Whitney Conder and Victoria Anthony will battle in the second match at Final X June 23 (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)USA Wrestling and FloWrestling have announced the order of the bouts for Final X at Lehigh, which is set for Grace Hall on the campus of Lehigh University on Saturday, June 23, with the main card starting at 7 p.m., and preliminary action at 5 p.m.
The event will determine the 2018 U.S. Senior World Teams in men's and women's freestyle wrestling, featuring the nation's top two athletes in the seven weight classes on the card. It will be a best-of-three series in each weight class, with the winner earning a spot on Team USA at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, October 20-28.
To purchase tickets go to the tickets tab on the official Final X website: www.FinalX.tv
The final match on the card will feature 2016 Olympic champion and two-time World champion Helen Maroulis of the Sunkist Kids will face 2018 Junior World Team member Alex Hedrick of the Titan Mercury WC at 57 kg. Maroulis, who has won five World or Olympic medals for Team USA, was the first American woman to win an Olympic wrestling gold medal. She won four WCWA college national titles, three for Simon Fraser and one at Missouri Baptist. Hedrick currently attends Simon Fraser, where she was a WCWA runner-up as a freshman and burst on the Senior scene by winning the 2018 U.S. Open.
Fans don't want to be late because the first main card matchup is expected to be explosive. 2018 U.S. Open champion Joe Colon of the Titan Mercury WC will battle past Cornell NCAA champion Nahshon Garrett of the Sunkist Kids at 61 kg. The Colon vs. Garrett bout in the 2018 U.S. Open finals featured 33 points, with Colon winning 20-13. Colon was an All-American for Northern Iowa and NJCAA champion for Iowa Central. Garrett earned four All-American honors for the Big Red and is a past University Nationals freestyle champion.
Bout two features a pair of past U.S. Senior World Team members battling for the 2018 team berth, as three-time World Team member Whitney Conder of the U.S. Army WCAP will face two-time World Team member Victoria Anthony of the Sunkist Kids at 50 kg. Both are past Junior World champions, with Conder winning in 2007 and Anthony claiming Junior World titles in both 2009 and 2010. Conder was a 2015 Pan American Games champion. Anthony won four WCWA national titles for Simon Fraser.
In the third bout, 2016 Olympic bronze medalist and 2017 World bronze medalist J'den Cox of the Titan Mercury WC battles 2018 U.S. Open runner-up Hayden Zillmer of the Minnesota Storm at 92 kg. Cox has moved up to this new weight class and did not get an automatic berth in Final X because of the weight change. He edged Zillmer in the 2018 U.S. Open finals, 2-0. Cox won three NCAA titles and was a four-time All-American for Missouri. Zillmer, a North Dakota State All-American, has made the Senior National Team in both freestyle and Greco-Roman.
The fourth bout features another women's battle between past Senior World Team members. Sarah Hildebrandt, a 2016 World Team member of the New York AC faces off with 2016 Olympian and 2017 World Team member Haley Augello of the New York AC at 53 kg. Hildebrandt won their battle at the 2018 U.S. Open, 6-1. Both were stars for King University, with Augello winning three WCWA titles and Hildebrandt winning two WCWA golds.
Taking the fifth slot on the card is another women's freestyle showdown between star alumni from King University, 2018 U.S. Open champion Julia Salata of the New York AC and Forrest Molinari of the Titan Mercury WC at 65 kg. Salata won two WCWA titles for King (2014, 2015), while Molinari was a 2016 WCWA champion. Salata won their showdown in the 2018 U.S. Open finals, 5-0. Both have made a number of U.S. age-group World Teams.
In the sixth matchup, 2017 World bronze medalist Nick Gwiazdowski of the Titan Mercury WC faces multiple-style star Adam Coon of the New York AC at 125 kg in men's freestyle. Gwiazdowski was a two-time NCAA champion and three-time finalist for NC State, and also was an NCAA All-American as a freshman for Binghamton. Coon, a three-time All-American for Michigan, was the 2018 U.S. Open champion in freestyle and the runner-up in Greco-Roman. In 2014, Coon won Junior World bronze medals in both styles.
As a best-of-three series, the first and second rounds of competition have the same order of bouts. If any weight classes are forced to a deciding third match in their series, the bouts in round three will stay in order, with a minimum waiting time of 30 minutes from the end of bout two.
The wrestling action will begin earlier in the day at 5 p.m., as USA Wrestling will also hold seven National Team True Third Place wrestle-offs. A true-third wrestle-off occurs when the overall runner-up and third-place finishers from the Freestyle World Team Trials Challenge Tournament did not meet in the bracket. According to approved team selection procedures, the runner-up and third-place athlete must wrestle off to determine the No. 3 spot on the National Team. The three women's bouts will be held first, in weight order, followed by the four men's bouts, also in weight order.
Among the star athletes on the card of True Third Place bouts are 2012 Olympian Kelsey Campbell, two-time World Team member Tony Ramos, three-time WCWA national champion Cody Pfau, and 2018 U.S. Open champion Austin Schafer.
FloWrestling will provide exclusive live and on-demand coverage of the three-event Final X series. Watch the events across all screens by downloading the FloSports app on iOS, Roku, or Apple TV 4, as well as on desktop or mobile web via FloWrestling.com
The other two Final X competitions are Final X in Lincoln on June 9, and Final X at State College on June 16. Tickets for all three Final X events can be purchased at www.FinalX.tv
FINAL X AT LEHIGH
Saturday, June 23 at Grace Hall, Bethlehem, Pa.
Bout Order for Main Card at 7 p.m.
Bout One - Men's freestyle 61 kg
2018 U.S. Open champion - Joe Colon, Fresno, Calif. (Titan Mercury WC/Valley RTC)
2018 WTT Challenge Tournament champion - Nahshon Garrett, Tempe, Ariz. (Sunkist Kids)
Bout Two - Women's freestyle 50 kg
2018 U.S. Open champion - Whitney Conder, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Army WCAP)
2018 WTT Challenge Tournament champion - Victoria Anthony, Tempe, Ariz. (Sunkist Kids)
Bout Three - Men's freestyle 92 kg
2018 U.S. Open champion - J'den Cox, Columbia, Mo. (Titan Mercury WC)
2018 WTT Challenge Tournament champion -Hayden Zillmer, Crosby, Minn. (Minnesota Storm)
Bout Four - Women's freestyle 53 kg
2018 U.S. Open champion - Sarah Hildebrandt, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)
2018 WTT Challenge Tournament champion - Haley Augello, Lockport, Ill. (New York AC)
Bout Five - Women's freestyle 65 kg
2018 U.S. Open champion - Julia Salata, Bristol, Tenn. (New York AC)
2018 WTT Challenge Tournament champion - Forrest Molinari, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Titan Mercury WC/OTC)
Bout Six - Men's freestyle 125 kg
2017 World bronze medalist - Nick Gwiazdowski, Raleigh, N.C. (Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack RTC)
2018 WTT Challenge Tournament champion - Adam Coon, Fowlerville, Mich. (New York AC/Michigan RTC)
Bout Seven - Women's freestyle 57 kg
2017 World champion - Helen Maroulis, New York, N.Y. (Sunkist Kids/NYCRTC)
2018 WTT Challenge Tournament champion - Alex Hedrick, Fair Oaks, Calif. (Titan Mercury WC)
NATIONAL TEAM TRUE THIRD PLACE BOUTS (5 p.m.)
NOTE: A preliminary card of True Third matches for the 2018-19 U.S. National Team will be held starting at 5 p.m. A true-third wrestle-off occurs when the overall runner-up and third-place finishers from the Freestyle World Team Trials Challenge Tournament did not meet in the bracket. According to approved team selection procedures, the runner-up and third-place athlete must wrestle off to determine the No. 3 spot on the National Team.
Women's freestyle
53 kg: Runner-up Cody Pfau (Titan Mercury) vs. third-place Gabrielle Weyhrich (Bearcat WC)
59 kg: Runner-up Kelsey Campbell (Sunkist Kids) vs. third-place Lauren Louive (Hawkeye WC)
68 kg: Runner-up Yvonne Galindo (Aries WC) vs. third-place Alex Glaude (Bearcat WC)
Men's freestyle
57 kg: Runner-up Tony Ramos (Sunkist Kids) vs. third-place Zach Sanders (Minnesota Storm)
65 kg: Runner-up Jaydin Eierman (Titan Mercury) vs. third-place Andy Simmons (New York AC)
86 kg: Runner-up Richard Perry (New York AC) vs. third-place Pat Downey (Titan Mercury)
97 kg: Runner-up Austin Schafer (New York AC) vs. third-place Ty Walz (Titan Mercury)
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