Down 1-0 to Vinod after the first period, Lewis added a takedown in the final period to go up, 2-1, with two minutes remaining. Lewis added a point on a step out at the 45 second mark, and held off Vinod to earn the title.
![](/Files/image/articles/lewis350a.jpg)
The 70kg gold medal capped an impressive championships run for Lewis, who was competing in his first international tournament of his career and finished U23's a perfect 5-0. The redshirt senior advanced to the championship bout after he defeated Zulfikar Makhamatov (Kazakhstan) by decision, 7-2. Trailing 2-1 to Makhamatov midway through the second and final period of the semifinal match, Lewis registered a takedown and added four additional points for the final 7-2 advantage.
The Toms River, New Jersey, native advanced to the semifinals after his 14-7 quarterfinal victory over Muhammet Akdeniz (Turkey), who was a 2016 U23 European bronze medalist. Lewis opened the championships with a quick 10-0 tech fall over Caleb Rutner (Canada) in the first round, followed by an 11-1 tech fall against Surkho Rashytkhanau (Belarus) in the Round of 16.
In his five matches Sunday afternoon, Lewis outscored his opponents, 45-11, with three decisions and two tech falls.
Lewis qualified for the championships after he claimed the 70kg title at the U23 World Team Trials on Oct. 8 in Rochester, Minnesota. The Toms River, New Jersey, native defeated 2017 All-American Tyler Berger (Nebraska), 2-0, in the best-of-three series to claim the championship and roster spot on the U23 Team USA roster. During his title run, Lewis defeated three 2017 NCAA qualifiers, two 2017 All-Americans and last year's NCAA runner-up at 149 pounds in Lavion Mayes.
In his final season at Rutgers, Lewis is currently ranked No. 8 at 157 pounds by Intermat. A NCAA qualifier in 2016, Lewis is 1-0 this season after he defeated Kyle Cochran of Maryland by major decision, 13-4, on Nov. 4 outside at High Point Solutions Stadium.
The Scarlet Knights return to action on Friday, Dec. 1, when they compete at Lock Haven at 7 p.m.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now