HUMBOLDT — Humboldt High School’s wrestling team opened its season Thursday with a come from behind win over Leon’s Bluestem High School. The Cubs won 36-27.
“We had two kids who could have and should have won,” said Humboldt High School head coach Kent Goodner. “We are going to work on that in practice. Other than that we finished strong. Our middleweights dominated. We have some good stuff coming for the rest of the year.”
Humboldt’s girls kicked the night off, but due to a disparity in numbers, girls scores were not kept and were labeled as an exhibition.
“We have some work to do,” Goodner said of the girls performance. “Next week, I’m probably going to start splitting up practices between the boys and the girls so the girls get more of my time. They are getting there though.”
Once the boys portion began, Humboldt dug itself a bit of a hole. In the 106 lb. weight class, HHS’ Clay Shannon lost to Bluestem’s Dagan Turner via pinfall in the second round after exchanging takedowns. Bluestem led 6-0.
Neither team had wrestlers for the 113 or 120 lb. weight classes.
In the 126 lb. weight class, Bluestem’s Laythan Vice defeated HHS’ Robbie Robertson in quick order. Vice pinned Roberston 50 seconds into the first round. Bluestem led 12-0 after the first two weight classes.
In the 132 lb. weight class HHS’ Chase Demeritt pinned Bluestem’s Zak Dotter 1:39 into round one for HHS’ first win of the evening. Demeritt looked to have more power in his lower half than Dotter. The win cut the score in half, Bluestem led 12-6.
The 138 lb. weight class was not contested.
If you blinked, you most likely missed the matchup in the 145 lb. weight class. HHS’ Bradley Lowry pinned Colt Williamson in 22 seconds after an aggressive takedown just after the match began. Lowry’s win brought the score to a 12-12 tie, giving HHS new life in the team competition.
HHS pulled ahead 18-12 after Cole Mathes pinned Bluestem’s Trevor Taylor in the 152 lb. weight class. Mathes won in 1:26 seconds over Taylor. Mathes was methodical in the match, taking down Taylor early in the round before ultimately getting the pinfall win.
In the 160 lb. weight class, HHS’ Colton Johnson defeated Bluestem’s Colton Neal 2:21 into the second round. Johnson scored two takedowns over Neal, one in each round. Johnson dominated the second round, had the match gone the full distance, he would have likely won on points. The win for Johnson gave HHS a 24-12 lead.
HHS’ four-round win streak was snapped in the 170 lb. weight class. Bluestem’s Caden Seadorf defeated Cody White in the first round via pinfall. The match lasted 1:20. Seadorf scored a takedown early and from that point, you could tell he was in control. HHS led the event 24-18 after the round.
The most exciting matchup of the night was in the 182 lb. weight class. HHS’ Dakota Slocum faced Bluestem’s Zane McFall. The two had an excellent match, the only one of the night to go the distance. The two traded takedowns and took each other out of bounds multiple times in each round. In the end, McFall took the win and gained three points to make the score 24-21, still in favor of HHS.
