The GHS boys and girls wrestling teams divided and conquered on Jan. 18. The boys traveled to Florence High School to take on fierce competition at the Mel Smith Invitational. The girls visited Battle Mountain High School in Edwards for the Skyview Invitational.
Despite facing off against tough opposition, the Cowboys claimed podium finishes and bounced back in consolation brackets. The grapplers will return to the GHS gymnasium for a final home duel on Jan. 23 at 6 p.m. Then, the teams’ focus will shift to the regional tournament in Grand Valley on Feb. 7-8.
“These guys make my job so much easier, because they don’t hang their heads, or think about the losses,” said Head Coach Mike Seijo. “Weekends like these show the fortitude of our guys, and their willingness to get better.”
In Florence, the GHS boys team faced off against 30 rival high schools. Cody Casebolt opened in flying fashion. The junior pinned his first opponent and won by decision in the next two rounds to advance to the first-place match. Casebolt finished second in the 126-lbs bracket after a scrappy defeat. He fell to an 8-3 decision against Uriah Martinez of Alamosa High School.
Brock Fry and Zach Benson had similar routes to the podium in Florence. Fry took down his first opponent by technical fall. But the senior was relegated to the consolation bracket after a pin to Dylan Paris of Eaton High School in the quarterfinal. Fry rallied in the following three rounds and achieved redemption over Paris in the 132-lbs, third-place match to finish on the podium.
Benson also started hot, but fell to Ethan Deal of Eaton in the quarterfinal. The sophomore then won by technical fall in the fourth round, and pinned two opponents in the fifth round and semifinal to reach the third-place match. It was a rematch against Deal. This time, Benson made no mistake, and won by an 11-0 major decision to take third place.
Senior Damyon Funk also contributed to the Cowboys’ overall score, and took fifth in the 113-lbs bracket. Collectively, the boys placed 13th out of 30 schools.
In Edwards, the GHS girls rose to the occasion against a field of 24 teams. Roxie Uhrig added to her impressive, 23-2 sophomore campaign with a victory in the 140-lbs tournament. Evelyne Cope notched a second-place finish after pinning her opening three opponents. Senior Isabelle Crown also stood on the podium with a fourth-place finish, while junior Brynn Anderson achieved two key wins in the 100-lbs bracket. The girls finished the day with an eighth-place team finish.
The strong results will catapult the Cowboys into away tournaments in Cañon City and Chatfield on Jan. 25. Both teams will match up against 4A and 5A schools in the final weeks of the regular season, and prepare for a strong postseason run.
(Alex McCrindle can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or alex@gunnisontimes.com.)
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