2A-4 Preview: NSB and Winter Springs poised to battle for district supremacy again
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Last season: New Smyrna Beach had a huge season, winning the IBT district title and then had two wrestlers finish on top of the podium in Kissimmee. Jonathan Bruner and Kyle Nilsson were the first state champions for the school since 1998 as the Barracudas finished seventh in the state.
How did Kabra do?: We picked Winter Springs to win and said that New Smyrna Beach should make a run at the top. The Bears did win the district duals title, but Kabra came up short on seeing just how great a season that NSB would have.
Last year’s district tournament results
Last year’s region tournament results
Wrestlers to watch: Jacob Rodriguez (Winter Springs), Wyatt Mayfield (New Smyrna Beach), Rudley Villareal (Winter Springs), Devyn Hicks (New Smyrna Beach), Merrick Miller (New Smyrna Beach), Jovanni Carraturo (Deltona), Cayden Torres (Winter Springs), Tyson Horel (Winter Springs), Casten Thacker (New Smyrna Beach), Ayden Keys (Winter Springs), Marco Gonzalez (Winter Springs).
The favorite: New Smyrna Beach. The Barracudas had a magical season with two state champs and a district title. NSB has the weapons to go back-to-back this year.
Team to watch: Winter Springs. The Bears will be in the thick of it again this year with a strong group returning and young kids moving up.
District duals: Saturday, January 3 at Winter Springs, 10:30 a.m.
District IBT: Thursday, February 19 at New Smyrna Beach, 2 p.m.
New Smyrna Beach Barracudas (#13 IBT, #10 Duals)
Coach: Mike Strouse
Recent district results: 2025:1; 2024:3; 2023:3; 2022:1; 2021:1; 2020:5; 2019:7-2A6; 2018:9-2A6; 2017:5-2A6; 2016:4-2A6; 2015:3-2A6; 2014:3-2A6; 2013:9-2A13; 2012:9-2A13
Last state champion: Jonathan Bruner, 2025 (144); Kyle Nilsson, 2025 (215)
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Kyle Nilsson, 44-6, SC, R3, DC; Jonathan Bruner, 48-3, SC, RC, DC; William Bass, 38-9, SQ, R2, DC; Christopher Porter, 46-15, SQ, R3, DC; Richard Crunkilton, 30-16, RQ, D2; Isaiah McCloud, 40-9, RQ, DC.
Notable returning wrestlers: Devyn Hicks, Jr., 40-17, 8th, R2, D2; Patrick Mayfield, So., 35-13, SQ, R2, DC; Merrick Miller, Sr., 38-8, SQ, R4, DC; Codie Weese, Jr., 22-13, RQ, D2; Casten Thacker, Jr., 38-14, RQ, D2; Logan Daley, Sr., 22-13, RQ, D2; Landon Dickerson, Jr., 37-16, RQ, D2; Adam Novak, Sr., 19-17, RQ, D4.
New wrestlers: Case Mangini, Fr., 20-12 (Transfer from Space Coast)
Outlook: Gone are two state champions from last year’s dream Saturday night, but the Barracudas should have enough still in the room to compete, and win, another district title.
The Florida High School Wrestling 2025-2026 Season District Previews
Click on link to see preview
Class 3A: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16
Class 2A: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16
Class 1A: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16
Girls: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16
Independent: Ind
District Predictions: All 64 projected final IBT standings
Other content: Transfers | Coaching changes | Tournament schedule | Dual schedule | Team schedules
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Winter Springs Bears (#6, #13)
Coach: Rocky Ciero (9th year as head coach/20th at school)
Assistant coach: Everitt Rieck, Taevin Stoney, Brian Black
24-25 dual record: 12-4
Recent district results: 2025:2; 2024:1-2A8; 2023:1-2A8; 2022:1-2A8; 2021:2-2A5; 2020:2-2A5; 2019:1-3A3; 2018:2-3A3; 2017:1-3A3; 2016:1-3A3; 2015:1-3A3; 2014:1-3A3; 2013:1-3A2; 2012:1-3A2
Last state champion: Ryan Phillips, 2024 (138); Jaydon Robinson, 2024 (144); Elijah Penton, 2024 (175)
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Zavian Chaves, 36-10, SQ, R3, DC; Jeremiah Williams, 25-8, RQ, D2; Luis Gonzalez, 31-14, RQ, D3; Frankie Marquez, 31-12, RQ, D3; Alexander Morales, 12-18, D5; Cole Herring, 13-9; Trenton Smith, Sr., 27-15, SQ, R4, DC (Injury).
Notable returning wrestlers: Jacob Rodriguez, Sr., 42-9, 4th, R3, DC; Rudley Villareal, So., 36-18, SQ, R2, DC; Cayden Torres, So., 39-13, SQ, R3, D3; Tyson Horel, Sr., 23-15, RQ-BR, DC; Ayden Keys, Sr., 29-17, RQ-BR, D2; Marco Gonzalez, Sr., 26-17, RQ, D2; Jacob Rivera.
What they are saying: “The goals are kind of as they always are. We want to get back to that state tournament for the dual series. I think we're all comparable teams. I think we have nine guys that are pretty tough and going to make a statement here. But, for me it's going to be the other five guys, that's in our lineup. What can they bring to the table? How much are they going to grow as the year goes on and contribute to the team? So we want to get back to the dual state series and then our goal is always that a top five finish. It's difficult to win a state title and I get that as a team IBT wise. 2A is no joke as far as depth, but if you finish top five, that's a pretty good accomplishment I believe.”
On Jacob Rodriguez: “The last two years he was undersized for 190 and this year we kind of made a full commitment to 175. Our goal is the state championship, win the state championship and that's it. He's putting the time in.”
On Rudley Villareal: “He's going to surprise the hell out of a lot of people. He was only a freshman and he just started wrestling in eighth grade. He had the MMA kind of background and you just see it the time that he's put in.”
Outlook: The Bears took a step back in the district last season and will look to move back to the top this year. They graduated four region qualifiers but have a solid core group back led by some strong seniors. If they can find some capable guys to fill a couple spots, they will be among the best in 2A again.
St. Augustine Yellow Jackets
Coach: Chris Geores (5th season as head coach, 7th total)
Click here for 25-26 schedule
24-25 dual record: 13-6
Recent district results: 2025:3; 2024:8; 2023:9; 2022:3; 2021:2; 2020:2; 2019:4; 2018:5; 2017:5; 2016:6; 2015:4; 2014:3; 2013:4-2A3; 2012:4-2A3
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Carter Lukes, 30-10, RQ, D4.
Notable returning wrestlers: Aiden Mills, Sr., 32-10, RQ-BR, D3; Tyler Sapp, So., 20-10, RQ, D3; Langston Mills, Jr., 31-10, RQ, D3; Orion Howlett, Jr., 18-19, RQ, D4; Noah Lee, Sr., 14-11, RQ, D4; Justin Cox, Jr., 13-10, RQ, D4; Daniel Lookadoo, Jr., 10-27, RQ, D4.
What they are saying: “We want to continue growing as a program, more to make it out of district, deeper run at the region.”
Outlook: A big group of experienced wrestlers are back for the Yellow Jackets this season and they’ll now look to send some to Kissimmee.
Matanzas Pirates
Coach: John White (17th season)
Assistant coach: Riley White
Click here for 25-26 schedule
Recent district results: 2025:4; 2024:5; 2023:5; 2022:2; 2021:3; 2020:1; 2019:1; 2018:1; 2017:4; 2016:1; 2015:1; 2014:1; 2013:2-2A3; 2012:1-2A3
Last state champion: Tyrone Jones, 2018 (145)
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Mason Obama, 25-7, 7th, R2, DC; Andrew Kerek, 16-11, RQ, D3; Andrew Sanchez, 27-11, RQ, D3.
Notable returning wrestlers: Jackson Marchman, Jr., 29-9, RQ-BR, D3; Jacob Gibson, So., 20-13, RQ, D3; Terry Marchman, So., 20-14, RQ, D3.
New wrestlers: Landon Blackburn
What they are saying: “We are young but solid. Both boys and girls are working hard.”
On having a younger team: “ The nice thing is because I started the program here 20 years ago, from day one, I was able to establish my expectations. It's a very similar process now having a young team and having young guys that they have bought in already. They know what our goals are and they're all in. Obviously we're going to be young and we're going to make some mistakes, but they're scrappy, they get after it. I think the next year or two we're going to see some things move forward and get back to where Matanzas was.”
On coming back to coaching: “There were a couple things going on. Obviously, my daughter was wrestling in college, up there at Missouri Baptist and she competed up there for three years, but now she's in nursing school and she’s back home. I took some time off so I could travel, watch her wrestle and all that. Things then fell in place when they needed to get somebody back in here and get things stable. It was the right time.”
Outlook: White is back coaching after three years off and leads a Matanzas team that will won’t have a senior on the team.
Seabreeze Sandcrabs
Coach: Paul Shuler (11th season)
Click here for 25-26 schedule
Recent district results: 2025:5; 2024:6; 2023:7; 2022:2-1A6; 2021:5; 2020:3; 2019:3-2A6; 2018:4-2A6; 2017:4-2A6; 2016:6-2A6; 2015:6-2A6; 2014:5-2A6; 2013:8-2A13; 2012:8-2A13
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Antonio Serrano, 19-15, RQ, D3; Christian Cornelius, 12-8, RQ, D4; Luke Cloer, 12-8, RQ-BR, D2; Spencer Timm, Sr., 35-6, RQ-BR, D2 (Transfer to Lake Gibson)
Potential notable returning wrestlers: Kaleb Locke, Jr., 6-12, RQ, D4; Shane Triplett, Sr., 9-16, RQ, D4.
Outlook: The Sandcrabs lost some talented wrestlers, but still have a good number coming back.
Mainland Buccaneers
Coach: Damon Sansom
Click here for 25-26 schedule
Recent district results: 2025:7; 2024:7; 2023:6; 2022:5; 2021:7; 2020:8; 2019:10-2A6.
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Myron Schafer, RQ, D3; Joshua Stubbs, RQ, D4.
Potential notable returning wrestlers: Isaac Simian, Sr., RQ, D4.
Outlook: Simian could be back for the Buccaneers.
Pine Ridge Panthers
Coach: Tracy Turner
Click here for 25-26 schedule
Recent district results: 2025:6; 2024:7-2A8; 2020:7; 2019:6-2A6; 2018:3-2A6; 2017:8-2A6; 2016:8-2A6; 2015:5-2A6; 2014:6-2A6; 2013:8-2A5; 2012:6-2A5
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Hector Torres, 32-5, 7th, R2, DC; Noah Santiago, 23-7, RQ, D2; Mason Smithwick, 22-10, RQ, D4.
Potential notable returning wrestlers: Benjamin Torres, Jr., 18-10, RQ, D2.
Outlook: Torres is the one returning region qualifier.
Deltona Wolves
Coach: Keith Wallace (21st as head coach, 23rd at school)
Click here for 25-26 schedule
Recent district results: 2025:8; 2024:4-2A8; 2023:4-2A8; 2022:4-2A8; 2021:6; 2020:4; 2019:8-2A6; 2018:5-2A6; 2017:6-2A6; 2016:7-2A6; 2015:4-1A7; 2014:2-1A7; 2013:4-2A5; 2012:5-2A5
Notable losses (Graduation/Transfer): Austin Riis, 13-18, RQ, D4; Thomas Berrios, 12-20, RQ, D4.
Potential notable returning wrestlers: Jovanni Carraturo, Sr., 41-14, SQ, R4, D2
Outlook: State qualifier Carraturo is one of two returning postseason wrestlers for the Wolves.
2A-4 Season Schedules
New Smyrna Beach
Dec. 6: Captain Archer at Charlotte
Dec. 10: vs. Pine Ridge (In School)
Dec. 12-13: Johnny Rouse Duals at Hagerty
Dec. 16: vs. Flagler Palm Coast, 6:30
Dec. 19-20: Knockout Christmas Classic at Silver Spurs
Jan. 6: Titusville Duals at Titusville
Jan. 7: vs. Fletcher, 6:30
Jan. 9-10: Cradle Cancer at Jensen Beach
Jan. 14: at Deltona
Jan. 24: New Smyrna Duals
Jan. 29: vs. Astronaut, 6:30 (Senior Night)
Jan. 30-31: Flagler Rotary at Flagler Palm Coast
Winter Springs
Boys
Dec. 6: Clash of the Titans at OC University
Dec. 12-13: Johnny Rouse at Hagerty
Dec. 19-20: Knockout Christmas Classic at Silver Spurs
Dec. 29: Pirate Ships and Duels at Palm Bay
Jan. 9-10: Cradle Cancer at Jensen Beach
Jan. 30-31: Flagler Rotary at Flagler Palm Coast
Feb. 5: vs. Horizon, 7 (Senior Night)
Feb. 7: SAC at Hagerty
Girls
Nov. 25: Flagler Rotary Girls at Flagler Palm Coast
Dec. 3: SAC Scuffle
Dec. 6: Let Freedom Ring at Orlando Freedom
Dec. 11: Quad at Hagerty
Dec. 17: Quad at DeLand
Jan. 2: Girls Tournament
Jan. 7: Girls at Timber Creek
Jan. 14: Girls at Timber Creek
Jan. 17: Longhorn Lights Out at Harmony
Jan. 24: Greyhound Open at Lyman
Feb. 5: vs. Horizon, 7 (Senior Night)
Feb. 7: SAC at Hagerty