July
23, 2007: The Wrestling Mall, High School News
Youth Wrestling: Utah All-Stars
Defeat Ohio All-Stars 49-45
The evening of July 19, 2007, started with
the presentation of awards to four Intermountain
Champions, determined by their participation in two
Greco-Roman and two freestyle tournaments in Utah (the
Mountain Top Classic) and Idaho (the Idaho Express
Invitational). Competitors earned points in the
tournaments, which led to an Intermountain Champion being
named for each age division. Of the seven awards, six were
earned by Utah athletes, four of which were present at
Juan Diego High School to receive them.
Six-year-old Jaxon Moore of Pleasant Grove
was named for the Flyweight division (ages 6 and under)
for winning the championship in both freestyle and
Greco-Roman at the Mountain Top Classic, and being named
Outstanding Wrestler in the age division in both styles.
Six-year-old Jed Lee of Draper was named
for the Bantam division (ages 7 and 8) for winning the
championship in both freestyle and Greco-Roman at the
Mountain Top Classic, and winning runner-up honors in both
styles at the Idaho Express Invitational.
Nine-year-old Matt Lee of Draper was named
for the Midget division (ages 9 and 10) for winning the
championship in both freestyle and Greco-Roman at the
Mountain Top Classic, being named the Outstanding Wrestler
for the age division in both styles, and winning the
freestyle championship and Greco-Roman runner-up honors at
the Idaho Express Invitational.
Twelve-year-old William Kilpack of Sandy
was named for the Novice division (ages 11 and 12) for
winning the championship in both freestyle and Greco-Roman
at both the Mountain Top Classic and Idaho Express
Invitational, and being named the Outstanding Wrestler for
his age division in freestyle at the Idaho Express
Invitational.
Not present to receive their awards were
Jacob Falk of West Jordan, who was the recipient for the
Schoolboy division (ages 13 and 14) and Carson Kuhn of
Sandy, who was the recipient for the Cadet (ages 15 and
16) division.
The awards presentation was then followed
by introductions, and the dual began.
The night started out a little shaky. One
of the Utah All-Stars came down sick the morning of the
dual, so Patrick Brock of Hill Air Force Base agreed to
wrestle both matches; so he would be both the first and
last bout of the night. That dual opener was a shocker,
with TJ Miller of New Jersey beating Brock in freestyle by
technical fall (gaining a six-point lead in two of three
rounds), without allowing Brock to score a point. With the
list of star wrestlers Brock has taken down from their
pedestals, it did not bode well for the night.
Then both Shand Hardy of Brigham City and
Brandon George of Woods Cross won clear freestyle
decisions, two rounds to zero, and it seemed that the Utah
team was on a roll as Garrett Sweat of Heber City teched
his opponent in the first round of his freestyle match,
6-0. But Brandon Thompson of Ohio came back to win the
next two rounds, taking away the victory. It seemed to be
all Ohio from that point on, with Ohio winning six
straight matches, regardless of style; every one of them
by fall or technical fall.
Jake Ribald of West Jordan then broke
their streak, and started the momentum swinging back
toward Utah, teching his opponent in freestyle in two
rounds, without allowing his opponent to score a point.
Teddy Hackford of Heber City then pinned his opponent in a
folkstyle match, and Austin Frazier of Mapleton did the
same in his folkstyle match. Courtney Orgill of Coalville
pulled out a hard-fought folkstyle decision, 2-0, and
Koleton Hardy of Brigham City did the same, winning a
folkstyle decision 4-0.
Momentum then seemed to shift again, with
Kyle Brooman of Pennsylvania beating Kaleb Ashworth of
Spanish Fork in a folkstyle decision, 11-8. The next
matches were something of a tennis match, as Corrick
Knight of Providence pinned his opponent in folkstyle,
then Danny Collier of Ohio pinned Quin Nielsen of Pleasant
Grove, and Dustin Jenkins of Springville won his freestyle
match by technical fall, 7-0, 10-2. That put the Utah
All-Stars within striking range, down 45-40, with only two
matches to go.
Travis McRae of South Jordan gave the Utah
All-Stars their first lead in the dual, teching his
opponent 6-0 in the first round, then pinning him in 50
seconds of the second round, putting Utah up 46-45.
The match to end the night was Patrick
Brock, coming off that harsh loss opening the dual, and
wrestling an opponent that the Ohio All-Stars felt was
better than the one he faced in the first round. It was
the match that would decide the night. Brock stuck with
freestyle, and pulled out the first round by close margin,
in a serious nailbiter decision, 3-2. But the tide had
shifted. Brock then continued on to win the second round
3-1, giving Utah the final victory, 49-45.
The format for the dual was unusual, with
the host team choosing the style for each match, freestyle
or folkstyle. It made for an exciting night of wrestling
with a lot of talent being showcased. Sportsmanship was
also in the spotlight, with the athletes exchanging gifts
during the introductions.
For more information about the dual and
the Utah All-Star team, go to
www.UtahWrestling.org.
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