Small-town wrestler shocks top competitors to reach championship

Jayden James wasn’t supposed to be throwing opponents down on a mat in Kentucky this week. He was supposed to be cramming for a finance test at his New Jersey high school. But instead of worrying about spreadsheets, he spent Thursday outgrabbing seasoned college wrestlers twice his age in the U. S. World Team Trials. Most people expected the top seeds to dominate—like seventh-grader-easy favorites in a playground game. Instead, a ninth-seeded high schooler shuffled through quick wins. First, he upset Mikey Caliendo, a guy who has lost in the NCAA finals twice, and then blew past Penn State ’s Joe Sealey, a wrestler ranked first in the country. After that, the real upset came. James pinned a three-time All-American in the final seconds when the match was tied, flipping his opponent completely off his feet to earn the fall.

His next opponent is David Carr, a guy who won’t let one mistake end his chances. Carr squeaked past two wrestlers with points scored in the final seconds, proving how tense matches at this level can be. Whoever wins Friday’s final in Lexington gets to move on to New Jersey and compete at Final X for a shot at international glory. That’s because the U. S. wrestling team picks its world championship squad not by one single tournament, but through a series of pressure-cooker matches.

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