The meet was held in front of a standing-room only crowd in the Cox Convention Center. This popular event was held after the first session of the NCAA Div. I Wrestling Championships and was free of charge to the fans.
Right off the bat, Team USA came out strong. At 61 kilos/134 pounds, Illinois grad B.J. Futrell (Ann Arbor, Mich./Titan Mercury WC/Michigan RTC) locked up a cradle and pinned World bronze medalist Bajrang of India in 2:35. The match was close in the early going, with both athletes scoring takedowns, but Futrell used his favorite pinning technique to get the fall.
Next at 65 kilos/143 pounds, Boise State grad Jason Chamberlain (Lincoln, Neb./Titan Mercury/Nebraska RTC) looked strong on both his feet and on the mat, scoring a 12-2 technical fall over Rajneesh in 3:31. Chamberlain secured an ankle lace turn early in the second period and turned Rajneesh a number of times to secure the technical fall.
After trailing 2-3 after the first period, Northern Iowa grad Moza Fay (Colorado Springs, Colo./Army WCAP/USOTC) opened up his offense to score an impressive 11-2 win over Amit Kumar Dhankhar at 70 kilos/154 pounds Fay scored points with both takedowns and turns on the way to the win.
Another comeback win for Team USA at 70 kilos/154 pounds came from Bucknell grad Kevin LeValley (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm), who beat Parveen Rana, 9-2. LeValley had two two-point exposures on tilts in the second period to open up his lead
The USA closed out the win with a pair of technical falls.
Past NCAA champion from Iowa State Jon Reader (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids/USOTC) scored a quick takedown and a series of turns to put away Pawan Kumar, 10-0 in just 57 seconds.
Kent State’s first NCAA champion Dustin Kilgore (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids/USOTC), followed with a technical fall of his own over Saywart Kadian, 11-1 in 4:08. He used an ankle lace for multiple turns in the second period to put the bout away.
“The effort was good. They had a World medalist and a Dave Schultz champion in their lineup. We put out some guys who haven’t all had extensive international experience. They performed today.; It shows we have some great depth in this country,” said National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones.
USA 6, India 0
61 kilos/134 pounds: B.J. Futrell(USA) pin Bajrang (India), 2:35
65 kilos/143 pounds: Jason Chamberlain (USA) tech. fall Rajneesh (India), 12-2, 3:31
70 kilos/154 pounds: Moza Fay (USA) dec. Amit Kumar Dhankhar (India), 11-2
70 kilos/154 pounds: Kevin LeValley (USA) dec. Parveen Rana (India), 9-2
86 kilos/189 pounds: Jon Reader (USA) tech. fall, Pawan Kumar (India), 10-0, 0:57
97 kilos/213 pounds: Dustin Kilgore (USA) tech. fall Saywart Kadian, 11-1, 4:08
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