Photo by: Hannahally Photography
Four Mountain Hawks To Compete In Freestyle at US Open/Junior Nationals in Las Vegas
4/28/2022 2:45:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Four Lehigh wrestlers will be competing in freestyle this weekend in Las Vegas as USA Wrestling hosts the 2022 USMC US Open at the South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa. Senior heavyweight Jordan Wood will compete in the Senior Nationals while first-years Carter Bailey, Max Brignola and Nathan Taylor will compete in Junior (U20) Nationals.
All four Mountain Hawks will be competing Friday with placement and medal matches set for Saturday.
Wood is seeded sixth at 125 kg. Wrestlers at the US Open are bidding to qualify for the 2022 Senior World Team Trials Challenge tournament, but Wood has already secured a place at the World Team Trials on the strength of his third place finish last month at the NCAA Championships. Wood went 27-3 in his final season in the brown and white, winning his record fifth EIWA title and earning All-America honors for the third time in his career. He will represent the Lehigh Valley Wrestling Club this weekend. Wood has enjoyed freestyle success in his career. He represented the United States at the Junior World Championships in 2016 and won a Cadet silver medal in 2014.
For the three Mountain Hawks competing at Junior Nationals, Bailey will compete at 61 kg, Brignola will be at 70 kg and Taylor will wrestle at 125 kg.
Bailey and Taylor both deferred their eligibility during the 2021-22 seasons. Bailey went 14-8 while competing unattached in open tournaments. He won the Clarion Open in November and placed in two other opens during the 2021-22 season.
Taylor was Lehigh's Deferred Eligibility Wrestler of the Year in 2021-22, going 27-10 in open competition. He competed in six open tournaments and placed in all six, highlighted by a victory at the Edinboro Open in early February.
Brignola was originally supposed to defer his eligibility but ended up entering the Lehigh lineup in February. He went 18-8 competing at 149 and qualified for the NCAA Championships following a third place finish at the EIWA Tournament. Brignola also won titles at the Mat Town and GMU Patriot Opens.
Brackets and streaming video for the US Open/Senior and Junior Nationals will be available at FloWrestling.org.
Like Lehigh Wrestling on Facebook and follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive updates throughout the season.
All four Mountain Hawks will be competing Friday with placement and medal matches set for Saturday.
Wood is seeded sixth at 125 kg. Wrestlers at the US Open are bidding to qualify for the 2022 Senior World Team Trials Challenge tournament, but Wood has already secured a place at the World Team Trials on the strength of his third place finish last month at the NCAA Championships. Wood went 27-3 in his final season in the brown and white, winning his record fifth EIWA title and earning All-America honors for the third time in his career. He will represent the Lehigh Valley Wrestling Club this weekend. Wood has enjoyed freestyle success in his career. He represented the United States at the Junior World Championships in 2016 and won a Cadet silver medal in 2014.
For the three Mountain Hawks competing at Junior Nationals, Bailey will compete at 61 kg, Brignola will be at 70 kg and Taylor will wrestle at 125 kg.
Bailey and Taylor both deferred their eligibility during the 2021-22 seasons. Bailey went 14-8 while competing unattached in open tournaments. He won the Clarion Open in November and placed in two other opens during the 2021-22 season.
Taylor was Lehigh's Deferred Eligibility Wrestler of the Year in 2021-22, going 27-10 in open competition. He competed in six open tournaments and placed in all six, highlighted by a victory at the Edinboro Open in early February.
Brignola was originally supposed to defer his eligibility but ended up entering the Lehigh lineup in February. He went 18-8 competing at 149 and qualified for the NCAA Championships following a third place finish at the EIWA Tournament. Brignola also won titles at the Mat Town and GMU Patriot Opens.
Brackets and streaming video for the US Open/Senior and Junior Nationals will be available at FloWrestling.org.
Like Lehigh Wrestling on Facebook and follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive updates throughout the season.
Players Mentioned
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