsbury High sophomore Max Konopka has some goals in mind that few have achieved.

“I know he has big lofty goals of being a four-time everything so we’ll keep chasing that and taking one week at a time,” Simsbury coach T.J. Silva said after Konopka won his second State Open championship several weeks ago.

Earlier this season, Konopka won his second consecutive Class L championship, a CIAC State Open title and a New England championship.

On Sunday, he became the third Connecticut boy to win multiple National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) national titles with a dominating performance at 195 pounds at Virginia Beach.

Konopka went 5-0 with three pins to win the NHSCA’s Sophomore national championship. A year ago, he won the NHSCA’s freshman national title at 195 pounds.

Several other Connecticut wrestlers earned NHSCA All-American honors at the event by finishing in the top eight of their respective weight class. Senior Lincoln Carlson finished fourth at 195 while Fairfield’s Ben Zuckerman of Greens Farms Academy finished fifth at 135 pounds in the Senior tournament.

In the Sophomore tournament, Connecticut had three other medalists. Newtown’s Antonio Arguello (145) was fifth, Collinsville’s Colby Houle (145) was sixth with Ridgefield’s Dylan Meyers (120) finishing seventh.

Connecticut had no medalists in the Junior or Freshman tournaments.

In the girls tournament, Amity’s Cristel Miguel (120) finishing second, Platt-Meriden’s Kayli Morris (185) finished fifth while East Haven’s Maggie Cooper (145) finished eighth to earn All-American honors.

In the middle school division, Newtown’s Camron Veneziano (85) finished first while Newtown’s Noah Blair (80, fourth), Weston’s Ari Lancin (230, fourth), Amity’s Kasjan Wnuk (230, fifth), Phillip Burns (75, sixth) and Newtown’s Joey Cotter (85, seventh) each earned All-American honors.

Konopka (28-0) didn’t give up an offensive point in his five-match run in the Sophomore tournament at 195 pounds. He allowed just two reversals and an escape. He beat Virginia’s William Potter IV in the semifinals by a technical fall, 16-0 in 5:55 before pinning Maryland’s Carter Brown in the championship match in 4:47.

He is the third Connecticut boy to win consecutive NHSCA national championships. Norwalk’s Calli Gilchrist of Choate-Rosemary Hall  and Xavier’s Raekwon Shabazz each won back-to-to back national titles in 2023 and 2024 while Newtown’s Anthony Falbo won twice in 2015 and 2016.

Carlson earned NHSCA All-American honors for the first time with a 4-2 record as he finished fourth at195 pounds in the Senior Tournament.

He won his first three matches before falling to Utah’s Leimana Fager by pin in 3:28. He beat Pennsylvania’s Brandon Carr, 9-5, thanks to a takedown in the final five seconds to advance to the consolation final. But Florida’s Alex Smith won by technical fall, 18-3 in 4:23 to take third.

Carlson did get a reversal with 12 seconds left in regulation to win his first match of the tournament, 4-3, over California’s Esteban Sanchez.

Zuckerman, a senior from Fairfield who won a New England title at Greens Farms Academy, was fifth at 132 with a record of 7-2 and one pin. Zuckerman got a takedown with 16 seconds left in overtime to remain alive in the consolation bracket with a 4-1 win over Texas’ Javin Jackson-Bey. Zuckerman was 5-1 in the consolation bracket.

Arguello earned NHSCA All-American honors for the second time with his fifth place finish at 145 in the sophomore tournament. Arguello went 8-2 in the tournament with four straight wins in the consolation bracket. He beat Houle of Northfield Mt. Hermon in the fifth place bout, 9-5. Houle went 5-3.

Meyers (120) went 6-2 with two pins to finish seventh and earn All-American honors.

Miguel went 5-1 at 120 with four pins and a major decision. Miquel, who was third in New England at 126 pounds, dropped a 20-9 decision to Florida’s Willow White in the championship match.

Morris advanced to the semifinals before losing to Tennessee’s Irelynn Laurin, 9-1. She dropped a 3-0 decision to Missouri’s Aaliyah Grammer in the consolation semifinals before finishing strong with a 6-4 win over California’s Tiffany Bell to finish fifth.

At the middle school level, Veneziano, who is from Newtown, went 5-0 with a 2-0 win over Pennsylvania’s Maddox Mehelic in the championship match thanks to a reversal with 12 seconds remaining.

2025 NHSCA national championships brackets and results (FloArena)