A pair of seniors won U23 national championships for the NMU National Training Site Greco-Wrestling team this past weekend in Omaha, Nebraska. Jesse Porter and George Hooker won it all in their respective weight classes with dominant title match performances.
Porter won his fourth consecutive national title in the 77kg division, winning 11-0 in a top-tier display over Wisconsin RT’s Ty Dow. Earning himself the Outstand Wrestler award for his success in the competition, Porter capped off the four-peat in style.
On the opposite side from Porter, Hooker was attempting to win his first national title. Michaela Loyola was the opponent in the 97kg finals, and after giving up the first point in the match, Hooker came back to win by a score of 6-2. U23 nationals winners usually are named to the U23 World Team, but like most things this year, COVID-19 forced the United World Wrestling Federation to cancel the event.
More success was found throughout the other divisions for Northern, where six more wrestlers finished in top eight. Junior Benji Peak and sophomore David Stepanian finished with silver medals in their respective divisions of 67kg and 60kg. Junior George Sikes also finished on the podium for the Wildcats, taking home third place at 97kg.
NMU will look to continue its success on the big stage with the upcoming scheduled Junior World Championships on Friday, Dec. 4 and the Senior World Championships on Saturday, Dec. 12 in Belgrade, Serbia.
