Upper weights dominant at Baldwin!

Baldwin Invitational

January 30, 2015

The Louisburg wrestling team brought home more medals than ever before from the Baldwin Invitational Tournament. Three teams dominated the 17-team event. Abilene took the championship with 215.5 points, followed by Baldwin (185) and Smoky Valley (141.4). Louisburg finished in 10th place overall with 110 points. The difference between 10th and 5th place ended up being just 18 points. This was the Wildcats’ best performance at the BIT since entering the tournament in 2012.

Brenton Wrigley, Mason Koechner, and Anders Vance go for a combined 12-3, each wrestler taking 3rd in his respective weight class after losing to top-ranked wrestlers in the semifinals. Photo courtesy of Alicia Vance.

Three upper-weights lead the Wildcats with 3rd place finishes. Senior Brenton Wrigley took 3rd at 195 lbs. after losing an overtime semi-finals match to the eventual champion. Sophomore Mason Koechner, who rebounded from a semifinals loss at 220 lbs., and junior Anders Vance, who fell in the semifinals at 285 lbs., also took 3rd place in their respective weight classes. Wrigley’s lone loss was to the #3 ranked wrestler from Baldwin. Koechner was trailing by two points against the #5 ranked wrestler from Smoky Valley and had a cradle locked up when he slipped and was pinned. Vance dropped a tough match to the #2 ranked wrestler from Wamego. Sophomore Nathan Keegan took 5th place at 113 lbs., earning a pin and a major decision along the way. Senior Zach Knox lost a tough match to an Osawatomie opponent to take 6th place at 132 lbs. Junior Bradley Trageser, wrestling unattached at 285 lbs., came out and took 6th place in his weight class. Freshman Ryan Adams faced some tough opposition, earning 2 pins en route to a 7th place finish. His final match was a revenge win against Tonganoxie.

Three Wildcats earned a win on the day but didn’t place. Freshman Thad Hendrix was 1-2 at 106 lbs., freshman Tucker Batten was 1-2 at 126 lbs., and junior Jordan Crowder was 1-2 at 170 lbs. All of their wins were by pin. A pair of juniors and a pair of sophomores also represented LHS at Baldwin: junior Chris Turner at 145 lbs., junior Dillin Roberts at 152 lbs., sophomore Ben Hupp at 160 lbs., and sophomore Lyndon Smith at 182 lbs. LHS was open at 120.

Vance brought home a nice honor in addition to his 3rd place medal. Vance was given the Gorriarian Award, a traditional award given to the wrestler in the tournament with the most pins in the least amount of time. He recorded 4 pins in a time of 9:53. Knox was also recognized with earning 3rd fastest pin of the tourney at 0:13.

After the Wildcats take a week off of competition, our next meet will be the Frontier League Duals, hosted by Eudora. Last year, we went 2-4 to take 5th place in the league. Anders Vance is looking to improve on his 3rd place finish from 2014 and Brenton Wrigley is looking to improve on his 4th place finish.

Individual Results:
106 lbs. – Thad Hendrix (fr.) 1-2, 1 pin
113 lbs. – Nathan Keegan (so.) 3-2, 1 pin, 1 major, 5th place
120 lbs. – open
126 lbs. – Tucker Batten (fr.) 1-2, 1 pin
132 lbs. – Zach Knox (sr.) 2-3, 1 pin, 6th place
138 lbs. – Ryan Adams (fr.) 3-2, 2 pins, 7th place
145 lbs. – Chris Turner (jr.) 0-2
152 lbs. – Dillin Roberts (jr.) 0-2
160 lbs. – Ben Hupp (so.) 0-2
170 lbs. – Jordan Crowder (jr.) 1-2, 1 pin
182 lbs. – Lyndon Smith (so.) 0-2
195 lbs. – Brenton Wrigley (sr.) 4-1, 2 pins, 3rd place
220 lbs. – Mason Koechner (so.) 4-1, 3 pins, 3rd place
285 lbs. – Anders Vance (jr.) 4-1, 4 pins, 3rd place
285 lbs. – Bradley Trageser (jr.) 2-3, 2 pins, 6th place (unattached)

Team Placing: 10th place out of 17 teams (110 points)

Next Competition: Frontier League Duals (February 13-14, 2015)

Baldwin Invitational Tournament

January 28, 2012

Hood dominant at Baldwin!

This season marks the first time that the Louisburg Wildcats have been invited to the Baldwin Invitational Tournament, a tough match-up of some of the top 4A schools in the area. Prairie View came out on top with the team championship, followed by Holton, Tonganoxie, Oak Park (Missouri), and host Baldwin. LHS finished in 11th place out of 15 teams with one champion and two other placers.

Senior Austin Hood made another statement this weekend by placing 1st at 126 lbs. Hood scored a dominant tech fall in the quarterfinals and then made a quick pin in the semifinals. In the championship finals, he faced a familiar foe in Baldwin’s Bryce Shoemaker. Hood went right to work in the first period, scoring a quick takedown off an ankle pick and then earning a 2-point nearfall before the end of the first period. Shoemaker chose neutral in the second period and Hood gave up a rare takedown to him. In the third period, Hood chose down and Shoemaker gave an early escape, and the rest of the match became a strategic battle for control. In the end, Hood remained dominant and brought home the championship with a 5-2 victory. Junior Kyle McLellan (220 lbs.) also had a good weekend, taking 4th place in his weight class. He lost to a tough kid from Oak Park, Missouri, but rebounded through the back side of the bracket to meet up with Santa Fe Trail’s Edward Fitzgerald in the 3rd place match. Fitzgerald, who has been ranked at the top in Class 4A, was a tough obstacle that McLellan could not get around. Senior Austin Caskey placed 5th at 145 lbs., dropping some tough matches to opponents from Prairie View and Basehor-Linwood. In the consolation finals match for 5th place, however, he won a great 11-9 decision against his Holton opponent.

Junior Austen Scott (132 lbs.), freshman Austin Huber (113 lbs.), and junior Curtis Lemke (152 lbs.) found themselves with tough draws in the first round, as all three lost their first matches. They each set out to finish as high as they could in the tournament, but only Scott made it to the 9th place match. Scott was leading his Santa Fe Trail opponent by 4 points before getting caught and pinned. Huber won a major decision and Lemke earned a fall on the backside of their brackets, but both lost in the next round. Despite being light for his weight, sophomore Ben Powers continues to fill in at 138 lbs. and giving it all he’s got. Powers was 0-2 on the weekend.

As the Wildcat Wrestlers near the end of January, we find ourselves getting closer and closer to the end of the season. There’s only one more regular tournament before we begin our “Championship Series” of League, Regionals, and State. Next weekend, we travel to Silver Lake for their annual invitational tournament.

Individual Results:
113 lbs. – Austin Huber (fr.) 1-2
126 lbs. – Austin Hood (sr.) 3-0, 1 fall, 1 tech fall, 1st place
132 lbs. – Austen Scott (jr.) 1-2, 1 fall
138 lbs. – Ben Powers (so.) 0-2
145 lbs. – Austin Caskey (sr.) 3-2, 1 fall, 5th place
152 lbs. – Curtis Lemke (jr.) 1-2, 1 fall
220 lbs. – Kyle McLellan (jr.) 2-2, 2 falls, 4th place

Team Placing: 11th out of 15 teams

Next Competition: Silver Lake Invitational (February 4, 2012)