A team of U.S. Greco-Roman athletes defeated a team from Finland 24-14 in the "Battle of Pudas" dual meet. 
 The dual meet was held in conjunction with the Vaanta Cup which will take place Dec. 13-14 in Vaanta, Finland. 
 The U.S. team was made up of members of the Greco-Roman Resident Athlete Program and the U.S. Marines team. 
 Claiming wins for the U.S. were Shawn Sheldon (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) at 119 pounds, Curt Onstad (Quantico, Va./Marines) at 138.75 pounds, Mike Ellsworth (Colorado Springs, Colo./Michigan WC) at 152 pounds, Mike Uker (Colorado Springs, Colo./Hawkeye WC) at 167.5 pounds, Dan Hicks (Quantico, Va./Marines) at 213.75 pounds and Brian Keck (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) at 286 pounds. 
 Sheldon, a two-time Olympian, won the first match of the meet with a 12-0 technical fall over Petri Isokoski in 3:51. 
 Onstad, who placed fifth in the 1997 U.S. Nationals, gained the second win of the evening for the U.S. with a 6-1 decision over Harri Pietola. Onstad's win made the team score 8-4. 
 Ellsworth, ranked second in the U.S., scored a 11-5 decision over Mikko Liikanen at 152 pounds to win the third match of the evening to make the score 11-8 for the U.S. 
 Uker, the 1997 Winter Classic champion, claimed an impressive 11-0 technical fall over Tuomas Ojola in 3:28. Uker, an All-American at the Univ. of Iowa, improved the U.S. lead to 16-11. 
 Hicks, a 1996 World Cup bronze medalist, scored the only fall of the dual meet, pinning Eetu Tolvenen in 2:57. 
 Keck, ranked fifth in the U.S., made the final team score 24-14 , with a 5-0 decision over Mika Perala in the final match of the evening. 
 The U.S. team was coached by Jay Antonelli of Quantico, Va. Antonelli is the head coach for the U.S. Marines wrestling team. 
  Battle of Pudas Dual Meet 
 USA 24 - Finland 14 
 Results 
 54 kg/119 lbs. - Shawn Sheldon, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC) won by tech. fall over Petri Isokoski (Finland), 12-0, 3:51 
 58 kg/127.75 lbs. - Marko Isokoski (Finland) dec. Duaine Martin, Quantico, Va. (Marines), 6-1 
 63 kg/138.75 lbs. - Curt Onstad, Quantico, Va. (Marines) dec. Harri Pietola (Finland), 6-1 
 69 kg/152 lbs. - Tuomas Ojola (Finland) won by ref. dec. over Marcel Cooper, Quantico, Va. (Marines), 2-0, ot, 8:00 
 69 kg/152 lbs. - Mike Ellsworth, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Michigan WC) dec. Mikko Liikanen (Finland), 11-5 
 76 kg/167.5 lbs. - Jussi Vesikko (Finland) dec. Bryan Medlin, Quantico, Va. (Marines), 4-2 
 76 kg/167.5 lbs. - Mike Uker, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Hawkeye WC) won by tech. fall over Tuomas Ojola (Finalnd), 11-0, 3:28 
 85 kg/187.25 lbs. - Mika Perala (Finland) dec. Ethan Bosch, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC), 3-1 
 97 kg/213.75 lbs. - Dan Hicks, Quantico, Va. (Marines) pin Eetu Tolvenen (Finland), 2:57 
 130 kg/286 lbs. - Brian Keck, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC) dec. Mika Perala (Finland), 5-0