Iowa claims Junior National Duals Greco-Roman title in dramatic 34-31 win over Minnesota Gold
by Adam Engel, USA Wrestling
Iowa, the 2022 Junior National Duals Greco-Roman Team champion. Photo by Pete Isais.
TULSA, Okla. — A thunderous throw near the edge of the mat triggered a roar of celebration.
Iowa’s Ryker Graff scored a technical fall over Michael Olson of Minnesota Gold at 106 pounds to clinch a national championship 34-31, in the Greco-Roman Junior National Duals in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Graff stepped on the mat for the last match with his team trailing by a point. He carried a 5-0 lead into the break and continued to work on Olson. Thirty seconds into the second period, Graff locked his hands around Olson and unloaded. A five-point throw caused Graff to scream towards his teammates on the bench after clinching the dual.
Minnesota Gold opened the dual with three straight bonus point wins from Brandon Morvari (113), Alan Koehler (120) and AJ Smith (126). Gable Porter put Iowa in the win column at 132. He threw Minnesota Gold’s Tyson Charmoli to solidify a 9-4 win.
The squads traded wins. At 152, Hunter Garvin contributed to the see-saw nature of the dual with an 11-0 tech fall over Minnesota Gold’s Brendan Howes. Halfway through the first period. Garvin sent Howes straight to his back on a body lock four-point throw. From there, Garvin punished Howes with a series of gut wrenches.
Minnesota Gold extended its lead after Jed Wester recorded a 9-0 tech fall over Iowa’s Gabe Carver.
But an injury default ignited an Iowa win streak. Minnesota Gold’s Travis Smith sustained an apparent lower body injury against Iowa’s Nicholas Fox and didn’t continue.
From there, Iowa ripped off three consecutive wins.
Iowa’s Tate Naaktgeboren scored six straight points to stop Minnesota Gold’s Anthony Tuttle, 8-6, at 182. A bout later, Iowa’s Wyatt Voelker, a Junior National champion, scored a critical step out point to top Minnesota Gold’s Soren Herzog, 6-5. At 220, Iowa’s Jackson Dewald tied the dual at 26-26 after a 12-3 technical fall against Soren Herzog.
But Minnesota Gold didn’t stop. The tech fall frenzy continued with the heavyweights. Minnesota Gold’s Elijah Novak used his compact frame to toss Wyatt Smith several times. Novak’s 8-0 victory put Minnesota Gold in control.
At 100, Iowa’s Jayden Rinken put his team in a position for a comeback after a 13-3 technical fall over Minnesota Gold’s Lawson Eller. More than halfway through the first, Rinken countered a body lock with a four-point headlock throw. From there, Rinken pushed finished off Eller with two seconds remaining in the match.
This set the stage for Graff’s big win.
California used a plethora of forfeit wins to crush Oklahoma Red, 50-18, to claim third in the Gold/Silver Pool. Illinois outlasted Florida, 37-27, for fifth in the Gold/Silver Pool. In the seventh place dual, a Wisconsin forfeit at heavyweight proved costly. In the next bout, Washington’s Tanner Crosby pinned Wisconsin’s Aidan Gruenenfelder, the deciding match for Washington’s 33-32 victory.
Oklahoma Blue used a pin by Jason Goodin at 106 to down Colorado, 36-33, in the Bronze/Copper Pool final.
Michigan Blue ousted Georgia Blue, 52-15, to win the Red/Blue Pool. In the Yellow/Green Pool final, Alabama defeated Texas B, 40-28.
The tournament continues Friday with the start of freestyle competition. Session times are 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Every bout will be streamed on FloWrestling.
JUNIOR NATIONAL DUALS
At Tulsa, Okla. June 16, 2022
Greco-Roman results
Gold/Silver Pool (Places 1-8):
1st place — Iowa
2nd place — Minnesota Gold
3rd place — California
4th place — Oklahoma Red
5th place — Florida
6th place — Illinois
7th place — Washington
8th place — Wisconsin
1st place match — Iowa dec. Minnesota Gold, 34-31
113: Brandon Morvari (Minnesota Gold) over Connor Fiser (Iowa) TF 8-0
120: Alan Koehler (Minnesota Gold) over Garret Rinken (Iowa) Fall 2:02
126: AJ Smith (Minnesota Gold) over Jaiden Moore (Iowa) TF 13-2
132: Gable Porter (Iowa) over Tyson Charmoli (Minnesota Gold) Dec 9-4
138: Chase Fiser (Iowa) over Walker Bents (Minnesota Gold) Dec 5-2
145: Zach Hanson (Minnesota Gold) over Kael Scranton (Iowa) TF 8-0
152: Hunter Garvin (Iowa) over Brendan Howes (Minnesota Gold) TF 11-0
160: Jed Wester (Minnesota Gold) over Gabe Carver (Iowa) TF 9-0
170: Nicholas Fox (Iowa) over Travis Smith (Minnesota Gold) Inj 1:20
182: Tate Naaktgeboren (Iowa) over Antony Tuttle (Minnesota Gold) Dec 8-6
195: Wyatt Voelker (Iowa) over Soren Herzog (Minnesota Gold) Dec 6-5
220: Jackson Dewald (Iowa) over Max Balow (Minnesota Gold) TF 12-3
285: Elijah Novak (Minnesota Gold) over Wyatt Smith (Iowa) TF 8-0
100: Jayden Rinken (Iowa) over Lawson Eller (Minnesota Gold) TF 13-3
106: Ryker Graff (Iowa) over Michael Olson (Minnesota Gold) TF 10-0
3rd place match — California dec. Oklahoma Red, 50-18
113: Jeremy Oani (California) won via forfeit
120: Isaiah Kainoa Medina (California) over Colden Dyer (Oklahoma Red) TF 8-0
126: Ryan Lobato (California) over Jaxon Humphries (Oklahoma Red) TF 8-0
132: Paul Kelly (California) over Rhett Peak (Oklahoma Red) Dec 7-4
138: Johnny Lopez (California) won via forfeit
145: Collin Guffey (California) over Boston Powell (Oklahoma Red) Dec 12-6
152: Beau Mantanona (California) won via forfeit
160: Erik McCown (California) won via forfeit
170: Lucas Condon (California) won via forfeit
182: Garrett Wells (Oklahoma Red) over Sergio Montoya (California) TF 9-0
195: Carlos Alvarado (Oklahoma Red) over Ryland Whitworth (California) TF 8-0
220: Oscar Williams (Oklahoma Red) over Nolan Frank (California) Dec 8-4
285: Hayden Simpson (Oklahoma Red) won via forfeit
100: Nathaniel Granados (California) won via forfeit
106: Ethan Ward (California) won via forfeit
5th place match — Florida dec. Illinois, 37-27
113: Tyler Washburn (Florida) over Ethan Spacht (Illinois) TF 8-0
120: Christian Fretwell (Florida) over Anthony Ruzic (Illinois) TF 8-0
126: Gylon Sims (Illinois) over Ethan Vugman (Florida) Dec 11-9
132: Vincent Robinson (Illinois) over Anderson Heap (Florida) Dec 6-3
138: Nasir Bailey (Illinois) over Cooper Haase (Florida) TF 8-0
145: Brennan Van Hoecke (Florida) over Noah Manuel Tapia (Illinois) TF 11-2
152: Braden Stauffenberg (Illinois) over Omer Barak (Florida) TF 12-4
160: Christopher Minto (Florida) over Blake Hinrichsen (Illinois) TF 8-0
170: Bradley Gillum (Illinois) over Roman Garcia (Florida) TF 9-0
182: Franklin Ordonez-Fernandez (Florida) over Matthew Jens (Illinois) TF 13-5
195: Sawyer Bartelt (Florida) over Nick Nosler (Illinois) TF 10-0
220: Ghee Rachal (Illinois) over Chris Greil (Florida) TF 8-0
285: Ethan Vergara (Florida) over Jadon Mims (Illinois) TF 9-0
100: Rudy Messner (Florida) won via forfeit
106: Anthony Alanis (Illinois) over Derrick Williams (Florida) Dec 6-5
7th place match — Washington dec. Wisconsin, 34-33
113: Charles Meudt (Wisconsin) over Nolan Crosby (Washington) TF 8-0
120: Easton Cooper (Wisconsin) over Aksel Espeland (Washington) TF 9-1
126: Elijah Cater (Washington) over Brett Birchman (Wisconsin) Fall 1:48
132: Rhett Koenig (Wisconsin) over Mitchell Neiner (Washington) Dec 7-1
138: Gunnar Hamre (Wisconsin) over Tyler Rhue (Washington) TF 8-0
145: Cael Kahle (Wisconsin) over Smokey McClure (Washington) TF 11-0
152: Francisco Ayala (Washington) won via forfeit
160: Thor Michaelson (Washington) over Ashton Miess (Wisconsin) Dec 9-5
170: Zachary Eliszewski (Wisconsin) over Lars Michaelson (Washington) Dec 9-3
182: David Malin (Wisconsin) over Trevor Latta (Washington) Fall 3:26
195: Hunter Sonnenberg (Washington) over Brady Elvers (Wisconsin) TF 8-0
220: Donald Schmidt (Washington) over Grant Stromberg (Wisconsin) TF 8-0
285: Leighton Jensen (Washington) won via forfeit
100: Tanner Crosby (Washington) over Aidan Gruenenfelder (Wisconsin) Fall 1:33
106: Brayten Casey (Wisconsin) over Curtis Carlisle (Washington) Fall 1:22
Bronze/Copper Pool (Places 9-16):
1st place — Oklahoma Blue
2nd place — Colorado
3rd place — Utah
4th place — Tennessee
5th place — Kansas Blue
6th place — Texas A
7th place — Nebraska
8th place — Pennsylvania
1st place match — Oklahoma Blue dec. Colorado, 36-33
3rd place match — Utah dec. Tennessee, 43-21
5th place match — Kansas Blue dec. Texas A, 39-28
7th place match — Nebraska dec. Pennsylvania, 41-27
Red/Blue Pool:
1st place — Michigan Blue
2nd place — Georgia Blue
3rd place — Minnesota Silver
4th place — Missouri
5th place — California Gold
6th place — Virginia
7th place — North Dakota Blue
8th place — Indiana
1st place match — Michigan Blue dec. Georgia Blue, 52-15
3rd place match — Minnesota Silver dec. Missouri, 44-22
5th place match — California Gold dec. Virginia, 35-32
7th place match — North Dakota Blue dec. Indiana, 39-28
Yellow/Green Pool:
1st place — Alabama
2nd place — Texas B
3rd place — North Carolina
4th place — Kansas Red
5th place — Michigan Red
6th place — North Dakota Red
7th place — South Carolina
8th place — Georgia Red
1st place match — Alabama dec. Texas Blue, 40-28
3rd place match — North Carolina dec. Kansas Red, 39-22
5th place match — Michigan Red dec. North Dakota Red, 44-15
7th place match — South Carolina dec. Georgia Red, 36-28
TULSA, Okla. — A thunderous throw near the edge of the mat triggered a roar of celebration.
Iowa’s Ryker Graff scored a technical fall over Michael Olson of Minnesota Gold at 106 pounds to clinch a national championship 34-31, in the Greco-Roman Junior National Duals in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Graff stepped on the mat for the last match with his team trailing by a point. He carried a 5-0 lead into the break and continued to work on Olson. Thirty seconds into the second period, Graff locked his hands around Olson and unloaded. A five-point throw caused Graff to scream towards his teammates on the bench after clinching the dual.
Minnesota Gold opened the dual with three straight bonus point wins from Brandon Morvari (113), Alan Koehler (120) and AJ Smith (126). Gable Porter put Iowa in the win column at 132. He threw Minnesota Gold’s Tyson Charmoli to solidify a 9-4 win.
The squads traded wins. At 152, Hunter Garvin contributed to the see-saw nature of the dual with an 11-0 tech fall over Minnesota Gold’s Brendan Howes. Halfway through the first period. Garvin sent Howes straight to his back on a body lock four-point throw. From there, Garvin punished Howes with a series of gut wrenches.
Minnesota Gold extended its lead after Jed Wester recorded a 9-0 tech fall over Iowa’s Gabe Carver.
But an injury default ignited an Iowa win streak. Minnesota Gold’s Travis Smith sustained an apparent lower body injury against Iowa’s Nicholas Fox and didn’t continue.
From there, Iowa ripped off three consecutive wins.
Iowa’s Tate Naaktgeboren scored six straight points to stop Minnesota Gold’s Anthony Tuttle, 8-6, at 182. A bout later, Iowa’s Wyatt Voelker, a Junior National champion, scored a critical step out point to top Minnesota Gold’s Soren Herzog, 6-5. At 220, Iowa’s Jackson Dewald tied the dual at 26-26 after a 12-3 technical fall against Soren Herzog.
But Minnesota Gold didn’t stop. The tech fall frenzy continued with the heavyweights. Minnesota Gold’s Elijah Novak used his compact frame to toss Wyatt Smith several times. Novak’s 8-0 victory put Minnesota Gold in control.
At 100, Iowa’s Jayden Rinken put his team in a position for a comeback after a 13-3 technical fall over Minnesota Gold’s Lawson Eller. More than halfway through the first, Rinken countered a body lock with a four-point headlock throw. From there, Rinken pushed finished off Eller with two seconds remaining in the match.
This set the stage for Graff’s big win.
California used a plethora of forfeit wins to crush Oklahoma Red, 50-18, to claim third in the Gold/Silver Pool. Illinois outlasted Florida, 37-27, for fifth in the Gold/Silver Pool. In the seventh place dual, a Wisconsin forfeit at heavyweight proved costly. In the next bout, Washington’s Tanner Crosby pinned Wisconsin’s Aidan Gruenenfelder, the deciding match for Washington’s 33-32 victory.
Oklahoma Blue used a pin by Jason Goodin at 106 to down Colorado, 36-33, in the Bronze/Copper Pool final.
Michigan Blue ousted Georgia Blue, 52-15, to win the Red/Blue Pool. In the Yellow/Green Pool final, Alabama defeated Texas B, 40-28.
The tournament continues Friday with the start of freestyle competition. Session times are 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Every bout will be streamed on FloWrestling.
JUNIOR NATIONAL DUALS
At Tulsa, Okla. June 16, 2022
Greco-Roman results
Gold/Silver Pool (Places 1-8):
1st place — Iowa
2nd place — Minnesota Gold
3rd place — California
4th place — Oklahoma Red
5th place — Florida
6th place — Illinois
7th place — Washington
8th place — Wisconsin
1st place match — Iowa dec. Minnesota Gold, 34-31
113: Brandon Morvari (Minnesota Gold) over Connor Fiser (Iowa) TF 8-0
120: Alan Koehler (Minnesota Gold) over Garret Rinken (Iowa) Fall 2:02
126: AJ Smith (Minnesota Gold) over Jaiden Moore (Iowa) TF 13-2
132: Gable Porter (Iowa) over Tyson Charmoli (Minnesota Gold) Dec 9-4
138: Chase Fiser (Iowa) over Walker Bents (Minnesota Gold) Dec 5-2
145: Zach Hanson (Minnesota Gold) over Kael Scranton (Iowa) TF 8-0
152: Hunter Garvin (Iowa) over Brendan Howes (Minnesota Gold) TF 11-0
160: Jed Wester (Minnesota Gold) over Gabe Carver (Iowa) TF 9-0
170: Nicholas Fox (Iowa) over Travis Smith (Minnesota Gold) Inj 1:20
182: Tate Naaktgeboren (Iowa) over Antony Tuttle (Minnesota Gold) Dec 8-6
195: Wyatt Voelker (Iowa) over Soren Herzog (Minnesota Gold) Dec 6-5
220: Jackson Dewald (Iowa) over Max Balow (Minnesota Gold) TF 12-3
285: Elijah Novak (Minnesota Gold) over Wyatt Smith (Iowa) TF 8-0
100: Jayden Rinken (Iowa) over Lawson Eller (Minnesota Gold) TF 13-3
106: Ryker Graff (Iowa) over Michael Olson (Minnesota Gold) TF 10-0
3rd place match — California dec. Oklahoma Red, 50-18
113: Jeremy Oani (California) won via forfeit
120: Isaiah Kainoa Medina (California) over Colden Dyer (Oklahoma Red) TF 8-0
126: Ryan Lobato (California) over Jaxon Humphries (Oklahoma Red) TF 8-0
132: Paul Kelly (California) over Rhett Peak (Oklahoma Red) Dec 7-4
138: Johnny Lopez (California) won via forfeit
145: Collin Guffey (California) over Boston Powell (Oklahoma Red) Dec 12-6
152: Beau Mantanona (California) won via forfeit
160: Erik McCown (California) won via forfeit
170: Lucas Condon (California) won via forfeit
182: Garrett Wells (Oklahoma Red) over Sergio Montoya (California) TF 9-0
195: Carlos Alvarado (Oklahoma Red) over Ryland Whitworth (California) TF 8-0
220: Oscar Williams (Oklahoma Red) over Nolan Frank (California) Dec 8-4
285: Hayden Simpson (Oklahoma Red) won via forfeit
100: Nathaniel Granados (California) won via forfeit
106: Ethan Ward (California) won via forfeit
5th place match — Florida dec. Illinois, 37-27
113: Tyler Washburn (Florida) over Ethan Spacht (Illinois) TF 8-0
120: Christian Fretwell (Florida) over Anthony Ruzic (Illinois) TF 8-0
126: Gylon Sims (Illinois) over Ethan Vugman (Florida) Dec 11-9
132: Vincent Robinson (Illinois) over Anderson Heap (Florida) Dec 6-3
138: Nasir Bailey (Illinois) over Cooper Haase (Florida) TF 8-0
145: Brennan Van Hoecke (Florida) over Noah Manuel Tapia (Illinois) TF 11-2
152: Braden Stauffenberg (Illinois) over Omer Barak (Florida) TF 12-4
160: Christopher Minto (Florida) over Blake Hinrichsen (Illinois) TF 8-0
170: Bradley Gillum (Illinois) over Roman Garcia (Florida) TF 9-0
182: Franklin Ordonez-Fernandez (Florida) over Matthew Jens (Illinois) TF 13-5
195: Sawyer Bartelt (Florida) over Nick Nosler (Illinois) TF 10-0
220: Ghee Rachal (Illinois) over Chris Greil (Florida) TF 8-0
285: Ethan Vergara (Florida) over Jadon Mims (Illinois) TF 9-0
100: Rudy Messner (Florida) won via forfeit
106: Anthony Alanis (Illinois) over Derrick Williams (Florida) Dec 6-5
7th place match — Washington dec. Wisconsin, 34-33
113: Charles Meudt (Wisconsin) over Nolan Crosby (Washington) TF 8-0
120: Easton Cooper (Wisconsin) over Aksel Espeland (Washington) TF 9-1
126: Elijah Cater (Washington) over Brett Birchman (Wisconsin) Fall 1:48
132: Rhett Koenig (Wisconsin) over Mitchell Neiner (Washington) Dec 7-1
138: Gunnar Hamre (Wisconsin) over Tyler Rhue (Washington) TF 8-0
145: Cael Kahle (Wisconsin) over Smokey McClure (Washington) TF 11-0
152: Francisco Ayala (Washington) won via forfeit
160: Thor Michaelson (Washington) over Ashton Miess (Wisconsin) Dec 9-5
170: Zachary Eliszewski (Wisconsin) over Lars Michaelson (Washington) Dec 9-3
182: David Malin (Wisconsin) over Trevor Latta (Washington) Fall 3:26
195: Hunter Sonnenberg (Washington) over Brady Elvers (Wisconsin) TF 8-0
220: Donald Schmidt (Washington) over Grant Stromberg (Wisconsin) TF 8-0
285: Leighton Jensen (Washington) won via forfeit
100: Tanner Crosby (Washington) over Aidan Gruenenfelder (Wisconsin) Fall 1:33
106: Brayten Casey (Wisconsin) over Curtis Carlisle (Washington) Fall 1:22
Bronze/Copper Pool (Places 9-16):
1st place — Oklahoma Blue
2nd place — Colorado
3rd place — Utah
4th place — Tennessee
5th place — Kansas Blue
6th place — Texas A
7th place — Nebraska
8th place — Pennsylvania
1st place match — Oklahoma Blue dec. Colorado, 36-33
3rd place match — Utah dec. Tennessee, 43-21
5th place match — Kansas Blue dec. Texas A, 39-28
7th place match — Nebraska dec. Pennsylvania, 41-27
Red/Blue Pool:
1st place — Michigan Blue
2nd place — Georgia Blue
3rd place — Minnesota Silver
4th place — Missouri
5th place — California Gold
6th place — Virginia
7th place — North Dakota Blue
8th place — Indiana
1st place match — Michigan Blue dec. Georgia Blue, 52-15
3rd place match — Minnesota Silver dec. Missouri, 44-22
5th place match — California Gold dec. Virginia, 35-32
7th place match — North Dakota Blue dec. Indiana, 39-28
Yellow/Green Pool:
1st place — Alabama
2nd place — Texas B
3rd place — North Carolina
4th place — Kansas Red
5th place — Michigan Red
6th place — North Dakota Red
7th place — South Carolina
8th place — Georgia Red
1st place match — Alabama dec. Texas Blue, 40-28
3rd place match — North Carolina dec. Kansas Red, 39-22
5th place match — Michigan Red dec. North Dakota Red, 44-15
7th place match — South Carolina dec. Georgia Red, 36-28