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Gray earned her third World title, and second straight, in women’s freestyle wrestling. Maroulis won her first World cham- pionship.
The top-ranked Gray used a huge second period to power to a 13-2 technical fall over 2014 World bronze medalist Qian Zhou of China in the finals at 75 kg/165 lbs. Gray gave up the match’s first takedown, but took control in the second period by turning Zhou and nearly pinning her. She then finished off the win with a series of leg laces as the crowd stood and cheered.
Gray ran around the mat holding an American flag above her head in celebration of her huge triumph.
"I don't think there's a girl out there who can beat me,” Gray said. “It's just about stepping on that mat and making sure I'm disciplined enough to get my job done that day. If I stay healthy, I think I can win.” Gray, who also won World titles in 2012 and 2014, is now a five-time World medalist. Gray becomes just the second American woman to capture three World titles. Hall of Famer Trish Saunders won four World titles for the U.S. “My coaches always stress that I need one takedown to win the match,” Gray said. “So yes, when I don't get that opportunity on top and it takes a little while for me to get that one takedown, I do start to get a little anxious. I know the second that opportu- nity comes, the match is going to be over.” The top-ranked Maroulis put on a takedown clinic in the finals. She peppered 2014 World silver medalist Irina Ologonova of Russia with an aggressive style, scoring on an array of leg attacks en route to an 11-0 technical fall win at 55 kg/121 lbs. Maroulis ran around the mat holding an American flag above her head in celebration of her breakthrough victory. “The crowd was incredible,” Maroulis said. “I was excited before every match because I knew the crowd was going to be cheering. Every coach I've ever had since I was 7 years old is in the stands today. I was just so excited. I couldn't wait to walk out of the tunnel and get on the mat and just wrestle. It's just been great to have it here in Las Vegas.” Maroulis captured her third career World medal and third in
the past four years, with a silver medal in 2012 and a bronze medal in 2014. “When I started to work with Coach Valentin (Kalika), he really sharpened up my defense a lot and we've been doing down- blocks, re-shots and all that stuff,” Maroulis said. “I've seen pro- gression in my tournaments throughout the year, and that's a good sign from me. A couple of times I did get into tricky situa- tions, but luckily with the coaching and a lot of drilling, I worked on those kinds of reactions before the tournament.” Bisek, who wrestles in arguably the toughest and deepest Greco-Roman weight class, found a way to battle through adversity and earn his second consecutive World bronze medal at 75 kg/165 lbs.
Bisek claimed a hard-fought 2-0 win over Iran’s Saeid Morad Abdvali in their bronze-medal bout. Abdvali, a past Senior World champion and two-time Junior
World champion, was called for a leg foul as Bisek tried to turn him in the second period. Bisek was awarded two points for what turned out to the deciding points.
“It was huge,” Bisek said of coming back to win a medal. “I
started the day slower and I got a little down on myself. I lost in the quarters to a tough guy, but I was able to fire myself up and get it taken care of.”
American James Green, who trains with Burroughs in Lincoln, Neb., bolted out to a big lead before delivering an emphatic first- period fall over Bulgaria’s Murslav Kirov in the bronze-medal
8 USA Wrestler
19-year-old Kyle Snyder became the youngest World cham- pion in U.S. history in Las Vegas. Tony Rotundo photo.
bout at 70 kg/154 lbs. Green, 22, a four-time All-American for Nebraska, was com- peting at his first World Championships. Green finished third at Big Tens and NCAAs in March, but came back strong to win a World bronze medal in Vegas.
“I just had to be able to keep my head up, battle back and get it done,” Green said. “It was awesome to light it up in front of the USA with a pin and get the crowd going. That was truly amazing.”
Jaynes-Provisor earned a bronze medal for the U.S. at 60 kg/132 lbs. That win propelled the American women’s freestyle team to a third-place finish, earning them a World trophy and a spot on the podium.
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