Fix, Esposito Head to Finland for Junior World Championships

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State incoming freshman Daton Fix and associate head coach Zack Esposito will travel to Tampere, Finland next week for the Junior World Wrestling Championships. The event is set for Aug. 1-6, with the freestyle portion scheduled for Aug. 1-2.

Competing at 55 kg, Fix will be making his second consecutive appearance at Junior Worlds. The Sand Springs native took bronze at the 2016 Junior World Championships, dropping his first match to eventual silver medalist Khasankhusein Badrudinov of Russia before bouncing back to win three-straight matches and claim his medal.

Fix has accumulated plenty of experience on the world stage, as he also competed on the U.S. Cadet World Team for two years, including in 2015 when he brought home a bronze medal.

Esposito is making his fifth World Team coaching appearance, and first on the Junior level. Entering his second year as an associate head coach at OSU and seventh year overall as a coach with the program, he has seen action coaching the U.S. Cadet World Team in 2012, 2015 and 2016, which saw the squad earn a second-place finish. Esposito also served on the coaching staff for the 2010 Senior World Team.

Team USA combined for two gold medals and a bronze at the event in 2016, which was good for a fifth-place finish.

Fix, along with U.S. representatives at 66 kg, 86 kg, 120 kg will see action on Wednesday, Aug. 2. The preliminary rounds begin at 10 a.m. local time (2 a.m. CT) both days, with the medal matches beginning at 6:30 p.m. local time (10:30 a.m. CT) on Tuesday and 6 p.m. (10 a.m. CT) on Wednesday.

Fans can find live streams and brackets on trackwrestling.com.

2017 UWW JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
at Tampere, Finland, Aug. 1-6

Schedule

Tuesday, Aug. 1
Freestyle – 55 kg, 66 kg, 84 kg, 120 kg
10 a.m. – Qualification rounds and repechage
6 p.m. – Opening ceremonies
6:30 p.m. – Medal matches

Wednesday, Aug. 2
Freestyle – 50 kg, 61 kg, 74 kg, 96 kg
10 a.m. – Qualification rounds and repechage
6 p.m. – Medal matches

Thursday, Aug. 3
Women's freestyle – 44 kg, 51 kg, 59 kg, 67 kg
10 a.m. – Qualification rounds and repechage
6 p.m. – Medal matches

Friday, Aug. 4
Women's freestyle – 48 kg, 55 kg, 63 kg, 72 kg
10 a.m. – Qualification rounds and repechage
6 p.m. – Medal matches

Saturday, Aug. 5
Greco-Roman – 50 kg, 60 kg, 74 kg, 96 kg
10 a.m. – Qualification rounds and repechage
6 p.m. – Medal matches

Sunday, Aug. 6
Freestyle – 55 kg, 66 kg, 84 kg, 120 kg
10 a.m. – Qualification rounds and repechage
6 p.m. – Medal matches

U.S. Junior Freestyle roster
50 kg/110 lbs. – Malik Heinselman, Castle Rock, Colo. (Olympian WC)
55 kg/121 lbs. – Daton Fix, Sand Springs, Okla. (Titan Mercury WC)
60 kg/132 lbs. – Mitchell McKee, Hanover, Minn. (Minnesota Storm)
66 kg/145 lbs. – Ryan Deakin, Broomfield, Colo. (Northwestern)
74 kg/163 lbs. – Mark Hall, Apple Valley, Minn. (Nittany Lion WC)
84 kg/185 lbs. – Zahid Valencia, Bellflower, Calif. (Arizona State)
96 kg/211 lbs. – Kollin Moore, Burbank, Ohio (Titan Mercury WC)
120 kg/264 lbs. – Gable Steveson, Apple Valley, Minn. (Minnesota Storm)

U.S. Freestyle National Assistant Coach: Kevin Jackson, Colorado Springs, Colo.
Coach: Zack Esposito, Stillwater, Okla.
Coach: Andrew Howe, Evanston, Ill.
Coach: Chris Pendleton, Tempe, Ariz.
Coach: Dustin Schlatter, Minneapolis, Minn.

Referee: Casey Goessl, Osceola, Wisc.
Referee: Umberto Fasolino, Cutchogue, N.Y.
Referee: Sam Julian, Schuylkill Haven, PA
Medical: Dave Grossman

Medical: Dr. Jeremy Frank, Parkland, Fla.

Oklahoma State University Athletics

Fix, Esposito Head to Finland for Junior World Championships

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