InterMat Staff

A GoFundMe page has been established for Christopher Vassar, a former Gardner-Webb University wrestler who suffered serious injuries -- including brain trauma -- in a car crash last month. The fundraising page has been established to help the family of the wrestler originally from central Pennsylvania with health care expenses. In June 2018 Vassar was involved in a single-vehicle crash that split the car in half. "He has had several surgeries, a rod was placed in his hip, he has a broken clavicle, he had bleeding on the on the brain in two spots, (and) he was comatose," Vassar's aunt Shirley -- creator of the GoFundMe page -- wrote. "It was heartbreaking to see my 22-year-old nephew lying in a bed with wires, a machine breathing for him." "We have been told that he will need extensive rehabilitation he has been transferred to Penn State Rehabilitation Center for brain trauma," she continued. "We need a lot of support emotionally and financially. We would appreciate any sort of help you may be able to offer and we thank you for it from the bottom of our heart." Chris Vassar wrestled at Gardner-Webb from 2013-2016. In 2016, he qualified for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at 149 pounds as a redshirt junior. Prior to arriving at GWU in Boiling Springs, N.C., Vassar wrestled at Cedar Cliff High School in Camp Hill, Pa. where he was a two-time PIAA (Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association) state championships medalist, placing second in Class AAA at 145 in 2012, and fourth in 2010. In addition, Vassar placed sixth overall at the 2011 Reno Tournament of Champions. In addition to success on the mat, Vassar was a winner in the classroom, as a member of the Distinguished Honor Roll.

Chris Honeycutt (Photo/Bellator) For two former Edinboro wrestlers at Bellator 202 at WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Okla. Friday night, it was a night of mixed results, as two-time NCAA All-American Chris Honeycutt scored a unanimous-decision victory, while Ernest James, 2012 NCAA heavyweight qualifier for the Fighting Scots, was the victim of a TKO. Here's how MMAJunkie.com described the dominance of the former Edinboro mat stud and Ohio high school state champ in the middleweight (185 pound) main event: "Honeycutt beat Leo Leite from post to post and bell to bell." "Relentless in striking and in grappling, Honeycutt left Leite with a massive hematoma and bloody face, and he also picked up a blowout unanimous decision." CagesidePress.com wrote, "With steady pressure throughout, Honeycutt was far and away the winner, taking 30-25 scores on all three scorecards." There was more than a decade difference in the ages of the two fighters, as Honeycutt, 29, dominated the 40-year-old Brazilian the entire 15 minutes of their bout. Honeycutt is now 7-2 in Bellator, and 11-2 in his professional MMA career, while, Leite drops to 0-2 in his brief history in Bellator, and 10-2 overall. Relative newcomer Ernest James had a rougher night, suffering his first defeat in his young pro MMA career at the hands of Russia's Valentin Moldavsky in their heavyweight main event. "Moldavsky smashed James with right hands before sending him to the mat with a final flurry at the 4:03 mark of the second round," according to MMAJunkie.com. Moldavsky moves up to 8-1 in his MMA career, and 2-0 in Bellator, while James is now 1-1 in his young career, with the same mark in Bellator competition.

WEST POINT, N.Y. -- Army West Point head wrestling coach Kevin Ward has announced the addition of head assistant coach Ned Shuck to his staff. Ned ShuckShuck spent the last four years at the helm of Wisconsin-Whitewater, guiding the Warhawks to a 47-17 record in duals and finished in the top-25 each year at the NCAA Division III Championships. Additionally, UW-Whitewater collected two WIAC titles in the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons, as well as the Upper Midwest Regional crown in 2014-15. The 2015-16 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Coach of the Year trained 11 All-Americans, including two-time national champion and d3wrestle.com's 2018 National Wrestler of the Year Jordan Newman, as well as 17 WIAC individual champions and seven regional champs. Eleven Warhawks earned National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Scholar All-America honors, including five Chancellor's Scholar-Athletes. "I couldn't be more excited to have Coach Shuck join our staff," Ward said. "To build a successful program you have to have the right people, and Ned is one of the best people in the sport of wrestling. His reputation as a proven leader, a man of strong character and integrity, and his unique background as an athlete and a coach will greatly benefit our program. Coach Shuck brings a wealth of experience, maturity, and leadership to our program, and I am excited about the impact he will have on the lives of our cadet-athletes." In addition to his coaching duties, Shuck was an instructor for UW-Whitewater's Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Coaching department. Prior to UW-Whitewater, Shuck spent three years as the head coach at Division III Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio. During his tenure at Heidelberg, Shuck led the Student Princes to back-to-back Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) championships in 2012-13 and 2013-14 and mentored 22 All-OAC selections, four academic all-conference honorees, seven National Wrestling Coaches Association Academic All-Americans and six individual NCAA qualifiers, including one All-American. He was selected OAC Coach of the Year following the 2013-14 campaign. During his career, Shuck has also served as an assistant coach at perennial national power Augsburg (Minn.) from 2009-11 where he helped lead the Auggies to the 2010 NCAA Division III championship and a runner-up performance at the 2011 national championships. Shuck helped coach 13 All-Americans, four national finalists and one national champion during his time at Augsburg. He was also an assistant coach with the Ohio Cadet/Junior National Team (2012-14) and as head coach for the Minnesota Storm Freestyle Cadet team (2009-11). He was a full scholarship recipient for the NWCA Leadership Academy in 2011. Shuck wrestled at the University of Iowa from 2000-05, earning a degree in elementary education. He was a four-time letter winner and three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection for the Hawkeyes.

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Head Citadel wrestling coach Rob Hjerling has announced the hiring of Cody Cleveland as the Bulldogs' new assistant coach. Cleveland comes to Charleston after spending the last three seasons at the United States Naval Academy. Cody Cleveland (right) during his time as an assistant at Navy"We are fortunate to have Cody join our staff this year and look forward to his combination of youth and experience to take us to the next level," says Hjerling. "We will see him use his experience teaching, recruiting and mentoring to further Citadel Wrestling." "I'm thankful for the opportunity and am excited to join Citadel Wrestling and the Citadel community. My experience as a member of the SoCon as both a coach and athlete, allows me to be very aware of the Citadel and what it means, "says Cleveland. "I am ready to be on campus and get to know the Cadet-Athletes. Coach Hjerling has a vision that I truly believe in and the future looks bright for Citadel wrestling." Cleveland spent three seasons with the Midshipmen and helped guide the team to three consecutive fifth place finishes in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA). Cleveland also aided in qualifying 13 student-athletes for the NCAA Regionals, posting one All-American honoree, Matthew Miller. Prior to his time at the Naval Academy, Cleveland coached at Tullahoma High School in Tennessee and spent three years at McCallie School in Chattanooga. Under his direction, Tullahoma produced four place winners, the most in school history. At McCallie School he served as assistant varsity wrestling coach, head junior varsity wrestling coach, assistant middle school wrestling coach, assistant middle school track & field coach and assistant strength and conditioning coach. Cleveland was named the 2014-15 National Wrestling Coaches Association Assistant Coach of the Year for the state of Tennessee. In addition to fulfilling his coaching responsibilities, Cleveland was also a teacher at both institutions. A 2009 graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Cleveland garnered All-America honors in 2008 after placing eighth at the NCAA Championship. He was crowned the 141-pound Southern Conference Champion in 2008, '09 and '11, was named the Southern Conference Tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler in 2008 and '09 and the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year in 2009. Cleveland resides in Charleston with his wife, Bethany Cleveland and their miniature Australian Shepard, Charlie.

READING, Pa. -- Alvernia University Director of Athletics Bill Stiles announced on Thursday the hiring of Seth Ecker as the inaugural wrestling head coach. Seth EckerEcker joins Alvernia following a year as the assistant wrestling coach at the University of Maryland, where he coached the programs first NCAA Division I All-American and Academic All-American in four years. "I'm elated to have someone of Seth's pedigree leading our wrestling program," said Stiles. "Not only was he a two-time national champion as a student-athlete, but he's been on the coaching staffs at some of the nation's strongest wrestling programs and conferences, including the Big Ten – arguably the best wrestling conference in Division I. And, as a Pottstown native, he has the contacts and network necessary to attract some of the top high school wrestlers in the region and beyond." Prior to his time at the University of Maryland, Ecker was the head assistant wrestling coach at Ithaca College for two seasons. Under his guidance, Ithaca produced six Division III All-Americans and a national finalist. Ecker is a graduate of Ithaca College, where he earned a degree in Business Finance and Corporate Accounting. Ecker was a standout four-year member of the Bomber's wrestling program. He was the first wrestler in Ithaca's history to be a two-time national champion at 133 pounds. He finished his career with a 108-20 overall record. Ecker was a three-time NCAA Division III All-American, a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American, and a three-time Scholar All-American. He was also named the 2012 Capital One At-Large Division III Academic All-American of the Year. "First, I would like to thank Bill Stiles, Alvernia Athletics, and members of the search committee for believing in my vision to lead this program," said Ecker. "I was blown away on my visit with the quality of staff, coaches, campus community, growing athletics department and facility upgrades." "I am honored for the opportunity to become a part of this department. Starting a new team will be a challenge and I am eager to bring my best every day to build a reputable wrestling program. I am thrilled to return to my hometown area and am excited to work with the members of Alvernia University as we usher in Alvernia Wrestling." Wrestling will be Alvernia's 28th varsity sport, and will begin competition in the 2019-20 season. Alvernia will be the sixth member of the Middle Atlantic Conference to sponsor varsity wrestling. Messiah College earned the 2018 MAC Championship followed by Delaware Valley, Wilkes, Lycoming, and King's.

The U.S. Marine Corps Junior and Cadet National Championships, known colloquially by the name of its longtime host city, Fargo, gets underway Saturday with Cadet freestylers taking the mat at 9 a.m. The event, which has included wrestlers from 50 states and lasts seven days could see as many as 3,500 total entries, with 1,000 signed up for Cadet freestyle and another 1,200 signed up for Junior freestyle. Numbers aside, Fargo is a great proving ground for many of the nation's wrestlers who otherwise have limited opportunity to compete against more established powerhouse athletes. This reach means that upsetting top-ranked competitors isn't just a measure of personal pride, it's also a way to accelerate scholarship opportunities, or even just link up with fellow wrestlers who can provide more insight on training opportunities, camps and overseas trips. The networking and potential scholarship money driven out of the Fargo experience has kept the tournament relevant for several decades, but in a media-driven world the tournament can also provide (and help create) long-term media exposure for the stars of tomorrow. For example, while fans may have to rely on photos and grainy footage of Logan Stieber competing at the Fargodome, it's now possible for future megawatt all-stars to have the full extent of their amateur and professional journey captured by camera. Just look at video of Hayden Hidlay and Zahid Valencia meeting in the Fargo finals in 2013. As discussed in this space before, media attention has its own drawbacks, but for a sport that often fails to excite those outside its closed ranks extending storylines lends storytelling among a larger variety of media outlets. From documentaries, to simple photo essays and interviews the access to the athletes from an earlier age, and in one location, can improve the visibility of the athlete and sport. Yet, there is one complication to wider distribution: location. Fargo is synonymous with the wrestling experience in America, but maybe a change of cities could pump up more interest? USA Wrestling would not willingly move to a more populous or well-trafficked city for the abstract idea of more butts in the seat, but if they could strike the same deal, get more entries and lower the transportation costs for member states it might be appealing. No matter how media beneficial, a move of venues is unlikely, and at the very least a threat of moving could be continued leverage to keep terms amendable. As of now, the system isn't broken (entries are growing), but when looking forward 5-10 years placing the nation's most attended tournament in a more centralized and visible location could create more revenue and eyeballs. The only way to protect ourselves is to keep focused on growth and capturing more attention. To your questions … Q: Are you surprised Nico Megaludis left Penn State to train? What do you suspect contributed to the decision? -- Mike C. Foley: According to his interview with Pittsburgh Sports, it was a combination of professional, personal and wrestling. Megaludis has his business in Pittsburgh, has a close relationship with his father and family, and wanted to make a change in training environments. In the article he seems to be describing a situation in which he could get more attention at Pitt and also live a more balanced lifestyle. That's a mature outlook, and probably a necessary one in a sport that can take everything away from you with one ill-timed injury, or bad performance. Also, there is the issue of an emergent Nahshon Garrett … Nahshon Garrett (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Q: I was super impressed with Nahshon Garrett at Final X. Obviously, the world stage is completely different. Do you think Garrett has a chance to medal in Budapest? -- Mike C. Foley: More than anything else Garrett needs some overseas matches and training camps. While he runs a risk (low in my estimation) of being scouted, he will learn to both tighten up his scrambles and more effectively choose his scoring opportunities. The actual skillset won't improve much over the next 12 weeks, but with proper training and exposure his tactics and mat intelligence can skyrocket. I think 61 kilograms is one of the more competitive weight classes in the world and though there are winnable matches I have trouble predicting Garrett would outperform Beka Lomtadze (Georgia), Ghazimurad Rashidov (Russia) or Vladimir Dubov (Bulgaria) and whichever Japanese wrestler shows up in Budapest. Possible, but less than 50 percent likely. Q: Final X. Any improvements you'd make? -- @ShogunofSonoma Foley: New cities, tighter schedule (as possible), and maybe a TV broadcast. Each has their upside, but overall I think that USA Wrestling and Flo did a great job with the new format. Q: Who was the most impressive Cadet freestyle wrestler across all countries at the World Championships? Did you see any future superstars? -- Mike C. Foley: The Japanese women's team. Good grief, the level of talent throughout their program is phenomenal. The Iranian men's freestyle and Greco-Roman team also performed well in winning their titles but nothing as dominant as Japan taking home six of 10 gold medals in women's wrestling. If I had to guess, your next superstar would be in that group of Japanese women. However, Amir Zare (Iran), who beat Greg Kerkvliet, is on pace to be a monster at 125 kilograms come Paris 2024, or maybe sooner. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Cadet Word Championships at 110 kg: Amir Zare (Iran) vs. Greg Kerkvliet (USA) It's entertaining, and Cormier will get PAID. Q: Who wins: Brock or Cormier? -- Joe E. Foley: First, let us recognize that Daniel Cormier is an undefeated two-division UFC champion. His "losses" to Jon Jones were both erased after Jones was found to have been on steroids. Like someone on Twitter wrote, you don't think less of Carl Lewis because he lost to a 'roided Ben Johnson at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. Daniel Cormier is the greatest fighter to have ever stepped in the Octagon. He's faced all opponents and come away with two belts. What else could he do? As for Brock, I know that he is very much limited in his skill set when compared to Cormier, but you can't discount his size. Cormier was OK coming up against Stipe Miocic, but Brock has a type of strength that could give Cormier real issues in cage positioning. Also, he'll need to expend a tremendous amount of energy for any takedown efforts. I still think Cormier wins by KO, but for that to happen Brock still needs to face his fiercest opponent yet: WADA. Q: What is the current state of UWW officiating? -- @smcfee1961 Foley: In total there are something like 3,000 officials with United World Wrestling licenses. The vast majority of these referees never attend an international tournament as they have yet to rank high enough internally, or with UWW, to take the mats. Those who do are typically rated 1 or 1s, which is the highest of the ratings given to the referees. In fact, referees must be 1s to be considered for the Olympic Games. Recently a lot of work has been put into the grassroots education of referees with introductory courses being launched around the world, including India, China and North Korea. That development and the movement of the referee oversight away from the political arm of the organization has already shown a lot of positive outcomes. There seems to be new blood in the mix, fewer of whom feel as beholden to their national federations. Exceptions occur, but in large part the on-the-mat calls have seemed fair in 2018. There are A LOT of matches in wrestling. The Cadet World Championships alone had close to 800 matches. There will be mistakes, oversights and bad referees, but it shouldn't distract from the larger intention to clean up the body and make it a dependable unit come Budapest and the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo,. Q: What do you think of Sarah Hirshland becoming the new CEO of the USOC? -- Kevin M. Foley: While news of Sarah Hirshland's hire will focus on her becoming the first woman to be the permanent CEO of the USOC, the focus will shift quickly to the work she has in front of her, including a gymnastics body under siege and an Olympic Games in 2028. Hirshland comes from the United States Golf Association where she was the chief commercial officer in charge of global rights, communications and a number of other high-level departments and interests. Prior to serving at the USGA Hirshland was at the Wasserman Agency in LA where she worked with Olympic kingmaker and NBC-connect Casey Wasserman -- an association that no doubt aided her campaign for the USOC's top job. The next 18-24 months will be crucial for Hirshland and the USOC. Preparation for the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo will include red-hot media attention on the gymnastics and swimming federations -- each dealing with controversies far outside their normal level. How she leads the organization through this period and what steps she takes to prevent future crisis situations will indicate the strength of the USOC and the Olympic movement at-large.

Matt Storniolo (Photo/Northwestern Athletics) EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern wrestling head coach Matt Storniolo has signed a multi-year contract extension, Combe Family Vice President for Athletics and Recreation Jim Phillips announced on Wednesday. "We have one of the best young coaches in all of collegiate wrestling, and we're thrilled to keep him in Evanston," said Phillips. "He has shown the ability to lead his team to athletic and academic success and has also proven to be an elite recruiter that will keep Northwestern wrestling on its successful trajectory. Matt, alongside one of the finest coaching staffs in the nation, will certainly continue to develop world-class student-athletes in the classroom, the community, and in competition." "I want to thank Dr. Phillips and President Schapiro for the opportunity to continue what we started -- building Northwestern wrestling into one of the NCAA's premier programs, both on and off the mat," said Storniolo. "We have seen tremendous growth in all areas these last two seasons and I look forward to building on that success. Northwestern attracts student-athletes and coaches of the highest caliber, and it is an honor to work with them as we take Wildcat wrestling to new heights. I could not be more excited!" Including his one season as NU's interim head coach, Storniolo enters his fourth season at the helm of the wrestling squad. In the 2017-18 campaign, the 'Cats finished with an 11-4 dual record, including five Big Ten wins - surpassing NU's total in conference wins from the previous three campaigns combined. Northwestern also had five NCAA qualifiers at the 2018 Championships, its most since 2015. The year was capped off by first-year Sebastian Rivera's All-America honors after finishing in sixth place at the NCAA Championships. Off the mat, Storniolo has led his squad to a myriad of accolades. In March, the team accumulated a program-record 14 Academic All-Big Ten honors and, in April, the team was named an NWCA Division-I All-Academic Team, with the team's highest-ever GPA in the award's history. Additionally, NU's six-member Class of 2022 was lauded by Intermat as the 17th-best in the nation. Prior to Storniolo's elevation to interim head coach, he spent six years as an assistant coach for the Wildcats. A two-time All-American wrestler, Storniolo was a Big 12 Champion his senior year at Oklahoma.

Josh Harris with Penn coach Roger Reina Did you hear about the owner of an NBA team who was once a wrestler? Put aside the jokes about the perfect covering for a basketball floor is a wrestling mat. The owner of Philadelphia 76ers basketball team has made a $1 million gift to the University of Pennsylvania wrestling program where he wrestled three decades ago. Josh Harris, a 1986 graduate of the Wharton School of Business at Penn, and his wife Marjorie are giving the seven-figure gift to the Quaker wrestling program through the Harris Family Charitable Foundation which they established. "The gift, which will be distributed over five years, includes $500,000 of which the university will use to create the Joshua J. Harris Wrestling Assistant Coach Endowment," according to the official announcement made by Penn wrestling Wednesday. "An additional $500,000 will be applied to team travel, recruiting, nutrition, equipment and salaries, along with planned facility renovations." Harris wrestled for Penn in the early 1980s at 118 pounds -- "40 pounds ago" as he told the Philadelphia Inquirer -- where he took on the likes of Bobby Weaver of Lehigh, compiling a record of about .500 as a Quaker. Harris first took up the sport at age 10, growing up in Chevy Chase, Md., where he placed third in a Maryland state freestyle tournament. Harris, who also owns the New Jersey Devils, said that wrestling helped him focus on academics. "It really helped me in life." "From an early age, wrestling taught me the virtues of hard work, grit and tenacity," Harris said. It's an honor and a privilege to be able to support Penn Wrestling as it strives for excellence. I hope that the team will achieve national prominence under Coach Roger Reina's guidance, and that more importantly, these young athletes will learn valuable life lessons through their commitment to the sport, which will ultimately enable them to lead better lives." When asked by the Philadelphia Inquirer's Mike Jensen about where the gift would rank in the scheme of things -- no big deal, or very big deal -- Reina responded, "More than a very big deal. In addition to the strategic elements to support the program, it's also an inspiration to our student-athletes; it's an inspiration to our staff, to our alumni and recruits." In the official announcement of the gift from the Quaker wrestling website, Reina said, "The Harris Family Charitable Foundation's support of the University of Pennsylvania wrestling team is remarkable and will provide us the valuable resources at an ideal time to accelerate the growth of our program. Josh has long referenced how he's applied the invaluable lessons he learned as a wrestler to his incredibly impressive professional career. We are profoundly grateful that he is giving back in such an impactful way. Our program will be enhanced for years to come thanks to the powerful financial commitment Josh and his foundation have made." University of Pennsylvania's Director of Athletes, Dr. M. Grace Calhoun, expressed her appreciation for the sizable gift. "We are extremely grateful for the support of Penn alum Josh Harris and the Harris Family Charitable Foundation as we aim big to create an unrivaled experience for our wrestling student-athletes," said Calhoun. "As we launch into our Game Onward fundraising campaign over the next several years, this gift will help enable us to obtain competitive excellence, a world-class student-athlete experience and engage our campus like never before." First established in 1900, the University of Pennsylvania wrestling program ranks as among the nation's very first intercollegiate wrestling programs. In its 115-year history, the Quaker mat program can claim among its alumni an Olympic gold medalist, five NCAA champions, 28 All-Americans, and 64 EIWA (Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association) champions.

Anthony Artalona (Photo/Jim Thrall) The 2018 edition of Fargo -- officially named the U.S. Marine Corps Junior and Cadet National Championships -- commences this Saturday and will conclude next Friday. This is the second year of the restructured format for the event, which seems the freestyle competition for the Cadet and Junior levels wrestled first with the Greco-Roman competition wrestled at the conclusion of the week. In years prior to 2017, it was Greco that went first and then freestyle. There has already been a schedule change made from last year, as the second Saturday of the event has been eliminated, with the Greco-Roman competitions being contained in two days instead of medal matches being held on a third day. It will be interesting to see if they maintain the freestyle then Greco after this year, or switch it back to Greco then freestyle, which is how it should be in my opinion. Tournament Schedule The following is the schedule of events for all the tournaments during the "Fargo Week" (all times Eastern): Cadet Freestyle Friday 7/13 -- weigh-in at 5 p.m. Saturday 7/14 -- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday 7/15 -- second weigh-in 8 a.m., (quarterfinal round) 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., (semifinal round) 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday 7/16 -- (consi semis, if necessary) 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., (medal matches) 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Cadet Women Friday 7/13 -- weigh-in at 5:30 p.m. Saturday 7/14 -- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., (quarters and semis) 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday 7/15 -- (consi semis, if necessary) 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., (medal matches) 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Junior Freestyle Saturday 7/14 -- weigh-in at 8:15 p.m. Sunday 7/15 -- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday 7/16 -- second weigh-in 8 a.m., (round of 16 and quarterfinals) 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., (semifinal round) 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Tuesday 7/17 -- (consi semis, if necessary) 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., (medal matches) 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Junior Women Monday 7/16 -- weigh-in at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday 7/17 -- 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday 7/18 --10 a.m. to 1 p.m., (medal matches) 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Cadet Greco-Roman Tuesday 7/17 -- weigh-in at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday 7/18 -- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., (round of 16 and quarterfinals) 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday 7/19 -- (semifinal round) 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., (medal matches) 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Junior Greco-Roman Wednesday 7/18 -- weigh-in at 5 p.m. Thursday 7/19 -- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., (round of 16 and quarterfinals) 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday 7/20 -- (semifinals) 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., (medal matches) 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Cadet and Junior World Championships participants Moving on to the potential participants, a chunk of Fargo-eligible wrestlers were and/or will be on the United States' Cadet and Junior world teams in freestyle and Greco-Roman this summer. The Cadet-level events were already held last week in Croatia, while the Junior-level events will be held in Slovakia in mid-December. With the Cadet events already concluded, and the Junior events more than two months away, there may be a chance for more of these athletes than normal to compete in Fargo. Below is a list of those that qualified for the world championships this summer. Benjamin Peak (Wisconsin) -- 132 pounds, Junior Greco-Roman* Alston Nutter (Wisconsin) -- 138 pounds, Junior Greco-Roman* Peyton Omania (California) -- 147 pounds, Junior Greco-Roman Tyler Dow (Wisconsin) -- 158 pounds, Junior Greco-Roman Aaron Brooks (Maryland) -- 174 pounds, Junior freestyle Daniel Kerkvliet (Minnesota) -- 213 pounds, Junior freestyle (also 242 pounds, Cadet freestyle) Gable Steveson (Minnesota) -- 275 pounds, Junior freestyle Cohlton Schultz (Colorado) -- 286 pounds, Junior Greco-Roman *Peak and Nutter were Class of 2018 athletes, but spend the past year at the Northern Michigan program for Greco-Roman Chance Lamer (Oregon) -- 99 pounds, Cadet freestyle Cale Anderson (Wisconsin) -- 99 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman Richard Figueroa (California) -- 106 pounds, Cadet freestyle Brenden Chaowanapibool -- 106 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** Matthew Ramos (Illinois) -- 112 pounds, Cadet freestyle** Jakason Burks (Nebraska) -- 112 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman Robert Howard (New Jersey) -- 121 pounds, Cadet freestyle Hunter Lewis (Wisconsin) -- 121 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** Joshua Saunders (Missouri) -- 132 pounds, Cadet freestyle** Phillip Moomey (Nebraska) -- 132 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** Carson Manville (Pennsylvania) -- 143 pounds, Cadet freestyle Dominic Damon (Washington) -- 143 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** Alex Facundo (Michigan) -- 156 pounds, Cadet freestyle James Burks (Nebrasa) -- 156 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** Abe Assad (Illinois) -- 176 pounds, Cadet freestyle** Jonathon Fagen (Idaho) -- 176 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** A.J. Ferrari (Texas) -- 203 pounds, Cadet freestyle** Jacob Kaminski (Illinois) -- 203 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** Luke Luffman (Illinois) -- 242 pounds, Cadet Greco-Roman** **Only Junior eligible for Fargo, not Cadet eligible (UWW Cadet eligibility extends to the 2001 birth year, USA Wrestling eligibility for Cadet classification is the 2002 and 2003 birth years) In terms of the Cadet World championships, these were the medalists plus those that lost in a bronze medal bout: Gold -- Ramos Silver -- Figueroa, Kerkvliet Bronze -- Facundo, Assad, Ferrari, Kaminski Fifth place -- Lamer Returning champions Many wrestlers that won weight class titles in last year's Junior and Cadet Nationals can return for this year's event, though the vast majority of the Cadet champions will be moving up to the Junior level in next week's competitions. As a result, the Cadet National tournaments become a breeding ground for emerging stars and names to watch for in the upcoming seasons of scholastic wrestling. Cadet champions who can repeat at the Cadet level this coming year (listed by weight class in which they won their title last year): Drake Ayala (Iowa) -- 88 pounds, freestyle Chance Lamer (Oregon) -- 88 pounds, Greco-Roman Jett Strickenberger (Colorado) -- 94 pounds, freestyle Carter Young (Oklahoma) -- 94 pounds, Greco-Roman Yusief Lillie (Washington) -- 100 pounds, Greco-Roman Zeke Escalera (Kentucky/Pennsylvania) -- 106 pounds, freestyle Ryan Sokol (Minnesota) -- 120 pounds, freestyle Carson Manville (Pennsylvania) -- 132 pounds, freestyle and Greco-Roman Alex Facundo (Michigan) -- 145 pounds, freestyle Cadet champions that move up to the Junior level: Dylan Ragusin (Illinois) -- 100 pounds, freestyle; 106 pounds, Greco-Roman Noah Surtin (Illinois) -- 113 pounds, freestyle Hunter Lewis (Wisconsin) -- 113 pounds, Greco-Roman Phillip Moomey (Nebraska) -- 120 pounds, Greco-Roman Josh Saunders (Missouri) -- 126 pounds, freestyle Reece Witcraft (Oklahoma) -- 126 pounds, Greco-Roman Fidel Mayora (Illinois) -- 138 pounds, freestyle Kevon Davenport (Michigan) -- 138 pounds, Greco-Roman Michael Weber (Montana) -- 145 pounds, Greco-Roman Carter Starocci (Pennsylvania) -- 152 pounds, freestyle; 160 pounds, Greco-Roman McKay Foy (Utah) -- 152 pounds, Greco-Roman Robert Kanniard (New Jersey) -- 160 pounds, freestyle A.J. Ferrari (Texas) -- 170 pounds, freestyle Abe Assad (Illinois) -- 170 pounds, Greco-Roman Devin Winston (Missouri) -- 182 pounds, freestyle Jonathon Fagen (Idaho) -- 182 pounds, Greco-Roman Ashton Sharp (Missouri) -- 195 pounds, freestyle and Greco-Roman Braxton Amos (West Virginia) -- 220 pounds, freestyle and Greco-Roman Nash Hutmacher (South Dakota) -- 285 pounds, freestyle Eli Pokorney (Indiana) -- 285 pounds, Greco-Roman Junior champions eligible to compete again: Will Guida (New Jersey) -- 100 pounds, freestyle Anthony King (Illinois) -- 100 pounds, Greco-Roman Sam Latona (Alabama) -- 106 pounds, freestyle Brendon Garcia (Colorado) -- 106 pounds, Greco-Roman*** Ty Smith (Nevada) -- 113 pounds, freestyle Brandon Kaylor (Washington) -- 113 pounds, Greco-Roman Patrick McKee (Minnesota) -- 120 pounds, freestyle Alex Thomsen (Iowa) -- 126 pounds, Greco-Roman Atilano Escobar (Arizona) -- 132 pounds, freestyle Mason Phillips (Washington) -- 138 pounds, Greco-Roman Anthony Artalona (Florida) -- 145 pounds, freestyle*** Will Lewan (Illinois) -- 152 pounds, freestyle Peyton Robb (Minnesota) -- 152 pounds, Greco-Roman David Carr (Ohio) -- 160 pounds, freestyle Aaron Brooks (Maryland) -- 170 pounds, freestyle Jack Jessen (Illinois) -- 182 pounds, Greco-Roman Zach Elam (Missouri) -- 220 pounds, freestyle Anthony Cassioppi (Illinois) -- 285 pounds, freestyle and Greco-Roman ***seeks third consecutive Junior National title in the style 2017 champions by the numbers … trend for 2018? At the Junior level, here was the breakdown of champions in terms of grade level from the 2017 tournament. Freestyle: graduating senior 4, rising senior 9, other 2 Greco-Roman: graduating senior 7, rising senior 7, other 1 At the Cadet level, here was the breakdown of champions in terms of grade level from the 2017 tournament. Freestyle: rising freshman 6, rising sophomore 7, rising junior 4 Greco-Roman: rising freshman 4, rising sophomore 3, rising junior 10 Rising freshmen to watch in Cadet Nationals As mentioned earlier in this article, the Cadet Nationals serve as proving ground for many an emerging star. Yes, that does include incoming ninth graders. Last summer, nine wrestlers combined to win ten "stop signs" at the Cadet Nationals before stepping on the high school mats. Among the top Class of 2022 wrestlers, some of the more likely to capture (or at minimum contend for) a stop sign include: No. 1 Ryan Crookham (Pennsylvania) -- The top wrestler in this grade has already demonstrated freestyle prowess in earning a pair of All-American honors at the UWW Cadet Nationals in Akron. Furthermore his talent level showed clear and obvious when winning the high school division of the Super 32 Challenge at 113 pounds this past fall. No. 2 Nick Bouzakis (Florida) -- Already a two-time state champion in high school varsity competition, he earned the first leg of the Cadet Triple Crown this spring at the UNI Dome by winning gold at 120 pounds in Cadet folkstyle. No. 3 Anthony Ferrari (Texas) -- He was runner-up at last month's UWW Cadet Nationals in freestyle at 112 pounds, only losing two narrow matches in the championship series to eventual world gold medalist Matthew Ramos. No. 4 Jesse Mendez (Indiana) -- He was runner-up to Bouzakis in Cadet folkstyle three months ago, and was one match from All-American honors at the UWW Cadet Nationals in freestyle last month; included in that tournament was a victory over 2017 Cadet National freestyle champion Noah Surtin. Mendez also placed third in the Flo Nationals high school division at 113 pounds this spring. No. 13 Robert Paul Perez (California) -- He was champion in Cadet folkstyle this spring at 145 pounds No. 14 Jordan Williams (Oklahoma) -- The Roller World of Wrestling triple crown winner was also champion in Cadet folkstyle this spring at 100 pounds. He placed fifth at 99 pounds in freestyle at the UWW Cadet Nationals last month. No. 15 Alex Almeyda (New Jersey) -- He placed fourth at 99 pounds, ahead of Williams, at the UWW Cadet Nationals last month. Included in that tournament was a 6-6 criteria loss to Cadet World team member Chance Lamer; Almeyda was third in Cadet folkstyle at 100 pounds, finishing behind Williams.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Western New England University Director of Athletics Matthew LaBranche has appointed Mike Sugermeyer to the position of full-time head wrestling coach. Sugermeyer had previously held the position in a part-time capactity. "Over the past three years, Mike has truly re-energized the Golden Bear wrestling program," LaBranche said. "We feel extremely fortunate to be able to make a full-time commitment to a program that has such a rich history on our campus and to keep a talented coach like Mike in the fold." The Western New England wrestling program has seen a resurgence with Sugermeyer leading the Golden Bears over the past three seasons, culminating in sophomore John Boyle earning All-America honors at the NCAA Division III Championships in Cleveland this past March. Three other Golden Bears earned NCAA Tournament All-Northeast Region accolades for Western New England, which posted top-10 finishes at both the NCAA Northeast Regional and the New England Dual Meet Championships in 2017-18. "Mike has proven himself to be a dynamic recruiter and a tremendous role model for our student-athletes," LaBranche continued. "He is truly committed to his student-athletes' development on and off the mat, and our entire department will benefit from his daily presence." The Hampden, Mass. native has guided the Golden Bears to 28 dual meet wins during his three seasons at the helm of the program, more than the previous six seasons combined. A 2013 graduate of Rhode Island College, Sugermeyer served as an assistant coach at Western New England for two seasons before assuming the head role leading into the 2015-16 campaign. In addition to Western New England's success on the mat, Sugermeyer has placed a strong emphasis on academic achievement. In 2016-17, the Golden Bears were recognized by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) after posting a 3.20 team grade point average, which ranked 22nd among over 100 Division III programs. At the conclusion of this season, six student-athletes were named to the New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) All-Academic Team, including three that received NWCA Scholar All-America recognition. "It has been an honor to serve as the head wrestling coach at Western New England University for the past three seasons," Sugermeyer said. "I want to thank President Caprio, Dr. Walker, Matt LaBranche and the rest of the Western New England University administration for elevating the position of head wrestling coach to a full-time role." Sugermeyer has strong ties to the University and its wrestling program. His father, Steve Sugermeyer '78, was inducted into the Downes Athletic Hall of Fame in 2014, and played a significant role in the growth and development of the sport at Western New England. He currently serves as a professor of accounting and as a faculty fellow for the wrestling program. Outside of his duties on campus, Sugermeyer is active within the sport on the national and regional levels. He serves on the NWCA Executive Committee as Treasurer, and as the NEWA Hall of Fame Coordinator. "I look forward to the opportunities that this will bring for our program as we continue to work towards accomplishing our goals," Sugermeyer added. "Thank you to the Western New England University community, our alumni and everyone that is part of our Golden Bear family for all of your continued support!"

Ryan Bader, former Arizona State All-American wrestler, will face Matt Mitrione in a top-of-the-card event at Bellator 205 in October. The bout, announced this week, is a semifinals match for the Bellator Heavyweight World Grand Prix to take place at Mohegan Sun Arena at Uncasville, Calif. on Friday, Oct. 12. Mitrione vs. Bader is the first fight in the semifinals round of Bellator's 2018 Heavyweight World Grand Prix, which will crown a new Bellator World Heavyweight Champion. On the opposite side of the bracket, Fedor Emelianenko (37-5, 1 NC) is set to square off with Chael Sonnen (31-15-1) at a date to be announced. Bader, already Bellator light-heavyweight champ, seeks to add a new title to his MMA resume. He earned his place in the semifinals with a 15-second TKO of “King Mo” Lawal in the first round of the Grand Prix at Bellator 199. Mitrione qualified for the semis with a majority decision over Roy Nelson in his first-round Grand Prix bout at Bellator 194. Tickets for Bellator: Mitrione vs. Bader go on sale to the general public on Friday, July 13 at Bellator.com, Ticketmaster, or the Mohegan Sun box office. Prior to launching his pro MMA career, the 25-5 “Darth” Bader made a name for himself in amateur wrestling. He was a two-time Nevada high school state champ who continued his mat career at Arizona State, where he was a three-time Pac-10 conference champ and a two-time NCAA Division I All-American. Mitrione -- with a 13-5 MMA record -- played defensive end at Purdue University, then continued his football career in the NFL, playing for the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings for a total of six seasons.

Kevin Emily You can never have too much of a good thing. You could say that about "Pathfinder Vol. 2: The Journey Continues" by Kevin Emily. It's his follow-up to his original "Pathfinder: The Journey of the African-American Wrestler" that told the stories of pioneering African-American wrestlers who paved the way for thousands of athletes in subsequent decades, from Harold Henson (first black to wrestle at NCAA championships, 1949) to Simon Roberts (first African-American NCAA champ, 1959), six-time NCAA champ Carlton Haselrig to Toccara Montgomery, groundbreaking women's wrestler. "Pathfinder Vol. 2" carries on the legacy of Emily's first book by sharing the stories of more recent black wrestling stars -- including Marcus LeVesseur, Greg Jones, Tab Thacker, Bobby Douglas, Jordan Burroughs, J'den Cox and more -- in a very informative yet conversational style. That may well be in large part to the fact that Emily interviews the individuals in his book directly (when possible) rather than rely on articles or the opinions of others as source material. Meet the author Kevin Emily is head wrestling coach and special education teacher at Midland Valley High School in Graniteville, S.C. (one of seven wrestling programs in one school district in Aiken County, all started from scratch a couple years ago). Although born in South Carolina, Emily grew up in Waterloo, Iowa -- yep, the hotbed of amateur wrestling that gave the world Dan Gable among others -- where he wrestled at Waterloo Central High. Emily then headed south to wrestle at University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, then returned to Waterloo to coach at Gable's high school alma mater, Waterloo West. In his varied career, Kevin Emily has coached 13 state place winners, five state champions, four NHSCA (National High School Coaches Association) All-Americans, one NHSCA National Champion, and one USA Wrestling All-American. One of Kevin Emily's strongest passions is sharing his knowledge about the oldest and greatest sport with others -- whether it's as a coach for young athletes in his wrestling room, or as an author, sharing with the wrestling community at large the stories about highly accomplished wrestlers who happen to be black. "When someone does something worthy, their stories need to be told," Emily told InterMat in an interview this summer. How "Pathfinder Vol. 2" came together How does a full-time classroom instructor and high school wrestling coach find time to write a book such as "Pathfinder Vol. 2"? "Whatever you want to do, you can do it if you put your mind to it," according to Kevin Emily. "Having the first book published helps," said Emily. "As I start the process, I reach out to people. Facebook really helps me get in touch with the individual I want to write about, or at least a friend or family member." "It also helps that some of my subjects are people I already know because they've participated in some of my wrestling camps," Emily continued. "Everyone I have contacted has said yes." Kevin Emily interviews his subjects directly, either in person or over the phone. Unless they are deceased. For instance, to write about the late Tab Thacker -- the heftiest NCAA heavyweight champ who went on to a career in movies before passing away in 2007 -- Emily read Thacker's obituary, then reached out to his widow and surviving brother. It's also a matter of incredible time management. Emily does the bulk of his information-gathering and writing during the time he's not teaching and coaching. "I was in training with the first book," Emily disclosed. "For the second, I grinded it out. Any second I had free, I worked on it. Kept myself on a timeline." "This time, I really wanted to emphasize stories where the subjects of my book were overcoming tough challenges -- for example, J'den Cox defeating depression, or Tab Thacker's many health battles." Stories that need to be told ... for all ages One of the driving forces behind both editions of "Pathfinder" was to share the stories of great wrestlers who may not have had their stories told ... until now. "These guys need to have their stories told," said Kevin Emily. "The participants in the first book made a point of thanking me for writing it." "There's some education that needs to take place. These are accomplished athletes, many who have not had their stories told, until now." "I'm in it to bring recognition to the sport and to some of its greats." "I wrote from the heart." Kevin Emily lets his interview subjects pretty much tell their own stories in their own words ... all with an eye to sharing with the widest audience possible. "I wanted something my kids in special ed class would want to read," said Emily. "It's easy enough for students age 10 and up. In fact, one mom read it, gave it to her son, and had him write a paper on each wrestler." "Pathfinder Vol. 2" was written with passion and love ... by a long-time student of the sport, Kevin Emily, whose involvement in wrestling going back decades, and has inspired his wanting to know more about great African-American wrestlers -- some from the past, some still involved in the sport -- and sharing what he discovered in talking to these pathfinder athletes. Readers can read the new "Pathfinder Vol. 2" without having read the first edition ... but, whichever book they read first, they will undoubtedly enjoy the other just as much. To order the new "Pathfinder Vol. 2: The Journey Continues" or the original "Pathfinder: The Journey of the African-American Wrestler" -- or both -- visit Kevin Emily's official website. More to come ... Kevin Emily has plenty more stories to share. Right now, he's working on "The Giant Killer," a biography on Carlton Haselrig, wrestler at University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown who won three NCAA Division II heavyweight titles, then three Division I championships (back when Div. II and III champs could compete for titles at the Division I championships) ... then went on to a career with the NFL Pittsburgh Steelers. The Haselrig bio is expected to be released in late fall 2018. Then next up: "King of the Mat" which will tell the stories of a number of legendary high school wrestling coaches. Emily plans to have that book published this winter.

David Bolyard ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan wrestling head coach Sean Bormet announced Monday (July 9) the addition of former Eastern Michigan head coach David Bolyard to the Wolverines' coaching staff. Bolyard, the 2017-18 Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year, will serve as U-M's volunteer coach and on staff with the Cliff Keen Wrestling Club. "Our staff is incredibly excited about Dave," said Bormet. "He immediately brings a wealth of experience and wide range of skill sets to our program. I value his passion for wrestling and commitment to develop student-athletes. We are fortunate to have him joining us at Michigan." "I am grateful to Sean Bormet for giving me the opportunity to continue my coaching career at such a prestigious university," said Bolyard. "The University of Michigan attracts some of the best student-athletes in the country, and I am looking forward to working with Sean and his staff to help them achieve their goals." Bolyard served four years at the helm of the Eastern Michigan program and, in 2017-18, coached the Eagles to one of the most successful seasons in school history before the program was cut three days after the NCAA Championships. EMU claimed third place at the 2018 MAC Championships, sending four wrestlers to their respective finals and tying a program record with five NCAA qualifiers. Sa'Derian Perry became the fifth NCAA All-American in program history and first since 1999. Bolyard's teams were also successful in the classroom, placing 11th or better in the NWCA All-Academic standings in each of his four seasons, including a first-place finish in 2015. The Eagles boasted 24 Academic All-MAC team members while six earned NWCA All-Academic honors over his tenure. Before ascending to EMU's head coaching position, Bolyard spent seven seasons as the Eagles' top assistant and two as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Central Michigan. During a standout collegiate career at CMU (2002-05), Bolyard claimed NCAA All-America honors in 2004 after placing sixth at 165 pounds and was a four-time NCAA qualifier. A 2005 MAC individual champion, he posted a 109-38 career record, including a then-record 21 straight wins as a senior, and still ranks 10th among CMU's all-time wins leaders. Bolyard, a native of Akron, Ohio, earned a bachelor's degree in entrepreneurship from Central Michigan in 2005 and a master's degree in athletic administration in 2008. He and his wife, Amanda, have two children, Maddox and Scarlett, and live in Saline, Michigan.

It's the biggest wrestling tournament in the world. It's also one of the toughest. And it features some of the best domestic competition you will ever see when USA Wrestling's annual Cadet and Junior Nationals are contested in Fargo, N.D. It's a huge mid-summer extravaganza that features 20-plus mats, thousands of top high school wrestlers and hundreds of elite-level matches. There will be plenty of future stars descending on eastern North Dakota when the 2018 Cadet and Junior Nationals kicks off this week. Looking back on the decade I spent covering the event for USA Wrestling, you can see just how important this mammoth tournament has been in the development of American wrestlers in the international styles of freestyle and Greco-Roman. Very few people knew it at the time, but the stacked Cadet 98-pound weight bracket 12 years ago in Fargo featured a pair of wrestlers who would go on to become superstars. Those wrestlers were David Taylor and Kyle Dake. The first year I covered the Fargo event in 2006, Taylor won the Cadet Nationals championship in both styles at 98 pounds. Dake was third in freestyle and Greco. Dake later gained the upper hand over Taylor in college and internationally. Taylor and Dake, as most wrestling observers know, went on to combine for six NCAA titles and three Hodge Trophy awards. Now they're both on the powerful U.S. Senior world team in freestyle this year with both considered serious contenders to win world titles. The 2006 Cadet Nationals also featured a pair of champions who went on to excel internationally. Competing one weight class above Taylor and Dake, Logan Stieber captured the Cadet freestyle title at 105 pounds. Stieber went on to win four NCAA titles before winning a world title in 2016. Ben Provisor won a Cadet Greco title in 2006 before going on to make two Olympic teams. Winning Cadet freestyle titles at 112 and 119 pounds that year in Fargo were Jordan Oliver and Matt McDonough, who each went on to win two NCAA titles. The wrestler who placed fifth in Oliver's 2006 bracket was Tony Ramos, who went on to win an NCAA title before making two world teams on the Senior level. Competing on a huge stage like Fargo provides excellent preparation for these top wrestlers as they progress toward their ultimate goals of winning world and Olympic titles. They wrestle a large number of matches and gain a ton of valuable mat time during an important phase of their development as athletes. J'den Cox holds up a stop sign after winning a Junior National freestyle title in 2012 (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Believe it or not, it was just six years ago when J'den Cox won the loaded 220-pound Junior Nationals freestyle weight class. A guy named Kyle Snyder placed third. Snyder did win the Junior Greco title that year with Cox taking third. Three years later, Snyder became the youngest American to win a world freestyle title on the Senior level before becoming the youngest U.S. wrestler to win the Olympics in 2016. He followed that with his second world title to lift the United States to a dramatic team title at the 2017 World Championships. Cox hasn't been too shabby himself. He won Olympic and world bronze the past two years. Snyder and Cox, who earned three NCAA titles apiece, look like contenders to win world titles for the U.S. this year. Another future star was a double Junior champion in Fargo in 2012. That was heavyweight Adam Coon, who made his first Senior world team in Greco this year. Coon paid his dues as he developed while coming up through the USA Wrestling ranks. He captured a Cadet world title before becoming a Junior world medalist. 2017 world silver medalist Thomas Gilman was another wrestler whose development was accelerated under the spotlight on the elevated mat in the Fargo Dome. Gilman won Junior and Cadet Nationals in freestyle before going on to a standout career at Iowa. One of the wrestlers he beat en route to winning Junior Nationals was Cory Clark, who later won Junior Nationals titles in freestyle and Greco before winning an NCAA title for the Hawkeyes. My last year of covering Fargo was in 2015, and there were plenty of talented wrestlers who made an impact that year. Daton Fix and Gable Steveson were two champions who really caught my attention that summer. Fix and Steveson each still have four years of college eligibility remaining and are extremely advanced for their ages. They have tremendous upsides at the collegiate and international levels. They've benefited from competing in Fargo and taking advantage of opportunities to face top foreign competitors overseas. Fix won a Junior world title in 2017 after being a Junior and Cadet world bronze medalist. Fix is now ranked No. 2 on the Senior level after falling to Gilman in the Final X last month in Lincoln. Steveson, a multi-talented heavyweight, has been on an incredible roll. He won back-to-back Cadet world titles in 2015 and 2016 before capturing a Junior world title last year. He has also excelled on the Senior level this year. It is going to be enjoyable to track his progress in the next four years and beyond. The best American women's freestyle wrestlers also have followed a road to success that has traveled through North Dakota. The 2007 Junior women's tournament featured a top-flight field that included champions Helen Maroulis, Adeline Gray and Tatiana Padilla. Maroulis became the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in wrestling in 2016 before capturing her second world title last year. Gray is a three-time world champion and five-time world medalist. Padilla won two world medals and is currently excelling in the Ultimate Fighting Championships. No doubt, the experience these athletes gained in Fargo helped propel them to the high level of success they've enjoyed on the world level. There is a reason why so many college coaches journey to Fargo each July to recruit. There is an abundance of top-level talent. And it gives them a chance to see how these athletes perform in a pressure-packed and highly competitive environment. The Cadet and Junior Nationals remains one of the biggest and best events on the wrestling calendar. And when you consider all of the current Senior-level stars who have wrestled and thrived in that event, it is easy to see why. Who will be the next future star who competes in Fargo? Keep a close eye on what happens at this year's event. You may just see the next great American wrestler. Craig Sesker has written about wrestling for more than three decades. He's covered three Olympic Games and is a two-time national wrestling writer of the year.

In a battle featuring two big men with amateur wrestling backgrounds at UFC 226 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, it all came down to a knockout ... with a third former collegiate mat star entering the Octagon to challenge the winner. UFC light-heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier -- a two-time Olympian and NCAA All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State -- knocked out UFC heavyweight titleholder -- and former Cleveland State matman -- Stipe Miocic at 4:33 of the first round of their top-of-the-card bout. Daniel CormierImmediately after becoming a two-division UFC champ, Cormier was challenged by former UFC, WWE and collegiate champ Brock Lesnar, who as MMAjunkie.com put it, "returned to the heel role he enjoyed in the octagon during his UFC championship fight against rival Frank Mir, berating Miocic and Cormier." MMAJunkie.com continued, "The WWE heavyweight champ then entered the octagon and immediately shoved the new UFC champ. The two then engaged in a shoving and shouting match that more closely resembled a pre-fabricated pro-wrestling angle than a legitimate faceoff between combatants." The new holder of both the heavyweight and light-heavyweight titles responded after Lesnar got physical, saying, "Push me now, you go to sleep later." The 2000 NCAA heavyweight champ for the University of Minnesota also dished out some trash talk. "Miocic is a piece of (expletive) ... " Lesnar shouted. "D.C, I'm coming for you, (expletive)." The Cormier-Miocic headliner featured more than a war of words. "For the first few minutes of Daniel Cormier's heavyweight superfight with Stipe Miocic, size appeared to matter as the two locked up against the fence," according to USA Today's reporting, hinting at the height and weight difference between the two. "But when Cormier got free, his power evened the score with a short right hook that knocked out Miocic (18-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) and made him the second simultaneous two-division champion in UFC history (joining Conor McGregor)." The two former wrestlers incorporated their boxing skills throughout the less-than-five-minute bout. "In the latter part of the first round, it was Cormier who was landing more punches and getting clinches," MMA website BloodyElbow.com reported. "Eventually, he found a home for one of his punches at close range, as a hard right hook landed on Miocic, dropping him instantly. Cormier followed up with a few more punches until referee Marc Goddard stepped in to stop the action." With the win, Cormier not only gained a second UFC title belt but enhanced his record to (21-1 overall in his MMA career going back to September 2009, and 10-1 in UFC ... while Miocic gives up his heavyweight title he had held for just over two years, dropping to 18-3 overall, and 12-3 in UFC competition. What's next? Perhaps Cormier and Lesnar will actually battle for the UFC heavyweight title. A trio of accomplished amateur wrestlers As stated earlier, Cormier, Miocic and Lesnar all sport real wrestling credentials. Cormier, a native of Lafayette, La., won three Louisiana state wrestling titles for Northside High School. He then headed off to Colby Community College, where he won back-to-back NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) titles at 189 pounds in 1998 and 1999. Cormier then moved on to Oklahoma State for two years, where he earned NCAA All-American honors as a senior by making it to the 184-pound finals, losing to Iowa State's Cael Sanderson in the title match. Miocic grew up in the Cleveland area, placing second at 215 pounds at the Ohio high school state championships. He stayed close to home, continuing his education at Cleveland State, where he ultimately qualified for the 2003 NCAA Division I championships, but lost his first two matches and failed to place. Lesnar was raised in rural South Dakota, attending Webster High School (alma mater for fellow Minnesota grad -- and emerging MMA star -- Logan Storley). Big Brock continued his on-the-mat career at Bismarck State College in North Dakota, where he won a NJCAA heavyweight title in 2008. Lesnar was discovered at the Bison Open by J Robinson, then head wrestling coach at University of Minnesota, which propelled the Gopher big man into the consciousness of the national wrestling community ... and not just for his muscular physique. In his two years at Minnesota, Lesnar was a two-time Big Ten heavyweight champ, and a two-time NCAA All-American, as a runner-up at the 1999 NCAA championships then as national champ (defeating Iowa's Wes Hand) in 2000.

Dan Hodge, legendary amateur wrestling champ of the 1950s who was the subject of a silver alert as a critical missing person Saturday evening, has been found OK, according to his granddaughter. Stacy Ewy Wilson posted the following message on her Facebook page overnight: Dan Hodge"Praise God!! Thank you! Thank you!! We appreciate all of your help and prayers!! Grandpa, Danny Hodge, has been located in Tulsa!!! On our way to pick him up! Very blessed to have so many who love him and our family!!" Tulsa is approximately 90 miles from Hodge's hometown of Perry, Okla. Hodge was found uninjured and returned safely to his home. Hodge, 86, had been reported missing by Perry Police and the Noble County Sheriff's Office at approximately 5:30 p.m. Saturday. Authorities put out a silver alert with a description of his car because of concerns Hodge would not be able to find his way home. According to authorities, Hodge suffers from dementia, and was in "imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death." A 1951 Oklahoma state wrestling champ for Perry High School, Daniel Allen Hodge went on to serve in the U.S. Navy before enrolling at University of Oklahoma in the mid-1950s. He was a three-time NCAA champ (1955-1957) for the Sooners at 177 pounds, compiling a perfect 46-0 record, with 36 of those wins by fall for one of the highest pinning percentages of all time in college wrestling. In addition, Hodge was a twice a member of the U.S. men's freestyle wrestling team for the 1952 and 1956 Olympics, bringing home the silver medal from the 1956 Melbourne Games. Hodge owns the distinction of being the only amateur wrestler to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated as an amateur wrestler in the magazine's 65-year history. Hodge remains a popular figure within amateur wrestling. His name graces the Hodge Award, presented each year to the nation's top college wrestler by WIN Magazine and Culture House publishing.

Macey Kilty (Photo/Martin Gabor, United World Wrestling) ZAGREB, Croatia -- Two years after having to settle for World bronze medal, Macey Kilty dominated in the 69 kg finals to claim a Cadet World title in the final bout of women's competition of the Cadet World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia, on Friday night. "I just really wanted to win," Kilty said. "I didn't really focus on the outcome. It was more of taking it one match at a time and scoring points." Taking on two-time Cadet European medalist Julia Fridlund of Sweden, Kilty used her go-behinds as her main weapon, scoring two of her three takedowns on a go-behind. Kilty regrouped after trailing 2-2 on criteria at the break but put up two takedowns and was awarded one on a caution from Fridlund for an eventual 7-3 win. Read complete story on TheMat.com ...

Eli Stickley (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Eli Stickley, University of Wisconsin wrestler with wrestling roots at the famed St. Paris Graham High School in Ohio, was killed in a single-vehicle crash in western Illinois Thursday evening. Stickley was 21. A 2004 Nissan Frontier, driven by Stickley, was headed westbound on I-74 just south of the Quad Cities Thursday at about 8:20 p.m. when it left the road near the Andover exit. Illinois State Police report that the vehicle left the roadway, travelled into the right-hand ditch, over-corrected and rolled across both westbound lanes of traffic. It came to rest on its passenger's side in the passing lane of I-74. The driver, Elijah D. Stickley of Urbana, Ohio, and his passenger were transported to Illini Hospital in the Quad Cities where Stickley was pronounced dead, according to the Rock Island Argus-Dispatch. The condition of his passenger, who has not been identified, was not available Friday afternoon. Stickley launched his collegiate wrestling career with the Wisconsin Badgers in 2015, competing unattached and taking a redshirt in his first season. Wrestling at 141 pounds in 2017-18, Stickley compiled a 21-14 record. He automatically qualified for the 2018 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships by finishing sixth at the Big Ten Conference tournament. "The world lost a really good kid," Badgers coach Chris Bono told the Wisconsin State Journal, the community newspaper serving Madison, home of the flagship University of Wisconsin campus. Bono, who took the helm of the UW mat program this past March, told the paper that, as he made his calls to inform team members of Stickley's death, he asked one wrestler if there were any teammates with whom Stickley was especially close that needed extra help in the aftermath. "He said, 'Coach, I don't think there was one guy on the team that ever had one problem with this guy,'" Bono said. "That's the kind of kid he was." Prior to coming to Wisconsin, Stickley wrestled at nationally-ranked Graham High School in tiny St. Paris in far western Ohio, where he won the 120-pound Division II state title in 2014 with a 50-3 record. Stickley's family has a long history with Badgers wrestling. His uncle, Congressman Jim Jordan, won back-to-back NCAA titles in 1985 and 1986 while at Wisconsin. Another uncle, Jeff Jordan, wrestled for UW from 1983 to 1986. Stickley's cousin, Isaac Jordan, competed for UW from 2012 to 2017. Coach Bono said the team is away from campus for the Fourth of July holiday, but will return to Madison next week. "I think that's when it'll really hit home, when everybody's together," he said. "Eli was great, man," Bono continued. "There was not one single thing you could say that was bad about this guy in the three months that I was with him. We just had camp a couple weeks ago. I got to spend 24 hours a day with him at camp, being in the dorms with him. He's a great, great, great person." Services have yet to be announced. The crash that killed Eli Stickley was not far from the location of a fatal wreck also on I-74 in western Illinois in Dec. 2017 which killed Gabe Tudor, 24, former heavyweight wrestler at St. Cloud State University, an NCAA Division II school in Minnesota. Tudor was on his way home to Peoria, Ill. from Minnesota.

Our hearts are heavy today. The entire Badger Athletics family extends its most heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of junior Eli Stickley, a student-athlete with our wrestling team, who passed away last night. Our thoughts and prayers are with Eli's family, friends, teammates and coaches.

Mike Duroe at the Freestyle World Cup (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The last time I saw Mike Duroe was in the final month of his life. I was walking briskly down a hallway while covering the Final X wrestling event last month in Lincoln, Neb., and I heard my name called out. "Sesker!" the voice boomed. "Aren't you going to even say hello to me?" I quickly turned around and there was Duroe, grinning ear-to-ear. He was weak and frail, and was walking with a cane, but that same Duroe spirit and enthusiasm was on full display. "How you been, Craig?" Duroe asked. "I miss you, man. Great to see you." "Great to see you, too," I responded. "How are you doing?" "Well, I got this brain cancer that's trying to take me down, as you know," he said. "I already made it farther than they said I would, so I might as well keep living." We both shared a laugh before Duroe said: "I need to find Gilman and tell him something before his next match." That simple exchange was a microcosm of the amazing man that was Mike Duroe. A great sense of humor, a strong wit, a caring persona and a coach who was always trying to help his athletes. Even when he knew his days on this planet were numbered. I received an early morning Facebook message today from long-time Cornell employee Dick Simmons informing me that Mike had passed away. Duroe had a huge impact on wrestling not only in the United States, but on the international level as well. I traveled all over the world with Duroe, eating breakfast with him in Russia, finding bracket sheets for him in Turkey and having a cold beverage with him after a tournament in Brazil. He has always had a huge passion and commitment for the sport of wrestling. He coached at the Division I level, he helped coach the U.S. women to their only world team title and he made significant contributions as a coach for the Hawkeye Wrestling Club. Duroe was in the corner coaching Tom Brands when he won an Olympic gold medal in 1996 in Atlanta. For the past 13 seasons, he served as the head coach at Cornell College and excelled at the NCAA Division III level. He's the winningest coach in Cornell's storied school history. It was shocking to hear the news late last year that Duroe was battling brain cancer. Even though he was in his early 60s, Duroe was as physically fit as someone in their 20s with a strong, chiseled physique. Mike was one of the best people I've ever met in wrestling. He was as competitive and as fiery as anybody, but he was a genuinely good, honest, decent man who was very friendly and respectful. He was an intelligent guy whose opinions were never in short supply. He was not afraid to speak his mind and fight for something he believed in. Five minutes into the seeding meeting at the 2012 Olympic Trials at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Duroe got into a shouting match with another coach about where a wrestler should be seeded. When the meeting ended, I spotted the same two coaches standing together while telling stories and laughing. As we all know, cancer is a cruel, unforgiving and awful disease. I lost my father to pancreatic cancer 11 months ago. It breaks my heart to think of what Mike and his family have endured. He has two children under the age of 10. Duroe's legacy will live on. He was a guy who never took a day for granted and had a huge zest for life. That is something I will always remember about him. Fittingly, the last night Duroe served as a coach he was successful. He was in Lincoln in early June to support Thomas Gilman, who made his second straight world team that night. Duroe also was in Paris last year when Gilman won a silver medal at the World Championships. Gilman possesses the same type of fight, heart and spirt that Duroe did. When I wrote an article back in December that broke the news of Duroe's condition, one of the first people I heard from was Mike Duroe himself. He called to thank me for the heartfelt article I had written on him. We talked for about 30 minutes and I remember him delivering a message that stuck with me: "They say that I can't beat this, but I want to make history and be the first to do it," Duroe said with a laugh. "I'm going to fight like hell to beat this. I've got too much to live for." When I saw Duroe six months later in Lincoln, he was still as positive and upbeat as ever despite his physical condition worsening significantly. As we parted ways that night, I extended my right arm to shake his hand and Duroe swatted my arm away and opened his arms. "Give me a hug, brother -- I might not see you again," he said. "You're a good friend and you make this world a better place." Those are the words I would use to describe Duroe. He was one of a kind. Even in his darkest days, he could make everyone around him feel better. Duroe was one of the most passionate, intense and driven people I've ever met. And also one of the most likeable, kind and generous. I'm among a countless number of people who he's had a positive and lasting impact on. It is an honor and a privilege to call him a friend. Mike Duroe definitely will be missed. But he certainly won't be forgotten. Craig Sesker has written about wrestling for more than three decades. He's covered three Olympic Games and is a two-time national wrestling writer of the year.

Mike Duroe coaching Brent Metcalf at the Pan American Olympic Qualifier (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Mike Duroe, long associated with coaching wrestling at all levels -- most recently as head wrestling coach at Cornell College of Iowa -- passed away early Friday morning at his home in Marion, Iowa after a nearly year-long battle with brain cancer. He was 63. Duroe's coaching career spanned nearly four decades, and incorporated high school, collegiate, national, and world levels. He had served as an assistant to the U.S. Men's Freestyle coaching staff in six Olympics (1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016) as well as head coach of Guam's freestyle wrestling team in 2008. Duroe was also a member of the U.S. coaching staff for the Pan American Games in 2003 and 2007, and was named Volunteer Coach of the Year by the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) in 2006 and 2007. For the past 13 seasons, Duroe had coached the Cornell Rams, becoming the winningest coach in the Mount Vernon, Iowa-based school's storied wrestling history. (Cornell College owns the distinction of being the smallest school to win an NCAA team title, in 1947.) He was coach during the program's top six dual-win seasons. Since arriving in 2005, Duroe and his Rams had compiled a 139-92-2 dual-meet record, with 44 NCAA Division III championships qualifiers, 19 All-Americans, five NCAA finalists, and one national champion. Duroe is a member of the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Hall of Fame. In January 2018, Duroe was presented the Lifetime Service to Wrestling Award by the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Iowa Chapter for his 38 years of commitment to the sport. Prior to coming to Cornell, Duroe was head coach at Northern Michigan University, head coach at New Trier (Ill.) High School in suburban Chicago, an assistant at the University of Pennsylvania and head coach of the Northwestern University Wildcat Wrestling Club. Born in Charles City, Iowa in 1955, Duroe wrestled for the now-defunct mat program at Drake University in Des Moines, where he was a four-year letterwinner and two-time team captain for the Bulldogs. Duroe competed four years on the U.S. freestyle national team (1981-84) and was crowned National AAU Freestyle champion in 1983. Duroe had made public his diagnosis in September 2017. The past few months has been something of a long goodbye, with wrestlers, fellow coaches and others in the sports world paying tribute. "We lost a giant in the sport of wrestling today," said Cornell Athletics Director Keith Hackett in a statement issued Friday. "Mike Duroe was without question one of the finest and most dedicated men in the sport at any level. He developed love of the sport in hundreds, if not thousands, of young athletes and taught them as much about leading a good and successful life as he did about the sport of wrestling. We will all miss him very much." "Sad to hear about Mike Duroe passing," Nick Mitchell, head wrestling coach of the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) national champion program at Iowa's Grand View University, told the Des Moines Register. "He was a great guy who always made time to catch up at every event we'd see each other at. I hope to make the same kind of impact on the sport that Coach Duroe has." Mike Duroe is survived by his partner Lisa Ikola and children Benson and Adyson. Cornell College has said it plans a public memorial tribute to Mike Duroe sometime this fall.

The Cadet World Championships are underway in Zagreb, Croatia, and many of the United States' top 15-17-year-old talent made the journey to represent the Stars and Stripes. The early results have been promising, with Team USA carrying home a runner-up team finish in freestyle, while women's wrestling has at least one champion with four more competing for gold on Friday. Iran, the team champions in freestyle, won their first team title in 22 years. That's not a fluke. While the United States has poured money into freestyle development, Iran had been lacking a well-organized national development approach. Then, in 2016 Rasoul Khadem left his post as the head of the freestyle team and took up the job of federation president. One of his first actions was developing a meritocracy among the youth -- the better you performed and more you performed the more opportunities you were given. Khadem's approach has ruffled more than a few feathers back in Iran (look at this year's senior World Team Trials for evidence of frustrations), but overall the system seems to be working. Investment in the youth has led to somewhat immediate returns. The same could be said for USA Wrestling and the attention paid to the early development of the men's freestyle team. Brandon Slay, Bill Zadick and now Kevin Jackson have been instrumental in developing the young talent in the United States and getting them ready for the world stage. The job is much more than showing techniques, and typically requires a mind for scheduling and partnering up Cadet and Junior-level wrestlers with the right training opportunities and overall career development. While the women's program is performing well, there is still work to be done. The interaction between USA Wrestling and the women's college programs needs further development. The youth wrestlers will need more direction and career orientation to make sure they are capitalizing on every available opportunity. To be sure, there is already the mechanisms in place, but additional or new staff would help motivate some of the college-level programs to buy in to the national system and get Terry Steiner more quality athletes competing at all levels. If the United States women's team's goal is to surpass Japan on the mats, then it's necessary to have leadership to provide end-to-end developmental protocol for the program. With Japan sure to keep improving, there may not be a more challenging, or rewarding, job in all of wrestling than being the grassroots architect of that effort. To your questions … Jim Jordan was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2014 (Photo/Larry Slater) Q: You won't want to answer this, but explain to me the situation with Jim Jordan at Ohio State. Who are the former wrestlers accusing him? Why him and not the head coach? -- @german663 Foley: The story is still unfolding, but for an overview of the incident and recent accusation readers can lean on here and this for context. The congressman is not being accused of sexual misconduct, but of falling short in not reporting the abuse of athletes by Dr. Strauss, or worse, covering up the matter. What makes the story compelling is two-fold. First, the recent scandal at USA Gymnastics and the known predatory behavior of Dr. Strauss lends at least situational credibility to the idea that a coach at a major university may have known something about abuse and not reported it to the proper authorities. Generally, the idea of an institutional coverup is not a foreign concept, nor as we've recently learned, is it unlikely in these types of cases. The second is that Rep. Jordan is seeking to become the House Speaker for the remainder of the 2018-2019 congress. That campaign (a painful game of DC-insider baseball) was never given much promise of success, but these accusations make it much less likely that rank-and-file would want to attach themselves to the congressman's campaign when there is little to gain outside of the power-brokering in DC. There is enough for anyone to report, but where the story gets into twists and turns is in the accusations themselves, which as of now have been mostly anonymous. Unlike the Nassar case where hundreds of young women stepped forward with detailed accusations, the Strauss cases have not been as detailed or robust. Many of the victims are reported to be male and are now in their 40's and 50's -- assuming the accusations are true there is much lower rate of reporting by men of this category. The main wild card is that the accusations are being led by Michael DiSabato, who has a long and at times confrontational relationship with the wrestling community and the Jordan family. I don't wish to adjudicate the validity of the claims from my office desk, because I don't have all the facts and I think there is context which makes this case dangerous for anyone picking sides. The case of Denny Hastert -- fairly or unfairly -- looms over this case. The former Speaker was found to have molested young boys while a wrestling coach in Illinois in the 1970's and then paid off families of the accusers well into the aughties. The payoffs are what got him but were it not for that fraud investigation (pulling $9,900 out of the bank every two weeks is suspicious) there is almost no chance anyone would have believed the accusers. That includes me. I interned for the Speaker for two years while in college and though I had limited interactions with him from my front office position, there was a sense that he was one of the good guys in DC. He was well-respected for candor and honesty, all the while holding on to his secret past as pedophile and rapist. As for why not Russ Hellickson, I can only guess the motives, but certainly as I already covered, Rep. Jordan is a high-profile individual looking to become the third-most powerful person in the United States, making his involvement more relevant to the larger audience. Still, I can't speak to the individual motivations of those making the accusations. Let's see how this plays out, but for certain these claims have seemed to sink Jordan's hopes for attaining the Speakership in 2018. Q: I heard Chael Sonnen on a recent podcast mention that USA Wrestling implemented a rule in 1993 that wrestlers cannot compete on the U.S. World Team in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. He wasn't sure if the rule had changed. Do you know? Had Adam Coon beaten Nick Gwiazdowski, could he have wrestled both freestyle and Greco in Budapest? -- Mike C. Foley: Chael Sonnen is entertaining, but the man almost never has his facts straight. Yes, Coon could have competed in both styles. No, that was never a hard-and-fast rule. Q: What do you think about Lander University naming R.C. LaHaye as head wrestling coach? Exciting times in South Carolina. -- @hillcrestwrst Foley: Expansion at the smaller divisions has been a boon to programs in the South, including South Carolina. Hiring a successful coach that meets the needs of your program is always the goal and from what I'm reading the state's wrestling population, and other stakeholders, seem to feel they've found the best fit for their program. Very exciting indeed! GEOGRAPHICAL POINT OF CONTENTION By Jim F. I enjoyed reading your reflections on Chinese cities Taiyung and Xhinzhou, and how wrestling is part of the culture. Having wrestled in the Lehigh Valley many moons ago, I can really appreciate that (although the LV comes up short on the statue front). A minor but-personal point of contention: You note that Xhinzhou is the epicenter of Chinese wrestling, kind of like Easton, Pennsylvania, being the epicenter of U.S. wrestling. Although Easton historically has had a very powerful high school wrestling team, the epicenter of wrestling is just west on Rt 22: Bethlehem. In addition to very good high school teams (at least back in the day), Bethlehem has Lehigh University, with its renowned program, training center and summer camps. And for added fun, Bethlehem and Lehigh host the National Prep Wrestling Championships every single year. Enjoy your China trip, and safe travels! SPECIAL SHOUT OUT InterMat owner/editor Andrew Hipps is getting wedded this weekend! There are a lot of platitudes thrown out about kindness, but Andrew is the nicest guy I've ever met in the sport. He's Minnesota nice. Andrew works hard, loves wrestling and is dedicated to improving both InterMat and those who work on the site. He's a great friend and will make for a caring and present husband. Congrats, Andrew!

Emily Shilson won the world title at 43 kilograms (Photo/Martin Gabor, United World Wrestling) ZAGREB, Croatia -- After going home disappointed with a Cadet world silver medal in 2017, Emily Shilson dominated her way to the top of the podium and was crowned Cadet world champion at 43 kilograms in Zagreb, Croatia, on Thursday evening. "I'm feeling great!" Shilson said. "I've been working since last year nonstop for this moment and it finally paid off. I just wanted to go out and wrestle my match and do what I know I'm capable of doing. I didn't want it to be like last year." Shilson, a two-time Cadet Pan American champion, knocked off 2017 Cadet world champion Shahana Nazarova of Azerbaijan for the title. Nazarova struck first with a takedown in the opening seconds to take a 2-0 lead into the second period. The Azeri extended her lead to 4-0, executing a double, but while Nazarova was looking for a turn, Shilson snuck on top and worked that famous Minnesota gut wrench. Shilson tacked on six turns for a 14-4 technical fall. Read complete story on TheMat.com …

Jim Jordan (Photo/WP Company LLC ) Jim Jordan, Republican Congressman from Ohio and Hall of Fame wrestler for University of Wisconsin, denied reports Tuesday that he "turned a blind eye" to alleged sexual abuse perpetrated against students by an Ohio State wrestling team doctor when the lawmaker was on the coaching staff at the university more than two decades ago, according to multiple media reports. "Congressman Jordan never saw any abuse, never heard about any abuse, and never had any abuse reported to him during his time as a coach at Ohio State," Ian Fury, a spokesperson for Jordan, told Fox News. "He has not been contacted by investigators about the matter but will assist them in any way they ask, because if what is alleged is true, the victims deserve a full investigation and justice." Jordan, an NCAA wrestling champ for Wisconsin in the early 1980s, was an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State from 1986 to 1994, serving under head coach Russ Hellickson, while earning a master's degree in education at Ohio State and later a law degree from Capital University in Columbus before launching his political career in 1994. As InterMat reported in April, Ohio State had launched an investigation regarding allegations that Dr. Richard Strauss, the Buckeye wrestling team doctor from the mid-1970s into the late 1990s, may have engaged in inappropriate or illegal behavior. The school had reached out to former student-athletes and others who may have suffered or witnessed abuse at the hands of Strauss. The Ohio state attorney general's office has also launched an investigation. Strauss died in 2005, reportedly of a suicide. Three former wrestlers told NBC News that it was common knowledge that Strauss showered regularly with the students and inappropriately touched them during appointments. They said it would have been impossible for Jordan to be unaware; one wrestler said he told Jordan directly about the abuse. Former Ohio State wrestler Mike DiSabato made allegations against Strauss which prompted the school to open its investigation. "Doc Strauss was a serial groper," DiSabato told USA Today. "Everyone knew, including Jim." DiSabato told NBC he reached out to Jordan this year, before going to the university, to tell the west Ohio congressman that he planned to go public with his allegations, saying he was concerned Ohio State might "sweep the allegations under the rug" and wanted Jordan to confirm his story. Jordan told him to "please leave me out of it," DiSabato said. "He asked me not to get him involved." "I considered Jim Jordan a friend," DiSabato said. "But at the end of the day, he is absolutely lying if he says he doesn't know what was going on." DiSabato, whose allegations against Strauss prompted Ohio State to open its investigation, called Jordan a "liar." Another former Buckeye wrestler described his encounters with Dr. Strauss with NBC News. "I remember I had a thumb injury and went into Strauss' office and he started pulling down my wrestling shorts," ex-wrestler Dunyasha Yetts told NBC. "I'm like, what the f--- are you doing? And I went out and told Russ and Jim what happened. I was not having it. They went in and talked to Strauss." Russ is Russ Hellickson, the head coach at the time. He could not be reached for comment Tuesday. However, according to NBC, Hellickson said in a recent video -- made by DiSabato -- that he had told Strauss that he was being too "hands on" with students. "I said, 'You make the guys nervous when you shower with them,'" Hellickson said in the video. "His response was, 'Coach, you shower with your guys all the time.' And I said, 'Not for an hour, Doc.'" Yetts, who wrestled for Ohio State in 1993 and 1994, told NBC he and his teammates talked to Jordan numerous times about Strauss. "For God's sake, Strauss's locker was right next to Jordan's and Jordan even said he'd kill him if he tried anything with him," Yetts said. As NBC pointed out, Yetts admitted he served 18 months in prison for bilking investors out of nearly $2 million. "I am not a perfect person, but ask any of the wrestlers and they will tell you everybody knew about Doc," said Yetts. As for Jordan, Yetts said, "He's a great guy. We would have all these great talks with him and he talked about how one day he'd be the president of the United States." "So it's sad for me to hear that he's denying knowing about Strauss," he said. "I don't know why he would, unless it's a cover-up. Either you're in on it, or you're a liar." DiSabato has had his own share of troubles. A small business owner who sold athletic merchandise, among DiSabato's clients was Ohio State, from graduation for years until the university cut off his contract. He sued the school, and was also part of a class action lawsuit against the university, according to Ohio State's student newspaper, The Lantern. Since Ohio State opened its investigation in early April, the investigation has expanded beyond the Buckeye wrestling program to include male student-athletes from 14 sports programs, as well as some individuals who met Strauss while they were in high school. A Los Angeles-based law firm, Perkins Coie, is conducting an independent probe of the matter on behalf of the university's attorneys. Part of the university's investigation includes determining if anyone at Ohio State knew about the allegations and should have reported them. As of last Friday, Jordan had not been questioned by the university-hired lawyers, his spokesman, told NBC. Jordan the wrestler Before entering politics, Jim Jordan crafted a highly successful wrestling career in high school and college. Born in Troy, Ohio in February 1964, James Daniel Jordan attended Graham High School in nearby St. Paris, Ohio, where he was a four-time state champ with a career record of 150-1. After graduating from St. Paris Graham in 1982, Jordan went on to wrestle at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1982-1986. He was twice a Big Ten champ (in 1985 and 1986), and a three-time NCAA All-American, placing sixth in the 134-pound weight class as a sophomore, then won back-to-back NCAA titles. At the 1985 NCAAs, Jordan defeated Oklahoma State's John Smith, 7-4, in the finals… while at the 1986 Nationals, the Badger beat Iowa's Greg Randall, 6-2, for his second title. Jordan's record at UW was 156-28-1. Life after wrestling After his time as an assistant coach at Ohio State, Jordan entered politics, first serving in Ohio State Assembly, then being sworn into the House of Representatives in 2007, serving counties in far-western Ohio roughly between Dayton and Toledo. He is a driving force in the House's Freedom Caucus, a conservative Republican group comprised of approximately three dozen members. In April, when current Speaker of the House Paul Ryan of Wisconsin announced he would not be running for re-election, Jordan was mentioned as a possible successor. Jim Jordan was welcomed into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Okla. in 2014 as an Outstanding American, a category which honors individuals from the sport of wrestling whose accomplishments are notable beyond wrestling. In addition, he received the Lifetime Service to Wrestling award from the Ohio Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2010. UPDATE Jim Jordan's Congressional office is planning to contact U.S. Capitol Police regarding emails received over the past few weeks, his office told CNN late Wednesday. "The source added that the messages were vaguely threatening in nature in part because of the amount of emails sent, and that Jordan did not respond to the emails because he felt the man was 'bullying him,'" according to CNN, which added the most recent email arrived at 4:30 a.m. Wednesday. Jordan, at a Fourth of July parade in Fremont, Ohio, told CNN he "never knew of any abuse from Dr. Strauss, plain and simple." "We knew of no abuse, never heard of abuse. If we had, we would have reported it," Jordan said. "If, in fact, there's problems, we want justice for the people who were victims, obviously, and as I said, we are happy to talk with the folks who are doing the investigation. But the things they said about me just were flat-out not true." Meanwhile, a spokesperson for House Speaker Paul Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican, called the accusations against Jordan "serious" and said they should be investigated. "These are serious allegations and issues," Doug Andres told CNN in a statement. "The university has rightfully initiated a full investigation into the matter. The speaker will await the findings of that inquiry."

Ed Scharer, 1960s NCAA All-American and EIWA champ, is one of five athletes who will be welcomed into the Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame, the State University of New Jersey announced Wednesday. Edward Allan Scharer was a three-time NCAA championships qualifier at heavyweight for the Scarlet Knights from 1962-1964. He earned All-American honors at the 1964 NCAAs, placing sixth in the heavyweight bracket. Sharer had pinned Iowa's Roger Schilling in his opening-round match before eventual champ Joe James – Oklahoma State's first African-American wrestler – knocked him into the consolation bracket, making Scharer one of 16 All-Americans in Rutgers wrestling history. Scharer was a three-time Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association championships finalist, winning the conference crown in 1962, defeating Army's Dale Kuhns in the finals. He was also team captain as a senior. (Note that Rutgers competed in the EIWA before joining the Big Ten.) Scharer earned a number of honors during his Rutgers mat career, including the team's Wilfred-Conn award, given to the most inspirational Scarlet Knight wrestler, and the John Fletcher Memorial Trophy, given to the wrestler who has scored the most team points at the conference championship event. Sadly, Scharer died in May 2017 after a long battle with cancer. He was 76. In addition to Scharer, other members of the Rutgers Hall of Fame Class of 2018 include former baseball star Doug Alongi, lacrosse standout John Howland, soccer star Carli Lloyd, and swimmer Catherine Whetstone-Battoni. The inductees will be honored during Rutgers' homecoming football game against Northwestern at HighPoint.com Stadium in Piscataway on Saturday, Oct. 20. The Hall of Fame dinner will be held the night before at the East Brunswick Hilton.