Anthony Echemendia

Weight:
141
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Cabaiguan, Cuba
High School:
Sunnyside (Ariz.)

YEAR	WEIGHT	RECORD	DUAL RECORD	FALLS	TECH FALLS	MAJOR DECISIONS	TAKEDOWNS FOR (AGAINST)	CONF. FINISH	NCAA FINISH
*2020-21	141	4-1	3-1	0	0	0	N/A	-	-
*2021-22	141	2-0	0-0	0	0	0	N/A	-	-
2023-24	141/149	24-6	12-2	1	9	7	96 (12)	1st	5th
2024-25	149	6-3	2-1	0	1	1	19 (2)	-	-
2025-26	141	23-5	9-2	1	7	8	87 (8)	2nd	6th
CAREER	-	59-15	26-6	2	17	16	202 (22)	-	-

*at Ohio State

Awards and Accomplishments
2x NCAA All-American (2024, ‘26)
2026 NCAA Championships (Sixth Place)
2026 Big 12 Championships (Runner-Up)
2026 Cliff Keen Invitational Champion
2024 NCAA Championships (Fifth Place)
2024 Big 12 Champion
2x NWCA Scholar All-American (2024, ‘26)
OSU Scholar-Athlete (2021)
Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll (F23, F24, S25)

2025-26
NCAA All-American and Big 12 runner-up at 141 pounds … placed sixth at the NCAA Championships as the No. 4 seed to become the 90^th wrestler in program history to achieve All-American status at least twice … scored 13.0 points at the national tournament … reached the national quarterfinals before dropping to the consolation side of the bracket … won via injury default over Rider's No. 15 Elijah Griffin in the Blood Round and would win one more match to reach the consolation semifinals before medically forfeiting out of the tournament … finished as Big 12 runner-up after coming up short to Oklahoma State's No. 2 Sergio Vega in the title match, 2-1, in tiebreakers … compiled a 23-5 season record with 16 bonus-point victories (1 WBF, 7 TF, 8 MD) and went 10-4 against ranked foes … recorded 87 takedowns this season and only allowed eight … only losses of record on the year were to wrestlers who placed fourth or better at the NCAA Championships: two-time national champion Jesse Mendez, eventual national champ Sergio Vega (twice), No. 4 Brock Hardy (medical forfeit) and No. 3 Luke Stanich … posted a 9-2 dual record … defeated No. 7 Nasir Bailey by 15-2 major decision in the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Dual to help the Cyclones beat the Hawkeyes for the first time in 21 years … Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational champion … lost 7-3 to No. 1 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) in the NWCA All-Star Classic to open the season.

2025 Offseason
While most college wrestlers were hitting the weight room during the 2025 offseason, Echemendia was battling to save his leg. After undergoing a routine surgery to mend a high-ankle sprain, Echemendia was nearly back in the lineup for ISU's Jan. 26, 2025 dual against Oklahoma State. In a last-minute decision, head coach Kevin Dresser elected to insert Jacob Frost into the lineup instead to give Echemendia an additional week of recovery. The next morning, Echemendia began having new pain in his ankle. His ankle became swollen, and he was soon admitted into the hospital for an infection.

Echemendia battled a Staph infection in his ankle that came with a threat of losing his leg. Over the next three months, he would undergo three additional surgeries and six weeks of IV infusion antibiotics three times daily. He made a return to the mat for summer training in July 2025.

2024-25
Wrestled to a 6-3 record before suffering a season-ending ankle injury at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Open … posted a 2-1 mark in dual action … defeated Stanford’s No. 10 Jaden Abas, 11-5, in the season opener … placed fourth at the CKLV … beat No. 15 Jesse Vasquez (Arizona State) and No. 20 Carter Young (Oklahoma State) in the tournament.

2023-24
NCAA All-American and Big 12 Champion at 141 pounds … placed fifth at the NCAA Championships as the No. 5 seed to become ISU’s first 141-pound All-American since 2009 … scored 13.5 points at the national tournament … advanced to the NCAA semifinals but dropped a tough 6-4 decision to top-seeded Jesse Mendez … was in on a leg with 10 seconds remaining but just ran out of time before he could finish … won by medical forfeit over No. 5 Lachlan McNeil in the fifth-place match … defeated three ranked wrestlers en route to winning a Big 12 title … knocked off UNI’s Cael Happel, 4-2, in the title match thanks to a first-period takedown … finished the year with a 24-6 record and won 18 of his last 21 matches … registered 17 bonus-point victories (one fall, nine tech falls and seven major decisions) … tallied 96 takedowns, the second-most on the team, while only allowing 12 … recorded 13 victories over top-25 opponents and four top-10 wins … wrestled the first two duals of the season at 149 pounds before moving to 141 pounds to strengthen ISU’s lineup … posted a 12-2 record in dual action … placed seventh at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.

2021-22 (at Ohio State)
Preseason No. 24 at 133 by InterMat.

2020-21 (at Ohio State)
Wrestled in a total of five matches as a true freshman before suffering a knee injury ... posted a 4-1 overall record in those five matches and was 3-1 for the Buckeyes in dual matches ... made his collegiate debut with an 11-7 win over Wisconsin’s Trey Escobar ... also had wins over Michigan State’s Jake Spiess and Maryland’s Danny Bertoni.

High School/International Competition
Posted a 52-0 record en route to an Arizona high school state title for Sunnyside High School ... double dip champion at the 2019 Junior Fargo tournament, winning both the Freestyle and Greco-Roman titles ... had never wrestled a Greco-Roman match prior to the Fargo championship run ... 2019 ‘Who’s #1’ Champion ... two-time Senior Freestyle medalist in the Cuba Nationals (silver ’18, bronze ’17) ... U23 Cuba Freestyle National Champion (2017) ... back-to-back Cuba Junior Freestyle National Champion (2016, 2017) after a runner-up finish in 2015 ... three-straight Cadet Freestyle Cuban national titles (2012-14).