InterMat Staff

2022 U20 World Champion Ben Kueter (photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan/UWW) Plenty of questions to get to this week and most are wrestling related! Your old friend Jags took a little heat for dealing in off-topic drivel lately. That's alright. I don't mind a little heat. I can't control the questions I'm asked, and I try to answer every question. So once in a while, you get some nonsense here. We're all just having some fun. Let's not get too serious. The sport is serious enough as it is. The good news is that we at Intermat provide a vast range of content to suit your needs. Earl kills time between Nationals games and Harry Potter conventions to bring you all kinds of fresh content. Do you have an affinity for the fighting careers of former wrestlers? What about deep dives and stat breakdowns? Richard Mann has you covered there. Interested in news from your favorite college conference? We have an entire team for that? Turkmenistan cadet rankings? Ok, nobody does that but Seth Petarra can give you everything else. Are you starting to get into fantasy wrestling and Fantasy Fight League? DiMarco can handle that when he decides to show up. Not to mention a bevy of freelancers to give you all kinds of interesting stories. But enough about them, let's try an all-wrestling version of this thing for once. Did you wrestle in college? Toby Keef Nope, went straight to the pros. Is there really unfinished business between Downey and Nickal? Richard Mann Lol, no. The wrestling mat business between the two is completely wrapped up by two dominant wins. Now, can there be new business in the octagon? Sure, why not? Fighting is a whole different ball game and anything can happen. Will it happen? Who knows. As of now, PD3 is just starting out in Bellator and Bo is headlining some Dana White fight for your supper show. Don't get me wrong, I, and probably every other wrestling fan would love to see it. Maybe one day. Is the Indian National Team truly on the rise or just a blip from the lack of Russians? Jersey Hokie They have a guy named Jaglan. If I were Russia I'd just take up another sport at this point. Or get a Jagger variant of their own to counter the rise of India. Follow up: how much do the Yankees suck? Pelikan Head (Nodding in agreement) Ben Kueter. Can he really do both? Has anybody recently been able to compete at a high level in football and wrestling in college? Phil S Well, he can physically, sure. But can he sustain success doing it for multiple years? Will he even get the chance? Let's say he gets drafted into the NFL after three years of college. Most stud wrestlers are only beginning the second half of their college career after year three. Football players are already going pro. I'm afraid that if he has legit success on the gridiron then the chances are slim that we see him on the mat in Iowa City. Also, Josh Hokit scored nine touchdowns as a senior for Fresno State before going 24-4 on the mat before the 2020 season got shut down. Now he's starting his MMA career. Josh Hokit can probably kick my ass. Where is Mike C. and why is it in the basement of an Arby's in Limon, Colorado? Jason Bryant Mike C? The frequent mailbag inquisitor from the halcyon days of my esteemed predecessor Tim Foley? Nobody really knows what happened to Mike. Some say he never existed. Others say he stopped reading when the mailbag went behind a paywall and never returned. Personally, I think he's a bozo. I see you. Mike C. (pulls down shade) Would you rather see Cenzo, Pat Lugo, Mark Hall, etc, get their fourth year or be subjected to these 17th-year seniors? Jkos11 As in do I wish the entire Covid situation never happened? Yes. I would very much prefer we not have a virus that killed millions, shut the world down for over a year, and forever changed the way we live. The only way the world can make this up to me now is to give me Matt Kolodzik's senior year back. The rawest of deals in a season of raw deals. F 2020. U20 world team member you're most excited to see wrestle in college this season? Rhino184 I have to go with Maryland's Jaxon Smith because he'll be in the lineup. Fresh off a world fifth, the big man should make some noise in a very competitive 197 class this year. Phew, an entire wrestling mailbag. I didn't think I had it in me. If you don't hear from me next week, tell the cops to look for a guy named Mike C.

Kamaru Usman (photo/Getty Images) UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman relied heavily on his wrestling background early in his MMA career. He has become a much more well-rounded fighter as his career has progressed, but his experience in the world's oldest sport has clearly been vital to his success in the Octagon. Usman began wrestling as a sophomore at Bowie High School in Arlington, Texas. Despite getting a late start in the sport, he worked his way into contention for a state title as a senior. He defeated Jared Berman of Arlington High School to win the District 13 championship at 145 pounds in what was a wild 16-10 contest. The two would rematch a few weeks later in the third-place match of the University Interscholastic League (UIL) state tournament. Once again, Usman would defeat Berman and take home the bronze medal. He finished his final season of high school with a 53-3 record. Following high school, Usman chose to continue his wrestling career at William Penn. The Iowa school is a member of NAIA and multiple-time UFC title challenger Joseph Benavidez also spent time there wrestling. Usman's true freshman season in 2006-2007 was quite successful. He went 15-3, qualified for the NAIA tournament and was ranked eighth at 165 pounds in the final rankings prior to the tournament. However, his postseason plans were entirely derailed by weather. Per a report in the Sioux City Journal by Steven Allspach, Penn's 11 qualifiers were traveling from William Penn's campus in Oskaloosa, Iowa to Sioux City. Head coach Gary Garvis had left a day before to attend the coaches meeting, but his wife Laurene Garvis was driving one of the two vans holding the wrestlers. She explained the situation to Allspach. "It was horrible driving," she said. "Much of the way, it was a white-out condition and every so often the boys had to get out of the truck to guide me through the worst for a 100 yards or so." Unfortunately for Usman, his van was stopped by highway patrol, and he never made it to the national tournament. Years later Usman's eventual coach at Nebraska-Kearney would allude to this mishap influencing the wrestler's decision to find a new home. "He was furious," Marc Bauer said. "His high school club coach contacted me and said, 'Kamaru was out of there, he's leaving, is there any way you can get him back to your school?" Bauer was able to pull it off, and Usman joined the Loper squad for his sophomore season. The team he joined for the 2007-2008 season was already one of the most loaded teams in NCAA Division II. Joe Ellenberger, who would go on to build a 15-2 record in MMA and fight in the UFC, was the starter at 157 pounds. At heavyweight, the Lopers could send out one of the best wrestlers in the country. Tervel Dlagnev had won the Midlands the previous year and would go on to become a three-time World/Olympic medalist. Usman stepped into the starting spot at 174 pounds, By February, he was ranked third in the country at his weight. He entered the NCAA tournament with a 22-7 record and won his first two matches against Chris Gibbs (West Liberty) and Tyler Tubbs (MSU Moorhead). In the semifinals, he ran into Albert Miles (Pitt Johnstown) and dropped a 6-2 match. Miles would go on to win the tournament and claim the 174-pound national title. Usman dropped to the consolation bracket where he picked up a second win over Gibbs to advance to the third-place match. There, he scored a 3-2 victory over Josh Shields (MC) to finish third and become an All-American for the first time. Nebraska-Kearney finished with two champions and eight overall placers. Their team score of 108.5 was a half point more than Minnesota St. Mankato, and they were able to bring home the team title. Dlagnev won at heavyweight for the Lopers, while Brett Allgood also brought home a title at 133 pounds. In the second round of the tournament, Allgood knocked off future UFC title challenger Tim Elliott then of Central Oklahoma. After an impressive debut season at the Division II level, Usman was not sneaking up on anybody during his junior season. As one of the top returning wrestlers at 174 pounds, he was ranked in the top three for the majority of the 2008-2009 season. In December, Usman had a very impressive showing at the Reno Tournament of Champions. Despite being ranked second in Division II, he entered the tournament mostly composed of Division I squads unseeded. He won his first three matches before facing off against the tournament's top seed in Appalachian State's Austin Trotman. At the time, Trotman was ranked 15th in Division I and would go on to become an All-American. Usman scored a 4-3 victory and advanced to the finals. Trotman has also made the transition to MMA and is also scheduled to fight this weekend. Usman had to settle for a second-place finish as he dropped a 6-2 match against Navy's Luke Rebertus in the finals. The loss dropped Usman's season record to 19-5, but he was still well on the way to contending for a national title. Over the course of the rest of the season, Usman remained extremely active. He eventually entered the NCAA tournament with a whopping 42-8 record. In the tournament, Usman made his way to the finals with victories over Luke Rynish (Wisconsin Parkside), Jarret Hall (MSU Moorhead) and Ross Taplin (Nebraska Omaha). In the finals, Usman went toe-to-toe with Brett Hunter of Chadron State, but ultimately dropped a 3-2 match. The Rapid City Journal was on-site for the finals and described the match as follows. "Hunter, who is the school's all-time winningest wrestler with a 133-32 record, won his second national championship by claiming a 3-2 decision over Nebraska-Kearney's Marty Usman during the 174-pound finals of the NCAA Division II wrestling championships. Hunter led 2-1 at the beginning of the third period. Usman chose bottom and Hunter gained over a minute of riding time before cutting Usman loose with 30 seconds to go. With less than six seconds to wrestle, Usman tried to takedown Hunter, but the shot fell short and Hunter Claimed the 3-2 victory, thanks to the point for riding time." After placing third and second during his first two seasons at Nebraska-Kearney, Usman had one more year to make a run at the national title. For the 2009-2010 season, Usman returned once again to the 174-pound weight class, and he was one of the favorites from the start. Prior to the season, he was named all Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, and he was ranked number one in the coaches poll. Early in the season, the Lopers had a chance to pull off a major upset over Nebraska. Earlier in the day, future Olympic champion Jordan Burroughs suffered an injury against Central Michigan and therefore could not compete against Nebraska-Kearney. The Division II squad was quite feisty and were within striking distance when it came time for Usman to wrestle at 174 pounds. His opponent on the day was Stephen Dwyer who was ranked third at the weight in Division I. Dwyer was coming off a victory over fifth-ranked Ben Bennett. Dwyer would go on to finish fourth at the NCAA Division I tournament at the end of the year. Usman also scored a victory over Bennett earlier in the day, and he was more than game against Dwyer. However, he ultimately dropped a 2-0 match. Dwyer scored an escape and collected 1:53 of riding time on the way to the close victory. Nebraska would go on to win the dual 23-18. That would be the last loss of Usman's collegiate career. In January, Usman got another shot at Division I opposition as Nebraska-Kearney faced off against Oklahoma as part of the Lone Star Duals. He scored an 11-0 major decision over Ben Bridell, and he was the only Loper to win against the Sooners. After winning the RMAC and being named the conference's "Wrestler of the Year," Usman entered the NCAA tournament with a 40-1 record. Usman won his first two matches over Ben Becker (MSU Mankato) and Aaron Denson (Nebraska Omaha) to advance to the semifinals. There he faced off against Chris Barrick of Shippensburg. The match was tied in the third period 4-4, but Usman broke the tie with a takedown and advanced with a 6-5 victory. His opponent in the finals was Luke Rynish of Wisconsin Parkside. Usman had defeated Rynish three times over the last two seasons, but it was still a tight match. Per a report from the Lincoln Journal Star, "Usman scored a takedown with 15 seconds left in the 174-pound finals to beat Wisconsin-Parkside's Luke Rynish 5-3 and finish off a 44-1 season." Following the folkstyle season, Usman made the transition to freestyle with the goal of making the 2012 Olympic team. Shortly after his senior season, he entered the University World Team Trials. Usman defeated Iowa's Mark Ballweg and advanced to the semifinals. However, after losses to Jon Reader and Adam Hall, he finished fourth. Despite the fourth-place finish, Usman ended up representing the U.S. at the 2010 University World Championships and finished eighth. For the next few years, Usman was a regular on the domestic freestyle circuit and picked up wins over future wrestling to MMA converts Pat Downey and Chris Honeycutt. However, he failed to qualify for the 2012 Olympic Trials and made his professional MMA debut in November of that year. He joined the UFC in 2015 after competing on "The Ultimate Fighter" reality show and won the title against Tyron Woodley in his 16th professional fight in 2019.

The 2022 Big Ten Championships (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) ROSEMONT, Ill. - The Big Ten Conference announced today that it has reached distribution agreements with CBS, FOX, NBC and NBCUniversal's Peacock. The breadth of new partners, in addition to Big Ten Network (BTN) and FS1, will place conference football, women's and men's basketball and Olympic sports student-athletes on the biggest stage and provide fans with the most exciting matchups across traditional over-the-air linear television and direct-to-consumer streaming. These landmark media rights agreements are the most comprehensive in all of college sports and further strengthen the tradition of the Big Ten Conference. Big Ten Conference football will dominate Saturdays, beginning in the fall of 2023 on the largest broadcast platforms from morning to night, with FOX at Noon ET, CBS at 3:30 p.m. ET and NBC in Prime Time. With the addition of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Southern California (USC) in August 2024, the conference, its student-athletes and member institutions will reach the broadest audience in the country, coast-to-coast, including the top three media markets in the country in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. The media rights agreements will begin July 1, 2023, and run through the 2029-30 season. "The Big Ten Conference media rights agreements are more than just dollars and deals. They are a mechanism to provide stability and maximum exposure for our student-athletes, member institutions and partners during these uncertain times in collegiate athletics," Big Ten Conference Commissioner Kevin Warren said. "We are very grateful to our world-class media partners for recognizing the strength of the Big Ten Conference brand and providing the incredible resources we need for our student-athletes to compete at the very highest levels, and to achieve their academic and athletics goals." "The Big Ten has been a valued partner for more than three decades and we are thrilled to expand that relationship by adding Big Ten football to our portfolio of marquee properties," said Sean McManus, Chairman, CBS Sports. "The combination of CBS Sports' proven record in elevating college conferences to new heights, our standard of excellence and the strength and reach of Paramount Global's linear and digital platforms, will create a powerful showcase for the Big Ten and its student-athletes. Together with Kevin Warren and the team at the Big Ten, we look forward to growing the conference to the highest of levels, reaching the widest audience." "We are proud to expand upon our long-standing partnership with the Big Ten Conference and further bolster our position as the premier rights holder of the conference," said FOX Sports Chief Executive Officer and Executive Producer, Eric Shanks. "Commissioner Warren's leadership and vision have resulted in the growth and recent market expansion of the Big Ten Conference. In an ever-evolving landscape, the Big Ten remains the most storied collegiate athletic conference in the country." "We are incredibly excited to be partnering with Kevin Warren and the Big Ten Conference on this robust package of sports," said Pete Bevacqua, Chairman, NBC Sports. "With Big Ten Saturday Night and Sunday Night Football headlining each fall weekend in primetime on NBC and Peacock, along with our historic Notre Dame Football partnership, NBC Sports will be the home of premier games in college football and the NFL. In addition, with the rights to a wide range of Big Ten events, Peacock and NBC Sports will be a year-round destination for the best in college sports." "The new rights agreements are an incredible achievement for our entire conference and a true testament of what can be accomplished with teamwork," stated Commissioner Warren. "I am incredibly grateful for collaborative efforts and hard work of our conference staff, specifically Laura Anderson, Anil Gollahalli, Kerry Kenny and Adam Neuman, our presidents and chancellors, athletics directors, coaches, student-athletes, and our partners at CBS, NBC and FOX Sports for solidifying unprecedented Big Ten access across transformative media companies for our fans to tune-in and follow the Big Ten content they love." The Big Ten Conference new media agreements grant the following rights to their partners: BTN will maintain its strong position as the home for Big Ten fans, as the network will continue to televise a full slate of football, basketball and Olympic sport competition throughout the entire year. CBS's initial season in 2023 will include seven football games and both regular season and postseason men's basketball action, along with the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament final appearing on CBS for the first time. The Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament semifinals and final will continue the tradition of airing on CBS, which they have done for 25 years. Every CBS Big Ten football and basketball broadcast will also be streamed on Paramount+, Paramount Global's direct-to-consumer streaming service. Starting in 2024, CBS will televise up to 15 regular-season football games per season, including an annual Black Friday game in the afternoon. CBS is America's most-watched network for the past 14 years and the highest-rated college football network. FOX has renewed its agreement to televise football and men's basketball games each season, with the opportunity to carry additional sports throughout the year. The Big Ten Conference's partnership with FOX reached its high point during the 2021-22 year, as FOX captured the #1 time slot in college football for the first time with its Big Noon Saturday platform that featured 10-14 games involving a Big Ten team, and a men's basketball season that ended with the top three most watched games in the history of FS1 all featuring Big Ten programs. NBC will produce 14-to-16 games on broadcast television each season as it introduces college football fans to Big Ten Saturday Night. Each Big Ten game on NBC broadcast will also be simul-streamed on Peacock, NBCUniversal's direct-to-consumer streaming service. NBC Sports has established the most dominant primetime franchise in television history, as its Sunday Night Football has been primetime's No. 1 show for an unprecedented 11 consecutive years - a streak that is currently active. Peacock, NBCUniversal's direct-to-consumer streaming service will deliver exclusive Big Ten football and basketball games each season, as eight regular-season football games will appear on the platform along with as many as 47 regular-season men's basketball games (32 conference and 15 non-conference) and 30 regular-season women's basketball games (20 conference and 10 non-conference). CBS, FOX and NBC will combine efforts to televise the seven Big Ten Football Championship Games during the term. CBS: 2024, 2028 FOX: 2023, 2025, 2027, 2029 NBC: 2026 Big Ten Conference (bigten.org) is an association of world-class universities whose member institutions share a common mission of research, graduate, professional and undergraduate teaching, and public service. Founded in 1896, Big Ten Conference has sustained a comprehensive set of shared practices and policies that enforce the priority of academics in the lives of students competing in intercollegiate athletics and emphasize the values of integrity, fairness, and competitiveness. The broad-based programs of the 14 Big Ten Conference institutions will provide over $200 million in direct financial support to more than 9,800 students for more than 11,000 participation opportunities on 350 teams in 42 different sports. Big Ten Conference sponsors 28 official conference sports, 14 for men and 14 for women, including the addition of men's ice hockey and men's and women's lacrosse since 2013.

Columbia head coach Zach Tanelli (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Yesterday, Columbia dropped their 2022-23 schedule, which marked the third one from an Ivy League school this summer. And it's a doozy! Head Coach Zach Tanelli has put together an extremely challenging schedule that will test his young and improving squad, early and often. Columbia is a team that sent three qualifiers to the 2022 NCAA Championships and all three are back along with back-to-back recruiting classes that netted 11 big boarder's. Before we get to Columbia's schedule and our breakdown, here's what Tanelli had to say about assembling this schedule. "The schedule we have assembled is a representation of the team we have and the goals we're looking to accomplish this year. We have hard, gritty men that are fueled by competing at the highest level, across the mat from the nation's best. On this team, we focus on performance, not results. We'll be prepared mentally and emotionally. We'll use the strength of our schedule to prepare us physically to make adjustments so that we're ready to peak in March" Duals versus 8 teams in InterMat's summer dual rankings: #4 Ohio State, #5 Cornell, #6 Oklahoma State, #7 Michigan, #16 Penn, #18 Pittsburgh, #21 Lehigh, #24 Princeton. One ACC Team: Pittsburgh Three Big Ten Teams: Maryland, Michigan, Ohio State One Big 12 Team: Oklahoma State Teams that finished in the top-30 at the 2022 NCAA Championships: #2 Michigan, #7 Cornell, #13 Ohio State, #14 Oklahoma State, #16 Princeton, #24 Pittsburgh, #25 Lehigh, #27 Penn Home Slate: Cornell, Lehigh, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Penn, Pittsburgh, Princeton Away Duals: American, Brown, Bucknell, Harvard, Michigan, Ohio State November 6th - Southeast Open @ Salem, Virginia The Lions kick off the season with Virginia Tech's Southeast Open. There should be a handful of starters for the Hokie in action and most of the DI schools in Virginia will be represented, in some capacity. This event is usually one that attracts most of the ACC, too. This is an event that isn't necessarily a meatgrinder but has quality competition and should ease Columbia into the season. With some excellent freshmen on the roster, this gives Tanelli a chance to see how they do against outside opposition or perhaps against teammates, in a different setting. November 18th - #4 Ohio State @ Columbus, Ohio If the Southeast Open helps the squad ease into competition, a dual at Ohio State is jumping into the deep end. The Buckeyes start the year ranked number four in dual competition and should have no holes throughout the lineup. Six OSU wrestlers have earned All-American status at one point or another in their respective careers. Key matchups could take place at 125, 141, and 165 lbs. The opening weight could have #27 Joe Manchio meet the Buckeyes #14 Malik Heinselman. The highest profile match takes place at 141 with #8 Dylan D'Emilio and #11 Matt Kazimir, the returning EIWA champion. 165 has All-American #7 Carson Kharchla against Columbia's #11 Josh Ogunsanya. November 20th - #7 Michigan @ Ann Arbor, Michigan I'm not sure any other schools will voluntarily sign up for a Friday/Sunday road trip that includes Ohio State and Michigan. Props to the Lion staff! These two teams dualed last season and the Wolverines prevailed 34-3. Once again, Ogunsanya could face a returning AA, this time #5 Cam Amine. In last year's dual, Amine was victorious, 3-1. Another rematch we'll probably see is at 125 with Manchio and #19 Jack Medley. Medley won that dual, as well as their meeting in Vegas. While Michigan was very senior-heavy in 2021-22, they still feature four All-Americans and have plenty of capable replacements waiting in the wings. December 2nd/3rd - Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational A couple weeks after dualing Ohio State and Michigan, both loaded teams are among the talented field at the CKLV Invitational. Other top-20 ranked tournament teams that are expected to enter include #7 Minnesota, #8 Cornell, #9 Nebraska, #12 Northwestern, and #14 Princeton. There are plenty of other very capable teams which should add up to be an incredible tournament. December 11th - #18 Pittsburgh Another return appearance on the 2022-23 schedule features the Lions hosting the #18 Pittsburgh Panthers. This dual could set the stage for an excellent rematch between Kazimir and the top-ranked wrestler in the nation at 141 lbs, Cole Matthews. The two clashed in the Round of 16 in Detroit and Matthews skated by in tiebreakers. He later finished fifth. It was a great improvement over the : 36-second fall by Matthews in last season's dual. A match later could see a pair of possibly overlooked members of each team do battle. Pittsburgh's redshirt freshman Brock McMillen is in the summer rankings at #30, while Danny Fongaro is currently at #33. December 29/30th - Soldier Salute @ Coralville, Iowa The new addition to the holiday tournament schedule is Iowa's Soldier Salute. Having the Hawkeyes in the field should present challenging competitors at every weight up and down the lineup. In addition to the hosts, expect most, if not all, of the service academies and military institutes to be in attendance. January 13th - American @ Washington DC The first EIWA dual of the year for Columbia sees the team travel south to DC to take on American. The Eagles did not send anyone to Detroit, but are expected to improve in year two under Jason Borrelli. American's highest placer at the EIWA Championships was 133 lber Jack Maida. A bout between him and Angelo Rini, who has appeared in the national rankings before, should be a good one. January 15th - #6 Oklahoma State This is the beginning of a stretch that includes five-straight ranked opponents coming into Levien Gymnasium. If Columbia sells season tickets, it might be a year to purchase a few, as the Lions host some impressive foes. Last year's dual saw Columbia take a pair of matches away from the Cowboys, as Kazimir and Ogunsanya got their hands raised. Kazimir could see #13 Carter Young again, while Ogunsanya could be looking at 2021 All-American #16 Wyatt Sheets. There is some uncertainty about 197/285 lbs for Oklahoma State, so the Columbia big men could be looking at a favorable matchup, too. January 20th - #24 Princeton Columbia will get their Ivy season started by hosting Princeton and then Penn two days later. Their 2021-22 dual was a bit lopsided in the Tigers favor, however, Columbia was without Ogunsanya and dropped the 165 lb match. That bout should be a barnburner as 2022 NCAA finalist Quincy Monday is supposed to move up from 157. With that in mind, Columbia could reasonably win four of the first five weights. They'll need to do that, limit bonus points, (they gave up bonus to Princeton in four bouts) and maybe win a toss-up weight and who knows what happens? January 22nd - #16 Penn Right after trying to tame the Tigers, Columbia plays host to a Penn team that returns ten national qualifiers. Solid matchups will be all over the place. Most notably at 141 lbs with Kazimir and #4 CJ Composto. Though Kazimir defeated Composto in the EIWA finals, it was the Quaker star that made the NCAA podium in Detroit. January 27th - #21 Lehigh An under-the-radar fun dual from the 2021-22 campaign took place when Columbia traveled to Bethlehem to take on Lehigh. Like usual, Lehigh should be really stout in dual competition and there are plenty of good matchups to watch. One of the reasons this dual was close last season was Lehigh won a pair of close bouts at 184 and 197 lbs. In the portal season, Lehigh has upgraded both weights with the addition of Tate Samuelson (184) and Michael Beard (197). If the Lions aren't careful, bonus points could be a possibility in both matches. Columbia's best win from last years dual came at 125 as Manchio downed #24 Jaret Lane. The two didn't get to meet at EIWA's as Lane was injured. January 29th - #5 Cornell The final match in Columbia's five-match homestand sees perennial Ivy and EIWA power Cornell coming to town. The Big Red are ranked fifth for a reason and they have a powerful dual and tournament lineup. One intriguing match takes place at 165 lbs between Ogunsanya and #9 Julian Ramirez. The two tangled four times last year, each garnering a pair of wins. Both of Ramirez's victories came via major decision. February 3rd - Bucknell @ Lewisburg, Pennsylvania These two EIWA foes did not meet in dual action last season so this dual could present some new matchups. Bucknell is solid down low, so there should be very competitive matches between 125-157 lbs. One of the Bison wrestlers that could take "the next step" in 2022-23 is 184 lber Logan Deceatis. As a true freshman, he was 17-17 with a few good wins under his belt. That sets up a good match with whoever emerges as the starter for Columbia, Aaron Ayzerov or freshman Jack Wehmeyer. February 10th - Harvard @ Cambridge, Massachusetts Harvard's team will likely be a star-driven one again in 2022-23. They have a pair of top-ten ranked wrestlers leading the way with #9 Phil Conigliaro, a 2022 EIWA champ at 165, moving up to 174 and #5 Yaraslau Slavikouski at heavyweight. That puts Conigliaro with EIWA placewinner Nick Fine and Slavikouski and either Dan Conley or Billy McChesney at 285. February 11th - Brown @ Providence, Rhode Island It's still pretty early to project how Brown will look under first-year head coach Jordan Leen. By February we should have a good idea. The Bears will seek to send their first wrestlers to the national tournament since 2019. February 19th - Maryland Why not get the Big Ten Maryland Terrapins at home to end the year? This should be a new-look Terrapin team as their highly lauded Class of 2021 all redshirted for the most part. They'll be unleashed next year and could be dangerous. Braxton Brown (#31 at 125) and Jaxon Smith (#31 at 197) are both very conservatively ranked as redshirt freshmen and could be much higher come February 19th. The same could be said for Ethen Miller at 149 or John Martin Best at 165. March 4th/5th - EIWA Championships @ Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Ivy League rival Penn gets to host the conference meet this time around. In 2022, Columbia put up 84.5 points and finished fifth. That placement was the best for the program since 2014 and the points were the most in school history. I'm sure the team is hosting to best that mark; however, only Cornell, Penn, Princeton and Lehigh finished higher. Each should be good, if not better, in 2022-23.

3x NCAA All-American Amar Dhesi (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Oregon State! NCAA Qualifiers (59) 2022 #11 Brandon Kaylor (125 lbs), #11 Devan Turner (133 lbs), #8 Grant Willits (141 lbs), #27 Cory Crooks (149 lbs), #17 Hunter Willits (157 lbs), #33 Matt Olguin (165 lbs), #6 Trey Munoz (184 lbs), #11 Gary Traub (285 lbs) 2021 #28 Brandon Kaylor (125 lbs), #16 Devan Turner (133 lbs), #12 Grant Willits (141 lbs), #13 Hunter Willits (157 lbs), #31 Ryan Reyes (184 lbs), #25 JJ Dixon (197 lbs) 2020 #12 Devan Turner (133 lbs), #29 Grant Willits (141 lbs) 2019 #4 Ronnie Bresser (125 lbs), #32 Devan Turner (133 lbs), #31 Grant Willits (141 lbs), #28 Hunter Willits (157 lbs), #32 Bob Coleman (184 lbs), #6 Amar Dhesi (285 lbs) 2018 #9 Ronnie Bresser (125 lbs), Hunter Willits (157 lbs), #11 Corey Griego (197 lbs), #6 Amar Dhesi (285 lbs) 2017 Joey Palmer (133 lbs), Jack Hathaway (141 lbs), Joey Delgado (149 lbs), #14 Corey Griego (197 lbs), #10 Cody Crawford (285 lbs) 2016 #11 Ronnie Bresser (125 lbs), Joey Palmer (133 lbs), Joey Delgado (149 lbs), Seth Thomas (165 lbs), Corey Griego (184 lbs), #7 Amar Dhesi (285 lbs) 2015 #10 Ronnie Bresser (125 lbs), Jack Hathaway (133 lbs), Alex Elder (157 lbs), Seth Thomas (165 lbs), Joe Latham (174 lbs), #5 Taylor Meeks (184 lbs), Cody Crawford (197 lbs) 2014 Joey Palmer (133 lbs), Joey Delgado (141 lbs), #14 Scott Sakaguchi (149 lbs), #8 RJ Pena (157 lbs), Joe Latham (174 lbs), Austin Morehead (184 lbs), #12 Taylor Meeks (197 lbs), #16 Amar Dhesi (285 lbs) 2013 #3 Michael Mangrum (141 lbs), #7 Scott Sakaguchi (149 lbs), #10 RJ Pena (157 lbs), Cody Weishoff (174 lbs), Ty Vinson (184 lbs), #5 Taylor Meeks (197 lbs), #4 Chad Hanke (285 lbs) NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans 2022: Brandon Kaylor (125 - 8th), Devan Turner (133 - 8th), Grant Willits (141 - 4th), Hunter Willits (157 - 7th) 2019: Ronnie Bresser (125 - 8th), Amar Dhesi (285 - 5th) 2018: Ronnie Bresser (125 - 7th), Amar Dhesi (285 - 3rd) 2016: Amar Dhesi (285 - 5th) 2013: Scott Sakaguchi (149 - 5th), RJ Pena (157 - 5th), Taylor Meeks (197 - 4th) NWCA All-Americans Devan Turner (133 - Second Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Trey Munoz (2022 - 184) Gary Traub (2022 - 285) Joey Palmer (2017 - 133) Ronnie Bresser (2016 - 125) Alex Elder (2015 - 157) Joe Latham (2015 - 174) Taylor Meeks (2015 - 197) Scott Sakaguchi (2014 - 149) Michael Mangrum (2013 - 141) Chad Hanke (2013 - 285) Pac-12 Conference Champions 2022: Trey Munoz (184) 2021: Devan Turner (133), Grant Willits (141) 2020: Devan Turner (133) 2019: Ronnie Bresser (125), Grant Willits (141), Bob Coleman (184), Amar Dhesi (285) 2018: Ronnie Bresser (125), Corey Griego (197), Amar Dhesi (285) 2017: Joey Palmer (133), Corey Griego (197) 2016: Amar Dhesi (285) 2015: Ronnie Bresser (125), Jack Hathaway (133), Alex Elder (157), Joe Latham (174), Cody Crawford (197) 2014: Joey Delgado (141), Scott Sakaguchi (149), RJ Pena (157) 2013: Michael Mangrum (133), Taylor Meeks (197), Chad Hanke (285) Dual Record 2021-22: 8-3 2021: 4-5 2019-20: 8-6 2018-19: 5-8 2017-18: 6-6 2016-17: 6-8 2015-16: 11-6 2014-15: 12-1 2013-14: 12-7 2012-13: 11-4 Pac-12 Tournament Placement 2021-22: 2nd 2021: 2nd 2019-20: 4th 2018-19: 3rd 2017-18: 2nd 2016-17: 4th 2015-16: 1st 2014-15: 1st 2013-14: 1st 2012-13: 1st NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 12th (44.5 points) 2021: 46th (5 points) 2020: No Tournament 2018-19: 20th (28 points) 2017-18: 21st (26 points) 2016-17: 28th (12.5 points) 2015-16: 21st (22 points) 2014-15: 30th (11.5 points) 2013-14: 28th (14.5 points) 2012-13: 8th (48.5 points) Head Coaching History Chris Pendleton (2020 - Present) Jim Zalesky (2006-2020) Best Lineup (comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Ronnie Bresser: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#4, #9, #10, and #11 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (7th, 8th), 3x Pac-12 Champion 133 - Devan Turner: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#11, #12, and #16 seeds), 2022 NCAA All-American (8th), 2x Pac-12 Champion 141 - Michael Mangrum: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#3 and #4 seeds), 2012 NCAA All-American (5th), 2x Pac-12 Champion, 3x NCAA Round of 12 finisher 149 - Scott Sakaguchi: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#7 and #14 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (5th, 7th), 2x Pac-12 Champion 157 - RJ Pena: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#8 and #10 seeds), 2013 NCAA All-American (5th), 2x Pac-12 Champion 165 - Seth Thomas: 2x NCAA Qualifier, 2015 Pac-12 Runner-Up 174 - Joe Latham: 2x NCAA Qualifier, 2015 NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2015 Pac-12 Champion 184 - Trey Munoz: 2022 NCAA Qualifier (#6 seed), 2022 NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2022 Pac-12 Champion 197 - Taylor Meeks: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#5 x2 and #12 seed), 2013 NCAA All-American (4th), 2013 Pac-12 Champion, 2015 NCAA Round of 12 finisher 285 - Amar Dhesi: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#6 x2, #7, and #16 seeds), 3x NCAA All-American (3rd and 5th x2), 3x Pac-12 Champion Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #44 Gabe Whisenhunt (OR), #88 CJ Hamblin (WA), #101 Noah Tolentino (CA), #105 Nash Singleton (OR), #114 Isaiah Anderson (WA), #151 Ayden Garver (OR), #173 Damion Elliott (CA), #225 Chase DeBlaere (MN) 2021: #80 Kodiak Stephens (CA), #182 Jacob Barnes (OR), #191 Hunter Meinzen (MT), #209 Asher Ruchti (OR), #295 Caleb Coyle (NE) 2018: #64 Brandon Kaylor (WA) 2017: #29 Hunter Willits (CO), #61 Grant Willits (OR) 2015: #51 Bryce Parson (ID), #73 Tate Orndorff (WA), #95 Alex Rich (OR), #144 Weston Dobler (ND) 2014: #75 Corey Griego (CA) 2013: #83 Abraham Rodriguez (OR), #102 Reed Van Anrooy (OR), #134 Cody Crawford (OR) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio Ohio State Oklahoma Oklahoma State

2021 U17 World Champion Katie Gomez (photo courtesy of Martin Gabor; UWW) Thursday from Sofia will be the only day at the U20 World Championships that features only women's freestyle. As has been the case with the previous three days, we've outlined the first round (or medal) matches for each of the American women set to compete tomorrow. In addition, there are some past honors for their opponents. 50 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Audrey Jimenez vs. Umi Ito (Japan) Ito: 2021 All-Japan Runner-Up, 2x Asian Cadet Champion, 2017 Cadet World Champion 53 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Katie Gomez vs. Emine Cakmak (Turkey) Cakmak: 2x European Junior fifth place, 2021 Junior World bronze medalist 57 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Sofia Macaluso vs. Sito (India) Sito: 2022 Asian Junior bronze medalist, 2021 Junior World bronze medalist 62 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Adaugo Nwachukwu vs. Iris Thiebaux (France) Thiebaux: 2022 European Junior fifth place 65 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Reese Larramendy vs. Zofia Polowczyk (Poland) Polowczyk: 2022 European Junior bronze medalist, 2019 European Junior bronze medalist 72 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Amit Elor vs. Zaineb Sghaier (Tunisia) Sghaier: 3x African Junior Champion, 2020 Olympian

U20 World finalist Audrey Jimenez (photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan; UWW) Any week-long international tournament, like the U20 World Championships, is bound to feature some high and low points. Good days and bad. Wednesday in Sofia, Bulgaria proved to be a rough one for the American contingent. The final set of men's freestyle wrestlers finished their tournament and went 1-4 on the day. Nic Bouzakis and Jaxon Smith got the day started for the men's freestyle team. Bouzakis lost an absolute shootout against Ukraine's Mykyta Abramov, 16-15, which eliminated him from medal contention. Smith notched the only win of the day when he tech Germany's Kiril Kildau to clinch a spot in a bronze medal match at 92 kg. There he would face Sergey Sargsyan of Armenia. Smith got on the board first with a takedown in the first period; however, that accounted for all of the offense from the American, as Sargsyan slowed poured it on, then used a series of leg laces to end the contest, 12-2. In the only gold medal bout of the day for the United State, Bennett Berge fell to Rakhim Magamadov 10-5. Magamadov technically broke a scoreless tie with a shot clock point, though Berge converted a takedown shortly thereafter. Berge made it a 4-1 lead at the break as he finished a low double right before the buzzer. In the second it was all Magamadov. The French wrestler was able to capitalize on offense from Berge and got exposure points on multiple occasions. Magamadov also had a high-amplitude finish on a double that accounted for four points, which blew the match wide open. The final American man to take the mat was Nick Feldman at 125 kg. Feldman survived an early onslaught from Merab Suleimanashvili (Georgia) and made things interesting at 8-5 just over two minutes into the match. From there. Suleimanashvili came out on top of Feldman in a scramble and ended things with a fall. Like Smith, Feldman finished fifth at his first U20 World event. The American women started the day off and it was their first weight class that had the greatest impact. Audrey Jimenez, at 50 kg, was the lone American to make the finals. Jimenez was a member of the U17 world team this year, but came away without a medal. By making the championship match, she's guaranteed at least silver. Jimenez was down 4-0 to her opponent, Natalia Walczak of Poland, Undeterred, Jimenez got in on a single and was working for a finish. As Walczak fought off the attempt, Jimenez used her body to cover her Polish foe's upper body, leading to a fall. The only other American woman from this first group with an opportunity to medal is Tristan Kelly at 76 kg. Kelly was victorious in her opening bout, 9-0 over Brazil's Ana Dos Santos. A match later, Kelly fell to Japan's Ayana Moro via fall. Moro, like her four country women, advanced to the gold medal match, pulling Kelly into repechage. 61 kg Men's Freestyle Repechage - Mykyta Abramov (Ukraine) over Nic Bouzakis 16-15 86 kg Men's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Rakhim Magamadov (France) over Bennett Berge 10-5 92 kg Men's Freestyle Repechage - Jaxon Smith over Kiril Kildau (Germany) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match - Sergey Sargsyan (Armenia) over Jaxon Smith 12-2 125 kg Men's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match - Merab Suleimanashvili (Georgia) over Nick Feldman Fall 50 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Audrey Jimenez over Gultakin Shirinova (Azerbaijan) 13-2 Quarterfinals - Audrey Jimenez over Gabija Dilyte (Lithuania) 11-0 Semifinals - Audrey Jimenez over Natalia Walczak (Poland) Fall Gold Medal Match - Audrey Jimenez vs. Umi Ito (Japan) 55 kg Women's Freestyle Quarterfinals - Roza Szenttamasi (Hungary) over Adriana Dorado Marin 12-2 59 kg Women's Freestyle Quarterfinals - Ebru Dagbasi (Turkey) over Savannah Cosme 1-1 68 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Laura Godino (Italy) over Destiny Rodriguez 12-1 76 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16 - Tristan Kelly over Ana Dos Santos (Brazil) 9-0 Quarterfinals - Ayano Moro (Japan) over Tristan Kelly Fall Bronze Medal Match - Tristan Kelly vs. Daniela Tkachuk (Poland)

Minnesota All-American Jake Bergeland (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Everyone likes an underdog right? The Rocky movies, Cool Runnings, The Replacements, Invincible, Major League. Great stories with fun characters all resting on the belief that you can reach your goals even if the odds are stacked against you. Going into this interview, that was how I viewed the season that Jake Bergeland had for the Golden Gophers last year. It had all the ingredients for an underdog story. His first year in the lineup for Minnesota, had some injuries that prevented him from starting in previous years, as well as just being behind some really talented wrestlers. Those trials and tribulations, in my mind and in the minds of many others, meant that Jakob Bergeland was a great underdog story. However, that's not how the story went for Jake. That's not how he pictures himself. Jake, like many college wrestlers, viewed his path into the lineup as a tough, but necessary road. The hurdles and struggles along the way only made him stronger and helped develop him into the guy who felt ready to get onto the podium as soon as he had his chance. He knew that he would get there eventually, but those first couple of years made him into the wrestler that he is now. He was 22-11 in his first year in college, while redshirting. He felt ready to have that impact after that season. Most guys have a lot of growth in their first year, but there was a lot of excitement after that year. Unfortunately, he was still behind Steve Bleise who had transferred in, and had been a bloodround wrestler, as well as Tommy Thorn bumping up to 149, making it exceedingly difficult to get that first chance. Pair that with an injury, and guys like Brayton Lee and Michael Blockhus coming to Minnesota and into the 149 weight class as well. Once recovered, there was still a lot of talent in the Golden Gophers room keeping Jake from having his chance. Going into the 2021-22 season, he knew that if he really wanted the chance to compete, he would have to drop down to 141. "I have to go 100% in if I want to do this, and I decided to finally drop down." Jake was always around 141 in high school, so he was used to wrestling guys this size. It seemed like the right time and the right choice, so he went for it. In the current landscape of college sports, transferring to other institutions to get a chance is commonplace. Coaches have to build a lineup, while also speaking to other guys to strengthen their lineups and challenge their athletes, as well as continuing to re-recruit their own team to keep them from transferring. It's the coaches' livelihood, and it's what they are supposed to do, but it doesn't make it easier on athletes. When speaking to Jake about this, he had a refreshing response. "You always want depth in the room. Guys fighting for spots is what you want. I wrestled Brayton twice one year, and they were close, and the same thing with Blockhus. I just kept looking at it as 'I'm going to get better and be better for this.' They believed in me, but these last 18 months of really taking off again and having some good showings, they reminded me that I can do this." Minnesota All-American Jake Bergeland and the Gopher coaching staff (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) I have to reiterate, I think that athletes should do what's best for them because there are only so many chances. But I also respect and value the athlete who recognizes that staying here and fighting for their spot is actually what's best for them. Consistency of message is key, and especially for young athletes. Clearly, the Gopher coaching staff knew what they had in Jake. Jake continued to elaborate on the transfer landscape in sport. "Minnesota has been my childhood dream school, and I had the opportunity to come here, but my main component of not wanting to leave was just my friends and my teammates. I love it here and didn't want to leave. I figured I could go somewhere to start, but if I can't be in the starting lineup here, then how am I going to reach my goal of being a National Champion, if I can't even start in my own room." It's the most simple of concepts when you think about it that way right? If you can't beat a wrestler from another team, then I guess you wouldn't start there, would you? To be the National Champion, which I think it's safe to say is most college wrestlers' goal, you should probably start with your own team. This is the part where my whole mindset on who Jake Bergeland is, and what he can do in his final season changed. When I brought up the idea of the underdog piece, it was mostly a question of if he identified with that mentality. "I really didn't. For me I want it, so I'm going to go take it, because I love the journey, but I was sick and tired of being close but not there. The two things that really drove me were that I got knocked out of the top 100 recruits and they had some article posted, I think from Flo, that said the kids outside the top 100 won't be an All American, statistically. I looked at that, and wasn't ranked there, and thought that would be so cool that I could be one of the guys to prove them wrong." That was it. It wasn't about being an underdog. It was about taking the opportunity when it's finally presented and doing everything you've prepared to do the entire time. I heard an Alexander Karelin quote recently, and I'm paraphrasing, but it was essentially how he ended his warmups by reminding himself all of the work that he did to get here, and that he had a good warmup, and with all the work he puts in and his body being ready, he knew that it was over for his opponent. That's kind of how this resonated with me. Jake expected to win as soon as he had that chance. This was no underdog story. Another thing we discussed was an observation I had earlier in the season. I remember on the Bloodround Podcast (shameless plug), making the argument after he beat Micic in the dual, so much of the conversation was trying to figure out what was wrong with Micic. I pushed back against that narrative and jumped on board immediately that Jake has had an impressive season, and that Micic's other "questionable" loss was to Cole Matthews (who currently sits at #1 at 141 by Intermat). We then talked about the impact of those wins throughout the season (Jake had 12 wins over ranked opponents last season). "That (Micic) match, my coaches and I talked about the contrast of styles and we believed that I could go win it. I did believe it. I just tried to put as much pressure on him as possible. The other thing was that I needed a signature win. In that match, something clicked in my head. It wasn't pretty, but I pulled it out. I heard a lot of the comments, and they were all "what's wrong with him" and it had nothing to do with how I was wrestling. It was funny. You take that stuff and ignore it, but also use it for fuel." The season is notoriously referred to as a grind, so fuel like that is always helpful to keep pushing through. Minnesota All-American Jake Bergeland in his dual win over Stevan Micic (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) We discussed his All-American finish, as well as his Academic All Big Ten finish, and how he is electing to come back for his last year of eligibility. I used to think that these extra years would be used more sparingly, but clearly wrestling, for many, ends after their final year of NCAA eligibility. He discussed the decision to come back, and the decision-making around it. "I thought it would be a hard decision. During the season, I thought I could go either way, be content and be proud of my career and graduate, or I could come back. It was only a week or two after the season I just decided, 'I'm still driven, and what's the next thing.' The ultimate goal was always to be a National Champion, and I get one more shot, so that's the next thing. I was proud of the year that I had, and I'm proud of our team, but both the goals of an individual National Title, and a team trophy, those are the two things that we are going after this next year. The whole team is still here, all of my teammates and friends from last year, so I get to have another year with them, which is one of the main reasons to come back." Finished up the interview by discussing his Intermat preseason ranking at 3, and the idea of coming into the season with a target on his back. "Act like you're in first, and train like you're in second." He's excited to have a full season, and having more big matches. Having that sense of routine, and still having that goal out there to become a National Champion remains the focus. Making adjustments, leaning on experiences from last season, and learning from the big matches this season is how he expects to reach those goals. I've interviewed a lot of people over the years. Athletes, coaches, etc… But the confidence in Jake's voice, and how clearly he was able to share his experiences through his career, how he values them, and how he used them to be ready for last season was really impressive. This is not an underdog story. This is the story of a supremely talented and expertly trained warrior ready to go take what's his. Jake Bergeland is like Maximus being thrown into the Gladiator pits in Rome. Jake Bergeland is ready to take what's his. Watch Jake Bergeland next season, and tell me if you're not entertained.

Jore Volk (right) and Ben Kueter (Volk photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan; Kueter photo courtesy of Kostadin Andonov; UWW) The first group of medals were handed out at the 2022 U20 World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. The United States men's freestyle team accounted for two of the five golds, as Jore Volk (57 kg) and Ben Kueter (97 kg) both were victorious. Mitch Mesenbrink (70 kg) had to settle for silver in a championships shootout, as well. Before the medal round, the second set of men's freestylers took the mat. The lone wrestler, of this group, to finish the day unscathed was Bennett Berge at 86 kg. Berge crushed his first three opponents to the combined tune of 32-2 to advance to the semifinals. There he met Turkey's Ismail Kucuksolak, who used a four-point takedown late in the opening stanza to lead 5-0 at the break. Undeterred, Berge repeatedly shot into his Turkish opponent's legs and drove him out of bounds for a single point. This sequence repeated itself five times, until the scoreboard was even (Kucuksolak still held criteria). With about a minute remaining in the bout, Berge was finally able to convert a takedown for the go-ahead score. Another was added for good measure, before Berge fended off a late charge from Kucuksolak, to win 9-7. Tomorrow, the South Dakota State freshman will face returning world silver medalist Rakhim Magamadov (France) in the gold medal finals. Incoming Ohio State freshmen, Nic Bouzakis and Nick Feldman, along with Maryland redshirt freshman Jaxon Smith still have bronze medal hopes alive. Bouzakis provided some of the early morning fireworks with back-to-back falls, while he was trailing on the scoreboard. Feldman ran into a behemoth from Iran, Amirreza Masoumi Valadi, who is the returning Cadet world champion. Masoumi Valadi was able to control the mat from the open whistle and dominated to the tune of 11-1. Smith posted a one-sided win over European Junior champion Ion Demian (Moldova), before a 12-2 loss to Georgia's Andro Margishvili. The first finals of the tournament saw American Jore Volk square off with Asian Champion Merey Bazarbayev (Kazakhstan). The bout was largely a tactical affair as Volk had the only takedown of the contest. He led 3-0 at the intermission and that accounted for all of his scoring output. In the second period, Bazarbayev was more offensive and tallied a point on a step-out and a caution. Despite the one-point margin on the scoreboard, Volk had the upper hand due to his takedown and was able to deftly avoid Bazarbayev for the final :33 of the bout. Volk's gold medal made him the first US men's freestyle wrestler to win the lowest weight contested since Spencer Lee took the title at 50 kg in 2016. The afternoon was bookended with world championships for the Americans as Kueter was victorious in the last final of the day at 97 kg. Kueter gave up a quick takedown to Turkey's Rifat Gidak; however, he was able to expose Gidak and finished on top. From the top position, Kueter was able to expose Gidak three more times with a reinforced bar tilt. Still in the same sequence, Kueter switched to a regular armbar and ran Gidak to his back for another set of points and more importantly, a fall. Kueter is one of only two rising high school seniors on the American team and is a multi-sport superstar. The Iowa football/wrestling recruit still plans to get home and plan in a football scrimmage on Friday evening for West High School in Iowa City. Kueter also stars in baseball and track and field for the Trojans. The last two upperweights to capture U20 world titles for the US, prior to the senior year of high school, include Gable Steveson (120 kg - 2017) and Kyle Snyder (96 kg - 2013). This marks the second consecutive year that the US team has claimed the gold medal at 97 kg. Last year, it was Wisconsin's Braxton Amos that blitzed through the field. 57 kg Men's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Jore Volk over Merey Bazarbayev (Kazakhstan) 3-2 61 kg Men's Freestyle Qualification - Nic Bouzakis over Arslan Rakhimiov (Kazakhstan) Fall 1:25 Round of 16 - Nic Bouzakis over Abdullah Toprak (Turkey) Fall 1:58 Quarterfinals - Armin Habibzadehsaroukolaei (Iran) over Nic Bouzakis 13-11 Repechage - Nic Bouzakis vs. Mykyta Abramov (Ukraine) 65 kg Men's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match - Yoshinosuke Aoyagi (Japan) over Vince Cornella 6-6 70 kg Men's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Kanen Heybatov (Azerbaijan) over Mitch Mesenbrink 13-7 74 kg Men's Freestyle Round of 16 - Erfan Elahi (Iran) over Alex Facundo 5-4 ***Facundo eliminated from medal consideration*** 79 kg Men's Freestyle Repechage - Bekir Ovec (Turkey) over Brayden Thompson 2-1 ***Thompson eliminated from medal consideration*** 86 kg Men's Freestyle Qualification: Bennett Berge over Gurgen Simonyan (Armenia) 10-0 Round of 16: Bennett Berge over Nandor Hajduch (Hungary) 12-2 Quarterfinals: Bennett Berge over Nazar Dod (Ukraine) 10-0 Semifinals: Bennett Berge over Ismail Kucuksolak (Turkey) 9-7 Gold Medal Match: Bennett Berge vs. Rakhim Magamadov (France) 92 kg Men's Freestyle Round of 16: Jaxon Smith over Ion Demian (Moldova) 8-1 Quarterfinals: Andro Margishvili (Georgia) over Jaxon Smith 12-2 Repechage: Jaxon Smith vs. Kiril Kildau (Germany) 97 kg Men's Freestyle Gold Medal Match: Ben Kueter over Rifat Gidak (Turkey) Fall 1:39 125 kg Men's Freestyle Quarterfinals: Nick Feldman over Georgi Ivanov (Bulgaria) 5-2 Semifinals: Amirreza Masoumi Valadi (Iran) over Nick Feldman 11-1 Bronze Medal Match: Nick Feldman vs. Merab Suleimanashvili (Georgia)

Bennett Berge in the 2022 U20 World semifinals (photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan/UWW) Wednesday marks the final day of competition in men's freestyle at the 2022 U20 World Championships. Four more Americans will compete for medals, with Bennett Berge in the finals and Nic Bouzakis, Jaxon Smith, and Nick Feldman still alive for the bronze. Additionally, it will also be the first day of competition in women's freestyle. Like the previous two days, we have outlined draws for all of the Americans in action on Wednesday, along with some information on their initial opponents. 61 kg Men's Freestyle Repechage - Nic Bouzakis vs. Mykyta Abramov (Ukraine) Abramov: 2019 Cadet World bronze medalist, 2018 Cadet World fifth place 86 kg Men's Freestyle Gold Medal Match: Bennett Berge vs. Rakhim Magamadov (France) Magamadov: 2022 European Junior Champion, 2021 Junior World silver medalist, 2021 European Junior bronze medalist, 2019 Cadet World bronze medalist 92 kg Men's Freestyle Repechage: Jaxon Smith vs. Kiril Kildau (Germany) Kildau: 2022 European Junior fifth place 125 kg Men's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match: Nick Feldman vs. Merab Suleimanashvili (Georgia) Suleimanashvili: 2022 European Junior silver medalist 50 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16: Audrey Jimenez vs. Gultakin Shirinova (Azerbaijan) Shirinova: 2022 European Junior eighth place, 2022 European U23 fourth place, 2021 Junior World eighth place 55 kg Women's Freestyle Quarterfinal: Adriana Dorado Marin vs. Robbie Pingal (Canada)/Roza Szenttamasi (Hungary) winner Pingal: 2022 Pan-American Junior bronze medalist Szenttamasi: 2022 European Junior ninth place, 2021 Junior World ninth place, 2019 Cadet World ninth place 59 kg Women's Freestyle Quarterfinal: Savannah Cosme vs. Kara LeRoux (South Africa)/Ebru Dagbasi (Turkey) winner LeRoux: 2022 African Junior bronze medalist Dagbasi: 2022 European Junior silver medalist, 2022 European U23 fifth place, 2021 U23 World seventh place, 2021 Junior World 16th place 68 kg Women's Freestyle Round of 16: Destiny Rodriguez vs. Laura Godino (Italy) Godino: 2022 European Junior fifth place, 2018 European Cadet silver medalist 76 kg Women's Freestyle Qualification: Tristan Kelly vs. Ana Dos Santos (Brazil) Dos Santos: 2022 Pan-American Junior silver medalist, 2021 Pan-American Junior fifth place

Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center for a 2022 dual with Ohio State (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) College football kicks off in a few weeks and what is undoubtedly the fan and financial favorite of the college sports world, will have fans in droves filling up the stadiums. It's one of few true revenue sports in college athletics and though its attendance nationally has declined some lately they will still have remarkable crowds every weekend. What drives that? The biggest factor is the simple draw of the sport. Football is without a doubt the most popular sport in the United States. NFL is king in professional sports and College Football runs the show in the NCAA. But an added factor is the environment that college football creates. The tailgating, the get-togethers with old college friends, the marching band, the fall weather, all create an undeniable feeling that is college football, and fans consistently flock back to their alma maters and favorite teams to recreate that environment every season. What wrestling can't reasonably do is suddenly become the most popular sport in the United States. But former Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said this regarding College Football attendance in a recent CBS article and it can be applied to wrestling as well. "We really are competing against the 70-inch TV and the beer that is cold in your refrigerator and no lines at the restroom," Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said. "We have to continue to make sure we enhance the game day experience." Wrestling now and will forever have this same fight. With all the streaming available, fans have the option at most schools to pay for some sort of service vs. going and physically attending. So, what are a few things wrestling can do to mimic some of the concepts that football has and create this fan-attractive environment? Get local businesses involved The tailgating environment is difficult to recreate for a winter sport. In parts of the country where wrestling is prominent, it's incredibly cold during wrestling season. So that just doesn't seem feasible. But if you're a local restaurant or bar, it's probably not difficult to grab a hold of the wrestling market in your college town, because you just don't see many businesses going after it. Use social media to bill yourselves as the place to grab some food and a drink ahead of duals, slap a few free wrestling posters on the wall from the school marketing department, make a drink deal called the “double-leg” where you get a combined beer/shot…. I'm just throwing a few things out there that could be applied. There are many more. But this is a low/no-cost concept for the university and business that can win for both sides. Create a fun pre-match environment for fans that they want to come back to often to have a good time and then go enjoy a wrestling match. Engage kids Why do most parents do anything? Because it's what their kids want to do. At Oklahoma State during football games, there is an open area on the practice field where kids play pickup football games, climb inflatables, and participate in a bunch of other stuff going on before each game for kids to do. I don't think wrestling can easily recreate something of that scale for every dual, but a similar concept would be setting up a mat or two in a corner of the gym and letting kids roll around with some of the college guys before duals. If you've got a handful of backups and redshirts that aren't competing and can take an hour before each dual to meet with and roll around with kids/fans, you're creating and engaging what could become a lifelong fan of the program. From a program standpoint, make friends with everyone on campus We all know this is a bit of an impossible task. Not everyone is going to like you and not everyone is easy to get along with. But wrestling programs must engage with other programs across the campus to make for a better fan experience and get them involved in wrestling. The band, cheerleaders, etc… are all part of that college gameday environment that ties into college football, and as many of those things that can be implemented into wrestling can help create that same vibe and engage casual college sports fans. Ultimately, several other things are specific to each program that can be applied to what we're talking about here with fan attendance and engagement, but the overall point is with widespread streaming availability, the in-person experience has become what drives attendance. And there are lessons from football that wrestling could use to improve this.

3x NCAA finalist Daton Fix (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Oklahoma State! NCAA Qualifiers (93) 2022 #7 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (125 lbs), #2 Daton Fix (133 lbs), #30 Carter Young (141 lbs), #9 Kaden Gfeller (149 lbs), #31 Wyatt Sheets (157 lbs), #6 Dustin Plott (174 lbs), #16 Dakota Geer (184 lbs), #19 Luke Surber (285 lbs) 2021 #21 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (125 lbs), #1 Daton Fix (133 lbs), #4 Boo Lewallen (149 lbs), #33 Wyatt Sheets (157 lbs), #10 Travis Wittlake (165 lbs), #18 Dustin Plott (174 lbs), #11 Dakota Geer (184 lbs), #4 AJ Ferrari (197 lbs), #29 Austin Harris (285 lbs) 2020 #3 Nick Piccininni (125 lbs), #22 Reece Witcraft (133 lbs), #14 Dusty Hone (141 lbs), #5 Boo Lewallen (149 lbs), #11 Wyatt Sheets (157 lbs), #4 Travis Wittlake (165 lbs), #12 Joseph Smith (174 lbs), #9 Anthony Montalvo (184 lbs), #14 Dakota Geer (197 lbs), 2019 #2 Nick Piccininni (125 lbs), #1 Daton Fix (133 lbs), #15 Kaid Brock (141 lbs), #7 Kaden Gfeller (149 lbs), #33 Joseph Smith (165 lbs), #7 Jacobe Smith (174 lbs), #26 Dakota Geer (184 lbs), #3 Preston Weigel (197 lbs), #1 Derek White (285 lbs) 2018 #6 Nick Piccininni (125 lbs), #4 Kaid Brock (133 lbs), #6 Dean Heil (141 lbs), #8 Boo Lewallen (149 lbs), #8 Chandler Rogers (165 lbs), #13 Jacobe Smith (174 lbs), Keegan Moore (184 lbs), #9 Preston Weigel (197 lbs), #9 Derek White (285 lbs) 2017 #8 Nick Piccininni (125 lbs), #3 Kaid Brock (133 lbs), #1 Dean Heil (141 lbs), #2 Anthony Collica (149 lbs), #5 Joseph Smith (157 lbs), #9 Chandler Rogers (165 lbs), #7 Kyle Crutchmer (174 lbs), #4 Nolan Boyd (184 lbs), #6 Preston Weigel (197 lbs), #6 Austin Schafer (285 lbs) 2016 #6 Eddie Klimara (125 lbs), Gary Wayne Harding (133 lbs), #1 Dean Heil (141 lbs), #11 Anthony Collica (149 lbs), #6 Joseph Smith (157 lbs), #1 Alex Dieringer (165 lbs), #9 Chandler Rogers (174 lbs), #8 Nolan Boyd (184 lbs), Preston Weigel (197 lbs), #4 Austin Marsden (285 lbs) 2015 #7 Eddie Klimara (125 lbs), Gary Wayne Harding (133 lbs), #14 Dean Heil (141 lbs), Josh Kindig (149 lbs), Anthony Collica (157 lbs), #1 Alex Dieringer (165 lbs), #12 Kyle Crutchmer (174 lbs), #12 Nolan Boyd (184 lbs), #4 Austin Marsden (285 lbs) 2014 #14 Eddie Klimara (125 lbs), #4 Jon Morrison (133 lbs), #15 Anthony Collica (141 lbs), #11 Josh Kindig (149 lbs), #3 Alex Dieringer (157 lbs), #2 Tyler Caldwell (165 lbs), #1 Chris Perry (174 lbs), Nolan Boyd (184 lbs), Blake Rosholt (197 lbs), #11 Austin Marsden (285 lbs) 2013 Eddie Klimara (125 lbs), #7 Jon Morrison (133 lbs), Julian Feikert (141 lbs), #1 Jordan Oliver (149 lbs), #6 Alex Dieringer (157 lbs), #4 Tyler Caldwell (165 lbs), #1 Chris Perry (174 lbs), #9 Chris Chionuma (184 lbs), #11 Blake Rosholt (197 lbs), #3 Alan Gelogaev (285 lbs) NCAA Champions AJ Ferrari (197 - 2021) Dean Heil (141 - 2016, 2017) Alex Dieringer (157/165 - 2014, 2015, 2016) Chris Perry (174 - 2013, 2014) Jordan Oliver (149 - 2013) NCAA All-Americans 2022: Daton Fix (133 - 2nd), Dustin Plott (174 - 6th) 2021: Daton Fix (133 - 2nd), Boo Lewallen (149 - 4th), Wyatt Sheets (157 - 8th), Travis Wittlake (165 - 4th), Dakota Geer (184 - 5th), AJ Ferrari (197 - 1st) 2019: Nick Piccininni (125 - 5th), Daton Fix (133 - 2nd), Dakota Geer (184 - 7th), Preston Weigel (197 - 3rd), Derek White (285 - 2nd) 2018: Kaid Brock (133 - 5th), Boo Lewallen (149 - 8th), Chander Rogers (165 - 8th), Jacobe Smith (174 - 8th) 2017: Nick Piccininni (125 - 4th), Kaid Brock (133 - 5th), Dean Heil (141 - 1st), Joseph Smith (157 - 4th), Chandler Rogers (165 - 5th), Kyle Crutchmer (174 - 7th), Nolan Boyd (184 - 6th), Preston Weigel (197 - 6th) 2016: Dean Heil (141 - 1st), Anthony Collica (149 - 4th), Joseph Smith (157 - 7th), Alex Dieringer (165 - 1st), Nolan Boyd (184 - 4th), Austin Marsden (285 - 6th) 2015: Eddie Klimara (125 - 7th), Dean Heil (141 - 4th), Alex Dieringer (165 - 1st), Kyle Crutchmer (174 - 5th) 2014: Josh Kindig (149 - 2nd), Alex Dieringer (157 - 1st), Tyler Caldwell (165 - 2nd), Chris Perry (174 - 1st), Austin Marsden (285 - 8th) 2013: Jon Morrison (133 - 5th), Jordan Oliver (149 - 1st), Alex Dieringer (157 - 3rd), Tyler Caldwell (165 - 3rd), Chris Perry (174 - 1st), Blake Rosholt (197 - 8th), Alan Gelogaev (285 - 3rd) NWCA All-Americans Nick Piccininni (125 - First Team) Dusty Hone (141 - Honorable Mention) Boo Lewallen (149 - First Team) Wyatt Sheets (157 - Second Team) Travis Wittlake (165 - First Team) Joseph Smith (174 - Second Team) Anthony Montalvo (184 - Second Team) Dakota Geer (197 - Honorable Mention) NCAA Round of 12 Finishes Kaden Gfeller (2022 - 149) Austin Harris (2021 - 285) Kaid Brock (2019 - 141) Nick Piccininni (2018 - 125) Dean Heil (2018 - 141) Derek White (2018 - 285) Chandler Rogers (2016 - 174) Preston Weigel (2016 - 197) Anthony Collica (2014/15 - 141/157) Austin Marsden (2015 - 285) Eddie Klimara (2014 - 125) Big 12 Conference Champions 2022: Daton Fix (133), Kaden Gfeller (149), Dustin Plott (174) 2021: Daton Fix (133), Boo Lewallen (149), AJ Ferrari (197) 2020: Nick Piccininni (125), Boo Lewallen (149), Travis Wittlake (165) 2019: Nick Piccininni (125), Daton Fix (133), Kaden Gfeller (149), Jacobe Smith (174), Preston Weigel (197), Derek White (285) 2018: Nick Piccininni (125), Boo Lewallen (149), Chandler Rogers (165), Derek White (285) 2017: Nick Piccininni (125), Dean Heil (141), Anthony Collica (149), Joseph Smith (157), Kyle Crutchmer (174), Nolan Boyd (184), Preston Weigel (197), Austin Schafer (285) 2016: Dean Heil (141), Anthony Collica (149), Joseph Smith (157), Alex Dieringer (165), Nolan Boyd (184), Preston Weigel (197), Austin Marsden (285) 2015: Eddie Klimara (125), Dean Heil (141), Anthony Collica (157), Alex Dieringer (165), Kyle Crutchmer (174), Nolan Boyd (184), Austin Marsden (285) 2014: Jon Morrison (133), Anthony Collica (141), Alex Dieringer (157), Tyler Caldwell (165), Chris Perry (174), Austin Marsden (285) 2013: Eddie Klimara (125), Jon Morrison (133), Jordan Oliver (149), Alex Dieringer (157), Tyler Caldwell (165), Chris Perry (174), Chris Chionuma (184), Alan Gelogaev (285) Dual Record 2021-22: 13-4 2021: 10-0 2019-20: 13-3 2018-19: 15-0 2017-18: 13-2 2016-17: 14-1 2015-16: 13-3 2014-15: 12-3 2013-14: 11-5 2012-13: 20-1 Big 12 Tournament Placement 2021-22: 4th 2021: 1st-tie 2019-20: 1st 2018-19: 1st 2017-18: 1st 2016-17: 1st 2015-16: 1st 2014-15: 1st 2013-14: 1st 2013-14: 1st NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 14th (38.5 points) 2021: 3rd (99.5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 3rd (84 points) 2017-18: 13th-tie (37.5 points) 2016-17: 3rd (103 points) 2015-16: 2nd (97.5 points) 2014-15: 7th (65 points) 2013-14: 3rd (96.5 points) 2012-13: 2nd (119.5 points) Head Coaching History John Smith (1992-present) Best Lineup (comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Nick Piccininni: 2x NCAA All-American (4th, 5th), 2020 NWCA First Team All-American, 4x Big 12 Champion 133 - Daton Fix: 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 2nd, 2nd), 2x NCAA #1 seed, 3x Big 12 Champion 141 - Dean Heil: 3x NCAA All-American (1st, 1st, 4th), 2x NCAA #1 seed, 3x Big 12 Champion 149 - Jordan Oliver: 4x NCAA All-American (1st, 2nd, 1st, 4th), 3x NCAA #1 seed, 4x Big 12 Champion 157 - Alex Dieringer: 4x NCAA All-American (1st, 1st, 1st, 3rd), 4x Big 12 Champion, 2016 Hodge Trophy Winner 165 - Tyler Caldwell: 2x NCAA All-American (2nd, 3rd), 2x Big 12 Champion, 2x All-American for Oklahoma (2nd, 5th) 174 - Chris Perry: 3x NCAA All-American (1st, 1st, 3rd), 4x Big 12 Champion 184 - Nolan Boyd: 2x NCAA All-American (6th, 4th), 3x Big 12 Champion 197 - AJ Ferrari: 2021 NCAA Champion, 2021 Big 12 Champion 285 - Derek White: 2019 NCAA Runner-Up, 2x Big 12 Champion Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #10 Jordan Williams (OK), #23 Anthony Ferrari (OK), #34 Zach Blankenship (OK) 2021: #15 Victor Voinovich (OH), #21 Travis Mastrogiovanni (NJ), #37 Kyle Haas (KS), #142 Teague Travis (OK), #186 Cooper Birdwell (MT), #210 Talmadge Carman (UT), #214 Luke Mechler (WI) 2020: #1 AJ Ferrari (TX), #4 Dustin Plott (OK), #14 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (NJ), #33 Jakason Burks (NE), #36 Luke Surber (OK), #58 Konner Doucet (OK), #132 Daniel Jezik (IL) 2019: #9 Reece Witcraft (OK), #27 Brevin Balmeceda (FL), #56 Daniel Manibog (TX) 2018: #3 Travis Wittlake (OK), #53 Anthony Montalvo (CA) 2017: #1 Daton Fix (OK), #15 Kaden Gfeller (OK) 2016: #27 Keegan Moore (MN), #58 Wyatt Sheets (OK), #89 Ethan Anderson (IA) 2015: #7 Nick Piccininni (NY), #9 Kaid Brock (OK), #16 Joseph Smith (OK), #42 Boo Lewallen (OK), #65 Andrew Marsden (IL), #66 Lincoln Olson (MI), #119 Tristan Moran (AZ) 2014: #2 Chance Marsteller (PA), #13 Chandler Rogers (OK), #16 Ryan Blees (ND), #46 Gary Wayne Harding (OK), #69 Mike Magaldo (NJ), #109 Preston Weigel (KS), #125 Dusty Hone (UT) 2013: #13 Dean Heil (OH), #21 Anthony Collica (OH), #74 Keilan Torres (OK), #138 Zac Gentzler (KS) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio Ohio State Oklahoma

2022 U20 World Team Member Alex Facundo (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Here are the draws for day two of the 2022 U20 World Championships. It will feature all ten of the members of the men's freestyle team. Three have locked up places in the finals, while two others are alive for bronze. The final five will start their tournaments Tuesday morning. 57 kg Gold Medal Match - Jore Volk vs. Merey Bazarbayev (Kazakhstan) Bazarbayev: 2022 Asian Junior Champion, 2021 Asian Cadet bronze medalist 61 kg Qualification - Nic Bouzakis vs. Arslan Rakhimov (Uzbekistan) Rakhimov: 2022 Asian Junior bronze medalist, Two-time Asian Cadet finalist (2018 1st) 65 kg Bronze Medal Match - Vince Cornella vs. TBD 70 kg Gold Medal Match - Mitch Mesenbrink vs. Kanan Heybatov (Azerbaijan) Heybatov: 2021 European Junior Champion, 2x European Cadet bronze medalist 74 kg Round of 16 - Alex Facundo vs. Erfan Elahi (Iran) Elahi: 2022 Asian Junior Champion, 2021 Junior World Champion, 2019 Cadet World silver medalist, 2019 Asian Cadet silver medalist 79 kg Repechage - Brayden Thompson vs. Bekir Ovec (Turkey) Ovec: ??? 86 kg Qualification - Bennett Berge vs. Gurgen Simonyan (Armenia) Simonyan: ??? 92 kg Round of 16 - Jaxon Smith vs. Ion Demian (Moldova) Demian: 2022 European Junior Champion, 2019 Cadet World fifth place 97 kg Gold Medal Match - Ben Kueter vs. Rifat Gidak (Turkey) Gidak: 2021 Cadet World Champion, 2021 European Cadet bronze medalist 125 kg Quarterfinal - Nick Feldman vs. Georgi Ivanov (Bulgaria)/Ryusei Fujita (Japan) winner Ivanov: 2022 European Junior bronze medalist, 2021 Junior/U23 World participant Fujita: ???

57 kg U20 World Finalist Jore Volk (photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan; UWW) The 2022 U20 World Championships got started with a bang, at least from an American perspective. Men's freestyle was at the forefront on day one and the team did not disappoint. Of the five wrestlers who competed Monday, three are in the gold medal finals, another will wrestle for bronze, and another is alive in repechage. While each wrestler had their own story, the overarching theme of the day was the gas tanks and never-say-die attitude of the US wrestlers. The majority of the American wrestlers had to grit out wins in come-from-behind fashion. The first American to reach the finals was the smallest wrestler, Jore Volk. After a close 2-2 period, where the Wyoming-signee led on criteria, 2-2, Volk blew the match open in the second. Volk scored a takedown on the edge, following a reshot, and was allowed to start from par terre, as a result of a penalty point for fleeing. In the ensuing restart, Volk gained two sets of two points from a gut wrench and four more for a lift. Initially, the bout was ruled over; however, after a challenge, Luke Gvinjilia was given a pair of points for exposure at the tail end of the sequence. The Georgian was able to capitalize on this, to an extent, as he posted a takedown and another two points for a leg lace, but that was it. The damage was done and Volk prevailed 13-6. In Volk's first bout he was able to get by an Iranian opponent, Ahmad Mohammad Nezhad Javan, who had earned a bronze medal at U23 World's last year. The second finalist for the American contingent was Mitch Mesenbrink at 70 kg. Mesenbrink was able to wear down both of his opponents in the quarters and semis with a ridiculous gas tank. Though he was trailing in the second period of the semifinal bout 3-0 to Armenia's Hayk Papikyan, it was evident that the first three and a half minutes of movement and handfighting took its toll on the Armenian. Mesenbrink scored the last six points of the bout and faced little resistance in doing so. The Cal Baptist signee also posted wins by technical superiority in his first two contests. The only high schooler of the bunch, Ben Kueter at 97 kg, showed maturity beyond his years. Kueter quickly fell behind European bronze medalist Luka Khutchua of Georgia 8-0, after a takedown and three subsequent turns. Although he was only one score away from match termination, Kueter never was flustered and chipped away at his Georgian opponent. At the break, the two were embroiled in a 9-9 shootout. Kueter continued to attack in the final period and piled on for a 17-14 victory. Cornell's Vince Cornella was the fourth semifinalist for the Americans, but he fell to Umidjon Jalolov of Uzbekistan, 4-0. To get to the semis, Cornella picked up a huge 6-5 win over 2021 Cadet World fifth-place finisher Mohammad Shakeri of Iran. The win is expected to be significant since Iran figures to be in the team race. With Cornella's loss, Shakeri is now out of medal contention. Cornella will have to wait for two repechage matches before finding his bronze medal opponent. Brayden Thompson at 79 kg lost his opening bout, a hard-fought 6-1 affair to Iran's Sobhan Yari. Yari went on to win his next two matches 8-0 and 9-6 to make the finals and pull the American back into repechage. 57 kg Men's Freestyle Round of 16 - Jore Volk over Ahmad Mohammad Nezhad Javan (Iran) 7-5 Quarterfinals - Jore Volk over Azizbek Naimov (Uzbekistan) 7-2 Semifinals - Jore Volk over Luka Gvinjilia (Georgia) 13-6 Gold Medal Match: Jore Volk vs. Merey Bazarbayev (Kazakhstan) 65 kg Men's Freestyle Qualification: Vince Cornella over Olzhas Olzhakanov (Kazakhstan) 8-0 Round of 16: Vince Cornella over Ismail Pomakov (Bulgaria) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Vince Cornella over Mohammad Shakeri (Iran) 6-5 Semifinals: Umidjon Jalolov (Uzbekistan) over Vince Cornella 4-0 Bronze Medal Match: vs. TBD 70 kg Men's Freestyle Qualification: Mitch Mesenbrink over Muhammad Abdurachmanov (Belgium) 12-0 Round of 16: Mitch Mesenbrink over Kanat Kerimbekov (Kyrgyzstan) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Mitch Mesenbrink over Hossein Mohammad Aghaei (Iran) 9-7 Semifinals: Mitch Mesenbrink over Hayk Papikyan (Armenia) 6-3 Gold Medal Match: Mitch Mesenbrink vs. Kanan Heybatov (Azerbaijan) 79 kg Men's Freestyle Round of 16: Sobhan Yari (Iran) over Brayden Thompson (USA) 6-1 Repechage Matchup: Brayden Thompson vs. Bekir Ovec (Turkey) 97 kg Men's Freestyle Round of 16: Ben Kueter over Dmitrii Duscov (Moldova) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Ben Kueter over Niraj (India) 8-1 Semifinals: Ben Kueter over Luka Khutchua (Georgia) 17-14 Gold Medal Match: Ben Kueter vs. Rifat Gidak (Turkey)

Kenny Monday with Becka Leathers at Final X 2019 (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) In last-October of 2021, news spread that Morgan State would revive their wrestling program and become the only current Historically Black College and University (HBCU) institute at the DI level to offer wrestling. Since then, little news regarding the program has been released. That changed today as 1998 Olympic Gold Medalist Kenny Monday was named the team's head coach. Monday is a two-time Olympic medalist (silver in 1992) and a two-time world finalist (gold in 1989). Since then he's held various coaching positions, most recently as the head coach of SPIRE Institute, a high school in Ohio. Before that, Monday was the head coach of the Tar Heel Wrestling Club. Under his watch, the program had Jordan Oliver win the 2020 Olympic Team Trials and Macey Kilty, who was injured in the finals. Before his success on the international scene, Monday won a national title for Oklahoma State at 150 lbs in 184. In each of the previous two seasons, Monday fell to Nate Carr (Iowa State) in the national finals. He is a member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and became the first Black wrestler to win an Olympic gold medal. In addition to Monday's accolades, his son's have also found success on the wrestling mat. Kennedy was a four-time national qualifier for North Carolina, while Quincy was a 2022 NCAA runner-up for Princeton, with another year of eligibility remaining. Morgan State previously fielded a wrestling team, but that was disbanded after the 1996-97 season. The program has been restored after a huge donation from the HBCU Wrestling initiative, one that aims to re-establish wrestling at multiple HBCU's.

Mitch Mesenbrink at the U20 Trials (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Monday morning marks the first day of the 2022 U20 (Junior) World Championships from Sofia, Bulgaria. Action will get underway with five weight classes worth of men's freestyle. Earlier today, draws were released. Below are the five American competitors who will compete on day one and information about their first round opponents. Most of these opponents have more credentials than listed below; however, we've just highlighted the most significant or relevant results. 57 kg Men's Freestyle Jore Volk vs. winner or Ahmad Mohammad Nezhad Javan (Iran)/Simone Piroddu (Italy) Mohammad Nezhad Javan: 2021 U23 World bronze medalist Piroddu: 2022 European Junior Champion, 2021 Junior/U23 World Team rep, 2018 Cadet World bronze medalist 65 kg Men's Freestyle Vince Cornella vs. Olzhas Olzhakanov (Kazakhstan) Olzhakanov: 2022 Asian Junior bronze medalist, 2019 Asian Cadet bronze medalist 70 kg Men's Freestyle Mitch Mesenbrink vs. Muhammad Abdurachmanov (Belguim) Abdurachmanov: 2022 European Junior silver medalist 79 kg Men's Freestyle Brayden Thompson vs. Sobhan Yari (Iran) Yari: 2022 Asian Junior Champion 97 kg Men's Freestyle Ben Kueter vs. Dmitrii Duscov (Moldova) Duscov: 2021 Junior World Team rep

Kayla Miracle at the 2021 World Championships (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The final piece of the 2022 Senior World Team puzzle was put into place this afternoon as USA Wrestling determined its 62 kg representative in women's freestyle. This wrestle-off was pushed back to August because of a knee injury suffered by returning representative Kayla Miracle. She and Jennifer Rogers were entangled in a back-and-forth three-match series before a winner was decided. When it was all said and done, Miracle came out on top, but not after a scare in the opening bout and a deficit in the final contest. Match one started with a failed arm throw attempt from Miracle. Rogers was able to keep her weight back and ended up with the first takedown of the bout and a 2-0 lead. Miracle quickly rebounded with a takedown of her own with a sweep single and a takedown for two points. As the first period ensued, it became apparent that Miracle was laboring through the bout. Rogers regained the lead with a score off a single leg herself. She was close to another takedown in the waning second of the opening stanza, but was able to garner one from a push-out. Rogers' scrambling ability was the difference-maker in the second period. After a prolonged scramble, Rogers finally secured a takedown, followed immediately by a pair for exposure. The NLWC star put the finishing touches on a match-one win with a four-pointer, during another scramble. That put the margin at 11-points and resulted in a match termination. Rogers had a commanding 1-0 lead in the series after a 13-2 victory. The second bout was the opposite of the first. Miracle came out firing right away and almost ended the match with an early fall after a dump. Even so, the 2021 World silver medalist held a commanding 4-0 lead, which she added to with a gut wrench. Miracle looked to extend her advantage with another gut attempt, but Rogers stepped over for two points of her own. Miracle continued to pour it on with another leg attack, which resulted in two more points after getting exposure while attempting to finish. A leg lace made the score 10-2. Facing an eight-point deficit, Rogers tried an arm throw, but it was Miracle who scored a takedown with pushed the bout into tech range, 12-2. The Miracle win set up a third, winner-take-all contest from Lancaster's McCaskey high school. Miracle tried to get on the board quickly with a pair of arm throw attempts. One was ruled a slip, while the other resulted in a stalemate. Once Miracle was deemed passive and put on the shot clock, it was Rogers who broke the tie with a takedown followed by a point for the shot clock violation. Rogers looked to be coasting to a win and her spot on the world team, however, Miracle kept pushing and the two were engaged in a funky position near the edge. Miracle hipped over and forced Rogers' back to the mat for four points, at the edge. That proved to be the difference as Miracle prevailed 5-3 and earned her fourth Senior World/Olympic team berth.

From left: Kamal Bey, Keegan O'Toole, Amit Elor (Bey photo courtesy of Marion Stein/Others Kadir Caliskan) We are less than two days away from the 2022 U20 (Junior) World Championships, which are set to take place in Sofia, Bulgaria. The three American squads headed to Bulgaria are all very talented and capable of coming away with an impressive medal haul. Since the competitors are all 20 and under, they aren't too far off from making a strong impression on the Senior level, too. Below we have tables with U20 (Junior) world medalists across all three styles since 2010. There are plenty of familiar names that have gone on to have success at the collegiate and Senior level since. Hopefully, a week from now, we'll be in the process of adding more than a dozen names to these lists. Men's Freestyle 2016-21 Men's Freestyle 2010-15 Women's Freestyle Men's Greco-Roman

2015 NCAA champion Cody Brewer (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Oklahoma! NCAA Qualifiers (63) 2022 #19 Joey Prata (125 lbs), #23 Tony Madrigal (133 lbs), #25 Jacob Butler (141 lbs), #16 Willie McDougald (149 lbs), #13 Justin Thomas (157 lbs), #27 Anthony Mantanona (174 lbs), #27 Keegan Moore (184 lbs), #13 Jake Woodley (197 lbs), #30 Josh Heindselman (285 lbs) 2021 #11 Tony Madrigal (133 lbs), #5 Dom Demas (141 lbs), #13 Mitch Moore (149 lbs), #10 Justin Thomas (157 lbs), #23 Anthony Mantanona (174 lbs), #26 Jake Woodley (197 lbs), #19 Josh Heindselman (285 lbs) 2020 #31 Christian Moody (125 lbs), #16 Tony Madrigal (133 lbs), #5 Dom Demas (141 lbs), #17 Justin Thomas (157 lbs), #9 Anthony Mantanona (174 lbs), #18 Jake Woodley (197 lbs) 2019 #29 Christian Moody (125 lbs), #9 Dom Demas (141 lbs), #16 Davion Jeffries (149 lbs), #21 Justin Thomas (157 lbs), #18 Jake Woodley (197 lbs) 2018 Christian Moody (125 lbs), Davion Jeffries (149 lbs), DaWaylon Barnes (165 lbs), #14 Yoanse Mejias (174 lbs) 2017 Christian Moody (125 lbs), Mike Longo (141 lbs), #11 Davion Jeffries (149 lbs), #12 Clark Glass (157 lbs), Yoanse Mejias (165 lbs), Matt Reed (174 lbs), Brad Johnson (197 lbs), Ross Larson (285 lbs) 2016 #5 Ryan Millhof (125 lbs), #4 Cody Brewer (133 lbs), Davion Jeffries (149 lbs), #15 Clark Glass (165 lbs), Matt Reed (174 lbs), Ross Larson (285 lbs) 2015 #13 Cody Brewer (133 lbs), #10 Justin DeAngelis (157 lbs), Clark Glass (165 lbs), Matt Reed (174 lbs), #15 Ross Larson (285 lbs) 2014 #6 Jarrod Patterson (125 lbs), #13 Cody Brewer (133 lbs), Nick Lester (141 lbs), #4 Kendric Maple (149 lbs), Justin DeAngelis (157 lbs), #2 Andrew Howe (174 lbs), #7 Travis Rutt (197 lbs), Ross Larson (285 lbs) 2013 #8 Cody Brewer (133 lbs), #2 Kendric Maple (141 lbs), Nick Lester (149 lbs), Matt Lester (157 lbs), #6 Bubby Graham (165 lbs) NCAA Champions Cody Brewer (133 - 2015) Kendric Maple (141 - 2013) NCAA All-Americans 2021: Jake Woodley (197 - 6th) 2019: Dom Demas (141 - 4th) 2016: Ryan Millhof (125 - 7th), Cody Brewer (133 - 3rd) 2015: Cody Brewer (133 - 1st) 2014: Cody Brewer (133 - 8th), Kendric Maple (149 - 8th), Andrew Howe (174 - 2nd) 2013: Cody Brewer (133 - 7th), Kendric Maple (141 - 1st) NWCA All-Americans Tony Madrigal (133 - Honorable Mention Dom Demas (141 - First Team) Anthony Mantanona (174 - Second Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Joey Prata (2022 - 125) Jake Woodley (2022 - 197) Dom Demas (2021 - 141) Mitch Moore (2021 - 149) Justin Thomas (2019 - 157) Matt Reed (2016 - 174) Jarrod Patterson (2014 - 125) Bubby Graham (2013 - 165) Big 12 Conference Champions 2021: Dom Demas (141) 2019: Dom Demas (141) 2016: Ryan Millhof (125), Cody Brewer (133) 2015: Cody Brewer (133) 2014: Jarrod Patterson (125), Kendric Maple (149) 2013: Kendric Maple (141) Dual Record: 2021-22: 8-6 2021: 5-5 2019-20: 5-7 2018-19: 10-6 2017-18: 8-11 2016-17: 11-6 2015-16: 10-5 2014-15: 3-10 2013-14: 9-3 2012-13: 4-6 Big 12 Tournament Placement 2021-22: 2nd 2021: 1st-tie 2019-20: 6th 2018-19: 4th 2017-18: 6th 2016-17: 2nd 2015-16: 2nd 2014-15: 3rd 2013-14: 2nd 2012-13: 3rd NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 29th (11 points) 2021: 24th (17 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 25th (18.5 points) 2017-18: 56th-tie (1 point) 2016-17: 32nd (9.5 points) 2015-16: 13th (33.5 points) 2014-15: 18th (29.5 points) 2013-14: 10th (45 points) 2012-13: 12th (38.5 points) Head Coaching History Lou Rosselli (2016-Present) Mark Cody (2011-2016) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Ryan Millhof: 2016 NCAA Qualifier (#5 seed), 2016 NCAA All-American (7th), 2016 Big 12 Champion, 2x NCAA Qualifier for Arizona State 133 - Cody Brewer: 4x NCAA All-American (3rd, 1st, 8th, 7th), 2015 NCAA Champion, 2x Big 12 Champion 141 - Dom Demas: 3x NCAA Qualifier, 2019 NCAA All-American (4th), 2020 NWCA First Team All-American, 2x Big 12 Champion 149 - Kendric Maple: 4x NCAA Qualifier, 3x NCAA All-American (8th, 1st, 4th), 2013 NCAA Champion, 3x Big 12 Champion 157 - Justin Thomas: 4x NCAA Qualifier, 2019 NCAA Round of 12 Finisher 165 - Bubby Graham: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#6 seed), 2013 NCAA Round of 12 Finisher 174 - Andrew Howe: 2014 NCAA Runner-Up, 3x NCAA All-American for Wisconsin (3rd, 1st, 2nd), 3x Big Ten Champion 184 - Keegan Moore: 2022 NCAA Qualifier 197 - Jake Woodley: 4x NCAA Qualifier, 2021 NCAA All-American (6th), 2022 NCAA Round of 12 Finisher 285 - Ross Larson: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#15 seed), 2015 Big 12 Runner-Up Recruiting Number of Big Boarders Per Year 2022: #36 John Wiley (OK), #51 Joey Cruz (CA); #227 Christian Forbes (OK) 2021: #9 Alejandro Herrera-Rondon (PA), #19 Tate Picklo (OK), #118 Jared Hill (OK), #219 Ryder Wiese (OK) 2020: #24 Greyden Penner (MO), #49 Caleb Tanner (OK), #172 Willie McDougald (NY), #193 Cabe Dickerson (OK) 2019: #46 Jake Stiles (IL), #55 Darrien Roberts (PA), #64 Sam Dover (OH) 2018: #75 Tony Madrigal (IL), #94 Tommy Hoskins (OH) 2017: #18 Jake Woodley (PA), #22 Tanner Litterell (OK), #31 Anthony Mantanona (CA), #43 Dom Demas (OH) 2016: #38 Jeremy Thomas (CA), #44 Justin Thomas (CA), #122 Dalton Duffield (OK) 2015: #38 Sean DeShazer (KS), #57 Davion Jeffries (OK), #63 Dylan Lucas (OK), #75 Christian Moody (OK) 2014: #25 Ryan Millhof (GA), #68 Lance Dixon (OK), #84 Lance Dixon (OK), #104 Andrew Dixon (OK), #137 Jacob Rubio (TX) 2013: #17 Oliver Pierce (TX), #112 Shayne Tucker (CA) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio Ohio State

2019 Senior World Team member Patrick Downey (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Normally here at InterMat, we scour the globe for all the MMA fighters with a wrestling background. However, this week Bellator has made it quite easy. On Friday Bellator 284 goes down at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D., and the card is absolutely stacked with names that are likely familiar to the wrestling community. Veterans of several current and former collegiate programs will be represented including Iowa State, Southern Oregon, Minnesota, Fresno State, Arizona State, and South Dakota State. Austin Vanderford vs. Aaron Jeffery This will be Vanderford's first fight back since he unsuccessfully challenged former middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi for the title back in February. The loss was Vanderford's first professional defeat after beginning his MMA career with 11-straight victories. During his college days, Vanderford was a two-time NAIA All-American and won the NAIA title at 184 pounds in 2012 for Southern Oregon. Jeffery holds a 12-3 record as a professional. Last year, he fought against Caio Borralho on Dana White's Contenders Series but dropped a decision. Since that defeat, he has bounced back with a pair of wins including a victory over Fabio Aguiar in his Bellator debut. Michell McKee vs. Tony Ortega McKee was a four-time NCAA qualifier for Minnesota. As a junior in 2019, he finished sixth to become an All-American. Unfortunately for him, his final year coincided with the canceled NCAA tournament, and he never got the chance to make one final run at the title. McKee made his MMA in 2021 and currently holds a 2-0 record. This past April, he scored a first-round stoppage over Jalen Jackson. This will be his Bellator debut. While McKee's first two opponents came into the bout 0-1, this will be a big step up in competition. Ortega has a 5-4 record and has been fighting professionally since 2014. He comes into this fight after winning back-to-back fights over Nate Morrow and Ashton Caniglia. Patrick Downey vs. Keyes Nelson Downey has apparently recovered from his bout with red skin syndrome and is now ready to make his Bellator and professional MMA debut. While he has participated in several high-profile grappling contests this will be his first MMA fight. The well-traveled wrestler spent time at multiple colleges and finished fifth at Iowa State in 2016 to become an All-American. In 2019 he represented the U.S. at the World Championships and went 2-1 and finished ninth. His original opponent Jeff Souder reportedly pulled out of the contest at the last minute. Downey will now face off against Keyes Nelson, who at a glance appears to be a step down in competition. Nelson turned professional in 2018 and holds an 0-3 record. However, he did score a victory over Souder back in their amateur days. Isaiah Hokit vs. Nick Perez Hokit started his collegiate wrestling career at Drexel before transferring to Fresno State. In his final year in the lineup, he went 2-2 at the Big 12 tournament and finished short of qualifying for the NCAA tournament. Per WrestleStat, his final college record was 39-33. Hokit made his professional MMA debut last year under the Bellator banner, and he was knocked out in only 10 seconds. However, he bounced back earlier this year with a first-round submission over Theodore Macuka. Perez will be making his professional MMA debut. He went 4-4-1 as an amateur with his last fight coming in 2018. He has had two fights scheduled in the interim but both fell through. Sullivan Cauley vs. Tyson Jeffries Cauley was a three-time state placer in his native Nevada, and he continued his wrestling career at Arizona State. He bounced between heavyweight and 197 during his time in Tempe between 2014 and 2017. Cauley currently trains under Bellator heavyweight champion and fellow former Arizona State wrestler Ryan Bader. He made his professional MMA debut under the Bellator banner in 2020 and has all three of his fights by first-round stoppage. Jeffries will certainly have the experience edge in this contest as he holds a 14-10 professional record. However, he has not fought since 2018 and has not won since 2015. Brett Bye vs. M,A, Yah II Bye will continue his amateur MMA career on the Bellator undercard. He was a member of the South Dakota State wrestling team from 2015 to 2019 and is likely getting the shot since the event goes down in Sioux Falls. During his four seasons with the Jackrabbits, Bye went 43-33 and bounced around between 157 and 174 pounds. This past March, he made his amateur debut and scored a decision over Brady Steinhorst. Yah made his amateur debut in 2020 and has built a 4-0 record. He last fought this past March and scored a first-round stoppage over Ali Abouzalam. Vanderford's return fight will kick off the main card, which will air at 9:00pm ET on Showtime. The rest of the fighters will be part of the free YouTube preliminary card set to begin at 6:00pm ET.

2019 Hodge Trophy winner Bo Nickal (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) I told Lady Jagger that I was going into the other room to write the mailbag and instead I'm just sitting here listening to Guns and Roses. Dudes rock. But women rock, too. We in the mailroom (it's just me and Pepe Silvia) support all the women in wrestling from the athletes to the coaches, and the media to the moms. My mom was the sports dad in my family for us when we were growing up. I don't even think I ever agreed to wrestle when I was seven years old. I remember my brother being on the team and then some time seemed to pass and I was doing it, too. When we realized my younger brother had some real talent, she was the one who drove him all over the Eastern Seaboard for various tournaments and camps. Pushing him to cut from 58 to 56 pounds because, why not? You crazy, ma. Thanks for igniting my love for wrestling at a young age. Alright, enough about the old battle axe. Let's get to some questions, It's been too long. Should Bo Nickal have received a contract or did Dana White make the right choice? Billie Sims The wrestling world was all a buzz this past week with the sort of soft opening of a Bo Nickal UFC debut on Dana White's Contender Series. I bounced this question around my MMA friends as I'm no expert in the field. The consensus is that Bo is making a mistake by even being on the show at this point, at least from a monetary aspect. I'm told he has much more earning power at the moment going to other promotions and the chance to hone his skills against better competition. Now, the allure of going straight to the UFC and working his way to a title match instead of just trying to earn money might be more important to Bo at the moment. Quite frankly, I find that refreshing. Along with telling everyone else to grab whatever hundred grand they have laying around and bet on him, he's also betting on himself. Clearly, we're all familiar with his talent. I believe his talent transcends all styles and he'll find great success in the octagon. Did Dana make the right choice? Well, yeah. He's trying to build this contender series and now he has the hottest prospect in the game headlining his next one. Right now he's more valuable to the brand by bringing eyeballs to that show than he is being the second fight at UFC 1066 at whatever weird time Richard Mann watches these things. Do you approve of this bat flip? I'm thinking it's a little excessive but if a Met did it, would you be all in? Jkos22 For the record, this is about a clip from the Korean Baseball Organization where a guy flips the bat about as far as he hit the ball. I love bat flips! As long as it's meaningful in the game. Walk off? Flip it, baby! Revenge for getting buzzed? Flip it and glance while you walk to first base. Just don't go flipping bats on a solo shot down 7-2 in the eighth. With Top Gun smashing the box office this summer, is this the season of the mustache in college wrestling? Jersey Hokie I sure hope not. As a man who grew up in the non-ironic mustache era, I just don't get it. You poor guys beat your faces up enough over the season. Why would you make yourself look worse? If I had to pick one guy I want to see it on, It's Hoagie Hidlay. The big man is now in the second half of his college career. Time for a gimmick tweak. Who will be the next wrestler to come down with the dreaded red skin syndrome? Richard Mann Sir, this is a mailroom. Now onto a flurry of questions from the King of Italians and Twitter Spaces, Seth Petarra. Do you see Michael Beard making a deep run and placing high for Lehigh? I do. I think he's a potential finalist. What about Pitt's loaded full-blooded Italian team? Top ten potential at NCAAS? I need to see them in action first before I make that call. Don't get Ed Gallo's hopes up just yet. I did hear they're changing their name to the Petarra Panthers for a few duals this year to pay tribute. Do you have any plans for my birthday on Monday? At this point, I feel like I'm driving with Thurman Merman from Bad Santa with these questions. Rumor has it that a second run of Philly Wrestling shirts and a possible particular senior athlete is coming soon. Are you the same shirt size as last year or have you been hitting the gym? Kevin McGuigan I'm proud to announce that I have stepped up to a medium-size shirt. I'm a big boy now! I think a Tyler Berger shirt might look just fine on me. What a loaded collection of talent at the PRTC right now. I finally had to retire my favorite work pants but I made them into jorts. (much to my kids' horror) What is the proper length? Keep in mind this is the west coast and not Jersey. LMRMock Apparently, we've hit the fashion portion of the mailbag. First off, there's no wrong length for a pair of denim jean shorts. As we all know, I like ‘em high. But if they're for actual function then I recommend right above the knee. There's nothing worse than kneeling up and down while your knee gets chafed by some denim that's been around since the gold rush. Who are your favorite and least favorite burner accounts? Oldest & Greatest If I leave one legacy on Twitter when I'm gone, it's that I'm the undisputed king of being followed by all random burner/parody/accounts. Some are strictly to snoop around, some truly try to run with the gimmick, and some are there just to tell you to go have intercourse with yourself. Either way, they all seem to follow Jagger712. They hit all the recommended follows then they hit up me and Rhino. I don't really know why. We must be the Kings of Trash. Hey, it got me this far. I love all my burner friends except Criteria over OT. Have a good weekend, all! Let's go Mets!

Jennifer Rogers (left) and Kayla Miracle (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Saturday afternoon in Lancaster, Pennsylvania will be the site for the final piece of the Senior World Team puzzle as Kayla Miracle and Jennifer Rogers square off to determine the world team representative at 62 kg in women's freestyle. Both are veterans who are quite capable of coming home from Serbia with a medal; however, there can be only one! As is the case with all matches conducted at Final X, this will be handled in a best-of-three format. This series was originally slated to take place in New York, but Miracle and her team requested it be pushed back due to an injury. History: You don't have to look very far to find a recent meeting between these two women. Miracle and Rogers met in the finals of the 2022 US Open less than four months ago. Even though she didn't "have" to wrestle at the Open, Miracle entered for mat time and the feel of preparing for a major tournament. A silver medal at the 2021 World Championships locked up a spot in Final X for Miracle; however, she wrestled at the Open anyways. In the match itself, Miracle quickly fired off a sweep single and deliberately looked for a finish. Once Rogers hung her head, momentarily, Miracle locked up a cradle and got a fall. The entire match took only :18. The pair found themselves together in the same bracket at two major trials events in 2021, but never met head-to-head. Miracle set in the finals of the Olympic Team Trials, while Rogers fell in the semifinals of the challenge tournament to Maya Nelson. After the Olympics, both were in the 62 kg World Team Trials. Once again, Rogers advanced to the semifinals, but was knocked off by past world medalist Mallory Velte. Like at the Olympic Trials Challenge Tournament, Rogers wrestled back for third place. Miracle: Kayla came onto the scene as a child prodigy winning three medals at the age-group level, before wrestling for her father, Lee, at Campbellsville University. While at Campbellsville, Miracle rolled to four national titles and was a central figure in the Tigers WCWA National Championship. Along the way, Miracle made a pair of U23 World Teams, coming up a match shy of placing on two occasions. 2019 proved to be a breakthrough year for Miracle, as she made her first Senior World Team and captured a silver medal at U23 worlds. Since, Miracle has put some distance between herself and most of the competitors domestically in the 62 kg class. After missing out on an Olympic medal, Miracle got her first pierce of Senior level world hardware when she made the finals of the 2021 World Championships. Along the way, Miracle has been a key player in the development of RTC's at the women's Senior level. She left Campbellsville for the University of Iowa's Hawkeye Wrestling Club and competed under the watchful eye of Mark Perry. Both have since moved on to Arizona State, where Perry and the Sunkist Kids have assembled a deep arsenal of talented Senior level women. Rogers: Jennifer has been competing on the Senior level for more than a decade. While Junior eligible, Rogers earned medals at the Dave Schultz and NYAC and was a member of the World Cup team. Roger made a pair of Junior World teams (2011 and 2012) and came away with a bronze medal in her second trip. In 2015, Rogers captured her first title at an international event when she grabbed gold at the Pan-American Championships. Six years later, she'd do it again. In between Pan-Am titles, Rogers dealt with a variety of injuries and spent significant time on the shelf. Since she has moved on to the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club and has been rejuvenated as a key player domestically. In 2020 and 2021, Rogers won US Open/Senior National titles and was featured on NLWC cards. The finals appearance at the 2022 Open locked up a spot for Rogers in the World Team Trials a few weeks later in Coralville, Iowa. After a quarterfinal bye, Rogers needed just over two minutes to dispose of Emmily Patneaud (10-0), which locked up a spot in the best-of-three finals. Opposite Rogers was Macey Kilty, a 2020 Olympic Team Trials finalist, who took a match from Kayla Miracle. Unfortunately, like at the Olympic Trials, Kilty was injured early in the opening period of match one against Rogers and could not continue. That gave Rogers the victory and put her in Final X opposite Miracle. Summary: Miracle has to be considered a significant favorite here. I wouldn't necessarily expect an :18 second match like the Open finals, though. Rogers is seasoned and talented enough to push Miracle, especially if she's not 100%. If Rogers can keep it close in match one, we'll see if any time off the mat or any lingering injuries affect Miracle's conditioning.

Penn Head Coach Roger Reina (right) and assistant coach Mark Hall (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Yesterday, a second Ivy League school released its 2022-23 schedule. Two weeks ago, it was Princeton; Wednesday it was Penn. The Quakers sport a preseason dual ranking of #16 and have ten returning national qualifiers on their roster. With continually improving results on the recruiting front, combined with an RTC that has exploded in growth, we can only guess that Penn will keep moving up the national rankings. The 2022-23 Quaker schedule features a great variety of competition, from teams inside and outside of the conference, in dual and tournament formats. Before we get to Penn's schedule breakout, associate head coach, Bryan Pearsall had this to say about the schedule itself: "Our goal with the competition schedule is always to best prepare our wrestlers for the EIWA and NCAA Championships. We focus on creating a schedule that will lead to as many as possible qualifying for the NCAA's and earning seeds, in the process, that will position them to earn All-American status. There is a lot to consider within the qualification process and strength of schedule is a main one. The year's schedule is definitely a step up in difficulty from previous years. With 10 NCAA qualifiers returning next year, who were all top-six in the conference, we feel the time is right to step it up as we continue to climb the mountain." Duals versus 8 teams in InterMat's summer dual rankings :(#2 Iowa, #5 Cornell, #10 Wisconsin, #19 North Carolina, #21 Lehigh, #24 Princeton, #26 Rutgers, #30 Stanford) One ACC Team: North Carolina Three Big Ten Teams: Iowa, Rutgers, Wisconsin One Pac-12 Team: Stanford Two other teams from Pennsylvania: Drexel and Lehigh Teams that finished in the top 30 at the 2022 NCAA Championships: (8) #3 Iowa, #7 Cornell, #14 Wisconsin, #15 Princeton, #18 North Carolina, #19 Stanford, #20 Rutgers, #25 Lehigh Home Slate: American, Army West Point, Brown, Harvard, Lehigh, North Carolina, Princeton Away: Columbia, Cornell, Drexel, Iowa, Stanford Neutral Site: Rutgers, Wisconsin November 13th - Journeymen Collegiate Classic @ Bethlehem, Pennsylvania This should be a good season-opening event for the Quakers. They will be involved in the first day of action, which consists of individual pool action. Wrestlers will only have a couple of bouts on the day; however, they will find strong competition. November 20th - Keystone Classic A staple of Penn wrestling is the Keystone Classic in mid-to-late November. There are some mainstays that traditionally visit the Palestra for this event and will return. Some include Appalachian State, Duke, F&M, George Mason, Harvard, Rider, and Sacred Heart. A new face is the #15 ranked tournament team, Virginia Tech. Additionally, Appalachian State and Harvard have some big guns that put them in the top 30 in a tournament format, too. November 26th - #2 Iowa @ Iowa City, Iowa Here's the big one! Penn won't sit around and fatten up on turkey this Thanksgiving, they'll be traveling to meet national contender Iowa, two days after the holiday. A battle between two squads with the majority of their lineups ranked could yield great matches at many weights, but we'll single out 133 and 141 as two to watch. We've never seen #14 Cullan Schriever as the full-time starter for the Hawkeyes, but suspect he'll be an All-American threat. It'll be a good barometer as Schriever faces the returning EIWA champion, Michael Colaiocco. A match later, two returning All-Americans could clash as Penn's #4 CJ Composto is slated to meet #2 Real Woods. The two met in the 2022 NCAA consolations and Woods dominated with a 16-0 tech fall. Aside from the 133/141 lbers, Iowa also features two-time Hodge Trophy winner Spencer Lee (125), NCAA finalist Jacob Warner (197), and multiple-time AA Tony Cassioppi (285). December 4th - Garden State Grapple (Rutgers, Wisconsin) @ Newark, New Jersey Just about a week after taking on Iowa, Penn has another pair of Big Ten opponents on the ledger. Rutgers has ranked wrestlers at seven of the ten weight classes and should present a challenge for Penn, those the Quakers outrank Rutgers by ten spots. At 125 lbs, Ryan Miller and Rutgers' Dylan Shawver should be a close contest. The two met at the MatMen Open and Miller prevailed in sudden victory. At the event, the two likely starters at 149 lbs, Anthony Artalona and Rutgers' Anthony White, did battle. Again, it was a close one, won by the Penn wrestler. The Badger lineup featured past All-Americans at half of the ten weight classes. Some of the top matchups include 133 lbs with Colaiocco and Greco-Roman star Taylor LaMont. A 2021 All-American, LaMont has made seven age-group world teams. At 149, two-time NCAA Round of 12 finisher, Artalona, takes on Big Ten champion Austin Gomez, in what is sure to be a fireworks-filled match. December 9th - Army West Point The first EIWA contest of the season comes as Army West Point travels south for a dual. One of the headlining bouts of this dual takes place at 157 lbs between #10 Doug Zapf and #28 Nathan Lukez of Army. Last season, Zapf fell to Lukez's teammate Markus Hartman at the EIWA Championships, despite a disparity in their ranking. Another EIWA rematch takes place at 174 lbs, with #18 Nick Incontrera of Penn and #20 Ben Pasiuk. This time it was the Quaker who got his hand raised after a fall. While Army is unranked, they've recruited extremely well, compete hard, and should make for a tight dual. December 29/30th - Midlands Championships @ Evanston, Illinois This Midlands is always one of the best regular season bracketed tournaments in the country and this year should be no exception. There will be plenty of Big Ten and midwestern teams in attendance to challenge the Quakers. January 6th - Franklin & Marshall Open @ Lancaster, Pennsylvania With a dual against #19 North Carolina looming a day later, we may not see the entire starting lineup for the Quakers in Lancaster. While it's difficult to forecast entries at open tournaments, looking at last year's tournament, we could see wrestlers from Army, Virginia, Navy Prep, Lock Haven, Columbia, Brown, and North Carolina. January 7th - #19 North Carolina Speaking of the Tar Heels, UNC will visit Philly for a top-20 dual with Penn. 141 lbs should be an excellent matchup between the All-American Composto and freshman Lachlan McNeil. McNeil is a member of the Canadian Senior team and should improve upon his #21 ranking by the time of this match. Two prominent Florida natives are set to square off at 149 with Artalona and 2021 All-American Zach Sherman. 157 also has an intriguing match with Zapf and #7 Austin O'Connor. January 15th - #30 Stanford @ Palo Alto, California This could be the beginning of a fun rivalry as Stanford will be led by second-year head coach, Rob Koll, formerly an Ivy League rival at Cornell. At 125 lbs, Miller could face Nico Provo, who has been extremely impressive competing unattached and in freestyle. Once again, Artalona has another high-profile opponent. He'll have 2021 All-American #10 Jaden Abas. Stanford also features 2021 NCAA champion and two-time finalist #2 Shane Griffith at 165 lbs. That should make for a difficult day for #21 Lucas Revano. January 20th - #21 Lehigh Traditional EIWA opponents rekindle their rivalry in Philly as Lehigh comes in. We could see a preview of the conference final at 157 lbs between Zapf and #9 Josh Humphreys. The two met twice in the regular season and split matches. Humphreys ended up third in the league and Zapf was fifth. Lehigh was the recipient of a pair of high-profile transfers in the upperweights. One of which, 2021 All-American #8 Michael Beard, matches up with #23 Cole Urbas. 125 could be intriguing as well, with whoever Lehigh sends out. #23 Jaret Lane had his moments last year, but ended up injured down the stretch. January 22nd - Columbia @ New York, New York Penn's first Ivy League dual comes against an up-and-coming Columbia squad. The best match comes at 141 lbs as Composto takes on #11 Matt Kazimir. This was an EIWA finals matchup from 2022, a match won by Kazimir, though he did not place at nationals. The Lions also have former EIWA runner-up, Joe Manchio, at 125. A two-time national qualifier, Manchio met Miller twice last year, but fell on both occasions. The other veteran star for Columbia, #11 Josh Ogunsanya, is at 165 lbs. In his only 2021-22 meeting with Revano, Ogunsanya snuck by with a 3-2 decision. January 27th - Brown We'll have to wait and see to figure out what the 2022-23 Brown team looks like under first-year head coach Jordan Leen. January 28th - Harvard While Harvard still needs some building to compete in a dual with Penn, they do have some outstanding individuals. 2022 EIWA champion (at 165 lbs) #9 Phil Conigliaro could be challenged by #18 Incontrera. At heavyweight, Harvard is expected to have #5 Yaraslau Slavikouski back in the fold. Last year, he defeated two past/future AA's to make the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational finals. Slavikouski should clash with #19 Ben Goldin. February 5th - #5 Cornell @ Ithaca, New York Could this be the year that Penn surpasses traditional Ivy power, Cornell? The Big Red is expected to send out three returning All-Americans, one at 125/133 (Vito Arujau), another at 149 (Yianni Diakomihalis), and 184 lbs (Jonathan Loew). They should be significant favorites against Penn at each weight. The most evenly contested match could be at 174 lbs with Incontrera and #11 Chris Foca. Foca won 4-2 in dual competition, but had to default due to injury at the EIWA Championships. February 10th - #24 Princeton If Penn could get by Cornell, they'd still have to contend with Princeton, a team that boasts a pair of returning NCAA finalists. Pat Glory at 125 and Quincy Monday, likely at 165. If Monday moves up, as expected, he'll have a new Quaker opponent in Revano. The final two bouts could be some of the best of this dual with Urbas and #15. At heavyweight, Goldin has #24 Matthew Cover. Stout took both of their 2021-22 matches, while Goldin owns a pair of wins over Cover. February 12th - Drexel @ Philadelphia, Pennsylvania One of the most prestigious trophies in college wrestling will be on the line as neighbors Penn and Drexel do battle, hoping for possession of the Cheesesteak Trophy. Drexel has a returning EIWA champion at 174 win Mickey O'Malley. During the regular season, Incontrera was pinned twice by O'Malley. The familiarity between the two must have caught up at the EIWA meet as, O'Malley needed tiebreakers to prevail. Drexel's other 2022 qualifier, #25 Evan Barczak, had three close matches with Revano, so another is probably in the works here. February 19th - American Penn's Senior Day opponent is American. The Eagles did not have any national qualifiers in 2022, but should be much improved this year. Their best grappler was Jack Maida, who finished fourth in the EIWA at 133 lbs. He and Colaiocco did not meet in 2021-22; however, Maida did defeat his backup, Blair Orr, 5-2. March 4/5th - EIWA Championships @ Home The Quakers will get the opportunity to host the 2023 EIWA Championships. Getting sleep in their own beds and warm-up in familiar surroundings, should only benefit Penn as they look to capture a conference title, in what will likely be a tight team race between Cornell, Princeton, and Lehigh.

4x NCAA and Big Ten champion Logan Stieber (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) NCAA Qualifiers (87) 2022 #12 Malik Heinselman (125 lbs), #17 Dylan D'Emilio (141 lbs), #4 Sammy Sasso (149 lbs), #7 Carson Kharchla (165 lbs), #7 Ethan Smith (174 lbs), #7 Kaleb Romero (184 lbs), #21 Gavin Hoffman (197 lbs), #13 Tate Orndorff (285 lbs) 2021 #10 Malik Heinselman (125 lbs), #30 Dylan D'Emilio (141 lbs), #1 Sammy Sasso (149 lbs), #7 Ethan Smith (165 lbs), #7 Kaleb Romero (174 lbs), #24 Rocky Jordan (184 lbs), #21 Tate Orndorff (285 lbs) 2020 #27 Malik Heinselman (125 lbs), #1 Luke Pletcher (141 lbs), #3 Sammy Sasso (149 lbs), #12 Ethan Smith (165 lbs), #6 Kaleb Romero (174 lbs), #14 Rocky Jordan (184 lbs), #1 Kollin Moore (197 lbs), #19 Gary Traub (285 lbs) 2019 #25 Malik Heinselman (125 lbs), #5 Luke Pletcher (133 lbs), #2 Joey McKenna (141 lbs), #2 Micah Jordan (149 lbs), #11 Ke-Shawn Hayes (157 lbs), #21 TeShan Campbell (165 lbs), #19 Ethan Smith (174 lbs), #1 Myles Martin (184 lbs), #2 Kollin Moore (197 lbs), #16 Chase Singletary (285 lbs) 2018 #2 Nathan Tomasello (125 lbs), #3 Luke Pletcher (133 lbs), #4 Joey McKenna (141 lbs), #5 Ke-Shawn Hayes (149 lbs), #7 Micah Jordan (157 lbs), #13 TeShan Campbell (165 lbs), #6 Bo Jordan (174 lbs), #2 Myles Martin (184 lbs), #1 Kollin Moore (197 lbs), #1 Kyle Snyder (285 lbs) 2017 Jose Rodriguez (125 lbs), #1 Nathan Tomasello (133 lbs), #12 Luke Pletcher (141 lbs), #4 Micah Jordan (149 lbs), Cody Burcher (165 lbs), #3 Bo Jordan (174 lbs), #6 Myles Martin (184 lbs), #3 Kollin Moore (197 lbs), #1 Kyle Snyder (285 lbs) 2016 #1 Nathan Tomasello (125 lbs), #10 Johnni DiJulius (133 lbs), #6 Micah Jordan (141 lbs), Jake Ryan (157 lbs), #3 Bo Jordan (165 lbs), #11 Myles Martin (174 lbs), Kenny Courts (184 lbs), #2 Kyle Snyder (285 lbs) 2015 #4 Nathan Tomasello (125 lbs), #4 Johnni DiJulius (133 lbs), #1 Logan Stieber (141 lbs), Hunter Stieber (149 lbs), #6 Josh Demas (157 lbs), #5 Bo Jordan (165 lbs), #10 Mark Martin (174 lbs), Kenny Courts (184 lbs), #4 Kyle Snyder (197 lbs), Nick Tavanello (285 lbs) 2014 Nick Roberts (125 lbs), #9 Johnni DiJulius (133 lbs), #2 Logan Stieber (141 lbs), Ian Paddock (149 lbs), #14 Mark Martin (174 lbs), #10 Kenny Courts (184 lbs), #1 Nick Heflin (197 lbs), Nick Tavanello (285 lbs) 2013 #11 Nikko Triggas (125 lbs), #1 Logan Stieber (133 lbs), #1 Hunter Stieber (141 lbs), Ian Paddock (149 lbs), Josh Demas (157 lbs), Mark Martin (165 lbs), #8 Nick Heflin (174 lbs), Cody Magrum (184 lbs), Andrew Campolattano (197 lbs) NCAA Champions Kyle Snyder (285 - 2016, 2017, 2018) Myles Martin (174 - 2016) Nathan Tomasello (125 - 2015) Logan Stieber (133/141 - 2013, 2014, 2015) NCAA All-Americans 2022: Sammy Sasso (149 - 5th), Carson Kharchla (165 - 7th), Kaleb Romero (184 - 6th), Gavin Hoffman (197 - 6th) 2021: Sammy Sasso (149 - 2nd), Ethan Smith (165 - 5th), Tate Orndorff (285 - 8th) 2019: Luke Pletcher (133 - 4th), Joey McKenna (141 - 2nd), Micah Jordan (149 - 2nd), Myles Martin (184 - 3rd), Kollin Moore (197 - 2nd) 2018: Nathan Tomasello (125 - 3rd), Luke Pletcher (133 - 4th), Joey McKenna (141 - 3rd), Micah Jordan (157 - 6th), Bo Jordan (174 - 5th), Myles Martin (184 - 2nd), Kollin Moore (197 - 4th), Kyle Snyder (285 - 1st) 2017: Nathan Tomasello (133 - 3rd), Micah Jordan (149 - 4th), Bo Jordan (174 - 2nd), Myles Martin (184 - 5th), Kollin Moore (197 - 3rd), Kyle Snyder (285 - 1st) 2016: Nathan Tomasello (125 - 3rd), Bo Jordan (165 - 3rd), Myles Martin (174 - 1st), Kyle Snyder (285 - 1st) 2015: Nathan Tomasello (125 - 1st), Logan Stieber (141 - 1st), Bo Jordan (165 - 3rd), Kenny Courts (184 - 5th), Kyle Snyder (197 - 2nd) 2014: Logan Stieber (141 - 1st), Nick Heflin (197 - 2nd) 2013: Logan Stieber (133 - 1st), Hunter Stieber (141 - 3rd), Nick Heflin (174 - 5th) NWCA All-Americans Luke Pletcher (141 - First Team) Sammy Sasso (149 - First Team) Ethan Smith (165 - Second Team) Kaleb Romero (174 - First Team) Kollin Moore (197 - First Team) Round of 12 Finishers Ethan Smith (2022 - 174) Tate Orndorff (2022 - 285) Kaleb Romero (2021 - 174) Rocky Jordan (2021 - 184) TeShan Campbell (2019 - 165) Ke-Shawn Hayes (2018 - 149) Micah Jordan (2016 - 141) Kenny Courts (2014 - 184) Nick Tavanello (2014 - 285) Josh Demas (2013 - 157) Big Ten Conference Champions 2021: Sammy Sasso (149) 2020: Luke Pletcher (141), Kollin Moore (197) 2019: Joey McKenna (141), Myles Martin (184) 2018: Nathan Tomasello (125), Joey McKenna (141), Kollin Moore (197), Kyle Snyder (285) 2017: Nathan Tomasello (125), Bo Jordan (174), Kollin Moore (197), Kyle Snyder (285) 2016: Nathan Tomasello (125), Kyle Snyder (285) 2015: Nathan Tomasello (125), Logan Stieber (141) 2014: Logan Stieber (141), Nick Heflin (197) 2013: Logan Stieber (133), Hunter Stieber (141) Big Ten Runner's-Up 2021: Ethan Smith (165) 2020: Sammy Sasso (149) 2019: Luke Pletcher (133), Micah Jordan (149), Kollin Moore (197) 2018: Luke Pletcher (133), Micah Jordan (157), Myles Martin (184) 2017: Micah Jordan (149), Myles Martin (184) 2016: Bo Jordan (165) 2015: Bo Jordan (165), Kyle Snyder (197) Dual Record 2021-22: 9-3 2021: 5-4 2019-20: 10-4 2018-19: 12-2 2017-18: 14-1 2016-17: 11-3 2015-16: 11-3 2014-15: 13-4 2013-14: 13-5 2012-13: 11-4 Big Ten Tournament Placement 2021-22: 4th 2021: 9th 2019-20: 3rd 2018-19: 2nd 2017-18: 1st 2016-17: 1st 2015-16: 3rd 2014-15: 1st 2013-14: 4th 2012-13: 4th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 13th 2021: 9th 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 2nd 2017-18: 2nd 2016-17: 2nd 2015-16: 3rd 2014-15: 1st 2013-14: 6th 2012-13: 6th Head Coaching History Tom Ryan (2006 - Present) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Nathan Tomasello: 4x All-American (3rd, 3rd, 3rd, 1st), 2015 NCAA Champion, 4x Big Ten Champion 133 - Logan Stieber: 4x NCAA Champion, 4x Big Ten Champion, 2015 Hodge Trophy Winner 141 - Joey McKenna: 2x All-American (2nd, 3rd), 2x Big Ten Champion, 2016 All-American for Stanford (3rd) 149 - Sammy Sasso: 2x All-American (2nd, 5th), 2020 NWCA 1st Team All-American, 2021 Big Ten Champion, 3x Big Ten finalist 157 - Micah Jordan: 3x All-American (2nd, 6th, 4th), 3x Big Ten Runner-Up 165 - Bo Jordan: 4x All-American (5th, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd), 2017 Big Ten Champion, 3x Big Ten finalist 174 - Nick Heflin: 3x All-American (2nd, 5th, 5th), 2014 Big Ten Champion, 2x Big Ten finalist 184 - Myles Martin: 4x All-American (3rd, 2nd, 5th, 1st), 2016 NCAA Champion, 2019 Big Ten Champion, 3x Big Ten finalist 197 - Kollin Moore: 3x All-American (2nd, 4th, 3rd), 2020 NWCA 1st Team All-American, 3x Big Ten Champion, 4x Big Ten finalist 285 - Kyle Snyder: 4x All-American (1st, 1st, 1st, 2nd), 3x Big Ten Champion, 4x Big Ten finalist Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #1 Nick Feldman (PA), #4 Jesse Mendez (IN), #5 Nic Bouzakis (FL), #22 Luke Geog (OH), #50 Seth Shumate (OH), #131 Gavin Brown (OH) 2021: #1 Paddy Gallagher (OH), #40 Andre Gonzales (CA), #218 Bryer Hall (IN), #247 Chase Liardi (NY) 2020: #106 Bryce Hepner (OH) 2019: #1 Greg Kerkvliet (MN), #4 Carson Kharchla (OH), #5 Jordan Decatur (OH), #32 Dylan D'Emilio (OH), #50 Isaac Wilcox (UT) 2018: #6 Gavin Hoffman (PA), #10 Sammy Sasso (PA), #26 Malik Heinselman (CO), #33 Jadon Mattox (OH), #45 Quinn Kinner (NJ), #48 Rocky Jordan (OH), #65 JD Stickley (OH), #88 Alex Felix (CA) 2017: #10 Chase Singletary (FL), #16 Kaleb Romero (OH), #33 Ethan Smith (MD) 2016: #8 Luke Pletcher (PA), #69 Elijah Cleary (FL) 2015: #4 Myles Martin (NJ), #11 Ke-Shawn Hayes (MO), #47 Jose Rodriguez (OH), #81 Kollin Moore (OH) 2014: #1 Kyle Snyder (MD), #6 Micah Jordan (OH), #9 Thomas Haines (PA), #144 Ryan Harris (OH) 2013: #1 Bo Jordan (OH), #10 Nathan Tomasello (OH) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio

New Pennsylvania RTC member Tyler Berger (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Philadelphia, Pa. - Pennsylvania Regional Training Center Executive Director and Head Coach Brandon Slay has announced the addition of Senior Athlete Tyler Berger as a full time resident athlete. Berger will compete at 70kg while representing the PRTC at domestic and international competitions. "We are extremely thankful to be adding Tyler Berger to our PRTC family," said Slay. "He really fits our team culture because he believes and lives out our core values. At 70kg, he is an ideal addition for Joey, Jordan, Dave, and Mark. We look forward to helping Tyler reach his full potential on and off the mat." Berger was a NCAA Finalist and 3-time All-American at the University of Nebraska. He placed 5th, 3rd, and 2nd while compiling a career record of 138-39 for the Cornhuskers. Upon graduation in 2019, Berger stayed in Lincoln as a Volunteer Assistant for the team. He is one of the most decorated wrestlers in Nebraska history. With his commitment to the PRTC he will be re-connecting with his mentor and former training partner, Jordan Burroughs. "I got to watch Tyler grow from a young Husker recruit to one of the best wrestlers in the country," says Burroughs, a 2011 Nebraska grad who joined the PRTC in 2021. "He lives with an uncompromising standard of excellence and he's also committed to being not only a great wrestler but a great man. He's going to undoubtedly help expand upon our strong culture here, and I'm glad to be teammates with him once again!" Berger is a current member of the USA National Freestyle team. He recently placed third at the World Team Trials Challenge Tournament in Coralville, Iowa this past May. On his way to taking the bronze medal match, he defeated a pair of NCAA National Champions in Anthony Ashnault and Ryan Deakin. The PRTC's representative at 65kg, Joey McKenna is certainly looking forward to his new training partner. "Tyler and I have rubbed shoulders and competed against each other since our youth wrestling days at Tulsa Nationals," said McKenna. "He has proven to be a top competitor at the collegiate and senior levels. He's always competed with class. He's going to be a tremendous asset to our team in Philadelphia and I'm excited for the opportunity to sharpen each other on and off the mat." Berger is planning to move east upon completion of the upcoming US World Team Training Camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO. The camp runs from August 10th-20th and all of Berger's new teammates will be attending. He and his wife, Sydnee, will settle in Philadelphia after the camp. "I feel extremely blessed about the opportunity to join the PRTC," said Berger. "I care about winning wrestling matches but I care even more about surrounding myself with men who are committed to their families, their friends, and their community. The PRTC embodies these values. My wife and I can't wait to join the team and start this next chapter of our lives."