Volk Set to Compete at U20 Freestyle World Championships

Laramie, Wyo. – Cowboy Wrestling True Freshman Jore Volk is set to go international next week as he travels to Sofia, Bulgaria to compete in the 57kg weight class at the U20 Freestyle World Championships. Volk will be in action Monday, Aug. 15 – Tuesday, Aug. 16 competing for a U20 world title amongst a field of 22 international competitors.

The Lakeville, Minnesota native punched his ticket to the U20 World Championships with a gold medal performance at the U20 World Team Trials. Volk sprung upsets over the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds in the 57kg bracket en route to making the World Team Trials finals. Volk then cemented his World Team Member status in an electric best-of-three series against Troy Spratley. In the decisive third match of the series, Volk scored a push-out point with just two seconds left on the clock to clinch the match and the series punching his ticket to Sofia.

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‘Feels like yesterday’: Steffen inducted into NSIC hall of fame

Link Steffen has taken plenty of his experiences and used them as tools to help the wrestlers on the Zumbrota-Mazeppa team. He said he’s not sure many of the wrestlers know he won a national championship during his collegiate career.

They might be aware now as Steffen was inducted into the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Hall of Fame last month. Steffen, along with six other individuals, was inducted in the hall of fame Class of 2022.

One of the biggest messages he sends to the team is to enjoy every moment. Steffen felt he did so during his career and wants others to savor the ability to compete.

“Enjoy each day to the best of your ability,” Steffen said. “Enjoy the most of it you can while you have it.” Continue reading at republicaneagle.com →

Berge heads off to U20 World Championships

Incoming South Dakota State wrestler Bennett Berge will compete next week in the 2022 U20 World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.

A native of Mantorville, Minnesota, Berge is entered in the 86-kilogram weight class of the men’s freestyle division. The competition gets underway Tuesday morning (Aug. 16) with qualification rounds, followed by semifinal matches later that afternoon. The championship bout is set for the evening of Wednesday, Aug. 17.

Video coverage of the U20 World Championships is available through FloWrestling.org (subscription required).

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Schlatter Steps Down as Head Coach of Gopher Wrestling Club

MINNEAPOLIS – After 17 years in the Minnesota wrestling room, Gopher Wrestling Club (GWC) head coach Dustin Schlatter has decided to step down to pursue other opportunities outside of the sport, as announced by the club on Friday afternoon.

Since taking the helm of the regional training center in May 2018, Schlatter helped lead GWC to its first Olympic gold medalist and first World Team member, and has had at least one athlete qualify for Final X to compete for a World Team spot in each year of his tenure. In the previous Olympic cycle, Gopher Wrestling Club qualified eight athletes for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials under Schlatter.

Most recently, Gopher Wrestling Club has become the standard at the 125-kilogram weight class by housing the best heavyweight wrestlers in the nation the past two seasons. In 2021, Gable Steveson won the gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics with a win over Georgia’s Geno Petriashvili, before Hayden Zillmer punched his ticket to the 2022 World Championships in Serbia with a best-of-three series win over Nick Gwiazdowski at Final X this past June.

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NDSU Announces 2022-23 Signee Class

FARGO, N.D. – The North Dakota State wrestling program and head coach Roger Kish have announced the complete signing class ahead of the 2022-23 season this week.

The 2022-23 signee class includes 13 Bison commits who are slated to join the program this fall from five different states. The class features 20 high school state championships along with numerous other cadet and junior regional and state titles.

“We are excited to welcome another talented group of young men to Fargo,” said Kish. “We have a great squad that this class will further add to and we have very high expectations for this group as they join our Bison Family.”

Five signees are ranked on the top recruiting big boards, bringing the NDSU total over the last two seasons to 13.

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