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Two Sooners Win Titles at U23 and UWW JR Nationals
November 15, 2020 | Wrestling
OMAHA, Neb. – A pair of Oklahoma wrestlers were crowned national champions at the U23 and UWW Junior Nationals in Omaha, Neb., on Sunday afternoon. Jake Woodley took home the 92 kg title and Sooner heavyweight Josh Heindselman ran the table to win the 125 kg bracket.
With the wins, both Sooners earn a spot at the U.S. World Team trials in 2021.
In addition to the two champions, Oklahoma placed three others at the event, hosted annually by USA Wrestling. All-American junior Dom Demas finished as the runner-up in U23s 65 kg, Jake Boyd finished third at U23s at 97 kg and Cam Picklo finished in sixth at Juniors at 65 kg.
Woodley started his run to the top of the podium on Saturday by defeating Lake Erie's Chris Droege via 10-0 technical fall. He then took care of business versus Cal State's Jose Valdez, 11-0. On Sunday, Woodley beat Princeton's Travis Stefanik by 8-3 decision in the quarterfinals before handling Virginia's All-ACC 197-pounder Jay Viello 7-3 in the semifinal. Woodley, a Pittsburgh, Pa., native matched up with Iowa's Jacob Warner in the 92 kg championship, and erased an early deficit to complete the comeback and win via 6-4 decision.
Heindselman's path was similar en route to his 125 kg crown. The redshirt freshman ran through the bracket outscoring his opponents 51-13. Both his round of 32 and quarterfinal bouts were ended early as Heindselman won both matches via tech fall, 10-0 and 12-2 respectively. The Piedmont, Okla, product then knocked off South Dakota State's Spencer Trenary, 12-5 in the semifinal match. In his final match with Virginia Tech's Hunter Catka, the Sooner dominated, defeating the Super 32 champion via 15-6 decision to climb the podium.
Dom Demas finished as the runner-up at 65 kg in the U23 division. He was dominant on Saturday and Sunday outscoring opponents 29-0 through three matches. In his semifinal with American's Kizhan Clark, the Dublin, Ohio, product produced a 5-3 win. Despite his strong start, Demas was unable to find a victory in the championship match, falling to Missouri's Brock Mauller.
Complete results from the U23 and Junior Nationals can be found at FloWrestling.com.
With the wins, both Sooners earn a spot at the U.S. World Team trials in 2021.
In addition to the two champions, Oklahoma placed three others at the event, hosted annually by USA Wrestling. All-American junior Dom Demas finished as the runner-up in U23s 65 kg, Jake Boyd finished third at U23s at 97 kg and Cam Picklo finished in sixth at Juniors at 65 kg.
Woodley started his run to the top of the podium on Saturday by defeating Lake Erie's Chris Droege via 10-0 technical fall. He then took care of business versus Cal State's Jose Valdez, 11-0. On Sunday, Woodley beat Princeton's Travis Stefanik by 8-3 decision in the quarterfinals before handling Virginia's All-ACC 197-pounder Jay Viello 7-3 in the semifinal. Woodley, a Pittsburgh, Pa., native matched up with Iowa's Jacob Warner in the 92 kg championship, and erased an early deficit to complete the comeback and win via 6-4 decision.
Heindselman's path was similar en route to his 125 kg crown. The redshirt freshman ran through the bracket outscoring his opponents 51-13. Both his round of 32 and quarterfinal bouts were ended early as Heindselman won both matches via tech fall, 10-0 and 12-2 respectively. The Piedmont, Okla, product then knocked off South Dakota State's Spencer Trenary, 12-5 in the semifinal match. In his final match with Virginia Tech's Hunter Catka, the Sooner dominated, defeating the Super 32 champion via 15-6 decision to climb the podium.
Dom Demas finished as the runner-up at 65 kg in the U23 division. He was dominant on Saturday and Sunday outscoring opponents 29-0 through three matches. In his semifinal with American's Kizhan Clark, the Dublin, Ohio, product produced a 5-3 win. Despite his strong start, Demas was unable to find a victory in the championship match, falling to Missouri's Brock Mauller.
Complete results from the U23 and Junior Nationals can be found at FloWrestling.com.
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