{"id":48582,"date":"2021-02-14T04:53:04","date_gmt":"2021-02-14T11:53:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/senior-panthers-wrestlers-setting-sights-high\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T03:43:29","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T09:43:29","slug":"senior-panthers-wrestlers-setting-sights-high","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/senior-panthers-wrestlers-setting-sights-high\/","title":{"rendered":"Senior Panthers wrestlers setting sights high"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Montezuma-Cortez
Montezuma-Cortez High School senior Kael Buffington battles with Ignacio\u2019s Cayle McCoy at 106 pounds in a dual match Saturday at Montezuma-Cortez High School.<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

CORTEZ \u2013 Up in the corner of the gymnasium at Montezuma-Cortez High School, banners commemorate the legacy of Panthers wrestling with the names of former state champions. With the shortened 2021 season already near its midpoint, a senior-laden M-CHS squad has visions of adding more names to those banners.<\/p>\n

Hosting their first of two home meets this season on Saturday, a combined M-CHS and Dolores squad topped Dove Creek 36-18 before drawing with Ignacio 30-30. Dove Creek rebounded to capture a 27-24 dual meet win over Ignacio.<\/p>\n

\"Montezuma-Cortez
Montezuma-Cortez senior Kael Buffington takes down Ignacio&#x2019;s Devonte Montoya in an exhibition match Saturday at Montezuma-Cortez High School.<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Ignacio
Ignacio Bobcats sophomore Keaton McCoy wraps up M-CHS senior Wes Atcitty in a dual match at Montezuma-Cortez High School.<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Ignacio&#x2019;s
Ignacio&#x2019;s Jeremy Roderick spars with Dolores Bear Joe Summers in a match Saturday at Montezuma-Cortez High School.<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Bobcats
Bobcats sophomore Keaton McCoy takes the edge in a match Saturday against Dove Creek&#x2019;s Tyson Beanland at Montezuma-Cortez High School<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>
M-CHS\/Dolores 36, Dove Creek 18<\/div>\n

The day\u2019s matches kicked off with several showdowns at the lighter weight classifications between a combined Montezuma-Cortez\/Dolores squad and Dove Creek.<\/p>\n

M-CHS senior Kael Buffington took on Bulldogs standout Cole Taber in the 106 showdown, with Buffington taking an early advantage. With time winding down in the opening period, the Panther captured the upper hand and the victory, pinning Taber at 1:36.<\/p>\n

After Dove Creek\u2019s Jayden Bailey and Gage Bailey posted forfeit wins at 113 and 120, respectively, the Panthers sent junior Jayven Valdez to the mat to take on Dove Creek\u2019s Quaden Huffaker in the 126 classification.<\/p>\n

\"Montezuma-Cortez
Montezuma-Cortez senior Kael Buffington takes down Ignacio&#x2019;s Devonte Montoya in an exhibition match Saturday at Montezuma-Cortez High School.<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Ignacio
Ignacio Bobcats sophomore Keaton McCoy wraps up M-CHS senior Wes Atcitty in a dual match at Montezuma-Cortez High School.<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Ignacio&#x2019;s
Ignacio&#x2019;s Jeremy Roderick spars with Dolores Bear Joe Summers in a match Saturday at Montezuma-Cortez High School.<\/span>Ben Bradley\/For The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The duo battled through an evenly matched opening period, before Valdez started to swing momentum in his favor early in the second. In the dying seconds of the period, Valdez solidified his advantage and pinned Huffaker at 3:39.<\/p>\n

At 132, Austin Featherman, one of the two returning Panthers with state tournament experience, faced off against Caden Baker of the Bulldogs. Featherman took an aggressive approach to Baker with an early takedown, before pinning the Bulldog moments later at 1:44.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s awesome to come out here after all the hard work that we put in during the week,\u201d said Featherman, \u201cto be able to show it in a match.\u201d<\/p>\n

From a technical standpoint, the Panther senior pointed to an area of focus for him. \u201cI\u2019ve been working on snaps, so it was good to put that into my match today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dove Creek responded with their first victory of the day in a competed match, as Tyson Beanland turned in a reversal against Panther senior Wes Atcitty, and consolidated his advantage with a pin late in the first period.<\/p>\n

Panthers freshman Hunter Goodall picked up a forfeit win, and Dolores Bears wrestlers Gabe Allred and Joe Summers added to the team point tally with forfeits as well.<\/p>\n

M-CHS 30, Ignacio 30<\/div>\n

With a victory under their belts, the Panthers turned their focus to Ignacio. With a limited number of weight classes where both squads fielded a competitor, the match only pitted three competitions on the mat.<\/p>\n

At 106 pounds, Buffington continued his strong day, scoring an early takedown of Bobcat Cayle McCoy, before finishing off the pin in just over a minute. Buffington would later take on Devante Montoya in an exhibition match \u2013 Montoya wrestles at 113 \u2013 with the Panther again coming out on top to complete a 3-0 morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like I wrestled really well today,\u201d reflected Buffington, \u201ceven going up in weight class for the exhibition.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ignacio responded with a pair of hard-fought wins \u2013 the first of which belonged to returning state qualifier Keaton McCoy. After debuting as a freshman at 126, McCoy entered Saturday\u2019s dual against Wes Atcitty in the 138 classification.<\/p>\n

The sophomore took Atcitty down with a sharp early move, then continued to battle for better position before finally taking the pin at 1:33.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the lone match of the day to be competed above the 138-pound class came in the heavyweight division. Ignacio\u2019s Jeremy Roderick faced Joe Summers of Dolores in one of the most competitive matches of the day.<\/p>\n

The duo grappled through an evenly matched first period, with neither establishing clear control. After an escape from Roderick to start the second frame, the junior took down Summers to consolidate his lead. The Bear grappler responded with an escape of his own to close the gap to 3-1 with the clock ticking midway through the period.<\/p>\n

Then, Roderick made a decisive move, overpowering Summers to the mat, and collecting the pin moments later.<\/p>\n

After a productive day from his upperclassmen, M-CHS head coach Shad Bellmire lauded his team\u2019s energy.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything\u2019s starting to come together for us,\u201d said Bellmire, \u201cthese young men are really putting together what we\u2019ve been working on at practice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve got their eye on the prize,\u201d added Bellmire, \u201cwe know that we just need to keep working hard and stay focused.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sitting in a region that includes 3A state powers Pagosa Springs and Alamosa, Montezuma-Cortez knows that any berth into the state championships will be hard-earned. The state tournament will be more selective in 2021, as only two wrestlers from each region will qualify for the state championships to be competed at the Southwest Motors Events Center in Pueblo.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur region is tough, but so are we,\u201d concluded Bellmire, \u201cso even with all the curveballs we\u2019ve had thrown at us this year, these young men know there are no excuses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Buffington\u2019s perfect day, coupled with a 2-0 performance from Featherman highlighted the Panther attack. Halfway through their final campaign in orange-and-black, both know that they\u2019d like to add their name to Panther wrestling lore.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve put in a lot of work over the weeks,\u201d said Buffington, \u201cand we\u2019re working toward an end goal.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur next step is to keep grinding,\u201d added Featherman, \u201cwe know we need to be ready for six-minute matches.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Panthers prepare to take on Mancos, Nucla and Dolores on Saturday, Feb. 20, before late season tests against Pagosa Springs and Bayfield in the final week of the regular season. The regional tournament, hosted by Pagosa Springs, will be held the first weekend of March, leading up to the 3A state tournament being competed on Friday, March 12.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, as Featherman put it, the goal for he and each of his Panther teammates is to \u201cput our names up in the gym.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dove Creek 27, Ignacio 24<\/div>\n

The final match pitted the Bulldogs against the Bobcats, and the festivities kicked off in fine fashion at the 138 weight division. A pair of victors from earlier in the day, McCoy and Beanland, both brought an early energy to the match.<\/p>\n

Beanland posted the first takedown, but McCoy escaped. The Bulldog\u2019s persistence paid off with another two-pointer on the takedown, but again McCoy had an answer, this time with a reversal. McCoy refused to concede momentum. The sophomore Bobcat forced Beanland onto his back, and from there, finished the pin late in the opening period.<\/p>\n

The Bulldogs turned the match around moments later, as Cole Taber topped Ignacio\u2019s Cael McCoy at 106 via pin. Then, Dove Creek\u2019s Jaydon Bailey and Ignacio\u2019s Devonte Montoya had both team benches on the edge of their seats. The duo put together a scoring fest with numerous reversals and momentum swings. In the end, Bailey produced the final push to outlast Montoya, 16-14, to an ovation from both squads.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

M-CHS duels Ignacio and Dove Creek in midseason tuneup<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":48583,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[80,36,29],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-48582","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-dove-creek","tag-montezuma-cortez-high-school","tag-newsletter"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48582","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48582"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48582\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":87412,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48582\/revisions\/87412"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48582"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48582"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48582"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=48582"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}