Bluehawk grapplers take 3 of 4 final duals
Photos by Aaric Bryan<br>Bluehawk John Garrison plants himself to twist Savage Horseman Austin Thompson around in a dual in Thompson Falls Thursday. Garrison pinned Thompson at 5:23. The Savage Horsemen, Arlee Warriors and the Bluehawks held dual matches for more than two hours at Thompson Falls' gym.
The Thompson Falls Bluehawks' wrestling team finished their regular season with a sweep of the county's teams.
On their home court, the Bluehawks beat the Plains-Hot Springs Savage Horsemen 48-24 in a dual Thursday and beat the Noxon Red Devils 72-3 Friday.
Although the Bluehawks beat the Savage Horsemen, most their points came by forfeit as Plains-Hot Springs went 5-1 against the Bluehawks. In the dual, Wes Goodwin won a 12-7 decision over Brandon Olean in the 152-pound class. Chris Stobie beat Michael Glover 10-8 and in the 189-pound class Mike Hines pinned Bryant Normandeau in 49 seconds.
In the exhibition matches, Austin Thompson pinned Danny Vulgamore at 2:34 in the 171-pound weight class and Wes Goodwin beat Logan Clay 5-1.
Despite only losing one match, Savage Horsemen coach Kenny Marjerrison thought his team could've done better. "Thompson (Falls) always wrestles well at home, so we struggled a little bit there," he said. Marjerrison said that in a lot of the matches that were decided by points, his team had pinned them in earlier matches.
Thompson Falls' lone win against the Savage Horsemen came in the 171-pound class, when John Garrison pinned Thompson at 5:23. Garrison also pinned Arlee's Leon Wieder in just under a minute in the Bluehawks dual against the Warriors the same night.
"He's picked it up here the last three weeks," Bluehawk coach Colby Cline said of Garrison. He said Garrison had placed at Choteau and won at the Ted Kato Invitational the prior Saturday. "He's kicking it up a gear," Cline said.
Garrison's victory against Arlee was one of six Bluehawk victories against the Warriors in the dual, which they lost 46-36, despite winning six of 12 matches. Arlee's extra points came by forfeit.
Tate Cavill, Richard Lyons, Glover, Garrison and Normandeau all won with pins. Lyons' 26-second pin against 140-pounder Justin Monson was the quickest of the five.
In the heavyweight match that decided the dual, Bluehawks Jason Shaw was pinned by Arlee's Keegan Fluke at 4:32 after a closely fought match. "They'll probably meet again in the championship at divisionals," Cline said. He said Shaw had beat Fluke in an earlier match in the season.
On Friday, the Bluehawks defeated Noxon 72-3 and Darby 51-10. There were only four matches in the dual against the Red Devils, with Thompson Falls winning three of them.
All three Bluehawks' victories in the dual were by pin. Bluehawks' Cavill pinned Clay Smith at 1:38. Normandeau pinned Cody Martin and Glover pinned Caplen Weare, with both pins coming just under two minutes. Noxon's lone victory in the dual was Adam Moore's 1-0 decision over Clay.
Both the Red Devils and the Savage Horsemen competed in the Mission Invitational Take-down Tournament Saturday. Plains-Hot Springs had five of their six wrestlers place and Noxon had one of their four wrestlers place.
Savage Horseman Rio Crismore won the 98-pound class with a 1:47 pin of Arlee's Cassandra Kline. Kenneth Beech finished third by beating Eureka's Eric Roe. Stobie finished third with a 10-0 decision over Red Devil Weare. In the 171-pound class, Thompson finished third with a 12-2 decision over Warrior Wieder and Mike Hines finished in third with a 10-point victory over Siedel. Moore's 10-2 decision over Eureka's Taylor Brown gave him a third-place finish.
All three coaches said they like their chances at the Divisional Tourney in Darby Saturday. Marjerrison said the Savage Horsemen have a good chance at advancing all their wrestlers to the wrestling championships at Billings Feb. 8-9. "If we wrestle like we're capable of wrestling, we can take everybody to state," he said.
Cline said he has five wrestlers who should not only advance to state, but also have a good chance at winning the championship. He said Matt Hojem (26-8), Cavill (16-4), Lyons (24-9), Garrison (23-10) and Jason Shaw (19-6) all have a good chance at taking first place at the divisional tournament.
Cline said that the division is so closely matched that all his wrestles can advance; it just depends on how they wrestle at the tournament. He said his team has started practicing twice a day to prepare for the tournament. "I think the kids are working hard, so I hope it pays off for them," he said.
Noxon coach Kelly Moore said Adam Moore and Weare should both advance, but with a young team he'll be OK with any result at the tournament. "Whatever we can do, I'll be satisfied with," he said.