Team USA had more than enough firepower to topple Georgia, 8-2, on the morning of April 8 in Carver-Hawkeye.
Thomas Gilman started the action for Team USA with a 6-4 decision over Georgia’s Teimuraz Vanishvili at 57 kilograms. Vanishvili had two takedowns, but Gilman was able to battle back like the Hawkeye he was, scoring on five push-outs and a passivity.
“Gilman’s got a great heart,” Team USA head coach Bill Zadick said. “He’s a hard worker, and the kid loves to wrestle. You see his heart and his spirit out there, and he did a great job.”
Georgia evened the score in the next match when Team USA’s Kendric Maple dropped a 4-3 decision to Lasha Lomtadze. Maple had a 3-1 lead at one point, but Lomtadze scored in the final moments to win.
Team USA won the next five weights. Logan Stieber earned a technical fall after dropping a decision April 7 to Japan. Then, USA’s hammers stepped up.
James Green won an 8-0 decision over Levan Kelekhsashvili, and Jordan Burroughs followed with a technical fall. Then Kyle Dake earned another tech fall.
“When you’re followed up by Kyle Dake, you have to do something cool,” Burroughs said. “You can’t get left behind.”
David Taylor showed why his nickname is the “Magic Man” as he earned a quick tech fall over David Khutsishvili.
Carver-Hawkeye quieted after J’den Cox of Team USA dropped a 5-0 decision to Dato Marsagishvili. The U.S. lost a challenge in the final two minutes that put the match out of Cox’s grasp.
Team USA won its final two matches convincingly to bounce back after the loss. Olympic champion Kyle Snyder earned a tech fall over Givi Matcharashvili, and Nick Gwiazdowski capped the morning with a 7-0 decision over Zviadi Metreveli.
“I’m feeling pretty good,” Zadick said. “The guys are wrestling hard. They’re executing, showing good skills. Obviously, there’s a couple things we could improve on. We’ll get back in the room and think about the best way to move forward.”
The winning performance has been repeated three times now, as the United States has torn through Pool A. They’ve now toppled India, Japan, and Georgia. In Pool B, Azerbaijan has emerged on top.
Azerbaijan and Team USA will face off in the gold medal dual at 4 p.m.