Photo by Randi Yeager/IAWrestle: Dreshaun Ross of Fort Dodge has his hand raised at the FargoDome on Monday.

FARGO, N.D. — The whispers of Dreshaun Ross’s potential will no longer be kept a secret if the Fort Dodge freshman-to-be continues to roar.

The 14-year-old Ross put the finishing touches on an unforgettable debut at Fargo Nationals on Monday, capturing a national freestyle championship at 195 pounds in the 16U division.

Ross defeated New Jersey’s nationally-ranked Vincenzo Lavalle of New Jersey in the finals, 6-4 at the FargoDome. That capped a six-match run to the title — a rare feat, given Ross’s age and weight.

“I felt I performed really well,” said Ross, who finished his eighth-grade year at Fort Dodge Middle School less than two months ago. “I just wanted to stay calm and not let the stage or the crowd get to my head.

“Just stay within myself.”

A prodigious physical talent, the 6-foot-2 Ross had already turned heads both on the national scene as a five-time Trinity Award winner, and at the state level, where he became just the eighth Iowan ever to take home six AAU championships. Finally old enough to compete at Fargo — arguably the toughest high school tournament in the country year in and year out — Ross handled the situation like a seasoned veteran.

“I treated (the finals) like just another match,” Ross said about facing athletes a year or two older. “I wrestle high schoolers all the time in practice, so it was nothing new to me.”

The 16-year-old Lavalle — from East Hanover, N.J. — placed third at 190 pounds as a freshman last season with a 45-3 record. Lavalle also took the Northeast 16U regional freestyle crown.

Ross was a double national winner in Las Vegas two months ago, claiming gold in both the freestyle and Greco-Roman brackets at USA Wrestling’s 15U national tournament. He said next on the agenda is “trying to make the Pan-Am team in a few weeks.”

Ross is just the third Fort Dodger to win Fargo national crowns in the last 50 years, joining Drake Ayala (2017, 2019, 2021) and Joe Zuspann (1974).

“It feels really good to win Fargo because it’s always been a dream of mine,” Ross said. “From watching others compete at such a high level, it always seemed fun.

“It means a lot to me to be able to represent not just Iowa, but my family, coaches and high school in such a big way.”

Fort Dodge’s Dru Ayala suffered a heartbreaking 7-6 setback in the semifinals of the 106-pound junior division. Ayala, a state runner-up for the Dodgers in 2022, rallied from a 4-0 deficit to take a 6-5 lead on top-seeded Mack Mauger of Idaho. Mauger was awarded two last-second points on a late exposure call, though, to seal the narrow win.

Ayala has still assured himself of back-to-back All-American status at Fargo. He’ll try to take home a bronze medal on Tuesday.