Metcalf wins fifth career Junior title, Robbins repeat as champion at ASICS/Vaughan Junior National
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Gary Abbott (USA Wrestling)
07/26/2005
Returning champion Brent Metcalf of Michigan and Brett Robbins of Illinois were able to reclaim the title at the ASICS/Vaughan Junior National Greco-Roman Championships Tuesday, July 26 at the Fargodome in Fargo, N.D. For Metcalf, it was his fifth career Junior National title, leaving him just one shy of tying the national record for Junior titles at six, held by Sean Hage of Georgia. Metcalf was a Junior National double champion after his sophomore year in 2003 and after his junior year in 2004. Metcalf was named Outstanding Wrestler in the freestyle division, after dominating the action at 145 pounds. In the gold medal finals, Metcalf scored a technical fall over Brandon Sitch of Washington, 11-0 in 2:17. Brett Robbins of Illinois won a Junior National Greco-Roman title for the second straight year. In the gold-medal finals at 140 pounds, he scored a 10-0 technical fall over J.P. O'Connor of New York, in 5:33. It was a great night for Florida, which had three individual champions in the field, winning three straight weight classes in the finals. The champions were Marco Toledo at 152 pounds, Jesse Robbins at 160 pounds and David Craig at 171 pounds. Toledo scored a tight 3-2 win over Matt Dragon of Pennsylvania, on a counter exposure for three points in the first period. Robbins beat a fellow Florida star in the finals, Rocky Cozart, by a 6-4 margin. Craig, a Junior National runner-up last year, scored a solid 3-1 win over Jeff James of Oklahoma. There was a fourth winner who attends high school in Florida, 119-pound champion Franklin Gomez of Puerto Rico. Gomez became the first champion from Puerto Rico in Junior National history, with an impressive 11-0 technical fall over FILA Junior National champion Joey Martin of Connecticut in 1:20. Gomez attended high school at Brandon High in Florida. With the win from Gomez, Brandon High School, coached by Russ Cozart, had three individual champions, as Toledo and Craig also compete for Brandon. Two of the championship matches went to sudden death overtime. At 112 pounds, Matthew Kyler of Pennsylvania defeated 2003 Junior National champion Tony Mustari of Colorado, 8-6, in overtime at 8:12. Mustari led most of the match, but Kyler scored a two-point turn on the buzzer to tie the match at 6-6. In overtime, Kyler blocked a Mustari throw for the winning two points. At 135 pounds, Reece Humphrey of Indiana scored a takedown with just one second left in the three-minute overtime period to defeat Cesar Grajales of Florida, 4-3, at 8:59. Humphrey had an advantage on the tie-breaking criteria, so Grajales tried to force the action late and allowed the winning point. In an all-Idaho finals at 125 pounds, Sean Jones defeated Josh Strait by a 6-0 margin. Both were Junior All-Americans last year. Boris Novavhkov of California, a Cadet freestyle champion last year, won the Junior National Greco-Roman title at 98 pounds with a wild 12-7 win over Jake Quinton. Justin Wren won the first Junior National title for Texas since the late 1980's with a 5-0 win over Eric Nye of California at 275 pounds. It was the second straight year that Nye was a Junior National runner-up. Other individual champions were Marty Eng of Oregon at 105 pounds, Adam Frey of Pennsylvania at 130 pounds, Louis Caputo of Missouri at 189 pounds and Robbie Smith of California at 215 pounds. Eng pinned Kellen Aura of California in 5:24 in the finals match. Frey won a very close match over 2005 FILA Junior National champion Elijah Hutchison of Alaska, 9-8. The first period was tied at 8-8, and Frey scored the winning point on an escape. Frey was a Junior All-American in both styles last year Caputo was in control throughout the match to defeat Trevor Perry of Michigan, 3-0. Caputo was a Junior National runner-up last year. He has also won national titles on the Cadet and FILA Cadet levels. Smith, a former Cadet National Greco-Roman champion, stopped Brent Jones of Virginia, 3-1. The Most Falls award went to Bo Gallipeau of New Jersey, with five falls in 10:08. Three returning Junior National Greco-Roman champions lost matches in their pools and did not advance to the finals. Returning champion Jayson Ness of Minnesota at 130 pounds lost twice in his pool and did not make the top four in the pool, and did not earn All-American status. Matt McNaughton of Illinois lost to Matthew Kyler of Pennsylvania, 6-3, in the fifth round at 112 pounds. McNaughton finished sixth. Kyle Bounds of Washington at 160 pounds. Bounds lost to 7-4 to Rocky Cozart of Florida in the fifth round. Bounds finished third.