Two matches to feature Beat the Streets student-athletes at Final X

Two freestyle matches featuring Beat the Streets New York student-athletes will be featured between Final X sessions Saturday, June 14 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. 

On the men’s freestyle mat, Oumar Tounkara of The Bronx, N.Y., will compete against Cooper Merli of Newburgh, N.Y., in a matchup featuring two top 15-ranked high school seniors at 113 pounds by FloWrestling. On the women’s freestyle mat, Ana Carolina Mindlin Lockard of Brooklyn, N.Y., will face Amillyiona Green of Beat the Streets Philadelphia. 

Tounkara, who is part of the BTSNY Academy program, is a two-time National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) champion and two-time National Prep All-American, placing seventh in 2023 for St. Benedict’s Prep and third this year for New York Military Academy. He is ranked No. 11 in the country and will wrestle next year at Drexel University. Merli is a three-time New York state folkstyle finalist, claiming titles in 2023 and 2024, plus runner-up honors this year. He will attend New York Military Academy next fall before attending Army West Point. 

Mindlin Lockard is an accomplished junior at Brooklyn Tech and BTSNY Academy member. She is a two-time New York state girls freestyle champion and five-time New York City champion, with three titles in girls freestyle and two in girls folkstyle. She earned NHSCA All-American honors with a fifth place finish this year and took third place at the Eastern States Classic. Green, a rising sophomore at Mariana Bracetti Academy, took second at the Phil Portuese Northeast Regional in May and is a 2024 Pennsylvania Youth state qualifier.  

Final X will determine the 2025 U.S. World Team in two international disciplines—men’s freestyle and women’s freestyle. In total, 20 weight classes will be contested, 10 in each discipline. The top two U.S. athletes in each weight classes will wrestle a best-of-three series at Final X to determine the U.S. representative at the 2025 Senior World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia. 

Final X will serve as the Beat the Streets New York Annual Benefit, the 15th BTSNY Annual Benefit to date. These unique electrifying events help BTSNY raise more than $1 million each year to support local youth wrestling programs which empower young people in New York City. The BTSNY Annual Benefit after-party will follow the conclusion of Final X. 

Benefit tickets and sponsorship packages (Final X plus exclusive after party celebration access), that also provide the best wrestling-event seats, are available at btsny.org. Proceeds from Benefit tickets and sponsorship packages will directly help BTSNY serve NYC youth. For more information on ticket packages, email BTSNY Executive Director Brendan Buckley at bbuckley@btsny.org. 

Event-only tickets for Final X without access to the BTSNY after-party celebration are available on Ticketmaster. 

FloWrestling will serve as the host broadcast partner for Final X. Fans can watch the event live or on-demand at FloWrestling.com. 

Online results for Final X will be available on USA Bracketing, USA Wrestling's new best-in-class event management software. 

Final X will be held in two sessions on Saturday, June 14. Session I, which starts at 12:30 p.m. (ET), will feature U.S. National Team true-third matches, followed by round one in each best-of-three series at 2 p.m. (ET). Session II, which starts at 5 p.m. (ET), will continue with round two and if-necessary round three matches. 

For more information about Final X, visit themat.com.