Byers, Henson headline list of wrestlers on Team USA

<< Back to Articles
Craig Sesker (USA Wrestling)
06/01/2006


Two World champions and two World bronze medalists are among the members of Freestyle Team USA and Greco-Roman Team USA for 2006-07.

The top three finishers in each weight class from last weekend's U.S. World Team Trials make up the national team. The men's freestyle and Greco-Roman teams were set after the World Team Trials on May 27-28 in Sioux City, Iowa.

World champions Dremiel Byers and Sammie Henson highlight the list of national team members.

Byers, a 2002 World champion, captured the 264.5-pound title in Greco-Roman at the World Team Trials. Byers qualified for the World Championships on Sept. 26-Oct. 2 in Guangzhou, China.

Henson, a 1998 World champion and 2000 Olympic silver medalist, headlines the USA freestyle team after winning the World Team Trials at 121 pounds.

Two returning World bronze medalists from 2005 - Tolly Thompson and Justin Ruiz - will return to the World stage this fall to try and improve on those performances. Thompson won the World Team Trials in freestyle at 264.5 while Ruiz breezed to the Greco-Roman title at 211.5.

Brothers Bill and Mike Zadick became the first set of brothers to make a World Team in the same year since Tom and Terry Brands accomplished the feat in 1995. Bill Zadick won the World Team Trials in freestyle at 145.5 while younger brother Mike won the title in freestyle at 132.

Bill Zadick was an NCAA champion and two-time All-American at Iowa and Mike a three-time All-American. Bill competes for the Gator Wrestling Club and Mike is with the Hawkeye Wrestling Club.

The New York Athletic Club had five champions at the World Team Trials and placed a total of 10 wrestlers on the national team. The champions included Donny Pritzlaff (163) and Andy Hrovat (185) in freestyle along with Greco-Roman winners in Ruiz, Lindsey Durlacher (121) and Joe Warren (132).

The Gator Wrestling Club had World Team Trials champions in Bill Zadick, Daniel Cormier, Harry Lester and T.C. Dantzler. Cormier made his third straight World Team in freestyle at 211.5, Lester wrestles at 145.5 in Greco-Roman and Dantzler is at 163 in Greco-Roman. The Gator Wrestling Club has nine guys on the national team.

The Sunkist Kids also are well-represented with eight wrestlers on the national team. The Sunkist Kids have World Team members in Henson and Thompson.

The U.S. Army placed eight wrestlers on the national team - all in Greco-Roman - with Byers the lone champion from the World Team Trials.

The Big Ten and Big 12 are well-represented on the teams.

Six members of the World Team earned All-American honors at Big Ten schools. They include the Zadick brothers from Iowa, Hrovat and Warren from Michigan, Pritzlaff from Wisconsin and Durlacher from Illinois. World Team member Jacob Clark, who will represent the U.S. in Greco-Roman at 185, spent one year at Minnesota.

Former Big 12 standouts on the World Team include Thompson and Ruiz (Nebraska), Henson (Missouri) and Cormier (Oklahoma State).

The Women's Freestyle Team USA will be determined later this month after their World Team Trials are held June 30 in Colorado Springs.

2006-07 UNITED STATES NATIONAL TEAM FOR FREESTYLE AND GRECO-ROMAN

FREESTYLE

55 KG/121 LBS.
1. Sammie Henson, Flintstone, Ga. (Sunkist Kids)
2. Henry Cejudo, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Sunkist Kids)
3. Matt Azevedo, Arroyo Grande, Calif. (Sunkist Kids)

60 KG/132 LBS.
1. Mike Zadick, Solon, Iowa (Hawkeye WC)
2. Michael Lightner, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Sunkist Kids)
3. Cliff Moore, Iowa City, Iowa (Hawkeye WC)

66 KG/145.5 LBS.
1. Bill Zadick, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Gator WC)
2. Jared Frayer, Cambridge, Mass. (Gator WC)
3. Jared Lawrence, Minneapolis, Minn. (Minnesota Storm)

74 KG/163 LBS.
1. Donny Pritzlaff, Northport, N.Y. (New York AC)
2. Tyrone Lewis, Stillwater, Okla. (Gator WC)
3. Joe Heskett, Grover Beach, Calif. (Gator WC)

84 KG/185 LBS.
1. Andy Hrovat, Ann Arbor, Mich. (New York AC)
2. Clint Wattenberg, Ithaca, N.Y. (New York AC)
3. Mo Lawal, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Gator WC)

96 KG/211.5 LBS.
1. Daniel Cormier, Stillwater, Okla. (Gator WC)
2. Damion Hahn, Minneapolis, Minn. (Minnesota Storm)
3. Nik Fekete, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)

120 KG/264.5 LBS.
1. Tolly Thompson, Cedar Falls, Iowa (Sunkist Kids)
2. Steve Mocco, N. Bergen, N.J. (New York AC)
3. Tommy Rowlands, Columbus, Ohio (Sunkist Kids)

GRECO-ROMAN

55 KG/121 LBS.
1. Lindsey Durlahcer, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)
2. Sam Hazewinkel, Pensacola, Fla. (Gator WC)
3. Jermaine Hodge, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army)

60 KG/132 LBS.
1. Joe Warren, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)
2. Jeremiah Davis, El Cajon, Calif. (USOEC/Sunkist Kids)
3. Nathan Piasecki, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Pinnicle Performance WC)

66 KG/145.5 LBS.
1. Harry Lester, Akron, Ohio (USOEC/Gator WC)
2. Marcel Cooper, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army) 
3. Glenn Garrison, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army)

74 KG/163 LBS.
1. T.C. Dantzler, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Gator WC)
2. Brandon McNab, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army)
3. Keith Sieracki, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army)

84 KG/185 LBS.
1. Jacob Clark, Quantico, Va. (U.S. Marines)
2. Aaron Sieracki, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army)
3. Brad Vering, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)

96 KG/211.5 LBS.
1. Justin Ruiz, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)
2. Phil Johnston, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army)
3. R.C. Johnson, Colorado Springs, Colo.(Sunkist Kids)

120 KG/264.5 LBS.
1. Dremiel Byers, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army)
2. Russ Davie, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)
3. Frank Workman, Spotslyvania, Pa. (U.S. Marines)