InterMat Staff

On Tuesday, Little Rock released its schedule for the 2025-26 season. Since we don’t have many as of yet, it’s an exciting prospect in the middle of the August lull. With that in mind, we’ve looked through the Trojan schedule to highlight some of the marquee events, big duals, and potential matchups. We’ll start with the actual schedule itself. Rather than reposting it in order, we’ve broken it into three parts. The non-conference duals, conference duals, and special events. Non-Conference November 2nd - Central Oklahoma (Home) December 4th - Minnesota (at Mequon, Wisconsin) December 7th - Indiana (Home) January 10th - Edinboro, SIU Edwardsville (at Edwardsville, Illinois) January 31st - Missouri (Home) February 6th - Oklahoma State (Away) Conference January 23rd - Oregon State (Away) February 8th - CSU Bakersfield (Home) February 14th - Cal Poly (Home) March 5th - Pac-12 Championships (No location given) Special Events November 9th - TigerStyle Invite (Columbia, Missouri) November 15th - Paycom National Duals Invitational (Tulsa, Oklahoma) December 21st - Collegiate Duals: Cornell, Ohio State (Nashville, Tennessee) January 3rd/4th - Southern Scuffle (Chattanooga, Tennessee) Number of top-20 teams from the 2025 NCAA Championships: (5) #3 Oklahoma State, #5(tie) Minnesota, #5(tie) Ohio State, #7 Cornell, #14 Missouri This is quite the challenging schedule for Erisman’s team. A new face on the Little Rock schedule is Minnesota, who features a squad with four returning All-Americans and no significant holes. The Trojans will see Missouri a couple of times, as they’ll host the Tigers after traveling to Columbia for the early-season TigerStyle Invite. Last year, the teams clashed at the Collegiate Duals - now it’s a regular dual between the schools. Indiana is also a new addition. The Hoosiers may not be a superstar-laden team, but they’ll be very solid and it will be quite competitive. One of the highlights of the dual schedule is a trip to Erisman’s alma mater, Oklahoma State. Last year, Little Rock hosted and put up a good fight before falling 25-13. We’ll have to see how the lineup figures itself out for the Cowboys, but suffice it to say, they’ll be one of the top teams in the nation. Looking at the Pac-12, Oregon State should provide the most significant challenge from a dual standpoint. They could unveil a lineup with seven returning national qualifiers. Cal Poly isn’t quite as deep, but should have some good matchups. For the special events, it works out rather well logistically for Little Rock. They’ll get to participate in four elite events with excellent competition and each is less than 400 miles away from home. As for the events themselves, the Collegiate Duals are the only event where we know Little Rock’s competition. Both Cornell and Ohio State should be in the top ten by the time late-December rolls around. It will certainly be a difficult task for Little Rock, taking on both of those schools, but this is always a scrappy team that puts up a fight. Little Rock has become a regular at the TigerStyle Invite. We don’t have a full list of entrants, as of yet, but it is typically a small individual tournament that has quality over quantity. The headline event is the National Duals Invitational. Aside from Penn State, it will be a who’s who of collegiate powers. There are sure to be some fun matchups that develop at this event. Some of the high-quality programs already on Little Rock’s schedule will be in attendance (Oklahoma State, Minnesota, Cornell, Missouri, Ohio State), along with plenty of others. The Southern Scuffle is the final special event on the calendar. Last year’s tournament was moved away from January 1st and 2nd and seemed to get tougher from the recent incarnations of the event. I’d expect this to be similar to 2025’s tournament. Notable Potential Matches for Little Rock’s All-Americans Matt Bianchi (157) December 4th: Charlie Millard (Minnesota) December 21st: Brandon Cannon (Ohio State) December 21st: Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) January 10th: Ryan Burgos (Edinboro) January 23rd: CJ Hamblin (Oregon State) January 30th: J Conway (Missouri) February 6th: Teague Travis (Oklahoma State) Stephen Little (197) December 4th: Gavin Nelson (Minnesota) December 7th: Gabe Sollars (Indiana) December 21st: Seth Shumate (Ohio State) January 23rd: Justin Rademacher (Oregon State) January 30th: Evan Bates (Missouri) February 6th: Cody Merrill (Oklahoma State) We can’t take into account potential matches at the National Duals Invitationals, but I’d imagine Little Rock’s studs will see two or three ranked opponents each at that event. Without even potential teams for the TigerStyle Invite and the Southern Scuffle, we can’t even begin to project matches at this point. Of the events have details for, the Collegiate Duals will provide a significant test for Bianchi. He'll have a two-time All-American (Shapiro) and a Big Ten finalist and Round of 12 finisher (Cannon).

With under a month until the debut of Real American Freestyle’s RAF 01 event, their card appears to be finalized with the release of their tenth bout this afternoon. 2025 NCAA champion and world team member, Wyatt Hendrickson, will take on Egyptian Olympian Mostafa Elders at the unlimited weight class. Hendrickson is fresh off a two-match sweep over Trent Hillger in Final X. Despite the two-straight wins for Hendrickson, their second match proved to be one of the most entertaining of the entire event. The pair combined for 34 points as Hendrickson downed Hillger, 20-14. Hendrickson turned the wrestling world upside down in Philadelphia at the 2025 NCAA Championships when he knocked off two-time national champion and Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson to capture his national title. Hendrickson earned All-American honors twice (both third place) for the Air Force Academy before using his final year of eligibility at Oklahoma State. Hendrickson was one of two national champions for the Cowboys, who finished third in the nation in David Taylor’s first season as head coach. In addition to his Final X berth and the US Open title that preceded it, Hendrickson has had plenty of success in the freestyle wrestling world. He was fifth at the U20 World Championships in 2021 and captured a U23 world title two years later. His opponent, Elders, is a two-time Senior African champion in freestyle. He competed in the 2024 Olympic Games and dropped a close bout to Kazakhstan’s Alisher Yergali in the Round of 16. Both are also expected to compete at the 2025 Senior World Championships, a couple weeks after the RAF 01 event. With this match announcement, the RAF 01 card looks like this: Matt Ramos vs. Nathan Tomasello (135 lbs) Real Woods vs. Darrion Caldwell (145 lbs) Austin Gomez vs. Lance Palmer (155 lbs) Wyatt Hendrickson vs. Mostafa Elders (285 lbs) Sarah Hildebrandt vs. Zeltzin Hernandez Guerra (120 lbs) Kennedy Blades vs. Alejandra Rivera Arriaga (150 lbs) Kyle Dake vs. Aeoden Sinclair (190 lbs) Evan Wick vs. Jason Nolf (175 lbs) Bo Nickal vs. Jacob Cardenas (205 lbs) Yianni Diakomihalis vs. Bajrang Punia (155 lbs)

The University of Pennsylvania announced this afternoon that 2024 NCAA All-American Lennox Wolak has been added to the Quaker coaching staff. Wolak will join Darian Cruz on Matt Valenti’s first coaching staff as the program’s head coach. Roger Reina is the head coach emeritus. Wolak is a familiar face for followers of the Ivy League as he spent four years wrestling for rival Columbia. While at Columbia, Wolak qualified for the NCAA Tournament twice. In 2024, Wolak captured an EIWA championship, which led to the #7 seed at nationals. Wolak advanced to the NCAA semifinals before settling for sixth place. After graduating from Columbia, Wolak transferred to Virginia Tech to use his final year of eligibility. In Blacksburg, Wolak battled through injuries to amass a 15-12 record. Despite a fourth-place finish at the ACC Championships, Wolak had a good run at nationals and came up a match shy of getting back on the NCAA podium. Wolak’s final collegiate record sits at 78-47 with three NCAA berths to his credit at 174 lbs. Penn will have a bit of a new look in Wolak’s weight range. Longtime starters at 174 and 184 lbs, Nick Incontrera and Max Hale, wrapped up their careers in 2025. Wolak will have to groom their replacements on the fly. Penn is coming off a 10-6 season that saw the Quakers finish second in the Ivy League Championships. They sent seven wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament. Four will return for the 2025-26 campaign.

At the conclusion of the 2025 U17 World Championships on Sunday, we had 17 American wrestlers leave Athens with hardware - across all three styles. Those wrestlers have added their names to an impressive list of U17 world medalists; one that includes world champions and Olympic medalists. Below are the American wrestlers who have medaled at the U17 (or Cadet) World Championships since the event was reinstated in 2011. Men’s Freestyle Vito Arujau (Silver - 58 kg - 2016) Henry Aslikyan (Bronze - 48 kg - 2024) Abe Assad (Bronze - 80 kg - 2018) Bo Bassett (Gold - 45 kg - 2021) Keegan Bassett (Gold - 45 kg - 2025) Marcus Blaze (Gold - 55 kg - 2023) Aaron Brooks (Gold - 76 kg - 2017) Sammy Brooks (Bronze - 85 kg - 2011) Grey Burnett (Bronze - 55 kg - 2025) David Carr (Bronze - 69 kg - 2016) Christian Castillo (Silver - 48 kg - 2022) Adam Coon (Gold - 100 kg - 2011) Elijah Diakomihalis (Bronze - 92 kg - 2024) Yianni Diakomihalis (Gold - 63 kg - 2016, Gold - 58 kg - 2015) Keanu Dillard (Bronze - 55 kg - 2024) Alex Facundo (Bronze - 71 kg - 2019, Bronze - 71 kg - 2018) AJ Ferrari (Bronze - 92 kg - 2018) Richie Figueroa (Silver - 48 kg - 2018) Daton Fix (Bronze - 54 kg - 2015) Jax Forrest (Silver - 55 kg - 2022) Mark Hall (Gold - 76 kg - 2014) Tanner Hodgins (Bronze - 92 kg - 2025) Gavin Hoffman (Bronze - 85 kg - 2017) Koy Hopke (Gold - 110 kg - 2022) Jayden James (Gold - 71 kg - 2025) Nate Jesuroga (Bronze - 51 kg - 2021) Tyler Kasak (Silver - 65 kg - 2022) Paul Kenny (Gold - 48 kg - 2023) Greg Kerkvliet (Silver - 110 kg - 2018, Gold - 100 kg - 2017) Arseni Kikiniou (Silver - 65 kg - 2025) Spencer Lee (Gold - 50 kg - 2014) Will Lewan (Gold - 69 kg - 2017) Luke Lilledahl (Gold - 51 kg - 2022, Silver - 48 kg - 2021) Ladarion Lockett (Gold - 71 kg - 2023) Brock Mantanona (Bronze - 65 kg - 2023) Mason Manville (Gold - 69 kg - 2014) Max McEnelly (Bronze - 92 kg - 2022) Marc-Anthony McGowan (Gold - 45 kg - 2019) Kurt McHenry (Gold - 46 kg - 2017, Gold - 42 kg - 2016) Ariah Mills (Gold - 48 kg - 2025) Michael Mocco (Gold - 110 kg - 2024) Jimmy Mullen (Silver - 110 kg - 2021) Dom Munaretto (Gold - 51 kg - 2024, Gold - 45 kg - 2022) Aaron Pico (Gold - 63 kg - 2013) Matt Ramos (Gold - 51 kg - 2018) Zain Retherford (Gold - 63 kg - 2012) James Rowley (Silver - 80 kg - 2021) Zach Ryder (Bronze - 80 kg - 2023, Bronze - 80 kg - 2022) Sammy Sanchez (Gold - 51 kg - 2025, Gold - 45 kg - 2024) Joseph Sealey (Gold - 71 kg - 2022) Meyer Shapiro (Gold - 65 kg - 2021) Gable Steveson (Gold - 100 kg - 2016, Gold - 100 kg - 2015) Jacori Teemer (Bronze - 63 kg - 2017) Jarod Verkleeren (Gold - 63 kg - 2015) Ignacio Villasenor (Bronze - 45 kg - 2023) Jacob Warner (Bronze - 85 kg - 2016) Owen Webster (Bronze - 85 kg - 2015) Travis Wittlake (Bronze - 76 kg - 2016) Jordan Wood (Silver - 100 kg - 2014) Women’s Freestyle Teshya Alo (Gold - 56 kg - 2014, Bronze - 56 kg, 2013) Haley Augello (Gold - 46 kg - 2011) Alexis Bleau (Bronze - 70 kg - 2015) Jaclyn Bouzakis (Bronze - 46 kg - 2025, Bronze - 40 kg - 2024) Alara Boyd (Silver - 65 kg - 2017, Bronze - 60 kg - 2016) Heather Crull (Bronze - 49 kg - 2023) Sterling Dias (Silver - 40 kg - 2019, Bronze - 40 kg - 2018) Angie Dill (Bronze - 43 kg - 2021) Marina Doi (Bronze - 38 kg - 2013, Gold - 38 kg - 2012, Silver - 40 kg - 2011) Regina Doi (Silver - 40 kg - 2013) Epenesa Elison (Silver - 53 kg - 2025) Maisie Elliott (Bronze - 40 kg - 2025) Amit Elor (Gold - 69 kg - 2021, Bronze - 69 kg - 2019) Taina Fernandez (Gold - 61 kg - 2025, Gold - 61 kg - 2024) Gracie Figueroa (Bronze - 56 kg - 2016) Piper Fowler (Gold - 73 kg - 2023) Lillian Frietas (Bronze - 73 kg - 2021) Gabriella Gomez (Silver - 46 kg - 2022) Katie Gomez (Gold - 53 kg - 2021) Valerie Hamilton (Silver - 61 kg - 2022) Sklyar Hattendorf (Silver - 57 kg - 2019) Madison Healey (Bronze - 43 kg - 2025) Ronna Heaton (Silver - 52 kg - 2016, Gold - 49 kg - 2015) Tiare Ikei (Bronze - 49 kg - 2018) Haylie Jaffe (Bronze - 61 kg - 2023) Audrey Jimenez (Bronze - 49 kg - 2021) Anastasia Lobsinger (Bronze - 70 kg - 2012) Macey Kilty (Gold - 69 kg - 2018, Bronze - 49 kg - 2016) Kayla Marano (Bronze - 65 kg - 2015) Alleida Martinez (Bronze - 46 kg - 2016, Silver - 46 kg - 2015) Kayla Miracle (Silver - 56 kg - 2012) Erica Pastoriza (Silver - 43 kg - 2022, Gold - 40 kg - 2021) Ella Poalillo (Bronze - 73 kg - 2025) Jasmine Robinson (Bronze - 69 kg - 2023) Cristelle Rodriguez (Silver - 49 kg - 2019) Emily Shilson (Gold - 43 kg - 2018, Silver - 43 kg - 2017) Morgan Turner (Gold - 49 kg - 2025, Bronze - 46 kg, 2024, Gold - 43 kg - 2023) Ava Ward (Bronze - 46 kg - 2021) Kylie Welker (Bronze - 61 kg - 2019) Greco-Roman Joel Adams (Gold - 65 kg - 2022) David Calkins (Bronze - 92 kg - 2025) Jon Jay Chavez (Bronze - 69 kg - 2013) Arseni Kikiniou (Bronze - 65 kg - 2025) Jacob Kaminski (Bronze - 92 kg - 2018) Cory Land (Silver - 55 kg - 2021) Cody Merrill (Bronze - 92kg - 2022) Cade Olivas (Bronze - 42 kg - 2013) Jayden Raney (Gold - 55 kg - 2024) Jordyn Raney (Bronze - 60 kg - 2024, Gold - 55 kg - 2023) Michael Rundell (Bronze - 48 kg - 2025) Cohlton Schultz (Gold - 100 kg - 2017)

Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 1:25 - Weigh in 13:00 - Donor only Oklahoma State/Cowboy RTC vs China dual meet 34:27 - Coaching: Tj Dudley’s conversations with Nick Kosko + Colin Heffernan leaving CMU + Binghamton’s ongoing search 46:37 - Gabe Arnold going back to Iowa 58:46 - Best wrestling league model 1:14:47 - Creating our own NCAA video game 1:29:38 - Correction and upcoming content

What a week in Greece for the 2025 U17 World Championships! There were plenty of memorable moments as Team USA combined to earn 17 medals across the three styles. The men’s freestyle squad won the team title and the women’s team finished as the runner’s-up. While Greco-Roman did not challenge for a title, they did put three wrestlers on the podium. Over the week of action, we saw plenty of history being made by American athletes and even some from other countries. Below we have three different sections. One for each of the three tournaments. They are loaded with facts, trends, and “firsts” for the 2025 U17 World Championships. Greco-Roman The American Greco squad had three medalists for the first time since the tournament has existed in its current form. The US had two medalists in 2024, making this the first time we’ve had multiple medalists in back-to-back years. The American team had a streak snapped of three consecutive tournaments with a gold medalist. This is the first time that we’ve gone without a finalist since 2019 (there was no tournament in 2020). Two of the three medalists for the United States hail from California (Kikiniou, Calkins). Of the 12 Americans who have placed at this tournament in Greco since 2013, four are from Cali. Those two plus Cade Olivas and Cody Merrill. Uzbekistan had a staggering four champions. The last time they produced one champion was in 2022 and the last time they had multiple Greco champions was in 2018. Coming into this tournament, Uzbekistan has only seen four wrestlers win Greco titles since this event was reinstated in 2011. Now that total has doubled. Kazakhstan’s title by Kuanyshbek Zhangazhol (45 kg) was their first Greco gold medal since 2019 (also at 45 kg). For the third straight tournament, Azerbaijan has been responsible for the champion at 60 kg. Each time a different wrestler has won the gold (Ali Nazarov/25, Aykhan Javado/24, Roman Karimov/23). Hardeep won the gold for India at 110 lbs. It’s only the second gold medal for India in U17 Greco since this tournament was revived. Suraj at 55 kg in 2022 is the other. Janes Nazaryan won the 65 kg gold medal. He’s just the third Armenian wrestler to strike gold in U17 Greco, with the last being Gaspar Terteryan at 60 kg in 2022. Norway’s Abu Saga earned a bronze medal at 51 kg. The last time a Norwegian wrestler medaled in Greco at this event was Harvaard Joergensen in 2014 (bronze at 50 kg). Tajikistan’s Makhdi Barotov earned a bronze medal at 55 kg. He is just the third wrestler from Tajikistan to earn a medal at this event and the first since 2019. For the second time in three years, Greece has put a wrestler in a gold medal matchup. Prior to 2023, they did not have a finalist in U17 Greco in this version of the event. Women’s Freestyle Last week, Morgan Turner became the first American woman to win multiple U17 world titles. A day later, Taina Fernandez joined her in the club. Fernandez is the only one who has gone back-to-back, as Turner’s first title came in 2023. Turner also joins Marina Doi as the only American women to earn three medals at the U17 World Championships. Doi has all three medals which she won between 2011-13. The American team had multiple champions for only the third time in their history with this event. 2018 (Shilson/Kilty) and 2021 (Pastoriza, K. Gomez, Elor) are the others. Though they came in second place, the American women were the only country with seven medalists in women’s freestyle. Without projecting anything into the future, this American squad already features three multiple-time medalists. Turner/Fernandez/Jaclyn Bouzakis. Shokhista Shonazarova became the first woman from Uzbekistan to win a U17 world title. Hanano Oya’s title for Japan at 46 kg continued their streak of at least one champion every year they’ve participated since this tournament’s return in 2011. The tournament did not occur in 2020 and Japan did not place in 2021. The one champion for Japan ties them with last year’s squad for a low number of champions in one tournament. Madkhiya Usmanova became Kazakhstan’s first U17 women’s champion since 2013 when they had two. She’s the fourth overall champion for Kazakhstan. Surprisingly, China came into this year with only two U17 champions in their history. They left with three more gold medals. Hungary had a low-key good showing. They had three medalists after having none in 2023 or 2024. The last time they put multiple women on the podium was in 2021. Greece only has two total medals total from the U17 women’s tournament. Both have been won by Maria Gkika, who was a silver medalist last year and took bronze in front of the home crowd. Germany put a pair of women on the medal stand (Feenja Hermann bronze/65 kg and Ayla Sahin silver/69 kg). The last time Germany had multiple medalists was in 2014. Men’s Freestyle The American squad went unbeaten on Sunday to vault over Iran for the team title. Sunday saw the Americans win three gold medals and a bronze - while beating Iran head-to-head two times in championship action. The Americans finished with four gold medals. They’ve hit that mark two other times during this version of the tournament. 2017 (McHenry, Lewan, A. Brooks, Kerkvliet) and 2022 (Munaretto, Lilledahl, Sealey, Hopke). Sammy Sanchez became just the fifth American to win two gold medals at the U17 tournament. He joins Kurt McHenry, Yianni Diakomihalis, Gable Steveson, and Dom Munaretto. Sanchez was the only multiple-time champion in the tournament for any country. In his finals match, he defeated a returning world champion. (Ulugbek Rashidov - Uzbekistan/51 kg/’24). Keegan Bassett joins his older brother, Bo, as the only American brothers to win U17 titles. Since 2019, the United States has produced the gold medalist at 45 kg in all but one tournament (2023). That run includes Marc-Anthony McGowan (2019), Bo Bassett (2021), Dom Munaretto (2022), Sammy Sanchez (2024), and Keegan Bassett (2025). Bassett’s title now puts Pennsylvania in the lead with five champions in this version of the tournament. Coming into this tournament, they were tied with Illinois and Minnesota with four. Ariah Mills is the first Georgia native (the state, not the country) to win this tournament. Iran had a successful tournament, finishing second with seven medalists; however, they went 0-5 in gold medal matches. Artur Kostiuk’s gold medal for Ukraine at 80 kg is the first for a Ukrainian wrestler at this tournament since Andrii Dzhelep did so in 2016. Ayubjon Bozorzoda’s bronze medal at 71 kg makes him the first wrestler from Tajikistan to medal in men’s freestyle at the U17 championships. Kyrgyzstan had a pair of bronze medalists at the 2025 tournament. A year ago, they had four medalists in Jordan. It marks the first time that they’ve had multiple medalists in back-to-back tournaments. The men’s freestyle tournament only saw 12 different countries earn medals. The women’s freestyle and Greco-Roman tournaments had 14. (And that is counting Belarus/Russia separately, not as a part of the UWW team).

Final Team Scores 1. United States 154 2. Iran 150 3. Russia 127 4. Kazakhstan 91 5. Azerbaijan 90 Final Medal round results 45 kg Gold medal match: Keegan Bassett (USA) over Parsa Tahmasbi (Iran) 6-0 Bronze medal match: Ibragim Veliullov (Russia) over Bakdaulet Agabek (Kazakhstan) 9-2 Bronze medal match: Mirjalol Mukammilov (Uzbekistan) over Arnur Nursaidov (Kyrgyzstan) 4-4 48 kg Gold medal match: Ariah Mills (USA) over Sina Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad (Iran) 12-1 Bronze medal match: Dovudbek Bakhadirov (Kyrgyzstan) over Masamune Ushimado (Japan) 12-0 Bronze medal match: Islam Rabadanov (Russia) over Ravan Hasanzade (Azerbaijan) 11-9 51 kg Gold medal match: Sammy Sanchez (USA) over Ulugbek Rashidov (Uzbekistan) 5-2 Bronze medal match: Danael Abdykassym (Kazakhstan) over Temuri Tutarashvili (Georgia) 9-4 Bronze medal match: Dzhamal Bakaev (Russia) over Haruku Shiina (Japan) 12-5 55 kg Gold medal match: Jinnosuke Okonogi (Japan) over Abdumalik Jaloldinov (Uzbekistan) 5-4 Bronze medal match: Chingis Saryglar (Russia) over Jovanni Tovar (Colombia) 8-2 Bronze medal match: Grey Burnett (USA) over Mohammadreza Barari (Iran) 4-0 60 kg Gold medal match: Sitender (India) over Rihito Hiura (Japan) 9-4 Bronze medal match: Hasan Hasanov (Azerbaijan) over Nathan Nash (Canada) 5-4 Bronze medal match: Bekassyl Assambek (Kazakhstan) over Arian Mehralizadeh (Iran) 9-0 65 kg Gold medal match: Huseyn Ismayilov (Azerbaijan) over Arseni Kikiniou 1-1 Bronze medal match: Adisbek Altynbekov (Kyrgyzstan) over Yeraly Askerbek (Kazakhstan) 7-1 Bronze medal match: Morteza Haj Mollamohammadi (Iran) over Gourav Punia (India) 8-8 71 kg Gold medal match: Jayden James (USA) over Arsham Mostafa (Iran) 9-2 Bronze medal match: Yeghishe Mosesyan (Armenia) over Farrukhbek Jumanazarov (Uzbekistan) 7-6 Bronze medal match: Ayubjon Bozorzoda (Tajikistan) over Jason Keil (Germany) 6-0 80 kg Gold medal match: Artur Kostiuk (Ukraine) over Mohammadparsa Karami (Iran) 3-1 Bronze medal match: Issa Zangiev (Russia) over Muhammet Erturk (Turkiye) 5-2 Bronze medal match: Dinmukhammed Kassymbek (Kazakhstan) over Ivan Paslari (Moldova) 5-4 92 kg Gold medal match: David Dzebisov (Russia) over Amirali Alizadeh (Iran) 4-2 Bronze medal match: Tanner Hodgins (USA) over Elguja Lomidze (Georgia) 10-0 Bronze medal match: Said Pashayev (Azerbaijan) over Beibarys Yergali (Kazakhstan) 5-3 110 kg Gold medal match: Magomedrasul Omarov (Russia) over Lacky (India) 6-4 Bronze medal match: Amirhossein Naghdalipour (Iran) over Murtaz Bagdavadze (Georgia) 11-0 Bronze medal match: Hakim Taghiyev (Azerbaijan) over Stefan Stefanov (Bulgaria) 1-1

The US men’s freestyle team saved their best for last at the 2025 U17 World Championships. The team entered the day trailing Iran in the team standings for the event and needed a great performance and some head-to-head wins over Iran to win the title. That’s exactly what happened as the team was perfect on Sunday. Three-for-three in the gold medal matches and the lone wrestler in repechage won all three of his bouts. Two of the wins in the gold medal round came at the expense of Iran. The final team tally had the United States ahead of Iran 154 to 150 points. In the first gold medal match of the day, Keegan Bassett took on Iran’s Parsa Tahmasbi at 45 kg. Within the first minute of the bout, Bassett locked up a takedown after a reshot during a flurry from the front headlock position. After the takedown was awarded, Tahmasbi continued to wrestle through the position and was exposed for a second set of points. Leading 4-0, Bassett drove Tahmasbi to his back again and nearly pinned him for a 6-0 lead. Those six first-period points accounted for all of the scoring in the entire contest. Bassett is now the second member of his family to win a U17 world championship, joining his older brother, Bo. The second championship head-to-head with Iran came at 71 kg as Jayden James downed Arsham Mostafa, 9-2. James got on the scoreboard first with a shot clock violation on Mostafa and a step-out point. He ended the first period with a takedown and a 4-0 lead. In the second period, James added to his lead with a snapdown and spin for a 6-0 advantage. Despite Mostafa getting on the board with a takedown, James added a point with a reversal late in the final period. In the closing seconds, Mostafa tried a desperation throw that James countered for another two points and a 9-2 win. The gold medal matchup that didn’t involve an Iranian opponent saw Sammy Sanchez claim his second consecutive world title with a 5-2 win over Uzbekistan’s Ulugbek Rashidov. Like Sanchez, Rashidov was a U17 world champion in 2024. The deciding sequence in the battle of the returning world champions came in the finals seven seconds with Sanchez holding a 3-0 lead. While the pair was on the mat, Rashidov was able to expose Sanchez once with a chest wrap; however, he went directly to his back after the hold and was unable to score again. Actually, Sanchez added a pair of points to win, 5-2. With the win, Sanchez joins an exclusive club of American two-time U17 world champions in men’s freestyle. That list consists of Yianni Diakmohalis, Gable Steveson, Kurt McHenry, and Dom Munaretto. Not to be overlooked was the job that Tanner Hodgins did in the 92kg repechage rounds. Hodgins blazed through the competition with two techs and an 8-2 victory. He only needed 1:41 to rack up 10 points on Elguja Lomidze (Georgia) in the bronze medal match. The men’s freestyle team finished the tournament with world champions in four of the ten weight classes and medaled in seven weights. American results 45 kg Gold medal match: Keegan Bassett over Parsa Tahmasbi (Iran) 6-0 51 kg Gold medal match: Sammy Sanchez over Ulugbek Rashidov (Uzbekistan) 5-2 71 kg Gold medal match: Jayden James over Arsham Mostafa (Iran) 9-2 92 kg Repechage #1: Tanner Hodgins over Saruul Erdenetsogt (Mongolia) 10-0 Repechage #2: Tanner Hodgins over Said Riza (Turkiye) 8-2 Bronze medal match: Tanner Hodgins over Elguja Lomidze (Georgia) 10-0 Final Medal round results 45 kg Gold medal match: Keegan Bassett (USA) over Parsa Tahmasbi (Iran) 6-0 Bronze medal match: Ibragim Veliullov (Russia) over Bakdaulet Agabek (Kazakhstan) 9-2 Bronze medal match: Mirjalol Mukammilov (Uzbekistan) over Arnur Nursaidov (Kyrgyzstan) 4-4 51 kg Gold medal match: Sammy Sanchez (USA) over Ulugbek Rashidov (Uzbekistan) 5-2 Bronze medal match: Danael Abdykassym (Kazakhstan) over Temuri Tutarashvili (Georgia) 9-4 Bronze medal match: Dzhamal Bakaev (Russia) over Haruku Shiina (Japan) 12-5 60 kg Gold medal match: Sitender (India) over Rihito Hiura (Japan) 9-4 Bronze medal match: Hasan Hasanov (Azerbaijan) over Nathan Nash (Canada) 5-4 Bronze medal match: Bekassyl Assambek (Kazakhstan) over Arian Mehralizadeh (Iran) 9-0 71 kg Gold medal match: Jayden James (USA) over Arsham Mostafa (Iran) 9-2 Bronze medal match: Yeghishe Mosesyan (Armenia) over Farrukhbek Jumanazarov (Uzbekistan) 7-6 Bronze medal match: Ayubjon Bozorzoda (Tajikistan) over Jason Keil (Germany) 6-0 92 kg Gold medal match: David Dzebisov (Russia) over Amirali Alizadeh (Iran) 4-2 Bronze medal match: Tanner Hodgins (USA) over Elguja Lomidze (Georgia) 10-0 Bronze medal match: Said Pashayev (Azerbaijan) over Beibarys Yergali (Kazakhstan) 5-3

Final Medal Round Matches from the 2025 U17 World Championships Women’s Freestyle 40 kg Gold medal match: Shokhista Shonazarova (Uzbekistan) over An Nakanishi (Japan) 11-0 Bronze medal match: Maisie Elliott (USA) over Finja Strauch (Germany) 6-0 Bronze medal match: Asema Asangaryeva (Kyrgyzstan) over Valia Harsan (Romania) 2-0 43 kg Gold Medal Match: Rachana (India) over Xin Huang (China) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Inzhu Bakkozha (Kazakhstan) over Raniia Rakhmanova (Russia) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Madison Healey (USA) over Mareim Abdelaal (Egypt) Fall 3:30 46 kg Gold medal match: Hanano Oya (Japan) over Janka Sillei (Hungary) 3-0 Bronze medal match: Jaclyn Bouzakis (USA) over Irina Tsydeeva (Russia) 12-2 Bronze medal match: Maria Gkika (Greece) over Kamila Kuchma (Ukraine) 4-3 49 kg Gold Medal Match: Morgan Turner (USA) over Yu Kataoka (Japan) 6-1 Bronze Medal Match: Polina Bochkareva (Russia) over Azema Kalidinva (Kyrgyzstan) 6-6 Bronze Medal Match: Komal Verma (India) over Anhelina Burkina (Belarus) 8-3 53 kg Gold medal match: Jiaqing Jiang (China) over Epenesa Elison (USA) 7-4 Bronze medal match: Rion Ogawa (Japan) over Margarita Iarygina (Belarus) 8-0 Bronze medal match: Mariia Zhytovoz (Hungary) over Farida Abdrakhmanova (Kazakhstan) 10-0 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Madkhiya Usmanova (Kazakhstan) over Moni (India) 6-5 Bronze Medal Match: Alina Baroeva (Russia) over Marta Mankowska (Poland) 6-1 Bronze Medal Match: Sayuki Tanada (Japan) over Sophie Ritter (Italy) 4-4 61 kg Gold medal match: Taina Fernandez (USA) over Yashita (India) 11-0 Bronze medal match: Barbara Bager (Hungary) over Varvara Aliseyenka (Russia) 2-0 Bronze medal match: Zalina Totrova (Belarus) over Miranda Kapanadze (Georgia) 8-0 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Ashvini Vishnoi (India) over Mukhayyo Rakhimjonova (Uzbekistan) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Lilia Ermokhina (Russia) over Anujin Erkhembaaatar (Mongolia) 9-2 Bronze Medal Match: Feenja Hermann (Germany) over Alexandra Moisei (Moldova) 4-2 69 kg Gold medal match: Min Zhao (China) over Ayla Sahin (Germany) 13-2 Bronze medal match: Solomiia Petriv (Ukraine) over Manisha (India) 5-2 Bronze medal match: Shakhizada Dauletzhan (Kazakhstan) over Linda Martinez Armenta (Mexico) 4-1 73 kg Gold Medal Match: Wenjin Qiu (China) over Kajal (India) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match: Eylem Engin (Turkiye) over Deborah Garcia Pacheco (Mexico) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match: Ella Poalillo (USA) over Anna Godelashvili (Georgia) Fall 2:36

The first medals were awarded in men’s freestyle at the U17 World Championships on Saturday and the American contingent already has three with more on the horizon. Saturday gold medal matches featured a pair of American wrestlers - Ariah Mills at 48 kg and Arseni Kikiniou at 65 kg. The two split as Mills dominated for the gold, while Kikiniou was painfully close but will have to settle for silver. Mills squared off with Iranian Sina Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad, who took an early lead; however, it went downhill fast for the Iranian. Mills was placed on the shot clock in the opening period and ended up surrendering a point to Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad. Shortly after the point, Mills used a knee pick to get his opponent off balance and then locked up a takedown. He’d take a 2-1 lead into the second period. Mills would add to his lead early in the final period by getting a second takedown, this time after a snapdown, followed by spinning for two. Off the next restart, Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad made a poor shot and Mills made him pay with a lightning-quick counter for two more and a 6-1 lead. One more was all Mills needed to seal the win. Another bit of stout defense allowed Mills to get a third takedown. This time, he was able to isolate an arm and turned Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad twice with a trapped-arm gut wrench for the 12-1 win. With Mills’ win, it will ensure that the men’s freestyle team has at least one gold medalist from this event - something they’ve had every year since this tournament was reintroduced in 2011. Kikiniou lost a tactical affair in the 65 kg finals to Azerbaijan’s Huseyn Ismayilov, 1-1. Both points awarded came via slot clock violations - one by each wrestler. Despite the loss, Kikiniou will receive a silver medal and become the first American at the U17 level to earn medals in both disciplines. Earlier in the week, he claimed a bronze medal in Greco-Roman. The third American to receive a medal on Saturday was Grey Burnett at 55 kg. Early in his contest with Iran’s Mohammedreza Barari, Burnett stuffed a shot attempt and then scored a takedown from the front headlock position. Seconds later, he locked up a high gut and turned the Iranian for two points and a 4-0 lead. That sequence represented the only scoring of the bout and Burnett walked away with a bronze medal. The last five members of the men’s freestyle team began their tournaments on Saturday, as well. They were a powerful bunch that pushed three wrestlers into the finals and one other will be in Sunday’s repechage. Keegan Bassett (45 kg), Sammy Sanchez (51 kg), and Jayden James (71 kg) all will wrestle for gold medals tomorrow. Bassett fought through a path that included some traditional powers in India, Kazakhstan, and Russia. He’ll have to get by Iran’s Parsa Tahmasbi for the gold. Sanchez is looking to become just the fifth two-time U17 champion in men’s freestyle for Team USA since the tournament was revived in 2011. A group that includes Yianni Diakomihalis, Gable Steveson, Kurt McHenry, and Dom Munaretto is pretty solid company. Standing between Sanchez and that group is Uzbekistan’s Ulugbek Rashidov. Like Sanchez, Rashidov is a returning U17 gold medalist. In 2024, Sanchez won the 45 kg gold medal, while Rashidov won at 48 kg. One of the more entertaining bouts of the day came in the 71 kg semifinals as Jayden James pinned Armenia’s Yeghishe Mosesyan for a berth in the finals. The Armenian had a chest wrap from a front headlock position and tried to roll through with it - a scramble ensued and James ended up on top for the fall. He’ll face Iran’s Arsham Mostafa in tomorrow’s gold medal match. Still with medal hopes alive is Tanner Hodgins at 92 kg. Hodgins lost his first bout of the tournament to Iran’s Amirali Alizadeh. Alizadeh ended up in the finals and pulled Hodgins back into repechage. He’ll need to win two bouts tomorrow morning just to wrestle for a bronze medal. Hodgins journey through the repechage bracket starts with a bout versus Mongolia’s Saruul Erdenetsogt. American results 45 kg Round of 16: Keegan Bassett over Shivam (India) 8-5 Quarterfinals: Keegan Bassett over Bakdaulet Agabek (Kazakhstan) 15-4 Semifinals: Keegan Bassett over Ibragim Veliullov (Russia) 6-2 48 kg Gold medal match: Ariah Mills over Sina Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad (Iran) 12-1 51 kg Round of 32: Sammy Sanchez over Georgi Spasov (Bulgaria) 10-0 Round of 16: Sammy Sanchez over Bugra Kavak (Turkiye) 13-2 Quarterfinals: Sammy Sanchez over Temuri Tutaarashvili (Georgia) 12-1 Semifinals: Sammy Sanchez over Danael Abdykassym (Kazakhstan) 10-0 55 kg Bronze medal match: Grey Burnett (USA) over Mohammadreza Barari (Iran) 4-0 60 kg Round of 32: Bekassyl Assambek (Kazakhstan) over Ashton Besmer 10-0 65 kg Gold medal match: Huseyn Ismayilov (Azerbaijan) over Arseni Kikiniou 1-1 71 kg Round of 32: Jayden James over Koba Goguadze (Georgia) 12-2 Round of 16: Jayden James over Rashad Veysalov (Azerbaijan) 13-2 Quarterfinals: Jayden James over Farrukhbek Jumanazarov (Uzbekistan) 6-0 Semifinals: Jayden James over Yeghishe Mosesyan (Armenia) Fall 3:38 92 kg Round of 32: Amirali Alizadeh (Iran) over Tanner Hodgins 11-4 Sunday’s gold medal matches 45 kg: Keegan Bassett vs. Parsa Tahmasbi (Iran) 51 kg: Sammy Sanchez vs. Ulugbek Rashidov (Uzbekistan) 60 kg: Rihito Hiura (Japan) vs. Sitender (India) 71 kg: Jayden James vs. Arsham Mostafa (Iran) 92 kg: Amirali Alizadeh (Iran) vs. David Dzebisov (Russia) Final Medal round results 48 kg Gold medal match: Ariah Mills (USA) over Sina Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad (Iran) 12-1 Bronze medal match: Dovudbek Bakhadirov (Kyrgyzstan) over Masamune Ushimado (Japan) 12-0 Bronze medal match: Islam Rabadanov (Russia) over Ravan Hasanzade (Azerbaijan) 11-9 55 kg Gold medal match: Jinnosuke Okonogi (Japan) over Abdumalik Jaloldinov (Uzbekistan) 5-4 Bronze medal match: Chingis Saryglar (Russia) over Jovanni Tovar (Colombia) 8-2 Bronze medal match: Grey Burnett (USA) over Mohammadreza Barari (Iran) 4-0 65 kg Gold medal match: Huseyn Ismayilov (Azerbaijan) over Arseni Kikiniou 1-1 Bronze medal match: Adisbek Altynbekov (Kyrgyzstan) over Yeraly Askerbek (Kazakhstan) 7-1 Bronze medal match: Morteza Haj Mollamohammadi (Iran) over Gourav Punia (India) 8-8 80 kg Gold medal match: Artur Kostiuk (Ukraine) over Mohammadparsa Karami (Iran) 3-1 Bronze medal match: Issa Zangiev (Russia) over Muhammet Erturk (Turkiye) 5-2 Bronze medal match: Dinmukhammed Kassymbek (Kazakhstan) over Ivan Paslari (Moldova) 5-4 110 kg Gold medal match: Magomedrasul Omarov (Russia) over Lacky (India) 6-4 Bronze medal match: Amirhossein Naghdalipour (Iran) over Murtaz Bagdavadze (Georgia) 11-0 Bronze medal match: Hakim Taghiyev (Azerbaijan) over Stefan Stefanov (Bulgaria) 1-1

Friday at the U17 World Championships was the best so far from an American perspective. The women’s freestyle team finished their tournament, while the men’s freestyle action got underway. All four of the women who wrestled on Friday will leave Athens with world medals. Two had already clinched their medals heading into the day, while the other two had to post wins to earn their hardware. In yesterday’s recap, we mentioned how Morgan Turner had become the first American woman to win multiple U17 world championships. As expected, Turner has company and the exclusive club has grown to two. Taina Fernandez put her own spin on the accomplishment by going back-to-back (Turner’s first title came in 2023). Fernandez and India’s Yashita nearly battled to a stalemate in the opening stanza. A snap down and go-behind, quickly followed by a shot-clock violation, accounted for a 3-0 lead for Fernandez after one period. In the second, she opened up as we’ve been accustomed to seeing from her. Shortly after wrestling resumed, Fernandez got in on a single leg and switched to a double for a takedown. She immediately transitioned into a leg lace and turned Yashita multiple times. The officials ruled that it had only occurred twice, and the match resumed with the American holding a 9-0 lead. No worries for Fernandez, who used a similar attack to seal her win at 11-0. In her second U17 world title run, Fernandez only surrendered points in one of her four victories. The other finalist for the women’s squad was Epenesa Elison at 53 kg. She faced China’s Jiaqing Jiang in the gold medal matchup. Jiang ended up prevailing 7-4; however, Elison was on the wrong side of three different calls where she might have earned takedown(s). She’ll settle for silver in her first actual U17 world tournament. Elison qualified for the 2024 tournament but did not wrestle. Maisie Elliott (40 kg) and Jaclyn Bouzakis (46 kg) both finished up with bronze medals. Both had relatively one-sided wins to clinch their medals. Elliott won with a 6-0 shutout, while Bouzakis managed to wrap up a 12-2 tech in the final seconds of the first period. The women’s freestyle team finished in second place behind India. Even though they finished with a lower point total, the American squad was the only one with seven medalists. In men’s freestyle, two Americans pushed through to Saturday’s gold medal matches and one other is in a bronze medal match. Arseni Kikiniou made some history of his own as he became the first American to earn U17 world medals in both styles at the same World Championship event. He earned a bronze medal in Greco earlier this week. On Friday, Kikiniou advanced to the 65 kg gold medal match after edging Iran’s Morteza Haj Mollamohammadi, 3-2. Trailing 2-1, with under :30 remaining in the bout, Kikiniou won a scramble to get the go-ahead takedown. He’ll face Azerbaijan’s Huseyn Ismayilov in tomorrow’s championship match. Before Kikiniou earned a finals berth, Ariah Mills had become the first American in men’s freestyle to do so in the 2025 tournament. Late in the first period, against Azerbaijan’s Ravan Hasanzade, Mills drove Hasanzade out of bounds to his back for four points. That gave him a 4-1 lead he’d never relinquish. Mills added more late in the second for a 7-2 win. The third American in the semifinals was Grey Burnett at 55 kg, who suffered an 8-2 loss to Japan’s Jinnosuke Okonogi. The pair were tied at the break, with Burnett holding criteria; however, Okonogi had a big second period to take the lead. Burnett will wait for an opponent to advance to tomorrow’s bronze medal match. Aaron Stewart (80 kg) and Alex Taylor (110 kg) were both in action as well - both were eliminated from medal contention on Friday. American Results Women’s freestyle 40 kg Bronze medal match: Maisie Elliott over Finja Strauch (Germany) 6-0 46 kg Bronze medal match: Jaclyn Bouzakis over Irina Tsydeeva (Russia) 12-2 53 kg Gold medal match: Jiaqing Jiang (China) over Epenesa Elison 7-4 61 kg Gold medal match: Taina Fernandez over Yashita (India) 11-0 Men’s freestyle 48 kg Round of 16: Ariah Mills over Islam Rabadanov (Russia) 11-0 Quarterfinals: Ariah Mills over Giorgi Narimindze (Georgia) 12-1 Semifinals: Ariah Mills over Ravan Hasanzade (Azerbaijan) 7-2 55 kg Round of 16: Grey Burnett over Armen Papikyan (Armenia) 3-2 Quarterfinals: Grey Burnett over Jaiveer Singh (India) 3-0 Semifinals: Jinnosuke Okonogi (Japan) over Grey Burnett 8-2 65 kg Round of 32: Arseni Kikiniou over Nikita Kozich (Israel) 10-0 Round of 16: Arseni Kikiniou over Michal Michniewicz (Poland) 9-0 Quarterfinals: Arseni Kikiniou over Gourav Punia (India) 5-4 Semifinals: Arseni Kikiniou over Morteza Haj Mollamohammadi (Iran) 3-2 80 kg Round of 16: Aaron Stewart over Marshall Jones (Great Britain) 11-0 Quarterfinals: Issa Zangiev (Russia) over Aaron Stewart 10-4 110 kg Round of 16: Hakim Taghiyev (Azerbaijan) over Alex Taylor 7-6 Saturday’s Gold Medal Matches 48 kg: Ariah Mills (USA) vs. Sina Boustani Kalateh Abbasabad (Iran) 55 kg: Jinnosuke Okonogi (Japan) vs. Abdumalik Jaloldinov (Uzbekistan) 65 kg: Arseni Kikiniou (USA) vs. Huseyn Ismayilov (Azerbaijan) 80 kg: Artur Kostiuk (Ukraine) vs. Mohammadparsa Karami (Iran) 110 kg: Lacky (India) vs. Magomedrasul Omarov (Russia) Final Medal Round Matches Women’s Freestyle 40 kg Gold medal match: Shokhista Shonazarova (Uzbekistan) over An Nakanishi (Japan) 11-0 Bronze medal match: Maisie Elliott (USA) over Finja Strauch (Germany) 6-0 Bronze medal match: Asema Asangaryeva (Kyrgyzstan) over Valia Harsan (Romania) 2-0 46 kg Gold medal match: Hanano Oya (Japan) over Janka Sillei (Hungary) 3-0 Bronze medal match: Jaclyn Bouzakis (USA) over Irina Tsydeeva (Russia) 12-2 Bronze medal match: Maria Gkika (Greece) over Kamila Kuchma (Ukraine) 4-3 53 kg Gold medal match: Jiaqing Jiang (China) over Epenesa Elison (USA) 7-4 Bronze medal match: Rion Ogawa (Japan) over Margarita Iarygina (Belarus) 8-0 Bronze medal match: Mariia Zhytovoz (Hungary) over Farida Abdrakhmanova (Kazakhstan) 10-0 61 kg Gold medal match: Taina Fernandez (USA) over Yashita (India) 11-0 Bronze medal match: Barbara Bager (Hungary) over Varvara Aliseyenka (Russia) 2-0 Bronze medal match: Zalina Totrova (Belarus) over Miranda Kapanadze (Georgia) 8-0 69 kg Gold medal match: Min Zhao (China) over Ayla Sahin (Germany) 13-2 Bronze medal match: Solomiia Petriv (Ukraine) over Manisha (India) 5-2 Bronze medal match: Shakhizada Dauletzhan (Kazakhstan) over Linda Martinez Armenta (Mexico) 4-1

We started our All-Quarter Century feature by looking at a prominent Big Ten program, and today, we’re circling back to the B1G to look at another. Illinois. Illinois is a program that has seen a lot of star power come through Champaign in the last 25 years. Our first team contains six different NCAA champions - including one we saw in action just a few months ago. In the early part of the time observed, Illinois captured a Big Ten title and had a couple other near misses. With some momentum from 2025 and talented recruiting classes on the horizon, they could get back in the B1G title hunt sooner rather than later. While a lot of the first team was relatively easy to figure out there were overall some tough decisions and omissions. First and foremost, at 157/165. 157 has been a great weight for the Illini with three national finalists wrestling there since 2001. Throw in the fact that Isaiah Martinez wrestled at 157 and 165 there were some difficult choices to make. Martinez has to be on the first team. The decision came between Mike Poeta (157) and Matt Lackey (165). Martinez would go one weight and someone excellent would be bumped to the second team. Another decision came at 133 lbs. Big Ten champion and All-American Mark Jayne wasn’t on one of the top three teams. You could probably make an argument that he might be worthy of a second-team selection, as Zane Richards and BJ Futrell all had very strong careers, but a case could be made for Jayne. Wrestlers considered for the three teams had to compete from 2001 to 2025. For the wrestlers early in this timeframe, their entire collegiate body of work was considered. Only collegiate results were taken into consideration. Even if a wrestler was successful at multiple weights, they were only selected for one weight - typically, it was based on the strongest possible first team. After the three All-Century teams, there are some fun facts about Cornell’s results over the past 25 years. Here are the programs we’ve already covered Cornell Lehigh Minnesota Missouri NC State First Team 125 lbs - Jesse Delgado: Gilroy, California - 3x AA (1,1,7), 2x NCAA champion, 2x Big Ten champion 133 lbs - Lucas Byrd: Cincinnati, Ohio* - 3x AA (1,5,5), 2025 NCAA champion, 2025 Big Ten champion 141 lbs - Jimmy Kennedy: Ingleside, Illinois - 3x AA (5,5,4), 2008 Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #2 seed 149 lbs - Adam Tirapelle: Clovis, California - 3x AA (1,2,3), 2001 NCAA champion, 2000 Big Ten champion 157 lbs - Isaiah Martinez: Lemoore, California - 4x AA (2,2,1,1), 2x NCAA champion, 4x Big Ten champion 165 lbs - Matt Lackey: Moline, Illinois - 3x AA (1,2,3), 2003 NCAA champion, 2x Big Ten champion 174 lbs - Jordan Blanton: Richmond, Illinois - 3x AA (7,4,5), 2010 Big Ten 3rd place 184 lbs - Pete Friedl: Orland Park, Illinois - 3x AA (3,4,7), 2005 Big Ten champion, 2x Big Ten finalist 197 lbs - Pat Quirk: Hinsdale, Illinois - 2x AA (2,8), 2001 Big Ten champion 285 lbs - John Lockhart: Mahomet, Illinois - 3x AA (3,1,7), 2001 NCAA champion, 2001 Big Ten runner-up Second Team 125 lbs - Kyle Ott: Huber Heights, Ohio - 2x AA (2,2), 2x Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #3 seed 133 lbs - Zane Richards: Carbondale, Illinois - 2x AA (7,4), 2016 Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #3 seed 141 lbs - Dylan Duncan: Winfield, Illinois - 1x AA (5), 4x national qualifier, 2018 Big Ten 3rd place 149 lbs - Eric Terrezas: Wheaton, Illinois - 2x national qualifier 157 lbs - Mike Poeta: Highwood, Illinois - 3x AA (2,2,3), 2x Big Ten champion, 2x NCAA #2 seed 165 lbs - Conrad Polz: Orland Park, Illinois - 2x AA (5,8), 2013 Big Ten runner-up 174 lbs - John Dergo: Morris, Illinois - 1x AA (5), 2010 Big Ten champion, NCAA #2 seed 184 lbs - Brian Glynn: Orland Park, Illinois - 2x AA (3,6), 2005 Big Ten runner-up 197 lbs - Tyrone Byrd: Clinton, Illinois - 4x national qualifier, 2006 Big Ten runner-up 285 lbs - John Wise: Pittsfield, Illinois - 1x AA (7), 2009 Big Ten 3rd place Third Team 125 lbs - Gabe Flores: Madera, California - 3x national qualifier, NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2008 Big Ten 3rd place 133 lbs - BJ Futrell: Park Forest, Illinois - 2x AA (6,8), 2012 Big Ten 3rd place, NCAA #4 seed 141 lbs - Steven Rodriguez: Mount Kisco, New York - 1x AA (5), 3x national qualifier, 2016 Big Ten 3rd place 149 lbs - Kannon Webster*: Toulon, Illinois - 2025 national qualifier, NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2025 Big Ten runner-up 157 lbs - Alex Tirapelle: Clovis, California - 2x AA (4,2), 2x Big Ten champion, 2x NCAA #1 seed 165 lbs - Jackson Morse, Alto, Michigan: 1x AA (4) 174 lbs - Zac Brunson: Eugene, Oregon: 1x AA (6), NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2016 Big Ten runner-up 184 lbs - Emery Parker: Wadsworth, Illinois: 2x AA (5,3), 2019 Big Ten 3rd place 197 lbs - Mario Gonzalez: Aurora, Illinois: 3x NCAA Round of 12 finisher, 2012 Big Ten champion 285 lbs - Luke Luffman: Urbana, Illinois: 4x national qualifier, NCAA Round of 12 finisher Fun Facts During this quarter-century, six Illinois wrestlers have combined to win eight NCAA titles Illinois wrestlers have made the national finals 17 times during this time span Coming into the 2000’s Illinois had never produced a two-time national champion - now they have two (Delgado, Martinez) Illinois has finished in the top ten at the NCAA Championships ten times since 2001. The 2001 team’s fifth-place finish is the highest and features the most team points (89). Illinois has put wrestlers on the NCAA podium 54 times since 2001, plus an NWCA First Team All-American in 2020 5 Illini wrestlers earned All-American honors in both 2004 and 2005 - the highest total during this span In 2018, Isaiah Martinez became the first Illinois wrestler to win the Big Ten four times and earn All-American honors four times Isaiah Martinez’s 2015 national title made him the first freshman to finish the season undefeated since Cael Sanderson in 1999 The 2005 Illinois team captured its only Big Ten team title during this quarter century They finished second in the Big Ten on three other occasions Despite winning the 2005 Big Ten title, the team’s high point total at that event came in 2001 (130.5 points) The 2001 team had a pair of NCAA champions (Ad. Tirapelle and Lockhart), one of only three times in team history they’ve had multiple champs and the only time in the period observed. 13 Illinois wrestlers have combined to win 20 Big Ten titles in the past 25 years Illini wrestlers have been seeded #1 at the NCAA Tournament 9 times in this quarter century, with Isaiah Martinez having four times himself Illinois has been led by three different head coaches this quarter century: Mark Johnson, Jim Heffernan, and Mike Poeta The top-five wrestlers on the school’s all-time wins list all wrestled in this era (Al. Tirapelle, Ad. Tirapelle, Friedl, Kennedy, Lockhart) Nine of the ten first-team members were at least three-time All-Americans Illinois has been able to ink the #1 overall recruit once during this quarter century (Poeta/2004) Since 2001, 11 California natives have won NCAA titles. Three of them (Ad. Tirapelle, Delgado, Martinez) wore the block I for Illinois.

Kearney via Grand View

Washington via Grand View

White River

Bark River-Harris

Millard North

Cottonwood

Fulton

Baldwin

Hononegah via Iowa

North Allegheny

Leander

Springs Studio via Colorado Mesa

The only day of the U17 World Championships that contained nothing but women’s freestyle was an excellent one for Team USA. Morgan Turner was one of the stars of the day as she staked her claim to one of America’s best women ever at the age-group level. Turner posted a 6-1 victory over Japan’s two-time U17 Asian champion Yu Kataoka. It represented her third U17 world medal and her second of the gold variety. Since the Cadet/U17 World Championships returned in 2011, no American woman had won multiple gold medals. We’ll get to it later, but one of Turner’s teammates could join that elite company on Friday. In the 49 kg gold medal matchup against Kataoka, Turner got on the scoreboard first with a sweep single. Her Japanese opponents fought it with a hard whizzer; however, Turner was eventually able to step over her back and lock in a leg for two points. The second period saw Turner add to her lead, countering a short offense attempt from Kataoka for a takedown and two more points. With under a minute remaining in the contest, Turner kept the heat on and scored a third takedown on a low leg attack. At the end of that sequence, Kataoka got to her feet and earned a step-out point against the American. That would be the only scoring for the Japanese wrestler - Turner finished off the 6-1 win a few seconds later. Turner’s time being the only American woman to win two U17 titles might last a full 24 hours. Maybe less. Taina Fernandez made the 61 kg finals and put herself in position to win back-to-back gold medals. Fernandez needed less than :40 seconds to take Miranda Kapanadze (Georgia) down, lock in an arm-bar and secure a fall in the semifinals. Fernandez’s toughest test on Thursday came in a 13-6 win over Russian Zalina Totrova. Standing between Fernandez and back-to-back world championships is India’s Yashita. Yashita is battle-tested with close wins throughout the tournament. She had wins by four points, two points, and criteria, before a 5-0 shutout in the semis. Joining Fernandez in tomorrow’s finals is Epenesa Elison at 53 kg. Elison earned her finals berth after a methodical tech fall over Kazakhstan’s Farida Abdrakhmanov. Elison struck time and time again with a sweep single - four times in total, along with a leg lace for a 10-0 victory. Like Fernandes, Elison’s toughest bout thus far came in the quarterfinals. Elison jumped out to an early 6-0 lead on Hungary’s Mariia Zhytovoz; however, Zhytovoz was able to cut the lead to one point at the break. In the second period, Elison re-established herself with a picture-esque ankle pick for four points. She would go on to win 12-7. Also coming away with hardware on the day was Madison Healey at 43 kg. Healey and Egyptian Mareim Abdelaal were in a relatively tight bout before Healey got a takedown in the second period and quickly moved into an arm bar. The officials had a difficult time determining whether or not to call the fall, but eventually put Abdelaal out of her misery from the brutal pinning combination with :30 left in the bout. Healey grabs the bronze medal and her only loss of the tournament was 1-1 to the eventual champion, Rachana of India. The final American to claim a bronze medal on Thursday was Ella Poalillo at 73 kg. Poalillo was up 2-0 in the second period against Georgia’s Anna Godelashvili and nearly got a fall after securing a takedown and reaching for the head. Seconds later, she locked up a nasty arm bar and finished the job for the fall and a bronze medal. Two more American women will wrestle for the bronze tomorrow. Maisie Elliott at 40 kg and Jaclyn Bouzakis at 46 kg. Both advanced to the semifinals on Wednesday. Elliott will face Germany’s Finja Strauch, while Bouzakis’ opponent will be determined after a round of repechage. American Results 40 kg Quarterfinals: Masie Elliott over Preeti Yadav (India) 6-2 Semifinals: Shokhista Shonazarova (Kazakhstan) over Masie Elliott 9-0 43 kg Bronze Medal Match: Madison Healey over Mareim Abdelaal (Egypt) Fall 3:30 46 kg Round of 16: Jaclyn Bouzakis over Yuting Yuan (China) 7-4 Quarterfinals: Jaclyn Bouzakis over Kasish Gurjar (India) 12-4 Semifinals: Hanano Oya (Japan) over Jaclyn Bouzakis 6-4 49 kg Gold Medal Match: Morgan Turner over Yu Kataoka (Japan) 6-1 53 kg Round of 32: Epenesa Elison over Kanita Spahija (Kosovo) 12-0 Round of 16: Epenesa Elison over Maria Vandoulaki Vandoula (Greece) Fall 1:06 Quarterfinals: Epenesa Elison over Mariia Zhytovoz (Hungary) 12-7 Semifinals: Epenesa Elison over Farida Abdrakhmanov (Kazakhstan) 10-0 61 kg Round of 16: Taina Fernandez over Zichen Dong (China) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Taina Fernandez over Zalina Totrova (Belarus) 13-6 Semifinals: Taina Fernandez over Miranda Kapanadze (Georgia) Fall :36 69 kg Round of 16: Cassandra Gonzales over Gereltuya Amarsaikhan (Mongolia) 11-0 Quarterfinals: Manisha (India) over Cassandra Gonzales Fall 1:51 73 kg Bronze Medal Match: Ella Poalillo over Anna Godelashvili (Georgia) Fall 2:36 Friday’s Gold Medal Matches 40 kg: An Nakanishi (Japan) vs. Shokhista Shonazarova (Kazakhstan) 46 kg: Hanano Oya (Japan) vs. Janka Sillei (Hungary) 53 kg: Epenesa Ellison (USA) vs. Jiaqing Jiang (China) 61 kg: Taina Fernandez (USA) vs. Yashita (India) 69 kg: Min Zhao (China) vs. Ayla Sahin (Germany) Final Medal Round Matches 43 kg Gold Medal Match: Rachana (India) over Xin Huang (China) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Inzhu Bakkozha (Kazakhstan) over Raniia Rakhmanova (Russia) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Madison Healey (USA) over Mareim Abdelaal (Egypt) Fall 3:30 49 kg Gold Medal Match: Morgan Turner (USA) over Yu Kataoka (Japan) 6-1 Bronze Medal Match: Polina Bochkareva (Russia) over Azema Kalidinva (Kyrgyzstan) 6-6 Bronze Medal Match: Komal Verma (India) over Anhelina Burkina (Belarus) 8-3 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Madkhiya Usmanova (Kazakhstan) over Moni (India) 6-5 Bronze Medal Match: Alina Baroeva (Russia) over Marta Mankowska (Poland) 6-1 Bronze Medal Match: Sayuki Tanada (Japan) over Sophie Ritter (Italy) 4-4 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Ashvini Vishnoi (India) over Mukhayyo Rakhimjonova (Uzbekistan) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Lilia Ermokhina (Russia) over Anujin Erkhembaaatar (Mongolia) 9-2 Bronze Medal Match: Feenja Hermann (Germany) over Alexandra Moisei (Moldova) 4-2 73 kg Gold Medal Match: Wenjin Qiu (China) over Kajal (India) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match: Eylem Engin (Turkiye) over Deborah Garcia Pacheco (Mexico) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match: Ella Poalillo (USA) over Anna Godelashvili (Georgia) Fall 2:36