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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. Virginia wrestler Brent Jones (So., Burke, Va.) will compete at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials Sunday at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. Jones will wrestle in the 96 KG (211.5 lbs) freestyle bracket.
Jones, who qualified for the trials after winning the University National Freestyle Championships in April in Akron, Ohio, will face Konrad Dudziak in the first round. Dudziak qualified by winning the Northern Plains Trials. The winner will then take on second-seeded Willie Parks, who earned a bid to the trials by finishing third at the U.S. Nationals.
The preliminaries through semifinals will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Pacific time, while the finals start at 5 p.m.
Jones posted six straight victories at the University Nationals, including wins over Darren Burns (NCAA Round of 12), Jared Platt (Penn State) and Mike Tamillow (NCAA All-American/Northwestern). In the championship match, Jones secured the title with a pin in 21 seconds over Eddie Phillips (Michigan). It marked Jones’ second national title in freestyle after winning the FILA Junior National Championship two years ago.
Current UVa assistant coach Matt Pell also was scheduled to take part in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials but is sidelined from the competition with an injury. He qualified for the trials after taking sixth place at the U.S. Nationals.
The U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Wrestling run June 13-15 and concurrently with the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Judo. For more information, log on to www.themat.com.