A pair of Buckeyes shone brightly for the United States at the World Cup, helping the American wrestlers earn silver as a team. The Americans went 3-0 against Georgia, Russia, and Azerbaijan before falling to host Iran in the gold medal match.
Stieber went 3-1 in the World Cup in Kermanshah, Iran, with his lone loss coming Friday morning in the final match. Stieber showed serious grit as he won three tough matches including a huge win against Azerbaijan that helped the United States advance to the finals.
Buckeye heavyweight Kyle Snyder also went 3-1 over the course of the tournament, earning a decision, tech fall, and pin. The Buckeye junior was dominant on Thursday, rolling to an 11-0 tech fall against Georgian Zviad Metreveli and a pin over Yury Belonovskiy of Russia.
Snyder's lone loss was to Aslanbek Alborov of Azerbaijan, who took a slim 5-4 decision over the Olympic and NCAA champ. Despite Snyder's loss, the United States was able to defeat Azerbaijan on criteria to advance to the championship bout.
In the final match, Stieber took his lone loss of the weekend, falling to Masoud Esmailpoor of Iran by the score of 6-2 at 61 kg.
Stieber's match at 61 kg was part of a four match run by the Iranians, which put the United States in a deep hole before Olympic champion and Nebraska graduate Jordan Burroughs got the Americans a win.
Burroughs' 3-2 decision at 74 kg kicked off a streak for the USA that was followed up by a pin from Ohio native David Taylor at 86 kg and an exciting victory for Snyder at 97 kg to tie the team score heading into the final bout.
Snyder was on the offensive early on against Mohammadi of Iran, finding the Irani's legs twice in the first period. Snyder held a 2-0 lead after the first period thanks to his aggression, but scored first in the second period in response to Mohammadi's attacks. Snyder scored a final takedown on a go behind and took the 6-0 victory.
At heavyweight, NC State graduate Nick Gwiazdowski was unable to secure the team victory, falling 5-0 to a tough Komeil Ghasemi.
| Wt | wrestler | results |
|---|---|---|
| 57 kg | Tony Ramos (Iowa) | 1-3 |
| 61 kg | Logan Stieber (Ohio State) | 3-1 |
| 65 kg | Frank Molinaro (Penn State) | 1-3 |
| 70 kg | James Green (Nebraska) | 3-1 |
| 74 kg | Jordan Burroughs (Nebraska) | 4-0 |
| 86 kg | David Taylor (Penn State) | 4-0 |
| 97 kg | Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) | 3-1 |
| 125 kg | Zach Rey (Lehigh) | 1-1 |
| 125 kg | Nick Gwiazdowski (NC State) | 0-2 |
