#62: 2019 UWW Cadet & U23 Nationals Recap

Anthony CassarOn this episode, Ben Askren is in the studio with Matt Dernlan as they discuss some recent events such as the UWW Cadet & U23 Nationals, collegiate wrestling news, and. They kick off by talking about big news for Penn State, Anthony Cassar was granted two years of eligibility by the NCAA if he so wishes to compete. Judging off the quotes from Cassar he doesn't sound unequivocal about a decision to utilize both of those years wrestling in college. Dernlan talks about how hard a college wrestling season is and it is sure to drain anyone. Cassar has also had about three major surgeries. Askren brings up the school aspect of the decision as well. Grad school will take a lot of dedication in of itself. That being said, when Cassar sits down with Cael Sanderson and they discuss Cassar coming back it will be a very convincing argument from Sanderson and Askren believes Cassar returns for one more year of college wrestling.Transfers (13:30)133 lbs Seth Gross officially transferred from South Dakota State to Wisconsin for his 6-year Senior season. Gross won the NCAA title in 2018 but missed last season due to a back injury. The 133 lbs division, especially in the BIG 10, was the most talked about, action-packed division. Adding Gross back into the mix will only make this division even crazier. They go on to discuss how difficult it is to win a team trophy and why it takes such strategizing to even put yourself in the conversation of possibly winning.U23 Nationals (20:03)Askren talks about how for whatever reason the U23 team isn't as sought after as the UWW Juniors or UWW Cadets. Askren guesses that the reason might be due to the fact that the best 23 and under wrestlers are making the senior world team or in strong contention. For example, Yianni Diakomihalis, Daton Fix, Gable Steveson, Zahid Valencia, Mark Hall, Jason Nolf. In order to get the best representatives at U23, Askren suggests having a special wrestle-off for athletes that place at the U.S. Open or World Team Trials.Heavyweight (29:43)Daniel Kerkvliet beats Lehigh's Jordan Wood in a best of three championship. Askren and Dernlan were impressed by Kerkvliet's tech fall 10-0 over Aj Nevills in the semifinals. He still has a lot to learn as you can tell by him throwing a body lock the wrong way in the first match of his round-robin with Wood causing a cut on his face as well as on Wood's chin. Overall, it's positive Ohio State has a young promising heavyweight.61 kg (33:04)Charles Tucker doesn't allow Micky Phillippi to score any points in their two matches and gets the win. Askren found this interesting because Phillippi had a better season last year. Another exciting match from this bracket was the third place match between Josh Kramer and Louie Hayes with an outrageous score of 33-22 in Hayes favor.65 kg (35:44)Jaydin Eierman beats Luke Pletcher in two of their three matches to get the win. Askren talks about how insane these matches were and how difficult they are to officiate.74 kg (37:28)Brady Berge hammers through this division with a finals win over Philip Conigliaro.79 kg (38:06)Muhamed Mcbryde beats Anthony Mantanona in a close first match and a tech fall in the second.86 kg (38:45)Matt Dean beats Devin Skatzka in the finals in dominant fashion.92 kg (39:32)Oklahoma's Jakob Woodley beats Christian Brunner in the finals.UWW Cadet (40:25)Askren describes this as the toughest High School tournament. Dernlan talks about how interesting it is to see these athletes compete throughout the years because of the difference in maturation that happens. Dernlan also talks about the officiating at this level and what that means for coaches and athletes and how you navigate bad calls.Cadet Results (46:00)41 - 45 kg: Blair Academy's Marc-Anthony Mcgowan is really promising. Askren was really impressed with him. 48 kg: Stevo Poulin tech falled his way the entire tournament. 51 kg: Richard Figueroa ll has a good chance of being a world medalist. 55 kg: Robert Howard makes his third straight world team. 60 kg: Jesse Mendez gets the win over Anthony Ferrari. 65 kg: Ryan Sokol who has dealt with some injury dominates his bracket. 71 kg: Previous world medalist Alex Facundo makes his second world team in a row. 80 kg: Clayton Ulrey looks outstanding in this tough weight class. 92 kg: Kyle Haas gets the win 110 kg: Askren refers to Hunter Catka as an animal. He has a good chance to medal at worlds.