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Max Black named Outstanding Wrestler as 10 champs crowned at U23 Nationals in men’s Greco

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Updated: June 3, 2026

Photo: Pierson Manville (Arizona State) dominated his way to the U23 National title at 63 kg in men’s Greco-Roman. Photo by Sam Janicki.

By Zack Chavez, USA Wrestling

GENEVA, Ohio – Max Black was named Outstanding Wrestler after storming to the 60 kg title on Friday in Geneva, Ohio, at the 2026 U23 Nationals and U20 World Team Trials, leading a dominant group of 10 U23 Greco-Roman champions that closed out the opening day of competition.

Black dominated the 60 kg bracket, outscoring his opponents 41-1. He shut out his first three foes to reach the best-of-three finals series against Rhett Peak. In the opener, Black scored all five of his points in the opening period before conceding a passivity point in a 5-1 win. He then finished his run with his fourth technical fall of the day, a 9-0 win over Peak, to secure the title and Outstanding Wrestler honors.

Pierson Manville added another standout performance at 63 kg, ripping through the bracket with five wins in just 5:58 of total mat time. On his way to the title, Manville recorded four technical falls and one pin, capping his day by sweeping his best-of-three championship series against Shane Sherrill with a tech fall and a first-period fall.

At 77 kg, Michael Baldwin cruised to the title with six wins, including five shutouts. He did not surrender a point until the semifinals, where he edged Omaury Alvarez, 7-5. In the finals, Baldwin swept Luke Ciampa with a 6-0 decision, followed by a 9-0 technical fall.

Seventeen-year-old Dominic Way was similarly dominant in the 72 kg weight class, outscoring his opponents 48-3. The 17-year-old won his U23 Greco-Roman title with a sweep of Bas Diaz in the best-of-three finals, opening with a 9-0 technical fall and closing with a 6-0 decision to claim his U23 Greco-Roman crown.

Carter Stephenson (67 kg), Adrian Artsisheuskiy (82 kg), Keenan Wyatt (87 kg), Soren Herzog (97 kg), and Aden Attao (130 kg) all swept their best-of-three series to earn titles in their respective weight classes.

In the 55 kg bracket, Kenneth Crosby battled through five matches to claim the championship. After posting a pair of technical falls to reach the finals, Crosby dropped the first bout of his best-of-three series to Aydan Thomas on criteria, 4-4. He responded with a 3-1 win in match two and sealed the series with a 5-0 decision in the decisive third bout.

The 10 U23 Greco-Roman champions are qualified to represent the U.S. at the 2026 U23 Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru, this June.

Watch all the matches from the USA Wrestling U23 Nationals and U20 World Team Trials on-demand at FloWrestling. Brackets and final results are available on USA Bracketing.

2026 USA Wrestling U23 Nationals & U20 World Team Trials

May 29, SPIRE Academy, Geneva, Ohio

U23 Greco-Roman

Best-of-Three Championship Series Results

55 kg

Kenneth Crosby (NYAC) defeats Aydan Thomas (Position Wrestling), two matches to one

Round 1 – Thomas dec. Crosby, 4-4

Round 2 – Crosby dec. Thomas, 3-1

Round 3 – Crosby dec. Thomas, 5-0

60 kg

Max Black (NYAC/NMU) defeats Rhett Peak (Position Wrestling), two matches to none

Round 1 – Black dec. Peak, 5-1

Round 2 – Black tech. fall Peak, 9-0

63 kg

Pierson Manville (Southwest Wrestling Club) defeats Shane Sherrill (Tiger Wrestling Club), two matches to none

Round 1 – Manville tech. fall Sherrill, 8-0

Round 2 – Manville fall Sherrill, 0:39

67 kg

Carter Stephenson (OTC) defeats Gavin Weichelt (Tiger Wrestling Club), two matches to none

Round 1 – Stephenson dec. Weichelt, 8-1

Round 2 – Stephenson dec. Weichelt, 6-1

72 kg

Dominic Way (Olympia Wrestling Club) defeats Bas Diaz (Jackrabbit Wrestling Club), two matches to none

Round 1 – Way tech. fall Diaz, 9-0

Round 2 – Way dec. Diaz, 6-0

77 kg

Michael Baldwin (West Virginia Regional Training Center) defeats Luke Ciampa (Eclipse Wrestling Club), two matches to none

Round 1 – Baldwin dec. Ciampa, 6-0

Round 2 – Baldwin tech. fall Ciampa, 9-0

82 kg

Adrian Artsisheuskiy (NYAC) defeats Caden Young (NYAC), two matches to none

Round 1 – Artsisheuskiy tech. fall Young, 8-0

Round 2 – Artsisheuskiy tech. fall Young, 9-0

87 kg

Keenan Wyatt (Knights RTC) defeats Michael Altomer (NYAC), two matches to none

Round 1 – Wyatt dec. Altomer, 7-0

Round 2 – Wyatt dec. Altomer, 6-5

97 kg

Soren Herzog (Air Force Regional Training Center) defeats Brenton Russell (West Point Wrestling Club), two matches to none

Round 1 – Herzog tech. fall Russell, 11-2

Round 2 – Herzog fall Russell, 0:32

130 kg

Aden Attao (NYAC) defeats Lucas Stoddard (West Point Wrestling Club), two matches to none

Round 1 – Attao dec. Stoddard, 1-1

Round 2 – Attao dec. Stoddard, 6-0

Medal-Match Results

55 kg

3rd – William Jakeway (Sons of Thunder Wrestling) dec. Ray Ray Harris (Tiger WC), 3-1

5th – Davian Guanajuato (Southern Illinois RTC) tech. fall Zane Donley (Beaver WC), 9-0

7th – Isaac Gibbs (Tiger WC) tech. fall Easton Mull (Clarion RTC), 14-5

60 kg

3rd – Saxton Scott (Central Valley RTC) tech. fall Phoenix Contos (Dragon WC), 12-4

5th – Treygen Morin (Hilltopper WC/Suples WC) tech. fall Marlo Clark (Indiana RTC), 9-0

7th – Elyle Francisco (NMU-National Training Center) tech. fall Tyler Klein (Wisconsin), 10-0

63 kg

3rd – Lucas Peters (Indiana RTC) fall Gabriel Mortensen (MATPAC), 2:16

5th – Gauge Shipp (Blue & Gold WC) fall Brady Baker (Mountain Cat WC), 5:27

7th – Blake McGee (Vanguard Legacy Wrestling Academy) dec. Kelvin Rodriguez (Pennsylvania), 11-4

67 kg

3rd – Noah Manuel Tapia (Blue & Gold WC) tech. fall Richie Clementi (Southeastern WC), 11-2

5th – Tyson Peach (Jackrabbit WC) dec. Lukas Kanownik (Suples WC), 9-5

7th – Ethan Mitchell (Pioneer WC) dec. William Christopher (Aviators Wrestling), 11-7

72 kg

3rd – Conlan Carlson (Jackrabbit WC) dec. Noah Rice (LAW), 3-2

5th – Marquis Deloach (Tiger WC) tech. fall Miles Harris (Western Colorado WC), 9-0

7th – Griffin Lundeen (Wolves WC) dec. David Burchett (Tiger WC), 3-1

77 kg

3rd – TJ Schierl (Ohio RTC/ TMWC) tech. fall Jeremy Paradice (Panther Wrestling Club RTC), 8-0

5th – Omaury Alvarez (Tar Heel WC) dec. Ethan Barr (Golden One RTC), 6-2

7th – Jude Randall (Southwest WC) dec. Ender Rider (Tiger Den WC), 10-5

82 kg

3rd – Gavin Ricketts (Knights RTC) tech. fall Alec Robeson (Tiger WC), 12-2

5th – Cody Kirk (CLT RTC) tech. fall Leonard Tukhlynovych (Minnesota), 10-0

7th – Julian Slaastad (Beat the Streets Chicago-Midway) tech. fall Mason Parsons (Sons Of Thunder Wrestling), 9-0

87 kg

3rd – Aydin Rix McElhinney (Army WCAP) dec. Nick Nosler (Southern Illinois RTC), 4-1

5th – Aliaksandr Kikiniou Jr (Poway High School Wrestling) tech. fall Adonis Bonar II (MWC Wrestling Academy), 8-0

7th – Jared Thiry (Jackrabbit WC) forfeit Ruben Karapetyan (Tiger WC)

97 kg

3rd – Jayden Tadeo-Gosal (Tiger WC) dec. Kasey Ross (Burg Training Center), 10-4

5th – Christopher Murphy (South Side WC) fall Cody Kwak (NMU-National Training Center), 3:57

7th – Jackson Van Kley (West Point WC) tech. fall George Rhodes (Apex Wrestling School), 8-0

130 kg

3rd – Benjamin Szuba Jr (Southwest WC) tech. fall Willie Cox (Vallo WC), 10-1

5th – James Hustoles (NMU-National Training Center) forfeit Torin Forsyth (CMWC)

7th – Max Balow (Viking RTC) Dec. James Campbell (Michigan Wrestling Club), 4-2