Forrest named OW; Pennsylvania wins USMC Junior Men’s Freestyle team title with four champs

Fargo, North Dakota – A stellar week for Pennsylvania’s Junior men’s freestylers culminated with a second straight team championships and four individual champions after the finals concluded on Wednesday night at the Fargodome at the 2024 U.S. Marine Corps Junior and 16U Nationals.

Jax Forrest won his second straight Junior men’s freestyle title, topping Illinois’ Seth Mendoza by technical fall at 132 pounds. Forrest was voted the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler after beating all seven of his opponents by technical superiority and outscoring his opponents 74-3.

The Keystone State went 4-2 in the finals, with one of the losses coming in an all-PA final at 120 pounds.

Forrest avenged his April loss to Mendoza in convincing fashion, scoring a takedown early in the first 15 seconds of the match and scored three different turns on top to build an 8-0 lead in the first minute. Forrest finished off the win with a takedown 90 seconds into the bout. Forrest’s second title adds a fourth medal to his all-time Fargo haul – he was a double All-American in 2021 while representing North Carolina.

Forrest wasn’t the only past champion from Bishop McCort to taste success on the night as Melvin Miller rallied to score two takedowns in the final 10 seconds to snatch an 8-7 victory away from Arizona’s Isaias Jimenez at 157 pounds.

Jimenez went up 7-3 halfway through the second period, but Miller gave chase, scoring a takedown to cut the gap to two with four seconds left. On the restart, Miller converted a takedown with just one second left to tie the score at 7-7 and lead on criteria. The extra point came from a lost Jimenez challenge. The Junior crown is Miller’s second career title in Fargo – he won the 16U men’s freestyle title here last year.

Another dominant Pennsylvania performance was turned in by Aaron Seidel at 126 pounds. Seidel teched his first five opponents, then beat teammate Nathan Desmond in the semifinals.  Seidel shutout Iowa’s Koufax Christensen 10-0 to claim a championship that eluded him last summer. It’s Seidel’s fourth medal in Fargo and first championship.

A fourth title came in the aforementioned all-PA final at 120 pounds where Gauge Botero beat Brock Rothermel 11-2. It’s Botero’s first career title after placing four previous times across both Greco-Roman and men’s freestyle.

Pennsylvania tied its state record for most All-Americans they set last year in Junior men’s freestyle and set a new team scoring record in the process with 278. New Jersey was second with four champions, eight total All-Americans and 139 points.

New Jersey and Pennsylvania combined to win eight of the 15 finals. The Garden State went on a roll in the upper weights – reaching the finals in the final five weights and claiming three straight titles at 165, 175 and 190 pounds before ending the tournament with a title at 285 pounds.

Alessio Perentin (165), Ryan Burton (175), Harvey Ludington (190) and Rocco Dellagatta (285) were victorious on Wednesday night with Perentin and Ludington winning in dominating fashion.

Perentin teched Massachusetts’ Elliott Humphries 10-0 in 95 seconds to close out his tournament with seven technical fall victories. Following Perentin’s win, Burton score three second-period points to knock off Connecticut’s William Henckel at 175 pounds. It’s Burton’s third medal in Fargo and his second in Junior men’s freestyle. He was sixth at 170 pounds last year.

Ludington wasted little time in dispatching with Nebraska’s Cade Ziola, claiming a 10-0 tech in 1:17. Ludington, like Perentin, went 7-0 with all technical falls.

Dellagatta closed the night with an entertaining 8-7 win over Iowa’s Daniel Herrera at 285 pounds.

Eight total states won titles on the night with California the only other state winning multiple times. Daniel Zepeda claimed the stop sign at 144 pounds with a 13-4 win over Smokey McClure of Washington while 215-pounder Angelo Posada beat New Jersey’s Anthony Harris 5-2.

Illinois’ only title of the night came at 100 pounds where Michael Rundell rallied to defeat Pennsylvania’s Xavier Diaz 8-5.

At 106 pounds, Georgia’s Christopher Swann claimed the state’s sixth all-time 16U men’s freestyle title with an 8-7 win over Nevada’s Antonio Quiroz. Trailing 4-3, Quiroz went ahead with a takedown with 30 seconds to go. On the restart, it appeared that Quiroz would add an exclamation point with a big throw on the edge of the mat, but after a challenge by Swann, the officials ruled it was Swann’s attack, giving him the four-point action – and the lead - instead.

New York’s Dunia Sibomana capped an amazing run by claiming the championship at 113 pounds by defeating Ohio’s Ayden Dodd 8-2. The title was New York’s 21^st all-time in the event and ended a 13-year drought atop the podium in the division. Sibomana’s title is the first for the Empire State since Brian Realbuto won at 145 pounds in 2011.

Arizona’s Sergio Vega scored 10 straight points to offset an early deficit in a 10-2 victory over Georgia’s Drew Gorman at 138 pounds. Minnesota’s lone champion of the night came at 150 pounds where Landon Robideaux won his first Fargo championship to go along with three other medals. Robideaux topped California’s Paul Kelly 10-0.

2024 U.S. MARINE CORPS JUNIOR & 16U NATIONALS

MEDAL MATCH RESULTS

JUNIOR MEN FREESTYLE

100 pounds

Finals: Michael Rundell (IL) dec. Xavier Diaz (PA) 8-5

3rd: Ethan Powell (OH) tech fall Kacen Jones (UT) 10-0 1:49

5th: Jason Foutz (PA) tech fall Brock Goebel (NE) 16-5 4:43

7th: Kaiden Belinsky (IA) tech fall Chase Dubuque (NJ) 15-4 3:56

106 pounds

Finals: Christopher Swann (GA) dec. Antonio Quiroz (NV) 8-7.

3rd: Jarrett Smith (MI) dec. Carter Chunko (PA) 6-2

5th: Cason Craft (OK) dec. Brady Byrd (IN) 11-10

7th: Charles Esposito (NJ) tech fall Daniel Alire (AZ) 10-0 2:31

113 pounds

Finals: Dunia Sibomana (NY) dec. Ayden Dodd (OH) 8-2.

3rd: Abdirahman Unle (NE) dec. Revin Dickman (IN) 8-6

5th: Nicolas Enzminger (ND) tech fall Brayden Teunissen (IL) 10-0 0:32

7th: Caleb Noble (IL) tech fall Oumar Tounkara (NY) 13-3 4:20

120 pounds

Finals: Gauge Botero (PA) dec. Brock Rothermel (PA) 11-2

3rd: Blake Beissel (MN) dec. Davis Motyka (PA) 7-6

5th: Nicholas Garcia (IL) dec. Dominic Deputy (PA) 4-4

7th: Dru Ayala (IA) dec. Antonio Mills (GA) 13-11

126 pounds

Finals: Aaron Seidel (PA) tech fall Koufax Christensen (IA) 10-0, 2:41

3rd: Christian Castillo (AZ) tech fall Gavin Jendreas (IN) 10-0 4:07

5th: Nathan Desmond (PA) dec. Edwin Sierra (CA) 5-3

7th: Billy Townson (CA) dec. Jace Hedeman (IA) 6-0

132 pounds

Finals: Jax Forrest (PA) tech fall Seth Mendoza (IL) 10-0

3rd: Jake Hockaday (IN) dec. Matthew Botello (MA) 8-4

5th: Tyler Dekraker (PA) dec. Moses Mendoza (CA) 9-8

7th: Logan Swensen (MN) dec. Manuel Saldate (NV) 12-3

138 pounds

Finals: Sergio Vega (AZ) dec. Drew Gorman (GA) 10-2.

3rd: Alex Braun (MN) dec. Hunter Hollingsworth (OK) 6-4

5th: Sam Herring (PA) tech fall Carter Freeman (IA) 10-0 6:00

7th: Kellen Wolbert (WI) won by forfeit Blue Stiffler (GA)

144 pounds

Finals: Daniel Zepeda (CA) dec. Smokey Mcclure (WA) 13-4

3rd: Tyson Charmoli (MN) dec. Pierson Manville (PA) 3-2

5th: Zeno Moore (FL) dec. Jace Roller (OK) 14-7

7th: Gabriel Bouyssou (RI) tech fall Gus Cardinal (AZ) 12-0 2:46

150 pounds

Finals: Landon Robideau (MN) tech fall Paul Kelly (CA) 10-0

3rd: Maddox Shaw (PA) dec. August Hibler (NJ) 6-4

5th: Blake Cosby (MI) tech fall Daishun Powe (AL) 13-2 5:16

7th: Matthew Martino (ID) pin Brandon Dean (CO) 2:16

157 pounds

Finals: Melvin Miller (PA) dec. Isaias Jimenez (AZ) 8-7

3rd: Kody Routledge (OK) dec. Ishmael Guerrero (OK) 11-5

5th: Benjamin Weader (VA) inj. def. Vince Bouzakis (PA)

7th: Claudio Torres (FL) tech fall Caleb Olson (IA) 10-0 1:48

165 pounds

Finals: Alessio Perentin (NJ) tech fall Elliott Humphries (MA) 10-0

3rd: Charlie Millard (WI) dec. Clayton Giddens (OK) 5-3

5th: Israel Ibarra (AZ) pin Travis Grace (CA) 2:54

7th: Gunner Holland (FL) dec. Dante Hutchings (CO) 13-8

175 pounds

Finals: Ryan Burton (NJ) dec. William Henckel (CT) 4-2

3rd: Adam Waters (PA) tech fall Caleb Dennee (WI) 12-1 2:36

5th: Waylon Cressell (IN) tech fall Keenan Sheridan (SD) 10-0 0:32

7th: Mason Ontiveros (CA) tech fall Matthew Jens (IL) 11-1 5:13

190 pounds

Finals: Harvey Ludington (NJ) tech fall Cade Ziola (NE) 10-0, 1:17

3rd: Carson Thomas (OH) dec. Gage Yackee (OH) 5-5

5th: Anders Thompson (MT) tech fall Elijah Diakomihalis (NY) 15-2 4:50

7th: Peter Snyder (MD) dec. Aidan Ysaguirre (AZ) 2-1

215 pounds

Finals: Angelo Posada (CA) dec. Anthony Harris (NJ) 5-2

3rd: Austin Johnson (PA) tech fall Melvin Whitehead (NV) 10-0 4:32

5th: Evan Mcguire (MN) dec. Michael Calcagno (IL) 11-6

7th: Ian Smith (WI) inj. def. Antonio Palmer (NE)

285 pounds

Finals: Rocco Dellagatta (NJ) dec. Daniel Herrera (IA) 8-7

3rd: Parker Ferrell (VA) tech fall Jay Henderson (UT) 15-4 4:15

5th: Rylan Kuhn (MO) dec. Dean Bechtold (PA) 6-5

7th: Richard Thomas (OK) dec. Jackson Barnhart (IL) 6-0

Team Scores

1. Pennsylvania 278

2. New Jersey 139

3. California 101

4. Minnesota 84

5. Illinois 77

6. Arizona 75

7. Oklahoma 72

8. Ohio 62

9. Iowa 61

10. Indiana 55

11. Georgia 49

12. Nebraska 44

13. Wisconsin 37

14. Nevada 34

14. New York 34

16. Massachusetts 32

17. Michigan 24

17. Utah 24

17. Virginia 24

20. Connecticut 20

20. Washington 20

22. Florida 19

23. Missouri 9

23. Montana 9

23. North Dakota 9

26. Alabama 7

26. South Dakota 7

28. Idaho 5

28. Maryland 5

28. Rhode Island 5

31. Colorado 4