(Houston, Texas) – The first day of the USA Judo Senior National Championships, held Friday in Houston, Texas, featured several key upsets as up-and-coming players took their first National Titles and others returned from retirement to make comebacks.

Nikki Kubes (Fort Worth, Texas/Fort Worth Judo/78kg) is best known for being the second youngest judo player at the 2004 Olympic Games.  At 17, Kubes was considered to be one of the prodigies of the sport and finished ninth in her Olympic debut. 

Following the Games and, just a month later, a trip to the Junior World Championships, though, Kubes opted to take an 18-month hiatus from competition. 

“I didn’t retire.  I’m only 19,” Kubes laughed.  “Mentally I just needed a break.  But now I’m back at it with weight training, lots of judo, eating right and I’ve had good results.”

Those results came today in the form of six wins in her first major event since 2004 in which she defeated top-ranked Molly O’Rourke (El Cerrito, Calif./East Bay Judo Institute), throwing O’Rourke first for waza-ari (half-point) and then pinning her for ippon (instant win, similar to a knockout in boxing).

The win gave Kubes her first National Championship and also meant the two would meet at least twice more in a best-of-three fight-off for a spot on the U.S. Team that will compete May 24-29 at the Pan American Championships in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  

Neither match made it to even the half-minute mark, though as Kubes threw O’Rourke both times – the first with harai goshi (sweeping hip throw) and the second with an o soto gari (major outer reaping) – to qualify for the Pan Am Team.

“I’m really looking forward to Pan Ams and am going to win it,” Kubes said.  “It’s the first qualifier for the Olympics and I’m just going into it one match at a time to qualify my division.”  

Kubes fight-off scenario against O’Rourke might have seemed like déjà vu for some as Kubes defeated O’Rourke in a best-of-three series at the Olympic Trials as well.

“I lost to Molly at Seniors that year and so I had to come back two months later as the #5 seed at Olympic Trials to beat her again,” she said.

Although she’s been out of competition for over a year, Kubes considers herself to be in excellent form.

“I was really nervous coming into this, but my sister Bridget and my family helped calm me down,” Kubes said.  “My coach Tommy Dyer and I have been working pretty constantly for the past few months, Monday through Saturday, just doing judo and working really hard at everything.”

Kubes wasn’t the only athlete to defeat the top-ranked player in her division as upsets seemed the norm of the day.

At 70kg, 15-year-old Kayla Harrison (Middletown, Ohio/Renshuden), came into this competition as the #2-ranked senior at 63kg, but largely unnoticed in the heavier division having fought only four tournaments at that weight and winning the Pan Am Juvenile Championships at 63kg in Colorado Springs last week.

After picking up wins against Haley Shadden (Mineral Wells, Texas//Ruben Martin Judo) and #4-ranked Tomoyo Yoshinaga (San Jose, Calif./San Jose State University), Harrison pulled the biggest upset of the day, defeating reigning National Champion and 2005 World Team member Katie Mocco (Glenville, N.Y./NYAC/Jason Morris Judo Center) in the semi-finals by a throw for koka (smallest points) with just over a minute left in the match.  

In the finals, Harrison and Jaclyn Feuerschwenger (Linden, N.J./Cranford Judo Karate Center) fought a long match before Harrison pinned the 2005 U.S. Open bronze medalist for the win.

The win meant a best-of-three contest between Mocco and Harrison which would total four matches between two previously unseen opponents.  

Mocco won the first match by yuko (quarter-point) while Harrison won the second, throwing Mocco for waza-ari and then moving straight into a pin to finish out the match.

In the third match, both athletes were out with a vengeance, but Mocco pulled out the victory, throwing Harrison for ippon.

The women’s heavyweight division also featured a best-of-three fight-off as Eva Smith (Fall River, Mass./Taki-Gawa), the top-ranked athlete in both the junior and senior +78kg divisions, was pinned in the semi-finals to 2006 Pan American Juvenile bronze medalist Brittni Bradford (Land O’Lakes, Fla./St. Pete Judo).

While Bradford ultimately lost in the final to Melinda Swanson (Honolulu, Hawaii/Hawaii Tenri), a 23-year-old newcomer, Smith would come back in the Trials to claim her spot on the team, pinning Swanson in both matches.

Not needing a fight-off of any variety, 2004 Olympian and Junior World Champion Ronda Rousey (Buffalo Grove, Ill./NYAC/Venice Judo/Cohen’s Judo) breezed through her division en route to her third consecutive National title at the age of 19.

On the men’s side, Aaron Cohen (Buffalo Grove, Ill./NYAC/Cohen’s Judo) dominated 2004 Olympian Rick Hawn (Woburn, Mass./Pedro’s Judo Center) in the final of the 81kg division.  

After defeating four opponents in a 40-man pool, Cohen threw Hawn first for yuko and then for waza-ari to win the match.

“I came in today as the #1 and just wanted to stay that way,” Cohen said. “I was focused on Argentina and I’m looking forward to that being where some of my best competition will be.”

In the absence of top-ranked Mike Pedro (Providence, R.I./Pedro’s Judo Center), Garry St. Leger (Brooklyn, N.Y./Starrett Judo) stepped up to win his first National Championships, throwing Roger Mazzella (Natick, Mass./Tohoku Judo Club) for ippon to win the title and a trip to the Pan Ams.

Djamaldin Aliev (Greenwood Village, Colo./Olympic Training Center USA Judo National Training Site) also claimed his first national title, defeating U.S. Open silver medalist Denis Utkin (Brooklyn, N.Y./Starrett Judo) in the 100kg final.

Aliev, a 2005 World Team member, then defeated Utkin twice more to secure his spot on the Pan Am Team.

Finally, in the men’s +100kg division, Joel Brutus (Hart, N.J./NYAC) made a mark in one of his first major tournaments as a U.S. citizen, defeating the top-three ranked players his the division, ousting #3 Anthony Turner (Miami, Fla./IntoCombat) and #2 Daniel McCormick (Arlington, Texas/Bedford Kodokan Judo) before defeating top-ranked Kirk Hoffmann (Security, Colo./Olympic Training Center USA Judo National Training Site) in the final.  

Hoffmann defeated the five-time Pan Am medalist in the first match of their fight-off, after which Brutus withdrew with an injury.

Competition continues Saturday at the George R. Brown Convention Center with prelims beginning at 9 a.m. and finals commencing at 5 p.m.

Complete results are as follows:

Women 63kg

1. Ronda Rousey (Buffalo Grove, Ill./NYAC/Venice/Cohen's)

2. Kristan Allan (Springfield, Va./Sport Judo)

3. Corinne Geier (San Jose, Calif./San Jose State University)

3. Anastasia Krivosta (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown YMCA)

5. Leah Fisher (McLean, Va./Jason Morris Judo Center)

5. Yvonne Carrera (Whittier, Calif./Mojica Judo Club)

Women 70kg

1. Kayla Harrison (Middletown, Ohio/Renshuden)

2. Jaclyn Feuerschwenger (Linden, N.J./Cranford Judo Karate Center)

3. Katie Mocco (Scotia, N.Y./NYAC/Jason Morris Judo Center)

3. Kathleen Sell (Oshkosh, Wis./Welcome Mat Judo)

5. Tomoyo Yoshinaga (San Jose, Calif./San Jose State University)

5. Kris Garber (Springfield, Va./Sport Judo)

Women 78kg

1. Nicole Kubes (Ft. Worth, Texas/Fort Worth Judo Club)

2. Molly O'Rourke (El Cerrito, Calif./East Bay Judo Institute)

3. Nina Cutro-Kelly (Albany, N.Y./Judo America)

3. Heidi Moore (Englewood, Colo./Denver Judo)

5. Alison Walters-Stevens (Pittsburg, Pa./Kim’s Martial Arts)

5. Asma Sharif (Huntington, Calif./West Covina)

Women +78kg

1. Melinda Swanson (Honolulu, Hawaii/Hawaii Tenri)

2. Brittni Bradford (Land O’Lakes, Fla./St. Pete Judo)

3. Loretta Edwards (Columbus, Ohio/Renshuden Judo academy)

3. Eva Smith (Fall River, Mass./Taki-Gawa)

5. Penny Salzman (Penfield, N.Y./Bushido Kai)

5. Charmaine Alsager (Black Earth, Wis./Badger Judo Kai)

Men 81kg

1. Aaron Cohen (Buffalo Grove, Ill./NYAC/Cohen's Judo)

2. Rick Hawn (Woburn, Mass./Pedro's Judo Center

3. Yuko Sin (Glenville, N.Y./Jason Morris Judo Center)

3. Harry St. Leger (Brooklyn, N.Y./Starrett Judo)

5. Ross MacBaiser (Atlanta, Ga./Emory Judo)

5. Andrew Hung (Pearl City, Hawaii/San Jose State University)

Men 90kg

1. Garry St. Leger (Brooklyn, N.Y./Starrett Judo)

2. Roger Mazzella (Natick, Mass./Tohoku Judo Club)

3. Landry Ambouroue (North Richland, Texas/Ruben Martin)

3. Brian Picklo (Mustang, Okla./USA Stars)

5. Colin Burns (College Station, Texas/Texas A&M)

5. Shintaro Higashi (Scarsdale, N.Y./Kokushi Budo Institute)

Men’s 100kg

1. Djamaldin Aliev (Greenwood Village, Colo./Olympic Training Center USA Judo National Training Site)

2. Denis Utkin (Brooklyn, N.Y./Starrett Judo)
3. Joseph Ferguson (Fostoria, Ohio/Renshuden)

3. Adler Volmar (North Lauderdale, Fla./Ki-Itsu-Sai)

5. Harvey Takeda (Elk Grove, Calif./Sacramento Judo Club)

5. Michael Orzel (Whittier, N.C./Yellowhill Judo Club)

Men +100kg           

1. Joel Brutus (Hart, N.J./NYAC)

2. Kirk Hoffmann (Security, Colo./Olympic Training Center USA Judo National Training Site)

3. J. Daniel McCormick (Arlington, Texas/Bedford Kodokan Judo Club)

3. Anthony Turner (Miami, Fla./Judo Combat)

5. Jonathan Leonhardt (San Jose, Calif./San Jose State University)

5. Ashanti Taltoan (Youngstown, Ohio/Renshuden Judo)