Sports

Wadsworth Alum Solomon Callaghan to Compete in March Madness

Jack Blubaugh and Gabe Blubaugh • March 20, 2026

Wadsworth Alum Solomon Callaghan will play in the NCAA Division I Men’s basketball tournament, otherwise known as March Madness.

**Solomon Callaghan playing a game against Hudson in 2021. Callaghan played on varsity every year of his high school career.** *Photo by Annie Black*.

Callaghan will suit up for the 14-seed Wright State Raiders and play the 3-seed Virginia Cavaliers on March 20 at 1:50 p.m.

The Raiders guard averages 9.9 points per game, along with two rebounds and one assist.

Callaghan, a Wadsworth graduate in the class of 2023, will become the second Wadsworth Alum to play in March Madness. The first Wadsworth alumnus to achieve this goal was Matt Sladky, playing for Navy in the first round of the 1998 tournament.

“Playing in March Madness is a dream come true for sure,” Callaghan said. “I’m super excited for the game.”

It was not easy for the Raiders to get here; they first had to win the Horizon League. This consisted of Cleveland State, Northern Kentucky and Detroit Mercy. In the final game against Detroit Mercy, the Raiders won 66-63, sending them to the NCAA Tournament.

“All the guys and I are ready to go, so we’re locked in but also soaking it all in,” Callaghan said.

His former coaches have been watching him as well and are excited to see him get this far in his basketball career.

“It’s been awesome,” Wadsworth Coach Chad Bever said about seeing Callaghan get this far. “My son and I have gone to see several of his games in person, and we catch every game we can on ESPN+.”

Bever believes that Callaghan has a lot to add to any team he is on.

“I believe what Solomon provides is hard to measure: he’s an incredibly intelligent player, a hard worker, a leader of his peers and a high-character individual,” Bever said.

Callaghan is ready for the game and is excited to be the first Wadsworth Alum to make it to March Madness.

“I’m honored,” Callaghan said about being the first, “I definitely want to make the city proud.”

**Solomon Callaghan graduated with the class of 2023. During his senior season, he committed to play basketball at Wright State**. *Photo by Katie Allen.*

*An earlier edition of this story claimed that Callaghan was the first Wadsworth High School alumnus to play in the NCAA Men’s March Madness Tournament. The updated version of the story credits that title going to Matt Sladky, who played on Navy’s 1998 team. We apologize for the error and we thank the community reader who brought this error to our attention.

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About the Contributors

Jack Blubaugh, Editor-In-Chief

Katie Allen, Print Editor-in Chief

Katie Allen is a senior and has been on the staff for four years, her current position is Print Editor-In-Chief. She is most looking forward to seeing what awards the staff can win this year at OSMA, she hopes this year the Bruin can win All-State. Her favorite part about Bruin is all the new and interesting people she gets to meet and how she gets to share their stories through her writing in the Bruin. She believes anyone who is on the fence about joining Bruin should just go for it and try something new because there are so many different opportunities for students on the staff.