Utah Wrestlers Win National Titles, Defend Home Turf at USA Wrestling Kids National Championships

Utah wrestlers earned 71 All-American honors, which included five national titles at the USA Wrestling Kids National Championships in freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling held at the McKay Event Center in Orem, July 2–5, 2008.  This is the first year that the event has been hosted in Utah, and the Utah athletes, ranging in age from 9 to 14, defended their home turf with vigor.

One Utah athlete, Caleb Williams of Wellington, won national titles in both styles.  He took top honors at Novice (ages 11 and 12) 65 lbs.  In Greco-Roman, he won the title by decision, beating an Illinois athlete in the finals 2-1 in the first round, then 6-0 in the second.  In freestyle, his championship came much harder, beating a wrestler from Washington by decision, 2-0 in the first round, 1-0 in the second.

Williams is no stranger to this level of excellence.  In the Rocky Mountain Nationals series of national tournaments, he was the first Utahn to win a Triple Crown, winning titles in three of the tournaments in 2006; he also exceeded that mark that year, going on to win a fourth title, earning him a Golden Gear Award.

Winning national titles in freestyle were two athletes, both in the Midget (ages 9 and 10) division: Jaxon Cole of Coalville and Wyatt Koelling of Logan. 

Cole won the title at 50 lbs.  His title came in the finals against a Nevada wrestler, losing the first round 3-9, then coming back to win the next two rounds 7-4 and 10-5.  This was a sweet victory for Cole, for he lost to the same wrestler in the finals in Greco-Roman.

Koelling won the title at 87 lbs.  His championship came in the finals against a Michigan athlete, winning the first round 5-3, then sweeping his opponent in the second round, 7-0.

Winning a national title in Greco-Roman was Taylor LaMont of Mapleton, at Midget 65 lbs.  This was a grueling match where LaMont won both the first and second rounds by criteria, when he and an Illinois athlete finished with tied scores: 2-2 and 5-5.  LaMont finished second to the same wrestler in the freestyle finals.

Utah wrestlers earning All-American status in both freestyle and Greco-Roman are as follows:

• Midget Division

  • 65 lbs., 8th place in both, Ryan Hansen of Helper

  • 75 lbs., 3rd place in both, Sean Johnson of West Jordan

  • 75 lbs., 6th place in both, Mason Mangelson of Springville

  • 80 lbs., 4th place in freestyle, 5th place in Greco-Roman, Ashton Seely of Nephi

• Novice Division

  • 60 lbs., 3rd place in both, Matt Lee of Draper

  • 60 lbs., 4th place in freestyle, 5th place in Greco-Roman, Coby Vandertoolen of South Jordan

  • 65 lbs., 4th place in Greco-Roman, 6th place in freestyle, Tanner Cox of Bluffdale

  • 80 lbs., 2nd place in Greco-Roman, 4th place in freestyle, Chandler Strand of West Jordan

  • 85 lbs., 8th place in both, Johnny O'Hearon of Price

  • 100 lbs., 4th place in Greco-Roman, 5th place in freestyle, Kimball Bastian of Springville

• Schoolboy Division (ages 13 and 14)

  • 70 lbs., 3rd place in freestyle, 5th in Greco-Roman, Tyler Jensen of West Valley City

  • 84 lbs., 3rd place in Greco-Roman, 7th in freestyle, Brandon George of Layton

  • 91 lbs., 3rd place in both, Dalton Harmon of Nephi

  • 91 lbs., 4th place in both, Kaden Lindley of Hyrum

  • 98 lbs., 3rd place in both, Grant LaMont of Mapleton

  • 105 lbs., 4th place in freestyle, 6th in Greco-Roman, Josh Searle of Spanish Fork

  • 112 lbs., 3rd place in Greco-Roman, 4th in freestyle, Jesse Carlisle of Springville

  • 128 lbs, 3rd place in Greco-Roman, 4th in freestyle, Jake Ribald of West Jordan

  • 128 lbs., 3rd place in freestyle, 6th in Greco-Roman, Teddy Hackford of Heber City

  • 160 lbs., 6th place in freestyle, 7th in Greco-Roman, Jake Johnson of Sandy

  • 175 lbs., 2nd place in both, Andrew Du Bose of North Ogden

  • 190 lbs., 2nd place in Greco-Roman, 3rd place in freestyle, Joe Flores of Brigham City

Craig LaMont, president of USA Wrestling-Utah, said, "Utah was very well represented by the athletes who participates in Kids Nationals.  In some weights, the boys have pushed each other all season long, forcing each other to take it to the next level, and it paid off here."