Junior Freestyle National Duals Preview

Jun 25, 2015 by Ryan Holmes

Some of the best talent in the country has made the trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma as they represent their state in search of the Junior Freestyle National title. The first two days of Greco gave us something to whet our appetites, but here comes the main event with the stars to match. Minnesota (1), Illinois, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Ohio and hosting state Oklahoma have a great deal of talent in their line up which is sure to make things interesting and ultra competitive after the first two days of nothing but throws. So let’s start with the returning champs – Oklahoma – as we break down the top eight teams that should be in contention for the championship in the Gold/Silver pool on the final day.

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Some of the best talent in the country has made the trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma as they represent their state in search of the Junior Freestyle National title.

The first two days of Greco gave us something to whet our appetites, but here comes the main event with the stars to match. Minnesota (1), Illinois, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Ohio and hosting state Oklahoma have a great deal of talent in their line up which is sure to make things interesting and ultra competitive after the first two days of nothing but throws.

So let’s start with the returning champs – Oklahoma – as we break down the top eight teams that should be in contention for the championship in the Gold/Silver pool on the final day.

Oklahoma

This year they feature one hell of a line-up once again. It’s like a big bag of hammers with Daton Fix, Kaden Gfeller, Kaid Brock, Jo Jo Smith, Boo Lewallen and Hayden Hansen, just to name a few. There is so much firepower up and down the line-up that it’s going to be tough for some of these other teams to keep up. As the returning champs they are the frontrunners to repeat.

Minnesota

A season ago they made it to the finals where they were taken out by Oklahoma. And it’s a possibility that it could happen once again. These guys also have quite a squad with Patrick and Mitch McKee, Cam Sykora, Ben Brancale, Keegan Moore and top-ranked 220-pounder Gable Steveson. If they meet Oklahoma in the final once again (which they should) it will be another epic battle.

Illinois

As of right now we aren’t too sure what the Illinois line-up will look like. Kamal Bey and Isaiah White, who competed on the Greco team, may not be sticking around for Freestyle. Nonetheless, Illinois will be tough to beat as they look to add Austin Gomez to their pack of lower weights. They've already claimed Schoolboy and Cadet Duals titles so adding a Junior title is clearly on the horizon.

Pennsylvania

They’ve got a pretty solid team lead by Hayden Hidlay and Jared Verkleeren, the top two 145-pound wrestlers in the country. Anchored by Riley Palmer, who is a long way away from his 106-pound spot as he holds things down at 132, along with the Munn brothers – Patrick and Andrew – Jarod Lane, Jacob Lizak and Gage Curry, PA has the potential to compete very well and claim a favorable finish.

New Jersey

Beware of this group of studs. They’re dangerous and come with plenty of depth. The boys of Blair, Matt Kolodzik, Requir van der Merwe, Jordan Kutler and Chase Singletary, will get help from David McFadden, Jeff Velez and Kyle Bierdumpfel. It’s tough not to look at this cast of character and not think that they could finish towards the top of the heap.

California Red

They’ve got some great leadership with Randon Miranda, Durbin Lloren and Nick Aguilar. California will also have some strong support from Liam Cronin, Devan Turner, Jaden Enriquez, Anthony Mantanona, Roman Romero and Christian Ayala. Like PA, the have the depth and strength to do well and surely shouldn’t be overlooked.

Ohio

Led by Kevin Vough and Ben Darmstadt, Ohio can also claim a favorable finish. Upper weights James Handwerk, James Ford and Garrett Fogel will come in clutch with some support here as well. They may not finish at the top, but they will make things competitive and interesting.

Iowa

Like Illinois, their Freestyle rosters isn't set as of yet. However, if the roster they put together for the Greco tournament, which feature Cash Wilcke and Brody Teske, is any indication of the type of talent that will be representing for them, then be on the lookout for these guys to have a nice finish as well.

Championship Prediction

Oklahoma will once again defend its home turf against Minnesota in the finals. Like I said above, both teams boast a ton of talent and have the power to take home the title. But I believe that the boys sporting the Cowboy on their singlet has the edge. In the end, I believe they will take it.

Score: Oklahoma 42-21 over Minnesota