Wolverines Place Three at Freestyle/Greco Nationals
5/11/2015 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
May 11, 2015
LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- The University of Michigan wrestling team placed three representatives on the award stand at the U.S. Open and United World Wrestling (UWW) Junior National events, held last weekend (Fri-Sat., May 8-9) at the South Point Hotel.
Sophomore Alec Pantaleo took second place in junior freestyle division at 70kg/154 pounds, junior Adam Coon and volunteer coach Kellen Russell both took third place in the senior-level competition in 130kg/286-pound Greco-Roman and 65kg/143-pound freestyle, respectively.
Pantaleo posted a 4-1 record in just his second national freestyle competition, cruising into the championship match with a pin, a pair of technical falls and a 5-0 semifinal decision in the semifinals over Penn State's Cody Law -- behind two takedowns and a leglace. The Wolverine fell to Wyoming's Archie Colgan, 7-0, in the final, giving two takedowns, including a four-pointer in the second period, and a pushout.
Coon also posted a 4-1 Greco record in his senior-level debut, falling only to eventual champion Robby Smith, 8-0, in the semifinal round off a takedown and three gut wrenches. He bounced back with a pair of technical falls in the consolation bracket, cruising to a 9-0 win over Matthew Lamb in the third-place match with a match-ending four-point throw midway through the second period. Coon also competed in the freestyle competition but didn't fare as well. He was forced to forfeit his first match while competing in his overlapping Greco semifinal. He sacrificed a second-period lead to Wisconsin's Connor Medbery, falling 5-5 on criteria after giving up a takedown midway through the period.
Russell went 5-1 in his third U.S. Open competition, twice beating four-time NCAA champion Logan Steiber -- in the quarterfinals and third-place contest. The wrestlers traded takedowns in the first period of the former bout before Russell gained a second-period edge with a pushout and takedown. Russell dropped a controversial 4-3 semifinal decision to Jordan Oliver on a late pushout and lost challenge but rebounded with back-to-back consolation wins, including a 12-2 technical fall over Steiber in his final bout.
The top-five senior freestyle placewinners and top-eight junior freestyle placewinners at each weight automatically qualified for the UWW Junior Freestyle World Team Trials, scheduled for June 12-14 in Madison, Wisconsin.
Communications Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
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