CHAMPAIGN — Isaiah Martinez won his second consecutive NCAA wrestling 157-pound championship for Illinois earlier this year. Now he’ll get to compete for a world title.
Martinez and fellow Illini wrestler Zane Richards have earned spots on Team USA in this year’s University World Championships. Both athletes qualified through their results in last weekend’s University Nationals.
Grappling at 163 pounds, Martinez was the overall winner after defeating former Oklahoma State athlete Chance Marstellar 14-6 and 16-6 in a best-of-3 championship series.
Richards took seven wins against just one loss at 135 pounds and was the weight class champion.