CARBONDALE — Youth was served in a big way Thursday as Iola High’s wrestling squad — consisting of one senior, one sophomore and eight freshmen — took part in the Pioneer League Tournament.
The Mustangs racked up three runner-up and three third-place finishes in individual weight categories.
As a team, Iola took fourth, an impressive accomplishment because of the number of wrestlers who had never taken part in a varsity competition prior to this week.
Individually, Iola freshman Ruger Boren took second at 106 pounds, as did freshman Evan LaCrone at 132 pounds and senior Korbin Cloud at 144 pounds.
Cloud narrowly missed out on a Pioneer League championship. He trailed 6-3 after two periods to Santa Fe Trails’ Bryson Crotinger, but his ability to get a reversal midway through third and final period netted him two points to cut the deficit to 6-5.
But Crotinger was able to escape Cloud’s advantage for a crucial bonus point.
Cloud was able to get another takeout over the final 61 seconds of the match and fell, 7-5.
Sophomore Trapper Boren took third at 113 pounds, freshman Tripp Mathes was third at 126 pounds and freshman Kale Pratt claimed third at 150 pounds.
Pratt had the daunting task of taking on two of the most successful 150-pound wrestlers in the state in Anderson County’s AJ Schaffer and Santa Fe Trail’s Chayse Jeanneret. Both earned pins against Pratt before he ended the day by pinning Keegan Hunt of Wellsville in the third period.
Also competing were freshmen Ean DeLaTorre, Rohan Springer, Broderick Peters and Alston Nelson.
They, too, used the tournament as a building block for the IHS Mustang wrestling program.
Results follow.
Pioneer League Tournament
Team scores: 1. Santa Fe Trail, 244; 2. Anderson County, 111.5; 3. Burlington, 93; 4. Iola, 90; 5. Prairie View, 88; 6. Wellsville, 72; 7. Osawatomie, 45.5.
Ruger Boren (second at 106 pounds)
