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The Bayfield High School wrestling team came away with three wins in its opening set of matches on Saturday at the Maverick Duals at Colorado Mesa University, as the Wolverines went 3-2.
Bayfield had two wrestlers go a perfect 5-0 to open the season, as John Foutz, who made last year’s Class 3A semifinals went undefeated, as did Trey McKee. The Wolverines picked up team wins against Meeker, Delta and Moffat County, but lost to stiff competition in Cedaredge and Palisade.
Bayfield head coach Todd McMenimen was impressed with how his team fared in the first tournament of the season.
“Overall, I was really happy,” McMenimen said. “Going 3-2, we’ll take that. We’ve got some really gritty kids this year, and they all worked really hard today. It was nice for John to start out strong, and same with Trey, as he had a knee injury that kept him out of the second half of the season. We had some other really good performances, and I’m happy with how we performed.”
The Wolverines also had strong performances from Dylan Pickering and Shane Moore, who both went 4-1 on the day. Pickering picked up two technical fall wins, while Moore claimed two pins at 182 pounds. He pinned Dawson David of Palisade in 1 minute, 52 seconds, while he also pinned Jeffrey Griffith of Delta in 2:48.
“It was nice to get both of them going,” McMenimen said. “Shane is also coming off of a injury he picked up late in the season, so it’s good for him to get some confidence.”
BHS will compete at the Aztec Dual at 6 p.m. Friday at Aztec High School.
The Durango High School boys wrestling team earned its first two wins under new leadership, as coach Robert Finneseth and the Demons went 2-3 at the Maverick Duals. DHS beat Hotchkiss and Delta on the day, and had one wrestler go undefeated.
Senior Austin Albrecht went 5-0 at 182 pounds, and recorded three pins in the process. In his first match, he beat Daniel Cruz of Moffat County and pinned him in 1:21. In his second match against Cedaredge, he handled David Lopez as he earned the pin in 3:44. In a 42-36 win over Delta, he picked up his third win of the day as he beat Griffith of Delta in a 16-2 major decision.
“We showed great leadership out there today,” said DHS assistant coach Luke Morris. “Our sophomore Ben Belt had some tough competition and was basically fearless going in there, and we were impressed with him. We also had some really good performances in other areas.”
DHS had 27 wrestlers come out for the program this year, and while the Demons still do not have a full lineup, they have had strong practices.
“The whole team is coming together and is making a lot of sacrifices,” Morris said. “We’ve had to put some guys outside of their comfort zone playing up a weight class, but they’ve stepped up big time. We have several freshmen in the lineup, and it’s going to be a competitive year.”
DHS will compete at the Dawg Fight at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday at Dove Creek High School.
Ignacio High School
The Ignacio High School wresting team lost every match at the Maverick Duals, and the Bobcats took just three wrestlers to the tournament.
The two wins for IHS came via forfeit. Jeremy Roderick won his match at 220 pounds over Grand Valley, while Dante Sandman also picked up a win at 132 pounds via forfeit in the same match. Keaton McCoy also competed. McCoy lost in his first match against Rifle after he was pinned by Cauy Smith in 21 seconds, while Sandman was pinned by Talon Cordova of Rifle.
“We each got about five matches in, and I was stoked,” said IHS coach Jordan Larsen. “Jeremy went 3-2 on the day and matched his win record from last year and looks like a completely different kid. Keaton has a ton of talent and has to figure out what high school wrestling is all about. Dante is a super hard worker, and is also looking to build on his technique.”
IHS will travel to the Dawg Fight at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday at Dove Creek High School.
bploen@durangoherald.com
