Day 3 Preview: 8 Quarterfinals To Watch, 15 Triple Crown Hopefuls Remain, First Finals Incoming

FARGO, N.D. – The rubber meets the road on Sunday morning at the FARGODOME. Of the 512 athletes left standing in the Junior and 16U Boys freestyle tournaments, only half will find a place on the All-American podium, while just 32 earn a spot in the history books as national champions.

For the first time this week, both divisions will be in action simultaneously, and will run the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals gauntlet in a single day. The first session begins at 10 a.m. (CT), with the championship finals set for 5 p.m. (CT). The finals run side-by-side on the raised platforms in the North endzone of the FARGODOME.

First things first, to become a champion, you have to win match one on Sunday. Here’s a look at four key quarterfinals in each division to keep an eye on.

It doesn’t get better than two returning champions going head-to-head. Mills was the 126-pound Junior Boys freestyle champion last year, while Hernandez won his title at the 16U level, also at 126 pounds. Game on.

Both Bjerga and Ellis have seen their share of success in Fargo. They each have a third-place finish at the 16U level, plus other podium finishes at various USA Wrestling national events. Bjerga has teched his way to this point and is the alternate U17 World Team member at 65 kg. Ellis has placed in Fargo four times, looking to cement a fifth All-American finish with a win here.

Name recognition rings out in this matchup between returning runners-up. Medlin, the son of Illinois coach Bryan Medlin, finished second in the weight last year and has made the finals in Fargo four times, going two and two. He was the Junior Greco-Roman champion in addition to freestyle runner-up in 2025. Anyone who followed the college season last year will recognize the Robideau name, with Landon Robideau winning the 157-pound NCAA title. Brother Lincoln Robideau is out for a national title of his own after finishing second at 144 pounds in the 16U Boys freestyle division last year.

Heiser and Boe have been wrecking balls through the first two days of wrestling. Heiser has posted four technical falls and a pin, while Boe has gone four-for-four on technical falls. Excluding the one pin by Heiser, these two are averaging a combined 13 points per match—impressive marks for an upper weight. Boe was the 16U Boys freestyle champion at 157 pounds in 2024 and took seventh at 165 pounds last year in Juniors. Heiser was fourth at the 16U level last year in this weight class.

Murillo is the lone returning 16U Boys freestyle champion standing. He takes on a familiar opponent in Lundvall, who was seventh in 16U Boys freestyle last year. Murillo pinned Lundvall this same round a year ago. He owns a 2-0 record over Lundvall in freestyle, the second win coming by criteria, 2-2, at the Junior National Duals held last month in Milwaukee, Wis.

Joyce and Klichurov meet in one of only two battles of returning All-Americans in the 16U quarters—Lundvall and Murillo being the other. In last year’s event, Joyce was sixth at 100 pounds, and Klichurov was eighth at 113 pounds. Both men are high school state place winners in traditionally tough folkstyle states as underclassmen.

Bacon was the runner-up in this weight class last year and appears to be firing on all cylinders once again in Fargo. He secured three technical falls and a pin on the way to the quarters, where he will see a similarly hot Diaz, who went pin-pin-pin to this point.

Another top talent looking for his first Fargo national title is Kammerud, who is the No. 1 seed and returning third-place finisher in the weight class. Young, the Northwest Regional champion, has proven tough to this point and will attempt to spoil Kammerud’s run.  

Returning champion Nathan Schuman of Pennsylvania (113) went down on Saturday, bringing the number of eligible repeat contenders in the Junior Boys freestyle division down to four—Turner Ross of Oklahoma (113), Antonio Mills of Georgia (132), Melvin Miller of Pennsylvania (165) and Nicholas Singer of Pennsylvania (195). Leo Murillo of Pennsylvania (100) holds strong as the last returning 16U champion.

An impressive 15 athletes continue on the championship side with USA Wrestling Triple Crown aspirations—7 in the Junior Boys division and 8 in the 16U Boys division. Last year at this juncture, there were only 11 with a Triple Crown opportunity. Who will clear the second hurdle on Sunday?

Still Eligible For Junior Boys Triple Crown:

·      DeVaughn Miller of Alabama (100)

·      Cason Craft of Oklahoma (113)

·      Mac Crosson of Iowa (157)

·      Maximus Dhabolt of Iowa (175)

·      Waylon Cressell of Iowa (190)

·      Ladd Holman of Utah (215)

·      Kal-El Fluckiger of Arizona (285)

Still Eligible For 16U Boys Triple Crown:

·      Johnathan Thompson of Iowa (94)

·      Jeremiah Hayes of Illinois (144)

·      Caden Woodall of Arizona (150)

·      Jaimon Mogard of Iowa (157)

·      Harrison Murdock of Georgia (165)

·      Dresden Beard of Kansas (190)

·      Leland Havens of Wisconsin (285)

·      Sawyer Schendel of Minnesota (285)

The team race is coming into focus for both divisions. On the Junior side, Illinois and Pennsylvania hold a slight lead on the field with 23 wrestlers left in the tournament. However, Iowa is in prime position to make a jump with the most championship-side wrestlers at 12. The 16U side is clearer cut as to who will take the team title. Pennsylvania is running away with things at 37 wrestlers still in the mix, which is 16 more than second-place Ohio.  

Team points are awarded based only on placement to the top eight wrestlers in each weight class (1st: 25, 2nd: 20, 3rd: 15, 4th: 12, 5th: 9, 6th: 7, 7th: 5, 8th: 2). There are no advancement points or bonus points in this scoring model.

T1. Illinois 23 (10 championship, 13 consolation)

T1. Pennsylvania 23 (8 championship, 15 consolation)

3. Iowa 18 (12 championship, 6 consolation)

4. California 17 (11 championship, 6 consolation)

5. Indiana 14 (8 championship, 6 consolation)

T6. Minnesota 12 (8 championship, 4 consolation)

T6. Ohio 12 (8 championship, 4 consolation)

8. Wisconsin 11 (6 championship, 5 consolation)

T9. Florida 10 (6 championship, 4 consolation)

T9. New Jersey 10 (4 championship, 6 consolation)

T9. Oklahoma 10 (5 championship, 5 consolation)

1. Pennsylvania, 37 (26 championship, 11 consolation)

2. Ohio, 21 (9 championship, 12 consolation)

3. Iowa, 20 (15 championship, 5 consolation)

4. California, 19 (9 championship, 10 consolation)

5. Illinois, 18 (6 championships, 12 consolation)

6. New Jersey, 15 (6 championship, 9 consolation)

T7. Indiana, 13 (7 championship, 6 consolation)

T7. Wisconsin, 13 (11 championship, 2 consolation)

9. Minnesota, 12 (5 championship, 7 consolation)

T10. Michigan, 9 (4 championship, 5 consolation)

T10.Oklahoma, 9 (6 championship, 3 consolation)

Fans can browse brackets and up-to-date results from the U.S. Marine Corps Junior Nationals on USA Bracketing. For those unable to attend in person, our broadcast partners at FloWrestling have the live broadcast of the event.

Visit the U.S. Marine Corps Junior Nationals Event Hub and USA Wrestling’s social media platforms for complete coverage of the action in Fargo.