DENVER – The gravity of wrestling in the state tournament on the Pepsi Center floor can shake even the most talented wrestlers.

Bayfield High School freshman Ryan Nava walked in wide-eyed and struggled in the early part of his first match, trailing Corbin Usry of Sterling 3-1 early in the second period of their Class 2A 120-pound bout.

“I thought I’d shake it before the match, but it’s such a beautiful sight down here,” said Nava, son of Ramona Nava and Allec Rodriguez. “My nerves got the best of me.”

He found a way to best both the nerves and Usry.

Nava tied the match at three at the start of the third period, grabbed a 5-4 lead via takedown and held on for a 7-4 win in his first ever state tournament match.

“I realized, ‘This isn’t a scrub; this is a legit kid,’” Nava said. “I just told myself, ‘This isn’t going to come to me; I’ve gotta go get it.’”

It’s exactly what BHS head coach Todd McMenimen wanted from him: Handle the nerves, get the first match out of the way and know how to improve.

“I’d like to see him push the pace a little more,” McMenimen said. “But for his first match at state, I’m not going to second-guess this one.”

Nava will wrestle Michael Johnson from Lamar in Friday’s quarterfinals.

Johnson pinned Buena Vista’s Patrick Huffman to reach the quarterfinals.

The Wolverines’ other wrestler, Class 2A No. 2 Colter McMenimen, wasn’t phased at all by the stage or his opponent. He won a 19-0 technical fall victory over Fabian Estrada from Jefferson with 1 minute, 29 seconds remaining in the second period.

“I want the near fall,” said McMenimen, son of Missy and coach McMenimen. “That gives me a lot of points.”

McMenimen, who finished third at state last year, will face Brush’s Alec Peterson, who is ranked No. 3 in Class 3A, in the quarterfinals.

Peterson won a 5-1 decision over Peter Williamson from Cedaredge in the preliminary rounds.

“The kid from Brush is the real deal; it’ll be a good test,” coach McMenimen said. “He knows he needs to beat the best to get where he wants to be.”

The Class 3A quarterfinals will begin at 10 a.m. Friday.

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Class 3A

DENVER – First-round results Thursday from the CHSAA Class 3A Wrestling State Championships at the Pepsi Center:
Team Scores: Lamar 29; Valley 27; Centauri 26.5; Brush 22; Olathe 20; Monte Vista 19.5; Ft. Lupton 15.5; Sterling 14.5; Dolores Huerta 12; Platte Valley 12; Buena Vista 11.5; Bennett 11; La Junta 11; Sheridan 10.5; Classical Academy 10; Strasburg 10; Alamosa 9.5; C.S. Christian 9.5; Holy Family 8; Cedaredge 7.5; Eaton 7; Pagosa Springs 6; Bayfield 5.5; Jefferson 5.5; Coal Ridge 4; Ellicott 4; Grand Valley 4; Gunnison 4; Hotchkiss 4; Lake County 4; Middle Park 4; Moffat County 4; St. Mary’s 4; Faith Christian 2; Florence 2; Salida 2; University 2.
120: Trenton Piatt, Olathe, pinned Brandon Onofre, Jefferson, :33; Andrew Jaramillo, Platte Valley, pinned Chance Boehm, Florence, 3:26; Ryan Nava, Bayfield, dec. Corbin Usry, Sterling, 7-5; Michael Johnson, Lamar, pinned Patrick Huffman, Buena Vista, 3:16; Tell Kelley, Alamosa technical fall Erich Russ, Eaton, 15-0; Austin Todd, Cedaredge, technical fall Randy Munoz, Ellicott, 15-0; Andrew Clark, Bennett, dec. Issik Herod, Moffatt County, 12-7; Conrad Cole, Brush, pinned Jacob Bedford, C.S. Christian, 2:29.
138: Joseph Prieto, Holy Family, pinned Mitch McCurdy, Hotchkiss, :46; Shane Wilson, Centauri, major decision Cesar Morales, Ellicott; 10-2; Jacob Vance, Monte Vista, pinned Danyon Minck, La Junta, :44; Austin Walters, Platte Valley dec. Brayden Peterson, Moffat County, 2-1; Kaleb Hansen, Lamar, pinned Haydden Humberg, Dolores Huerta, 5:00; Omar Sotelo, Valley, pinned Trent Rose, Olathe, 3:55; Alec Petterson, Brush, dec. Peter Williamson, Cedaredge, 5-1; Colter McMenimen, Bayfield technical fall Fabian Estrada, Jefferson, 19-0.
Associated Press