Burroughs’ win highlights freestyle wrestling finals at South Point

Olympic champion and three-time World champion Jordan Burroughs was pushed to the brink by Olympic Trials runner-up Kyle Dake in the 74 kg/163 lbs. U.S. Open final Saturday at South Point Arena, and Burroughs survived another close battle with his long-time rival.

Burroughs (139-4) is 5-0 against Dake, one of four men to win four NCAA Division I titles. With Saturday’s win, Burroughs picked up his fourth U.S. Open title and advanced to the best-of-3 championship series at the U.S. World Team Trials, set for his home turf in Lincoln, Nebraska, on June 9 and 10.

After being on the doorstep for many years, Jordan Oliver broke through to claim his first U.S. Open title with a 4-4 criteria win over 2016 Olympian Frank Molinaro.

Two-time World Team member Tony Ramos made a strong statement to the 57 kg/125.5 lbs. field by claiming his second U.S. Open title with a 5-3 victory over Nahshon Garrett.

2015 World bronze medalist James Green downed Nazar Kulchytskyy 4-1 in the 70 kg/154 lbs. finals for his first U.S. Open title. Green is two matches away from making his third Senior-level World team.

Now a two-time U.S. Open champion, David Taylor left no doubt in his 86 kg/189 lbs. final against Richard Perry, finishing things early in the second period with a 10-0 technical fall.

Taylor won five matches at the U.S. Open this weekend, four by technical fall and one by pin. He has won 16 straight matches on the Senior level, leading all Americans. Taylor was named outstanding wrestler of the tournament.

Coming up with a breakthrough performance was 125 kg/275 lbs. champion Nick Gwiazdowski, who won his first U.S. Open crown with a 3-2 decision over 2015 World Team member Zachery Rey in the championship match.

Also claiming their first U.S. Open titles were Kyven Gadson at 97 kg/213 lbs. and Kendric Maple at 61 kg/134 lbs.

Five of the eight U.S. Open champions booked a place in the U.S. World Team Trials championship series. Those qualifying for the best-of-3 finals are Ramos, Oliver, Green, Burroughs and Gwiazdowski.

The automatic berths in the remaining three weight classes go Logan Stieber, J’den Cox and Kyle Snyder on the merit of their respective World and Olympic medals from 2016.

The top seven finishers in each weight class qualified to compete at the U.S. World Team Trials next month.

GRECO-ROMAN

The last four Greco-Roman World Team spots were filled Saturday at South Point Arena, and all four competitors made their first U.S. Senior World Team.

Cadet World champion Mason Manville (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army WCAP) defeated Kamal Bey (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids), a heavy favorite entering the tournament, in two matches at 75 kg.

U.S. Army WCAP put another wrestler on the 2017 Greco World Team, its third of the weekend, when Ildar Hafizov (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army WCAP) bested No. 2-ranked and top-seeded Hayden Tuma (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army WCAP) in the 59 kg finals.

At 71 kg, Patrick Smith (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm) dethroned 2016 World Team member Chris Gonzalez (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) in straight matches.

Two-time Olympian Ben Provisor (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) can add Senior World Team member to his resume. He defeated 2016 Olympic Team Trials champion at 98 kg Joe Rau (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm) two matches to none in the 85 kg finals.

The squad will represent the United States at the 2017 World Championships in Paris on Aug. 21-26.

WOMEN

2016 Olympic champion Helen Maroulis flashed the high-octane offense and technical skills that made her the first U.S. woman to win an Olympic wrestling gold medal on her way to a victory at her new weight class, 58 kg/128 lbs., at the Women’s World Team Trials on Saturday at South Point Arena.

Maroulis (New York, N.Y./Sunkist Kids) won both of her Championship Series matches by technical fall over 2017 U.S. Open champion Kayla Miracle.

Maroulis has made seven Senior World Teams, plus an Olympic team. She boasts an Olympic title, a World title, a World silver medal and a World bronze medal.

Making her second World Team was Victoria Anthony (Tempe, Ariz./Sunkist Kids), who won her championship series in two straight matches at 48 kg/105.5 lbs. over Cody Pfau (Brush, Colo./Titan Mercury WC).

In 2013, Anthony went up to 51 kg to make her first Senior team and placed fifth in the World Championships. She was a two-time Junior World champion. Maroulis and Anthony were teammates at college at Simon Fraser University, both winning four WCWA college national titles.

Making their first Senior World Teams were past Junior World bronze medalists Becka Leathers (Choctaw, Okla./Titan Mercury WC) at 55 kg/121 lbs. and Victoria Francis (Colorado Springs, Colo./Titan Mercury WC) at 75 kg/165 lbs. Leathers won her Junior World medal in 2015, while Francis won hers in 2014.

Leathers swept her series over 2016 World Team member Sarah Hildebrandt. Francis won her Championship Series in two straight matches over 2015 World Team member Erin Clodgo, who was the 2017 U.S. Open champion.

These four champions joined four other women who won the World Team Trials on Friday, completing the U.S. Women’s World Team, which will compete at the 2017 Senior World Championships in Paris on Aug. 21-26.