National Duals

Iowa impresses with 40-23 final win over Oklahoma Outlaws Red to win Junior National Freestyle Duals

Minnesota Blue Places Third at Junior Duals

TULSA, Okla. – Iowa’s Junior men’s freestyle team looked strong over both days of the 2021 Junior Freestyle National Duals, but may have saved its best wrestling for the championship finals.

After dropping the first two bouts, Iowa won 10 of the final 13 matches, including some very close battles, to defeat returning champion Oklahoma Outlaws Red, 40-23.

The finals dual meet began at 138, where Carter Young of Oklahoma secured a controlled 4-1 decision over Joel Jesuroga of Iowa. Young scored a first-period takedown to lead 2-1 at the break, then added two second period step-outs after leg attacks to secure the win. Continue reading at teamusa.org →

Illinois wins Junior Greco-Roman Duals, Oklahoma second, Minnesota third, all with 4-1 record in finals pool

Coming into the 2021 Junior National Greco-Roman Duals, Illinois had won three straight team titles, including the most recent one held in 2019. With the COVID-19 pandemic canceling last year’s event, it would be a different group of wrestlers tasked with trying to make it four in a row for Illinois.

Although it wasn’t easy, and the team needed some help from another team, it was Illinois Junior Greco-Roman which had the championship trophy to pose early Thursday evening.

The six teams in the Gold/Silver pool each wrestled each other, with all of the teams getting five duals. After five rounds of action, Illinois Junior Greco-Roman, Minnesota Blue and host Oklahoma Outlaws Blue all finished with identical 4-1 records.

In short, the tiebreaker goes like this. The team with the least classification points is third, and that was Minnesota. Then, the head to head win by Illinois over Oklahoma gave Illinois the championship trophy. Continue reading at teamusa.org →

California wins Junior Women’s Duals; Illinois takes second

Minnesota goes 3-2 placing 9th overall

This year, the Gold/Silver pool at the Junior Women’s National Duals was a six-team round robin, which meant each team would wrestle each other with a total of five dual meets for each team. As the competition continued, it became apparent that the team champions would probably be determined when Pool A champion California met Pool C champion Illinois Junior Women in Round four.

On paper, the big showdown between returning Junior Women’s Duals national champion Illinois and perennial power California looked to be a toss-up. Illinois had nine nationally ranked wrestlers on the roster, with California bringing eight, and both teams looked strong in their first three Gold/Silver Pool dual meet wins.

The dual meet opened as if it was going to be a huge blow-out win for California, which won the first five matches, four by bonus points, to lead 21-1. California opened with a pair of pins from Maliya Castillo (180) and America Lopez (200). Lopez, ranked No. 17, pinned No. 12 Gainey in 4:48/ California added technical fall wins from No. 4 ranked Sam Calkins at 225 and No. 12 ranked Madison Avila to continue the great start. Continue reading at teamusa.org →

Ohio Red Earns 16U Freestyle Title, Minnesota Red Wins 14U Division at National Duals

Minnesota Blue Places Third at 16U Duals

WESTFIELD, Ind. – Ohio Red and Minnesota Red claimed titles in freestyle at the 16U and 14U divisions, respectively, at the 2021 National Duals in Westfield, Ind.

In 16U competition, Ohio Red won the tournament with a 41-32 defeat over Jew Jersey. Ohio won nine of the dual’s 17 bouts to help propel the squad to the win. Taking third was Minnesota Blue, which took out Illinois, 49-27. Pennsylvania Blue finished fifth and California finished seventh in the tournament.

Winning the 14U tournament was Minnesota Red, defeating California, 41-31 in the finals. For bronze, New Jersey edged out Iowa, 39-38. Ohio Scarlet was fifth, while Illinois took seventh. Continue reading at teamusa.org →

Minnesota Rolls To Greco 16U National Duals Title

After a two-day demolition of the Greco-Roman field at the 16U National Duals, Minnesota coach Adam Thronson shared a simple secret to his state’s success in the sport — experimentation.

No, the Minnesotans aren’t reinventing the Greco wheel with anything cutting edge, according to Thronson.

They’re just giving the discipline a shot and their commitment is making Minnesota a national Greco hotbed.

“We have four regional training sites throughout Minnesota,” Thronson said. “We have amazing clubs in Minnesota that are always pushing for going to the Greco tournament on Friday and the freestyle tournament on Saturday. It’s just important to give things a try. I don’t think Minnesota is doing anything special. We just stick to a system and we want kids to give this a try. It’s working toward building kids’ confidence from a young age and when they do that we can come to a tournament like this and have a lot of success.” Continue reading at flowrestling.org →

Minnesota Blue Wins 16U Greco Nationals Duals, Illinois Claims 14U Title

Minnesota Red Places Third at 14U Duals

WESTFIELD, Ind. – Minnesota Blue put together a big win over Oklahoma Outlaws Blue in the finals of the 16U Greco-Roman National Duals, 48-26, and Illinois edged out Pennsylvania Blue in the 14U finals, 39-38.

Minnesota Blue won 12 of the night’s 17 matches against Oklahoma Outlaws Blue, including four wins by tech fall and eight by decision. For third place in the 16U division, California took out Illinois, 36-35. Pennsylvania Blue won the fifth-place dual and Idaho emerged victorious for seventh.

In the 14U division, Illinois and Pennsylvania Blue split the bout 9-9. It came down to the 87 kg bout, where Domenic Munaretto won an 11-0 tech fall. The third-place team was Minnesota Red, which dominated Iowa, 52-29. Round out the placement match winners were New Jersey and Michigan Blue for fifth and seventh, respectively. Continue reading at teamusa.org →