<\/p>\n
The Mancos Blue Jays and Dolores Bears combined for three individual league titles at the San Juan Basin League Duals in Norwood last Thursday.<\/p>\n
Mancos senior Richard Martinez, freshman Breccen Morelli, and Dolores sophomore Cameron Chavez all cruised to 3-0 finishes to take home league championship honors in their respective weight classes.<\/p>\n
Martinez got a win by fall over Norwood\/Nucla\u2019s Ty Carver and picked up forfeit wins over Ignacio and Dolores at 120 pounds. At 138, Morelli won by fall over Norwood\/Nucla\u2019s Michael Pfifer, came away with a 4-2 decision over Dustin Sanchez of Ignacio and won by forfeit against Dolores. And as the sole 106-pounder, Chavez got three forfeit victories.<\/p>\n
The Bears went 1-2 in duals, and the Jays finished 0-3, but their opponents benefited from forfeits, as each of the squads filled just five of 14 weight classes.<\/p>\n
Norwood\/Nucla got six forfeits in a 48-18 win over Mancos and in its 54-6 victory over Dolores, and then Ignacio got four forfeit wins in a 36-18 win over Dolores and three in a 30-15 win over Mancos.<\/p>\n
After getting four forfeit wins apiece, the Mancos and Dolores dual came down to the 132-pound class, with Dolores sophomore Josh Petrow defeating Mancos freshman Andrew Ruatti by fall to give the Bears a 30-24 win.<\/p>\n
Overall, Dolores was led by Chavez at 3-0, and then Zander Eichner (113) and Austin Hackney (126) went 2-1 and Petrow (132) and David Schmittel (145) finished 1-2. Senior Brandon Ward rested to try and heal up from a rib injury prior to the regional tournament.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe kids are working hard, and I feel like we\u2019ve got a couple of them that are definitely peaking right now,\u201d said Dolores head coach Dane Gallaher.<\/p>\n
Along with 3-0 finishes by Martinez and Morelli, Kaleb Hargraves (160) and Cameron Fury (170) each went 2-1 for Mancos and Ruatti (132) finished 0-3.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re coming on at the right time, which is the most important aspect,\u201d said Mancos head coach Travis White. \u201cA couple of kids avenged some earlier losses in the year, which is always a good thing. So I\u2019m feeling really positive about the way they\u2019re wrestling heading into regionals this weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dove Creek did not attend after freshman Cade Curtis was ruled out for the year in December due to illness and junior Derek Kibel was later ruled out for the season due to a concussion sustained at the Butch Melton Invitational on Jan. 28.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a rough first year,\u201d said Dove Creek\u2019s first-year head coach Eric Stiasny. \u201cJust having one for the majority of the season. But I enjoyed getting to know Derek a little bit more in the wrestling room and seeing him develop from the beginning of the year to when was unable to wrestle anymore. He\u2019s a hard worker and a pleasant kid to be around, and I really hope he\u2019s back next year.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Bears and Blue Jays now turn their eyes to the postseason, as they\u2019ll head to the Class 2A Region 1 Tournament hosted at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction beginning on Friday.<\/p>\n
There, the top four finishers in each weight class will advance to the Colorado State Championships at the Pepsi Center in Denver on Feb. 16-18.<\/p>\n
The squads have a tough road ahead of them, with five of the top 10 Class 2A teams competing in the same region (No. 2 Meeker, No. 3 Hotchkiss, No. 4 Norwood\/Nucla, No. 5 Paonia, No. 9 Ignacio).<\/p>\n
But Mancos heavyweight Casey Orange is ranked No. 8 in Tim Yount\u2019s On The Mat Rankings, and he has him fourth in the region. Martinez is currently the No. 1 ranked 2A wrestler at 120 pounds with Ward on his tail at No. 2. \u2013 so both Gallaher and White are hoping to send a couple of grapplers to Denver.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d really like to get two guys on to state, and maybe squeeze a third one in,\u201d said Gallaher. \u201cI was really hoping to get four this year, but losing Logan Fuller and Skieler Grooms \u2013 they were a couple of guys that probably had a good shot at qualifying \u2013 so it\u2019s going to be a little tougher to qualify more than two this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to send as many kids as possible to state, but the region we wrestle in is so difficult that it\u2019s always a challenge,\u201d said White. \u201cWe\u2019d love to send the whole team up there, but that\u2019s just a fantasy. The way the kids are wrestling though, they have a great opportunity, and I\u2019d like to see two to three kids qualify this year.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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