RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - A pair of past collegiate stars from rival schools in Iowa stand one win away from adding a big international win to their resumes.

Americans Mike Zadick and Joe Heskett punched their tickets to the Pan American Games wrestling finals with strong performances Saturday morning at the Riocentro Sports Complex.

Zadick and Heskett will compete in the freestyle finals at 6 p.m. (5 p.m. Eastern) Saturday in Rio.

Defending Pan Am Games champion Daniel Cormier will wrestle for the bronze medal on Saturday night. This is the final day of the five-day wrestling competition at the tournament that features countries from North, South and Central America.

Zadick (Solon, Iowa/Gator WC), a returning World silver medalist, looked sharp in rolling to three straight two-period sweeps at 60 kg/132 lbs. Zadick, a past Iowa Hawkeye standout, will face 2004 Olympic champion and two-time World silver medalist Yandro Quintana of Cuba in the finals. Quintana already owns a win over Zadick in a tournament in the Ukraine.

Zadick outscored his first three opponents 22-0 on Saturday morning.

Heskett (Columbus, Ohio/Gator WC), who made his first World Team this year, rallied to beat Canada's Matt Gentry in a battle of past NCAA champions at 74 kg/163 lbs. Heskett dropped the first period 3-1 before using his strong countering ability to win the final two periods 3-0, 2-0.

Heskett will face Cuba's Ivan Fundora in the finals. Fundora was a 2004 Olympic bronze medalist.

Heskett was an NCAA champion for Iowa State and Gentry won an NCAA title for Stanford.

Cormier (Stillwater, Okla./Gator WC), a four-time World Team member and 2004 Olympian, was body-locked and pinned by Cuba's Michel Batista with 37 seconds left in the quarterfinals at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. Batista was a 2006 World bronze medalist.

Cormier and Batista were tied 0-0 late in the third period with Batista before being caught and pinned. Cormier was in deep on a number of leg attacks, but had trouble finishing against the burly, taller opponent from Cuba.

Cormier, who won the 2003 Pan Am Games, will face Colombia's Arnulfo Hernandez in the bronze-medal match.

The U.S. medal count in wrestling now stands at 16 after the first session on Saturday. If Cormier wins tonight, the U.S. will finish with a combined 17 medals in men's and women's freestyle and Greco-Roman. That also would give the U.S. medals in every weight class they entered in Rio.

U.S. MATCH-BY-MATCH RESULTS

60 kg/132 lbs. - Mike Zadick, Solon, Iowa (Gator WC)
WIN Antonio Gonzalez (Panama) 6-0, 7-0
WIN Ivan Duque (Colombia) 4-0, 1-0
WIN Aldo Parimango (Peru) 1-0, 3-0

74 kg/163 lbs. - Joe Heskett, Columbus, Ohio (Gator WC)
WIN Maximo Blanco (Venezuela) 1-0, 2-0
WIN Matt Gentry (Canada) 1-3, 3-0, 2-0

96 kg/211.5 lbs. - Daniel Cormier, Stillwater, Okla. (Gator WC)
LOSS Michel Batista (Cuba) fall 5:23