WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Several members of the Purdue wrestling team are set for their first national freestyle event of 2022, heading to Las Vegas for the U.S. Marine Corps U.S. Open Championships. Hosted on Friday and Saturday at the South Point Hotel & Casino, the Boilermakers will have five entries in the U20 division and two others in the senior division, scheduled to start competition at 10 a.m. PST.
Headlining the group of Boilermakers is freshman Matt Ramos, who will be the No. 2 seed at 57 kg in the Senior Open. A 2018 Cadet World Champion and third-place finisher at the 2021 UWW Junior Freestyle Nationals, Ramos is coming off a freshman season at Purdue where he finished 21-10 and advanced to the Round of 12 at the NCAA Championships, wrestling up a weight at 133 pounds.
Joining Ramos in the senior division will be freshman Dustin Norris, who is entered at 61 kg. Norris didn't compete at the varsity level in 2021-22 but put together a 10-3 record in unattached competition. He won both the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open and the Greyhound Open at 133 pounds and placed third at the Cleveland State Open.
Purdue's five U20 entries are all freshmen: Jaden Reynolds, Stoney Buell, Ben Vanadia, Hayden Filipovich and Hayden Copass. Like Norris, none of the five competed at the varsity level in 2021-22 but posted solid results in open tournaments and unattached competition.
Reynolds will compete at 70 kg after building a 15-7 record at 149 pounds, while Buell is entered at 74 kg on the heels of an 18-6 season at 165 pounds. Reynolds and Buell placed at three tournaments, with Reynolds winning both the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open and Purple Raider Open, and Buell topping the Purple Raider Open.
Vanadia will come down to 86 kg this weekend after posting a 12-3 mark at 197 pounds during the 2021-22 season. He won the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open and Purple Raider Open, and placed fifth at the Greyhound Open. Filipovich also competed at 197 pounds this year, going 10-4 and placing at the same three tournaments as Vanadia.
Finally, Copass is set for the U20 field at 125 kg, competing for just the second time since joining the Boilermakers. He was 4-1 in the one tournament he competed in this season, taking second place at the Greyhound Open.
The top-seven placewinners at each weight class in the Senior division qualify for the U.S. World Team Trials, scheduled for May 20-22 in Coralville, Iowa, with the U.S. Open champion earning the No. 1 seed. The top-eight finishers at each weight in the U20 division earn a spot in the U20 World Team Trials field, scheduled for June 4-5 in Geneva, Ohio.
Event Schedule (all times PST)
Friday, April 29
10 a.m. - Preliminaries, quarterfinals, and consolations
4 p.m. - Consolations
6 p.m. - Semifinals
Saturday, April 30
10 a.m. - Consolations and consolation semifinals
6 p.m. - All medal matches
Headlining the group of Boilermakers is freshman Matt Ramos, who will be the No. 2 seed at 57 kg in the Senior Open. A 2018 Cadet World Champion and third-place finisher at the 2021 UWW Junior Freestyle Nationals, Ramos is coming off a freshman season at Purdue where he finished 21-10 and advanced to the Round of 12 at the NCAA Championships, wrestling up a weight at 133 pounds.
Joining Ramos in the senior division will be freshman Dustin Norris, who is entered at 61 kg. Norris didn't compete at the varsity level in 2021-22 but put together a 10-3 record in unattached competition. He won both the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open and the Greyhound Open at 133 pounds and placed third at the Cleveland State Open.
Purdue's five U20 entries are all freshmen: Jaden Reynolds, Stoney Buell, Ben Vanadia, Hayden Filipovich and Hayden Copass. Like Norris, none of the five competed at the varsity level in 2021-22 but posted solid results in open tournaments and unattached competition.
Reynolds will compete at 70 kg after building a 15-7 record at 149 pounds, while Buell is entered at 74 kg on the heels of an 18-6 season at 165 pounds. Reynolds and Buell placed at three tournaments, with Reynolds winning both the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open and Purple Raider Open, and Buell topping the Purple Raider Open.
Vanadia will come down to 86 kg this weekend after posting a 12-3 mark at 197 pounds during the 2021-22 season. He won the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open and Purple Raider Open, and placed fifth at the Greyhound Open. Filipovich also competed at 197 pounds this year, going 10-4 and placing at the same three tournaments as Vanadia.
Finally, Copass is set for the U20 field at 125 kg, competing for just the second time since joining the Boilermakers. He was 4-1 in the one tournament he competed in this season, taking second place at the Greyhound Open.
The top-seven placewinners at each weight class in the Senior division qualify for the U.S. World Team Trials, scheduled for May 20-22 in Coralville, Iowa, with the U.S. Open champion earning the No. 1 seed. The top-eight finishers at each weight in the U20 division earn a spot in the U20 World Team Trials field, scheduled for June 4-5 in Geneva, Ohio.
Event Schedule (all times PST)
Friday, April 29
10 a.m. - Preliminaries, quarterfinals, and consolations
4 p.m. - Consolations
6 p.m. - Semifinals
Saturday, April 30
10 a.m. - Consolations and consolation semifinals
6 p.m. - All medal matches