Our Utah wrestlers turned the USAW Folkstyle Nationals in Cedar Falls into their own personal highlight reel, bringing home FIVE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS! That's gotta be a state record, and if it’s not, it's darn close.
We also saw a whole lotta wrestlers rack up All-American honors with podium finishers from all corners of the Beehive State. This is a testament to the depth of talent developing in programs all over Utah.
106 lbs: Tanner Telford (Corner Canyon HS) a 6A runner up this season as a freshman went on a tear, including an upset over the top seed (and a Preseason Nationals champ, no less) in the semis. In the finals, Telford secured the title with a smothering cradle.
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126 lbs: Fresh off his second straight state title and Doc B placement, Mason Carlson (Syracuse HS) continued to make waves, racking up bonus points in every match, defeating an Iowa state champ in the quarterfinals and a Fargo finalist in the championship bout.
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144 lbs: Top-seeded Noah Bull (Layton HS) lived up to the hype, pinning his way to the finals. There, he faced an Iowa state medalist and emerged victorious, 8-4. That's a state title, a Doc B placing, and a National Championship for Bull in 2024! Talk about a year and we aren’t not even half done.
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16U ALL-AMERICANS:
113 lbs: Kaleb Blackner (Roy HS) - 3rd Place
165 lbs: Wyatt Hanssen (Wasatch HS) - 3rd Place
157 lbs: Gage Brady (Corner Canyon HS) - 4th Place
113 lbs: Ethan Sharp (Uintah HS) - 6th Place
190 lbs: Leimana Fager (Corner Canyon HS) keeps adding accolades to his resume. After his Reno TOC title and state championship, he can now claim a USAW Folkstyle National Title. He dominated the competition, including a win over a top-seeded Indiana state champ in the semis.
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132 lbs: Geronimo Rivera (Layton HS) keeps his incredible 2024 streak alive with a National Championship. He wrestled through a tough weight class, defeating an Oklahoma state champ in the quarterfinals and then battling fellow Utahn Dillon Ivie to reach the finals. There, he edged out a tough Virginia state medalist in a wild match that came down to the wire.
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JUNIOR ALL-AMERICANS:
100 lbs: Trexden Olsen (Beaver HS) - 2nd Place
120 lbs: Karson Shelley (Spanish Fork HS) - 3rd Place
138 lbs: Austin Paris (Grand County HS) - 3rd Place
157 lbs: Logan Hancey (Fremont HS) - 3rd Place
157 lbs: Hixon Canto (Pleasant Grove HS) - 4th Place
285 lbs: Takoa Byrd (Layton HS) - 4th Place
132 lbs: Dillon Ivie (Altamont HS) - 6th Place
106 lbs: Michael Kowalski (Layton HS) - 7th Place
144 lbs: Junior Wetzel (Spanish Fork HS) - 7th Place
175 lbs: Banks Love (Bingham HS) - 7th Place
138 lbs: Teague Brown (Syracuse HS) - 8th Place
175 lbs: Kaden Bennie (Layton HS) - 8th Place
190 lbs: Elijah Hawes (Layton HS) - 8th Place