Indianapolis, Ind., May 23, 2004 - Former Penn State NCAA champion Kerry McCoy earned his second U.S. Olympic team berth Sunday in Indianapolis, Ind., as he easily won a pair of matches over challenger Tolly Thompson in the 264.5-pound finals at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials. McCoy, the five-time defending U.S. Champion and 2003 World Championship silver medalist, will compete at heavyweight for the U.S. freestyle team at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece. He finished fifth at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

McCoy, a two-time NCAA champion at Penn State (1994 & 1997) advanced to the final round of the Olympic Team Trials by virtue of his U.S. title earned earlier this year. Thompson won a challenge tournament over the first two days of the competition for the right to face McCoy in a best-out-of-three in Sunday's final. McCoy easily dispatched the challenge to earn his second Olympic berth. McCoy took a quick 5-0 lead in the first match before holding on for a 5-3 victory. In the second match, he rolled to an 8-0 decision to clinch the trip to Athens.

Four wrestlers with ties to Penn State competed in the trials. Coming off his 2004 NCAA heavyweight finals appearance, Pat Cummins competed in the 264.5-pound challenge tournament. The No. 10 seed, Cummins went 3-2 on the tournament and claimed a fifth place finish by downing No. 7 seed Mike Faust, 3-1. Cummins also knocked off No. 8 seed Angelo Borzio (7-4) and No. 4 seed Brian Keck (3-1) and fell to Faust (7-1) and No. 6 Kellen Fluckiger (7-3) on the tournament.

Former Penn State NCAA champion Jeremy Hunter (2000) competed in the 121-pound challenge tournament and posted an impressive 3-1 record and third place finish. Hunter, the No. 3 seed, downed Penn State assistant coach Tim Dernlan in the second round, 8-0, before falling 4-3 to No. 2 seed Teague Moore. He returned to down No. 5 seed Mike Mena, 3-0, to reach the consolation bracket finals. There he knocked off No. 4 seed Matt Azevedo, 3-0, for third place.

Dernlan, a 1998 All-American for Purdue, went 1-2 in the tournament with losses to Hunter and No. 7 seed Nick Simmons (5-4) and a victory over No. 11 seed Mark McKnight (4-0). Meanwhile, former Nittany Lion assistant coach Sammie Henson, a 2000 Olympic silver medalist, won the challenge tournament at 121 pounds with three victories and earned the right to face U.S. Champion Stephen Abas. Abas won two matches, 5-3 and 3-1, for the Olympic berth.