Elena Pirozhkova earned a silver medal on Thursday at the World Championships. Larry Slater photo.

MOSCOW, Russia – The U.S. women’s freestyle team fell short of winning a gold medal, but the three Americans who competed Thursday still turned in a superb day on the mat.

Elena Pirozhkova earned a silver medal, Tatiana Padilla captured a bronze medal and Kelsey Campbell placed fifth as the U.S. received a badly needed spark at the World Championships on Thursday at the Olympiysky Sports Complex.

Those performances boosted the U.S. into third place in the team standings with 5-of-7 weight classes completed. Japan leads with 47 points. Russia is second with 31 and the U.S. is third with 25.

"It's a step in the right direction," U.S. Coach Terry Steiner said. "We want to win golds and medals and hardware. You need to see these kids leave with rewards for their work. They have put in a lot of work this year."

Pirozhkova came out aggressively in the finals on Thursday night and scored the first point against Japanese legend Kaori Icho in the gold-medal match at 63 kg/138.75 lbs. But Icho came back to win the period and take the second period to win her sixth World title. Icho, 26, also a two-time Olympic champion, returned to competition this year after taking last season off.

"It felt really good to be in the finals," Pirozhkova said. "Right after I beat the Russian in the semis, I felt good because I knew I had a medal. But you definitely want that gold. I should have gotten after it a little bit more. There was a little hesitation on my part."

The Russian-born Pirozhkova, 23, beat two-time World silver medalist Lubov Volosova of Russia 1-0, 1-0 in the semifinals on Thursday afternoon.

Pirozhkova and Padilla became the first U.S. wrestlers to medal in the 2010 World Championships. The U.S. women’s team did not win a medal at this event in 2009.

Pirozhkova won the first period in the semifinals 1-0 by defending the leg clinch. The second period was 0-0 after two minutes. Russia challenged a call late in the match after Volosova shot in on a leg attack, but the call was upheld and Russia lost a point for an unsuccessful challenge. That gave Pirozhkova the period and the match.

Pirozhkova fell short of medaling in trips to the Worlds in 2008 and 2009. She is a past World University champion.

Padilla won her second World bronze medal in the last three years. The 19-year-old also was a World bronze medalist in 2008. She was fifth in this event last year.

Padilla won this bronze medal by recording a second period fall over Russia’s Maria Gurova. Padilla won the first period 1-1 after scoring last. She built a 2-0 lead in the second period before cradling and pinning Gurova with 16 seconds left in the period.

"I feel like every wrestler has a breaking point," Padilla said. "I felt her tie-ups and her positions weren't as strong in the second period. As soon as I went behind her, I felt her give up. I said, 'This girl is going to break. I'm going to take the bronze. I'm going to get it done and put her away.'"

Padilla ran into one of the best women’s wrestlers of all-time in Saori Yoshida of Japan in the quarterfinals at 55 kg/121 lbs. Yoshida rolled to a 3-0, 6-0 win over Padilla.

Padilla rebounded to beat Korea’s Ji-Eun Kim in the repechage to reach the bronze-medal match.

Yoshida won her eighth World title Thursday night. She also owns two Olympic gold medals.

Campbell, 25, lost by fall to Sweden’s Johanna Mattsson in the bronze-medal match at 59 kg/130 lbs. Campbell earns a top-five finish in her first World Championships. The U.S. has been fifth in this weight class the past three years. Deanna Rix was fifth at 59 kilos in 2008 and 2009.

Campbell reached the semifinals before being pinned by Lan Zhang of China in the second period. Zhang, 19, is a Junior World champion. Campbell won her first three matches Thursday. 

The U.S. wrestlers went a combined 11-4 on Thursday.

Day 5 of the seven-day event is set for Friday in Moscow. Americans Kristie Davis (Oklahoma City, Okla./New York AC) and Stephany Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids) will compete in women’s freestyle, and Obe Blanc (Stillwater, Okla./Gator WC) will wrestle in freestyle.

Davis is a nine-time World medalist and two-time World champion. She is competing at 67 kg/147.5 lbs. Lee wrestles at 72 kg/158.5 lbs. This is her second Worlds.

Blanc, a past NCAA All-American for Lock Haven, is competing in his first World Championships.

WORLD WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
At Moscow, Russia, Sept. 8

Women's freestyle wrestling

55 kg/121 lbs.
Gold –  Saori Yoshida (Japan)
Silver – Yulia Ratkevich (Azerbaijan)
Bronze –Anna Gomis (France)
Bronze – Tatiana Padilla (USA)
5th – Aiym Abdilina (Kazakhstan)
5th – Maria Gurova (Russia)
7th – Byambatseren Sundev (Mongolia)
8th – Jillian Gallays (Canada)
9th - Ana Maria Paval (Romania)
10th – Sylwia Bilenska (Poland)

59 kg/130 lbs.
Gold – Battsetseg Soronzonbold (Mongolia) 
Silver – Lian Zhang (China)
Bronze – Ayako Shoda (Japan)
Bronze – Johanna Mattsson (Sweden) vs. 
5th – Tonya Verbeek (Canada) vs.
5th – Kelsey Campbell (USA)
7th – Laura Skujina (Lithuania)
8th – Olga Kalinina (Kazakhstan)
9th - Alka Tomar (India)
10th – Joice Souza da Silva (Brazil)

63 kg/138.75 lbs.
Gold – Kaori Icho (Japan)
Silver – Elena Pirozhkova (USA)
Bronze – Hanna Johansson (Sweden)
Bronze –Lubov Volosova (Russia)
5th – Marianna Sastin (Hungary)
5th – Katerina Lopez (Cuba)
7th – Nasanburmaa Ochirbat (Mongolia)
8th – Sandra Roa (Colombia)
9th - Yvonne Englich (Germany)
10th – Simona Corbani (Italy)

U.S. RESULTS FROM THURSDAY’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Women’s freestyle

55 kg/121 lbs. – Tatiana Padilla, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Sunkist Kids) – 3rd
WIN Zalina Sidakova (Belarus), 2-0, 7-4
WIN Ana Maria Paval (Romania), 1-3, 3-1, 6-0
LOSS Saori Yoshida (Japan), 0-3, 0-6
WIN Ji-Eun Um (Korea), 1-0, 5-3
WIN Maria Gurova (Russia), 1-1, fall 1:44

59 kg/130 lbs. – Kelsey Campbell, Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Sunkist Kids) - 5th
WIN Ludmila Cristea (Moldova), 1-0, 2-3, 1-0
WIN Blessing Oborududu (Nigeria), fall 0-1, 1:14
WIN Laura Skujina (Latvia), 0-1, 2-0, 3-0
LOSS Lan Zhang (China), fall 0-1, 1:04
LOSS Johanna Mattson (Sweden), fall 0:36

63 kg/138.75 lbs. – Elena Pirozhkova, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Gator WC) - 2nd
WIN Tatyana Zakharova (Kazakhstan), 0:21
WIN Maria Mendez (Spain), 1-0, 4-0
WIN Katerina Lopez (Cuba), 0-6, 4-2, 3-1
WIN Lubov Volosova (Russia), 1-0, 1-0
LOSS Kaori Icho (Japan), 1-1, 0-6