Wrestlers host quad Thursday

Rarely does one see the kind of domination seen at the Lander Invitational Class 3A tournament. Adding the second place Worland and third place Lander points together would total exactly 8 points more than leader Star Valley's total of 257.5 with 14 wrestlers placing in the top six. Some observers opined that this may be the best team in the state regardless of class. The upcoming Ron Thon will clarify that.

Seven Bobcats scored a total 62 points, in 15th place ahead of Rawlins and behind Buffalo. Top scorers for the Bobcats were senior Koy Myers with 19, freshman Logan Cole with 18, and junior Austin Ireland with 15. Also adding to the Bobcat total were freshman Blake Williams with four, senior Andrew Yarbrough with three, junior Jeff VanAntwerp with two, and junior Chase White with one.

Cole took the third place medal on the basis of two pins and two nail-biting decisions. The last of the two was an 8-6 squeaker over highly rated T.J. Frazier of Big Piney during which the third period saw back-and-forth action with both wrestlers leading at times with Cole finally leading 8-5 as Frazier escaped to make the score 8-6 with 25 seconds left in the match. Both wrestlers showed signs of exhaustion, but Cole attacked in the last 15 seconds and time expired as he held his opponent's legs.

Ireland started the Bobcats off on the right foot with a stirring third period come from behind pin on Haze Child of Star Valley who led 11-5 at the time, only to run into another Star Valley opponent and suffer a tech fall. In the consolation bracket Ireland wrestled to a fifth place medal with a pin over a third Star Valley opponent.

Myers' team points came as the result of four pins - Merrett of Laramie, Wamsley of Douglas, Jones of Powell, and Ross of Riverton - on his way to a fifth place medal. All of Myers pins were in the first or early second period following his past record of wrestling to pin his opponent from the opening whistle.

Blake Williams also overcame a deficit in the third period to register a pin in his first match. Coming from six points down he reversed his opponent in what wrestlers call a "scramble" and scored a surprising pin over Jose Rodriquez of Laramie.

"We have plenty of things to work on," stated Coach Scholl. "We did many things that we've practiced and we're getting better, Logan (Cole) wrestled better in his last match than at any time this year. Koy (Myers) and Austin (Ireland) wrestled well, and some of our others were at times impressive, but we've got a ways to go, and we're running out of time to get there.

"This is a good group. They work hard and are eager wrestlers."

Next action for the Bobcats is a scheduled quad at home on Thursday, Jan. 25, with Buffalo, Douglas and Worland, though Thermopolis will only be wrestling Buffalo. Bobcat wrestling will continue Friday and Saturday with the Ron Thon in Riverton. This promises to be a very busy week for the Bobcat wrestlers.