Harvard Wrestling Wraps Up Tournament Season with Two Top-Eight Finishes at Midlands

Harvard wrestling closed out the 2025 calendar year with two top-eight finishes and a 14th-place team result at the Ken Kraft Midlands Championships, powered by sophomore Logan Brzozowski’s sixth-place run at 125 pounds and a breakout eighth-place showing from freshman Robert Kucharczk at 184 pounds.

The Midlands Championships at Northwestern University brought together more than 30 programs and dozens of nationally ranked competitors. For Harvard, it was one of the final opportunities to test both experienced starters and emerging underclassmen against elite opponents before the dual-meet stretch of the season. Missing 2025 NCAA qualifier and captain Jimmy Harrington due to a shoulder injury sustained earlier in December at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, the Crimson entered Evanston, Ill., with gaps to fill in the lineup and an increased emphasis on depth and adaptability.

“I feel we did a good job, not a great job,” said Weiss about the team’s performance overall. “It’s definitely promising, and we’ll get some guys back next time we compete, so that’ll be even better.”

Brzozowski set the tone early for the Crimson in one of the tournament’s lightest and fastest weight classes. Wrestling in the 125-pound bracket, he opened his run with an 8-1 decision over Michigan’s Chris Kiser after having a bye in the first round. Though a razor-thin quarterfinal loss to Cal Poly’s Koda Holeman dropped him into the consolation bracket, Brzozowski responded with urgency. On day two, he pieced together consecutive wins in tight matches to keep his tournament alive, including a sudden-victory decision over Pittsburgh’s Colyn Limbert to secure a sixth-place finish.

“This is where I need to break through a little bit and make a little jump,” said Brzozowski. “Just keep on making those jumps now, transitioning into dual season.”

Harvard’s other top-eight finish came from Kucharczk in the stacked 184-pound bracket. The freshman entered Midlands with limited collegiate experience but quickly asserted himself as a strong competitor. He surged through day one with three victories, including an 8-5 win over Illinois’s Joey Braunagel, a 19-3 tech fall over Northern Illinois’ Ali Adel, and a 9-2 decision over Michigan’s Codei Khawaia. Pushed into the wrestlebacks on day two after a loss to Pittsburgh’s Chase Kranitz, Kucharczk earned eighth place with a fall over Stanford’s Tye Monteiro. He ended up medically forfeiting his seventh-place match to Indiana’s Roman Rogotzke.

Beyond the two placers, Harvard’s lineup found itself in closely contested matchups that sometimes didn’t fall in its favor against tough opponents. Nevertheless, by the end of day one, four Crimson wrestlers — Brzozowski, Kucharczk, junior captain Jack Crook, and junior Joseph Cangro — had earned spots in day two competition.

Crook opened his weekend with a dominant 15-2 major decision over Lehigh’s Matt Repos and a 9-6 decision over Cal Poly’s Andre Gonzales before dropping a 4-1 decision to Virginia Tech’s Collin Gaj in the 149-pound quarterfinals. Cangro battled through to secure a 3-0 decision over Northern Illinois’ Brett Smith, followed by a loss to Virginia Tech’s Ryan Burton at 165 pounds.

Other Crimson wrestlers had a difficult time securing wins in a competitive field, but Weiss believes that these challenging contests are within the team’s reach.

“They all need more work,” said Weiss about expectations for his squad. “We’re expecting more than four.”

In a unique turn of events, two Harvard wrestlers — senior Dante Frinzi and freshman Sid Tildsley — faced off against each other in a consolation round in which Frinzi defeated Tildsley by an 11-1 major decision before going on to lose against Virginia Tech’s Drew Gorman in the next round. Though both athletes found their tournament runs capped short, this moment underscored the essential overlap between veteran leadership and rookie talent needed to sustain the team dynamic.

With the tournament portion of the season in the rearview, the Crimson now turns its focus towards the dual meet season, starting with the NWCA Multi-Division National Duals on Jan. 9-10.