Husker Trio Set for World Cup in Iowa City

Former Husker greats Jordan Burroughs and James Green and Nebraska Assistant Coach Kendric Maple are set to compete for the United States at the UWW Men's Freestyle World Cup on Friday and Saturday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa.

The World Cup is the annual international dual meet championship, and will feature the top eight men’s freestyle wrestling teams in the world. The USA will compete in Pool A against the nations of Japan, Georgia and India. Pool B consists of teams from Mongolia, Azerbaijan, Cuba and Kazakhstan.

The first match for the United States will be Saturday at 10 a.m. against India, before the Americans take on Japan at 2:30 in the second session. USA will complete pool play against Georgia on Sunday at 10 a.m. The placement matches start at 12:30 p.m. Sunday with the fifth- and seventh-place matches, while the bronze medal match is set for 2:15 p.m. The gold medal match is set for 4 p.m. Sunday, and will be broadcast live on NBCSN. 

Burroughs (74 kg/163 lbs.), a 2012 Olympic champion and four-time World champion, will be competing in the Freestyle World Cup for a sixth time in his career. He has never lost in 23 World Cup matches, and has been recognized as an individual World Cup champion in each of his appearances (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017). A two-time NCAA champion and three-time All-American for Nebraska, Burroughs continues to live and train in Lincoln at the Nebraska Wrestling Training Center. 

Green (70 kg/154 lbs.) is a two-time World medalist, earning a silver medal at last year's World Championships. He is named to a World Cup roster for a third time in his career, as he has competed in each of the last two editions of the tournament. He has posted a 7-1 record in his last two appearances. A four-time All-American for Nebraska, Green also lives and trains in Lincoln at the NWTC.

Maple (61 kg/134 lbs.), in his first year as an assistant coach at Nebraska, will compete on a World Cup squad for the first time. He was the 2017 U.S. Open champion, and placed second at last year's World Team Trials, held at the Devaney Center in Lincoln. Maple was an NCAA champion and a three-time All-American at Oklahoma, and in addition to his coaching duties with Nebraska, trains with the NWTC.

In addition, Dom Bradley (125 kg/275 lbs), who lives and trains in Lincoln with the NWTC, will also be competing for the United States at the World Cup. Bradley was a two-time All-American at Missouri.

The entirety of the tournament will be streamed live on TrackWrestling (subscription required). Live results can also be found on TrackWrestling free of charge. In addition to the gold medal match, NBCSN will air the United States' dual against Japan on Saturday.

Tickets for the World Cup can be purchased at HawkeyeSports.com. More information on the event can be found at WorldCupIowaCity.com.

UWW FREESTYLE WORLD CUP
Iowa City, Iowa, April 7-8

U.S. men’s freestyle roster

57 kg/125.5 lbs. – Thomas Gilman, Iowa City, Iowa (Titan Mercury WC/Hawkeye WC)
57 kg/125.5 lbs. – Frank Perrelli, Charlottesville, Va. (Titan Mercury WC/Cavalier RTC)
61 kg/134 lbs. – Kendric Maple, Lincoln, Neb. (Titan Mercury WC/Nebraska WTC)
61 kg/134 lbs. – Joe Colon, Fresno, Calif. (Titan Mercury WC/Valley RTC)
65 kg/143 lbs. - Logan Stieber, Columbus, Ohio (Titan Mercury WC/Ohio RTC)
65 kg/143 lbs. - Joe McKenna, Towaco, N.J. (Lehigh Valley WC/Ohio RTC)
70 kg/154 lbs. – James Green, Lincoln, Neb. (Titan Mercury WC/Nebraska WTC)
70 kg/154 lbs. – Frank Molinaro, Blackburg, Va. (Titan Mercury WC/Southeast RTC)
74 kg/163 lbs. – Jordan Burroughs, Lincoln, Neb. (Sunkist Kids/Nebraska WTC)
74 kg/163 lbs. – Isaiah Martinez, Leemore, Calif. (Titan Mercury WC/Illini WC)
79 kg/174 lbs. - Kyle Dake, Ithaca, N.Y. (Titan Mercury WC/Finger Lakes WC)
79 kg/174 lbs. – Alex Dieringer, Stillwater, Okla. (Titan Mercury WC)
86 kg/189 lbs. - David Taylor, State College, Pa. (Titan Mercury WC/Nittany Lion WC)
86 kg/189 lbs. - Bo Nickal, Allen, Texas (Nittany Lion WC)
92 kg/202.5 lbs. - J’den Cox, Columbia, Mo. (Titan Mercury WC/Missouri WF)
92 kg/202.5 lbs. – Hayden Zillmer, Minneapolis, Minn. (Minnesota Storm)
97 kg/213 lbs. - Kyle Snyder, Woodbine, Md. (Titan Mercury WC/Ohio RTC)
97 kg/213 lbs. – Kyven Gadson, Ames, Iowa (Sunkist Kids/Cyclone WC)
125 kg/275 lbs. – Nick Gwiazdowski, Raleigh, N.C. (Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack WC)
125 kg/275 lbs. – Dom Bradley, Lincoln, Neb. (Sunkist Kids/Nebraska WTC)
National Freestyle Coaches – Bill Zadick, Kevin Jackson and Joe Russell (Colorado Springs, Colo.)
Honorary Coaches – Dan Gable (Iowa City, Iowa), J Robinson (Minneapolis, Minn.), Mike Duroe (Marion, Iowa)

Schedule Saturday, April 7
10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. - Session I
10:00 a.m - USA vs. India on Mat A, Mongolia vs. Kazakhstan on Mat B
11:15 a.m. – Georgia vs. Japan on Mat A, Azerbaijan vs. Cuba on Mat B
2 p.m. - Opening Ceremonies
2:30 p.m. -7:00 p.m. Session II
2:30 p.m. – USA vs. Japan on Mat A
4:30 p.m. – Mongolia vs. Cuba on Mat B
5:45 p.m. – Georgia vs. India on Mat A, Azerbaijan vs. Kazakhstan on Mat B

Sunday, April 8
10 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. - Session III
10:00 a.m. – USA vs. Georgia on Mat A, Mongolia vs. Azerbaijan on Mat B
11:15 a.m. – Japan vs. India on Mat A, Cuba vs. Kazakhstan on Mat B
12:30 p.m. - 5th Place Match at Mat A, 7th Place Match on Mat B
2:15 p.m. - Bronze Medal Match on Mat A
4 p.m. - Gold Medal Match on Mat A