JUNIOR GRECO DUALS: Seeding doesn't mean much to tough Illinois team
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by Roger Moore
OKLAHOMA CITY - Seeding doesn't mean much to Illinois.
The defending champions at the Junior Greco Duals on the campus of Oklahoma City University this week, are seeded fourth in 2008. They opened the tournament with a 43-21 victory against New York, then hammered Wisconsin and California 2 for a perfect 3-0 day in Pool D.
"We were seeded fifth last year, so it doesn't bother us," said 125-pounder Jimmy Chase.
2006 Greco champ Missouri, seeded second in 2008, was also 3-0 and will face California 1 this morning for top honors in Pool B, the only pool of the four without a champion after the first day.
Iowa rolled through three opponents, beating Georgia in Monday's evening session for a 3-0 start and No. 1 in Pool C.
The Georgians tried to make a dual of it, getting a win at 140 pounds from Carson Fields over Matt McDonough to tie things at 16. But Iowa ran off six straight for 35-16, including Taylor Kettman's pin at 171 and Josh Ihnen's technical fall at 189.
2007 Junior Greco champ Andrew Long also had a technical fall for the Iowans.
Pool A, which includes top-seeded Minnesota, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida and Virginia, saw a number of first-day slugfests. In the end, however, it was Minnesota and escaped unscathed.
After edging Virginia, 34-26, Michigan, a runner-up in 2005, trailed Pennsylvania, 22-18, entering 152 pounds. Michigan ran off five-straight victories starting with Junior All-American Jake Bohn's win over 2007 Cadet national champion Dirk Cowburn.
Michigan's Mike Curby beat Pennsylvania's Michael Evans in a battle of Cadet All-Americans at 171 pounds. Dominique Walker (189) and Travis Pettingill (215) wrapped up the win.
Michigan was no match for the top seeds, falling 46-11.
2007 Cadet champion Hayden Zilmer started things off at 98 pounds and Jake Kahnke provided the exclamation point for Minnesota with a one-minute pin at 215.
Second-seeded Missouri held off Texas' upset bid in the evening session. Stephen McPeek gave the Lone Star state a 28-22 advantage, but Missouri rallied with a pin at 189 by John Eblen and a decision by Kolton Kono at 215. All-American Elijah Madison closed out the dual with a pin for Missouri to fashion the final score.
Pool competition wraps up Tuesday morning with the race for the championship heating up in the afternoon session.
For complete results visit
www.trackwrestling.com
Decisions, decisions
Illinois' Jimmy Chase, a Junior All-American in 2007 and a fourth place finisher at the Olympic Trials in Las Vegas barely two weeks ago, picked up a pair of victories on Monday.
In Vegas, Chase lost a wild semifinal bout to Spencer Mango, who beat Sam Hazewinkel for the 121-pound Greco spot and will wrestle in Beijing next month.
"I try not to think about it too much," admitted Chase after Illinois' win over Wisconsin on Monday afternoon. "It kind of changed the way I am looking at things right now. I have to make a decision about what I'm going to do. I think you have to focus on one or the other, especially if you want to win an Olympic medal. I've still got some time to figure it all out."
Chase was dangerously close to giving the U.S. two high schoolers on the Greco squad - Jake Deitchler, from Minnesota, was the 145.5-pound champion in Las Vegas.
Chase, who will be a senior this fall, will get a chance at gold at the FILA Junior Greco-Roman World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, at the end of July.
"I've never been out of the country … I went to Canada once but I don't think that counts," Chase said. "I'm really looking forward to it."
Chase beat Nikko Triggas, a freshman at Ohio State in 2007-08, in the best-of-three finals in May at the Junior World Team Trials in Colorado Springs, Colo.
"I did take six weeks off after knee surgery in August, but I haven't taken any time off since," Chase admitted.
The defending champions at the Junior Greco Duals on the campus of Oklahoma City University this week, are seeded fourth in 2008. They opened the tournament with a 43-21 victory against New York, then hammered Wisconsin and California 2 for a perfect 3-0 day in Pool D.
"We were seeded fifth last year, so it doesn't bother us," said 125-pounder Jimmy Chase.
2006 Greco champ Missouri, seeded second in 2008, was also 3-0 and will face California 1 this morning for top honors in Pool B, the only pool of the four without a champion after the first day.
Iowa rolled through three opponents, beating Georgia in Monday's evening session for a 3-0 start and No. 1 in Pool C.
The Georgians tried to make a dual of it, getting a win at 140 pounds from Carson Fields over Matt McDonough to tie things at 16. But Iowa ran off six straight for 35-16, including Taylor Kettman's pin at 171 and Josh Ihnen's technical fall at 189.
2007 Junior Greco champ Andrew Long also had a technical fall for the Iowans.
Pool A, which includes top-seeded Minnesota, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida and Virginia, saw a number of first-day slugfests. In the end, however, it was Minnesota and escaped unscathed.
After edging Virginia, 34-26, Michigan, a runner-up in 2005, trailed Pennsylvania, 22-18, entering 152 pounds. Michigan ran off five-straight victories starting with Junior All-American Jake Bohn's win over 2007 Cadet national champion Dirk Cowburn.
Michigan's Mike Curby beat Pennsylvania's Michael Evans in a battle of Cadet All-Americans at 171 pounds. Dominique Walker (189) and Travis Pettingill (215) wrapped up the win.
Michigan was no match for the top seeds, falling 46-11.
2007 Cadet champion Hayden Zilmer started things off at 98 pounds and Jake Kahnke provided the exclamation point for Minnesota with a one-minute pin at 215.
Second-seeded Missouri held off Texas' upset bid in the evening session. Stephen McPeek gave the Lone Star state a 28-22 advantage, but Missouri rallied with a pin at 189 by John Eblen and a decision by Kolton Kono at 215. All-American Elijah Madison closed out the dual with a pin for Missouri to fashion the final score.
Pool competition wraps up Tuesday morning with the race for the championship heating up in the afternoon session.
For complete results visit
www.trackwrestling.com
Decisions, decisions
Illinois' Jimmy Chase, a Junior All-American in 2007 and a fourth place finisher at the Olympic Trials in Las Vegas barely two weeks ago, picked up a pair of victories on Monday.
In Vegas, Chase lost a wild semifinal bout to Spencer Mango, who beat Sam Hazewinkel for the 121-pound Greco spot and will wrestle in Beijing next month.
"I try not to think about it too much," admitted Chase after Illinois' win over Wisconsin on Monday afternoon. "It kind of changed the way I am looking at things right now. I have to make a decision about what I'm going to do. I think you have to focus on one or the other, especially if you want to win an Olympic medal. I've still got some time to figure it all out."
Chase was dangerously close to giving the U.S. two high schoolers on the Greco squad - Jake Deitchler, from Minnesota, was the 145.5-pound champion in Las Vegas.
Chase, who will be a senior this fall, will get a chance at gold at the FILA Junior Greco-Roman World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, at the end of July.
"I've never been out of the country … I went to Canada once but I don't think that counts," Chase said. "I'm really looking forward to it."
Chase beat Nikko Triggas, a freshman at Ohio State in 2007-08, in the best-of-three finals in May at the Junior World Team Trials in Colorado Springs, Colo.
"I did take six weeks off after knee surgery in August, but I haven't taken any time off since," Chase admitted.
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