InterMat Staff

The top seed at 57 kg Thomas Gilman (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The Senior World Championships are less than a month away, as they will take place September 10th-18th from Belgrade, Serbia. Today, UWW announced the top-eight seeds at each men's freestyle weight. 7 of the 10 American entrants have received a seed and four are seeded number one. Here is the full release and article from UWW, below are the seeds themselves. 57kg SEEDS: No. 1 Thomas GILMAN (USA) No. 2 Ravi KUMAR (IND) No. 3 Horst LEHR (GER) No. 4 Alireza SARLAK (IRI) No. 5 Vladimir EGOROV (MKD) No. 6 Beka BUJIASHVILI (GEO) No. 7 Oscar TIGREROS URBANO (COL) No. 8 Muhammet KARAVUS (TUR) 61kg Seeds: No. 1 Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) No. 2 Georgi Valentinov VANGELOV (BUL) No. 3 Ulukbek ZHOLDOSHBEKOV (KGZ) No. 4 Suleyman ATLI (TUR) No. 5 Eduard GRIGOREV (POL) No. 6 Teimuraz VANISHVILI (GEO) No. 7 Islam BAZARGANOV (AZE) No. 8 Rei HIGUCHI (JPN) 65kg Seeds: No. 1 Haji ALIYEV (AZE) No. 2 Bajrang BAJRANG (IND) No. 3 Sebastian C RIVERA (PUR) No. 4 Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN) No. 5 Alibek OSMONOV (KGZ) No. 6 Krzysztof BIENKOWSKI (POL) No. 7 Vazgen TEVANYAN (ARM) No. 8 Munir Recep AKTAS (TUR) 70kg Seeds: No. 1 Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ) No. 2 Zurabi IAKOBISHVILI (GEO) No. 3 Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM) No. 4 Syrbaz TALGAT (KAZ) No. 5 Amirmohammad Babak YAZDANICHERATI (IRI) No. 6 Zain Allen RETHERFORD (USA) No. 7 Selahattin KILICSALLAYAN (TUR) No. 8 Bacar NDUM (GBS) 74kg Seeds: No. 1 Kyle Douglas DAKE (USA) No. 2 Tajmuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK) No. 3 Frank CHAMIZO MARQUEZ (ITA) No. 4 Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE) No. 5 Yones Aliakbar EMAMICHOGHAEI (IRI) No. 6 Hetik CABOLOV (SRB) No. 7 Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR) No. 8 Mitchell Louis FINESILVER (ISR) 79kg Seeds: No .1 Jordan Ernest BURROUGHS (USA) No. 2 Mohammad Ashghar NOKHODILARIMI (IRI) No. 3 Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) No. 4 Arman AVAGYAN (ARM) No. 5 Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) No. 6 Muhammet AKDENIZ (TUR) No. 7 Saifedine ALEKMA (FRA) No. 8 Baliyan GOURAV (IND) 86kg Seeds: No. 1 Hassan YAZDANICHARATI (IRI) No. 2 David Morris TAYLOR III (USA) No. 3 Myles Nazem AMINE (SMR) No. 4 Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE) No. 5 Boris MAKOEV (SVK) No. 6 Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) No. 7 Deepak PUNIA (IND) No. 8 Ethan Adrian RAMOS (PUR) 92kg Seeds: No. 1 Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI) No. 2 Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE) No. 3 Jden COX (USA) No. 4 Andrii VLASOV (UKR) No. 5 Viky VIKY (IND) No. 6 Adilet DAVLUMBAYEV (KAZ) No. 7 Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO) No. 8 Orgilokh DAGVADORJ (MGL) 97kg Seeds: No. 1 Kyle Frederick SNYDER (USA) No. 2 Magomedgadji Omardibirovich NUROV (MKD) No. 3 Batzul ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL) No. 4 Mahamed ZAKARIIEV (UKR) No. 5 Mohammadhossein Askari MOHAMMADIAN (IRI) No. 6 Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK) No. 7 Radu LEFTER (MDA) No. 8 Mamed IBRAGIMOV (KAZ) 125kg Seeds: No. 1 Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) No. 2 Taha AKGUL (TUR) No. 3 Amir Hossein Abbas ZARE (IRI) No. 4 Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL) No. 5 Gennadij CUDINOVIC (GER) No. 6 Robert BARAN (POL) No. 7 Zhiwei DENG (CHN) No. 8 Amarveer DHESI (CAN)

FROSTBURG, Md. – Frostburg State Director of Athletics Troy Dell has announced the addition of men's and women's wrestling programs, which will join the 22 sports currently at FSU in the Fall of 2023. The last sport Frostburg State added was acrobatics & tumbling in 2019. Since adding A&T it has grown from an NCAA emerging sport with 30 teams competing to having the 46th institution announce the addition of the sport earlier this year. The Bobcats originally added a men's wrestling program in the 1962-1963 season. Currently the Mountain East Conference has seven member institutions with men's wrestling. FSU will join Alderson Broaddus as the second MEC school to add women's wrestling. There are currently 23 NCAA Division II schools that offer women's wrestling. "We are excited to announce the addition of Men's and Women's Wrestling to our sport offerings," said Dell. "The growth of women's wrestling over the last decade has spurred us to make the decision to offer this sport for both genders on our campus. Women's wrestling provides us the opportunity to continue our sports offering for females, while supporting the NCAA Emerging Sports Program and celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Title IX." "The return of Men's Wrestling to Frostburg State University after a long absence is very exciting. The sport of wrestling continues to grow at every level for both men and women. We receive regular and ongoing inquiries regarding the sport of wrestling, so we know there is interest throughout Maryland and the surrounding region for this sport. In addition, adding two sports that utilize many of the same resources is a sound financial and enrollment strategy that will help our university meet the changing landscape of college demographics." - Troy Dell FSU has consulted with the National Wrestling Coaches Association to better understand the current landscape of the growing sports and how it could be beneficial to add the programs. "I know I speak on behalf of our NWCA Board of Directors when I congratulate the administration at Frostburg State for their efforts to be the FIRST to add an intercollegiate men's and women's wrestling program in Maryland. It's pioneering efforts like this that create so many opportunities for young, aspiring men and women to pursue their academic and wrestling careers at the intercollegiate level." Mike Moyer, NWCA Executive Director Frostburg will immediately begin a national search for coaches to lead each of the new programs.

2x NCAA qualifier Doug Zapf (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Penn! NCAA Qualifiers (42) 2022 #22 Ryan Miller (125 lbs), #9 Michael Colaiocco (133 lbs), #12 CJ Composto (141 lbs), #18 Anthony Artalona (149 lbs), #24 Doug Zapf (157 lbs), #26 Lucas Revano (165 lbs), #17 Nick Incontrera (174 lbs), #30 Cole Urbas (197 lbs), #26 Ben Goldin (285 lbs) 2020 #11 Michael Colaiocco (125 lbs), #24 Doug Zapf (141 lbs), #30 Cole Urbas (197 lbs) 2019 #23 Carmen Ferrante (125 lbs), #13 Anthony Artalona (149 lbs) 2018 Joe Velliquette (157 lbs), Maaziah Bethea (165 lbs), Joe Heyob (184 lbs), #7 Frank Mattiace (197 lbs) 2017 Maaziah Bethea (157 lbs), Brooks Martino (165 lbs), #12 Casey Kent (174 lbs), Joe Heyob (184 lbs), #12 Frank Mattiace (197 lbs) 2016 Caleb Richardson (133 lbs), Maaziah Bethea (157 lbs), Casey Kent (174 lbs), #11 Lorenzo Thomas (184 lbs) 2015 Caleb Richardson (133 lbs), #13 CJ Cobb (149 lbs), Brooks Martino (157 lbs), #10 Lorenzo Thomas (184 lbs), #16 Canaan Bethea (197 lbs) 2014 Caleb Richardson (125 lbs), Casey Kent (165 lbs), Brad Wukie (174 lbs), #11 Lorenzo Thomas (184 lbs) 2013 Mark Rappo (125 lbs), #10 CJ Cobb (141 lbs), Ian Korb (174 lbs), Canaan Bethea (184 lbs), #8 Micah Burak (197 lbs), Steven Graziano (285 lbs) NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans 2022: CJ Composto (141 - 8th) 2016: Casey Kent (174 - 4th) 2014: Lorenzo Thomas (184 - 6th) NWCA All-Americans Michael Colaiocco (125 - Second Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Anthony Artalona (2019, 2022 - 149) Frank Mattiace (2018 - 197) Maaziah Bethea (2017 - 157) Lorenzo Thomas (2016 - 184) CJ Cobb (2015 - 149) Canaan Bethea (2015 - 197) Micah Burak (2013 - 197) EIWA Conference Champions 2022: Michael Colaiocco (133) 2019: Anthony Artalona (149) 2017: Frank Mattiace (197) 2013: Micah Burak (197) Dual Record 2021-22: 8-2 2021: No Season 2019-20: 6-9 2018-19: 5-9 2017-18: 9-8 2016-17: 6-8 2015-16: 6-5 2014-15: 9-4 2013-14: 8-7 2012-13: 10-3 EIWA Tournament Placement 2021-22: 2nd 2021: No Season 2019-20: 8th 2018-19: 10th 2017-18: 12th 2016-17: 11th 2015-16: 10th 2014-15: 5th 2013-14: 10th 2012-13: 3rd NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 27th (15.5 points) 2021: No Season 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 45th-tie (3.5 points) 2017-18: 40th-tie (5 points) 2016-17: 37th (8 points) 2015-16: 20th (23.5 points) 2014-15: 38th (6.5 points) 2013-14: 36th (10 points) 2012-13: 35th-tie (7.5 points) Head Coaching History Roger Reina (2017-present) Alex Tirapelle (2014-17) Rob Eiter (2008-14) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Mark Rappo: 2x NCAA Qualifier, 2x EIWA Runner-Up 133 - Michael Colaiocco: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#9 and #11 seed), 2020 NWCA Second-Team All-American, 2022 EIWA Champion 141 - CJ Composto: 2022 NCAA Qualifier (#12 seed), 2022 NCAA All-American (8th), 2022 EIWA Runner-Up 149 - Anthony Artalona: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#13 and #18 seeds), 2x NCAA Round of 12 Finisher, 2019 EIWA Champion 157 - Doug Zapf: 2x NCAA Qualifier 165 - Maaziah Bethea: 3x NCAA Qualifier, 2017 NCAA Round of 12 Finisher 174 - Casey Kent: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#12 seed), 2016 NCAA All-American (4th) 184 - Lorenzo Thomas: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#10 and #11 x2 seeds), 2014 NCAA All-American (6th), 2014 EIWA Runner-Up 197 - Micah Burak: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#6 and #11 seed), 2012 NCAA All-American (7th), 2x NCAA Round of 12 Finisher, 2013 EIWA Champion, 4x EIWA Finalist 285 - Ben Goldin: 2022 NCAA Qualifier Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #26 Martin Cosgrove (NJ), #61 Andrew Troczynski (NJ), #120 Evan Mougalian (NJ), #146 Jackson Polo (NY), #192 Alex Almeyda (NJ), #202 Brady Pruett (MD), #218 Jude Swisher (PA) 2021: #84 Nico Nardone (NJ), #85 Cole Spencer (PA), #96 Kyle Hauserman (PA), #111 Kelly Dunnigan (NJ), #249 Hunter Gandy (NJ) 2020: #102 Jackson Dean (DE), #103 Ryan Miller (PA) 2019: #15 Michael Colaiocco (NJ), #43 Lucas Revano (NJ), #57 Cole Urbas (PA) 2018: #27 Anthony Artalona (FL), #63 Grant Aronoff (FL), #91 Ben Goldin (FL) 2017: #80 Khamari Whimper (TN) 2014: #134 Joe Velliquette (MO) 2013: #43 Frank Mattiace (NJ), #140 Ken Bade (MI) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio Ohio State Oklahoma Oklahoma State Oregon State

2x NCAA Champion Roman Bravo-Young (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Every offseason, schools are making significant changes and additions. While it's easy to focus on overall recruiting classes, there are plenty of under the radar moves being made: transfers, recruiting stories, freestyle/Greco success, and other program improvements. With the season rapidly approaching, I thought it'd be good to take a look at some of the moves in Intermat's preseason top 15. 1) Penn State - Bringing back Roman Bravo-Young While I thought about going with Cael Sanderson's contract extension, getting RBY back for a final season is huge as well. Him returning for a final season means that PSU returns four champs and is the large favorite to win their 10th national title. 2) Iowa - Breaking ground on new facilities While the facility was originally approved in 2020, construction was delayed until this summer. The impressive two-story, 38,500 square foot facility is expected to be completed in 2024 and will house the men and new women's teams. 3) Arizona State - Extending Zeke Jones Fresh off winning back-to-back team trophies, head coach Zeke Jones was signed to a five-year contract extension through the 2026-2027 season. Jones has also been a top recruiter, with multiple top-ten classes since taking over. 4) Ohio State - Historic 2022 recruiting class Ohio State is one of just five teams to win an NCAA title since 1988, and they're bringing recruits that could put them back on top. The team is coming off their lowest NCAA finish in over a decade but are reloading with four wrestlers in the top 25, including three of the top five pound-for-pound recruits. 5) Missouri - Late recruiting grabs Normally in the spring there is little recruiting news, but Coach Smith and staff were still busy. They already had six on the Big Board but added #107 Cam Steed and #229 Jerrod Fisher, both multi-time state champs late in the cycle. 6) Michigan - #16 Matt Finesilver With the graduation of Olympian Myles Amine, 184lbs looked like it could be a hole for the Wolverines. However, they got a great transfer in former Duke wrestler Matt Finesilver. Finesilver is a three-time national qualifier at 174lbs who is moving up and looking to make the podium as a 6th year senior. 7) Minnesota - Michial Foy and Aaron Nagao making U23 team Gable Steveson has teased a second semester comeback for the Gophers, but let's focus on some other freestyle success for the team. Michial Foy was a national qualifier at 197lbs, and Aaron Nagao had an impressive redshirt season at 133lbs. Both wrestlers made the U23 team; Nagao in freestyle at 61kg and Foy in Greco at 87kg. 8) Cornell - Freestyle dominance Cornell is one of the strongest schools in the international styles, and it's shown again in 2022. Not including graduates, they have wrestlers on the U23 Greco team (Phillip Moomey - 60kg), U20 Freestyle team (Vince Cornella - 65kg), and three on the U23 Freestyle team (Vito Arujau - 57kg, Yianni Diakomihalis - 65kg, and Jacob Cardenas - 92kg). Yianni is pulling double duty too, representing the USA on the senior team as well. 9) Nebraska - Top 10 Recruiting Class After their highest NCAA finish since 2009 (5th), the Huskers bring in their 8th consecutive top-ten class. The epitome of consistency, the team is bringing in three wrestlers in the top 100. It seems likely that the class will have opportunities to redshirt, so keep an eye on them in the future. 10) Wisconsin - James Rowley Every year there are high ranking freshmen who appear to be more “college ready” than others. James Rowley has a strong chance to show that this year as he steps into a Wisconsin lineup that just graduated national qualifiers Andrew McNally and Chris Weiler. The four-time state champ and cadet world silver medalist projects as a potential 174/184lber. 11) Oklahoma State - Releasing AJ Ferrari While losing a national champ may not normally be a beneficial move, it seems like the team will be better off in the long run. Since being released from the team the former Cowboy has been mired in controversy and legal battles. This was a necessary move that the team culture will hopefully improve from. 12) Iowa State - David Carr moving up Last year, David Carr was the top seed and returning champ at 157lbs but suffered a shocking second round upset. He has discussed moving up in weight since coming to Iowa State. With two years of eligibility left, he joins Shane Griffith and Keegan O'Toole as national champs in what is a stacked 165lbs weight class. 13) Northwestern - Mike McMullan to the Athletics HOF After another top ten finish at NCAA's, Northwestern has had a quiet offseason so far. They are bringing in a top recruit, #56 Joseph Martin out of California. Additionally, Northwestern will have the opportunity to celebrate four-time All-American Mike McMullan becoming the third ever wrestler to be inducted into the school's Athletic HOF. He never finished lower than 3rd at NCAA's, and was a 2015 Big 10 Champ. 14) Princeton - Top 20 Recruiting Class The Tiger's are returning two finalists and five total national qualifiers. They're bringing in a strong recruiting class to add onto it as well. With four of these recruits on the Big Board, including three in the top 100, there's a chance some of them could see the lineup as true freshmen. 15) Pittsburgh - Extending Keith Gavin Pitt is another team that focused on stability this offseason by extending their head coach Keith Gavin's contract through the 2027 season. With Micky Phillipi and Nino Bonaccorsi returning, the team is in place to have another high finish in 2023. 15) Virginia Tech - TJ Stewart Virginia Tech is bringing in the #7 ranked recruiting class overall with two in the top 20. However, the gem of the class is TJ Stewart who is originally from Virginia. Keeping top talent in state is one of the keys to having a successful program. While Hunter Bolen has another season, Stewart can use the opportunity to redshirt before taking over at 184lbs or 197lbs.

Virginia Tech coaches (from left) Jared Frayer, Tony Robie, and Cody Brewer (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Last week, the #17 ranked dual meet team, Virginia Tech, released their schedule for the 2022-23 season. The ever-increasing ACC makes for a tough built-in schedule with teams like NC State, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, and Virginia. Head Coach Tony Robie and staff have found other schools outside of the league to make for a very imposing slate. The Hokies are set to take on the preseason #3, #4, and #5 teams in dual competition with Missouri, Ohio State, and Cornell. In addition to Virginia Tech's duals, they are set to enter the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, which will likely be the toughest in-season tournament this year. For a school that has typically had difficulty finding Big Ten schools to agree to meet in a dual setting, the Hokie staff has provided their team with many challenging events that will prepare them for the 2023 postseason. Virginia Tech initially had a dual event scheduled for mid-December, which has since been canceled. There may be an addition to the schedule based on this development. Before getting into the actual schedule, here are some notes regarding the teams on the dual portion. One Big Ten Team: Ohio State One Big 12 Team: Missouri Two EIWA Teams: American, Cornell Two other teams from Virginia: George Mason, Virginia Eight teams that finished in the Top-30 at the 2022 NCAA Championships: #7 Cornell, #9 Missouri, #10 NC State, #13 Ohio State, #18 North Carolina, #24 Pittsburgh, #29 Appalachian State, #30 Virginia Home Slate: Cornell, Missouri, NC State, Pittsburgh, Virginia Away Duals: American, Appalachian State, Duke, George Mason, North Carolina, Ohio State November 6th - Southeast Open @ Salem, Virginia The Southeast Open has typically been the season-opener for the Hokies. Thus far, Columbia and VMI have this event on their schedule. It usually draws from other schools in the ACC, along with the DI schools in North Carolina and Virginia. November 11th - #4 Ohio State @ Columbus, Ohio Virginia Tech might get their most difficult dual of the year in their opening contest. Last year, the Buckeyes traveled south, so the Hokies will return the favor. In his first match at 133 lbs, #13 Sam Latona could meet up with much-heralded true freshman Nic Bouzakis. The back half of the dual could feature matchups between All-Americans at 174 and 184 lbs. #2 Mekhi Lewis and #6 Ethan Smith, before #12 Hunter Bolen and #4 Kaleb Romero. Lewis prevailed in a close match during the 2021-22 dual and Bolen/Romero did not meet. November 20th - Keystone Classic @ Philadelphia, Pennsylvania A new event for the Hokies comes in the form of the Keystone Classic. #16 Penn, just ahead of Tech in a tournament format, hosts a solid group of teams. Along with the hosts, Appalachian State and Rider could be two of the better teams in the field. December 2nd/3rd - Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational @ Las Vegas, Nevada The CKLV Invitational is routinely in the mix for the best individual, regular season tournament in all the land. This tournament should take the crown in 2022, as plenty of star power is expected out west. #4 Ohio State, #6 Michigan, #7 Minnesota, #8 Cornell, #9 Nebraska, #12 Northwestern, #14 Princeton are the top-20 teams that have registered. This is a great opportunity for Hokie wrestlers to move up or solidify their national rankings. December 11th - #3 Missouri @ Home One of the best duals of the 2021-22 season was when Virginia Tech traveled to Mizzou to take on the Tigers. It should be a great one this year, too. One of the most exciting matches of the dual took place at 174 lbs where Lewis was pushed into tiebreakers by #10 Peyton Mocco. True freshman Caleb Henson is expected to start at 149 and he'll get to deal with one of the Tigers best grapplers, two-time NCAA All-American, #5 Brock Mauller. Another difficult match for Virginia Tech occurs at 165, where Chattanooga transfer, Drew Nicholson, meets defending NCAA champion Keegan O'Toole. January 6th - #5 Cornell @ Home A staple of Virginia Tech wrestling has been hosting a dual meet in the Moss Arts Center. And what a dual it could be! Last year, the teams met at the Collegiate Duals and Cornell got by with an 18-15 win. Once again, Mekhi has another opponent that pushed him into extra time with #11 Chris Foca. The All-Americans at 184 are no strangers, either. Bolen defeated Jonathan Loew in their 2020 dual, but Loew returned the favor in Florida. This one could come down to the big men with Tech's #21 Hunter Catka and #9 Lewis Fernandes for Cornell. January 8th - George Mason @ Fairfax, Virginia Virginia Tech heads up north to take on George Mason in the first leg of a Sunday twinbill that ends with a dual at American. Two of the Patriots most promising wrestlers are Josh Jones (133) and Kaden Cassidy (141). That could make for some competitive bouts with Latona and Collin Gerardi. GMU is also strong at 174 and 184, with Logan Messer and Kyle Davis; however, the Virginia Tech duo will be heavy favorites. January 8th - American @ Washington DC AU should be strong right off the bat with their 125 and 133 lbers, which makes sense because they are led by Tech alum Joey Dance, a two-time AA at 125 lbs. 125 lber Max Leete had a good freshman campaign with 17 wins in 26 matches. He'll take on one of the Virginia Tech redshirt freshman tandem of Cooper Flynn and Eddie Ventresca. At 133 lbs is 2022 EIWA fourth-place finisher Jack Maida, who could test Latona. At the other end of the lineup, Isaac Righter picked up 14 wins in his first year as a starter and should only get better. He'll get Catka at 285 lbs. January 13th - Appalachian State @ Boone, North Carolina Virginia Tech will go into a hostile atmosphere in their last test before the conference slate, as App State's alumni gym tends to get rowdy. The 165 lb bout should feature a pair of familiar faces, Nicholson and #15 Will Formato. The pair have clashed four times in the past, when Nicholson was at Chattanooga. Though Formato has gotten the best of Nicholson (3 wins to 2), the new Hokie did win the most recent matches. App State's best wrestler is two-time AA Jonathan Millner at 149 lbs. Half of Millner's four 2021-22 losses came at the hands of Bryce Andonian at the NCAA Championships. With Andonian moving up, expect to see Millner and true freshman Henson. January 20th - #12 NC State @ Home Whether you're an ACC fan or not, this dual has had to make its way onto your "must watch" list. While there are typically fireworks up and down this card, 157 is guaranteed to have some excellent action. Andonian moves up to challenge the returning ACC champion from 2022, Ed Scott. The Hokie All-American won both of their 2021 meetings, but Scott has improved greatly since. What about round six in Bolen versus Trent Hidlay? Bolen started the series with three consecutive wins; however, Hidlay has recorded wins in their most recent two contests. Again, this is one that could come down to Catka and Tyrie Houghton. The two split matches in 2021-22 with Catka grabbing a sudden victory win at the Wolfpack Open, while Houghton evened the score with a major decision at the Southern Scuffle. January 27th - Pittsburgh @ Home The Pittsburgh dual has a handful of enticing matchup possibilities. Barring something at an open tournament, it would be the first meeting between Latona and two-time ACC champion Micky Phillippi. Up a weight, we'll see if Cole Matthews maintains his #1 ranking by match time. Either way, he'll have Collin Gerardi, who fought him to a 2-0 loss at the 2022 ACC Championships. Like Henson for the Hokies, Pitt is excited about the prospects of their freshman, Brock McMillen. February 3rd - Duke @ Durham, North Carolina We'll have to see how the Duke lineup develops as the year progresses. Based on the 2021-22 season, heavyweight Jonah Neisenbaum could be the Blue Devils top wrestler. He has a history with Catka, who had his number with a pair of wins via tech fall in 2021. February 10th - North Carolina @ Chapel Hill, North Carolina There are plenty of interesting matchups with UNC/VT, starting at 133 lbs. Latona has Jaime Hernandez, who has been very good, when healthy. All-American Zach Sherman is awaiting Henson at 149 lbs. 157 has a mammoth collision between Andonian and 2021 NCAA Champion Austin O'Connor. The pair had a classic 2021 ACC final, where Andonian jumped out to a big lead, but was run down by O'Connor. All-Americans Lewis and Clay Lautt will renew acquaintances at 174 lbs. Lewis won both meetings last season, but each was competitive. The Tar Heels Gavin Kane put the rest of the nation on notice with his win over Bolen in dual competition. He proved it was no fluke by doing it again at the conference meet. February 17th - Virginia @ Home Rivalry weekend to close out the regular season! The Hokies will seek to extend their winning streak over UVA to 11 duals. As usual, expect fireworks at 157 lbs. Andonian always looks to put points on the board and the same can be said for Keating. Jake was the #14 seed at nationals and third at a rough 157 lb ACC bracket in 2022. We'll see if NCAA qualifier Michael Battista can keep the momentum going from a strong freestyle season. He'll move up to 197 lbs and should see Hokie fan favorite Cody Howard. UVA also signed a highly-touted recruiting Class of 2022, so by the time February rolls around one or two of them could have supplanted returners in the starting lineup. March 5th - ACC Championships @ Raleigh, North Carolina The ACC Tournament is my personal favorite to attend/follow. While we'd all like to see more ACC schools with wrestling, a six-team tournament makes every match count. The inevitable upset rocks the balance of the team scores. Knowing what we know now, Virginia Tech will certainly be in the mix for a title. If their freshmen develop as expected, the Hokies could establish themselves as favorites.

2022 U20 World bronze medalist Aden Attao (photo courtesy of Kostadin Andonov/UWW) The United States U20 Greco-Roman team wrapped up competition on Sunday as Max Black (60 kg) dropped his repechage bout and was eliminated. The other four wrestlers who started their tournaments on Saturday were already knocked out of medal contention. The high note from the Greco portion was that heavyweight Aden Attao won his bronze medal match on Saturday. Attao started the tournament in dominant fashion with back-to-back falls, before running into the eventual champion Mykhailo Vyshnyvetskyi of Ukraine in the semifinals. Because he advanced to the semis, Attao dropped down to Saturday's bronze medal match. There he would meet Egypt's Fekry Eissa, after an 8-0 win over South Korea's Junho Park in repechage. For the bronze medal, Attao started the scoring early in the first period with four points from a headpinch, to which Eissa countered with two points of his own. Still in the opening stanza, Attao added four more with a headlock to Eissa's back. The second period was a bit more methodical as Attao scored with a push-out and after countering a failed headlock attempt from Eissa. The final takedown made the score 11-3 and pushed the bout into match termination status. While the Greco-Roman side of the American U20 competitions has not matched its freestyle counterparts, Attao's bronze medal gives the United States at least one medal at this competition every year since 2016. Upperweights have primarily been responsible for those medals as Attao is the third heavyweight to medal during that span (Cohlton Schultz - 2nd/2019, 3rd/2018) and five have come at the final two weights (Braxton Amos - 3rd/2021, G'Angelo Hancock - 3rd/2016). Attao has been busy for the last month-plus. He won both styles in Fargo at the Junior level, after winning a gold medal at the Pan-American Junior Championships in early July. Greco-Roman 130 kg Bronze medal match - Aden Attao over Fekry Eissa 11-3 Greco-Roman 60 kg Qualification - Saeid Esmaeili Leivesi (Iran) over Max Black 9-0 Repechage - Koto Gomi (Japan) over Max Black 9-0 Greco-Roman 67 kg Qualification - Robert Perez III over Shon Nadorgin (Israel) 8-0 Round of 16 - Robert Perez III over Zsolt Takacs (Hungary) 8-0 Quarterfinals - Din Koshkar (Kazakhstan) over Robert Perez III 3-3 Greco-Roman 72 kg Qualification - Richard Fedalen over Matthias Hauthaler (Austria) Fall Round of 16 - Georgios Barbanos (Sweden) over Richard Fedalen 13-4 Greco-Roman 82 kg Qualification - Adrian Artsisheuskiy over Odysseas Roungeris (Greece) Fall Round of 16 - Leon Rivalta (Italy) over Adrian Artsisheuskiy Fall Greco-Roman 97 kg Round of 16 - Nurmanbet Raimaly Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) over Christian Carroll 9-7

2022 U20 World Champion Jore Volk (photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan/UWW) The U20 World Championships took place this past week in Sofia, Bulgaria. The United States men finished with four medals and a second-place team finish. The best performances of the tournament came from a group of young/future Big 12 stars. Wyoming freshman Jore Volk(57KG) brought home one of the two championships won by the Americans here. Volk defeated Ahmad Mohammadnezhadjavan (Iran), 7-5 in an absolute nail-biter of a first-round match on a late challenge. He then defeated Azizbek Naimov (Uzbekistan), 7-2, Luka Gvinjilia (Georgia), 13-6, and Merey Bazarbayev (Kazakhstan), 3-2 in the finals to bring home the World Championship. Mitchell Mesenbrink looks like he could quickly be a superstar for the newest Big 12 wrestling program, Cal Baptist. Mesenbrink won silver at 70 KG. He opened with tech falls over Belgium and Kyrgyzstan before defeating Iran's Hossein Mohammad Aghaei, 9-7. He followed that up with a 6-3 decision over Armenia's Hayk Papikyan to make the finals where he fell to Azerbaijan's Kanan Heybatov. This is the kind of wrestler that Cal Baptist will need to make an early splash in their new division (DI) and conference (Big 12). Bennett Berge was the other medal winner from the Big 12. The soon-to-be freshman at South Dakota State took home silver at 86 KG. He got three techs in a row over Armenia, Hungary, and Ukraine to make the semifinals. There he beat Turkey's Ismail Kucuksolak, 9-7. In the finals he met France's Rakhim Magamadov and fell 10-5, finishing with a silver medal. One other future Big 12 wrestler made the team here with Oklahoma State commit Brayden Thompson(79 KG). He fell in his first match to eventual champion Sobhan Yari of Iran. He dropped his repechage match 2-1 to finish in ninth. Overall, three of the four medals won by the United States were won by current or soon-to-be Big 12 wrestlers and four of the ten overall spots were represented by the future of the Big 12. It's a good sign for the conference and for those programs moving forward.

2x U20 World Champion Amit Elor (photo courtesy of Kadir Caliskan/UWW) The women's freestyle portion of the U20 World Championships from Sofia, Bulgaria got off to a bit of a rocky start on Wednesday. Friday saw the conclusion of the women's competition and the squad finished strong with four of the five women in action finishing with medals. As expected, leading the way for the women's team was Amit Elor at 72 kg. Last year, Elor captured gold medals at both the U17 and U20 World Championships. All that stood between her and a second U20 title was Kazakhstan's Anastassiya Panassovich. Elor made short work of Panassovich with a first-period tech 10-0. None of her four matches in Sofia lasted until the second period and she outscored the field 32-1, not including a fall in her first bout. Amit's second U20 world title makes her only the third US woman to accomplish the feat and the first since Victoria Anthony in 2009 and 10. Elor has a chance to add more hardware to her collection this year as she has made the Senior and U23 World teams. The other finalist on the day was Sofia Macaluso at 57 kg. Macaluso notched three falls on the way to the finals, where she'd meet Japan's Ruka Natami, a past U17 world champion. In what was mostly a tactical affair, Natami was able to keep the dangerous Macaluso under wraps and held a 2-1 lead for most of the second period. Natami tacked on four points as Macaluso was pushing the pace, attempting to take the lead, yet was countered to her back. There was no such drama at 53 and 62 kg, as both Katie Gomez (53) and Adaugo Nwachukwu (62) earned bronze with little trouble. Gomez posted a 12-2 first-period tech on Egypt's Shaimaa Mohamed and Nwachukwu prevailed 10-0 against Kyrgyzstan's Bermet Nuridin Kyzy. Reece Larremendy was also in action at 65 kg, but was stopped in her quest for the bronze by Tunisia's Khadija Jlassi, 9-2. With the four medals on the day, combined with two from the first set of women, the United States finished the tournament with six medalists. In addition to the women wrapping up their competition, the Greco-Roman team took the mat for the first team. Big man Aden Attao was the standout for the US team, garnering a pair of falls on his way to the semifinals. Attao was stopped in the semis by Ukraine's Mykhailo Vyshnyvetskyi, 10-0. The loss drops Attao into a bronze medal bout tomorrow and his opponent will be decided during the repechage session. The only other Greco wrestler to pick up a win on the day was Oregon State's Kodiak Stephens at 87 kg. Stephens teched India's Surjett Singh, before falling by a point to Estonia's Robin Uspenski, 2-1. A match later Uspenski lost, which dashed any medal hopes for Stephens. 53 kg Women's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match - Katie Gomez over Shaimaa Mohamed (Egypt) 12-2 57 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Ruka Natami (Japan) over Sofia Macaluso 6-1 62 kg Women's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match - Adaugo Nwachukwu over Bermet Nuridin Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) 10-0 65 kg Women's Freestyle Bronze Medal Match - Khadija Jlassi (Tunisia) over Reese Larramendy 9-2 72 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Amit Elor vs. Anastassiya Panassovich (Kazakhstan) 10-0 55 kg Greco-Roman Round of 16 - Nuristan Suiorkulov (Kyrgyzstan) over Jonathan Gurule 7-2 63 kg Greco-Roman Round of 16 - Ziya Babashov (Azerbaijan) over Haiden Drury 8-0 77 kg Greco-Roman Round of 16 - Yuksel Saricicek (Turkey) over Payton Jacobson 9-1 87 kg Greco-Roman Qualification: Kodiak Stephens over Surjett Singh (India) 8-0 Round of 16: Robin Uspenski (Estonia) over Kodiak Stephens 2-1 130 kg Greco-Roman Round of 16 - Aden Attao over Parvesh (India) Fall Quarterfinals - Aden Attao over Adolf Bazso (Hungary) Fall Semifinals - Mykhailo Vyshnyvetskyi (Ukraine) over Aden Attao 10-0 Bronze Medal Match - Aden Attao vs. Junho Park (South Korea)/Fekry Eissa (Egypt)

2012 NCAA All-American Austin Trotman (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) While this weekend does not have as many former wrestlers in action, there are still plenty of fights as always. The slate this weekend includes several former wrestlers who have already made their names in the sport as well as some hoping to break through and make it to the next level. Friday: LFA 139 Gavin Teasdale vs. Freddie Rodriguez Teasdale was a four-time Pennsylvania state champion in high school and finished his run with a 162-2 record. He spent time at both Penn State and Iowa before eventually moving on from wrestling. Teasdale made his amateur MMA debut in February and scored a decision victory over Tyler Fry. He was originally scheduled to make his professional debut that same month but the bout fell apart. He will now face Rodriguez in his first professional fight. Rodriguez won an NJCAA title at Iowa Lake Community College, spent some time at Oklahoma and eventually became a two-time NCAA qualifier for Southern Illinois Edwardsville. He fought seven times as an amateur, including a bout while he was an active college wrestler, before making his professional debut earlier this year. Rodriguez defeated Moshun Scott in his debut in February and followed that up with a stoppage over Victor Guarriello last month. The bout will headline the preliminary portion of LFA 139, which is set to begin at 8:00pm on the promotion's Facebook page. Saturday: Combat Night Pro: Tallahassee Austin Trotman vs. J.P. Saint Louis Trotman was a four-time NCAA qualifier and three-time SoCon champ for Appalachian State. He won 129 matches in his college career and finished third at the 2012 NCAA tournament. Trotman made his MMA debut in 2020 and has built a 3-1 record. This will be his first fight since he dropped a fight against Joseph Pyfer via second-round knockout last December. Saint Louis has been fighting professionally since 2015 and has a 7-4 record. The event will be available via Internet pay-per-view at 5:00pm ET. Saturday: PFL 9 2022 Bubba Jenkins vs. Ryoji Kudo For the second year in a row, Jenkins finds himself in the semifinals of PFL's featherweight tournament. This year he picked up victories over Kyle Bochniak and Reinaldo Ekson to advance out of the regular season. Since turning professional in 2011, he has built an 18-5 record. Jenkins began his collegiate wrestling career at Penn State. For the Nittany Lions, he qualified for three NCAA tournaments and finished second in 2008 to become an All-American. For his final year, he transferred to Arizona State and won an NCAA title in 2011. In the finals, he scored a dramatic fall over Penn State's David Taylor. Kudo came up in Japan's Shooto organization and signed with PFL for this season. He split his two regular season bouts and currently holds an 11-3-1 record. The bout will kick off the main card of PFL 9 2002, which will air live from London on ESPN at 3:00pm ET. Saturday: UFC 278 Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards Usman started wrestling as a sophomore in high school. By the time he was a senior, he was placing in the Texas state tournament. Usman then continued his wrestling career on the collegiate level. He spent his freshman season at NAIA William Penn before settling in at Nebraska Kearney. At the Division II school, he was a three-time All-American and won the 174-pound title in 2010. In the main event of UFC 278, Usman will put his welterweight title on the line against Edwards. The two fought previously in 2015 with Usman taking a decision victory. Since that loss, Edwards has won nine-straight fights. Merab Dvalishvili vs. Jose Aldo Dvalishvili moved to the U.S. to train for MMA and did not compete in wrestling at the collegiate level, but he is perhaps the most brazen wrestler in the sport today. He averages a whopping 7.30 takedowns per 15 minutes, which is by far the highest takedown rate among top fighters. Wrestling fans will likely appreciate his gameplan even if it might not work out for him against Aldo. The former featherweight champion has stopped 90% of the takedowns he has faced in the UFC, but that will certainly be put to the test here. Alexander Romanov vs. Marcin Tybura Romanov wrestled extensively for his native Moldova on the international level. He won a bronze medal at the 2016 World University Championships and represented the country at both the 2014 and 2019 World Championships. Despite making his UFC debut in 2020, Romanov attempted to qualify for the last Olympics via the Olympic Qualification Tournament but came up short. In the Octagon he has won all five of his fights including his last bout against Chase Sherman where he did not absorb a single strike before finishing via submission. Tybura will represent a step up in competition for Romanov. He has been competing in the UFC since 2016 and has a 22-7 record overall. In his last fight, Tybura dropped a decision against former Bellator champion Alexander Volkov. Prior to that loss, Tybura has won five-straight fights. All three of these fights will be part of the main card of UFC 278, which airs live on ESPN+ pay-per-view at 10:00pm ET.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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