This weekend's Junior Greco-Roman World Team Trials are set to finalize the group of wrestlers aged 20 years old or younger who will head to Trnava, Slovakia, to represent the U.S. at the Junior World Championships later this year. Both the men's and women's freestyle teams have been determined, leaving just Greco-Roman to be decided.

Starting at 9 AM Eastern time this Friday, the world team hopefuls will congregate at Warren Central High School in Indianapolis. The tournament will be completed in one day (June 8), with the 10 winners of the U.S. Open back in April sitting in the best-of-three finals at 3 PM.

WATCH JR GRECO WTT LIVE ON FLO

Where: Indianapolis | When: Friday, June 8

You might remember that the Junior squad was in first place after the first day of Worlds last year, including Kamal Bey winning the first Junior world title for Greco in America since Garrett Lowney in 1999. Unfortunately, the day two crew was unable to score any points and Team USA finished in fourth place.

Although Bey has graduated to the senior level, silver medalist Cevion Severado sits in the finals at 55kg and Cadet world champ Cohlton Schultz sits in the 130kg finals. Dom Demas made the Open finals at 67, and Taylor LaMont will once again be wrestling 60kg. On to the preview.

55kg

Sitting in finals: Cevion Severado, MO

Despite not winning the Junior spot last year, Severado was able to attend the world championships after Elijah Varona could not go. All Severado did there was make the finals, and then won this year’s Open to earn the spot in the finals. 

Varona is registered, but he placed seventh in Vegas in April. One of his losses there was to Dylan Koontz, who had a 10-9 match with runner-up Joey Harrison. In the first round, Harrison beat King Sandoval, an Akron finalist last year. Another of last year's Akron finalists in Anthony Molton will be in attendance.

Also of note that is registered, Dylan's twin brother Brady Koontz was a 2015 Cadet world team member at 46kg. Brady made the 120lb Junior Fargo finals last July, losing to Rayvon Foley. A true freshman NCAA qualifier for Michigan State this year, Foley is down from 60kg at the Open, where he placed fourth.

60kg

Sitting in finals: Malik Johnson, MO

The obvious big addition to the field is Taylor LaMont, who won bronze in 2016 and wrestled for bronze last year at this weight, though that was during day-before weigh-ins. He’s made five straight world teams, including three Cadet teams from 2013-15. Though Benji Peak has never made a team, he’s been full-time Greco for a while now and had three first period techs en route to the Vegas finals. Once there, he was up 3-0 on Johnson but then lost the lead in the second period. Johnson is looking to make his first Junior team after being on the Cadet team in 2016 and 2017.

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63kg

Sitting in finals: Alston Nutter, WI

This is Alston Nutter’s weight. A kid who never won Fargo completely dismantled the field in Vegas, not giving up a single point and finishing every match in the first period. Although Nutter has wrestled overseas, he has never competed at a World or Pan Am championship. Everyone else is wrestling for second, including 2016 Cadet world teamer Mosha Schwartz

67kg

Sitting in finals: Peyton Omania, CA

Right now, it’s looking like a four-man bracket to get to face 2016 Cadet world teamer Omania in the finals. Dom Demas, last year's 66kg world teamer and a two-time member of the Cadet team, did both styles at the Open, won JR trials in freestyle, and did both styles at U23s. I think he’s the best guy in the field, but may be a little run down after all those matches and weigh-ins. Britton Holmes was third at U23s and fifth at the Junior Open. Riley Briggs and Duncan Nelson split matches at the Open, with Nelson losing to Omania in the semis.

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72kg

Sitting in finals: Tyler Dow, WI

Currently, the only four athletes signed up are four of the top five from the Open. Tyler Dow did not wrestle a full match, teching his way through, only giving up a headlock at the very start of the tournament. Not going is Tyler Eischens, but third placer Lenny Merkin will be. Merkin got teched by Farouq Muhammed in the first round in Vegas, but then won five in a row and outplaced Muhammed. Merkin was in last year's Trials finals against Demas at 66kg. After no Minnesotans made the Cadet team, 2016 Cadet Pan Am champ Calvin Germinaro will look to win a Junior spot for the land of 10,000 lakes.

77kg

Sitting in finals: Anthony Mantanona, CA

Talk about a confusing weight. Anthony Mantanona won the Open coming off his redshirt season for Oklahoma. But he was trailing 6-0 to Josh Anderson of NMU, a full-time Greco guy, in the semis before pinning him. Anderson was also pinned by Andrew Buckley, who wound up fourth, losing to Sawyer Knott in the semis. Knott had a good one with Andrew Cervantez, and Buckley was winning when he got cautioned out against eventual runner-up Jake Hendricks in the quarters; Hendricks was on the Cadet team last year. In other words, shake this weight up 10 times and we might get 10 different world reps.

82kg

Sitting in finals: Andrew Berreyesa, NV

Between Juniors and U23s, it seems clear Berreyesa is in the top tier of 82kg guys still doing age level competitions. Not to mention his 170lb Fargo title last year in which he threw every single person he wrestled for 5. However, the three other guys registered are all ones he wrestled in Vegas. His first match was a 4-4 criteria win over Zach Braunagel, someone Berreyesa beat 8-0 and 5’d last year in Fargo. In the semis, he beat Spencer Woods of NMU, the same Woods that beat Brackett 9-0 at U23s last weekend. Brackett was Berreyesa’s finals opponent in a 1-1 match that was only passive points. In last year's Open semis, Brackett beat Berreyesa 3-2.

87kg

Sitting in finals: Barrett Hughes, OK

The top seven placers from the Open will all be in attendance, including George Sikes, who just won U23s last weekend. Hughes was electric in Vegas, putting up 34 points and a pin in three matches. That was indicative of the weight as a whole in Vegas, where competitors combined to put up over 11 points per match. Fresno State commit Nick Casperson teched Sikes in the first round in Vegas, only to get pinned by Hughes. Casperson was also pinned by Matt Waddell in the third-place match. Waddell is coming off a redshirt year for Oklahoma and lost to eventual runner-up Cameron Caffey in the first round.

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97kg

Sitting in finals: Austin Harris, OR

Once upon a time, Tyler Curd beat Cohlton Schultz en route to a Cadet Fargo title. But he didn’t place in Fargo last year and hasn’t done any Greco thus far this year. Dropping down in weight is Nick Boykin, the runner-up at 130kg from the U.S. Open. Also registered is last year’s U23 runner-up in Anthony Riopelle.

130kg

Sitting in finals: Cohlton Schultz, CO

Aside from Bey, if there is a Great Greco Hope in America, it is Cohlton Schultz. He made the Junior team while still Cadet eligible, having to keep his weight down in the process. Though he only went 0-1 at Juniors, he won a Cadet world title at 100kg. One of the most coveted prospects in the class of 2019, he also ran through U23 Trials last weekend. Between Vegas and Akron, he outscored his opponents 84-3 over the course of nine matches. He'll likely face Fargo champ Anthony Cassioppi in the finals.