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Schweer to lead University of Rio Grande wrestling program
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
RIO GRANDE, Ohio -- Jason Schweer has been tabbed as the head coach of the University of Rio Grande's new men's wrestling program. Athletic director Jeff Lanham made the announcement Friday afternoon. Jason SchweerThe 31-year-old native of Waverly, Iowa comes to the RedStorm after spending the past season as the associate head coach at the University of the Ozarks, an NCAA Division III school in Clarksville, Arkansas. "I'm fired up. It's not every day that you get the opportunity to build something from the ground up," Schweer said. "Coming from Arkansas where, in many ways, wrestling is still pretty new to southeastern Ohio - where you're right in the heart of wrestling country - is a tremendous opportunity to grow our sport. I'm looking forward to getting started." A graduate of North Iowa Area Community College and Grand View (Iowa) University, Schweer was a two-time NJCAA Academic All-American, as well as an NAIA Scholar-Athlete and Grand View's 2012 Champion of Character honoree. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Grand View in the fall of 2013 before moving on to the University of Ozarks in the fall of 2015, where he was an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Schweer also spent one season as the head coach at Kansas Wesleyan University before the school scrapped the program. He returned to the University of the Ozarks in June 2019 and spent the past season there. "There's a lot of good and bad and in between when you're the man, but I'm ready to get back in the saddle and be a head coach again," said Schweer. "Rio's location is right, the timing is right and the institution itself is a great avenue to educate kids and grow our sport. It's something I definitely want to be a part of." Schweer has coached with three national tournament qualifiers during his career, as well as a number of All-American performers - both on the mat and in the classroom. "Jason has multiple years of experience with collegiate wrestling and this is a great opportunity for him to put his stamp on the initial wrestling team here at Rio Grande," Lanham said. "We're looking forward to seeing what the future holds and we're excited to add him to our Rio athletic family." Rio Grande's wrestling program, which will get off the ground beginning with the 2020-21 school year, will compete as an affiliate member of the Mid-South Conference. Given the limited amount of time he'll have to get things up and rolling, Schweer knows the task with which he's been afforded is a daunting one. "I think the biggest challenge is going to be getting out in front of people, telling them about Rio and letting everybody know that we have wrestling. Getting us on the map within the wrestling community will be the big hurdle," he said. "I'd probably feel a lot different if it were January instead of almost April. There's no question we're going to have to hustle, that's for sure. (University of Rio Grande) President (Ryan) Smith said I needed to start yesterday." Schweer, whose resume also includes fundraising and game day administration duties, said his eventual goal is to have somewhere in the neighborhood of 40-45 athletes on the roster each season. "Can I go out and get 40 kids right away? Probably not. Realistically, I'd like to have 15-20 to start with. From there, we'll work to bring in 10-15 every year," he said. "Right now, I'm just trying to figure out when I can get up there. Then it's a matter of shaking trees, hootin' and hollerin' and trying to round up some kids." Once Schweer does make it to campus, Lanham said he's confident that the RedStorm faithful - and wrestling enthusiasts from throughout the Tri-State area - will welcome him with open arms. "Jason's very aware of the solid wrestling tradition in our local landscape and he's excited to get started with the recruiting process," said Lanham. "He's worked side-by-side with some of the most successful coaches in collegiate wrestling and he's got a vision for how to provide a great academic and athletic experience for our wrestlers. I think the community will enjoy his knowledge, ability and enthusiasm." University of Rio Grande (formerly Rio Grande College) is a private four-year university located in the town of Rio Grande in southern Ohio, near the Ohio River. Founded in 1872, Rio Grande has an enrollment of 2,300 students. -
Nick LeForce comes on to The MatBoss Podcast to talk about one of the most polarizing topics in high school wrestling, transferring. LeForce went to four different high schools in four years and has a unique take on the position. LeForce tried to balance the desire to wrestle with battling a broken back on multiple occasions. Host Chad Dennis joins LeForce to discuss the situations involving transferring and his opinions on it now. LeForce is currently coaching with the Prodigy Wrestling Academy. About MatBoss: Created by coaches for coaches, MatBoss for iPad® integrates wrestling stats directly into the video you record for each match, completely replacing the need for labor-intensive pencil and paper scoring systems. It's the wrestling stats app our sport has been waiting for. Focus on coaching, not busy work Improve through video analysis Make data an advantage Eliminate scoring errors Increase exposure Become a digital coach For more information, visit MatBossApp.com. Follow MatBoss on Twitter and subscribe to the show @MatBossApp | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Spreaker | Google Podcasts | RSS
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Cary Kolat coaching at the NCAAs (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Former national champion and Olympic team member Cary Kolat has been named head wrestling coach at Navy it was announced Friday by Naval Academy Director of Athletics Chet Gladchuk. Kolat has established himself as one of the premier coaches in the sport after building a Campbell program into a Southern Conference power and a national name. The Camels have seen unprecedented success over the last four seasons, winning three SoCon Tournament titles (2017, 2019, 2020) and two regular-season SoCon Championships (2019, 2020). Under his tutelage, he has had 19 NCAA Championship qualifiers, 12 individual SoCon Champions and 28 medalists at the SoCon Tournament. "The Navy community is very pleased to welcome one of the most accomplished competitors and finest coaches in the sport of wrestling to Annapolis," said Gladchuk. "The influence with which Coach Kolat's resume has had on so many speaks volumes to his commitment to success at every level of competition. I am extremely impressed with his professionalism, technical knowledge, ambition and confidence, along with the manner in which he exudes an enthusiastic will to win. Today is a big day for our midshipmen and our program as we turn the head coaching responsibilities over to a coach with great anticipation and widespread enthusiasm." "I am honored to accept the position of head wrestling coach at the United States Naval Academy," said Kolat. "I would like to thank Navy Director of Athletics Chet Gladchuk for the opportunity he has given me to lead this program. I did not get to where I am on my own, so I feel very fortunate that some of my staff will be joining me. We have big plans for Navy wrestling and we are looking forward to getting our feet on the ground in Annapolis and begin moving forward. Go Navy!" The Camels wrapped up the 2019-20 season by posting an 11-2 record that featured wins in each of their last nine duals. Among that nine-match winning streak, CU put together an undefeated mark (7-0) in conference action. Campbell secured its second straight and third overall SoCon Tournament Championship in four years thanks to crowning five individual champions. A program-record six wrestlers qualified for the NCAA Championship for a second consecutive year. Among those qualifiers were three wrestlers seeded among the top 10, including 133-pound Noah Gonser, a three-time NCAA qualifier who was named the 2020 SoCon Wrestler of the Year. Josh Heil (141), meanwhile, is also a three-time NCAA qualifier and the school's first three-time SoCon Champion. At 184 pounds Andrew Morgan was ranked as high as No. 6 in the nation, winning the 2020 SoCon title and qualifying for his second NCAA Championship. Campbell, who ranked as high as No. 12 in the country (InterMat), completed a sweep of its regular-season conference schedule with a 35-13 win at Davidson on February 23, claiming its second straight league dual championship. The dual title is the first outright regular-season championship for the Camels in program history, while its undefeated conference record also was also a first. In 2018-19, the Camels captured their second SoCon Tournament title in three years, while also earning the school's first regular-season conference championship. CU earned a share of the SoCon dual title with a 5-1 league mark to go along with a 7-1 overall dual record. It earned the program's first top-25 national ranking, while placing a program-best 10th at the prestigious Midlands Championship. Campbell sent a school-record six to the NCAA Championships in 2019, while eight total Camels earned spots on the podium at the SoCon Championships, with all 10 wrestling for medals. Kolat was named one of eight finalists for NWCA Coach of the Year, and was named SoCon Coach of the Year following the program's tournament win. Additionally, Campbell earned National Wrestling Coaches Association Division I Academic Team honors for the third-straight year. The Camels finished 13th nationally in the standings with a 3.28 team grade-point average, posting a top-25 academic finish for the fifth time in program history. In 2017-18, the Camels boasted a top-three finish in the SoCon and ranked in the top-25 of the NWCA Division I All-Academic team standings. After winning the SoCon Championship in 2017, CU placed third in 2018, and took ninth in the NWCA All-Academic team ranks. Four Camels made the individual NWCA All-Academic team, including Jere Heino, Austin Kraisser, Andrew Morgan and Quentin Perez, while five medaled at the 2018 SoCon Championships, highlighted by Jere Heino's title at heavyweight. Following the 2017-18 season, Kolat was named 2017 USA Wrestling Women's Co-Coach of the Year, joined by John Smith for the honor, and named by USA Wrestling. Smith and Kolat were the official 2017 Women's World Team coaches, working with National Coach Terry Steiner and leading the U.S. women in Paris, France to an impressive second-place finish. The team was led by World champion Helen Maroulis, World silver medalist Alli Ragan and World bronze medalist Becka Leathers. In 2016-17, Kolat led Campbell to its first Southern Conference Championship. After posting a 6-1 record and second place in the regular season, the Camels went 16-4 in the first two rounds of the 2017 SoCon Championship, including a perfect 10-0 mark in the first round, with two Camels claiming individual titles, and six in total making the podium. The Camels sent five student-athletes to the 2017 NCAA Championships where Nathan Kraisser earned the program's first All-America citation after defeating Freddie Rodriguez of SIUE, 4-1. During the 2014-15 season, Nathan Kraisser and Ville Heino earned NCAA bids after winning SoCon titles. On June 2-3, Kolat was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a member of the 41st Annual Class. Kolat is recognized as a Distinguished Member for the Modern Era. The NWHOF recognizes distinguished members as a wrestler who has achieved extraordinary success in national and/or international competition; a coach who has demonstrated great leadership in the profession and who has compiled an outstanding record; or a contributor whose long-term activities have substantially enhanced the development and advancement of the sport. Kolat arrived at Campbell prior to the 2014-15 season after serving as associate head coach at North Carolina from 2010-14. During Kolat's tenure in Chapel Hill, he was involved in all phases of the UNC program and helped improve the team's national ranking from 57 to 22. In addition, he served as head coach at the Olympic regional training center in Chapel Hill where he trained Olympic-level athletes. Kolat has also served on wrestling staffs at Lehigh, Wisconsin, West Virginia and his alma mater, Lock Haven. A two-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion, Kolat was a four-time All-American who went on to compete in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. A three-time World Cup gold medalist, he also won World silver and bronze medals. His career also includes three U.S. Open championship medals and a pair of Pan-Am Games first-place finishes. Kolat was a member of the U.S. National Team from 1991-2002. In the summer of 2011, Kolat returned to competitive wrestling, was a finalist at the U.S. Open and competed in the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials. Kolat won four-straight state titles and compiled a perfect 137-0 record at Jefferson-Morgan High School in Green County Pa. He was named Outstanding Wrestler at the state meet each year, an honor no other wrestler had won even twice. Kolat began his decorated collegiate career at Penn State, where he advanced to the NCAA finals as a freshman. After his sophomore year, he garnered All-America honors for the second-straight season and was named Big Ten Conference Wrestler of the Year. In two seasons at Penn State, Kolat compiled a 61-6 record, including a 39-1 mark as a sophomore. He transferred to Lock Haven, where he won his first NCAA Division I National Championship in 1996 with a 25-1 record. He finished 25-0 as senior when he won the 142-pound national title. He completed his college wrestling career with a 111-7 overall record and 53 pins. Kolat earned his Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice from Lock Haven in 2003. He and his wife, Erin, are the parents of two daughters - Zoe and Gracie, and a son Ryder.
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Kenny Monday and Coleman Scott coaching Tony Ramos (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Two-time Olympic medal-winning wrestler. Three-time NCAA All-American for Oklahoma State. Four-time Oklahoma high school state champ. National Wrestling Hall of Fame honoree. Now Kenny Monday has added to his impressive list of honors, as his name is now gracing the gym floor of his high school alma mater in Tulsa, Okla., along with fellow Booker T. Washington alum -- and Olympic gold medalist in basketball -- Waymon Tisdale. The floor at the Nathan E. Harris Field House at Booker T. Washington High School now bears its official new name, the Monday/Tisdale Court. "Those two individuals had a great athletic impact at Booker T. and nationally," Tulsa Public Schools athletic director Gil Cloud said Wednesday. "It's amazing that it took eight years for this to happen, but we wanted to make sure we got this done." As for Cloud's reference to "eight years" ... here's how the Tulsa World described the history of the effort to name the basketball court after the two Olympic gold medalist alums from Booker T. Washington High: "The court was supposed to have been named for Monday and Tisdale when the Harris Field House officially opened in 2012. But that winter the TPS athletic department was in turmoil until Cloud became athletic director on Feb. 7 -- three days before the facility's first game. Cloud was not aware of the naming plans when he was hired." Kenneth Dale "Kenny" Monday was born in Tulsa on November 25, 1961. Monday was a 1980 graduate of Tulsa's Booker T. Washington High, where he won four Oklahoma state mat titles in four different weight classes, while complying a near-perfect 140-0-1 prep record. Monday then headed west to Stillwater to wrestle at Oklahoma State, where he wrestled at 150 pounds. He was a three-time NCAA All-American, twice as a runner-up, winning the title at the 1984 NCAAs. As a Cowboy, Monday compiled an impressive 121-12-2 overall record. He graduated from Oklahoma State in 1984. In addition to his folkstyle wrestling success, Kenny Monday made a name for himself in international freestyle competition. He won the gold medal at 163 pounds at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, becoming the first African-American wrestler to earn Olympic gold. Four years later, Monday brought home a silver at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona ... then placed sixth at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Other world-class victories included the 1988 Tblisi Tournament, the 1989 World Championships, the 1991 Pan American Games and the President's Cup in Turkey, the 1992 Roger Coulon in France and the 1996 Dan Kolov Tournament in Bulgaria. With all these mat honors, Kenny Monday is currently one of four American wrestlers who have won the Junior Nationals, NCAA Championships, World Championships, and Olympic Games. For these accomplishments, Monday was welcomed as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Okla. in 2001. Monday now coaches at the Tar Heel Wrestling Club at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
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Despite the cancellation of the 2020 NCAA Wrestling Championships, it is once again time to select the top wrestler in the collegiate ranks as voting will soon begin for the 2020 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy. Eight Division I wrestlers, who finished the season undefeated going into the NCAAs, have been named as finalists for the award, which is presented each year by ASICS and called by many the "Heisman Trophy of wrestling". This year's finalists are (alphabetically) West Virginia sophomore Noah Adams (197), Northwestern junior Ryan Deakin (157), Princeton sophomore Pat Glory (125), Stanford freshman Shane Griffith (165), Iowa junior Spencer Lee (125), Ohio State senior Kollin Moore (197), Minnesota sophomore Gable Steveson (Hwt) and Cornell senior Charles Tucker (133). Official ballots for the Hodge Trophy Voting Committee made up of past all past Hodge winners, a retired college coach from each region, and national media members will begin on Monday, March 23. The ballot will include a breakdown of each wrestler's record from this past season. In addition, the official Fan Vote for the 2020 Hodge will also begin at 12:00 pm CST on March 23 on www.WIN-magazine.com. The Fan Vote winner will receive an additional two first-place votes. In past years, voting has swelled to as many as 140,000 unique votes in a given year as it is a public way to celebrate the dominant seasons of college wrestling's top individuals. The award is named after the great Dan Hodge, who was a three-time NCAA champ (1955-57) at the University of Oklahoma. Hodge was 46-0 with 36 pins and never allowed a takedown in his college career. Primary criteria for the award are a wrestler's record, number of pins, dominance and quality of competition. Past credentials, sportsmanship/citizenship and heart are used as secondary criteria in years where two finalists stats are nearly equal. The 2020 Hodge winner will be announced at 12 pm CST on Monday, March 30. For a complete list of past winners and the award stories, click here.
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NCAA withdrawal? Fill the void with online championship videos
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
NC State's Darrion Caldwell stunned Iowa's Brent Metcalf in the NCAA finals in 2009 (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Normally, this is the time of year when college wrestling fans are focused on the NCAA Wrestling Championships. This year, things are different, with the NCAA canceling championship events for all winter sports, including all three divisions of wrestling championships, because of the coronavirus COVID-19. To help wrestling fans deal with the loss of the top college mat tournaments this year, InterMat thought it could help by providing links to online videos, including classic one-on-one championship matches such as Gable vs. Owings ... along with videos of old-school films that provide you with a matside seat at NCAA championships going back as far as 1937 ... and, a link to video of the finals of the 2020 Big Ten conference championships held earlier this month. All-time NCAA individual matchups: The upsets ... The late amateur wrestling historian Jay Hammond -- author of the classic "The History of Collegiate Wrestling" book -- shared with this writer his choices for the three individual finals matches that rank as the greatest upsets in NCAA championship history. Here they are, in ranked order. You can watch them online: 1. Larry Owings defeats Dan Gable, 1970 NCAAs Iowa State senior Dan Gable had not suffered a loss in his entire combined high school and college wrestling career. However, Larry Owings -- a sophomore from the University of Washington -- had set his sights on denying Gable his third NCAA title -- and perfect record -- at the 1970 NCAAs at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., dropping down to 142 pounds with the stated purpose of avenging his loss to Gable at the 1968 Olympic Trials. Watch the video and see how Owings figured out a way to make Gable's prep/collegiate mat record be 181-1. 2. Darrion Caldwell upsets Brent Metcalf, 2009 NCAAs Prior to the 149-pound finals at the 2009 NCAAs, most fans figured that Iowa's Brent Metcalf, the defending champ, would notch another victory to his 69-match win streak. However, North Carolina State's Darrion Caldwell had other plans. The Wolfpack wrestler took Metcalf down twice in the first period -- the first time that had happened to the Hawkeye -- ultimately winning the match -- and the title -- 11-6. Here's how the N.C. State sports information department reported what happened after its wrestler had his arm raised in victory: "Following the match, as Caldwell began his victory celebration, Metcalf gave Caldwell a big shove and was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct, costing Iowa a valuable team point ..." 3. Jack Flasche tops Phil Kinyon, 1962 NCAAs Link: 1962 NCAAs on film How did this match from nearly 60 years ago earn the No. 3 spot on Hammond's list of all-time great NCAA finals upsets? In a nutshell, Flasche, an unseeded 157-pounder from University of Northern Colorado, handed Oklahoma State's Phil Kinyon -- top-seeded, undefeated defending champ who just missed making the U.S. freestyle team for the 1960 Rome Olympics -- his first collegiate defeat ever, in his home gym, Gallagher Hall. As Hammond put it, Kinyon was so feared, a number of wrestlers went up or down a weight class to avoid tangling with him. Another college wrestler of the era told InterMat that Kinyon was "hairy as a bear and built like a brick s**t house." Flasche-Kinyon is the first match on a video of the entire 1962 NCAA championships. ... and a couple undefeated all-time college mat greats 1. Pure perfection: Cael Sanderson defeats Jon Trenge, 2002 NCAAs Iowa State's Cael Sanderson made history by concluding his collegiate mat career with a perfect 159-0 at the 2002 NCAAs in Albany, N.Y., defeating Lehigh's Jon Trenge in the 197-pound finals, 12-4. With his win, Sanderson became only the second four-time NCAA Division I champ (Oklahoma State's Pat Smith did it first) ... but the future Penn State head wrestling coach became the first undefeated four-timer. (Trenge is now wrestling coach at his Pennsylvania high school alma mater.) Can't get enough Cael? Here are links to other Sanderson NCAA championship matches: • 2000 NCAA 184-pound semifinals vs. No. 4 seed Brandon Eggum of University of Minnesota, 6-1. (Eggum is now head coach at Minnesota.) • 2000 NCAA finals @ 184 vs. No. 2 seed Vertus Jones of West Virginia University, 19-6. • 2001 NCAA 184-pound title match vs. No. 3 seed Daniel Cormier, Oklahoma State, 8-4. (Cormier, UFC superstar and champ, is now a California high school wrestling coach.) (Note: Sanderson was the top seed in his weight class each year he wrestled at the NCAAs.) 2. Pure perfection: Dan Hodge pins down another NCAA crown Dan Hodge was one of the all-time great college wrestlers. Wrestling at the University of Oklahoma in the mid-1950s at 177 pounds, Hodge compiled a perfect 46-0 record as a Sooner, with 30 of those wins by pin ... earning him the nicknames "Dangerous Dan" and "Homicide Hodge." In addition to his pinning prowess, Hodge was feared for his crushing grip-strength. One of his college rivals -- who later became a Big Ten and NCAA champ -- said something to the effect of, "When you knew you were going to wrestle Dan Hodge, you didn't get too many good nights' sleep." Hodge also owns the distinction of being one of only two three-time NCAA champs to have pinned all three of his finals opponents. (The other: Oklahoma State heavyweight Earl McCready, 1928-30.) At his second title match -- at the 1957 NCAAs in Pittsburgh -- Hodge pinned Ron Flemming of Franklin & Marshall at 7:31 of what was scheduled to be a nine-minute match. The Hodge-Flemming bout is available for viewing on YouTube. One of the persons who wrote comments on the video was Flemming's wife: "Hodge had not been scored on. Hodge took Ron down, Ron escaped, reversed him, and the crowd went wild. My husband said, after that, Hodge had such a tight hold on him, he thought he was going to stop breathing. Later, Hodge told Flemming's coach, Roy Phillips of F&M, that Flemming was the strongest man he ever wrestled." Old-school NCAA championships captured on film Long before the finals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships were first shown on TV -- or available for viewing online -- a number of host schools filmed the title matches, and made copies of those films available to other colleges. This tradition appears to have begun with the 1937 NCAAs at Indiana State ... and ended a quarter-century later, with the delayed broadcast of highlights of the 1963 NCAAs at Kent State in Ohio on ABC-TV's popular sports anthology show, "Wide World of Sports." 1. 1937 NCAA finals: First on film Link: 1937 NCAAs on film The finals of the 1937 NCAA Wrestling Championships -- held at Indiana State in Terre Haute -- provide a glimpse of college wrestling as it was more than eight decades ago, in what may be the oldest surviving film of the NCAAs available for viewing online. The 1937 NCAAs -- the tenth edition of the national wrestling tournament which first took place at Iowa State in 1928 -- was notable for being the first NCAAs to have been hosted by a school which did not have an intercollegiate wrestling program at the time ... nor does it today. However, before the school cut the Sycamore mat program, it produced Bruce Baumgartner, two-time NCAA heavyweight champ in the early 1980s who went on to worldwide medal-winning acclaim in international freestyle competition. The black-and-white, silent film of the finals -- posted to YouTube by Oklahoma State -- is approximately 50 minutes long. Back then, there were only eight weight classes: 118 pounds, 126, 135, 145, 155, 165, 175, and heavyweight (called unlimited, because, back then, there was no top weight limit as there is today). Matches lasted ten minutes regulation, with up to two, three-minute overtime periods. Most surprising: there was no point scoring system back then. Oklahoma State -- the national powerhouse program of that era -- won the team title, and half of the individual champs, including Stanley Henson, on his way to three NCAA titles. In second place in the team standings was University of Oklahoma, with one champ, Bill Keas. 2. 1946 NCAAs: First after the end of World War II The cancellation of the 2020 NCAA Wrestling Championships wasn't unprecedented. From 1942 to 1945, the Nationals were canceled because of World War II, when most male college students were serving in the military, or employed in the defense industry ... and transportation was a major challenge, thanks to gasoline rationing. After the war ended in August 1945 -- just before students would normally be going back to college for fall -- the NCAA wasn't sure it would conduct a national championship the following spring. However, Oklahoma State and its head coach, Art Griffith, offered to host the 1946 NCAAs, and did, albeit with fewer competitors than in previous years (just 54 wrestlers from 17 schools), mostly from Midwest colleges. Oklahoma State won the team title with 25 points and two champs: David "Buddy" Arndt at 136, and George Dorsch at 175 pounds. University of Northern Iowa placed second with 24 points, and a trio of titlewinners: Cecil Mott at 121, Gerry Leeman at 128, and Bill Koll at 145 pounds. 3. 1956 NCAAs: Wrestling in the heart of the Fifties The 1956 NCAAs, held at Oklahoma State, welcomed 50 mat programs with a total of 177 wrestlers. The host Cowboys won the team title with 65 points, and one individual champ, Myron Roderick at 130 pounds ... with cross-state rival University of Oklahoma coming in second in the team title race, with 62 points and two champs: Dan Hodge at 177 pounds, and Gordon Roesler at heavyweight. (Sadly, the Hodge match is NOT on the film.) Among the 1956 champs with names you might already know: Iowa's Terry McCann at 115 (who went on to win gold at the 1960 Olympics) ... and Ed Peery of Pitt at 125 (a member of the legendary Peery wrestling family). 4. 1962 NCAAs: No shirts, no headgear ... Link: 1962 NCAAs on film As you watch the film of the 1962 NCAA finals, you can't help but notice that it was a time of transition. Not a singlet in sight; most wrestlers wore trunks ... without shirts. Headgear was strictly optional. And ... it was the first year of the NCAA's experiment which devalued all takedowns to one point, except for the initial one scored by each wrestler, which remained two points. (Within a couple years, the NCAA reverted back to classic two-points-for-all-takedowns scoring.) The 1962 NCAA Wrestling Championships returned to Gallagher Hall at Oklahoma State. When it was all over, the host team won the team title with 82 points and three individual champs: Masaaki Hatta at 123 pounds, Ronnie Clinton at 167, and Bob Johnson at 177. In a distant second was Oklahoma, with 45 points and three titlewinners: Mickey Martin at 130, Bill Carter at 137, and Wayne Baughman at 191. Iowa came in third with 34 points, with Hawkeye heavyweight Sherwyn Thorson winning an individual champ. 2020 Big Ten Wrestling Championships Not necessarily interested in climbing into the Wayback Machine to catch wrestling action? The finals matches from the 2020 Big Ten Conference Wrestling Championships are each available for viewing online, as telecast from the Rutgers Athletic Center by Big Ten Network on March 8, 2020. • 125: Spencer Lee (Iowa) vs. Devin Schroder (Purdue) • 133: Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) vs. Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) • 141: Luke Pletcher (Ohio State) vs. Nick Lee (Penn State) • 149: Pat Lugo (Iowa) vs. Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) • 157: Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. Kendall Coleman (Purdue) • 165: Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State) • 174: Mark Hall (Penn State) vs. Michael Kemerer (Iowa) • 184: Aaron Brooks (Penn State) vs. Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) • 197: Kollin Moore (Ohio State) vs. Eric Schultz (Nebraska) • 285: Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. Mason Parris (Michigan) Want to share links to other amateur wrestling videos already available online? Please let us know! -
Wrestlers and coaches get ready to enter the arena at the NCAAs (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) If today were normal, it would be the second day of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Minneapolis. The arena would be quiet. Workers would be cleaning mats as the lights of the concession stand would flicker to attention. Overworked vendors would be ripping open boxes of T-shirts as agents headed to collect tickets paced by. If today were normal, the wrestlers who'd made it through the grueling first day of competition would be weighing in for their chance to punch a ticket to Saturday's finals, or make their way to the title of All-American. They'd be anxious to get on the scale, their hair askew, eyes glossy from a night of poor sleep. Some would be returning from last-minute sprints to shed a pound or two, or stripping off their weight cutting clothes -- sweat streaming out from beneath the trim of their sweatshirts forming wet, darkened circles on the cement ground. If today were normal, groups of coaches would be standing huddled in their chosen corners of the arena with small white cups of coffee in one hand, and a rolled-up bracket in the other. They'd be in their Friday best: an athletic polo with school crest emblazoned on their left pectoral, tucked evenly into their single-pleated khaki pants. They'd be breaking down the technical aspects of an upcoming matchup; who should avoid what next match, who should attack where, and how they matchup up when the next opponent is clear. If today were normal, referees would be streaming out of their hotels -- well-appointed in their black and white striped uniforms. The blue NCAA logo placed just-so, and their outfit impeccable and ready for the 1080 broadcasts. They'd find their place in the arena to sit, prepare and head off to their respective pre-tournament meetings about what to watch for, what they learned on the first day, and how to call difficult scenarios. If today were normal, parents of competitors would be in the breakfast room of a well-lit hotel lobby talking about team points, matchups, and yesterday's terrible officiating. They'd be wearing the school colors, with moms and sisters, wives and daughters wearing the logos of their team on the cheek. Maybe a weight class or two makes it on to a face. The grandparents would sit by and toss in their stories of NCAA tournaments of the past, talk of various cities and finals. They'd be laughing, carrying on, noticing the importance of the moment, but through jokes acknowledging it's temporary and fleeting relevance. If today were normal, the wrestler would soon be leaving weigh-ins and huddling over an offering of bagels, fruit, cream cheeses, and energy bars inside their respective team's locker room. (Penn State's being a well-coordinated complex of rooms scouted out days in advance; Iowa an aggregation of tables in a medical office; the remainder of the teams spread buckshot around arena offices and visitor locker rooms.) After each drink the gaunt faces of wrestlers would start to ripen with color, their eyes moistening as their blood sugar rises and they return to a physical state something more like normal. If today were normal, the journalists -- disrespected by their seat location, hungover from a late night of writing under the influence of craft brews and searching for a chew -- would be milling about their selected row of seats talking shop. Some would post an arm up on a colleague's chair and take a glance at their story, or graphic -- maybe share some gossip about the round's action, or remind each other of future results. Most would be looking for updated brackets. If today were normal, the announcers would be walking across the mats to get to the dais overseeing the action. There would be some sound checks, and off-mic consultations about proper annunciation. The individual mat announcers would be seated at their mats dressed in the suits of a salesman, with slicked back hair accompanying high shone shoes. They'd tighten up to the table, strap on the Flips-like headphones and give their first words to the mat producer on the other end of the microphone. If today were normal, fans would now have started to stream-in, row-by-row filling up the arena according to school allegiances, their color creating a pinwheel of Oklahoma State Orange, Iowa Black + Yellow, Penn State Blue + White, Ohio State Crimson + Gray. Moms and dads brothers and sisters would all be pointing out towards the mats, the grandparents sitting alongside flipping through the day's program. If today were normal, the wrestlers would be littering the mat doing a combination of light jogging, forward rolling, and drilling. They'd be wearing full grey sweat suits -- their tops tucked into the pants, the pants tucked into the socks. One setup, two, and a quick high crotch -- no finish. Setups only. Some would have hit the ground, peeling hands as they go through the motions of their explosive standups. Coaches would be lording over, their brackets clinched in a hand under one arm pit and the other hand sits posted pensively on their mouth. They are the generals reviewing their respective armies. If today were normal, music in the arena would be picking up. More wrestlers would begin to fill the mat, forcing the arena deejay to pump up the volume on DJ Khaled as the schools begin to jockey for spots on the mat. Moms and dads would be sitting in the upper decks, craning down, hands over their eyes, pointing to a "Where's Waldo" drawing trying to find their son amongst a landscape a 200-plus similar looking 18-23 year-old men. If today were normal, the last of morning sessions fans would be arriving through the front gates. Hurried. Anxious to not miss a moment of this, their favorite time of year, their favorite day of the year. If today were normal, referees would be assigned to mats, announcers would be taking one last deep breath, journalists would belly up to their seats, coaches would head into the underbelly of the arena. If today were normal, Jason Bryant would clear his throat, pause, and then bellow out those words we all love to hear, "Wrestlers! Please clear the …" If only today were normal.
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Pennsylvania -- arguably a hotbed for amateur wrestling -- will now have at least one high school with a dedicated girls wrestling program. McCaskey High School in Lancaster will be the first in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to have a girls mat program, thanks to a unanimous vote of the School District of Lancaster in an already-scheduled meeting to address a number of topics, conducted remotely to comply with guidelines designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19, according to Dustin Hockensmith of PennLive.com. "With Tuesday's vote, McCaskey becomes the first school in Pennsylvania to sponsor a girls team, fulfilling the district's commitment to equity and diversity and to leadership that ensures all students have equitable opportunities," wrote Dave Byrne, sportswriter for LancasterOnline.com. "I'm hopeful that other (schools) will see this as a road map and follow suit," said McCaskey Director of Athletics Jon Mitchell. To that end, the bylaws of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) state that 100 member schools must sponsor a sport (such as girls wrestling) before it will consider officially sanctioning that sport and creating its own championship. The McCaskey girls mat program will launch this fall. Current wrestling coach Isaias Rodriguez will oversee both the boys and girls teams at the school. Plans are to hire an assistant coach this summer. Girls high school wrestling has grown exponentially in the past couple years. Currently, 21 states have officially sanctioned girls wrestling, creating separate regular-season competition and state championship events. As recently as the beginning of 2018, six states had separate state wrestling championships for girls: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Tennessee, Texas and Washington State. McCaskey High School is located in Lancaster, between Philadelphia and Harrisburg, the Pennsylvania state capital. The public high school has a total enrollment of approximately 2,700 students.
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Oklahoma State mat alum Jacobe Smith signs with Zinkin MMA
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
Jacobe Smith wrestling MSU's Drew Hughes at the 2019 NCAAs (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Jacobe Smith, an NCAA All-American wrestler for Oklahoma State, has signed a contract with Zinkin MMA, a major mixed martial arts management organization. Smith posted the news on his Facebook page on St. Patrick's Day: As Brandon M. Cain of CowboysRideForFree.com -- an independent website covering Oklahoma State sports -- reported Tuesday, Jacobe Smith will be joining fellow former Cowboy wrestlers Daniel Cormier and Kyle Crutchmer at American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, Calif. Jacobe Smith was a 2018 NCAA All-American wrestler and two-time Big 12 champion at 174 pounds at Oklahoma State. Prior to becoming a Cowboy, Smith won back-to-back national junior college titles in 2015 and 2016 at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. Smith also earned an Oklahoma state title as a wrestler at Muskogee High School, and was a two-time Fargo All-American. In addition to wrestling, Jacobe Smith was a multi-sport athlete at Muskogee, participating in cross country, football and baseball. Seth Duckworth of PistolsFiring.com first reported last June that Jacobe Smith was considering a professional MMA career. "Smith is as explosive as it comes on his feet and his physicality and athleticism are next level. That should transition really well into MMA," according to Duckworth. As to which weight class Jacobe Smith might chose once he starts competing in MMA, Duckworth wrote, "He could possibly bulk up to middleweight (185 pounds) but could also reasonably make the cut down to welterweight (170 pounds)." -
Tom Ryan just concluded his 13th season as Ohio State's head wrestling coach (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) For the past 33 years, Tom Ryan knew exactly where he would be on Thursday morning in the third week of March. On the mat at the NCAA Wrestling Championships. But Thursday, March 19, 2020, was different. For the first time since 1988, Ryan wasn't on the floor wrestling or coaching at the national tournament. Instead of waking up in Minneapolis on Thursday morning for the start of the 2020 NCAA tournament, Ryan was back home in Columbus, Ohio. A week has passed since the NCAAs were canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. It was just after noon on Thursday when the Ohio State head coach sat down in his living room to conduct a phone interview with a reporter. "The first session would have just been starting," Ryan said. "It's hard to believe I am sitting on my couch right now instead of being in an arena packed with people and watching guys chase their dreams. It's very surreal. It's still hard to believe." Ryan woke up at 5:45 a.m. Thursday, grabbed his two dogs and headed out on a brisk 45-minute walk on a trail near his home. During that walk, Ryan's mind was racing. "I was thinking about my seniors, and thinking about the eight guys we had qualified for NCAAs," he said. "And I was thinking about the 330 athletes who earned the right to compete at the national tournament. I really feel bad for all of those people. "At the same time, I am thinking about people in the hospitals who are battling for their lives. There is a much bigger picture. You keep it all in perspective. That's the reality and we have to remember that. We don't want to put anyone's health at risk." Ryan also thought about the record crowds expected for the tournament at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. "We would've been on the floor competing in front of 40,000 people," he said. "It was the single greatest opportunity in history to showcase the sport and add new fans. Anthony Holman and the NCAA wrestling committee did a fantastic job with the vision of holding it in a football stadium. It was a huge year for our sport. Viewership is way up on the Big Ten Network. The sport was really booming. We were in the midst of this culminating event at the end of an amazing season and then it doesn't happen." Tom Ryan coaching against Penn State (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Ryan's first NCAA tournament was in 1988 as a wrestler for Syracuse. He hasn't missed a national tournament since. "Change is challenging -- plus my wife isn't used to having me around so much," Ryan said with a laugh. "I feel almost lost today. I keep saying this, but it's very surreal. It really is. Anybody in the industry, we love to work. It's hard to believe this is happening." Ryan had more thoughts during that early morning walk Thursday. "Every year, you have those amazing moments where the 10 national champions are crowned -- and now we won't have that this year," he said. "You go from that amazing high of somebody achieving something great to being isolated from everything. It's an interesting dynamic right now." Ryan also thought about the events of a week ago. "Last Thursday, we were in the middle of practice when I heard NCAAs were canceled," he said. "Someone came in the room and told us the NCAAs were shut down. That was a pretty surreal time as a coach and you could see the disappointment on everyone's faces. Watching eight guys cope with that, it was a tough time. It's not tragic, but it's very disappointing. It's just something obviously you can't plan for." And then Ryan's thoughts were back with his seniors. He said he felt especially bad for Ohio State seniors Luke Pletcher (141 pounds) and Kollin Moore (197). Both wrestlers had earned No. 1 seeds for the NCAA tournament. "Luke and Kollin possess such a high level of maturity," Ryan said. "They are men, and they've dealt with this really well under the circumstances. They did everything they could to put themselves into position to be the best wrestler in the country. They were both ranked No. 1 and wrestling their best. They should have no regrets with their preparation. They were both ready to win national titles, but it's still heartbreaking for them." Luke Pletcher was seeded No. 1 at the NCAAs (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Pletcher had been ranked No. 1 for much of the season before falling to Penn State's Nick Lee in a dual meet. Pletcher came back to defeat Lee in the Big Ten finals. "Luke is the ultimate Buckeye," Ryan said. "He had a lot of other offers before he committed to Ohio State. He had a great career. We pulled his redshirt his first year at 141. He placed high twice at 133 before moving back up to 141 this season. We wanted it so badly for him. He lived the right lifestyle and did everything right. He didn't get the chance to win the national championship, which we all believed he was going to do. That's tough to think about." Moore had dominated the competition during an unbeaten senior campaign. "Kollin grew up about 80 minutes from Columbus," Ryan said. "The first time I saw him in the room I knew he was going to be special. His work ethic and commitment were really impressive. He placed third and second at NCAAs. He was going to win it this year, but six days before weigh-ins a virus sweeps across the world and steals his opportunity. It's so unfortunate." Ryan also has pondered the possibility of athletes being granted another year of eligibility after missing the NCAA tournament. "It's all very complex," he said. "You're talking about the seniors having another year. What about the underclassmen who lost out on the end of their season? Here is what I hope: whatever the best option is, it should be applied. There has to be some way better than where we are now. It's incomprehensible to end it this way. Give these guys another year. I think about Spencer Lee. He's trying to win four national titles. We have Sammy Sasso, who is a freshman and a guy we believed could win a national title. If you don't wrestle the national tournament, do you make the No. 1 guy the champion? There has to be closure. To move on without closure is wrong. There is going to be no perfect solution." Ryan said the Big Ten is set to meet in early April and the eligibility issue is on the agenda. "There is a lot that still needs to be discussed," Ryan said. "The NCAA just lost a billion-dollar event with men's basketball. The NCAA obviously has a lot on its plate right now. I just hope, for wrestling, we can have clarity at some point." Ryan has plenty on his own plate right now. Not only is he dealing with the NCAA tournament being canceled, the Ohio State campus is shut down, the wrestling room is closed and students are taking online classes. In addition to the athletes on the Ohio State team, there are a number of top Senior-level freestyle wrestlers at the Ohio Regional Training Center in Columbus. Among them is two-time world champion and Olympic medalist J'den Cox. Tom Ryan coaching with assistant J Jaggers at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The Olympic Trials were scheduled for early April, but were postponed and may not be held until late May. "We have a number of guys training for the Olympic Trials and the Olympics," Ryan said. "God willing, we will be able to move forward and have an Olympic Games. But the health of our population is the most important thing. We need to take care of that situation before we can do anything else." Ryan's Ohio State teams have consistently battled Penn State and Iowa for Big Ten and NCAA supremacy. Ryan's alma mater, Iowa, was ranked No. 1, won the Big Ten tournament and would have been heavily favored to win NCAAs this week. "You really feel bad for a team like Iowa," Ryan said. "(Iowa coach) Tom Brands had a great team and they were in the driver's seat. And Spencer Lee was on course to win four titles -- he was probably the most likely wrestler to win a national title this week. That's tough to see them miss out on the opportunity. I can't imagine what Tom is experiencing. It's tough -- I really feel for him." Ryan envisions the NCAA bringing the national tournament back to venues like the one in Minneapolis. "The sport was going to experience something incredibly unique," he said. "It's difficult that we are going to miss out on that. It was a brilliant move to put it in a football stadium. Hopefully, they will do that again. Ryan, who has a strong faith, understands the impact this situation has had on people in wrestling. "I tell anyone who is struggling with it to make sure and talk to somebody," he said. "It's very therapeutic and helpful to let someone know how you are feeling. If you're really hurting, just talk about it and trust people. This is a really tough situation for everyone and we all need to lean on each other for support." Ryan said the magnitude of what happened hasn't fully sunk in. "It's still difficult to process," he said. "Some of these guys have worked their whole lives to achieve these goals and dreams. I've never had a season canceled until now. As much as you try to comprehend and understand what our athletes are feeling, you really can't. It's just heartbreaking -- it really is." Craig Sesker has written about wrestling for more than three decades. He's covered three Olympic Games and is a two-time national wrestling writer of the year.
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Statistical standout performances at conference tournaments
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
The NCAA Championships have been canceled, and it is looking more and more like the event will not be rescheduled. That means that the conference weekend was actually the end of the competitive season. Since there is nothing on the horizon to look forward to, let's look back at conference weekend. The following looks at some of the statistical standout performances and the key differences between weight classes and conferences. Point differential (individual wrestler) (Match points scored per minute - match points allowed per minute) After his regular season domination, there should be no surprise that Spencer Lee (Iowa) had the best point differential of any competitor during conference weekend. Lee scored three bonus-point victories on the way to his first Big Ten title including a technical fall over Jack Medley (Michigan), who was the only competitor to escape giving up bonus points against Lee during the regular season. It might be a big surprise that Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) actually edged out Lee for most points scored per minute. Valencia somewhat benefited from the small Pac-12 tournament, as he averaged 4.02 points in two matches over Jared Hill (Stanford) and Dylan Miracle (Cal Poly) on his way to a Pac-12 title. Connor Flynn (Missouri) finished in the top five in point differential despite not winning the MAC tournament, and he has the best point differential among non-conference champions. He lost in the second round against Jared Siegrist (Lock Haven) before wrestling all the way back for third. Flynn finished with three bonus-point wins and a seven-point shutout decision victory. He allowed only 0.27 points per minute through six matches. Point differential (team) Despite finishing their conference tournament as the clear favorite to win the NCAA title, Iowa actually did not have the highest point differential of the weekend. That honor belongs to their biggest rival Oklahoma State. The Cowboys won yet another Big 12 title. Along the way, they collectively averaged 1.29 points per minute, allowed 0.62 and finished with a 0.86 differential. Iowa finished with the fourth best point differential despite one of their ranked wrestlers dropping two straight matches and failing to place. Iowa allowed the second fewest points per minute at 0.44. The only team to allow fewer points on a per minute basis was Lehigh who allowed 0.42 and won the EIWA tournament. Points per match (conference) The Pac-12 might be one of the smaller conferences in college wrestling these days, but at least per points per match, it had some of the most exciting matches. The wrestlers combined to score an average of 10.61 points per match. With that being said, it may have been due to a proliferation of blowouts. The Pac-12 also had the largest average point differential (see above). That means that even though there were high combined scores, one of the wrestlers was usually doing the majority of the scoring. Points per match (weight class) Luke Pletcher (Ohio State) and Nick Lee (Penn State) stood out at 141 pounds this season, and they also apparently led by example. Both wrestlers were known to rack up points in their matches, and it turns out the rest of weight class did the same. During conference weekend, the 141-pound wrestlers averaged 11.2 points per match, and it was the only division to average 11 or more points. Even though 141 was the highest scoring weight, there were still competitive matches. The average point differential was 0.76 on a per minute basis, which means that even though the matches were high scoring, the scores were close. -
Amos named InterMat High School Wrestler of the Year
InterMat Staff posted an article in High School
Braxton Amos has been named InterMat High School Wrestler of the Year (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Link: Final High School Individual Rankings If one has been paying any attention to the news, the novel coronavirus has put global society at a total stalemate for the last week and will do so for the foreseeable future. Prior to this stalemate, all but one of the state championships were conducted for 2019-20. Ohio was the exception. Normally at this point, postseason national tournaments (i.e. NHSCA grade-level and USA Wrestling folkstyle) would be upcoming; however, those events have been postponed until the COVID-19 stalemate comes to an end. Since that is the case, InterMat has decided to conclude the 2019-20 scholastic wrestling season from a national rankings perspective. The below article will acknowledge the Wrestler of the Year along with the other wrestlers ranked No. 1 in the country at their respective weight classes. Wrestler of the Year: Braxton Amos, Parkersburg South (W.Va.), 220 pounds Already a Cadet (now 16U) double national champion before stepping into high school, the University of Wisconsin signee packed more than a full four years' worth of accomplishments into a three-year scholastic wrestling career. Amos missed his freshman season due to injury sustained during September 2016. However, in the next three seasons he amassed an in-season record of 132-0 with many of those matches being first-period pins. Amos is a three-time state high school champion, three-time Super 32 Challenge champion, three-time Walsh Jesuit Ironman champion, and three-time Powerade champion. He is the No. 1-ranked wrestler at 220 pounds for the second straight season. This past summer he was a Junior National finalist in both styles at 220 pounds, winning the title in freestyle and advancing to the Greco-Roman final before having to injury default. Previous Wrestlers of the Year 2019: Carson Kharchla (Olentangy Liberty, Ohio) 2018: Gable Steveson (Apple Valley, Minn.) 2017: Vito Arujau (Syosset, N.Y.) 2016: Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) 2015: Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) 2014: Chance Marsteller (Kennard Dale, Pa.) 2013: Kyle Snyder (Good Counsel, Md.) 2012: Jason Tsirtsis (Crown Point, Ind.) 2011: Morgan McIntosh (Calvary Chapel, Calif.) Other top-ranked wrestlers Andre Gonzales after winning a California state title (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 106 pounds: Andre Gonzales (Poway, Calif.) After placing third at state in the 106-pond weight class last year as a sophomore, Gonzales would go on to win Junior National titles in both freestyle and Greco-Roman at 106 during the summer. His lone loss as a junior came up at 113 pounds in the Reno TOC final, 3-2 to national No. 3 Joey Cruz (Clovis North, Calif.). Gonzales earned state gold this season with a pair of wins over wrestlers ranked inside the top 15 nationally at the state tournament. 113 pounds: Richard Figueroa (Selma, Calif.) Through three years of high school wrestling, Figueroa remains unblemished except for single loss in the final of the 2017 Walsh Jesuit Ironman. He is a three-time state champion, this year scorching his way through the bracket with two shutout technical falls, a pin, and a pair of victories over nationally ranked opposition (including a fourth win over national No. 3 Joey Cruz in the championship match). Figueroa is also a two-time Cadet World Team member in freestyle, and has finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally in this weight class each of the last two seasons. 120 pounds: Greg Diakomihalis (Hilton, N.Y.) After his return from an offseason knee injury in early January, Diakomihalis amassed a 25-0 record on the way to his fifth state championship. The Cornell commit finished his career with a record of 219-2, including a winning streak of more than 175 straight matches going back to his eighth-grade season. 126 pounds: Nic Bouzakis (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) Already a high school state champion in seventh through ninth grade at Lake Highland Prep (Fla.), Bouzakis added a National Prep title during his debut season at Wyoming Seminary as a high school sophomore. Prior to the start of the high school season, Bouzakis was a 16U National freestyle champion and a Super 32 Challenge champion (it was his third placement in the high school division of the Super 32). During 2019-20, Bouzakis was a champion at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman with his lone loss coming in the Powerade final by disqualification due to an illegal slam. 132 pounds: Shayne Van Ness (Blair Academy, N.J.) Despite missing the first month of this scholastic season, Van Ness had established his robust credential and ability level with his success last season and then a pair of wins during Who's Number One in early October against the two wrestlers that ended the season ranked directly behind him. Upon return, Van Ness dominated his way to a National Prep championship with three pins and two technical falls in five bouts, including wins over three of the other four top-five finishers. Wyoming Seminary's Beau Bartlett (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) 138 pounds: Beau Bartlett (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) The Penn State signee won a fourth National Prep title with four pins in four bouts leading up to an 11-4 victory over nationally ranked Lucas Chittum (Blair Academy, N.J.) in the championship match. During the season, he continued to be in title contention at everything under the sun, including a runner-up finish at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman and earning a second title at the Powerade Tournament in two career attempts. 145 pounds: Lachlan McNeil (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) The North Carolina signee arguably made the most profound leap from the end of last season to the end of this season out of any wrestler in the country. After ending last season as runner-up at National Preps in the 120-pound weight class, McNeil finished third in Junior freestyle and was Super 32 Challenge champion at 138 pounds in the offseason; then during this season he dominated his way to titles at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman, Powerade, and National Prep tournaments during an undefeated season. 152 pounds: Chase Saldate (Gilroy, Calif.) The Michigan State signee had a superlative senior season, going undefeated on the way to a state championship, including titles at the Reno TOC and Doc Buchanan Invitational; this included a 5-0 mark against four different nationally ranked opponents. Between last year's state runner-up at the start of this season, Saldate placed fourth in Junior freestyle and was champion in the Super 32 Challenge, with both coming at 152 pounds. 160 pounds: Keegan O'Toole (Arrowhead, Wis.) The Missouri signee finishes his career a four-time state champion after going 49-0 during his senior season, which means that O'Toole ends scholastic wrestling on a 100-match win streak going back to the consolation semifinal round of the January 2018 Cheesehead. He is a four-time Fargo freestyle All-American, including a Junior National champion in the summer of 2018. Most notable wins during the scholastic period were beating No. 2 Padraic Gallagher (St. Edward, Ohio) at Who's Number One and beating No. 8 Luke Odom (Edwardsville, Ill.) in the Cheesehead finals. 170 pounds: Alex Facundo (Davison, Mich.) The Penn State verbal commit ends the season ranked No. 1 for a second straight season, and is now a three-time state champion. A two-time Cadet World Team member in freestyle, Facundo won a Brecksville Holiday Tournament title during the season, and is now 109-3 in his high school career. Patrick Kennedy after winning his fourth state championship (Photo/Mary Christen, The Guillotine) 182 pounds: Patrick Kennedy (Kasson-Mantorville, Minn.) On the way to four state titles in ninth through 12th grade, the Iowa signee amassed a record of 158-2, including 127 consecutive wins after a 5-2 defeat against Brandon Moen (Owatonna, Minn.) on February 3, 2017. If including seasons in junior high where he finished sixth then third at the varsity state tournament, his six-year career record was 223-20. In the most recent offseason, Kennedy absolutely dominated his way to a Junior National freestyle title at 170 pounds, and upended Facundo in Who's Number One preseason showcase. 195 pounds: Rocky Elam (Staley, Mo.) Even managing to mix in some international competition, the Missouri signee managed to amass a 32-0 record during his senior season of competition on the way to a repeat state title. Elam's four-year high school record finishes at 144-4. He also is a three-time Fargo freestyle All-American, including a Cadet National title in 2018; Elam also has a 2019 Junior Folkstyle national title on the resume, along with a title from the Preseason Nationals this past fall. 285 pounds: Nash Hutmacher (Chamberlain, S.D.) In one last season of wrestling before moving on to play on the interior defensive line at the University of Nebraska, Hutmacher went 42-0 with all but two matches being first-period wins by fall; those other two matches were a forfeit victory in a dual meet and a win by fall in the third period. He is now a four-time state champion with a record of 165-0 during those seasons, with his last loss coming in the consolation semifinal round of the state tournament during his eighth grade year. Ranked wrestlers by state 49: Pennsylvania (3 individuals ranked No. 1 nationally) 30: California (3) 27: New Jersey (1) 26: Ohio 21: Illinois 10: New York (1), Oklahoma 9: Florida, Minnesota (1) 8: Georgia, Michigan (1) 7: Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri (1), Nebraska 5: Texas, West Virginia (1), Wisconsin (1) 4: Kansas 3: Maryland, Oregon 2: Arizona, South Dakota (1), Virginia, Washington 1: Hawaii, Connecticut, Kentucky, Tennessee Thirty states in all had a nationally ranked wrestler (i.e. attend a high school in that state). -
Wyoming Seminary finishes season ranked No. 1 in Fab 50
InterMat Staff posted an article in High School
Wyoming Seminary won the Walsh Jesuit Ironman title by 45.5 points (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Link: Final Fab 50 Team Rankings The 2019-20 high school wrestling season was certainly one to remember. Crowning a national champion this year was pretty clear, despite the only undefeated team (Simley, Minn.) being ranked No. 18 in the country. This year's national champion is Wyoming Seminary (Pa.). The Blue Knights were dominant champions at the nation's best in-season tournament, Walsh Jesuit (Ohio) Ironman; dominant champions at a top-five tournament, Powerade; and champions at National Preps over four other ranked teams (two of which are in the top ten). The lone blemish on the season for Wyoming Seminary came in a 31-24 dual meet loss to Blair Academy (N.J.) on Jan. 17. However, the Blue Knights were without the services of Nic Bouzakis (126) on that evening. Five weeks earlier, the Wyoming Seminary won the Walsh Jesuit Ironman by 45.5 points over Blair Academy; then five weeks later, Wyoming Seminary won the National Prep title by 81 points. Anchoring the Blue Knights' roster were three wrestlers who ended the season ranked No. 1 in the country: Nic Bouzakis (126), Beau Bartlett (138), and Lachlan McNeil (145). Four other wrestlers concluded the season ranked: Brennen Cernus (No. 17 at 113 pounds), Drew Munch (No. 8 at 132), Gabriel Arnold (No. 13 at 160), and Kolby Franklin (No. 9 at 220). Rounding out the top five were the following teams: No. 2 Blair Academy (N.J.): Dual meet victory over Wyoming Seminary (Pa.), Walsh Jesuit Ironman runners-up, Beast of the East champions, National Prep runners-up No. 3 Buchanan (Calif.): Doc Buchanan Invitational champions, state tournament champions, dual meet loss to Montini Catholic (Ill.), dual meet victory over No. 6 Lake Highland Prep (Fla.) No. 4 Montini Catholic (Ill.): Dual meet victories over No. 3 Buchanan (Calif.), No. 5 Detroit Catholic Central (Mich.), and No. 6 Lake Highland Prep (Fla.); Walsh Jesuit Ironman fifth place, Doc Buchanan Invitational runners-up, dual team and (unofficial) individual state champions No. 5 Detroit Catholic Central (Mich.): Dual meet loss to No. 4 Montini Catholic (Ill.), Brecksville (Ohio) Holiday Tournament champions, dual team and (unofficial) individual state champions Now for some interesting trivia associated with this year's Fab 50 … Simley (Minn.) after winning the team title at the Minnesota Christmas Tournament (Photo/David Peterson, Minnesota/USA Wrestling) Only one team within the Fab 50 national high school team rankings finished the season undefeated in dual meets and placing first in all its tournaments, that being Simley (Minn.). The Spartans end the season ranked No. 18 after winning the Cliff Keen Independence (Iowa) Invitational, Minnesota Christmas Tournament, and Cheesehead Invitational; beat No. 45 St. Michael-Albertville (Minn.) in a dual meet; and won both the dual team and (unofficial) individual state tournament titles. Eleven teams started the season ranked, but ended the season not ranked; 11 teams started the season unranked, but ended the season ranked. Those teams are: No. 35 Waynesburg (Pa.), No. 37 Goddard (Kansas), No. 38 Indianapolis (Ind.) Cathedral, No. 39 Evansville (Ind.) Mater Dei, No. 40 Crown Point (Ind.), No. 42 McDonogh (Md.), No. 45 St. Michael-Albertville (Minn.), No. 46 Don Bosco (Iowa), No. 47 Lisbon (Iowa), No. 48 Notre Dame-Green Pond (Pa.), and No. 49 Baylor School (Tenn.). It should be noted that information about the addition of Wyatt Henson (season-ending No. 4 at 138 pounds) to the Waynesburg lineup was not fully verified at the time of the team rankings being published. Eight teams saw a double-digit improvement in their ranking position from the start of the season to the end of the season. The biggest improvement was Simley (Minn.) going from No. 45 in the preseason to No. 18 at the end of the season, though part of that improvement was due to the addition of Reid Nelson to the lineup at 113 pounds; once that move was confirmed and full lineup information was received, the Spartans were No. 25 in the rankings at the start of December. Malvern Prep (Pa.) had a strong performance at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman, finishing third (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) The next most significant upward moves came from Malvern Prep (Pa.) and Bethlehem Catholic (Pa.). Both teams improved 19 spots from start to finish. The Friars went from No. 26 to No. 7, while the Hawks went from No. 50 to No. 31. Next in line were the upward shifts from Nazareth (Pa.) and Crescent Valley (Pa.); the Blue Eagles went from No. 42 to No. 24, while Crescent Valley started at No. 48 and ascended to No. 30. Clovis (Calif.) went from No. 32 to No. 16, Broken Arrow (Okla.) went from No. 39 to No. 24, while Dundee (Mich.) went from No. 46 to No. 33. Nineteen different states have a team represented in the InterMat Fab 50 team rankings, as do 19 different governing bodies. (National Prep counts as a separate governing body from any state.) California has the most ranked teams with seven; Pennsylvania has six (though only four are PIAA teams); with four each for Michigan, New Jersey (though only three are NJSIAA), Ohio, Minnesota, and Iowa. Five schools that competed at National Preps this year ended the season ranked. Seventeen teams were ranked at the end of 2018-19 that did not end 2019-20 with a ranking position. Out of that turnover in the rankings, nine schools ended this season ranked for the first time in the now ten years of the Fab 50 being compiled by InterMat: No. 23 Millard South (Neb.), No. 28 Stillwater (Okla.), No. 30 Crescent Valley (Ore.), No. 35 Waynesburg (Pa.), No. 40 Crown Point (Ind.), No. 41 St. Joseph-Montvale (N.J.), No. 47 Lisbon (Iowa), No. 48 Notre Dame-Green Pond (Pa.), and No. 49 Baylor School (Tenn.). -
One week after the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame had announced its Class of 2020 honorees, the Cresco, Iowa-based facility has announced it is postponing the ceremony one year, to 2021. Here is the statement issued by the Hall on Tuesday, March 17: Due to circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, the Board of Directors of the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame in Cresco announce that the 51st annual IWHOF Induction Ceremony and Awards Banquet scheduled for Monday, April 13, 2020 has been postponed until Monday, April 21, 2021. The class of 2020 -- including Tom Hogan, Tom Huff, G. Wyatt Schultz and Chad Zaputil -- are deemed worthy recipients, and were unanimously approved for induction into the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame. Their day will come." The Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame's sole purpose is the promotion of amateur wrestling in Iowa. The IWHOF has a rich history of honoring native Iowans at our annual awards banquet and induction ceremony.
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US Open in Las Vegas will be postponed, with plans to reschedule
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
USA Wrestling has postponed the 2020 U.S. Marine Corps U.S. Open, which was scheduled to take place at the South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada, April 21-26. The U.S. Open includes a number of major national-level competitions, including: • UWW Junior Nationals (April 23-25) • UWW Cadet Nationals (April 21-23) • UWW U15 Nationals (April 21-23) • UWW Futures Nationals (April 23-25) • Masters Nationals (April 23-25): Governor Steve Sisolak of Nevada has asked local governments to enforce the CDC guidance that events with attendance of more than 50 persons be cancelled or postponed for eight weeks. Sisolak has also announced the closure of schools in the state through April 6. MGM Resorts (which includes 13 Las Vegas properties) has shut down its casinos, and numerous other Las Vegas hotels and businesses are either closed completely or have reduced activities. This is consistent with USA Wrestling's procedure to seek guidance from the local health department, as well as its number one priority being the health and safety of its members. USA Wrestling is working on plans to reschedule the U.S. Open at a future date. The UWW Junior Nationals, the UWW Cadet Nationals and the UWW U15 Nationals are all in the qualifying series for U.S. age-group World Teams, and are thus are considered “essential events†by USA Wrestling. According to the USA Wrestling statement of March 12, “events and activities deemed essential will be conducted in a way that puts the health and safety of those involved as the primary focus, while still meeting the responsibilities of the organization.†-
Coronavirus closes National Wrestling Hall of Fame facilities
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
The coronavirus (COVID-19) has had an impact on a number of amateur wrestling events. Now it is affecting the National Wrestling Hall of Fame facilitates in Stillwater and Waterloo, as both halls will be closed through at least the end of the month. The Hall of Fame located in Stillwater, Okla. has announced, effective immediately, that it "will be closed until at least April 5 following new emergency declaration for Stillwater requiring the closure of restaurant seating areas, bars, gyms, and entertainment venues." The Oklahoma facility has been closed "as a result of the state of emergency proclaimed by the City of Stillwater." "We apologize for the inconvenience and please understand that these precautions are being taken to help protect the health and welfare of our community by helping limit personal interaction to stem the spread of this virus." Meanwhile, the Dan Gable Museum of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Waterloo, Iowa told InterMat via email Tuesday afternoon: "Just announced that we are closed until March 31." -
The last time NCAA Wrestling Championships were canceled
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
Dick DiBatista won his third EIWA title in 1943 (Photo/National Wrestling Hall of Fame) When it was announced last week that the 2020 NCAA Wrestling Championships for Divisions I, II and III had been canceled due to concerns about the coronavirus (COVID-19), the news was so startling, many in the wrestling community figured that this had to be the first time ever. Actually, in nearly a century of NCAA Wrestling Championships going back to the first in 1928, the Nationals were not held from 1943 through 1945 because of World War II. To help the wrestling community of today understand what happened to the NCAAs nearly 80 years ago, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Okla. recently shared excerpts about this era from "The History of Collegiate Wrestling" by late amateur wrestling historian Jay Hammond, along with numerous contributors respected within the wrestling community. "The United States entered World War II shortly before the start of the 1942 collegiate wrestling season," according to Hammond's book. "While the war would cause major disruptions in collegiate athletics, the full effect would not hit wrestling until the 1943. Some schools, such as Oklahoma, terminated their program for the duration, but most competed in 1942 ..." "Most schools outside of the EIWA (Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association) and Big Ten discontinued their wrestling programs with the 1943 season. Oklahoma State would not field a team again until the 1946 season. Army and Navy were two schools that did not suffer during the war. A number of outstanding high school wrestlers from Oklahoma enrolled at the military academies ..." One aspect that will resonate with fans today: wrestlers in the early 1940s who were denied the opportunity to complete their collegiate careers with another NCAA title in 1943. "Four wrestlers had an opportunity to become a three-time NCAA champ in 1943 and were unable to when the tournament was canceled," according to Hammond's book. "Michigan State continued its program in 1943, and Merle and Burl Jennings completed their careers that season. Merle finished his career with a 37-1-0 record and 22 falls. His only loss, which he avenged at the 1941 NCAA tournament, was by a 4-1 count to Calvin Mehlhorn of Oklahoma State in a dual meet ... Dick DiBatista won a third EIWA title in 1943, and he completed his career undefeated at 37-0-0. David "Buddy" Arndt of Oklahoma State did not compete in 1943 because the Cowboys had discontinued wrestling. Arndt returned after the war and won his third NCAA title in 1946." "History of Collegiate Wrestling" is a great addition to the collection of every college wrestling fan by allowing readers to experience and relive the glory of college wrestling through stunning photographs and timeless stories. Wrestling fans can purchase Jay Hammond's "History of Collegiate Wrestling" -- which includes the 381-page original hardback copy plus a 111-page addendum for 2006 to 2019 -- for only $29.95 with free shipping. To order, click here. -
NCWA championship trophies (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) The National Collegiate Wrestling Association held its annual national wrestling championships in Texas this weekend, in contrast to other sports organizations such as the NCAA which had canceled major sports events such as national wrestling championships, because of concerns of the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), according to multiple media reports. The NCWA national championships, held at the Allen Events Center in Allen, Texas, just outside Dallas, welcomed over 600 athletes from 84 colleges. Eleven schools decided not to participate in the event. When asked by the Dallas Morning News on why he didn't cancel the event, Jim Giunta, NCWA founder and executive director, said, "I think a lot of this is driven by fear. "We're going to do everything in our power to create an environment that's more than safe for our athletes. But after we do everything we can do, we're going to operate on faith rather than fear." At least two coaches weighed in publicly with their support of the NCWA national championships. "From a philosophical perspective, do I think it's overhyped? Yes, I do," said Liberty University wrestling coach Jesse Castro about the fear generated by the coronavirus. "You know the talking points. We've dealt with this kind of stuff before … We're vigilant and we use common sense, but I refuse to live in fear. I'm not gonna do that." "I think when we start to cancel these events, the actual athlete and the hard work kind of fades away from them," said University of Texas-Arlington coach Collin Stroner, who noted that his concern about the coronavirus was "on the back burner." "It's the event," Stroner said. "It's just a basketball game. It's just a hockey game. But for a lot of these guys and theirs, it's their last match. … I'm really proud that we're keeping this act on." Launched in 1997 and headquartered in Dallas, the NCWA features approximately 162 wrestling programs from colleges and universities throughout the U.S. and Canada. Some schools once had intercollegiate programs competing in NCAA until those programs were eliminated by Title IX, and now compete in the NCWA, separate of the NCAA. "Think of it as club wrestling, for teams outside of sanctioned NCAA competition," is how Nate Scott of USA Today described the NCWA. The NCWA National Wrestling Championships appear to be an outlier in terms of sports organizations and how they are handling the growing coronavirus situation. In addition to the NCAA canceling all winter sports championships -- including the 2020 NCAA Wrestling Championships for Division I, II and III, and "March Madness" NCAA Basketball Tournament -- most professional sports organizations have canceled or postponed their seasons, including the NBA and Major League Baseball. What's more, a number of major individual sports events -- including The Masters golf tournament, and the Kentucky Derby -- have also been postponed.
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Augsburg's Gliva named NCAA Elite 90 honoree for third straight year
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
MINNEAPOLIS -- For the third straight year, Augsburg University men's wrestler Victor Gliva (SR, Farmington, Minn./Farmington HS) was named as the recipient of the NCAA Elite 90 Award as the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average scheduled to compete at the NCAA Division III National Championships, it was announced recently. The award was scheduled to be presented prior to the final round of the championships on Saturday, but the tournament was canceled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Since the competitors were already on-site in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Thursday prior to the championships, the award could be given out, according to the NCAA. Victor GlivaAccording to the NCAA: "The Elite 90, an award founded by the NCAA, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 90 is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's championships. Eligible student-athletes are sophomores or above who have participated in their sport for at least two years with their school. They must be an active member of the team, traveling and a designated member of the squad size at the championship. All ties are broken by the number of credits completed." Gliva joins a list of just 13 student-athletes among all three NCAA divisions who have earned the Elite 90 award three straight years. He is one of just three athletes in NCAA Division III history to earn three awards, joining Kelsey Kittleson of Luther (Iowa, softball, 2010-12) and Liz Phillips of Washington University (Mo., indoor track/cross country, 2010-12), and the third men's wrestler in all divisions to be a three-time honoree, joining California Baptist's Nolan Kistler (Division II, 1016-18) and North Dakota State's Clay Ream (Division I, 2016-18). It's the fifth time an Augsburg student-athlete has earned NCAA Elite 90 honors since the program started in the 2009-10 school year. An accounting major with a 4.00 grade-point average, Gliva has earned National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Scholar All-America honors all four years of his career. In 2017-18, Gliva was also named to the Academic All-America (men's at-large first team) and Academic All-District squads by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). A two-time All-American and four-time NCAA Division III national tournament qualifier, Gliva finished third in the 133-pound weight class at the NCAA Division III Upper Midwest Regional on Feb. 28-29 to qualify for the national meet. He finished fifth in the 125-pound weight class at the 2019 NCAA Division III National Championships, while finishing eighth at the 2017 national tournament at 125, after winning the NCAA West Regional qualifying tournament title. In his high school career at Farmington, he was a three-time state tournament qualifier, with a 2016 Minnesota state title and 2015 runner-up finish to his credit. He finished 25-5 in his senior campaign, with 11 pins and a technical fall. He was ranked as high as No. 2 in the NWCA Division III national poll during the 2019-20 campaign, and was to enter the national tournament ranked No. 4 and as the No. 4 seed. He finished 114-27 in his Augsburg career, with 35 pins, 10 technical falls and 19 major decisions. Gliva is the son of Augsburg wrestling alumnus Steve Gliva '85, who was an NCAA Division III national titlist at 118 pounds in 1984, and holds the distinction of being the only Auggie wrestler ever to earn five All-American honors (three NCAA, two NAIA). The Glivas are the second father-son duo to ever earn All-America honors in Augsburg wrestling history, joining the Adams -- father Bob '83 and son Jason '10. -
At USA Wrestling, our No. 1 priority is always the safety of our athletes and their families, all our members, our national staff and the entire U.S. wrestling community. With that in mind, USA Wrestling has made the decision to immediately enact the following: • Discontinue all sanctioned events (local, state, regional or national) through April 6, 2020. Any event scheduled through April 6, 2020 will be notified. If any event was previously sanctioned with USA Wrestling, that sanction is now revoked. • Postpone all regional and national events through April 20, 2020. This is to include the following events: Girls Folkstyle Nationals - Colorado Springs, CO - March 26-29, 2020 Last Chance Olympic Trials Qualifier - Millersville, PA - March 27-28, 2020 Northwest Regionals - Centralia, WA - March 28-29, 2020 Olympic Trials Silver Coaches College - State College, PA - April 1-3, 2020 Folkstyle Nationals - Cedar Falls, IA - April 3-5, 2020 2020 Olympic Team Trials - Wrestling - State College, PA - April 4-5, 2020 • USA Wrestling strongly encourages all chartered clubs and coaches to adhere to local government and/or school district guidelines and recommendations when deciding whether or not to host practice(s). In cases where clubs have wrestlers from multiple states and/or school districts, USA Wrestling strongly encourages club leaders to use the most aggressive action plans as the criteria for making decisions. If a club does host practice, USA Wrestling strongly recommends requiring all participants have their temperature taken and not to allow anyone to participate whose temperature is 100.4 or higher. Additionally, participation is discouraged for anyone who exhibits signs or symptoms of a respiratory illness, even if they do not have an elevated temperature. USA Wrestling is monitoring this situation daily, and will rely on national and local government regulations and advice from medical experts, including the U.S. Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization. Please understand that this situation is fluid, and you should expect further updates that may well include extension of event moratoriums and/or additional cancellations. The health and welfare of all involved is our primary concern as we make event and practice-related decisions. USA Wrestling has a page on its website solely devoted to COVID-19 at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/March/14/COVID-19-Special-Section. This page includes links to resources for the wrestling community, as well as lists of statements, press releases and articles that involve impact from COVID-19.
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USA's report card at Pan American Qualifier in each style
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
David Taylor was dominant in his return to competition (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The United States wrestling team arrived at the Pan American Olympic Qualifier with plenty of work to do in a pressure-packed environment. And the Americans turned in a strong performance in all three styles. The U.S. entered the weekend with only four weight classes -- two in men's freestyle and two in women's freestyle -- qualified for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Those spots were secured with top-six finishes at the 2019 World Championships. The number has now jumped to 15 weight classes overall after the American squad's showing at the Pan Am Olympic Qualifier this past weekend in Ottawa, Canada. The Americans have now qualified in 5-of-6 weight classes in men's freestyle, all six classes in women's freestyle and 4-of-6 weights in Greco-Roman. With limited seeding and no true-second place matches, the Pan Am Olympic Qualifier format is not an easy one for U.S. athletes to navigate. The best two wrestlers in a weight class don't always earn the Olympic qualifying berths. The U.S. will have one more shot to qualify the remaining three weight classes at the Last Chance Olympic Qualifier in Sofia, Bulgaria. That event is being rescheduled at a later date with events worldwide being postponed because of the coronavirus. Here are the grades I handed out for each American style from the qualifier in Canada: Freestyle The U.S. entered the Pan American event with two weight classes -- 74 kilograms and 97 kilograms -- already qualified for Tokyo after Jordan Burroughs and Kyle Snyder won world medals in 2019. The U.S. qualified 3-of-4 remaining weights Sunday in Ottawa, but suffered a huge setback when Zain Retherford suffered a stunning upset loss in the semifinals. Retherford (65 kilograms), a past Cadet world champion and Senior world team member, was pinned in the semifinals by Argentina's Agustin Alejandro Destribats. Retherford scored a takedown and was trying to turn his opponent before the wrestler from Argentina countered to gain the fall. Retherford came back to win his bronze-medal bout. The U.S. freestyle team had three champions Sunday. 2018 world champion David Taylor (86 kilograms) looked superb in his return as he qualified his weight class for Tokyo. Taylor powered past a tough semifinal opponent in Cuba's Yuri Torreblanca 8-0 to qualify. Taylor had been sidelined since suffering an injury in May 2019. Taylor won by forfeit default over Peru's Pool Ambrocio Greifo in the finals. 2017 world silver medalist Thomas Gilman (57 kilograms) delivered to qualify the lightest weight class for a trip to Japan. Gilman rallied for a clutch 4-3 win over two-time U23 world champion Reineri Andreu Ortega of Cuba in the quarterfinals. Down 3-1 at the break, Gilman kept the pressure on and scored a huge second-period takedown to prevail. Gilman followed by teching Juan Ramirez Beltre of the Dominican Republic 11-0 in the semifinals to qualify his weight class for the Olympics. He won by forfeit over Colombia's Oscar Tigreros Urbano in the finals. Two-time world bronze medalist Nick Gwiazdowski (125 kilograms) powered his way into the finals to qualify the U.S. for a fifth weight class in freestyle. Gwiazdowski won by forfeit over Canada's Amar Dhesi, a three-time All-American for Oregon State, in the finals. None of the seven finals bouts in freestyle were wrestled Sunday after athletes already clinched Olympic berths for their countries with semifinal victories. Grade: B- Kayla Miracle, Helen Maroulis, Jacarra Winchester and Sarah Hildebrandt (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Women's wrestling The U.S. entered the Pan Am event with two weight classes -- 68 kilograms and 76 kilograms -- already qualified for Tokyo after Tamyra Mensah-Stock and Adeline Gray won world titles in 2019. Four more Americans followed suit in a near-flawless performance Saturday. The U.S. women will be represented in all six weight classes at the Olympics. The biggest news was the return of 2016 Olympic gold medalist and two-time world champion Helen Maroulis (57 kilograms), who turned in a dominant performance against some strong competition. Maroulis opened with a 12-2 win over 2019 world champion Linda Morais of Canada. She later earned a hard-fought 6-2 win over Ecuador's Lissette Antes Castillo, a past world fifth-place finisher. Maroulis looked impressive. She has been slowed by injuries since winning the 2017 world title, but she wrestled superbly during a high-stakes event Saturday. Three other Americans -- reigning world champion Jacarra Winchester (53 kilograms), world silver medalist Sarah Hildebrandt (50 kilograms) and past world team member Kayla Miracle (62 kilograms) -- also turned in impressive performances Saturday. Winchester looks like an Olympic gold medal contender. Her combination of speed, power and skill is going to be tough for her opponents to overcome. Hildebrandt delivered in a huge semifinal bout Saturday, defeating past world champion Jessica MacDonald of Canada 11-0. Winchester and Hildebrandt have dropped down a weight class, and both wrestlers looked outstanding in their new divisions. Miracle continues to progress and defeated two proven veterans Saturday. She rolled past two-time Olympic bronze medalist Jacqueline Renteria of Colombia 11-0 before earning a 12-3 win over 2017 world bronze medalist Michelle Fazzari of Canada. This is shaping up to be the best Olympic Team the U.S. has ever had in women's freestyle wrestling. The Olympic Trials will still determine who makes the team, but the American women look extremely strong right now. They have legitimate medal contenders in every weight class. Grade: A+ Four U.S. Greco-Roman wrestlers qualified their weight classes for the Olympics (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Greco-Roman It is no secret that the American Greco-Roman program has struggled since winning the team title at the 2007 World Championships. The last U.S. Olympic medalist in Greco is Adam Wheeler, who captured a bronze medal in 2008 in Beijing, China. Coach Matt Lindland's U.S. Greco team is looking to bounce back in 2020 and his group turned a solid performance in Canada. The U.S. came into the event with no weight classes qualified for Tokyo and left with four classes landing Olympic berths on Friday. The draws are hugely important in this event with no true second-place matches. And the United States took advantage of those. Americans Joe Rau (gold 87 kilograms), Ildar Hafizov (silver at 60 kilograms), Alejandro Sancho (silver at 67 kilograms) and G'Angelo Hancock (silver at 97 kilograms) qualified their weight classes for the Olympics. Americans Pat Smith (77 kilograms) and Adam Coon (130 kilograms) had tough early draws before the finals and both came back to earn bronze medals. The U.S. will have one last chance to qualify for the Olympics at 77 kilograms and 130 kilograms in Bulgaria. With the smaller Olympic field, and just 16 qualifiers per weight class, the U.S. Greco team will certainly have its opportunities to win medals in Tokyo. Grade: B Craig Sesker has written about wrestling for more than three decades. He's covered three Olympic Games and is a two-time national wrestling writer of the year. -
Thomas Gilman was one of three gold medalists for the U.S. in Ottawa (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) OTTAWA, Canada -- It was a day of mixed emotions for the American freestyle wrestling program. The U.S. freestyle team entered Sunday's Pan American Olympic Qualifier with two of the six Olympic freestyle weight classes already qualified for Tokyo, 74 kilograms and 97 kilograms, and four not yet qualified. When the dust settled on Sunday, the U.S. qualified five of the six weight classes for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. Only one freestyle weight class remains not qualified: 65 kilograms. Thomas Gilman (57 kilograms), David Taylor (86 kilograms) and Nick Gwiazdowski (125), all past world medalists, qualified their respective weight classes for the Olympics by reaching the finals. All three won gold medals. Zain Retherford (65 kilograms) fell in the semifinals, which prevented the U.S. from qualifying the 65-kilogram weight class for the Olympics. He battled back to earn a bronze medal. Gilman, a 2017 world silver medalist, opened his tournament with a 10-0 tech over Canada's Ligrit Sadiku. He faced his toughest challenge in the quarterfinals against two-time U23 world champion Reineri Andreu Ortega of Cuba. Ortega scored a takedown thirty seconds into the match to go up 2-0 early. The two traded step outs and the Cuban took a 3-1 lead into the break. In the second period, Gilman inched closer with a step out, and then scored a takedown midway through the period to take a 4-3 lead. Gilman then held off Ortega the rest of the way to earn a 4-3 victory. Gilman cruised to a 10-0 semifinal victory over Juan Rubelin Ramirez Beltre of the Dominican Republic to qualify the 57-kilogram weight class for the United States in the Olympics. He won by forfeit in the finals over Oscar Eduardo Tigreros Urbano of Columbia. Taylor, a 2018 world champion, returned to competition for the first time in over 10 months after recovering from a knee injury. He started his day with a 10-0 victory over Pedro Francisco Ceballos Fuentes of Venezuela. In the semifinals, Taylor faced three-time Pan Am Championships gold medalist Yurieski Torreblanca Queralta of Cuba. Taylor dominated from start to finish, rolling to an 8-0 shutout victory. He then won by forfeit in the finals over Peru's Pool Edinson Ambrocio Greifo. Gwiazdowski, a two-time world bronze medalist, was dominant all day. He outscored his opposition 20-0 in contested matches. In the semifinals, Gwiazdowski won by technical superiority over Luis Felipe Vivenes Urbaenja of Venezuela. He won his gold by forfeit over Canada's Amarveer Dhesi, a former collegiate wrestling star at Oregon State. Retherford looked strong in his first two matches, picking up two 10-0 techs to advance to the semifinals. In the semifinals, he faced Argentina's Agustin Alejandro Destribats. The 24-year-old Retherford jumped out early, scoring a takedown off a double leg thirty seconds into the match. He then transitioned to a lace when the Argentinian wrestler caught him and secured a fall just over a minute into the match. Retherford's semifinal loss prevented the U.S. from qualifying the weight class for the Olympics. Retherford came back to win a bronze with a fall over Albaro Rudesindo Camacho of the Dominican Republic. The United States will have one more opportunity to qualify 57 kilograms in freestyle -- along with women's wrestling weight classes at the Last Chance Olympic Qualifier in Sofia, Bulgaria, which was recently postponed and will be rescheduled.
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Sarah Hildebrandt celebrates after beating Canada's Jessica MacDonald (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) OTTAWA, Canada -- The United States will be represented in all six women's wrestling weight classes at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. On Saturday, the American women dominated at the Pan Am Olympic Qualifier in Ottawa, Canada, going a perfect 13-0 in contested matches to qualify four more weight classes for the Olympics to go along with the two previously qualified. Sarah Hildebrandt (50 kilograms), Jacarra Winchester (53 kilograms), Helen Maroulis (57 kilograms) and Kayla Miracle (62 kilograms) advanced to the finals to qualify their weight classes for the Olympics. All four wrestlers forfeited in the finals, giving the Americans four silver medals on Saturday. The top two wrestlers in each weight class qualified their weight classes for their country at the Olympics. Hildebrandt, a 2018 world silver medalist, was unscored upon in her two contested matches. She opened with a 10-0 win over Rita Rojas Chavez of Mexico before beating past world champion Jessica MacDonald of Canada, 11-0. Hildebrandt forfeited in the finals against Yusneylis Guzman Lopez of Cuba. Winchester, a returning world champion at 55 kilograms, won her three contested matches at 53 kilograms and outscored her opposition 24-6. She started her day with a 6-2 win over 2018 world bronze medalist Lianna de la Caridad Montero Herrera of Cuba. In the quarterfinals, Winchester rolled to a 10-0 technical superiority over Zeltzin Hernandez Guerra of Mexico. She then qualified the 53-kilogram weight class for the United States with an 8-4 win over Canada's Samantha Stewart. Winchester forfeited in the finals to Lianna de la Caridad Montero Herrera (Cuba) The 2016 Olympic champion Maroulis started her day with a 12-2 technical superiority over 2019 world champion Linda Morais of Canada. She then cruised in her next two matches to advance to the semifinals, where she defeated Puerto Rico's Nes Marie Rodriguez Tirado, 11-0. She defaulted in the finals against Mexico's Alma Valencia. Miracle went 4-0 in the opening session at 62 kilograms. Her semifinal victory came over Canada's Michelle Fazzari, a 2017 world bronze medalist, 12-3. She forfeited to Lais Nunes de Oliveira of Brazil in the finals.
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2020 Hodge Trophy will still be awarded, fan voting March 23-27
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
While the wrestling community remains disappointed that the NCAA was forced to cancel the Championships on all three divisional levels, fans will still get a chance to be part of the voting process in determining the 2020 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy winner. Between March 23-27, fans will be invited to go to WIN-Magazine to vote for, among several finalists yet to be determined, this year's award that has been presented annually to the nation's most dominant collegiate wrestler. The winner of the fan vote will earn two first-place votes among the total ballots from a group of formal voters, which includes each former Hodge Trophy winner, national media, representatives of national wrestling organizations and retired former college coaches from different regions. The Dan Hodge Trophy, presented by ASICS, is named after Dan Hodge, the former three-time Oklahoma University national champion (1955-57) who never allowed a takedown in his career and pinned 36 of 48 victims. WIN Magazine will announce finalists (including the wrestlers' statistics) on Friday, March 18. Criteria: 1. A wrestler's record 2. Number of pins 3. Dominance on the mat 4. Quality of competition 5. Past credentials 6. Sportsmanship/citizenship 7. Heart -
In the wake of the cancellation of all NCAA sports for the winter and spring seasons, Chad Dennis gets on the horn for Episode 49 of The MatBoss Podcast to talk with Wyoming head wrestling coach Mark Branch about the situation and the feelings going around his wrestling room and others around the country. About MatBoss: Created by coaches for coaches, MatBoss for iPad® integrates wrestling stats directly into the video you record for each match, completely replacing the need for labor-intensive pencil and paper scoring systems. It's the wrestling stats app our sport has been waiting for. Focus on coaching, not busy work Improve through video analysis Make data an advantage Eliminate scoring errors Increase exposure Become a digital coach For more information, visit MatBossApp.com. Follow MatBoss on Twitter and subscribe to the show @MatBossApp | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Spreaker | Google Podcasts | RSS