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Roberson named Outstanding Wrestler in men’s freestyle division at NYAC Christmas International
12/18/2004
Gary Abbott/USA Wrestling
With an exciting victory in the gold-medal finals at 60 kg/132 lbs., Zach Roberson (Ames, Iowa/Sunkist Kids) was named Outstanding Wrestler in the men’s freestyle division at the New York Athletic Club Christmas International in New York City, December 18.
Roberson won a wide-open and competitive finals match, defeating Josh Moore (Charlottesville, Va./Sunkist Kids) in the finals, 2-4, 6-0, 7-4. Moore captured the first period after an impressive throw, but Roberson came back with victories in the second and third periods for the title.
In order to reach the finals, Roberson, a 2004 NCAA champion for Iowa State, stopped former Canadian World Team member Saeed Azarbayjani (Brock WC/Canada), 2-0, 0-2, 3-0 in another high-powered semifinal match.
Athletes from the United States won six of the seven weight divisions. Among the individual champions was 2004 Olympian Joe Williams (Ames, Iowa/Sunkist Kids), the champion at 74 kg/163 lbs.
Williams scored a 3-0, 3-2 gold-medal victory over Carl Fronhofer (Salem, N.Y./Pittsburgh WC). Williams was a 2001 World bronze medalist and placed fifth at the 2004 Olympic Games. Fronhofer is a former NCAA runner-up for the Univ. of Pittsburgh.
Two-time U.S. World Team member Chris Bono (Gilbert, Iowa/Sunkist Kids) won a very competitive 66 kg/145.5 lbs. weight class. He defeated 2004 NCAA champion Jesse Jantzen (Cambridge, Mass./Dave Schultz WC) in a tight 1-0, 1-0 gold-medal match. Jantzen is a local hero in New York, a four-time state high school champion who went on to win an NCAA title for Harvard in 2004.
Other individual champions from the United States were Clint Wattenberg (Ithaca, N.Y./New York AC) at 84 kg/185 lbs., Tommy Rowlands (Columbus, Ohio/Dave Schultz WC) at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. and Tolly Thompson (Cedar Falls, Iowa/Sunkist Kids) at 120 kg/264.5 lbs.
Wattenberg won his gold-medal match in two straight periods, beating Andy Hrovat (Ann Arbor, Mich./New York AC), 2-2 and 2-0. Wattenberg was a star at Cornell as a collegian.
Rowlands, a two-time NCAA champion for Ohio State, captured the title in a competitive 5-2, 3-0 decision over Mo Lawal (Stillwater, Okla./Gator WC).
Thompson, a 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials runner-up, pinned Canadian Jamie Cox (Guelph WC) in 3:30 in the championship round.
The only foreign champion in the men’s freestyle division was Canadian Jamie Macari of the Brock W
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