Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-22
AGAIN IS
winner IN TWO
STRAIGHT FALLS
Shelton Farmer Pins Swede
Champion Twice and Proves
He Is One Of Worlds
Greatest WreStIerS.

Greatest WreStlerS.
The pride Of Shelton, Nebraska,
John Pesek proved that he is to
be rated among the foremost
wrestlers in the world by his de-
cisive defeat of the Swedish cham
pion, John Freberg OF Chicago in
ltwb straight tails at the Omaha au-
ditorium last night. Pesek won the
first fall in ore hour, twenty three
minutes and seventeen seconds with,
a toe hold, forcing the Swede to
concede the fall. The farmer boy
had Freberg's leg across his thigh
and Freberg rad to concede to suf-
ter severe, injury to the limb. The
second fall was quick, considering
the time consumed for the first one,
It being after 10 minutes and so sec
onds of hard wrestling. For the
second fall, Pesek used head scis-
! sors and hall nelson.
The first fall was bitterly fought
y and up to the time that Pesek secured
], his toe hold j, was in doubt. The
Il men had wrestled on fairly even
terms up to that time, both men
proving fast on their feet and adept
!. at breaking all opponents grips.
y Freberg tried to escape the Cruel
L ling grip but found his efforts were
I useless and s:gnaled referee Sandy
4 Griswold he would give in. Sandy
patted the Shelton farmer on the
back and the house went wild, up
ward of $500 spectators cheering till
!: it was feared the plastering would
fall
Savage Challenges Winner.
The men took Commute rest in
their dressing rooms and returned
ito the ring. 1t was announced that
) Sandy Griswold had been taken sud-
I denly i'll and would be unable to fin
Ssish the match and Bert LeBron was
I introduced as the referee to finish
the match. A telegram was read,
1 from Steve Savage, challenging the
\ winner, within three weeks, with
the toe hold barred and for a side
wager of $500. He stated in his wire
1 tina. if Omaha did not want the
match, the Coliseum club of Chicago
would stage it Pesek and Freberg
shook hand for the second session
J and went right after one another.
Pesek was the first one to get be-
4hind, but he missed a grip and FIRE.
berg turned and was on top. The
local idol scrambled loose and they
{ fought around the ring, each trying
Tor hold and went to the mat with
the farmer behind He missed a
chance for another toe hold and the
Chicago Swede again turned and
came UP behind
At nine minutes, Freberg tried a
wrist lock and Pesek spun on his
head turning around facing his op-
I ponent and hoped astride of his
head clamping his knees down hard.
He locked his LETT arm around the
1sbig Swede's left arm, forming a re-
verse half nelson and slowly turned
! him till his shoulders were flat on
! the mat. Referee LeBron patted
Peseks back and the match was
over with the Shelton farmer boy
I the winner by two straight falls,
h thus proving to the world that he
is one of the worlds greatest heavy
4 weight wrestlers. r"
Zerson and Stangl Open.
The show opened with a short
! match between Ben Zerson of York,
Neb,, and Joe Stangl of Omaha.
These two young heavies appeared
fairly evenly matched and the quick
finish was surprise to the spec
tator. Stangl squirmed out of
/ dangerous looking head scissors and
/. secured crotch hold with a half
Nelson and pinned Zerson's should
!. ers to the mat. Some of the spec
tators we're dissatisfied with the fall
and cried rotten" but it was fair
D fall and Zerson was pinned.
When Clarence Ecklund, light
heavyweight champion and George
! Sauers of Cheney. Neb., were intro
, duced, Denny Ryan, referee of the
y III 81 SldWISd tiC
i second bout and was roundly Kissed
\ by spectators, but apparently paid
mo attention to it. Ecklund and
! Sauer proved fast wrestlers, first one
and then the other squirming out of
dangerous holds. Ecklund finally
got Sauers in dangerous position
and would probably have downed
4 his man in the end. but Referee Ryan
4 acted little too hastily and before
! the Cheney man was fairly pinned,
patted. the light-heavyweight cham
pion on the back, declaring him the
winner in l8 minutes and 81 seconds.
Catcalls and Kisses came from the
crowd in great volumes when the
fall was declared.
1t was a good house, there being
between $500 and 5000 persons pres
emit 200 of whom were Shelton resi-
dents. Chicago was represented by
{ about 50 fans and the balance were
Omaha and Council Bluffs people.
The crowd was orderly with the ex-
ception of the little. disturbance
caused by the verdicts in the first
/. two matches and every one seemed
pleased with the show.