InterMat Staff

The final session of matches are set for the "Fargo Week," as the Junior freestyle medal matches have been determined. Wrestling begins at 10 a.m. CT on Saturday. Remaining eligible to win a Triple Crown are Randon Miranda (California) and Danny Vega (Arizona) at 100 and 106 pounds respectively. The team race is tight, as the point standings have New Jersey (51), Minnesota (49), Oklahoma and Pennsylvania (48) in that order. New Jersey and Minnesota had 11 All-Americans each, while Oklahoma and Pennsylvania had 12 each. Illinois had 9, Iowa 8, with all other states sitting on six or less. Leading the way in terms of finalists was New Jersey with five, followed by Minnesota and Oklahoma with four. 100: Championship: Randon Miranda (California) vs. Zack Murillo (Connecticut) This is a rematch of the Greco-Roman final, which was won by Miranda with a 14-4 technical fall. Now after the Triple Crown, Miranda has four falls in as many matches. Murillo was a Cadet freestyle runner-up last year in Fargo down at 88 pounds and started this tournament with a pair of 10-0 technical falls sandwiched around a pin in 1:04 before his 11-8 semifinal victory over Naifeh. Third: Louie Hayes (Illinois) vs. Arik Furseth (Wisconsin) Fifth: Mason Naifeh (Oklahoma) vs. Cole Rohan (Oregon) Seventh: Ryan Zachmeier (North Dakota) vs. Jet Tryon (Missouri) 106: Championship: Danny Vega (Arizona) vs. Drew Hildebrandt (Indiana) Last year’s Cadet freestyle champion at 100 pounds, Vega is also after a Triple Crown this year having won the folkstyle title in April and the Greco-Roman title on Tuesday afternoon. In five matches during this tournament, Vega has four technical falls coming after an opening round pin. Hildebrandt had a bye, followed by a technical fall, and then three narrow decision victories over would-be All-Americans. Third: Kade Evans (Utah) vs. Jonathan Tropea (New Jersey) Fifth: Howard Smith (Texas) vs. Kelan McKenna (New York) Seventh: Kirk Johansen (Illinois) vs. Bryce Brimhall (Utah) 113: Championship: Jack Mueller (Texas) vs. Matthew Schmitt (Missouri) Ranked No. 29 in the Class of 2016, Mueller was the Cadet freestyle champion last year at 106 pounds. Seeking a second straight Fargo freestyle title, it’s been a downright assault with three technical falls sandwiched around first period pins in the opening round and the semifinal. His last three wins came over would-be All-Americans. Schmitt has countered with a similar level of dominance from five matches, an opening match pin followed by four technical falls. The previous two years as a Cadet, eh placed third and second. Third: Montorie Bridges (Oklahoma) vs. Joe Cisneros (California) Fifth: Andrew Nieman (Oklahoma) vs. Benny Gomez (Michigan) Seventh: Dorian Sapien (Idaho) vs. Garrett Pepple (Indiana) 120: Championship: Sean Russell (Georgia) vs. Austin Assad (Ohio) Russell, an Edinboro enrollee, ended as the No. 54 overall ranked wrestler in the Class of 2014. The four-time state champion is in his first Fargo freestyle tournament, and has taken it by storm. He’s given up two points in five matches to date, winning the first four by technical fall before a 9-0 semifinal victory. Assad is ranked No. 51 in the Class of 2015, and is now a three-time Fargo freestyle All-American (2nd in 2011, 6th in 2012 as a Cadet), though he has yet to win a state title in Ohio. He opened this tournament with three 10-0 technical fall victories, followed it up with two decisive decisions, and then scored a technical fall over defending Junior freestyle champion Marko in the semifinal. Third: Anthony Cefolo (New Jersey) vs. Skylar Petry (Minnesota) Fifth: Hunter Marko (Wisconsin) vs. Doyle Trout (Nebraska) Seventh: Kyle Akins (Illinois) vs. Ryan Deakin (Colorado) 126: Championship: Chaz Tucker (New Jersey) vs. Mitch McKee (Minnesota) Tucker finished fifth in this Junior freestyle weight class, and the No. 54 prospect in the Class of 2015 has been dominant this tournament. In five matches to date, he has five technical falls, and has outscored the opposition 52-0. McKee is in a second straight Fargo freestyle final, placing second at the Cadet level last year, and is ranked No. 44 in the Class of 2016. He opened with a technical fall over a two-time Ohio state champion, scored a pin, then beat a top 100 Class of 2015 prospect in Montoya (New Mexico) 14-8, scored a shutout tech over returning Junior freestyle All-American (Polakowski) in the quarterfinal, and upset two-time Fargo freestyle runner-up Brock 14-10 in the semifinal. Third: Sean DeShazer (Kansas) vs. Domenic Forys (Pennsylvania) Fifth: Kaid Brock (Oklahoma) vs. Jonathan Gabriel (Pennsylvania) Seventh: Peter Lipari (New Jersey) vs. Lincoln Olson (Michigan) 132: Championship: Ke-Shawn Hayes (Missouri) vs. Tommy Thorn (Minnesota) This matchup features the pre-tournament favorites in this weight class. Hayes is ranked No. 3 in the Class of 2015, having finished third at the Cadet level in 2011 and 2012. He opened this tournament with three technical falls, including one over top 100 Class of 2015 Kelly (Ohio), and then scored decision victories over the wrestlers that are competing for fifth in the quarterfinal and semifinal. 2012 Junior freestyle champion Thorn, who finished as the No. 21 ranked wrestler in the Class of 2014, has not had it easy in this tournament to say the least. He scored a pin in the opening match, struggled to an 11-9 second round victory, and has followed with successive decision victories over three would-be All-Americans (including both competing for third place). Third: Keegan Moore (Oklahoma) vs. A.C. Headlee (Pennsylvania) Fifth: Michael Cook (Idaho) vs. Gary Wayne Harding (Oklahoma) Seventh: Jayden Pentz (Utah) vs. Mike Magaldo (New Jersey) 138: Championship: Matt Findlay (Utah) vs. Brock Zacherl (Pennsylvania) Findlay, a Boise State enrollee, opened the tournament with five consecutive technical falls before scoring a 14-12 upset victory in the semifinal over three-time Fargo freestyle champion Gross. It’s been a similary dominant run for Clairon enrollee Zacherl, who was ranked No. 52 in the Class of 2014, though it came against more robust competition. He opened the tournament with four technical falls, including two over would-be All-Americans in Roark and Storr (both top 100 in their respective grade level), and another over top 50 Class of 2016 wrestler Flores (California). Then in the semifinal, it was a 7-2 victory over now five-time Fargo freestyle All-American Hall, who finished high school ranked No. 15 in the Class of 2014. Third: Zac Hall (Michigan) vs. Will Roark (Missouri) Fifth: Zehlin Storr (Michigan) vs. Seth Gross (Minnesota) Seventh: Logan Ryan (Iowa) vs. Ben Brancale (Minnesota) 145: Championship: Vincenzo Joseph (Pennsylvania) vs. Isaiah White (Illinois) Now a two-time Junior freestyle All-American, Joseph is ranked No. 11 in the Class of 2015. His tournament started with four technical falls, including one over fellow top 100 rising senior in Parson (Idaho). It was then a pair of clear decisions to advance to the final, those coming over 2013 Junior freestyle All-American Blaylock (Oklahoma) and No. 10 in the Class of 2015 Stroker. Returning Cadet freestyle champion White, ranked No. 8 in the Class of 2016 has been even more ridiculously good. He has four technical falls, including one over Voss in the semifinals, and a pair of clear decisions – those coming over returning Junior freestyle All-Americans Leeth (Missouri) and Kemerer, who are both top 100 in their respective grades. Third: Josh Maruca (Pennsylvania) vs. Fredy Stroker (Iowa) Fifth: Michael Kemerer (Pennsylvania) vs. Mark Voss (Minnesota) Seventh: Patrick Duggan (Pennsylvania) vs. Jordan Kutler (New Jersey) 152: Championship: Mason Manville (New Jersey) vs. David McFadden (New Jersey) One week after winning a FILA Cadet World title in this weight class, the nation’s No. 2 ranked Class of 2016 wrestler Manville has a chance to repeat as a Fargo freestyle champion, after winning at the Cadet level last year. He had a bye followed by four shutout technical fall victories prior to a 5-4 semifinal victory over top 100 rising senior Shields. McFadden, ranked No. 27 in the Class of 2015, countered with three shutout technical fall victories prior to a pair of decisions in the semifinal and final. The semifinal victory was an upset over No. 8 in the Class of 2015 Smith by an 8-4 score. Third: Joe Smith (Oklahoma) vs. Josh Shields (Pennsylvania) Fifth: Tyler Mann (Arkansas) vs. Luke Fortuna (Illinois) Seventh: Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (New York) vs. Myles Amine (Michigan) 160: Championship: Logan Massa (Michigan) vs. Ryan Blees (North Dakota) This is a rematch of the FILA Junior freestyle final contested at 154 pounds in April that was won in decisive fashion by Massa, who is ranked No. 2 in the Class of 2015. Massa opened this tournament with five technical falls before a hotly contested 10-8 semifinal victory over Baldwin, who is ranked No. 7 in the Class of 2015. Blees, the returning Junior freestyle champion at 152 pounds, will enroll at Oklahoma State after ending his high school career ranked No. 18 in the Class of 2014. During this tournament, Blees has five technical falls in as many matches. Third: Bryce Steiert (Iowa) vs. Fox Baldwin (Florida) Fifth: Chris Weiler (Pennsylvania) vs. Logan Breitenbach (Maryland) Seventh: Jacobe Smith (Oklahoma) vs. Hayden Hansen (Oklahoma) 170: Championship: Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma) vs. Josef Johnson (New Jersey) Rogers, ranked No. 20 in the Class of 2014, is an Oklahoma State enrollee like Blees. He was runner-up in Greco-Roman on Tuesday after winning a folkstyle national title in April. Rogers opened this tournament with two shutout technical falls and a first minute pin before wins of 15-8 and 11-0 in the quarterfinal and semifinal over the wrestlers competing for third place. Johnson, a 2012 Cadet freestyle All-American who will enroll at Harvard, opened the tournament with three technical falls before a pair of solid decisions over those competing for fifth place in the medal round during his quarterfinal and semifinal. Third: Burke Paddock (New York) vs. Brett Bye (South Dakota) Fifth: Luke Norland (Minnesota) vs. Spencer Derifield (Iowa) Seventh: Jordan Bushey (New York) vs. David-Brian Whisler (Ohio) 182: Championship: Myles Martin (New Jersey) vs. A.J. Kowal (Ohio) Martin, ranked No. 4 in the Class of 2015, has dominated his way through this tournament with three shutout technical falls and a 12-4 semifinal victory in four contested matches. He was a FILA Junior freestyle All-American this spring, a FILA Cadet All-American in 2012 and 2013, and a Cadet freestyle runner-up in 2012. Despite a state runner-up finish during his high school senior season, Kowal has come from obscurity to make the finals in both competitions this week, including to not allow a single point in freestyle. This includes shutout technical falls over returning Junior All-American Stackhouse (New Jersey) and top 100 Class of 2015 Wisman, an additional 2-0 decision came over fellow top 100 Class of 2015 Wilcke. Third: Dylan Wisman (Virginia) vs. Jacob Armstrong (Utah) Fifth: Mitch Bowman (Iowa) vs. Cash Wilcke (Iowa) Seventh: Nathan Traxler (Illinois) over Justan Rivera (Georga) by injury default 195: Championship: Bobby Steveson (Minnesota) vs. Lance Benick (Minnesota) The all-Gopher State final features a pair of top 20 prospects in the Class of 2015. Steveson sits at No. 16, while Benick is No. 5. In this tournament it was three technical falls before a 9-0 victory over returning Junior freestyle runner-up Dixon in the quarterfinal, and then a 5-5 criteria win over Greco-Roman champion Colbray in the semifinal. Benick counters with absurd dominance, as he has yet to go the distance in his five matches, four technical falls and a second round pin. Third: Samuel Colbray (Oregon) vs. Joel Dixon (Oklahoma) Fifth: David Showunmi (Pennsylvania) vs. Kevin Mulligan (New Jersey) Seventh: Nathaniel Rose (New York) vs. Jacob Seely (Colorado) 220: Championship: Marcus Harrington (Iowa) vs. Andrew Dixon (Oklahoma) This is a battle between past Junior freestyle All-Americans and enrolled Big 12 Conference wrestlers. The Iowa State bound Harrington finished as the No. 93 ranked wrestler in the Class of 2014, and advanced to the final with six technical falls in as many matches. The Oklahoma bound Dixon countered with three technical falls, an 11-2 decision, and then a late come from behind 4-3 decision over top 25 Class of 2015 prospect Myers in the semifinal. Third: Austin Myers (Kentucky) vs. Clay Broze (Minnesota) Fifth: Fletcher Miller (Indiana) vs. Youssif Hemida (New York) Seventh: Patrick Grayson (Virginia) vs. Rylee Streifel (Minnesota) 88: Championship: Jesse Webb (Vermont) vs. Adarios Jones (Illinios) This is an all-MAC showdown, as Webb will be at Ohio University in the fall, while Jones will enroll at the University of Northern Iowa. It is a second consecutive Junior double All-American finish for Webb, whose four wins in this tournament are all by decision. Junior folkstyle champion and Greco-Roman runner-up Jones counters with a slightly more dominant tournament, winning his first two matches by technical fall, before a 9-2 and 8-0 decision were sandwiched around an injury default. Third: Tate Orndorff (Washington) vs. Jake Marnin (Iowa) Fifth: Michael Hobbs (Illinois) vs. Dan Stribal (South Dakota) Seventh: Robert Carson II (Illinois) vs. Michael Rogers (Pennsylvania) Cadets Breske, Moore win Triple Crowns Wisconsin's Beau Breske (170) and Minnesota's Keegan Moore (182) capped off Cadet National Triple Crowns on Friday in Fargo, and were among the 17 champions crowned in the Cadet Naitonal freestyle competition. Breske faced Illinois' Kamal Bey in the freestyle finals at 170 pounds. The 15-year-old Breske raced out to a 6-0 lead, but Bey battled back, using a four-point throw to put himself back in the match. Breske held a slim 7-6 lead after the opening period. The sore remained the same for much of the second period before Breske scored a late takedown to win 9-6. "I really haven't had a battle like that in a long time," said Breske. It was Breske's second win over Bey in a finals match in Fargo this week. The two wrestlers met in the Cadet Greco-Roman finals on Monday, with Breske winning that match 10-0. "I have a great deal of respect for him," Breske said of Bey. "I know he's smaller, but he's such an explosive wrestler, such a fast wrestler. He does things I wish I could do. Really, when it comes down to it, I just had to stick to my game." Keegan Moore (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)Moore earned a 7-0 shutout victory over Utah's Wyatt Koelling at 182 pounds to cap off his Cadet National Triple Crown. Moore outscored his opponents 52-0 in the Cadet freestyle competition. "I tried to get the job done last year," Moore said of winning the Triple Crown. "I didn't get it done. So it feels good to get it done this year." Moore attributed his success in Fargo to his training. "I've just been in the room more working on stuff, getting better with my brother Paden and Luke Norland. I wouldn't be here without them." In addition to Breske and Moore, five other wrestlers claimed Cadet double titles in Fargo. Those wrestlers include California's Nicolas Aguilar (94), Arizona's Roman Bravo-Young (100), Illinois Austin Gomez (113), Missouri's Ethan Karsten (138), and Ohio's Matt Stencel (195). Indiana's Nick Lee (132) was named Outstanding Wrestler of the Cadet freestyle competition. He earned an 11-0 technical fall shutout in his finals match against Illinois' Jaime Hernandez. California's Jaden Enriquez fell short in his bid for a Cadet Triple Crown, losing in the Cadet freestyle finals to Indiana's Chad Red, 4-3. Illinois captured the Cadet Nationals freestyle team title with 88 points. Pennsylvania finished runner-up with 58 points followed by Ohio with 51 points. Finals Results: 88: Malik Heinselman (Colorado) tech. fall Jason Holmes (Arizona), 16-6 94: Nicolas Aguilar (California) tech. fall Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio), 11-0 100: Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona) dec. Max Murin (Pennsylvania), 9-0 106: Paul Konrath (Indiana) dec. Ian Timmins (Nevada), 8-2 113: Austin Gomez (Illinois) tech. fall Ben Freeman (Michigan), 11-0 120: Dylan Duncan (Illinois) dec. Yianni Diakomihalis (New York), 12-4 126: Chad Red (Indiana) dec. Jaden Enriquez (California), 4-3 132: Nick Lee (Indiana) tech. fall Jamie Hernandez (Illinois), 11-0. 138: Ethan Karsten (Missouri) tech. fall Shayne Oster (Illinois), 10-0 145: Jared Verkleeren (Pennsylvania) tech. fall Matthew Park (Idaho), 11-0 152: Trey Meyer (Washington) dec. Johnny Blankenship (Missouri), 9-7 160: Brandon Dallavia (New Jersey) dec. Owen Webster (Minnesota), 11-7 170: Beau Breske (Wisconsin) dec. Kamal Bey (Illinois), 9-6 182: Keegan Moore (Minnesota) dec. Wyatt Koelling (Utah), 7-0 195: Matt Stencel (Ohio) dec. Kobe Woods (Indiana), 13-4 220: Gannon Gremmel (Iowa) dec. Luke Ready (Michigan), 8-7 285: Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon) dec. Hunter Mullins (Washington), 3-2

Wrestling in under fresh attack. Over the past two years there has been increasing pressure in the NCAA to provide more rights and benefits to their student athletes. Between the Ed O'Bannon case which argues that an athlete has a right to profit from his likeness, and Connecticut basketball player Shabazz Napier's insistence that he goes to bed hungry at night the case is being made by former and current players that scholarship isn't enough. The moral and legal scales seem to be tipping in their favor. Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby this week came out and said that the mood of the country and outlook of the courts are changing and that he predicts a significant impact on college sports -- primarily non-revenue sports. Bowlsby, who has been the athletic director at both Stanford and Iowa (he was responsible for hiring Tom Brands from Virginia Tech), has a straightforward argument: If all things remain equal, then we have to find payment from other places, namely non-revenue sports. The logic of his argument seems straightforward, but in truth is anything but clear. College athletics (higher education in general) has been operating in a protective vacuum for years. The more they spend, the more they are supported by alumni and institutions -- the love of football and basketball driving independent donors to create massive endowments and large stadium projects. The money goes to the guys in suits rather than the kids in uniform. Don't be fooled. There are is plenty of money for which to pay college athletes, however, it is likely to come from administrators' salaries, funds for outrageous facilities and existing endowments. Regardless of the perceived validity of the newest threat to college athletics it is the job of the wrestling community to prepare as if the entire structure is about to buckle and nothing -- not a nickel of funding, or scholarship allotment -- is guaranteed. We've fought two reactive wars over the past forty years. The first was against the expansive implementation of Title IX and the second was for Olympic security. The first was a massive, public failure, while the second one was the most important moment in the sport's history. Despite the recent success, wrestling will lose if we do nothing to prepare for the coming budget cuts and threats. We've learned lessons on how to save the sport and fight for reinstatement, but are we capable of preparing for a battle that hasn't started? Are we able to move as one unit to prevent future eliminations? Maybe. Wrestling can achieve powerful steps to improve our position in the sports landscape, but to do so we will need the leadership to build community friendly avenues of support. We need fundraisers and fan involvement at every major university program, and to create something resembling an attempt for gender equity. We need to think big and act bold. So be ready for change. The sands are shifting, but if we're prepared the damage to our programs can be minimized. Wrestlers like a fight, which is good, because this is shaping up to be a decades long grind match. To your questions ... Q: What's the history of the #GoldenGrandPrix? Who has the most GGP titles? What is the most historic matchup or final? -- @NHoughSnee Foley: The original Golden Grand Prix in Baku was held for Greco-Roman wrestling in 1987, followed by similar one-off events in 1990 and 1992. In 2006 the modern version of the Grand Prix started to take shape with all three styles being held in Baku. There was no tournament in 2007, but there has been one every year since 2008. The Golden Grand Prix in Baku earned recognition as a "Final" in 2010 when each style was given two feeder Grand Prix tournaments by which to qualify wrestlers. The idea was that if you earned a medal in one of the qualifying tournaments your country had to send a wrestler to the finale in Baku. The idea, I think, was to create a tournament outside of the World Championships that everyone was compelled to attend. Countries would qualify at a smaller Grand Prix and then want to attend Baku because the prize money is so generous ($10k for first, $5k for second). As for repeat champions, Khetag Gazyumov (Azerbaijan) leads the way for men's freestyle with titles in 2010, 2011 and 2013. Sofia Mattsson (Sweden) won two titles in female wrestling (2010, 2013) as has Maria Stadnyk (Azerbaijan) in 2008 and 2011. In Greco-Roman only has been one repeat champion, then-120 kilo wrestler Riza Kayaalp (Turkey) in 2010 and 2011. Still working on finding a definitive finals matchup worthy of discussion. I'll ask around this weekend and see if anyone remembers one that was especially worthwhile! Q: The UFC just announced Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier is back on after Alexander Gustafsson got hurt in training. Jones is regarded as the best fighter in the world. What type of chance does Daniel Cormier really have against him? Will his wrestling be neutralized by Jones? -- Robert M. Foley: Though the UFC considered Alexander Gustafsson the top contender, it's Daniel Cormier who most challenges the Jon Jones legacy -- an undefeated fighter with an Olympic wrestling pedigree and fast, powerful hands. The champ showed his nerves yesterday on Instagram when he posted a video en route to what he claimed was an extra, unscheduled workout. Jones' concern about Cormier is justified. Broadly defined the challenger has superior takedown offense, heavy hands and suitable cardio. Specifically what will bother Jones is Cormier's clinch and his ability to dictate the direction and level of a fight. On fight night Jones will try to keep Cormier at distance (as he did with Rashad Evans) by peppering him with low-leg kicks and keeping his body narrow to extend the reach of his jab. When threatened by the fence Jones will look for close range elbows to the ear and temple to disorient Cormier and help him buy distance. Cormier will want to close the distance and come inside Jones' reach to find a clinch. From underneath Jones he can look for a variety of trips, throws and straight doubles. Coming in and out of the pocket, Cormier, who stands half-a-foot shorter than the champion, will look to land uppercuts and short hooks. Cormier will take damage inside, but the top of the head can take a lot more damage than the chin. On the ground there is very little to lend to the idea of Jones winning by submission, or even reversing position. Cormier is rotund and squirrely, a combination that makes him difficult to catch out of position. As a world-class wrestler with a brown belt in Guerrilla Jiu-Jitsu, it won't be like watching Chael Sonnen drown on the ground. Cormier will look to keep half guard and inflict damage with his elbows to the head and the body. He's in very little danger. I might be blind by my wrestler's adoration for Cormier, but I think his only weakness comes in the championships rounds. He'll need to push past his comfort level, which I think is easier for him to achieve in a room that includes the world heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and former Pride and UFC champion Josh Barnett. In the end I'll predict that Cormier earns a split-decision win, though he'll have won 4 of the 5 rounds on the home scorecard. The fight will come down to wrestling and positioning against the cage -- not striking. Jones has never been forced to grapple for 25 minutes with an Olympic wrestler and control-based fight, and that newness isn't something a spinning back elbow can remedy. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Congrats to Papa and Mama Burroughs! Jordan Burroughs takes his baby Boy Beacon to Whole Foods Link: Ronda Rousey: Mean Girl -- Brilliant New Yorker profile Link: Greco-Roman team leader Kiki Kelley's interview with BBS Persia Bill Scherr's World title in 1985 Q: You couldn't have been more wrong about your assessment of Fargo. Furthermore succeeded in trying to lessen my already modest achievements in my wrestling career. It is my belief, through my own personal discoveries and countless conversations with present and former wrestlers, that we do it because of a personal desire and the call to answer a challenge. Whether I won or lost I stepped up to the task and gave it all that was in my being. Not for glory, not for praise and certainly not for popularity, we know how desolate a wrestlers world is. I did it for me, and the majority of kids who have put it on the line all year are doing it for themselves and deserve a little more consideration and respect from you. I am disappointed to say the least. -- Wadabuka (Mailbag comments) Foley: Let me first apologize for giving you the impression that I was belittling or devaluing your accomplishments in Fargo. The Cadet and Junior Nationals are unquestionably difficult tournaments -- if you trained to succeed and come away satiated by the results, then I'm your supporter. Last week's intro took focus on Fargo because it was timely and over the past two or three years much more is being made of the tournament. It's my belief that too many"“must-attend" national tournaments and a full-mat press for a year-round commitment starting at age six are corrupting the general atmosphere of youth wrestling. I stand by the idea that even if he's built like a pocket Hercules and saunters through the hallways at a school, the 14-year-old Fargo champion is just a boy. He needs more than a wrestling mat to make him whole. Overall these kids spend far too many days on the road, cut WAY too much weight and are doing so for very little discernible long-term benefit different from that which they would receive a more rational level of commitment and engagement. Every kid should be allowed the leverage to participate as much or as little as they choose, and I admit that there are plenty of kids who love wrestling and the culture of the sport. These kids would choose a three-hour grind match over relaxation six out of seven days. However, where you look at the growth of the sport and the attendance at the major tournaments it just not possible that ALL these kids suddenly began fetishized wrestling success without a prompt from the adults in their life. There are external factors that cause these minors to increase their output, and as my argument extends, they do so without real insight into the long-term consequences of those decisions. I'm only one example, but I started wrestling at 14 years old, only wrestled in season and only attended 1-2 weeks of camp per summer. Though I'm not an NCAA champion or member of an Olympic team I'm still in love with the sport and have found employment through that passion. Others have as well, but in my experience it has been the families and the individuals who live a balanced sporting life that see the largest returns. I also can say that I did get commitment-crazy in college and though I won a few more matches, it came at a tangible cost. As my on-the-mat performance improved I suffered unexpected personal setbacks and lackluster grades in school. It wasn't until I pulled back again on wrestling and found a more balanced life that I became more fulfilled -- a feeling that led to more success on the mat. Again, I'm just one guy and we all have a different path. But wrestling is hard -- really hard. Remember that the next time we try to push our pre-pubescent mashers to attend their fourth offseason tournament this fall. Rest, love and balance will help them as much as a six-minute go against the No. 14 ranked junior high wrestler from Idaho. Q: Going to do some shopping today. What are some companies that support wrestling that you can point me to? -- Aaron Burr Foley: Home Depot has for a long time sponsored Olympic athletes, but outside of Adidas, Asics, Cradle Gear and Flips Wrestling, it's tough to know which brands have a definitive commitment to the wrestling community. I'll keep an eye out and let you know. Q: I'd like to see an expansion of the Golden Grand Prix. Also, I was thinking, something along the lines of the FIVB World League. -- @WrestlingSHP Foley: I also like the idea of an expanded Grand Prix series, but maybe even more, I'd like to see a ranking system built from a number of meaningful tournaments. Though complaints are always being lodged about international rankings, there is no mandate to attend any event. That scarcity of crossover and common opponents lends itself to more subjectivity in the rankings. Predetermined point-scoring tournaments would eliminate that subjectivity and drive the top wrestlers to many of the same events throughout the year. The other appeal of highly incentivizing tournament attendance is to create competitive, sellable events. To create a want to attend there needs to be either a financial incentive, like the GGP Finale, or a points system that is later used for seeding. If wrestlers earn enough points they are seeded at the World Championships, which therefore prompts them to attend tournaments with large point totals. Seeding matters to these guys and working on that desire will help the sport continue its growth. A ranking system could benefit the Americans who many think are under-valued on the international stage. From the perspective of an international wrestling writer the USA men attend very few tournaments outside of the states. (The women seem to appear more often.) The NYAC and Schultz are decent offseason tournaments, but in terms of overall competitiveness they don't compete with the Ivan Yarygin and other tournaments around Europe. The American team did attend the Yasar Dogu in 2014, but that and the GGP Finale does not make a season. Some of the American's inability to meet up with more talented wrestlers has to do with the strength and viability of the European Championships as compared with the Pan-Americans. That is one less week every year to compete against the very best in the world. The system will change, but that will take time and timing with the IOC and the need to not change the qualification system until after the 2016 Games in Rio. Here's to hoping it all works out.

FARGO, N.D. -- After two days of competition in Cadet freestyle, each of the 17 weight classes are down to their medal matches, which will be conducted at 2 p.m. CT on Friday. The three wrestlers that were in contention for the Triple Crown headed into freestyle have advanced to the championship final bout -- Jaden Enriquez (California) at 126 pounds, Beau Breske (Wisconsin) at 170, and Keegan Moore (Minnesota) at 182. Owen Webster (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)From a state standpoint, Illinois has been dominant in this tournament, as the Land of Lincoln produced a tournament-high 20 All-Americans, including representation in 14 of 17 weight classes. The state also has a tournament-high of 5 in the finals. Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Minnesota are next in line with 13, 10, and 9 All-Americans respectively. In terms of the number of finalists, Indiana has four, while multiple other states have a pair each. Below is an overview of the championship matches in each weight, along with the consolation medal matches. 88: Championship: Malik Heinselman (Colorado) vs. Jason Holmes (Arizona) Heinselman is 4-0 on the tournament, winning his opening two matches by technical fall, and then earned a victory by disqualification over Greco-Roman champion McKee in the semifinal. Holmes was the Cadet folkstyle champion, third in Greco-Roman, and won FILA Cadet Greco-Roman at 92 pounds in late May. In this tournament, Holmes has three wins by technical fall and a decision victory over Cadet folkstyle champion Phippen. Third: Billy Simpson (Oklahoma) vs. Jarod Kosman (Connecticut) Fifth: Patrick McKee (Minnesota) vs. Brandon Kaylor (Washington) Seventh: Joey Melendez (Illinois) vs. Jaret Lane (Pennsylvania) 94: Championship: Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio) vs. Nicolas Aguilar (California) Greco-Roman champion Aguilar is 4-0 so far in the tournament, with three of those wins coming by technical fall. The lone decision victory came in a 10-2 win over Ogunsanya during the quarterfinal. D’Emilio counters with a fall, technical fall, and two decision victories in the tournament. Third: Rhett Golowenski (Oklahoma) vs. Peter Ogunsanya (Illinois) Fifth: Elijah Varona (Florida) vs. Ryan Chauvin (Colorado) Seventh: Izzak Olenik (California) vs. Brandon Meikel (Utah) 100: Championship: Max Murin (Pennsylvania) vs. Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona) In five matches during this tournament, state placer Murin has five victories by technical fall. The last four of those victories were by 10-0 scores. Bravo-Young, the champion in Greco-Roman and a FILA Cadet runner-up at 101 in late May, counters with a trio of 10-0 technical falls and a 13-4 decision over Parker in his four bouts. Third: Marcus Povlick (Illinois) vs. Matthew Parker (Pennsylvania) Fifth: Clayton Singh (Missouri) vs. Joseph Thomas (Maryland) Seventh: Jonathan Gomez (New York) vs. Noah Fye (Iowa) 106: Championship: Ian Timmins (Nevada) vs. Paul Konrath (Indiana) In five matches so far this tournament, Greco-Roman champion Timmins has two victories by technical fall and a pair of victories by fall. This includes a fall in 5:23 in the quarterfinal round against returning Cadet freestyle champion Gfeller. Cadet folkstyle champion Konrath is likewise 5-0 with the two opening victories coming by shutout technical fall, followed by a pair of decisions sandwiched by a disqualification. Third: Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma) vs. Drew Mattin (Ohio) Fifth: Zach Sherman (New Jersey) vs. Anthony Madrigal (Illinois) Seventh: Sidney Oliver (Missouri) vs. Jordan Martinez (Colorado) 113: Championship: Austin Gomez (Illinois) vs. Ben Freeman (Michigan) This matchup features a pair of elite Class of 2017 wrestlers, Freeman ranked No. 19 and Gomez No. 26. The wrestlers have met twice this summer, with Gomez winning both meetings, a 10-0 technical fall in freestyle at the Cadet Duals and by 4-2 decision on Monday in the Greco-Roman semifinal. Gomez is in his fourth Fargo final, winning Greco-Roman titles at 94 last year and 113 on Monday, while finishing as runner-up at 94 in freestyle last year. Freeman was champion Cadet folkstyle this year, is now a two-time Cadet freestyle All-American, and has twice earned All-American honors in FILA Cadet freestyle. Third: Bryce West (Iowa) vs. Ty Agaisse (New Jersey) Fifth: Josh Copeland (Oklahoma) vs. Dalton Young (Washington) Seventh: Ian Parker (Michigan) vs. Brent Jones (Minnesota) 120: Championship: Yianni Diakomihalis (New York) vs. Dylan Duncan (Illinois) Diakomihalis is ranked No. 5 nationally in the Class of 2017, and has sizzled during a 6-0 tournament run with three shutout technical falls and a semifinal pin on the resume. Despite this being his first national-level freestyle event, he has meaningful national success in folkstyle, winning the Super 32 Challenge and Flo Nationals at 106 pounds during the 2013-14 season. Duncan is in his second Fargo final, having finished second last year in Cadet Greco, and is also 6-0 on the tournament. His first match was a pin, followed by three shutout technical falls, and then decisions in the quarterfinal and semifinal. Third: Kanen Storr (Michigan) vs. Vitali Arujau (New York) Fifth: Coltan Williams (Texas) over Garrett Lambert (Ohio) by injury default Seventh: Travis Piotrowski (Illinois) vs. Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) 126: Championship: Chad Red (Indiana) vs. Jaden Enriquez (California) Ranked No. 22 in the Class of 2016, Red is now a two-time Cadet All-American, having placed fourth in Greco-Roman last year. Red was dominant in his first five matches with two pins and three shutout technical falls on the ledger, before a 4-3 upset victory over returning Cadet freestyle champion LaMont in the semifinal. Enriquez, ranked No. 13 in the Class of 2017, seeks a Cadet Triple Crown in this match having won folkstyle up a weight in April and Greco-Roman in this weight on Monday. It is his fourth All-American finish in as many Fargo tournaments, as he doubled last year in this weight class. He has done well this tournament with three technical falls, including one by shutout in the semifinal, and a pair of decisions. Third: Taylor LaMont (Utah) vs. Corey Shie (Ohio) Fifth: Alex Lloyd (Minnesota) vs. A.J. Jaffe (Illinois) Seventh: Zachary Krause (Illinois) vs. Chris Sandoval (Colorado) 132: Championship: Nick Lee (Indiana) vs. Jamie Hernandez (Illinois) A two-time FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up at 127 pounds, Lee is ranked No. 4 overall in the Class of 2017. He also placed third last year in the Cadet freestyle competition. For this tournament, he has five technical falls in as many matches, including a 10-0 shutout of four-time Cadet All-American Hong in the semifinal. His opponent Hernandez opened the tournament with four technical falls before a 6-2 decision in the semifinal round. Third: Ben Anderson (Utah) vs. Eric Hong (Pennsylvania) Fifth: Hunter Shelton (Missouri) vs. Austin O’Connor (Illinois) Seventh: Ryan Epps (Minnesota) vs. Evan Epps (Indiana) 138: Championship: Ethan Karsten (Missouri) vs. Shayne Oster (Illinois) Cadet Greco-Roman champion Karsten is in the hunt for double titles this week. For the tournament he has two first minute pins, a shutout technical fall, and a pair of narrow decisions over top 30 Class of 2017 prospects. Oster, third in his high school state tournament, advances to the final with a pin, three technical falls, and then a win by injury default over FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Demas in the semifinal. Third: Devin Bahr (Wisconsin) vs. Colin Clingenpeel (Iowa) Fifth: Domenick Demas (Ohio) vs. Adrian Ojeda (Nevada) Seventh: Collin Kraus (Wisconsin) vs. Hunter Willits (Colorado) 145: Championship: Matthew Park (Idaho) vs. Jared Verkleeren (Pennsylvania) Class of 2016 wrestler Park has arguably been the revelation of the Fargo week. In ten matches wrestled this week (five Greco-Roman on the way to a championship, five freestyle), he has eight pins in a combined 6:59 (freestyle featuring five pins in 4:27). The two matches that weren’t pins came in Greco-Roman, an injury default in 1:06 and a 14-3 technical fall. His opponent Verkleeren was the FILA Cadet freestyle champion at 138 pounds, and is ranked No. 15 overall in the Class of 2017. Outside of a single quarterfinal bout that was won 8-8 by criteria, his other five match victories came by technical fall. Third: Anthony Mantanona (California) vs. Brady Berge (Minnesota) Fifth: Jonathan Ross (Pennsylvania) vs. Austin Hiles (Ohio) Seventh: Mitchell Willett (Oregon) vs. Brandon Kui (New Jersey) 152: Championship: Trey Meyer (Washington) vs. Johnny Blankenship (Missouri) Both wrestlers in this final failed to place in Greco-Roman in this weight class. Meyer, who placed third at state in each high school season so far, has given up a single point in five matches; three wins by technical fall and two wins by pin. Blankenship counters with a high school state title this year and three technical falls in five matches, but his last two match victories have come by narrow decisions. Third: Jeremiah Moody (Wisconsin) vs. Luke Troy (California) Fifth: Nathaniel Morris (Illinois) vs. Anthony Sherry (Iowa) Seventh: Jake Woodley (Pennsylvania) vs. Avery DiNardi (New Jersey) 160: Championship: Brandon Dallavia (New Jersey) vs. Owen Webster (Minnesota) This is a second straight Cadet freestyle All-American for Dallavia, who is ranked No. 16 in the Class of 2016. He has dominated in this tournament, with five technical falls from five matches. The only match he gave up points came in a 16-5 semifinal victory over Darmstadt. Cadet Greco-Roman champion Webster, also a Class of 2016 wrestler, countered with technical falls in his first four matches. Then the semifinal match was a 9-8 decision victory over Cadet folkstyle champion Warner. Third: Ben Darmstadt (Ohio) vs. Joe Grello (New Jersey) Fifth: Andrew Berreyesa (Nevada) vs. Jacob Warner (Illinois) Seventh: Jacob Raschka (Wisconsin) vs. Gary Jantzer (Oregon) 170: Championship: Beau Breske (Wisconsin) vs. Kamal Bey (Illinois) This is a rematch of the Cadet Greco-Roman final won by Breske in a 10-0 technical fall. Both wrestlers are nationally ranked in the Class of 2016, Breske No. 6 and Bey No. 37. Breske is after a second consecutive Cadet double in Fargo at 170 pounds, and a Triple Crown for this year. Bey is now a four-time Fargo All-American, and in his third final, having also finished second to Mark Hall – ranked No. 1 in the Class of 2016 – in freestyle last year at 160. Third: Jared Siegrist (Pennsylvania) vs. Jack Jessen (Illinois) Fifth: James Handwerk (Ohio) vs. Matthew Wroblewski (Illinois) Seventh: Luke Drugac (New Jersey) vs. Brady Daniel (Maryland) 182: Championship: Wyatt Koelling (Utah) vs. Keegan Moore (Minnesota) This is also a rematch of the Cadet Greco-Roman final, a match that Moore won by 6-5 decision. Ranked No. 10 in the Class of 2016, Moore is after a Triple Crown, as he won the Cadet freestyle title in April. For this tournament, he has four shutout technical falls in as many matches. Koelling counters with two pins and a shutout technical fall in his contested matches, as he advanced to the final by injury default. Third: John Jakobsen (Pennsylvania) vs. Haydn Maley (Oregon) Fifth: Tyler Self (Oregon) vs. Isaac Luellen (Kansas) Seventh: Antonio Agee (Virginia) vs. Christian Brunner (Illinois) 195: Championship: Kobe Woods (Indiana) vs. Matt Stencel (Ohio) Cadet folkstyle champion Woods placed seventh in Cadet Greco-Roman, and is 4-0 for the tournament with two technical falls and two decisions. Cadet Greco-Roman champion Stencel opened his tournament with two shutout technical falls and a 14 second pin before upending nationally ranked Class of 2016 wrestler Correnti by 16-10 decision in the semifinal. The wrestlers met at the Cadet Duals in freestyle, a match won by Stencel. Third: Matthew Correnti (New Jersey) vs. Jeffrey Allen (Virginia) Fifth: Zane Black (Pennsylvania) over Wyatt Harden (Michigan) by injury default Seventh: Francis Duggan (Pennsylvania) vs. Troy Allen (Virginia) 220: Championship: Luke Ready (Michigan) vs. Gannon Gremmel (Iowa) Ready, who was a state placer this year in high school, finished fifth in Cadet Greco-Roman. He advanced to the final on the strength of four technical falls in as many matches. Gremmel, ranked No. 47 in the Class of 2016 and champion in Cadet folkstyle, opened his tournament with a pin before advancing to the final with three consecutive technical falls. This includes a shutout over Greco-Roman champion Metz in the semifinal. Third: Cole Nye (Pennsylvania) vs. Brandon Metz (North Dakota) Fifth: Anthony Piscopo (Pennsylvania) vs. Cristian Ayala (California) Seventh: Brandon Musselman (Missouri) vs. Brett Winters (Alabama) 285: Championship: Hunter Mullins (Washington) vs. Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon) Mullins, who took fifth in Greco-Roman, opened this freestyle tournament with a narrow 3-2 victory, but has followed it with two 10-0 technical falls before a pin in 1:50 in the semifinal round. Odighizuwa was runner-up in Cadet Greco-Roman, and avenged that finals loss to Vough with a 10-0 technical fall victory in the semifinal. His prior three matches were a 9-6 decision in the quarterfinal and technical falls in the opening two rounds. Third: Kevin Vough (Ohio) vs. Bryan Ditchman (Illinois) Fifth: Christian Rebottaro (California) vs. Blayne Burnett (Oregon) Seventh: Andrew Piehl (Minnesota) vs. Dominic Tudor (Illinois) Junior freestyle wrestles to round of 16 Day 1 of arguably the pinnacle event of the high school aged wrestling calendar year came to an end in Fargo, N.D. The Junior freestyle competition is down to the round of 16 on the front side, with 16 more remaining alive on the backside. Those that win in the next championship round need one more win to earn All-American honors, a round of 16 loss means three consecutive wins required for an All-American finish, while those presently in consolation need four more wins for All-American distinction. Wrestling resumes with the round of 16 and quarterfinals in the 9:00 a.m. CT session, and then will continue with the semifinals in the 6:00 p.m. session. Round of 16 matchups are as follows. 100: Naifeh (Oklahoma) vs. Aguirre (Iowa), Rohan (Oregon) vs. Mascarenas (New Mexico); Stedwell (Illinois) vs. Zachmeier (North Dakota), Crespo (California) vs. Murillo (Connecticut). Ciciarelli (New York) vs. Miranda (California), Hayes (Illinois) vs. Adams (Oklahoma); Cox (Oklahoma) vs. Furseth (Wisconsin), Tryon (Missouri) vs. Hutchinson (Iowa) 106: Alcantav (Arizona) vs. H. Smith (Texas), Johansen (Illinois) vs. Hildenbrandt (Indiana); Tropea (New Jersey) vs. McKenna (New York), Brimhall (Utah) vs. Shankles (Alabama). Valdivez (Missouri) vs. Vega (Arizona), Mullen (Illinois) vs. Grubbs (Oregon); Evans (Utah) vs. Ward (Oklahoma), Aquino (California) vs. Roberts (Michigan) 113: Wagner (Iowa) vs. Cisneros (California), Dor. Sapien (Idaho) vs. Bergeland (Minnesota); Wilsie (Illinois) vs. Nieman (Oklahoma), Pepple (Indiana) vs. Mueller (Texas). Navarro (Tennessee) vs. Torres (Washington), Schmitt (Missouri) vs. Tovar (New Jersey); Spaulding (North Dakota) vs. T. Rohweder (Iowa), Bridges (Oklahoma) vs. Belichak (California) 120: Cefolo (New Jersey) vs. Bertucci (Michigan), Assad (Ohio) vs. Rowe (Oklahoma); Petry (Minnesota) vs. Akins (Illinois), Hellickson (Iowa) vs. Marko (Wisconsin). Duffield (Oklahoma) vs. Oliver (Illinois), Rathbun (Iowa) vs. Trout (Nebraska); Moody (Oklahoma) vs. Deakin (Colorado), Russell (Georgia) vs. Thornton (Wisconsin) 126: Rohlfing (California) vs. Brock (Oklahoma), Forys (Pennsylvania) vs. Cheek (Ohio); Roberts (Missouri) vs. Polakowski (Illinois), Montoya (New Mexico) vs. McKee (Minnesota). DeShazer (Kansas) vs. LaMont (Utah), Gabriel (Pennsylvania) vs. Noble (New Jersey); Olson (Michigan) vs. Gardner (Pennsylvania), Fontanez (Oklahoma) vs. Tucker (New Jersey) 132: Headlee (Pennsylvania) vs. Kane (Connecticut), Thorn (Minnesota) vs. Margolis (Maryland); K. Moore (Oklahoma) vs. Koll (New York), Svestka (Illinois) vs. Shearer (North Dakota). C. Kelly (Ohio) vs. Hayes (Missouri), Parrett (Ohio) vs. Harding (Oklahoma); Demicco (Ohio) vs. Ascolese (New Jersey), Cook (Idaho) vs. Casella (New York) 138: Z. Storr (Michigan) vs. Zacherl (Pennsylvania), Roark (Missouri) vs. James (Indiana); Brancale (Minnesota) vs. Hagan (Ohio), I. Brown (Pennsylvania) vs. Z. Hall (Michigan). Kissane (Kansas) vs. Gross (Minnesota), Ryan (Iowa) vs. Weaver (Michigan); Stone (Virginia) vs. Sheets (Oklahoma), Findlay (Utah) vs. Berres (Minnesota) 145: Stroker (Iowa) vs. Carson (Ohio), Duggan (Pennsylvania) vs. Schuman (South Dakota); Blaylock (Oklahoma) vs. Rothwell (Colorado), Joseph (Pennsylvania) vs. Parson (Idaho). Laprade (Virginia) vs. White (Illinois), Wall (Idaho) vs. Kemerer (Pennsylvania); Voss (Minnesota) vs. Thomsen (Iowa), Maruca (Pennsylvania) vs. Kutler (New Jersey) 152: Rodriguez (Minnesota) vs. McFadden (New Jersey), Rahmani (Ohio) vs. Porter (New York); Rodriguez-Spencer (New York) vs. Robinson (Utah), DiBlasi (Missouri) vs. Joe Smith (Oklahoma). Manville (New Jersey) vs. Dutton (New York), Quintanilla (Washington) vs. Straw (Iowa); My. Amine (Michigan) vs. Scharenbock (Wisconsin), Shields (Pennsylvania) vs. Taylor (Oklahoma) 160: Baldwin (Florida) vs. Carello (Illinois), Zimmerman (Pennsylvania) vs. Steiert (Iowa); Massa (Michigan) vs. J. Viruet (Massachusetts), Padilla (California) vs. R. Bye (South Dakota). Weiler (Pennsylvania) vs. Loving (Oklahoma), Breitenbach (Maryland) vs. Greene (Florida); McBride (Illinois) vs. R. Viruet (Massachusetts), R. Blees (North Dakota) vs. Jac. Smith (Oklahoma) 170: Rogers (Oklahoma) vs. Banks (Pennsylvania), Paddock (New York) vs. Miller (Texas); Holschlag (Iowa) vs. B. Bye (South Dakota), Gray (Missouri) vs. Zienkiewicz (Michigan). Whisler (Ohio) vs. Baker (Minnesota), Duhe (Louisiana) vs. Norland (Minnesota); Derifield (Iowa) vs. McNutt (Missouri), Johnson (New Jersey) vs. Bushey (New York) 182: Traxler (Illinois) vs. Armstrong (Utah), Bears (Missouri) vs. Rivera (Georgia); McLeod (Idaho) vs. Martin (New Jersey), Young (Illinois) vs. Bowman (Iowa). Carr (Illinois) vs. Kowal (Ohio), Wilcke (Iowa) vs. Wildmo (Michigan); Wisman (Virginia) vs. Dieringer (Oklahoma), Weldon (Alabama) vs. Benkovich (Illinois) 195: Seely (Colorado) vs. Aven (Indiana), Buell (New York) vs. Colbray (Oregon); Chadd (Wisconsin) vs. Steveson (Minnesota), Fenton (Ohio) vs. J. Dixon (Oklahoma). Honis (New York) vs. Showunmi (Pennsylvania), Cooper (Missouri) vs. Mulligan (New Jersey); Wenger (Illinois) vs. Crow (Missouri), R. Scott (Indiana) vs. Benick (Missouri) 220: Bispham (Oregon) vs. Miller (Indiana), Dulaney (Minnesota) vs. Harrington (Iowa); Grant (California) vs. Hemida (New York), Nash (Utah) vs. Colucci (New Jersey). A. Dixon (Oklahoma) vs. Davis (Missouri), Evans (Iowa) vs. Streifel (Minnesota); Knapp (Ohio) vs. Broze (Minnesota), Myers (Kentucky) vs. Grayson (Virginia) 285: Brown (Kentucky) vs. Webb (Vermont), Carson II (Illinois) vs. Jennings (Ohio); Staack (Iowa) vs. Andrews (Texas), Hobbs (Illinois) vs. Monk (Pennsylvania). Serrano (New York) vs. Braun (Missouri), Jones (Illinois) vs. Mittenberg (California); Orndorff (Washington) vs. Tomaskovic (Illinois), Marnin (Iowa) vs. Adkins (Alabama)

The opening day of the Cadet National freestyle tournament narrowed the field down to the quarterfinals in each weight class, and that round will take place starting at 9:30 a.m. CT on Thursday morning. In weight classes 88 to 120, there are 16 total wrestlers in the field; while for 126 pounds on up, there are 24 total wrestlers remaining. Quarterfinalists have to win one match to earn an All-American finish, while wrestlers in consolation have to win either the next two or three matches. Keegan Moore (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)All three wrestlers eligible for a Cadet Triple Crown after the Greco-Roman leg advanced to the quarterfinals. None of the three -- Jaden Enriquez (California) at 126, Beau Breske (Wisconsin) at 170, or Keegan Moore (Minnesota) at 182 -- should be tested in their quarterfinal bout. The biggest shock of the night took place in the round of 16 where the nation's No. 2 ranked Class of 2017 prospect, Brady Berge (Minnesota) was pinned by Cadet Greco-Roman champion Matthew Park (Idaho) in under one minute at 145 pounds. The other staggering note is that Illinois has quarterfinalists in 15 of the 17 weight classes, and 20 in all. Next in line is Pennsylvania with 13 in the quarterfinals, Ohio with 9 in the quarters, Missouri with 8, with Indiana and New Jersey at 7 each. Given that quality, one can see how they absolutely torched the field at the Cadet Duals last month in Daytona Beach. Below are the quarterfinal pairings, as well as consolation round of 16 matchups for those weights down to that. 88: Quarterfinals: Malik Heinselman (Colorado) vs. Jaret Lane (Pennsylvania), Jared Kosman (Connecticut) vs. Patrick McKee (Minnesota); Luke Pradel (Illinois) vs. Jason Holmes (Arizona), Mosha Schwartz (Colorado) vs. Brandon Kaylor (Washington) Consolation 16: Foley (Minnesota) vs. Day, Jr. (Oregon), Phippen (Kansas) vs. Stutzman (Utah); Del Rio IV (Arizona) vs. Simpson (Oklahoma), Melendez (Illinois) vs. Dentino (Wisconsin) 94: Quarterfinals: Nicolas Aguilar (California) vs. Peter Ogunsanya (Illinois), Drew Schafer (New York) vs. Ryan Chauvin (Colorado); Holden Heller (Illinois) vs. Elijah Varona (Florida), Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio) vs. Rhett Golowenski (Oklahoma) Consolation 16: Olenik (California) vs. McKenna (Illinois), Keeley (Illinois) vs. Green (Pennsylvania); Millage (Iowa) vs. Varchenger (North Dakota), Kerr (Oregon) vs. Meikel (Utah) 100: Quarterfinals: Noah Fye (Iowa) vs. Marcus Povlick (Illinois), Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona) vs. Matt Parker (Pennsylvania); Boo Dryden (Kansas) vs. Clayton Singh (Missouri), Max Murin (Pennsylvania) vs. Joseph Thomas (Maryland) Consolation 16: Rivera (Illinois) vs. Gomez (New York), Kohlberg (Illinois) vs. White (Indiana); D. Koontz (Wisconsin) vs. Craig (Maine), O’Reilly (New York) vs. B. Koontz (Wisconsin) 106: Quarterfinals: Drew Mattin (Ohio) vs. Paul Konrath (Indiana), Jordan Martinez (Colorado) vs. Zach Sherman (New Jersey); Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma) vs. Ian Timmins (Nevada), Anthony Madrigal (Illinois) vs. Sidney Oliver (Missouri) Consolation 16: Trybus (Maryland) vs. Skudlarczy (Texas), Macias (Illinois) vs. Gliva (Minnesota); Lajoie (Michigan) vs. Gerardi (Virginia), McGee (Illinois) vs. Molitor (Minnesota) 113: Quarterfinals: Ty Agaisse (New Jersey) vs. Bryce West (Iowa), Austin Gomez (Illinois) vs. Ian Parker (Michigan); Tim Kane (Connecticut) vs. Josh Copeland (Oklahoma), Ben Freeman (Michigan) vs. Andrew Merola (New Jersey) Consolation 16: Chalifoux (Tennessee) vs. Kaldes (Pennsylvania), Karstetter (Oklahoma) vs. Treaster (Kansas); Jones (Minnesota) vs. Bianchi (Wisconsin), Young (Washington) vs. Hoskins (Ohio) 120: Quarterfinals: Yianni Diakomihalis (New York) vs. Garrett Lambert (Ohio), Coltan Williams (Texas) vs. Tate Carney (Kansas); Dylan Duncan (Illinois) vs. Joe Lee (Indiana), Vitali Arujau (New York) vs. Peter Del Gallo (Maine) Consolation 16: Wasser (Pennsylvania) vs. Long (Pennsylvania), Bergeland (Minnesota) vs. Johnson (Oregon); Piotrowski (Illinois) vs. Leisure (Iowa), Storr (Michigan) vs. van der Merwe (New Jersey) 126: Quarterfinals: Morgan Fuenfinger (Minnesota) vs. Chad Red (Indiana), Zachary Krause (Illinois) vs. Taylor LaMont (Utah); Jaden Enriquez (California) vs. Chris Sandoval (Colorado), Corey Shie (Ohio) vs. Quentin Hovis (Arizona) 132: Quarterfinals: Aaron Kruk (Illinois) vs. Jamie Hernandez (Illinois), Jaron Chavez (Idaho) vs. Ben Anderson (Utah); Eric Hong (Pennsylvania) vs. Trysten Perales (Washington), Parker Filius (Montana) vs. Nick Lee (Indiana) 138: Quarterfinals: Shayne Oster (Illinois) vs. Jaryn Curry (Oklahoma), Adrian Ojeda (Nevada) vs. Domenick Demas (Ohio); Josiah Rider (Colorado) vs. Devin Bahr (Wisconsin), Colin Clingenpeel (Iowa) vs. Ethan Karsten (Missouri) 145: Quarterfinals: Layne Van Anrooy (Oregon) vs. Jared Verkleeren (Pennsylvania), Anthony Mantanona (California) vs. Jacob Covaciu (Indiana); Trevell Timmons (Illinois) vs. Matthew Park (Idaho), Jonathan Ross (Pennsylvania) vs. Anthony Cheloni (Illinois) 152: Quarterfinals: Jordan Blankenship (Missouri) vs. Jake Woodley (Pennsylvania), Nathaniel Morris (Illinois) vs. Jimmy Saylor (Pennsylvania); Anthony Sherry (Iowa) vs. Avery DiNardi (New Jersey), Trey Meyer (Washington) vs. Jeremiah Moody (Wisconsin) 160: Quarterfinals: Jacob Gray (Indiana) vs. Jacob Warner (Illinois), Owen Webster (Minnesota) vs. Nigel Feliz (New Jersey); Davis Perry (Alabama) vs. Brandon Dallavia (New Jersey), Ben Darmstadt (Ohio) vs. A.J. Alford (South Carolina) 170: Quarterfinals: Jack Jessen (Illinois) vs. Andrew Buckey (Missouri), Beau Breske (Wisconsin) vs. Braden Best (Missouri); Evan Ronsen (Minnesota) vs. Kamal Bey (Illinois), Jared Siegrist (Pennsylvania) vs. James Handwerk (Ohio) 182: Quarterfinals: John Jakobsen (Pennsylvania) vs. Antonio Agee (Virginia), Keegan Moore (Minnesota) vs. Haydn Maley (Oregon); Tyler Self (Oregon) vs. Wyatt Koelling (Utah), Isaac Luellen (Kansas) vs. Christian Brunner (Illinois) 195: Quarterfinals: Bailey Kelly (Kansas) vs. Matt Stencel (Ohio), Matthew Correnti (New Jersey) vs. Troy Allen (Virginia); Kobe Woods (Indiana) vs. Zane Black (Pennsylvania), Wyatt Harden (Michigan) vs. Brian Barnes (Oregon) 220: Quarterfinals: Casey Jumps (Missouri) vs. Cole Nye (Pennsylvania), Brandon Musselman (Missouri) vs. Luke Ready (Michigan); Brett Winters (Alabama) vs. Gannon Gremmel (Iowa), Anthony Piscopo (Pennsylvania) vs. Christian Ayala (California) 285: Quarterfinals: Kevin Vough (Ohio) vs. Nick Grujanac (Illinois), Bryan Ditchman (Illinois) vs. Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon); Trenton Lieurance (Oklahoma) vs. Blayne Burnett (Oregon), Levi Seabolt (Georgia) vs. Hunter Mullins (Washington)

The pinnacle event of the Fargo week, and arguably of the scholastic aged wrestling calendar, commences on Thursday morning at 9 a.m. CT. That would be the Junior National Freestyle Championships. The tournament features many of the stars of the past high school season, and of seasons to come in both high school and college, with its conclusion coming in the medal matches on Saturday morning starting at 10 a.m. Two FILA Cadet freestyle world champions from this past weekend are among the headline wrestlers in the competition, as Mason Manville (New Jersey) and Mark Hall (Minnesota) are slated to compete at 152 and 170 pounds respectively. A pair of wrestlers have won both a Junior folkstyle title in early April and Greco-Roman title on Tuesday evening, and can win the Triple Crown with a title in freestyle, Randon Miranda (California) and Danny Vega (Arizona) at 100 and 106 pounds respectively. Six returning and two former Junior freestyle champions also highlight the competition. Seeking to repeat titles from last year are Kirk Johansen (Illinois) at 106 pounds, Hunter Marko (Wisconsin) and Elijah Oliver (Illinois) at 120, Seth Gross (Minnesota) at 138, Ryan Blees (North Dakota) at 160, and Roy Nash (Utah) at 220; while 2012 champions Tommy Thorn (Minnesota) and Bryce Brill (Illinois) seek to win another title, they're at 132 and 152 pounds respectively. The following is a weight-by-weight overview of the competition based on wrestlers registered in Track Wrestling as of Tuesday evening. 100: The previously mentioned Miranda anchors the field in this weight class and should be considered a primary contender. He also was fifth in Cadet freestyle last year at 94 pounds. Other challengers will include Junior Greco-Roman runner-up Zack Murillo (Connecticut), runner-up in Cadet freestyle last year at 88 pounds and third at FILA Cadets in the 92 pound weight class; Louie Hayes (Illinois), third in Cadet freestyle last year at 88 and third in FILA Cadets at 101; 2012 Cadet freestyle All-American Jet Tryon (Missouri); and state champion Cole Rohan (Oregon). 106: Also previously mentioned is the quest of Vega, who also was champion in Cadet freestyle last year at 100 pounds, for a Junior Triple Crown. Standing directly in his way will be Kirk Johansen (Illinois), last year's Junior freestyle champion at 100 pounds and this year a FILA Junior champion at 110. Additional returning Junior National freestyle All-Americans include Kade Evans (Utah), Arik Furseth (Wisconsin), Zac McCauley (Ohio), and Dalton Roberts (Michigan). Others meriting attention include state champions Brendan Coughlin (Maryland) and Howard Smith (Texas), two-time state placer Drew Hildebrandt (Indiana), FILA Junior freestyle All-American Bryce Brimhall (Utah), and state placer Kellan McKenna (New York). 113: Leading the way in this field is Jack Mueller (Texas), last year's Cadet National freestyle champion at 106 pounds, who is ranked No. 29 overall in the Class of 2016. Three other wrestlers also ended the season in the weight class rankings: Joey Cisneros (California), the Junior folkstyle champion in this weight and a Junior freestyle runner-up last year at 106; Andrew Nieman (Oklahoma), last year's runner-up to Mueller in Fargo; and Matthew Schmitt (Missouri), runner-up to Vega last year in Fargo freestyle. Also in this field are the pair of finalists in the Junior 100 pound competition back in 2012, Tanner Rohweder (Iowa) and Carlos Fuentez (Illinois), who placed fifth and eighth last year at 106 respectively. Five other wrestlers in this weight class have earned previous Fargo freestyle All-American honors: Tanner Cox (Utah), Brock George (Utah), Ulises Jacobo (Illinois), Jack Wagner (Iowa), and Josh Venia (Ohio). Additional wrestlers to watch in this weight class include 2013 state champion Benny Gomez (Michigan), Junior Greco-Roman runner-up Corbin Nirschl (Kansas), two-time state runner-up Garrett Pepple (Indiana), FILA Cadet freestyle third place finisher Joey Prata (Virginia), Junior Greco-Roman champion Dorian Sapien (Idaho), and Doyle Trout (Nebraska) who won Junior folkstyle up at 120. 120: While 113 provided a pre-cursor of the juicy nature of Junior National freestyle weight classes, the proverbial fun begins here. As a starting point, the field includes four wrestlers ranked within their grade level and another pair that featured in the end of season weight class rankings. Two of those six wrestlers won Junior freestyle titles last year: Hunter Marko (Wisconsin) at 106 pounds, and the nation's No. 38 Class of 2015 Elijah Oliver (Illinois) at 113. Two-time Cadet freestyle and FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Austin Assad (Ohio) is No. 51 in the Class of 2015, two-time state champion Christian Moody (Oklahoma) sits at No. 73 in the Class of 2015, four-time state champion Sean Russell (Georgia) ended up No. 54 in the Class of 2014, while returning Junior freestyle third place finisher Kyle Akins (Illinois) ended the 2013-14 season in the weight class rankings at 120 pounds. The weight class features another trio that earned All-American honors in Junior freestyle last year -- Camden Bertucci (Michigan), Michael Cullen (Illinois), and Nick Lukanich (Illinois) -- with each also being a Cadet All-American in 2012. Four additional wrestlers were also Cadet freestyle All-Americans in 2012: Ryan Friedman (Maryland), Logan Grass (West Virginia), Nolan Hellickson (Iowa), and Trayton Libolt (Oregon). Another pair were FILA Cadet freestyle All-Americans this year at 119 pounds, Brock Rathbun (Iowa) and Dalton Duffield (Oklahoma). We've went two paragraphs without mentioning Junior Greco-Roman finalists Skyler Petry (Minnesota) and Anthony Cefolo (New Jersey). Others in the conversation include Cadet freestyle All-Americans from last year in Josh Kramer (Arizona) and Jake Newhouse (Ohio), state champion Jacob Schwarm (Iowa), and 2012 Junior freestyle All-American Noah Ajram (Iowa). 126: Four top 100 Class of 2015 and a pair of top 50 Class of 2016 prospects anchor the field at this weight class. The field is led by returning Junior freestyle runner-up Kaid Brock (Oklahoma), who is ranked No. 31 in the Class of 2015, and also was a Cadet freestyle runner-up in 2012 and a FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up in 2013. Other ranked Class of 2015 wrestlers are No. 53 Chaz Tucker (New Jersey), who was fifth in Junior freestyle last year at this weight class; No. 61 Rico Montoya (New Mexico), a FILA Cadet freestyle All-American this year and a Cadet freestyle All-American last year; and No. 62 Lincoln Olson (Michigan), a Junior freestyle All-American back in 2012. Junior Greco-Roman champion Taylor LaMont (Utah) is ranked No. 18 in the Class of 2016, and was a Cadet freestyle champion last year at 120; while Junior folkstyle champion Mitch McKee (Minnesota) is ranked No. 44 in that class, and was a Cadet freestyle runner-up last year. Others to watch include Junior Greco-Roman runner-up Keegan Calkins (Illinois), two-time Cadet freestyle All-American Evan Cheek (Ohio), three-time state champion Sean DeShazer (Kansas), two-time state champion Garrett Hancock (Ohio), two-time state placer Peter Lipari (New Jersey), and returning Cadet freestyle All-American Matt Noble (New Jersey). 132: With three top 100 Class of 2014 and six top 100 Class of 2015 wrestlers preliminarily registered, my amateur math skills tell me at least one of them won't earn All-American honors. Such is life in a Fargo field some times. The joint favorites just might be two-time Cadet freestyle third place finisher Ke-Shawn Hayes (Missouri), who is ranked No. 3 in the Class of 2015; and 2012 Junior freestyle champion Tommy Thorn (Minnesota), who finished No. 21 in the Class of 2014. The other two ranked Class of 2014 prospects are bound for Oklahoma State, No. 60 Gary Wayne Harding (Oklahoma) and No. 63 Mike Magaldo (New Jersey). Harding was third in Junior freestyle at this weight last year, while Magaldo was a four-time state placer and 2012 state champion. Another future Cowboy is among the five other ranked Class of 2015 wrestlers, No. 44 Boo Lewallen (Oklahoma), a two-time state champion. Also in the ranked group are No. 35 Keegan Moore (Oklahoma), a 2013 state champion; No. 56 Cameron Kelly (Ohio), a 2012 state champion; No. 59 Brandon James (Indiana), a three-time Fargo freestyle All-American, including seventh last year in the Junior level; and No. 93 Jordan Shearer (North Dakota), a Junior Greco-Roman champion last year that also finished sixth in freestyle. Also in this field is returning Junior freestyle All-American Stephen Polakowski (Illinois), who ended the 2013-14 season ranked at 120 pounds; Junior Greco-Roman champion Will Koll (New York); Junior Greco-Roman runner-up Will Kui (New Jersey); four-time state champion Michael Cook (Idaho); Cadet freestyle All-American Justin Demicco (Ohio); and state champion Michael Kostandaras (Ohio). 138: More juice is present in this weight class with seven grade-level ranked wrestlers, four graduated seniors and three rising seniors. Seth Gross (Minnesota), last year's Junior freestyle champion at 132 pounds is after a fourth consecutive title in Fargo. However, he has lost matches during those title runs, something that will not work in this year's line bracketing format. The University of Iowa bound Gross finished as the No. 58 ranked Class of 2014 wrestler and is joined by No. 62 Logan Ryan (Iowa) and No. 97 Zehlin Storr (Michigan), who were both two-time state champions, as well as No. 88 Cole Weaver (Michigan), a two-time Cadet freestyle All-American. If Gross doesn't earn a fourth straight Fargo freestyle title, it is most likely that Fredy Stroker (Iowa) will. The nation's No. 10 ranked Class of 2015 prospect was fourth last year in Junior freestyle at 132 pounds and fifth the year before at the Cadet level. Other ranked rising seniors include No. 78 Will Roark (Missouri), a two-time state champion; and No. 96 Robert Lee (Wisconsin), fifth in Cadet freestyle last year and sixth in FILA Cadet freestyle this year. Others to watch in this weight class include Ben Brancale (Minnesota), a 2012 Cadet freestyle All-American; returning Cadet freestyle All-American Alex Butler (Illinois); Junior Greco-Roman champion Blake Clevenger (Missouri); four-time state champion Dusty Hones (Utah), who ended 2013-14 in the 132 pound weight class rankings; Cadet freestyle runner-up Chase Lemons (Idaho); Junior folkstyle champion Tristan Moran (Oklahoma); Johnny O'Hearon (Utah) and Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma), who both were Cadet freestyle All-Americans last summer and FILA Cadet freestyle All-Americans this spring; and three-time state champion Maolu Woiwor (Minnesota). 145: One could almost create two sets of All-Americans out of the grade-level ranked wrestlers in this field, as there are 15 in all. The highest rated of those are last year's Cadet freestyle champion Isaiah White (Illinois), who is No. 8 in the Class of 2016; and four-time Fargo freestyle All-American Zac Hall (Michigan), ranked No. 15 in the Class of 2014 and a runner-up at Junior 120 in 2012. Joining Hall as nationally ranked graduated seniors are No. 35 Grant Leeth (Missouri), No. 42 Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (New York), and No. 74 Michael Longo (California). Leeth was champion in Junior folkstyle this spring and placed fifth in Junior freestyle last summer, Rodriguez-Spencer was the Junior Greco-Roman champion on Tuesday, while Longo is a two-time state placer. The six nationally ranked rising seniors are led by No. 30 Ronnie Gentile (New Jersey) and No. 32 Max Thomsen (Iowa). Gentile is a two-time Fargo freestyle All-American at 138 pounds, third as a Cadet in 2012 and fourth as a Junior last year, and was state champion this past year in that weight class; while Thomsen is a three-time state champion. The other ranked wrestlers include No. 74 Patricio Lugo (Florida), who placed fifth in Cadet freestyle last year; No. 76 Bryce Parson (Idaho), a three-time state finalist and state champ in 2013; No. 81 Wyatt Wyckoff (California), a two-time state runner-up; and No. 100 Isaac Dulgarian (Kansas), a two-time state champion and 2011 Cadet freestyle All-American. The four others joining White as ranked Class of 2016 wrestlers are No. 25 Hayden Hidlay (Pennsylvania), last year's Cadet freestyle runner-up at 126 pounds; No. 28 Kevin Budock (Maryland), a two-time National Prep runner-up; No. 42 Julian Flores (California), a two-time state placer; and No. 43 Austin Kraisser (Maryland), last year's Cadet freestyle runner-up in this weight and a FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up in May at 138. There is a staggering amount of tonnage in this weight as a slew of other wrestlers have yet to be mentioned, including returning Cadet freestyle All-American Phyllip Deloach (Illinois), two-time state champion Chris Garcia (Illinois), Junior Greco-Roman runner-up from down at 138 Rudy Guillen (Georgia), returning Junior freestyle All-American Jonce Blaylock (Oklahoma), 2012 FILA Cadet freestyle champion Jordan Kutler (New Jersey), and 2013 FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Mark Voss (Minnesota). 152: Two wrestlers in this weight class stand out above the rest. Bryce Brill (Illinois) finished as the No. 3 ranked wrestler in the Class of 2014, and was a Junior freestyle champion in 2013; while Mason Manville (New Jersey) sits at No. 2 in the Class of 2016, and just won a FILA Cadet World freestyle title in this weight class to add to an already glittering resume. However, there are also six top 100 ranked rising seniors in this weight class field: No. 8 Joe Smith (Oklahoma), who was third last year at 138 pounds in Junior freestyle and the Cadet runner-up at 120 the year before; No. 27 David McFadden (New Jersey), who was third in Cadet freestyle last year; No. 54 Myles Amine (Michigan) and No. 60 Bryce Steiert (Iowa), who were both state champions this past year; No. 67 Dayton Racer (Missouri); and No. 97 Cole Walter (Pennsylvania), a three-time state placer. Five other wrestlers in this field are past Cadet freestyle All-Americans; Thomas Dutton (New York) and Tyler Mann (Arkansas) earning that honor in 2012, while Ryan Klemp (Idaho), Jesse Porter (New York), and Jakob Restrepo (New York) earned their podium spots last year. Additional wrestlers to watch are NHSCA Junior National champion Sean Glasgow (New Jersey), FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Joey Gunter (Illinois), Junior Greco-Roman champion Brooks Robinson (Utah), and Junior Greco-Roman runner-up Nick Tarpley (Colorado). 160: Logan Massa defeated Ryan Blees at the FILA Junior Nationals (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)The full batch of All-Americans in this weight class could feasibly be grade-level ranked wrestlers, as there are eight such wrestlers in this field, including six that are rising seniors. Under normal circumstances, returning champion Ryan Blees (North Dakota) would be the field's anchor. The nation's No. 18 ranked Class of 2014 wrestler had an en fuego tournament last year dominating an absurd gauntlet of opposition. However, this field also features Logan Massa (Michigan), the nation's No. 2 ranked Class of 2015 prospect. Massa dominated Blees in the FILA Junior freestyle final at 154 pounds in April. About the only thing missing on a chalk full c.v. is a Fargo title. Joining Massa as ranked rising seniors are No. 7 Fox Baldwin (Florida), a 2012 Cadet freestyle champion who placed fifth at 163 in the FILA Junior competition; state champion Andrew Fogarty (Minnesota), ranked No. 36; No. 47 Colston DiBlasi (Missouri), a two-time state champion; along with NHSCA Junior National champions in No. 85 Ben Schram (Ohio) and No. 87 Jonathan Viruet (Massachusetts). The other class ranked wrestler is Trace Carello (Illinois), who is No. 50 in the Class of 2016, and was a Cadet freestyle runner-up last summer and runner-up to Manville in FILA Cadet freestyle this spring. Others meriting attention include Junior Greco-Roman champion Burke Paddock (New York); returning Cadet freestyle All-Americans Corbin Allen (Virginia), Spencer Heywood (Utah), and Ricky Padilla (California); 2012 Cadet freestyle All-Americans John Leal (California) and Jacobe Smith (Oklahoma); two-time state champion Izaec Quintanilla (Washington); 2013 FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Weston Dobler (North Dakota); two-time state placer Paden Moore (Minnesota); and Logan Breitenbach (Maryland), who ended the 2013-14 season nationally ranked at 160 pounds. 170: The other FILA Cadet freestyle World Champion in this field is Mark Hall (Minnesota), who is ranked No. 1 nationally in the Class of 2016, and won Cadet National freestyle titles the last two summers in Fargo. Even with a stern travel schedule and transition, Hall will enter as the favorite. Based on registrations, the primary challenger will be Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma), the No. 20 ranked Class of 2014 wrestler who won the Junior folkstyle title in April and was runner-up in Greco-Roman on Tuesday. The only other grade-level ranked wrestler in this field is Seth McLeod (Idaho), who is No. 79 in the Class of 2015. Three others in this field were Cadet freestyle All-Americans last year: Jordan Bushey (New York), Dustin Gray (Missouri), and Dylan Lydy (Indiana). Additional wrestlers meriting attention are Preseason Nationals champion Brett Bye (South Dakota), 2013 state champion Spencer Derifield (Iowa), 2012 Cadet freestyle All-American Josef Johnson (New Jersey), FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Andrew McNally (Ohio), returning Junior freestyle All-American Christian Stackhouse (New Jersey), and two-time state placer David-Brian Whisler (Ohio). 182: The anchor in this field is Myles Martin (New Jersey), the nation's No. 4 ranked Class of 2015 prospect. He was a runner-up to Hall in Cadet freestyle in 2012, is a two-time FILA Cadet freestyle All-American (4th at 167 in 2013, 5th at 152 in 2012), and was eight at FILA Juniors in the 185 pound weight class this April. Joining Martin are three other top 100 Class of 2015 prospects: No. 41 Justan Rivera (Georgia), the Junior Greco-Roman champion and a two-time Cadet freestyle All-American, including last year's title in this weight class; No. 43 Dylan Wisman (Virginia), who placed fourth in this weight class at the Junior level last year; and No. 92 Cash Wilcke (Iowa), who was fourth in the Cadet freestyle weight class that Rivera won. An additional grade-level ranked wrestler populates this weight class in FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Nathan Traxler (Illinois), who is positioned No. 23 in the Class of 2016. Two others in this field ended 2013-14 in the weight class rankings, state champion Mitch Bowman (Iowa) and returning Junior freestyle All-American Lance Dixon (Oklahoma). Others to note in this weight class are 2012 Cadet freestyle All-American Chance Cooper (Iowa), Junior Greco-Roman runner-up A.J. Kowal (Ohio), 2013 state champion Adis Radoncic (New York), state runner-up Eric Schultz (Illinois), and two-time state placer Tyler Wildmo (Michigan). 195: Five grade-level ranked wrestlers provide the anchor for this weight class as well. The group is led by Lance Benick (Minnesota), who is No. 5 in the Class of 2015, a two-time Cadet National freestyle champion, and FILA Cadet freestyle champion up at 220 last year. Three-time Fargo champion in Greco-Roman, including in the Junior level on Tuesday, Samuel Colbray (Oregon) is ranked No. 12 in the Class of 2016. He was a FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up this year at 187, upsetting Benick along the way, and is a two-time Cadet freestyle All-American (runner-up last year). Joining Benick in the Class of 2015 rankings are No. 16 Bobby Steveson (Minnesota), a 2012 Cadet freestyle All-American; and Andrew Marsden (Illinois), a returning Cadet freestyle All-American, and also a two-time FILA Cadet freestyle All-American. Rounding out the grade-level ranked wrestlers is Joel Dixon (Oklahoma), who finished at No. 76 in the Class of 2014, was a Junior freestyle runner-up last year and the Greco-Roman runner-up on Tuesday to Colbray. Others to watch in this weight include a pair of returning Cadet freestyle All-Americans, Emilio Fowler (Kansas) and Randy Scott (Indiana), returning Junior freestyle All-American Edgar Ruano (Illinois); and NHSCA Junior National champion Jeff Velez (New Jersey). 220: The favorite in this field for a third consecutive Fargo double, and second straight at the Junior level, is Roy Nash (Utah). He is ranked No. 23 in the Class of 2014, and was also a FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up to Benick last year. Other grade ranked wrestlers are Marcus Harrington (Iowa), a returning Junior freestyle All-American who finished his career No. 93 in the Class of 2014; three-time state champion Austin Myers (Kentucky), who is No. 23 in the Class of 2015; and returning Cadet freestyle All-American Ethan Andersen (Iowa) at No. 32 in the Class of 2016. Another pair of wrestlers ended 2013-14 in the weight class rankings, 2012 Junior freestyle All-American Andrew Dixon (Oklahoma) and Junior folkstyle champion Fletcher Miller (Indiana); Miller was also a Junior freestyle All-American last summer. Joining Miller as returning Junior freestyle All-Americans are Lance Evans (Iowa) and Parker Knapp (Ohio). Additional wrestlers to watch include state champion Christian Boyles (Missouri), Seth Brennock (Ohio), two-time state champion Clay Broze (Minnesota), Junior folkstyle runner-up Jacob Aven (Indiana), 2012 Cadet freestyle All-American Robert Enmon (Flordia), and returning Cadet freestyle All-American Youssef Hemida (New York). 285: The favorite in this weight class as presently constituted is Junior folkstyle champion Adarios Jones (Illinois), who was also runner-up in Greco-Roman on Tuesday. Others to watch include 2013 Cadet Triple Crown winner Jacob Marnin (Iowa), who is ranked No. 46 in the Class of 2015; returning Junior freestyle All-Americans Jesse Webb (Vermont) and Michael Hobbs (Illinois); returning Cadet freestyle All-Americans Collin Braun (Missouri) and Tate Orndorff (Washington); 2012 Cadet freestyle All-Americans Blake Andrews (Texas), Zack Overbeck (Oklahoma), and Kaleb Staack (Iowa); along with state champions Matt Halverson (Wisconsin) and Ryan Prescott (Michigan).

100: 1st: Randon Miranda (California) tech. fall Zack Murillo (Connecticut), 14-4 3rd: Louie Hayes (Illinois) dec. Zack Szohr (Wisconsin), 10-1 5th: Tryon Jet (Missouri) dec. JohnPaul Stedwill (Illinois), 1-0 7th: Mason Nafieh (Oklahoma) pinned Marcus Thomas (Texas), 2:34 106: 1st: Danny Vega (Arizona) dec. Todd Small (Georgia), 7-2 3rd: Breandan Coughlin (Maryland) pinned Dake Punke (Illinois), 4:14 5th: Kirk Johansen (Illinois) pinned Trenton Jackson (Illinois), 5:58 7th: Liam Cronin (California) tech. fall Nick Walker (Florida), 11-0 113: 1st: Dorian Sapien (Idaho) dec. Corbin Nirschl (Kansas), 12-6 3rd: Ethan Koan (Missouri) tech. fall Joe Cisneros (California), 12-2 5th: Benny Gomez (Michigan) tech. fall Brenden Baker (Iowa), 12-1 7th: JT Ayers (Oregon) tech. fall Duncan Stoebner (South Dakota), 10-0 120: 1st: Skyler Petry (Minnesota) dec. Anthony Cefolo (New Jersey), 2-1 3rd: Ryan Friedman (Maryland) dec. Paul Fitterer (Minnesota), 2-0 5th: Ryan Deakin (Colorado) by injury default over Brandon Staley (Florida) 7th: Perez Perez (California) dec. Chris Poland (Michigan), 9-1 126: 1st: Taylor LaMont (Utah) dec. Kegan Calkins (Illinois), 7-2 3rd: Sean Deshazer (Kansas) dec. Cody Karstetter (Oklahoma), 2-1 5th: Mitchell McKee (Minnesota) tech. fall Jacob Spiess (Ohio), 12-1 7th: Austin Lister (Oregon) tech. fall Ted Rico (Arizona), 12-2 132: 1st: William Koll (New York) tech. fall William Kui (New Jersey), 11-0 3rd: Marty Margolis (Maryland) dec. Blaine Tschida (Minnesota), 5-4 5th: Armand Molina (California) dec. Timmy Martinez (Washington), 15-10 7th: Zech Bresser (Oregon) dec. Ryder Punke (Illinois), 3-0 138: 1st: Blake Clevenger (Missouri) dec. Rudy Guillen (Georgia), 8-1 3rd: Johnny O`hearon (Utah) dec. Roman Boylen (Georgia), 7-7 5th: London Thomas (Nevada) dec. Joshua Calhoun (Florida), 9-4 7th: Lenny Merkin (New York) tech. fall James Berg (Minnesota), 24-12 145: 1st: Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (New York) tech. fall Sir Romeo Howard (Illinois), 16-5 3rd: Larry Early (Illinois) pinned Wyatt Wyckoff (California), 5:18 5th: Hayden Hidlay (Pennsylvania) tech. fall Chase Lemons (Idaho), 10-0 7th: Kenan Carter (Illinois) tech. fall Derekston Williams (Georgia), 10-0 152: 1st: Brooks Robinson (Utah) pinned Nick Tarpley (Colorado), 2:09 3rd: Joey Gunther (Illinois) dec. Carlos Apodaca (Arizona), 8-0 5th: Jesse Porter (New York) tech. fall Andrew Webb (Georgia), 10-0 7th: Cole Walter (Pennsylvania) dec. Chase Straw (Iowa), 8-3 160: 1st: Burke Paddock (New York) tech. fall Jake Deutschlander (Minnesota), 10-0 3rd: Brett Bye (South Dakota) tech. fall Gavin Grater (Kansas), 12-2 5th: Weston Taylor (Arizona) dec. Jonathan Viruet (Massachusetts), 8-4 7th: Dalton Harmon (Utah) dec. Dakota Greene (Florida), 7-6 170: 1st: Jon Jay Chavez (Idaho) tech. fall Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma), 10-0 3rd: Peter Nagy (Florida) tech. fall Gable Frandsen (Wisconsin), 12-1 5th: Carter Nielsen (Minnesota) pinned Garrett Miller (Texas), 2:26 7th: Mason Reinhardt (Wisconsin) dec. Aaron Wu (California), 11-2 182: 1st: Justan Rivera (Georgia) dec. Andrew Kowal (Ohio), 4-2 3rd: Jacob Armstrong (Utah) by injury default over Seth McLeod (Idaho) 5th: Brandon Marshall (Florida) by injury default over Lance Dixon (Oklahoma) 7th: Eric Schultz (Illinois) dec. Jeremiah Imonode (Arizona), 5-0 195: 1st: Samuel Colbray (Oregon) dec. Joel Dixon (Oklahoma), 8-0 3rd: Terrell Fields (Pennsylvania) dec. Edgar Ruano III (Illinois), 6-1 5th: Ben Honis (New York) dec. Bobby Steveson (Minnesota), 3-0 7th: Isaac Florell (Minnesota) tech. fall David Chadd (Wisconsin), 14-3 220: 1st: Roy Nash (Utah) dec. Tyler Schmidt (Wisconsin), 13-8 3rd: Michael Rogers (Pennsylvania) pinned G`Angelo Hancock (Colorado), 2:56 5th: Christian Dulaney (Minnesota) won by 3 caution rule over Austin Myers (Kentucky) 7th: John Jayne (Americans in Europe) pinned Jacob Godinez (Illinois), 3:27 285: 1st: Sam Stoll (Minnesota) dec. Adarios Jones (Illinois), 2-0 3rd: Tate Orndorff (Washington) pinned Jacob Marnin (Iowa), 0:48 5th: Michael Hobbs (Illinois) dec. Jesse Webb (Massachusetts), 2-1 7th: Dante Jiovenetta (Florida) dec. Collin Braun (Missouri), 5-3

FARGO, N.D. -- Fifteen Junior National Greco-Roman champions were crowned on Tuesday, but it was Idaho's Jon Jay Chavez who shined brightest. Jon Jay Chavez of Idaho was named USA Wrestling Junior Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)The 18-year-old Chavez earned a 10-0 technical fall victory over Chandler Rogers of Oklahoma in the finals at 170 pounds in a battle of returning Junior National Greco-Roman champions. Chavez used a five-point throw and multiple turns to end the match in 80 seconds. Chavez has become one of America's young rising stars in Greco-Roman. Last year he won a bronze medal at the Cadet World Championships. He earned a spot on this year's Junior World Team, and will compete at the Junior World Championships in August. He was also named USA Wrestling Junior Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year. Utah's Roy Nash (220) joined Chavez as a repeat champion in the Junior National Greco-Roman competition. Nash topped Wisconsin's Tyler Schmidt 13-8 in the championship match. California's Randon Miranda (100) and Arizona's Danny Vega (106) are still alive for Junior Triple Crowns after winning folkstyle and Greco-Roman titles this year. Junior World bronze medalist Sam Stoll of Minnesota claimed his third Fargo title by defeating Adarios Jones of Illinois, 2-0, in the championship match at heavyweight. Illinois took the team title with 69 points, finishing 18 points ahead of runner-up Minnesota. Finals Results: 100: Randon Miranda (California) tech. fall Zack Murillo (Connecticut), 14-4 106: Danny Vega (Arizona) dec. Todd Small (Georgia), 7-2 113: Dorian Sapien (Idaho) dec. Corbin Nirschl (Kansas), 12-6 120: Skyler Petry (Minnesota) dec. Anthony Cefolo (New Jersey), 2-1 126: Taylor LaMont (Utah) dec. Kegan Calkins (Oklahoma), 7-2 132: Will Koll (New York) tech. fall Will Kui (New Jersey), 11-0 138: Blake Clevenger (Missouri) dec. Rudy Guillen (Georgia), 8-1 145: Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (New York) tech. fall Sir Romeo Howard (Illinois), 16-5 152: Brooks Robinson (Utah) pinned Nick Tarpley (Colorado), 2:09 160: Burke Paddock (New York) tech. fall Jake Deutschlander (Minnesota), 10-0 170: Jon Jay Chavez (Idaho) tech. fall Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma), 10-0 182: Justan Rivera (Georgia) dec. Andrew Kowal (Ohio), 4-2 195: Sammy Colbray (Oregon) dec. Joel Dixon (Oklahoma), 8-0 220: Roy Nash (Utah) dec. Tyler Schmidt (Wisconsin), 13-8 285: Sam Stoll (Minnesota) dec. Adarios Jones (Illinois), 2-0

88: 1st: Trey Keeley (Illinois) dec. Patrick McKee (Minnesota), 12-8 3rd: Jason Holmes (Arizona) tech. fall Cody Phippen (Kansas), 13-0 5th: Brandon Kaylor (Washington) dec. Joey Melendez (Illinois), 14-9 7th: Billy Simpson (Oklahoma) dec. Jaret Lane (Pennsylvania), 13-9 94: 1st: Nicolas Aguilar (California) dec. Brandon Meikel (Utah), 7-2 3rd: Peter Ogunsanya (Illinois) dec. Kade Lincoln (Idaho), 9-8 5th: Sam Webster (Minnesota) dec. Elijah Varona (Florida), 4-3 7th: Izzak Olejnik (California) dec. Jevon Pargo (Illinois), 8-7 100: 1st: Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona) pinned Dominic Lajoie (Michigan), 4:56 3rd: Dylan Koontz (Wisconsin) dec. Brandon Lucas (Ohio), 12-8 5th: Jakob Campbell (Pennsylvania) dec. Marcus Povlick (Illinois), 4-1 7th: Parker Huss (Minnesota) dec. TJ Baun (Washington), 13-12 106: 1st: Ian Timmins (Nevada) pinned Drew West (Iowa), 3:35 3rd: Trae Vasquez (Montana) pinned Drew Mattin (Ohio), 0:58 5th: Jaxon Cole (Utah) tech. fall Rylee Molitor (Minnesota), 13-2 7th: Jordan Martinez (Colorado) pinned Nathan Lendt (Iowa), 1:07 113: 1st: Austin Gomez (Illinois) tech. fall Bryce West (Iowa), 18-8 3rd: Ben Freeman (Michigan) dec. Brent Jones (Minnesota), 7-1 5th: Dalton Young (Washington) dec. Paul Bianchi (Wisconsin), 6-0 7th: Jerry Mealey (Oregon) pinned Alston Nutter (Wisconsin), 5:43 120: 1st: Coltan Williams (Texas) dec. Wilson Smith (North Carolina), 8-5 3rd: Nolan Baker (Illinois) pinned Ryan Leisure (Iowa), 0:57 5th: Josh McClure (Missouri) pinned Alejandro Paulino (Connecticut), 5:10 7th: Requir Vandermerwe (New Jersey) tech. fall Jake Bergeland (Minnesota), 10-0 126: 1st: Jaden Enriquez (California) dec. Quentin Hovis (Arizona), 6-2 3rd: Austin O`Connor (Illinois) tech. fall Corey Shie (Ohio), 12-0 5th: Morgan Fuenffinger (Minnesota) dec. Alex Lloyd (Minnesota), 10-2 7th: Jose Acosta (Wisconsin) tech. fall Wolfgang Clapper (Missouri), 10-0 132: 1st: Jake Allar (Minnesota) pinned Jaron Chavez (Idaho), 5:04 3rd: Eric Hong (Pennsylvania) tech. fall John Logan Pine (Washington), 12-0 5th: Kristofer Lindemann (New Jersey) dec. Zackary Diamond (Hawaii), 11-11 7th: Parker Filius (Montana) tech. fall Aidan Monteverdi (New Jersey), 10-0 138: 1st: Ethan Karsten (Missouri) dec. Devin Bahr (Wisconsin), 8-3 3rd: Dominick Demas (Ohio) tech. fall Josiah Rider (Colorado), 11-1 5th: Hunter Bolen (Virginia) pinned Britton Holmes (Colorado), 5:22 7th: Hayden Bates (Oregon) pinned Billy Higgins (Iowa), 2:38 145: 1st: Matthew Park (Idaho) pinned Logan Gruszka (Illinois), 0:57 3rd: Braeden Redlin (Texas) pinned Bryan Wais (Washington), 1:09 5th: Liam Corbett (Hawaii) tech. fall Andrew Johnson (Kansas), 10-0 7th: Spencer Carey (New Jersey) pinned Tristan Johnson (Iowa), 1:23 152: 1st: Riley Jaramillo (Oregon) tech. fall Anthony Sherry (Iowa), 11-0 3rd: Jeremiah Moody (Wisconsin) dec. Rolliann Sturkey (Illinois), 7-6 5th: Ricky Gonzalez (California) pinned Seth Vosters (Wisconsin), 5:22 7th: Josh Anderson (Nebraska) dec. Maximillian Hill (Illinois), 11-9 160: 1st: Owen Webster (Minnesota) tech. fall James Handwerk (Ohio), 10-0 3rd: Andrew Berreyesa (Nevada) tech. fall Myles Terry (Oregon), 11-0 5th: Jacob Warner (Illinois) by forfeit over Randy Meneweather (Illinois) 7th: Mason McDaniel (Washington) tech. fall Sean (aj) Alford (South Carolina), 11-0 170: 1st: Beau Breske (Wisconsin) tech. fall Kamal Bey (Illinois), 10-0 3rd: Jack Jessen (Illinois) tech. fall Dylan Servis (Kansas), 10-0 5th: Haydn Maley (Oregon) tech. fall Luke Drugac (New Jersey), 13-0 7th: Jared Florell (Minnesota) dec. Chad Porter (Arizona), 5-4 182: 1st: Keegan Moore (Minnesota) dec. Wyatt Koelling (Utah), 6-5 3rd: Dean Drugac (New Jersey) tech. fall Isaac Luellen (Kansas), 11-0 5th: Mason Stokke (Wisconsin) dec. Dalton Hahn (Wisconsin), 6-2 7th: Zackary Crosby (Illinois) dec. Hakim Coles (Pennsylvania), 6-2 195: 1st: Matt Stencel (Ohio) pinned Wyatt Harden (Michigan), 0:58 3rd: George Bessette (Illinois) pinned Troy Allen (Virginia), 0:38 5th: Dylan Prince (Kansas) pinned Jacob Cavins (Indiana), 2:24) 7th: Kobe Woods (Indiana) tech. fall Ian Ruble (Wisconsin), 10-0 220: 1st: Brandon Metz (North Dakota) pinned Allen Stallings (Illinois), 5:26 3rd: Cristian Ayala (California) by injury default over Sammy Evans (Tennessee) 5th: Luke Ready (Michigan) pinned Ethan Hofacker (Wisconsin), 1:01 7th: Anthony Piscopo (Pennsylvania) dec. Blake Zalapi (Illinois), 7-2 285: 1st: Kevin Vough (Ohio) dec. Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon), 8-1 3rd: Bryan Ditchman (Illinois) tech. fall Karim Fuentes (Illinois), 11-0 5th: Hunter Mullins (Washington) dec. Mike McCauley (California), 7-0 7th: Andrew Piehl (Minnesota) dec. Trenton Lieurance (Oklahoma), 5-3

Three wrestlers remain eligible for a Cadet Triple Crown in 2014 through two legs of the series, the folkstyle that was held at Northern Iowa in early April, and the Greco-Roman that was conducted the last two days in Fargo. Jaden Enriquez (California) will likely have the sternest field of three, as he is pre-registered at 126 pounds, while Keegan Moore (Minnesota) will be the strongest favorite at 182, with the most talented of the three being Beau Breske (Wisconsin) at 170. The following represents a weight-by-weight overview of the field expected for the Cadet freestyle competition that commences on Wednesday at 9 a.m. CT, and has its medal match session on Friday at 2 p.m. Field compositions are based on registration information in Track Wrestling as of late Monday evening. 88: Trey Keeley (Illinois) was the champion in Greco-Roman at this weight class, while Patrick McKee (Minnesota) finished as runner-up. Each is a primary contender in freestyle, along with the Cadet folkstyle champion up a weight class -- Cody Phippen (Kansas). Others to watch include Brandon Kaylor (Washington) and Jaret Lane (Pennsylvania). 94: Cadet Greco-Roman finalists Nicholas Aguilar (California) and Brandon Meikel (Utah), Aguilar the champion, have to be considered primary contenders for the title in freestyle. Others to watch include a pair of FILA Cadet double All-Americans in Peter Ogunsanya (Illinois) and Holden Heller (Illinois); Jason Holmes (Arizona), the Cadet folkstyle champion down one weight class at 88 pounds; FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Rhett Golowneski (Oklahoma); and Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio). 100: The pre-tournament favorite in this weight class would have to be Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona), who was champion in the Greco-Roman at this weight class and a runner-up at the FILA Cadet Nationals in freestyle at 101 pounds. Primary challengers would include state champion and Greco-Roman runner-up Dominic Lajoie (Michigan); state placers Jonathan Gomez (New York), Alec White (Indiana), and Max Murin (Pennsylvania); returning Cadet double All-Americans at 88 pounds in Brayden Schwalbe (Montana) and Brady Koontz (Wisconsin); Joseph Thomas (Maryland), who finished eight last year in Cadet freestyle at 88 pounds; and Matthew Parker (Pennsylvania). 106: Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma) is one of two returning Cadet freestyle champions in the 17 weight class field, and the No. 39 overall prospect in the Class of 2017 is also a two-time FILA Cadet freestyle All-American (runner-up at 92 pounds last year, fourth at 110 this year). The champions at 106 pounds in the two USA Wrestling Cadet National competitions so far were both state champions during the most recent high school season -- Paul Konrath (Indiana) in folkstyle and Ian Timmins (Nevada) in Greco-Roman. Three other wrestlers in this field were All-Americans at the FILA Cadet Nationals in freestyle over the Memorial Day weekend: Drew Mattin (Ohio), Zach Sherman (New Jersey), and Drew Mattin (Ohio). Cameron Hunsaker (Utah), third in Junior freestyle at 100 pounds, is the only wrestler other than Gfeller in this field to have been a Fargo All-American in freestyle previously. Additional wrestlers to watch are Anthony Madrigal (Illinois), ranked No. 18 in the Class of 2018; Rylee Molitor (Minnesota), a state runner-up and Cadet folkstyle runner-up; along with state champion Sidney Oliver (Missouri). 113: Yianni Diakomihalis (New York), the nation's No. 5 ranked Class of 2017 wrestler, is the pre-tournament favorite among what is a rather deep field. The rising sophomore sensation sizzled during his freshman campaign -- winning the Super 32 Challenge before the season, the Flo Nationals after the season, and earning an undefeated state title at 106 pounds in between. Four other wrestlers ranked in their respective grade level populate the field: Ty Agaisse (New Jersey), who is No. 31 in the Class of 2016; Ben Freeman (Michigan) and Austin Gomez (Illinois), ranked No. 19 and 26 respectively in the Class of 2017; and Andrew Merola (New Jersey), sitting at No. 23 in the Class of 2018. Freeman and Gomez have robust USA Wrestling resumes, as each has won a Cadet National title this year in the weight class, Freeman in folkstyle and Gomez in Greco-Roman. The other main challenger in this weight class would be Ian Parker (Michigan), who was fifth last year in Cadet freestyle, and is also a two-time FILA Cadet freestyle All-American (third at 101 last year, sixth at 119 this year). Another FILA Cadet freestyle All-American in this field is Bryce West (Iowa), who was fifth at 110 pounds, and finished as runner-up in Greco-Roman to Gomez yesterday. Additional returning Cadet freestyle All-Americans are Trey Chalifoux (Tennessee), Chris Deloza (California), Brent Jones (Minnesota), Will Kaldes (Pennsylvania), and Chase Wickman (Washington). Two other wrestlers meriting attention are state champion Paul Bianchi (Wisconsin) and state placer Navonte Demison (California). 120: Two of the nation's best rising sophomores anchor the field in this weight class, No. 10 overall Austin O'Connor and No. 12 Vitali Arujau (New York). Each was a state champion during the scholastic season, O'Connor was third in Greco-Roman up a weight class, while Arujau placed fourth in FILA Cadet freestyle at the 119 pound weight class. The Greco-Roman champion in this weight class was Coltan Williams (Texas), who placed eight in freestyle last year at 100 pounds, while Wilson Smith (North Carolina) was the Greco-Roman runner-up. Among the additional challengers to O'Connor and Arujau are state placer Parker Kropman (New York); Joe Lee (Indiana), ranked No. 20 overall in the Class of 2018; state runner-up Ryan Leisure (Iowa); state champions Ozzy Lugo (Florida) and Josh McClure (Missouri); returning Cadet freestyle All-American Travis Piotrowski (Illinois); Preseason Nationals champion Kanen Storr (Michigan); and National Prep third place finisher Requir van der Merwe (New Jersey). 126: Jaden Enriquez of California is after a Cadet Triple Crown after winning Cadet National folkstyle and Greco-Roman titles (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Jaden Enriquez (California), the nation's No. 13 ranked Class of 2017 prospect, is after a Triple Crown at the Cadet level as he won the folkstyle title up a weight class and the Greco-Roman title in this weight class. However, he is not the favorite in this freestyle competition, as that title would go to Nick Lee (Indiana). Lee is the No. 4 ranked rising sophomore, was third in Cadet freestyle last year at 126 pounds (as opposed to Enriquez taking fifth), and is now a two-time FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up at 127 pounds. Others to watch in this weight class include state champion Dylan Duncan (Illinois); Quentin Hovis (Arizona), who was runner-up to Enriquez in Greco-Roman and finished as a double All-American last year at 106 pounds; Alex Lloyd (Minnesota), ranked No. 17 in the Class of 2018; two-time state champion Chad Red (Indiana), ranked No. 22 in the Class of 2016; state runner-up Dresden Simon (Michigan); and National Prep placer Josh Wyland (Virginia). 132: Jake Allar (Minnesota) upset Jaron Chavez, who is ranked No. 40 in the Class of 2017, to win the Greco-Roman title in this weight class. However, neither is the pre-tournament favorite, as that mantra is held by Eric Hong (Pennsylvania). Hong earned All-American honors in Greco-Roman for the second time on Monday, placed fourth in last year's freestyle competition at 113 pounds, and is the No. 9 overall prospect in the Class of 2017. His primary challenger would have to be Corey Shie (Ohio) -- the nation's No. 23 wrestler in that grade -- who won the Cadet folkstyle title at 126 pounds, was a Cadet freestyle All-American last year, and a FILA Cadet All-American in both styles over the Memorial Day weekend. Additional wrestlers to watch in this weight class are returning Cadet freestyle 8th place finisher Zack Diamond (Hawaii), Cadet folkstyle runner-up Parker Filius (Montana), Preseason Nationals champion A.J. Jaffe (Illinois), 2013 Cadet National double All-American Jaron Jensen (Utah), state placers Kris Lindemann (New Jersey) and Shayne Oster (Illinois), along with returning Cadet freestyle All-American Andrew Mehrholz (Illinois). 138: State champion Ethan Karsten (Missouri) was a rather unexpected champion in Greco-Roman, but he certainly earned it with a pair of victories over top 30 Class of 2017 prospects that have World Team experience in the style. In terms of the freestyle competition, he is not a natural favorite, as those would be a pair of top 30 Class of 2017 prospects in Hunter Bolen (Virginia) and Domenick Demas (Ohio); Bolen is No. 16 in that class, while No. 25 Demas placed fourth in FILA Cadet freestyle at 138 pounds. Others to watch include a pair of nationally ranked incoming freshmen, No. 10 Josiah Rider (Colorado) and No. 14 Jaryn Curry (Oklahoma); Preseason Nationals champion Colin Clingenpeel (Iowa); Stephan Glasgow (New Jersey); and state champion Collin Kraus (Wisconsin). 145: Though it will be his first major national-level high school type tournament, the clear favorite in this field is Brady Berge (Minnesota), who is ranked No. 2 in the Class of 2017. Providing a very stern challenge will be Jared Verkleeren (Pennsylvania), the FILA Cadet freestyle champion at 138 pounds who is ranked No. 15 in that grade level. Three other nationally ranked Class of 2017 prospects join Berge and Verkleeren in the field: No. 38 Anthony Mantanona (California), a Cadet folkstyle champion; No. 41 Layne Van Anrooy (Oregon), runner-up in Cadet folkstyle; and No. 44 Max Wohlabaugh. Additional wrestlers to watch include Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Logan Gruszka (Illinois), Cadet Greco-Roman champion Matthew Park (Idaho), and returning Cadet freestyle runner-up Jonathan Ross (Pennsylvania). 152: Based on pre-registration this appears to be the weakest core weight of the competition. Greco-Roman finalists, champion Riley Jaramillo (Oregon) and runner-up Anthony Sherry (Iowa), have put themselves in the conversation. Additional notables include state champions Johnny Blankenship (Missouri) and Jesse Shearer (North Dakota), state runner-up Jacob Covaciu (Indiana), Austin Hiles (Ohio), Bryan McLaughlin (New Jersey), Jimmy Saylor (Pennsylvania), as well as the nation's No. 34 freshman Luke Troy (California). 160: Cadet folkstyle champion in this weight class Jacob Warner (Illinois) is ranked No. 24 in the Class of 2017, and was fifth at 167 pounds in the FILA Cadet freestyle competition held over the Memorial Day holiday weekend. However, in Greco-Roman, he was upended in the semifinal by eventual champion Owen Webster (Minnesota), who was an in-season state champion during his sophomore campaign. One of those two wrestlers would seem a good lead candidate for the title here in freestyle. Others to watch include returning Cadet freestyle All-American Andrew Berreyesa (Nevada); state placers Andrew Buckley (Missouri) and Joe Grello (New Jersey); Cadet folkstyle runner-up Tucker Leavitt (Idaho); two-time state placer Trey Meyer (Washington); and A.J. Pedro (Massachusetts), who is ranked No. 37 in the Class of 2017. 170: The stellar Beau Breske (Wisconsin) enters this event as a clear favorite to repeat in freestyle and earn a Cadet Triple Crown. The nation's No. 6 ranked Class of 2016 prospect was also runner-up in both styles at 167 pounds during the FILA Cadet Nationals earlier this off-season. Two wrestlers in this field could provide a stern challenge: Brandon Dallavia (New Jersey) and Kamal Bey (Illinois). Dallavia, the nation's No. 16 rising junior, was fifth in Cadet freestyle last year; while Bey, No. 37 overall in this grade, was runner-up to Breske in Greco-Roman and runner-up last year down a weight class from Breske in freestyle. Other registered notables in this field include state runner-up Ben Darmstadt (Ohio); Cadet folkstyle runners-up Gary Jantzer (Oregon) and Casey Randles (Idaho); James Handwerk (Ohio), the Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up down at 160; and Jack Jessen (Illinois), who is ranked No. 6 in the Class of 2018. 182: As mentioned in the lede, Keegan Moore (Minnesota) -- ranked No. 10 in the Class of 2016 -- will enter this event as the strong favorite to earn a Cadet Triple Crown come Friday afternoon. Challengers to the title include state runners-up Antonio Agee (Virginia) and Christian Brunner (Illinois); Zane Black (Pennsylvania), ranked No. 20 in the Class of 2017; along with Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Wyatt Koelling (Utah). 195: Despite what most reasonable people would consider a very poor FILA Cadet freestyle tournament, Matt Correnti (New Jersey) will enter this event well-positioned to have a strong bounce back, as he's the favorite to win the tournament. Correnti, ranked No. 35 overall in the Class of 2016, has placed twice at his state tournament (8th and 3rd) and was third last year in this Cadet freestyle weight class. Most formidable among the challengers will be the two wrestlers to win Cadet National titles in this weight class so far -- state placer Kobe Woods (Indiana), the Folkstyle champion; and state runner-up Matt Stencel (Ohio), champion in Greco-Roman. Others to watch include state champion Jeffrey Allen (Virginia), returning Cadet freestyle All-American Brian Barnes (Oregon), Cadet folkstyle runner-up Jacob Cavins (Indiana), Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Wyatt Harden (Michigan), and the nation's No. 42 ranked Class of 2017 prospect in Cole Nye (Pennsylvania). 220: Ranked No. 47 in the Class of 2016, and champion in Cadet folkstyle, Gannon Gremmel (Iowa) enters this tournament as the clear favorite. He also finished fifth at FILA Cadet freestyle earlier this off-season. Others to watch include state champion Sammy Evans (Tennessee), state placer Ethan Hofacker (Wisconsin), Cadet Greco-Roman champion Brandon Metz (North Dakota), and Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Allen Stallings (Illinois). 285: Probably the clearest favorite in the whole competition comes at this weight class in the form of Kevin Vough (Ohio), who is the nation's No. 14 ranked Class of 2017 prospect. Vough was a dominant champion in Greco-Roman over the previous two days and runner-up at 275 pounds in the FILA Cadet freestyle competition. Others to watch here will be state placer Bryan Ditchman (Illinois) and Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Osawaru Odijhizuma (Oregon).

FARGO, N.D. -- The first day of the Junior National Greco-Roman competition in Fargo came to a conclusion with the quarterfinal pairings established in all weights with the exception of 285 pounds, where that round will take place on Tuesday. A total of 24 wrestlers remain alive in the competition in each weight class, as the top eight in each weight will end up earning an All-American honor. Four of the five defending champions in Junior Greco-Roman that entered the competition remain alive for a repeat title, with Dalton Roberts (Michigan) falling short in the round of 16 against Trenton Jackson (Illinois) at 106 pounds. Remaining in the competition are Brandon Staley (Florida) at 120 pounds, Jon-Jay Chavez (Idaho) and Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma) at 170, and Roy Nash (Utah) at 220. Illinois, which dominated the Cadet Greco-Roman competition, leads the pace with at least 14 quarterfinalists (two more possible at 285 pounds). Next in line is Minnesota with 9 in the quarterfinals so far, and two more possible at 285 pounds. Right behind Minnesota with eight in the quarterfinals is Utah and New York. 100: Zack Szohr (Wisconsin) vs. Louie Hayes (Illinois), Mason Nafieh (Oklahoma) vs. Randon Miranda (California); Jay Maxville (Kansas) vs. John Paul Stedwill (Illinois), Zack Murillo (Connecticut) vs. Mitchell Garvey (Wisconsin) 106: Jordan Aquino (California) vs. Kirk Johansen (Illinois), Danny Vega (Arizona) vs. Bryce Brimhall (Utah); Trenton Jackson (Illinois) vs. Arick Shankles (Alabama), Dack Punke (Illinois) vs. Todd Small (Georgia) 113: Duncan Stoebner (South Dakota) vs. Corbin Nirschl (Kansas), Justin Becci (Tennessee) vs. Brenden Baker (Iowa); Josh Venia (Ohio) vs. Dorian Sapien (Idaho), Ethan Koan (Missouri) vs. Joe Cisneros (California) 120: Paul Fitterer (Minnesota) vs. Skyler Petry (Minnesota), Ryan Deakin (Colorado) vs. Chris Poland (Michigan); Ryan Friedman (Maryland) vs. Anthony Cefolo (New Jersey), Brandon Staley (Florida) vs. Perez Perez (California) 126: Sean DeShazer (Kansas) vs. Cody Karstetter (Oklahoma), Taylor LaMont (Utah) vs. Tyler Svetska (Illinois); Cub Yeager (Oklahoma) vs. Kegan Calkins (Illinois), Matthew Morris (New York) vs. Jake Spiess (Ohio) 132: Armand Molina (California) vs. Ryder Punke (Illinois), Timmy Martinez (Washington) vs. William Koll (New York); Nick Casella (New York) vs. Marty Margolis (Maryland), Blaine Tschida (Minnesota) vs. William Kui (New Jersey) 138: Rudy Guillen (Georgia) vs. Josh Bird (Wisconsin), Johnny O’Hearon (Utah) vs. Griffin Parriott (Minnesota); Roman Boylen (Georgia) vs. Curtis Zachmeier (North Dakota), Austin Thompson (Michigan) vs. Blake Clevenger (Missouri) 145: Larry Early (Illinois) vs. Logan Kass (Minnesota), Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (New York) vs. Austin Kraisser (Maryland); Chase Lemons (Idaho) vs. Riley Beard (Illinois), Sir Romeo Howard (Illinois) vs. Hayden Hidlay (Pennsylvania) 152: Cole Walter (Pennsylvania) vs. Nick Tarpley (Colorado), Isaac Dulgarian (Kansas) vs. Joey Gunther (Illinois); Dayton Racer (Missouri) vs. Brooks Robinson (Utah), Jesse Porter (New York) vs. Carlos Apodaca (Arizona) 160: Spencer Heywood (Utah) vs. Jonathan Viruet (Massachusetts), Jake Deutschlander (Minnesota) vs. Regan Bye (South Dakota); Dalton Harmon (Utah) vs. Gavin Grater (Kansas), Brett Bye (South Dakota) vs. Burke Paddock (New York) 170: Peter Nagy (Florida) vs. Aaron Paddock (New York), Derek Dragon (Pennsylvania) vs. Jon-Jay Chavez (Idaho); Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma) vs. Keiffer Taylor (Arizona), Gable Frandsen (Wisconsin) vs. Carter Nielsen (Minnesota) 182: A.J. Kowal (Princeton) vs. Jeremiah Imonode (Arizona), Jacob Armstrong (Utah) vs. Seth McLeod (Idaho); Lance Dixon (Oklahoma) vs. Justan Rivera (Georgia), Eric Schultz (Illinois) vs. Brandon Marshall (Florida) 195: Keyaad Coley (North Carolina) vs. Samuel Colbray (Oregon), Bobby Steveson (Minnesota) vs. Jack Buell (New York); Terrell Fields (Pennsylvania) vs. Andrew Fenton (Ohio), David Chadd (Wisconsin) vs. Joel Dixon (Oklahoma) 220: Waylon DeCoteau (North Dakota) vs. Tyler Schmidt (Wisconsin), Christian Dulaney (Minnesota) vs. Jordan Davis (Missouri); Austin Myers (Kentucky) vs. Mansur Abdul-Malik (Maryland), Jacob Godinez (Illinois) vs. Roy Nash (Utah) 285: Sam Stoll (Minnesota) vs. Dante Jiovanetta (Florida), Konstant Golobokov (Pennsylvania) vs. Michael Hobbs (Illinois)/Colin Braun (Missouri) vs. Gary Miltenberger (California), Dan Stibral (South Dakota) vs. Jacob Marnin (Iowa); Jesse Webb (Vermont) vs. Zach Wood (Michigan), Adarios Jones (Illinois) vs. Dane Drimmer (Colorado)/Tate Orndorff (Washington) vs. Blake Andrews (Texas), James Huwe (Minnesota) vs. Raynel Brown (Kentucky) Gomez, Breske repeat as Cadet Greco-Roman champs FARGO, N.D. -- Austin Gomez of Illinois and Beau Breske of Wisconsin not only repeated as Cadet National Greco-Roman champions, but both dominated in the finals on Monday afternoon at the FARGODOME. Gomez earned a technical fall over Iowa's Bryce West, 18-8, in the championship match at 106 pounds. Breske blanked returning Cadet double All-American Kamal Bey of Illinois, 10-0, at 170 pounds. Breske was named Outstanding Wrestler of the event. Breske is one of three wrestlers still alive for a Cadet Triple Crown after winning titles in the Cadet National folkstyle and Greco-Roman competitions. California's Jaden Enriquez (126) and Minnesota's Keegan Moore (182) are the other two wrestlers looking for Cadet Triple Crowns. Illinois dominated the team race, finishing with 107 points. Minnesota finished second in the team standings with 57 points. Final Results: 88: Trey Keeley (Illinois) dec. Patrick McKee (Minnesota), 12-8 94: Nicolas Aguilar (California) dec. Brandon Meikel (Utah), 7-2 100: Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona) pinned Dominic Lajoie (Michigan), 4:56 106: Ian Timmins (Nevada) pinned Drew West (Iowa), 3:35 113: Austin Gomez (Illinois) tech. fall Bryce West (Iowa), 18-8 120: Coltan Williams (Texas) dec. Wilson Smith (North Carolina), 8-5 126: Jaden Enriquez (California) dec. Quentin Hovis (Arizona), 6-2 132: Jake Allar (Minnesota) pinned Jaron Chavez (Idaho), 5:04 138: Ethan Karsten (Missouri) dec. Devin Bahr (Wisconsin), 8-3 145: Matthew Park (Idaho) pinned Logan Gruszka (Illinois), 0:57 152: Riley Jaramillo (Oregon) tech. fall Anthony Sherry (Iowa), 11-0 160: Owen Webster (Minnesota) tech. fall James Handwerk (Ohio), 10-0 170: Beau Breske (Wisconsin) tech. fall Kamal Bey (Illinois), 10-0 182: Keegan Moore (Minnesota) dec. Wyatt Koelling (Utah), 6-5 195: Matt Stencel (Ohio) pinned Wyatt Harden (Michigan), 0:58 220: Brandon Metz (North Dakota) pinned Allen Stallings (Illinois), 5:26 285: Kevin Vough (Ohio) dec. Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon), 8-1

Two-time All-America wrestler Alex Tirapelle has been named the 19th Roger Reina Head Coach of Wrestling in the history of the University of Pennsylvania. The announcement was made today by the University’s new Director of Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics, M. Grace Calhoun. “I am excited to welcome Alex to Penn,” said Calhoun, who took over as Director on July 1. “During the interview process, his accomplishments both as a wrestler and as a coach stood out. He enjoyed a stellar collegiate wrestling career at Illinois, and over the last few years he has developed a solid reputation as a strong recruiter and coach. Working at an institution like Stanford these last four years also gives Alex a good idea of the kind of student-athlete he will be expected to recruit and coach at Penn. Under the leadership of Deputy Athletics Director Alanna Shanahan, we underwent an exhaustive process to ensure we found the best possible fit with the standards of this high-profile program going forward. I think our athletes, alums and fans will be excited by the future direction of the program under Alex’s leadership.” Tirapelle comes to Penn after four seasons as an assistant coach at Stanford University. While coaching the Cardinal, Tirapelle helped guide the program to its best dual-season record in school history with a 17-5 mark in 2013-14. In addition, last season’s squad sent five wrestlers to the NCAA Championships – tying the school record. Four of those NCAA qualifiers last season were Pac-12 champions, also a school record. “I want to thank Grace Calhoun, Alanna Shanahan, and the rest of the search committee for selecting me to be the new head wrestling coach at the University of Pennsylvania. It is an honor to have the opportunity to advance the already exceptional legacy of Penn Wrestling,” Tirapelle said. “In addition to Olympic medalists, NCAA champions and NCAA All-Americans, Penn Wrestling produces outstanding citizens and some of the country’s most prominent leaders. While wrestling success will always be a primary goal of the Penn program, for our student-athletes it is a milestone accomplishment rather than their pinnacle achievement.” In his four seasons on “The Farm,” Tirapelle helped guide 14 wrestlers to the NCAA Championships, including Stanford’s second three-time All-America and first two-time finalist in Nick Amuchastegui. The Cardinal earned five total All-America honors during Tirapelle’s tenure, including three at the 2011 NCAA Championships in Philadelphia – the highest All-America output at any NCAA Championships by a Stanford squad. The three All-Americans in 2011 propelled Stanford to an 11th-place finish overall, the highest team finish in program history. Off the mat, Stanford continued to thrive academically during Tirapelle’s tenure. Last season, the Cardinal ranked No. 8 among all Division I programs in team GPA and had two wrestlers named National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-Academic. One of those individuals, Kyle Meyer, also earned a Pac-12 Postgraduate Scholarship. Both of Stanford’s NWCA All-Academic selections last season were also NCAA qualifiers. At the conference level, Stanford led all Pac-12 programs with nine Pac-12 All-Academic honors. In the past four seasons, Stanford has had 30 wrestlers earn Pac-12 All-Academic honors. Highlighting Stanford’s overall success during Tirapelle’s time was Amuchastegui. A four-time NCAA qualifier, three-time All-American and two-time finalist, Amuchastegui was twice named Capital One/CoSIDA Men’s At-Large Academic All-American of the Year and was a three-time Academic All-American, earning Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year accolades for wrestling in 2012 and twice earning the NCAA’s Elite88 Award for Division I wrestling. “I look forward to developing men of valor and providing them with the resources and guidance necessary to strive for excellence in education, athletics, and life after college,” said Tirapelle. “Furthermore, I am excited to become a contributing member of Penn’s Athletic Department.” Prior to his time at Stanford, Tirapelle served as an assistant coach at UC-Davis for two seasons. While with the Aggies, Tirapelle coached one Pac-12 champion and six NCAA qualifiers. In addition, two wrestlers earned Pac-12 All-Academic honors. Before working with the Aggies, he spent seven years at the University of Illinois as a student-athlete, graduate student and member of the academic advising staff. Tirapelle twice earned All-America status at Illinois, captured two Big Ten titles, and was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Year in 2004. As a freshman in 2003, he finished as the national runner-up and earned Illinois Freshman Male Athlete of the Year honors in the process. Tirapelle finished his career as the Illini’s all-time wins leader with 128, while ranking third with an .877 winning percentage. Along with his impressive athletic career, Tirapelle racked up several academic honors. He was a Big Ten All-Academic honoree all four years, a first-team NWCA All-Academic selection, and first-team ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-American. In addition, Tirapelle earned an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. Tirapelle holds a pair of degrees from Illinois, graduating in 2006 with a B.S. in accountancy and earning a Master’s in sports management in 2009. Alex and his wife Amy, also an Illinois graduate who was a member of the cross country and track & field teams, will reside in Philadelphia.

FARGO, N.D. -- The opening day of the Cadet National Greco-Roman competition in Fargo came to a conclusion with the championship semifinals and the consolation round of 12 pairings established. Wrestling on Monday will start at 9 a.m. CT with those rounds, with medal matches slated for 2 p.m. Jaden Enriquez (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Both returning Cadet Greco-Roman champions, Austin Gomez (Illinois) and Beau Breske (Wisconsin), competing in this tournament advanced to the semifinals. They did so at 113 and 170 pounds respectively. Eight of the 12 Cadet Folkstyle champions competing in the Greco-Roman advanced to the semifinals, and remain eligible for a Triple Crown. Those wrestlers are in seven of the weight classes: Jason Holmes (Arizona) at 88 pounds, Ben Freeman (Michigan) at 113, Corey Shie (Ohio) and Jaden Enriquez (California) at 126, Devin Bahr (Wisconsin) at 132 pounds, Jacob Warner (Illinois) at 160, Breske at 170, and Keegan Moore (Minnesota) at 182. Two of the three FILA Cadet Greco-Roman world team members competing advanced to the semifinals, Holmes at 88 pounds and Drew West (Iowa) at 106. The evening's most notable upset came at 138 pounds, where Ethan Karsten (Missouri) upended FILA Cadet world team member Domenick Demas (Ohio) 20-10 in the quarterfinal round. Three particular semifinal matches stand out of note, as each places wrestlers ranked inside the top 30 overall in the Class of 2017. At 113 pounds it is No. 19 Ben Freeman vs. No. 26 Austin Gomez, next is the 126 pound matchup between No. 10 Austin O'Connor (Illinois) and No. 13 Jaden Enriquez, then finally at 138 pounds is a match between No. 16 Hunter Bolen (Virginia) and No. 28 Devin Bahr. In what should be absolutely zero surprise, wrestlers from Illinois are dominating this tournament. Thirteen Land of Lincoln natives are in the semifinals; that state was champions of the Cadet Duals in Greco-Roman earlier this month. 88: Semifinals: Patrick McKee (Minnesota) vs. Jason Holmes (Arizona), Trey Keeley (Illinois) vs. Brandon Kaylor (Washington) Consolation round of 12: Heinselman (Colorado) vs. Simpson (Oklahoma), Phippen (Kansas) vs. Pradel (Illinois); Melendez (Illinois) vs. Schwartz (Colorado), Lane (Pennsylvania) vs. Petersen (Minnesota) 94: Semifinals: Elijah Varona (Florida) vs. Brandon Meikel (Utah), Peter Ogunsanya (Illinois) vs. Nicolas Aguilar (California) Consolation round of 12: Chauvin (Colorado) vs. Webster (Minnesota), Schafer (New York) vs. Olejnik (California); Heller (Illinois) vs. Lincoln (Idaho), Pargo (Illinois) vs. Scharenbock (Wisconsin) 100: Semifinals: Brandon Lucas (Ohio) vs. Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona), Jakob Campbell (Pennsylvania) vs. Dominic Lajoie (Michigan) Consolation round of 12: Baun (Washington) vs. Dryden (Kansas), B. Koontz (Wisconsin) vs. Povlick (Illinois); Huss (Minnesota) vs. Gohn (New Jersey), D. Koontz (Wisconsin) vs. Thomas (Maryland) 106: Semifinals: Drew Mattin (Ohio) vs. Ian Timmins (Nevada), Trae Vasquez (Montana) vs. Drew West (Iowa) Consolation round of 12: Johnson (Colorado) vs. Lendt (Iowa), Yates (Ohio) vs. Molitor (Minnesota); Crowe (Minnesota) vs. Martinez (Colorado), Hunsaker (Utah) vs. Cole (Utah) 113: Semifinals: Bryce West (Iowa) vs. Paul Bianchi (Wisconsin), Austin Gomez (Illinois) vs. Ben Freeman (Michigan) Consolation round of 12: Walker (Illinois) vs. Nutter (Wisconsin), Deloza (California) vs. Young (Washington); Jones (Minnesota) vs. Hollingsworth (Illinois), Mealey (Oregon) vs. Thomsen (Iowa) 120: Semifinals: Wilson Smith (North Carolina) vs. Nolan Baker (Illinois), Josh McClure (Missouri) vs. Coltan Williams (Texas) Consolation round of 12: Germinaro (Minnesota) vs. van der Merwe (New Jersey), Lugo (Florida) vs. Leisure (Iowa); Rivera-Kohr (Illinois) vs. Bergeland (Minnesota), Paulino (Connecticut) vs. Reel (Illinois) 126: Semifinals: Austin O'Connor (Illinois) vs. Jaden Enriquez (California), Quentin Hovis (Arizona) vs. Corey Shie (Ohio) Consolation round of 12: Gregerson (Utah) vs. Fuenfinger (Minnesota), Acosta (Wisconsin) vs. B. Punke (Illinois); Lloyd (Minnesota) vs. Hurlburt (Wisconsin), Orem (Maryland) vs. Clapper (Missouri) 132: Semifinals: Jaron Chavez (Idaho) vs. Kris Lindemann (New Jersey), Zack Diamond (Hawaii) vs. Jake Allar (Minnesota) Consolation round of 12: Indelli (Illinois) vs. Filius (Montana), Pine (Washington) vs. Munn (Texas); Monteverdi (New Jersey) vs. Henderson (Ohio), Hong (Pennsylvania) vs. Lisher (Kansas) 138: Semifinals: Devin Bahr (Wisconsin) vs. Hunter Bolen (Virginia); Ethan Karsten (Missouri) vs. Britton Holmes (Colorado) Consolation round of 12: Higgins (Iowa) vs. Douglas (Washington), Lebarron (Pennsylvania) vs. Rider (Colorado); Cokeley (Kansas) vs. Bates (Oregon), Hampton (Texas) vs. Demas (Ohio) 145: Semifinals: Liam Corbett (Hawaii) vs. Logan Gruszka (Illinois), Matthew Park (Idaho) vs. Andrew Johnson (Kansas) Consolation round of 12: Redlin (Texas) vs. Mantanona (California), Seward (Washington) vs. Carey (New Jersey); Johnson (Iowa) vs. Berenyi (Maine), Nicholson (Tennessee) vs. Wais (Washington) 152: Semifinals: Ricky Gonzalez (California) vs. Anthony Sherry (Iowa), Seth Vosters (Wisconsin) vs. Riley Jaramillo (Oregon) Consolation round of 12: Blankenship (Missouri) vs. Moody (Wisconsin), Fricolone (Alaska) vs. Hill (Illinois); Anderson (Nebraska) vs. Thomas (Pennsylvania), Sturkey (Illinois) vs. Covaciu (Indiana) 160: Semifinals: Owen Webster (Minnesota) vs. Jacob Warner (Illinois), Randy Meneweather (Illinois) vs. James Handwerk (Ohio) Consolation round of 12: Peck (Pennsylvania) vs. McDaniel (Washington), Berreyesa (Nevada) vs. Ramos (Wisconsin); McCabe (Texas) vs. Terry (Oregon), Buckley (Missouri) vs. Alford (South Carolina) 170: Semifinals: Haydn Maley (Oregon) vs. Beau Breske (Wisconsin), Dylan Servis (Kansas) vs. Kamal Bey (Illinois) Consolation round of 12: Porter (Arizona) vs. Rokovitz (Utah), Daniel (Maryland) vs. Jessen (Illinois); Gutierrez (California) vs. L. Drugac (New Jersey), Florell (Minnesota) vs. Scherber (Minnesota) 182: Semifinals: Isaac Luellen (Kansas) vs. Wyatt Koelling (Utah), Keegan Moore (Minnesota) vs. Dean Drugac (New Jersey) Consolation round of 12: Coles (Pennsylvania) vs. Boyd (Missouri), Hahn (Wisconsin) vs. Andrews (Texas); Ragains (Indiana) vs. Crosby (Illinois), Patron (Louisiana) vs. Stokke (Wisconsin) 195: Semifinals: George Bessette (Illinois) vs. Matt Stencel (Ohio), Wyatt Harden (Michigan) vs. Jacob Cavins (Indiana) Consolation round of 12: Woods (Indiana) vs. J. Allen (Virginia), Barnes (Oregon) vs. T. Allen (Virginia); Lalaunga (Colorado) vs. Ruble (Wisconsin), Prince (Kansas) vs. Agee (Virginia) 220: Semifinals: Allen Stallings (Illinois) vs. Ethan Hofacker (Wisconsin), Sammy Evans (Tennessee) vs. Brandon Metz (North Dakota) Consolation round of 12: Musselman (Missouri) vs. Zalapi (Illinois), Dukleth (California) vs. Ayala (California); Piscopo (Pennsylvania) vs. Kluever (Wisconsin), Ready (Michigan) vs. Lane (Oregon) 285: Semifinals: Brian Ditchman (Illinois) vs. Kevin Vough (Ohio), Karim Fuentes (Illinois), Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon) Consolation round of 12: Piehl (Minnesota) vs. Helton (Illinois), Burnett (Oregon) vs. McCauley (California); Lieurance (Oklahoma) vs. Sutton (Indiana), Mullins (Washington) vs. Tudor (Illinois)

Mark Hall (Photo/Martin Gabor)SNINA, Slovakia -- Minnesota phenom Mark Hall capped off a record setting performance by the U.S. at the FILA Cadet World Championships, becoming the third American to bring home the gold in men's freestyle. Hall won five matches on the day at 76 kilos/167.5 pounds to lead the U.S. charge. In the gold medal bout, Hall would face Asian Championships runner-up Sumiyabazar Zandanbud of Mongolia. Hall struck first, connecting on a shrug attempt to take the early 2-0 lead heading into the second period. Hall added one more takedown in the second off a Zandanbud shot attempt, before giving up a pushout, to earn the 4-1 victory. The win by Hall marked the third Cadet World Champion for the U.S. freestyle team in Slovakia, as he joined Spencer Lee and Mason Manville atop the world standings. Pennsylvania big man Jordan Wood joined Hall in the finals on the final day of freestyle competition. Read full story ...

Day 1: Saturday, July 19 Cadet women's freestyle Session I: 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Preliminaries, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Consolation and Consolation Semifinals Session II: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Day 2: Sunday, July 20 Cadet Greco-Roman Session I: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. 1/8 Championship, Quarterfinals and Consolations Day 3: Monday, July 21 Cadet Greco-Roman Session III: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Consolations, Semifinals and Consolation Semifinals Session IV: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Junior Greco-Roman Session I: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Consolations and 1/8 Championship Junior women's freestyle Session I: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Preliminaries, Consolations and 1/8 Championships Day 4: Tuesday, July 22 Junior Greco-Roman Session III: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Quarterfinals, Consolations, Semifinals and Consolation Semifinals Session IV: 2:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Junior women's freestyle Session II: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Quarterfinals, Consolations, Semifinals and Consolation Semifinals Session III: 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. If needed Session IV: 5:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Day 5: Wednesday, July 23 Cadet freestyle Session I: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Preliminaries, 1/8 Championships, Consolations Junior women's freestyle duals Session I: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Preliminaries Session II: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Preliminaries, Finals, Medal Matches, & Awards Day 6: Thursday, July 24 Cadet freestyle Session III: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Quarterfinals and Consolations Session IV: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Semifinals, Consolations and Consolation Semifinals Junior freestyle Session I: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Day 7: Friday, July 25 Cadet freestyle Session V: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Junior freestyle Session III: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 1/8 Championships, Quarterfinals, Consolations Session IV: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Semifinals, Consolations and Consolation Semifinals Day 8: Saturday, July 26 Junior freestyle Session V: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards

FARGO, N.D. – Michigan's Kenya Spencer has been here before. Michigan's Kenya Spencer won a battle of returning champions at Cadet Nationals in Fargo on Saturday (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Spencer repeated as women's freestyle champion at the Cadet Nationals on Saturday night at the FARGODOME. Spencer downed returning champion Taylor Rosario of Texas 9-2 in the finals at 172 pounds. "It was definitely harder to win this year," Spencer said. "She won it last year, so it was a huge win for me. It's a tough tournament with a lot of good competitors." The eight-day ASICS/Vaughan Junior and Cadet Nationals kicked off on Saturday. Colorado's Ashlynn Ortega was named Outstanding Wrestler after winning by technical fall over Kayla Marano of Oklahoma in her finals match at 132. Read full story ...

The Junior National Greco-Roman tournament will kick-off on Monday morning in Fargo, North Dakota. It is a tournament that serves as an opportunity for many rising juniors and seniors to increase their visibility, or just to get visible, on the national landscape. For those that are moving on to college in the fall, it is a last high school competition, and can serve to set the tone for their college track. The following is a weight-by-weight overview of the field for this event. Keep in mind, information for this analysis is based on weight classes and registrations posted on Track Wrestling as of late Saturday evening. 100: Last year's opening weight champion in Cadet Greco-Roman enters this tournament as a joint favorite in the opening weight of the Junior Greco-Roman competition. That would be Louie Hayes (Illinois), who is also a three-time All-American in the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman competition. The other primary contender is Randon Miranda (California), who seeks the second leg of the Junior Triple Crown, after winning the folkstyle title in early April at this weight class. Last year Miranda was runner-up in Cadet Greco-Roman at 94 pounds, and this spring was fifth at 101 pounds in the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman event. Other challengers in this weight class include returning Cadet freestyle runner-up Zach Murillo (Connecticut), state qualifier Victor Gliva (Minnesota), and state champion Cole Rohan (Oregon). 106: Last year's champion in Junior Greco-Roman at 100 pounds, Dalton Roberts (Michigan) is entered in this weight class. However, the two rated favorites in this field would be Kirk Johansen (Illinois) and Danny Vega (Arizona). Johansen was runner-up to Roberts in Greco-Roman last summer, but won the freestyle tournament, and was a FILA Junior freestyle champion this spring at 110 pounds (third in Greco-Roman); while Vega is after the second leg of a Junior Triple Crown after winning the folkstyle title in this weight class in April, and last year was a Cadet double finalist (runner-up in Greco-Roman, champion in freestyle) at 100 pounds. Others to watch in this weight class include past Fargo All-Americans Bryce Brimhall (Utah), Brendan Coughlin (Maryland), and Kade Evans (Utah). 113: Two Junior National folkstyle champions are among the contenders in this weight class, Joey Cisneros (California) and Doyle Trout (Nebraska). Cisneros won his title at 113 pounds, and last year was a Junior National double runner-up (Greco-Roman and freestyle) in Fargo at 106 pounds; while Trout was fourth in Cadet Greco-Roman in 2012. The Fargo champion in this weight class is Joey Prata (Virginia), who won the Cadet Greco-Roman title at 100 pounds last summer, and was also a Cadet double All-American in 2012 at 94 pounds. Other contenders in this weight class include 2013 FILA Cadet Greco-Roman World Team member Tanner Cox (Utah); Brock George (Utah), who was third in Junior Greco-Roman at 106 pounds last summer; 2013 state champion Benny Gomez (Michigan), 2012 Cadet Greco-Roman third place finisher Ethan Koan (Missouri), state champion Corbin Nirschl (Kansas) and Toribio Navarro (Tennessee), two-time state runner-up Garrett Pepple (Indiana), two-time state champion DeVaughn Sapien (Idaho), and returning Cadet double All-American Josh Venia (Ohio). 120: There is a defending Junior Greco-Roman champion in this weight class, Brandon Staley (Florida), who won the 106 pound title last year. However, the joint favorites would have to be Anthony Cefolo (New Jersey) and Skyler Petry (Minnesota). Cefolo was third in Junior Greco-Roman last year at 113 pounds after earning a pair of Cadet All-American honors in Greco-Roman the previous two years, while Petry was finished second in the Junior Greco-Roman competition at 113 pounds last year. Others to watch include two-time state champion Nelson Baker (Illinois); 2013 state champion Dalton Duffield (Oklahoma); Paul Fitterer (Minnesota) and Trayton Libolt (Oregon), a pair of two-time Cadet Greco-Roman All-American; Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Adam Flatt (Georgia); Ryan Friedman (Maryland), who placed sixth at 113 pounds in Junior Greco-Roman last year; two-time state champion Logan Griffin (Michigan); returning Cadet double All-American Josh Kramer (Arizona); J.J. McClelland (Wisconsin), a two-time Junior Greco-Roman All-American; and a pair of 2012 Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Perez Perez (California) and Tyler Schilling (Oregon). 126: Two FILA Cadet Greco-Roman World Team members anchor the field in this weight class, Taylor LaMont (Utah) and Jake Spiess (Ohio). LaMont won the FILA Cadet title at 127 pounds in late May, and was on his second consecutive world team. In addition, the nation's No. 18 ranked Class of 2016 wrestler was seventh last year in Junior Greco-Roman at 120 pounds, and was a Cadet freestyle champion; while Spiess was the representative at 119 pounds, and is now a two-time FILA Cadet All-American, both at 119 pounds. Another pair of wrestlers is legitimate contenders in this weight class, Mitch McKee (Minnesota) and Cub Yeager (Oklahoma). McKee is ranked No. 44 in the Class of 2016, is a two-time Cadet Greco-Roman champion, and seeks the second leg of a Junior Triple Crown as he was champion in Junior folkstyle this past April. Yeager is a two-time All-American in Junior Greco-Roman, including a runner-up finish last year in this weight class. Others to watch include multi-time state champions Austin Anderly (Minnesota), Sean DeShazer (Kansas), and Brett Velasquez (Nebraska); returning Junior Greco-Roman All-Americans in Keegan Calkins (Illinois) and Austin Lister (Oregon); three-time state placers Cody Karstetter (Oklahoma) and Justin Patrick (Pennsylvania); Ty Pelot (Wisconsin), a 2011 Junior Greco-Roman All-American; along with returning Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Raul Nevaraez (Idaho) and Ted Rico (Arizona). 132: The highest returning Junior Greco-Roman placers in this field are Blaine Tschida (Minnesota) and Will Koll (New York); Tschida was runner-up at 120 pounds last year after placing third at 106 pounds on the Cadet level in 2012, while Koll placed third at 126 pounds. Another notable contender here is Josh Bird (Wisconsin), who was the Cadet Greco-Roman champion in this weight class last summer. Others to watch in this weight class include returning Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Nick Casella (New York), Aaron Grigsby (Arkansas), Marty Margolis (Maryland), and Armando Molina (California); two-time state champion Jarrett Degen (Montana); Hunter Kelley (Georgia), a 2012 Junior Greco-Roman All-American; William Kui (New Jersey), a FILA Cadet Greco-Roman All-American; and 2012 Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Brady O'Keefe (Nevada). 138: The lead contender in this weight class is returning Junior Greco-Roman runner-up Blake Clevenger (Missouri), who also was runner-up in the FILA Junior Greco-Roman competition this past April. Others to watch include Griffin Parriott (Minnesota), who is ranked No. 36 in the Class of 2016 and was runner-up in the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman competition this past May; Matt Findley (Utah), who placed fifth in Junior Greco-Roman last summer; four-time state champion Dusty Hones (Utah); Cadet double All-American (seventh Greco-Roman, second freestyle) Chase Lemond (Idaho); and returning Cadet freestyle All-American Johnny O'Hearon (Utah). 145: Two of the nation's top Class of 2014 wrestlers is the lead figures in this absolutely loaded weight class, No. 35 Grant Leeth (Missouri) and No. 42 Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (New York). Leeth was champion in Junior folkstyle this April, and is after the second leg of a Triple Crown, and was ffith in Junior freestyle last summer; while Rodriguez-Spencer is a highly productive Greco-Roman wrestler, third in Junior Greco-Roman in 2012 at 132 pounds, and a three-time FILA Junior All-American in this style. Additional challengers in this weight class include a trio of top 100 Class of 2015 prospects: No. 74 Patricio Lugo (Florida), a Cadet double All-American (runner-up in Greco-Roman, fifth in freestyle) last summer at 138 pounds; No. 81 Wyatt Wyckoff (California), a two-time state runner-up; and No. 100 Isaac Dulgarian (Kansas). Also in this weight class is a trio of top 50 ranked Class of 2016 wrestlers: No. 25 Hayden Hidlay (Pennsylvania), a Cadet double runner-up last year at 126 pounds; No. 28 Kevin Budock (Maryland); and No. 43 Austin Kraisser (Maryland), a Cadet double All-American (fouth Greco-Roman, runner-up freestyle) last year at 145 pounds. Additional contenders include returning Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Logan Kass (Minnesota); additional Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Rudy Guillen (Georgia), Chandler Michael (Oregon), and Fritz Schierl (Wisconsin); along with Sir Romeo Howard (Illinois), who was fifth last year in this weight class in Junior Greco-Roman. 152: In what is a relatively open weight class, a pair of top 100 Class of 2015 populates the field, No. 67 Dayton Racer (Missouri) and No. 97 Cole Walter (Pennsylvania). Racer was a Cadet Greco-Roman All-American in 2012, while Walter earned Cadet All-American honors in 2011 and 2012. Two other wrestlers in this field have finished runners-up in Greco-Roman in Fargo: Joey Gunther (Illinois), who has done so each of the last two years at the Cadet level; and Andrew Millsap (Kansas), who was second in this Junior weight class last year. Additional wrestlers to have earned All-American honors in Greco-Roman at the Cadet level are Colbran Meeker (Oregon), Jesse Porter (New York), Jared Scharenbock (Wisconsin), and Chase Straw (Iowa). Another pair of wrestlers were All-Americans in FILA Cadet Greco-Roman in 2013: Brooks Robinson (Utah) and Andrew Webb (Georgia). 160: The probable favorite in this weight class is Jon-Jay Chavez (Idaho), the No. 32 overall prospect in the Class of 2014 and a FILA Cadet World bronze medalist in Greco-Roman last year. He also has won Fargo titles twice in the style, last year at the Junior level and in 2011 at the Cadet level. Three top 100 Class of 2015 prospects are among the primary challengers in this field: No. 7 Fox Baldwin (Florida), No. 47 Colston DiBlasi (Missouri), and No. 87 Jonathan Viruet (Massachusetts). Baldwin was a Cadet freestyle champion in 2012, DiBlasi finished fifth in Cadet Greco-Roman in 2012, while Viruet was fifth at 152 pounds in this competition last year. Returning All-Americans in Junior Greco-Roman include Logan Breitenbach (Maryland), Jake Deutschlander (Minnesota), and Dalton Harmon (Utah). Additional wrestlers to earn All-American honors in Cadet Greco-Roman in the past include Dalton Ray (Pennsylvania), Gavin Grater (Kansas), and Spencer Heywood (Utah). Other notables in the field include a FILA Cadet Greco-Roman All-American in Regan Bye (South Daktoa); state champions Dakota Greene (Florida), Jacobe Smith (Oklahoma), and Izaec Quintanilla (Washington); past Cadet freestyle All-Americans in Corbin Allen (Virginia) and John Leal (California); along with Burke Paddock (New York), a Junior Greco-Roman All-American in 2011. 170: The most notable name in this relatively open weight class is returning All-American Gable Frandsen (Wisconsin), who also finished as the No. 95 overall wrestler in the Class of 2014. The lone other grade-level ranked wrestler in this weight class is Seth McLeod (Idaho), who is positioned at No. 79 in the Class of 2015. Others to watch include Preseason Nationals champion Brett Bye (South Dakota); 2012 Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Kaden Campbell (Utah), Billy Duffert (Wisocnsin), Tyler McNutt (Missouri), Mason Reinhardt (Wisconsin), and Keiffer Taylor (Arizona); Dustin Gray (Missouri), a two-time Cadet Greco-Roman All-American; returning Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Vincent Guerrero (Arizona); and Christian Stackhouse (New Jersey), who placed third last year in Junior freestyle at 160 pounds. 182: Timothy Young (Illinois) has emerged as a clear specialist figure in this weight class having won the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman title at 187 pounds in May, and earning fifth in the World Championships this past week. However, a pair of top 100 Class of 2015 wrestlers will provide him with a stern challenge: No. 41 Justan Rivera (Georgia) and No. 43 Dylan Wisman (Virginia). Rivera was a two-time Cadet double All-American at 182 pounds, 4th Greco/3rd freestyle in 2012 and 2nd Greco/1st freestyle in 2013; while Wisman placed fourth at the Junior level in both styles at this weight class last year. Other contenders in this weight class include Jacob Armstrong (Utah), a returning Junior Greco-Roman All-American; state champions Mitch Bowman (Iowa) and Nick Weldon (Alabama); two-time state runner-up Chance Cooper (Missouri); Jeremiah Imonode (Arizona), a returning Cadet Greco-Roman All-American; and Tyler Wildmo (Michigan), who was a Cadet Greco-Roman All-American in 2012. 195: Samuel Colbray (Oregon), who is ranked No. 12 in the Class of 2016, won Cadet Greco-Roman titles in each of the last two years. He was also a double runner-up at the FILA Cadet level this past May at 187 pounds. Providing his primary competition will be two-time state champion Robert Steveson (Minnesota), who is ranked No. 16 in the Class of 2015. Returning Junior Greco-Roman All-Americans include Terrell Fields (Pennsylvania) and Edgar Ruano (Illinois). Another pair of wrestlers was double All-Americans at the Cadet level last year, Emilio Fowler (Kansas) and Randy Scott (Indiana). Additional wrestlers to have earned Cadet Greco-Roman All-American honors entered in this weight class include Tyler Crow (Missouri), Andrew Fenton (Ohio), Isaac Florell (Minnesota), Ben Honis (New York), and Nick Osowski (Wisconsin). Others to watch include Cody Damiana (New Jersey), Preseason Nationals champion Kyle Fank (Iowa), and state champion Cody Vigoren (Washington). 220: Returning Junior double champion Roy Nash (Utah), who ended as the nation's No. 23 overall prospect in the Class of 2014, enters as the favorite in this competition. Primary challengers include returning runner-up in this event Tyler Schmidt (Wisconsin); Austin Myers (Kentucky), who is ranked No. 23 in the Class of 2015; and returning Junior Greco-Roman sixth place finisher Rafael Rokosz (New York). Others to watch include past Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Kyle Anderegg (Oregon), Shane Coombs (Colorado), and James Ford (Ohio); two-time state runner-up Christian Dulaney (Minnesota); and two-time state third place finisher Robert Enmon (Florida). 285: Sam Stoll (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)The favorite in this weight class is Sam Stoll (Minnesota), who ended up as the No. 10 overall wrestler in the Class of 2014. He was a runner-up in Junior Greco-Roman last year and a runner-up at the FILA Junior Greco-Roman level this year. However, it is a formidable field of wrestlers behind him that includes three others who earned Junior Greco-Roman All-American honors last year: Michael Hobbs (Illinois) and Jesse Webb (Vermont), who earned those honors in both styles, and Adarios Jones (Illinois) who is after the second leg of a Triple Crown as he won the Junior folkstyle title in early April. Others to watch in a deep field include returning Cadet Triple Crown winner Jake Marnin (Iowa), who is ranked No. 46 in the Class of 2015; two-time state champion Ryan Prescott (Michigan); state champions Blake Andrews (Texas) and Matt Halverson (Wisconsin); state placer Ryan Monk (Pennsylvania); Cadet freestyle All-Americans Collin Braun (Missouri) and James Huwe (Minnesota); FILA Cadet Greco-Roman champion Tate Orndorff (Washington); Dane Drimmer (Colorado), 2012 Cadet Greco-Roman All-American; along with FILA Cadet Greco-Roman third place finishers in Dante Jiovanetta (Florida) and Michael Rogers (Pennsylvania).

SNINA, Slovakia -- For the fourth straight year, Team USA has struck gold in men's freestyle at the FILA Cadet World Championships, earning two gold medals on Saturday in Snina, Slovakia. Mason Manville (Photo/Martin Gabor)The dynamic duo of Spencer Lee and Mason Manville ran through their respective brackets to join Adam Coon, Zain Retherford and Aaron Pico as U.S. Cadet World Champions since the tournament was reimplented in 2011. Lee, a Pennsylvania product, put on a dominant display at 50 kilos/110 pounds, picking up three technical falls and a fall while not surrendering a single point en route to the gold medal. Utilizing a relentless pace, Lee defeated Afgan Khashalov of Azerbaijan 11-0 in the gold medal match. He opened up the scoring with a quick takedown in the first 20 seconds to set the tone and take a 2-0 lead. Lee followed that up with four more takedowns and a push out point to earn the technical fall and the gold. Manville also put on quite the show for the fans in Slovakia, winning his first three bouts by technical fall before stopping Radik Valiev of Russia in the finals 5-0. Manville scored the first point in the gold medal bout after Valiev was put on the 30-second shot clock and did not score. Manville put the match out of reach with two second period takedowns over the talented Russian. Read full story ... 2014 FILA Cadet World Championships At Snina, Slovakia, July 19 Men's freestyle results 42 kilos/92.5 pounds Gold: Alireza Goodarzi (Iran) Siver: Maksim Zamorshchikov (Russia) Bronze: Daigo Hattori (Japan) Bronze: Giorgi Khachidze (Georgia) 5th: Intrigam Valizada (Azerbaijan) 5th: Gavin Teasdale (United States) 7th: Costel Tarcoci (Romania) 8th: Urna Cihan (Turkey) 9th: Pavlo Vyzir (Ukraine) 10th: Anuar Nurgeldi (Kazakhstan) 50 kilos/110 pounds Gold: Spencer Lee (United States) Siver: Afgan Khashalov (Azerbaijan) Bronze: Nicolai Grahamez (Moldova) Bronze: Nader Nasrisamakoush (Iran) 5th: Balazs Egyed (Hungary) 5th: Vasant Kolekar Prakash (India) 7th: Gaioz Gongladze (Georgia) 8th: Chermin Valiev (Russia) 9th: Arseniy Zur (Belarus) 10th: Akkaya Deniz (Turkey) 58 kilos/127.75 pounds Gold: David Baev (Russia) Siver: Mhir Amiraslanov (Azerbaijan) Bronze –Kuatbek Mukhambet (Kazakhstan) Bronze: Mojtaba Amouzad (Iran) 5th: Ali Cam (Turkey) 5th: Mamuka Chachua (Georgia) 7th: Enrike Fombeya (Ukraine) 8th: Temuulen Enkhtuya (Mongolia) 9th: Sharvan (India) 10th: Hiromu Sakaki (Japan) 69 kilos/152 pounds Gold: Mason Manville (United States) Siver: Valiev Radik (Russia) Bronze: Pritam (India) Bronze: Alberts Jurcenko (Latvia) 5th: Gheorgi Pascalov (Moldova) 5th: Samuel Scherrer (Switzerland) 7th: Patryk Kazmierowski (Poland) 8th: Martynas Damidavicius (Lithuania) 9th: Ahmad Bazrighaleh (Iran) 10th: Fazli Eryilmaz (Turkey) 85 kilos/187.4 pounds Gold: Ahamil Sadullayev (Azerbaijan) Siver: Semih Yazici (Turkey) Bronze: Ilija Matuhin (Germany) Bronze: Karamjeet (India) 5th: Hovhannes Mkhitaryan (Armenia) 5th: Ruslanbek Aldiev (Russia)

The Cadet and Junior National Championships open today (Saturday) with the Cadet women's freestyle competition. However, for most aficionados of the sport, the competition truly starts on Sunday when Cadet Greco-Roman kicks off. Many of the leading figures in this competition are already known and proven commodities. Over the next two days in Greco-Roman, and in freestyle towards the end of the week; some confirmation of these elite figures will occur, while others will emerge onto the radar of followers with their performances here. The following represents a weight-by-weight overview of the tournament field. Participant information is based on the Track Wrestling entry list as of late Friday night. 88: The opening weight is led by Cody Phippen (Kansas), who placed 5th in the 92 pound weight class at the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman tournament in late May, and is seeking the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown having won the Cadet Folkstyle title at 94 pounds in early April. Two other FILA Cadet Greco-Roman placers are in this weight class: Troy Keeley (Illinois), who placed third, and Patrick McKee (Minnesota), who placed sixth. Others to watch include Malik Heinselman (Colorado) and Jaret Lane (Pennsylvania). 94: Illinois wrestlers have been the dominant narrative at the Cadet level this summer, and across levels at Fargo over the last few years. The two FILA Cadet Greco-Roman medalists in this weight class both reside from Illinois, Peter Ogunsanya and Holden Heller; Ogunsanya was 2nd in both styles (Greco-Roman and freestyle) and 92 pounds, while Heller was 4th in both styles. Others to watch include Rhett Golownoski (Oklahoma), Kade Lincoln (Idaho), and Elijah Varona (Florida). 100: Five wrestlers that earned All-American honors in Greco-Roman last summer in Fargo return to this weight class. The highest placer among those is Brayden Schwalbe (Montana), who was 3rd in this style and fourth in freestyle, both coming at 88 pounds. Dylan and Brady Koontz (Wisconsin) were also All-Americans at 88 pounds, coming in fourth and seventh respectively, with Brady also placing in freestyle. Jakob Campbell (Pennsylvania) and Dominic Lajoie (Michigan) placed 6th and 7th respectively at 94 pounds in Greco-Roman last summer. While in this wide open weight class, the favorite may end up being incoming freshman Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona), who was runner-up in FILA Cadet freestyle at 101 pounds. 106: Drew West (Iowa) just competed in the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman World Championships this past week at 110 pounds, so one could argue that he is the favorite headed into the tournament. However, he'll have to clear a pretty formidable field of challengers to get the Fargo stop sign. Most notable among them is Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma), the No. 39 overall wrestler in the Class of 2017, and champion in Cadet freestyle last year at 94 pounds. The highest returning Greco-Roman placer from Fargo last year is Alex Crowe (Minnesota), who took second at the Cadet level in the 88 pound weight class. The other returning Fargo All-American is Ty Lee (Wisconsin), who was third at the Junior level in the 100 pound weight class. Others to watch include two-time FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Drew Mattin (Ohio), Cadet folkstyle runner-up Rylee Molitor (Minnesota), two-time FILA Cadet All-American Zach Sherman (New Jersey), and FILA Cadet Greco-Roman third place finisher Trae Vasquez (Montana). 113: Two of the nation's best Class of 2017 prospects headline the field in this weight class, No. 19 Ben Freeman (Michigan) and No. 26 Austin Gomez (Illinois). Freeman seeks the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown, having won the folkstyle title already at 113 pounds; while Gomez is after a repeat Greco-Roman title in Fargo, having won last year at 94 pounds. However, it is not just a two-person race, as there is a strong challenge pack headlined by Brent Jones (Minnesota) and Dack Punke (Illinois). Jones finished third in Fargo in both styles last summer at 94 pounds, and took fourth at the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman tournament in the 110 pound weight class; while Punke was the FILA Cadet Greco-Roman champion at 101 pounds this spring. Other Fargo All-Americans in Greco-Roman last year in this field include Paul Bianchi (Wisconsin), Will Egli (Indiana), and Dalton Young (Washington); while Chris Deloza (California), Will Kaldes (Pennsylvania), and Chase Wickman (Washington) were All-Americans in freestyle. Two additional incoming ninth graders in this field merit attention: Jon Trowbridge (Kansas), who finished sixth in FILA Cadet Greco-Roman at 119 pounds; and Andrew Merola (New Jersey), who is ranked No. 23 overall in that class. 120: Not as strong a weight class as the one above and the one below, but it is led by one of the notable Class of 2017 prospects in Austin O'Connor (Illinois). The state champion is ranked No. 10 overall among all rising sophomores. Others to watch include returning Cadet All-American Nolan Baker (Illinois), FILA Cadet Greco-Roman third place finisher Jacob Greenwood (Colorado), state runners-up Ryan Leisure (Iowa) and Ethan Reel (Illinois), state champion Ozzy Lugo (Florida), National Prep third place finisher Requir van der Merwe (New Jersey), and returning Cadet freestyle All-American Coltan Williams (Texas). 126: A pretty solid weight class overall, which is led by Jaden Enriquez (California) and Chad Red (Indiana). Enriquez is ranked No. 13 overall in the Class of 2017, a returning Cadet double All-American (3rd in Greco-Roman, 4th in freestyle), finished as runner-up in FILA Cadet Greco-Roman and 127 pounds, and is after the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown as he won the folkstyle title at 132 pounds in early April. Red, already a two-time state champion, is ranked No. 22 overall in the Class of 2016, placed 4th last year at 113 pounds in Cadet Greco-Roman, and has placed at both the Super 32 Challenge and Flo Nationals in his two high school seasons. Others meriting attention include returning Cadet double All-American (3rd Greco-Roman, 5th freestyle) Quentin Hovis (Arizona); two-time state placer Jon Busiello (Pennsylvania); two-time state champion Michael Soler (Washington); Alex Lloyd (Minnesota), who is ranked No. 17 overall in the Class of 2018; and 2013 state placer Gaige Torres (Indiana). 132: This weight class is headlined by two of the nation's elite Class of 2017 prospects in Eric Hong (Pennsylvania) and Corey Shie (Ohio). Hong was a Cadet double All-American last year at 113 pounds (3rd Greco-Roman, 4th freestyle), and is No. 9 overall in the class; while Shie was a FILA Cadet double All-American in May at 127 pounds (4th Greco-Roman, 6th freestyle), seeks the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown after winning the folkstyle title at 126 pounds, and is No. 23 overall in the class. Others to note include a pair of returning All-Americans in Jaron Chavez (Idaho) and Jaron Jensen (Utah); Chavez finished 5th last year at 106 pounds and is ranked No. 40 in the Class of 2017, while Jensen doubled in Fargo at 120 pounds (3rd Greco-Roman, 8th freestyle). Additional notables are state placers Jake Allar (Minnesota) and Kris Lindemann (New Jersey). 138: Two present/past world team members in FILA Cadet Greco-Roman, along with a third ranked Class of 2017 prospect make for a formidable lead group in this weight class. The highest ranked of the rising sophomores is Hunter Bolen (Virginia), who comes in at No. 16 overall. However, the two world team members are No. 25 Domenick Demas (Ohio) and No. 28 Devin Bahr (Wisconsin), who were also both All-American last summer in Fargo in Greco-Roman. Demas won his FILA Cadet title this past year at 138 pounds; while Bahr did so last year at 127 pounds, and is also after the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown after he won this weight class in folkstyle during early April. Two other returning Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans are also in this field, Hayden Bates (Oregon) and Ethan Karsten (Missouri). Additional figures to note in this field are Leonard Merkin (New York), a two-time FILA Cadet Greco-Roman All-American; and Josiah Rider (Colorado), who is ranked No. 10 overall in the Class of 2018. 145: Two nationally ranked Class of 2017 wrestlers led the way in this weight class, No. 38 Anthony Mantanona (California) and No. 44 Max Wohlabaugh (Florida). Mantanona seeks the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown, as he won the folkstyle title in this weight class in April, while Wohlabaugh was a state champion this past year in high school. The contenders pack isn't as strong here, but is led by returning All-American Liam Corbett (Hawaii), National Prep placer Paul Hutton (Maryland), Brandon Kui (New Jersey), incoming freshman Quentin Milliken (Pennsylvania), and state champion Mattew Park (Idaho). 152: Arguably the shallowest weight class in this field as presently constituted. Two of the lead contenders are state champion Johnny Blankenship (Missouri) and state runner-up Jacob Covaciu (Indiana). 160: Among those featured in this field are two wrestlers seeking Cadet Triple Crowns, Jacob Warner (Illinois) and Oscar Ramos (Wisconsin). Both wrestlers were also champions at the Preseason Nationals this past fall, while the pre-tournament favorite Warner was a FILA Cadet All-American in freestyle and is also ranked No. 24 overall in the Class of 2017. Others to watch in this weight class are returning Cadet freestyle All-American Andrew Berreyesa (Nevada), state placer Andrew Buckley (Missouri), state champion and Cadet folkstyle runner-up Tucker Leavitt (Idaho), two-time state placer Trey Meyer (Washington), state champion Ashton Seely (Utah), along with state champion and FILA Cadet Greco-Roman third place finisher Owen Webster (Minnesota). 170: Beau Breske (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Beau Breske (Wisconsin) has to enter this tournament as the favorite, as he was a double champion last year in Fargo at 170 pounds. The nation's No. 6 ranked Class of 2016 prospect was also runner-up in both styles at the FILA Cadet Nationals in late May at 167 pounds. However, he will not be without strong challenge. That group is led by Kamal Bey (Illinois), who is ranked No. 37 overall in the Class of 2016 and was a Cadet double All-American last year in Fargo (3rd Greco-Roman, 2nd freestyle) at 160 pounds. Among the others to watch are state champions Jared Bird (Idaho) and Randy Meneweather (Illinois), returning Cadet Greco-Roman All-Americans in Brandon Haas (Iowa) and James Handwerk (Ohio), the No. 6 overall incoming freshman in Jack Jessen (Illinois), and Cadet folkstyle runner-up Casey Randles (Idaho). 182: There is a clear favorite in this weight class, and it is Keegan Moore (Minnesota). The nation's No. 10 overall Class of 2016 prospect is after the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown, as he won a second straight Cadet Folkstyle title in April. He was also runner-up in Cadet Greco-Roman last year at 170 pounds. Others to watch include state runner-up Antonio Agee (Virginia); returning All-American Dean Drugac (New Jersey); and Wyatt Koelling (Utah), who was a FILA Cadet Greco-Roman All-American in late May. 195: There is no clear star in this weight class. The two lead contenders for the title did both place in their state tournaments this past year, and happened to split matches at the Cadet National Duals last month. State runner-up Matt Stencel (Ohio) won the meeting in freestyle, while Cadet folkstyle champion Kobe Woods (Indiana) won the match in Greco-Roman. Other contenders include state champion Jeffrey Allen (Virginia); returning Cadet freestyle All-American Brian Barnes (Oregon); and Cadet folkstyle runner-up Jacob Cavins (Indiana), who placed seventh in this tournament last year. 220: Gannon Gremmel (Iowa) is the favorite in this weight class, as he seeks the second leg of a Cadet Triple Crown. The No. 47 overall Class of 2016 prospect was also a Preseason Nationals champion this fall and is already a two-time state placer. Others to watch include state champion Sammy Evans (Tennesee), returning Cadet Greco All-American Garyn Huntley (New York), state champion Brandon Metz (North Dakota), and Allen Stallings (Illinois). 285: Arguably the most obvious favorite in the whole competition comes in the last weight class, as Kevin Vough (Ohio) leads the way here. The No. 14 overall Class of 2017 prospect placed third at state during his freshman campaign, and was a Flo Nationals champion. Last summer as a first-year Cadet, he was 7th in Cadet Greco-Roman and 283 pounds, and this year was a FILA Cadet double All-American (4th Greco-Roman, 2nd freestyle) at 275 pounds. Others to watch include FILA Cadet double All-American Thomas Helton (Illinois), Michael McCauley (California), and state champion Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon).

The Cadet World Championships wrap up this weekend in Slovakia and from where I've been sitting youth wrestling has never looked better. After the first three days of competition it's apparent that Greco-Roman, freestyle and female wrestling have a strong future. These kids can roll ... Fargo, the annual a youth-wrestling extravaganza in North Dakota, also gets started this weekend. The largest wrestling tournament in the United States, Fargo features middle and high school aged wrestlers from around the country competing for the titles colloquially known as "Fargo All-American" and "Fargo national champion." For many coaches, athletes and parents it's the single biggest event outside of their folkstyle state tournament. For some it's come to symbolize something much larger adding more stress to an event overwrought with needless drama and pointless valuations. I never competed in Fargo and only attended a few times as a coach. The last time I was in Fargo wasn't even for wrestling. I was playing Trivial Pursuit for money during a 24-hour car ride from Philipsburg, Montana, to Chicago and had to stay overnight at the Holiday Inn. When it comes to wrestling in Fargo I have no emotional connection to the city and no meaningful connection to the event. Maybe that emotional and physical distance from Fargo is why the tournament feels like the embodiment of what's gone awry in youth wrestling. Wrestling fans are now glued to the screen to see how wrestlers as young as 14 years old are competing at a tournament which will have absolutely no effect on the rest of their life (outside of prompting some to get a USA Wrestling tattoo on their shoulder in honor of their "All-American" achievement). Worse still the wrestlers themselves begin to mistakenly believe that Cadet and Junior National Championships at 14 or 15 or 16 will in some way ensure future success. Hint: There is no correlation between high school success and Olympic success. Look around the wrestling world and see that for every Fargo Megastar like David Taylor there are 10,000 participants who never made it to college and burned out of the sport completely -- many before their first day of college. Humans assign value to plenty of dumb things (Beanie Babies, stamps, diamonds) but none seems as overgrown and ready to implode than the self-important gaze by which parents and coaches glare upon the youth sports. In wrestling that over-infatuation and skewed value is epitomized by what goes on inside the FARGODOME. I applaud the efforts of our wrestling community to have a single, large event by which to evaluate youth wrestlers and celebrate the sport. But Fargo is not a celebration - it's a cutthroat competition for medals that very soon will mean nothing except the loss of formative years. Fargo means more to parents, scouts and the wrestlers than what it could ever create in return. Util to util Fargo has a terrible ROI. Jake Herbert has been promoting his BASE wrestling system, which focuses on skill-building, fun activities for youth wrestlers, without discrediting the idea of competitionThe error is in thinking that with hyper-focus, a wrestler -- buoyed by family and coaches -- can become an elite athlete. Some might, but most pre-pubescent, over-worked 14-year-old boys won't become Jordan Burroughs or Cael Sanderson, and most won't become Jordan Oliver or Cyler Sanderson. Most will become former wrestler with weird stories to tell girls at the bar about how they have "actually been to North Dakota." They don't make it to the top of the pile and when they don't they leave -- the price they paid for failure too great. The truth remains that despite the hero-worshipping and creation of the Fargo-Dreamscape, the vast majority of the youth wrestlers who venture to the tournament will end up outside of the sport, disenfranchised and burned out. There are ways to keep Fargo on the schedule and our kids happy, but that will require parents, teachers and coaches to CALM THE HELL DOWN. Over-competitiveness and hyper-specialization isn't a new trend -- American wrestlers having been burning out for decades, but never before has what led to that burnout -- overexposure, high-stress, low-return on investment -- been more prevalent. Today's wrestler is living in his father's car being toted around, their life a miserable go-round: Practice ... cutting weight ... Super 32; Practice ... cutting weight .. Fargo; Practice ... cutting weight ... Pop and Flo; Practice ... Life for a teenage wrestler is lived within a single opportunity and single expression. Kids -- that's what they are -- deserve the opportunity to be supported in doing more than just one sport. They deserve to be given a chance to negotiate what it is they like and dislike. Adult life is about being forced to absorb and process the absolute repetitive hell that is "day-in, day-out." Being a child or young adult means getting to avoid that quicksand and live an optimistic, healthy existence -- preferably with three meals a day and gallons of fresh drinking water -- and it's this generation of wrestling parent that can change the prevailing 24/7, "Win you live, lose you die" attitude of the community. Sport specialization happens. You don't have to ask too many wrestlers over thirty what life was like as a child to see that vast separation between their experience and that of the modern youth wrestler. I started at 14 years old, wrestled ONLY in season and at the end of the day I smile more than I laugh, won more matches than I lost and made some lifelong friends. I also still work within the sport. Youth sports should be about teaching determination and competition, but a variety of options allow for personal growth ... Play to winDon't get confused about this message. Competition is OK and something that can be taught through passion. I'm not a psychopath about winning, but I can see that I have a drive to succeed and have been known to take ping-pong games with 12-year-olds too seriously. Some of that passion through wrestling, but a lot of that came from the confidence my parents let me create by allowing me choose my path (even as early as fourth-grade baseball). Fargo isn't the only cause of wrestling's high-turnover problem, but it is a result of priorities and poor leadership by coaches and parents. There will always be savants who excel at the sport, and kids who love wrestling so much that they have to get their beatings six days a week, but we all know that the vast majority of our little guys are neither. They're just dudes (and dudettes, though that's a separate culture) who don't want to disappoint Mom and Dad and who think that they (mostly) like some part of the sport of wrestling. So please, this week, give the poor kids a break. Cheer them on, support them and should the need arise allow them go on to do something else active, healthy and fun. The beauty of wrestling is that anyone might become a champion, but that not everyone can. Your kid included. To your questions ... Q: Failed drugs tests in MMA … How much do managers/coaches/partners know when athletes are using drugs? Should a guy like Greg Jackson be held accountable at all for Ali B. failed test vs. Mighty Mouse? -- @Rob_SwagginU Foley: I once interviewed an unnamed, very well-known MMA fighter who said that he believed 90 percent of fighters were on some type of performance enhancing drug. According to him the fighter would typically use them to help in training and then get off in enough time to pass the drug tests. For a long time that system was working, but now the commissions and the UFC (kinda) are cracking down. Were it up to Uncle Dana, fighters would probably all be on juice to improve their "KNOCKOUT!!!!!" potential, but as it stands he can't ask that of his contracted employees. He's a bright guy and probably sees how drugs almost killed baseball and would do the same to the UFC. The trainers are one-hundred percent aware of their fighters' in-the-gym activities, or at least should be. Did Jackson know about Ali B? It's possible, but he has a lot of fighters on his roster and Ali had a lot of people jabbering in his ear. There is a cloud of confusion that comes over operations like Jacksons and to make him responsible might be ill-advised. Athletes will always cheat to get ahead and while I think it's preposterous not to test them more often, it's also an expensive proposition. Without blanket procedures for who gets tested when the entire thing becomes a gamble, though in Ali's case I think it was a scheduled test. Who will hold him accountable are the young fighters coming up. Do they want to be in a camp with a bunch of guys that have peed hot in the past? Are they comfortable in being surrounded by a culture of cheating? Jackson needs to get involved from a business perspective and see that it's bad for the brand to have his title contenders get their butt kicked AND test positive for drugs. Q: Will there be line bracketing at Fargo this year? How will the seeding or bracket placement be done with so many competitors? -- @ghwcoach? Foley: Yes. The old system has been replaced by a simple bracket system that you see at the NCAA tournament. The top wrestlers will be separated as best as possible, though nothing can be guaranteed. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Stuart Scott Motivates Athlete of the Week: Mighty Mouse Kacy Catanzaro Wealth Gap: Wrestling can relate and Billy Baldwin reference! Link: John Bardis, The Wrestling CEO Q: What's your feeling on the state of wrestling in the American West? Grand Canyon turmoil, Pac-12 rebuilding, Wyoming, UVU? -- @NHoughSnee Foley: I'm hopeful. The recent firing of the Grand Canyon staff is tumultuous, but that program is being prepped for Division I and that means it will attract talent. No matter the reasons for the dismissal of the coaches there is opportunity, and with the right replacement Grand Canyon can keep up their recent successes. The Pac-12 is still reeling from a lack of depth, but with the news that Fresno State is closer than ever to re-adding their program and Zeke Jones moving to Tempe there is reason to stay optimistic. Conference growth is never an easy or quick fix. Cal-Poly should improve this season with guys coming out of redshirt and the Stanford Cardinal will place wrestlers at the NCAA tournament (Jason Borelli is proving to be one of the best coaches in the country). So why not? Let's go ahead and be hopeful. It's the American way. **FINAL READ** Doug ZembiecThe Washington Post reported this week that Marine Maj. Doug Zembiec's 2007 death in Iraq was while fighting on behalf of the CIA. Nicknamed "The Lion of the Fallujah" Zembiec starter his military career ate the Naval Academy where he was a two-time NCAA All-American wrestler. The story is worth reading in full, but here are a few quotes that speak to his force as a commander and man. He was without questions a warrior and remarkable in his perseverance and courage. "I was with him in Fallujah," the Marine continued. "And if we had to go back in there, I'd follow him in with a spoon." "The radio operator on Zembiec's death, 'Five wounded and one martyred.'" -- Wall Street Journal Final quote from Zembiec, given at his funeral "Be a man of principle. Fight for what you believe in. Keep your word. Live with integrity. Be brave. Believe in something bigger than yourself. Serve your country. Teach. Mentor. Give something back to society. Lead from the front. Conquer your fears. Be a good friend. Be humble and be self-confident. Appreciate your friends and family. Be a leader and not a follower. Be valorous on the field of battle. And take responsibility for your actions. Never forget those that were killed. And never let rest those that killed them."

SNINA, Slovakia -- Last year at the Cadet World Championships Teshya Alo earned a bronze medal, this year she struck gold. Teshya Alo (Photo/Martin Gabor)The Honolulu, Hawaii native, Alo won an impressive five matches on the day at 56 kilos/123.25 pounds during her run to gold, including two close one-point victories. She defeated Tatjana Rizhko of Ukraine in the quarterfinals 9-8, followed by a semi-final victory over Kumi Irie of Japan 4-3. In the gold medal bout it was all Alo. She opened up her offense early against Russian opponent Ksenia Nezgovorova, scoring a takedown in the first 20 seconds of the match. Heading into the second period the score favored Alo 3-2, a lead she would extend to 9-2 by the final whistle, crowning her Cadet World Champion. Read full story ... 2014 FILA Cadet World Championships At Snina, Slovakia, July 17 Women's freestyle results 38 kilos/83.75 pounds Gold: Al Tauguchi (Japan) Silver: Cristina Elena Zoltan (Romania) Bronze: Veronika Ryabovolova (Ukraine) Bronze: Sujata Sujata (India) 5th: Ari Rahime (Turkey) 5th: Laura Almaganbetova (Kazakhstan) 43 kilos/94.75 pounds Gold: Yui Susaki (Japan) Silver: Sonu Sonu (India) Bronze: Veronika Gurskaya (Russia) Bronze: Munkhnar Byambasuren (Mongolia) 5th: Ulkar Babajeva (Azerbaijan) 5th: Lisa Ersel (Germany) 49 kilos/108 pounds Gold: Kika Kagata (Japan) Silver: Leyla Qurbanova (Azerbaijan) Bronze: Suzana Georgiana Seicariu (Romania) Bronze: Viktoriia Vaulina (Russia) 5th: Kremena Petrova (Bulgaria) 5th: Anna Krol (Poland) 56 kilos/123.25 pounds Gold: Teshya Alo (United States) Silver: Ksenia Nezgovorova (Russia) Bronze: Alexandra Wolczynska (Poland) Bronze: Kumi Irie (Japan) 5th: Vatansever Ayse (Turkey) 5th: Tatjana Rizhko (Ukraine) 65 kilos/143.25 pounds Gold: Khanum Velieva (Russia) Silver: Irina Kapitanova (Kazakhstan) Bronze: Nellie Brink (Sweden) Bronze: Yuliana Yaneva (Bulgaria) 5th: Katerina Lobsinger (USA) 5th: Alina Levytska (Ukraine) U.S. women's freestyle performances 43 kilos/94.75 pounds -- Hailey Cox, Mapleton, Utah WIN Kim Gmeiner (Austria), 17-6 LOSS Lisa Ersel (Germany), 10-10 49 kilos/108 pounds -- Theresa Rankin, Grass Lake, Mich. LOSS Alena Sauko (Belarus), 2-8 56 kilos/123.25 pounds -- Teshya Alo, Honolulu, Hawaii, Gold WIN Simona Zamocnikova (Slovakia), 10-0 WIN Aurora Campagna (Italy), 10-0 WIN Tatjana Rizhko (Ukraine), 9-8 WIN Kumi Irie (Japan), 4-3 WIN Ksenia Nezgovorova (Russia), 9-2 65 kilos/143.25 pounds -- Katerina Lobsinger, Concord, Calif., 5th LOSS Khanum Velieva (Russia), 0-10 WIN Magdalena Ragginger (Austria), Fall LOSS Nellie Brink (Sweden), 0-5

We're still not saying that UFC Fight Pass is worth the money. However, this weekend's card has a solid lineup. Up-and-comer Connor McGregor headlines the Dublin show against Diego Brandao. As polarizing as McGregor is, Brandao probably won't be the one to derail the Irishman's hype train. But the best fight on the card might be the flyweight bout between Ian McCall and Brad Pickett. In a division short on new contenders, the winner could be on the short list to challenge Demetrius Johnson. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.

The annual mega-showcase of high-school-aged wrestling that is "Fargo" kicks off this Saturday with the Cadet Women's freestyle competition, and will conclude one week from Saturday with the championship and medal matches of the Junior freestyle competition. In between many of the nation's best known, and yet to be known, star wrestlers will test and show their mettle. No more vertical pairing in Fargo One major story that is going to be beaten to a bloody pulp by the end of the Cadet and Junior National Championships is the change from "vertical pairing" to "line bracketing" for the tournaments throughout the event. At a simple level, vertical pairing splits the competitors into two pools. Matches are conducted in kind of a round-robin format where wrestlers are eliminated upon their second loss of the event. Once the pool is down to four wrestlers, those are the All-Americans, while the last three (or two) remaining with less than two losses are then re-paired into a mini-round-robin structure. Upon determining placement in the pool, the medal round is cross-paired, so the champion of each pool competes for first place. Line bracketing is a fancy way of saying a traditional double-elimination tournament, like one is to see throughout their scholastic career (and like the NCAA tournament). Still, the top eight wrestlers will earn All-American honors. Four will do so through making the semifinals; while the other four will earn that distinction by winning a consolation match after losing in the quarterfinals, or winning a series of consolation matches and then beating a quarterfinal loser. Let's look at some varying aspects of the formats, and try to analyze reasons for (and against) the changed format. For those wondering if there is efficiency achieved in terms of the number of matches during the tournament, the answer is that each format yields about the same number of matches. See the below chart that compares the number of matches wrestled in each weight during the 2013 Junior National freestyle competition relative to if the event was wrestled as a double-elimination bracket. However, there is a clear variance in how the matches are distributed between the vertical paired tournament and the line bracketed tournament. While there are slight imperfections because tournament management may choose to skip certain weight classes within a round in order to achieve varying efficiencies (rest periods, making sure all weights participate in a session), the below should provide a general idea. For the vertical pairing, rounds one through nine represent preliminary rounds prior to the "round-robin" matches (as well as any tiebreaker bouts for fourth in a pool) being conducted. The latter matches are represented by rounds ten through twelve. For line bracketing, the rounds are as follows: all championship (of 128), mixed championship (of 64) and consolation, consolation, mixed championship (of 32) and consolation, consolation, mixed championship (of 16) and consolation, consolation, mixed quarterfinals and consolation, consolation round of 12, mixed semifinals and consolation quarters, and consolation semifinals. One of the major discussion points about the vertical pairing system is that a wrestler can lose during the course of the tournament (heck, even twice) and still make it to the finals should certain events within the course of pool competition happen. Well, in a line bracket, that obviously cannot happen. Another question to ask is how many matches -- generally speaking -- does a wrestler have to win to earn All-American honors within each system. The median bracket size in Junior freestyle last year was between 64 and 96 wrestlers, which in a line bracket would mean that either four or five straight wins on the "front side" would clear a wrestler to the semifinals; while a loss in the first match of competition would mean having to win seven or eight consecutive bouts to earn a top eight finish. Within the vertical pairing structure, winning six bouts before losing two is likely what it will take to be an All-American (sometimes a 5-2 mark is enough, though in other cases 6-2 is not enough). In terms of "bracket luck", each format has its own dynamics that one could classify into that bucket. Therefore, I don't think it's fair to say that one format's "bracket luck" is better or worse than the other in terms of earning an All-American finish. Additionally, on that track, different people will have different definitions of "bracket luck." Impact of FILA Cadet Worlds being this week Now moving onto topics that involve actual wrestlers and wrestling. One factor that will have an influence on field composition is the FILA Cadet World Championships being held this week in Slovakia. The Greco-Roman competition was conducted yesterday and today, while freestyle is being held on Saturday and Sunday. However, the travel itinerary has all competitors slated to travel back from Slovakia on Monday. Therefore, it is implausible for any of those wrestlers competing in the FILA Cadet World Championships to appear during the Greco-Roman tournaments (Cadet on Sunday and Monday, Juniors on Tuesday and Wednesday). Additionally, it would be rather ambitious for those competing in Slovakia to return for the Fargo freestyle competitions at the end of the week (Cadets on Wednesday through Friday, and Juniors on Thursday through Saturday), though some may choose to do so. The following wrestlers on the FILA Cadet World team in Slovakia are Cadet eligible for Fargo: Jason Holmes (Arizona) -- Greco 92.5 pounds Gavin Teasale (Jefferson-Morgan, Pa.) -- freestyle 92.5 pounds, No. 3 in the Class of 2018; Cadet freestyle 88 champion 2013 Dack Punke (Washington, Ill.) -- Greco 101.25 pounds Cade Olivas (St. John Bosco, Calif.) -- freestyle 101.25 pounds, No. 1 in the Class of 2018 Drew West (Highland Riverside, Iowa) -- Greco 110 pounds Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, Pa.) -- freestyle 110 pounds, No. 1 in the Class of 2017 Daton Fix (Sand Springs, Okla.) -- freestyle 119 pounds, No. 3 in the Class of 2017; Cadet Greco 106 and freestyle 113 champion 2013 Taylor LaMont (Maple Mountain, Utah) -- Greco 127.75 pounds, No. 18 in the Class of 2018; note that he would have competed in Greco at the Junior level if going to Fargo; Cadet freestyle 120 champion 2013 Dominick Demas (Dublin Coffman, Ohio) -- Greco 138.75 pounds, No. 25 in the Class of 2017 Jared Verkleeren (Belle Vernon, Pa.) -- freestyle 138.75 pounds, No. 15 in the Class of 2017 Jordan Wood (Boyertown, Pa.) -- freestyle 220 pounds, No. 5 in the Class of 2016 The following wrestlers would have to compete at the Junior level: Jake Spiess (Delta, Ohio) -- Greco 119 pounds Carter Happel (Lisbon, Iowa) -- freestyle 127.75 pounds, No. 17 in the Class of 2016; Cadet freestyle 132 champion 2013 Mason Manville (Blair Academy, N.J.) -- Greco/freestyle 152 pounds, No. 2 in the Class of 2016; Cadet Greco/freestyle champion 145 2013 Nick Reenan (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) -- Greco 167.5 pounds, No. 9 in the Class of 2016; Cadet Greco/freestyle champion 152 2013 Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) -- freestyle 167.5 pounds, No. 1 in the Class of 2016; Cadet Greco/freestyle champion 160 2013 Timothy Young (East Aurora, Ill.) -- Greco 187.5 pounds Hunter Ritter (John Carroll, Md.) -- freestyle 187.5 pounds, No. 37 in the Class of 2015; Cadet Greco champion 182 2013 Ethan Andersen (Southeast Polk, Iowa) -- Greco 220 pounds, No. 32 in the Class of 2016 Returning Fargo champions The following wrestlers that won 2013 Fargo titles are eligible to return at the same level at which they won the title last year (note that wrestlers competing in Slovakia this week are excluded below): Austin Gomez (Glenbard North, Ill.) -- Cadet Greco 94; No. 26 overall Class of 2017 Kaden Gfeller (Heritage Hall, Okla.) -- Cadet freestyle 94; No. 39 overall Class of 2017 Beau Breske (Hartford, Wis.) -- Cadet Greco/freestyle 170; No. 6 overall Class of 2016 Dalton Roberts (Fowlerville, Mich./graduated) -- Junior Greco 100 Kirk Johansen (Glenbard North, Ill.) -- Junior freestyle 100 Brandon Staley (Winter Springs, Fla.) -- Junior Greco 106 Hunter Marko (Amery, Wis.) -- Junior freestyle 106 Elijah Oliver (Christian Brothers, Tenn.) -- Junior freestyle 113; No. 38 overall Class of 2015 Jordan Shearer (West Fargo, N.D.) -- Junior Greco 126; No. 93 overall Class of 2015 Jered Cortez (Glenbard North, Ill./Illinois) -- Junior freestyle 126; ended No. 39 overall Class of 2014 Hayden Tuma (Centennial, Idaho/Nebraska) -- Junior Greco 132; ended No. 30 overall Class of 2014 Seth Gross (Apple Valley, Minn./Iowa) -- Junior freestyle 132; ended No. 58 overall Class of 2014 Joey McKenna (Blair Academy, N.J./Stanford) -- Junior Greco 138; ended No. 8 overall Class of 2014 Aaron Pico (California) -- Junior freestyle 138; not competing scholastically Jon-Jay Chavez (Centennial, Idaho/Cornell) -- Junior Greco 152; ended No. 32 overall Class of 2014 Ryan Blees (Bismarck, N.D./Oklahoma State) -- Junior freestyle 152; ended No. 18 overall Class of 2014 Davonte Mahomes (Oak Park River Forest, Ill./Michigan) -- Junior Greco 160; ended No. 41 overall Class of 2014 Chandler Rogers (Stillwater, Okla./Oklahoma State) -- Junior Greco 170; ended No. 20 overall Class of 2014 Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas/Penn State) -- Junior freestyle 170; ended No. 5 overall Class of 2014 Michael Pixley (Blue Springs, Mo./Lindsey Wilson) -- Junior freestyle 182; ended No. 13 overall Class of 2014 Chance McClure (Commerce, Ga./Virginia) -- Junior Greco 195 Roy Nash (Taylorsville, Utah/Utah Valley) -- Junior Greco/freestyle 220; ended No. 23 overall Class of 2014 The following wrestlers won 2013 Cadet National titles in Fargo but have to move up to the Junior level this year (the below list also excludes those competing in Slovakia this week): Louie Hayes (Carl Sandburg, Ill.) -- Cadet Greco 88 Joey Prata (St. Christopher's, Va.) -- Cadet Greco 100 Danny Vega (Ironwood Ridge, Ariz.) -- Cadet freestyle 100 Jack Mueller (Trinity Christian, Texas) -- Cadet freestyle 106; No. 29 overall Class of 2016 Mitch McKee (St. Michael-Albertville, Minn.) -- Cadet Greco 113; No. 44 overall Class of 2016 Gabe Townsell (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) -- Cadet Greco 120 Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco, Calif.) -- Cadet Greco/freestyle 126; No. 6 overall Class of 2015 Josh Bird (Burlington, Wis.) -- Cadet Greco 132 Larry Early (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) -- Cadet Greco 138; No. 42 overall Class of 2015 Isaiah White (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) -- Cadet freestyle 138; No. 8 overall Class of 2016 Justan Rivera (Kennesaw Mountain, Ga.) -- Cadet freestyle 182; No. 41 overall Class of 2015 Samuel Colbray (Hermiston, Ore.) -- Cadet Greco 195; No. 12 overall Class of 2016 Tyler Johnson (Lockport, Ill.) -- Cadet freestyle 195; No. 44 overall Class of 2015 Lance Benick (Totino-Grace, Minn.) -- Cadet Greco/freestyle 220; No. 5 overall Class of 2015 Jake Marnin (Southeast Polk, Iowa) -- Cadet Greco/freestyle 285; No. 46 overall Class of 2015 Emerging starlets One of the year-to-year narratives of the Fargo week is the opportunity for incoming ninth graders to make some major noise during a first major showcase opportunity on the "high school type of stage". While two of the most obvious names with that potential will be in Slovakia -- Cade Olivas and Gavin Teasdale -- and each kind of is already a well-known commodity, there will be others that stand out this coming week. Three of the most elite incoming ninth graders to be in Fargo this week happens to be middle-weights and slightly above, so it will be interesting to see if each can make a dent in what is not traditionally a weight area in which incoming ninth graders thrive in Fargo. Those being discussed are Jack Jessen (Willbowbrook, Ill.), Frankie Gissendanner (Penfield, N.Y.), and Brandon Whitman (Dundee, Mich.) Fargo coverage Keep your eye glued onto InterMat for Fargo coverage throughout the coming week including some event-specific previews and recaps, and well as a broad recap of the whole group of tournaments after the festivities are complete. Schedule Day 1: Saturday, July 19 Cadet women's freestyle Session I: 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Preliminaries, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Consolation and Consolation Semifinals Session II: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Day 2: Sunday, July 20 Cadet Greco-Roman Session I: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. 1/8 Championship, Quarterfinals and Consolations Day 3: Monday, July 21 Cadet Greco-Roman Session III: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Consolations, Semifinals and Consolation Semifinals Session IV: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Junior Greco-Roman Session I: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Consolations and 1/8 Championship Junior women's freestyle Session I: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Preliminaries, Consolations and 1/8 Championships Day 4: Tuesday, July 22 Junior Greco-Roman Session III: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Quarterfinals, Consolations, Semifinals and Consolation Semifinals Session IV: 2:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Junior women's freestyle Session II: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Quarterfinals, Consolations, Semifinals and Consolation Semifinals Session III: 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. If needed Session IV: 5:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Day 5: Wednesday, July 23 Cadet freestyle Session I: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Preliminaries, 1/8 Championships, Consolations Junior women's freestyle duals Session I: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Preliminaries Session II: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Preliminaries, Finals, Medal Matches, & Awards Day 6: Thursday, July 24 Cadet freestyle Session III: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Quarterfinals and Consolations Session IV: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Semifinals, Consolations and Consolation Semifinals Junior freestyle Session I: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Session II: 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Preliminaries and Consolations Day 7: Friday, July 25 Cadet freestyle Session V: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards Junior freestyle Session III: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 1/8 Championships, Quarterfinals, Consolations Session IV: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Semifinals, Consolations and Consolation Semifinals Day 8: Saturday, July 26 Junior freestyle Session V: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Finals, Medal Matches & Awards

SNINA, Slovakia -- Day 1 of the 2014 FILA Cadet World Championships produced a tough start for the U.S. Greco-Roman squad, as none of the five competing athletes reached a medal match. Columbus, Ohio's Domonick Demas was the star of the day for the U.S. winning his first two bouts impressively at 63 kilos/138.75 pounds, 8-0 over Bulgar Madalin of Romania and 4-4 over Ramon Betschart of Switzerland. Demas's run ended in the quarterfinals when he fell 5-16 to 2014 Cadet European Champion Nikoloz Tchikaidze of Georgia. Demas was the lone U.S. athlete to win a match on the day. Read full story ... 2014 FILA Cadet World Championships At Snina, Slovakia, July 15 U.S. Greco-Roman performances 50 kilos/110 pounds -- Drew West, Riverside, Iowa LOSS Aleh Zhuikou (Belarus), 0-8 54 kilos/119 pounds -- Jacob Spiess, Delta, Ohio LOSS Davit Makoidze (Georgia), 0-4 58 kilos/127.75 pounds -- Taylor LaMont, Mapleton, Utah LOSS Mikko Peltokangas (Finland), 2-10 63 kilos/138.75 pounds -- Domonick Demas, Columbus, Ohio WIN Nicolae Bulgar Madalin (Romania), 8-0 WIN Ramon Betschart (Switzerland), 4-4 LOSS Nikoloz Tchikaidze (Georgia), 5-16 100 kilos/220 pounds -- Ethan Andersen, Des Moines, Iowa LOSS Povilas Danilevicius (Lithuania), 2-11

UFC 175 had a lot of hiccups but middleweight champion Chris Weidman looked impressive in his win over Lyoto Machida. Ronda Rousey was even more dominant, but it is hard to tell whether the women's division can produce a viable challenger at this point. Richard and John analyze last weekend's card and look ahead to the July 16 show featuring Donald Cerrone vs. Jim Miller. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.