Lieb claims gold at U.S. Open Kids/Cadets tournament

2017 State Champion wrestler Hayden Lieb of Bethel took first place honors at the 2017 US Open Wrestling tournament in Las Vegas in the 137-144 Cadet division. Photo by Greg Lincoln

by Tommy Wells

Hayden Lieb added another impressive note to his wrestling resume last weekend by turning in a stellar performance at the 2017 U.S. Open Kids/Cadets tournament. The Bethel Regional High School standout turned in a perfect 4-0 record en route to winning the Cadet 137-144-pound national title in the Freestyle discipline.

The son of BRHS wrestling coach Darren Lieb, Hayden kicked off the tournament with an impressive 10-0 rout of Pin City Wrestling Club’s Talon Tate in the first round. From there, he battled his way to a 7-4 decision over Nevada’s Samson Enos to earn a berth in the semifinals.

He earned a berth in the championship match with a 4-2 victory over Sudden Victory’s Hunter Meinzen in the third round.

In the finals of the weight class, he wrestled his way to a decisive 6-0 win over Club Sparta’s Onid Olivarria Montilla.

Overall, Lieb went 9-4 in the tournament, which also featured competition in the Roman-Greco and Folkstyle formats. In the Roman-Greco division, he finished 2-2, and turned in a 3-2 mark in the Folkstyle event.

Lieb wasn’t the only BRHS grappler turning heads last week. Thomas Dyment also performed well while competing in the 2017 Western Junior Regional Tournament.

Dyment werstled his way to a 2-2 record in the Roman-Greco 113-pound classification. He also went 2-2 in the Junior 111-119-pound class in the Folkstyle meet, and 3-2 in the Freestyle tournament.