USA sweeps team title in all three styles as men’s freestyle scores five Pan Am golds in Lima

LIMA – The USA won five of a possible eight gold medals on Sunday night at the Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru, to win the men’s freestyle team title. The night was highlighted by two finals wins over Cuban opponents.

Team USA swept the team gold in all three styles as the men’s freestyle squad dominated, winning the cup with 230 points, which was 100 points more than second-place Cuba. Rounding out the top-five was Canada with 123, Colombia with 84 and Peru with 81.

The U.S. went 2-2 against Cuba in finals matches, getting wins from David Taylor and Nick Gwiazdowski.

Taylor, a 2018 Ivan Yarygin Memorial champion, earned his first Pan American title on Sunday night, knocking off two-time Pan Am champion Yudenny Torreblanca from Cuba, who won gold in 2017 and 2015.

Torreblanca drew first blood with a takedown but Taylor came back and held off the Cuban for a 3-2 win.

With the win, Taylor became the third wrestler from the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club to win a men’s freestyle gold medal. Yesterday, Mark Hall and Ben Provisor walked away with gold at 79 and 92 kg, respectively.

2017 World bronze medalist Gwiazdowski wrapped up the night for Team USA, defeating two-time Pan Am silver medalist Yudenny Alpajon Estevez for the crown at 125 kg. It was no contest as Gwiazdowski shut out the Cuban, 9-0.

U.S. Open champion Joe Colon came away with the first gold of the night for the USA. In the 61 kg finals, Colon, who faced Joshua Bodnarchuk of Canada for the second time today, attacked off the whistle, working his way to a takedown and four guts for a 10-0 tech fall.

2016 World champion Stieber followed suit at 65 kg with a 10-0 victory of his own. For gold, Stieber defeated Abel Herrera Pastor from the host country, Peru. Wrapping up the bout so quickly for Stieber was a deadly leg lace early in the match.

The win marks Stieber’s second-straight medal at the event as he finished with bronze in 2017.  His performance, which included a comeback win over 2017 World bronze medalist Alejandro Valdes Tobier of Cuba in the semifinals, earned him the Outstanding Wrestler honor.

James Green defended his 2017 Pan Am title, overpowering Hernan Guzman of Colombia with a 10-0 tech fall. The two had met earlier in the day in pool play, where Green recorded an 11-1 win.

At 74 kg, Nazar Kulchytskyy finished with a silver medal, falling to four-time Olympic and World medalist Livan Lopez Azcuy of Cuba, 6-1. It was the first USA/Cuba matchup of the session.

Also taking home a silver medal was U.S. Open champion Kyven Gadson, who suffered his loss of the day to three-time World medalist Reineris Salas Perez of Cuba, 8-2, in the 97 kg finals.

2017 World silver medalist Thomas Gilman bounced back to win bronze after a morning session loss to 2017 U23 World champion Reineri Andreu Ortega of Cuba. In his third-place match, Gilman defeated Pedro Mejias Rodriguez of Venezuela with a decisive 11-4 win.

Gilman also had to wrestle a true-third match to qualify USA for the 2019 Pan Am Games at 57 kg. He defeated Juan Ramirez Beltre from Dominican Republic.

2018 SENIOR PAN AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIPS

at Lima, Peru, May 3-6

Team results (top five)
1. USA - 230
2. Cuba - 130
3. Canada - 123
4. Colombia - 84
5. Peru - 81

Men’s freestyle results
57 kg
GOLD - Reineri ANDREU ORTEGA (CUB) df. Oscar Eduardo TIGREROS URBANO (COL), 10-0
BRONZE - Thomas Patrick GILMAN (USA) df. Pedro Jesus MEJIAS RODRIGUEZ (VEN), 11-4
BRONZE – Juan Rubelin RAMIREZ BELTRE (DOM) win by forfeit Victor Manuel BARRON CARDENAS (MEX)

61 kg
GOLD - Joseph Daniel COLON (USA) df. Joshua BODNARCHUK (CAN), 10-0
BRONZE - Juan Antonio RODRIGUEZ JOVEL (ESA) df. Alexis OLVERA MAGALLANES (MEX), 8-6

65 kg
GOLD - Logan Jeffery STIEBER (USA) df. Abel Gerald HERRERA PASTOR (PER), 10-0
BRONZE - Alejandro Enrique VALDES TOBIER (CUB) df. Michael Stanley David ASSELSTINE (CAN), 10-0
BRONZE – Albaro RUDESINDO CAMACHO (DOM) df. Freddy Leonardo VERA FAJARDO (ECU), 10-0

70 kg
GOLD - James Malcolm GREEN (USA) df. Hernan Dario GUZMAN IPUZ (COL), 10-0
BRONZE - Alexander CHAVES (CAN) df. Marcos PEREIRA DE OLIVEIRA JUNIOR (BRA), 10-0

74 kg
GOLD - Livan LOPEZ AZCUY (CUB) df. Nazar KULCHYTSKYY (USA), 6-1
BRONZE - Nestor Joaquin TAFUR BARRIOS (COL) dec. Jevon BALFOUR (CAN), 8-6
BRONZE – Jorge Ivan LLANO (ARG) df. Carlos Eduardo ROMERO MILLAQUEO (CHI), 9-1

79 kg
GOLD - Mark John HALL II (USA) df. Ethan Adrian RAMOS (PUR), 6-0
BRONZE - Santiago MARTINEZ RESTREPO (COL) win by forfeit Rashji Leonardo MACKEY (BAH)
BRONZE - Shawn Kenneth DAYE FINLEY (CAN) df. Marcos Roberto QUESADA MARTINEZ (PER), fall 1:13

86 kg
GOLD - David Morris TAYLOR III (USA) df. Yurieski TORREBLANCA QUERALTA (CUB), 3-2
BRONZE - Pool Edinson AMBROCIO GREIFO (PER) df. Julio Rafael RODRIGUEZ ROMERO (DOM), 10-0
BRONZE – Pedro Francisco CEBALLOS FUENTES (VEN) win by forfeit Carlos Arturo IZQUIERDO MENDEZ (COL)

92 kg
GOLD - Benjamin Errol PROVISOR (USA)
SILVER - Esdras Carlos LOPEZ PEREZ (MEX)
BRONZE - Dalton James WEBB (CAN)

97 kg
GOLD - Reineris SALAS PEREZ (CUB) df. Kyven Ross GADSON (USA), 8-2
BRONZE - Jordan STEEN (CAN) df. Charles Zachary MERRILL (PUR), 11-1
BRONZE – Jose Daniel DIAZ ROBERTTI (VEN) df. Miguel Javier SANCHEZ GERALDO (MEX), 11-0

125 kg
GOLD - Nicholas Edward GWIAZDOWSKI (USA) df. Yudenny ALPAJON ESTEVEZ (CUB), 9-0
BRONZE - Catriel Pehuen MURIEL (ARG) df. Carlos Jose FELIX GARCIA (DOM), 13-3
BRONZE - Korey JARVIS (CAN) df. Jose Noel ERAZO HENRIQUEZ (ESA), 10-0

U.S. men’s freestyle results
57 kg/125.5 lbs. – Thomas Gilman (Iowa City, Iowa/Titan Mercury WC/Hawkeye WC) - BRONZE
WIN Andre Quispe Fajardo (Chile), 10-0
WIN Alexander Moher (Canada), 10-0
LOSS Reineri Andreu Ortega (Cuba), 7-4
WIN Pedro Mejias Rodriguez (Venezuela), 11-4

61 kg/134 lbs. – Joe Colon (Fresno, Calif./Titan Mercury WC) - GOLD
WIN Luis Mallqui Suazo (Peru), 12-0
WIN Joshua Bodnarchuk (Canada), 13-2
WIN Juan Rodriguez Jovel (El Salvador), fall 0:34
WIN Joshua Bodnarchuk (Canada), 10-0

65 kg/143 lbs. – Logan Stieber (Columbus, Ohio/Titan Mercury WC/Ohio RTC) - GOLD
WIN Michael Asselstine (Canada), 10-0
WIN Brandon Diaz Ramirez (Mexico), 10-0
WIN Alejandro Valdes Tobier (Cuba), injury default
WIN Abel Herrera Pastor (Peru), 10-0

70 kg/154 lbs. – James Green (Lincoln, Neb./Sunkist Kids) - GOLD
WIN Anthony Montero Chirinos (Venezuela), 4-1
WIN Hernan Guzman Ipuz (Colombia), 11-1
WIN Marcos Pereira de Oliveira (Brazil), fall 0:38
WIN Hernan Guzman Ipuz (Colombia), 10-0

74 kg/163 lbs. – Nazar Kulchytskyy (Stoughton, Wis./Titan Mercury WC) - SILVER
WIN Jorge Ivan Llano (Argentina), 11-0
WIN Carlos Romero Millaqueo (Chile), 10-0
LOSS Livan Lopez Azcuy (Cuba), 6-1

79 kg/174 lbs. – Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn./Nittany Lion WC) - GOLD
WIN Rashji Mackey (Bahamas), win by forfeit
WIN Santiago Martinez Restrepo (Colombia), 10-1
WIN Ethan Ramos (Puerto Rico), 6-0

86 kg/189 lbs. – David Taylor (State College, Pa./Nittany Lion WC) - GOLD
WIN Eduardo Garjardo Meneses (Chile), 12-2
WIN Pool Ambrocio Greifo (Peru), 11-0
WIN Julio Rodriguez Romero (Dominican Republic), fall 0:51
WIN Yurieski Torreblanca Queralta (Cuba), 3-2

92 kg/202 lbs. – Ben Provisor (State College, Pa. /New York AC/Nittany Lion WC) - GOLD
WIN Dalton Webb (Canada), 11-0
WIN Fabio Conceicao Rodrigues (Brazil), 11-0
WIN Grajales (Peru), win by forfeit
WIN Esdras Lopez Perez (Mexico), 10-0

97 kg/213 lbs. – Kyven Gadson (Waterloo, Iowa/Sunkist Kids) - SILVER
WIN Miguel Sanchez Geraldo (Mexico), 10-0
WIN Jose Diaz Robertti (Venezuela), 3-3
LOSS Reineris Salas Perez (Cuba), 8-2

125 kg/275 lbs. – Nick Gwiazdowski (Raleigh, N.C./Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack WC) - GOLD
WIN Catriel Muriel (Argentina), 10-0
WIN Carlos Felix Garcia (Dominican Republic), 11-0
WIN Yudenny Alpajon Estevez (Cuba), 9-0