Idaho standout Hall achieving plenty of fame in all styles of wrestling

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Craig Sesker (USA Wrestling)
04/13/2006


LAS VEGAS - Folkstyle, freestyle or Greco-Roman?

Ask Adam Hall which style of wrestling he prefers most and the ultra-talented Boise State recruit struggles to provide a definitive answer.

That's because he enjoys all three styles. When you're as dominant as the versatile Hall is, that makes perfect sense.

The promising prospect from Bonners Ferry, Idaho, possesses a lethal combination of power, speed and silky-smooth technique as he continues his remarkable run of success this week in Las Vegas.

Fresh off being named Outstanding Wrestler at the NHSCA High School Senior Nationals in folkstyle, Hall continued to stay on a roll by being named Outstanding Wrestler at the Western Junior Greco-Roman Regional on Wednesday at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The three-time Idaho state champion began his quest to add a Western Junior freestyle title at 152 pounds by cruising to wins in his first three bouts Thursday afternoon.

"Every style has its own unique way of bringing out a wrestler's talents," said Hall, who carries a 3.81 GPA. "The more you wrestle, in any style, the better I feel you become. That's why I'm here - to wrestle tough competition."

Hall has been a busy young man. He hasn't taken a break from the mat since the end of the high school season because of training and competitions.

"Coming into Vegas, I actually haven't had hardly any training for freestyle or Greco because I've been so busy wrestling folkstyle," Hall said. "I never even got to practice Greco before I came out here, so that was kind of interesting and a little haphazard. That made it tough, but I was still able to win the tournament."

Boise State scored a major coup in landing Hall, who lost a close decision to Cyler Sanderson in the Junior National freestyle championship match last summer. Sanderson is now at Iowa State. Iowa and Wisconsin also were in the running to land Hall, who plans to redshirt his first year in college.

"The coaches at Boise State really won me over," Hall said. "I'm real comfortable there with everybody on the team, and it's just a real good fit for me. I'm excited to see what I can do in college."

Hall's close relationship with Boise State assistant coach Chris Owens, who is the coach of Team Idaho and has coached Hall, was a major factor in his decision to remain in his home state. Hall also will be able to train with former Boise State NCAA champions Kirk White and Ben Cherrington.

Hall's father, Roland, was the first state champion for Bonners Ferry, a small town of 2,515 people located just 35 miles from the Canadian border. His mother, Linda, is working as a medical liaison at the event in Las Vegas this week.

Hall was second in the state meet as a freshman before going undefeated his last three prep seasons. He plans to wrestle at Junior Nationals this July in Fargo, N.D.

"Wrestling in a lot of big tournaments has helped me tremendously," he said. "I know what to expect and what it's like to wrestle in big matches against real tough kids. It's a battle, but it's a lot of fun. I love it."