Little Guys go to Superior for duals

Little Guy wrestling clubs from Thompson Falls and Pains-Hot Springs met in Superior Thursday at a four-team duals, along with Mission/Charlo/Dixon and Superior. The dual included beginner, novice, middle and junior classes.

Charlie Crabb, varsity wrestling coach for Superior and the Bobcats Little Guy head coach, said the goal of the duals was to get each wrestler a few matches with the younger wrestlers matched up by weight. The older wrestlers were matched up in an informal round robin, but no brackets or records were kept. Crabb said meets like the duals in Superior are good opportunities to give the young wrestlers a chance on the mat. He said the two-hour competition Thursday was a success.

“Anytime they get some experience, the better off they are,” Crabb said. “I think it went really well. We got some wrestling in and we had some fun.”

Lisa Brown, president of the Wildhorse Little Guy Wrestling Club (Plains-Hot Springs), said the Superior duals were a nice change for the wrestlers. She said it served as a chance to get the Savage Horsemen some real competition outside of regular practices, especially with the Valley Tournament coming up in Thompson Falls. Brown said Plains-Hot Springs sent the majority of their 40-person team to Superior, despite a few illnesses among the wrestlers.

Thompson Falls coach Colby Cline said he thought his wrestlers did well in Superior. Cline said he likes to see all the improvement they show each week and he hopes that the young wrestlers stick with it through high school. But Cline said they are too young to focus on only one sport right now and he hopes they will participate in as many sports as they can.

“At this age I'm not going to push them in one direction. I hope they go out for every sport,” Cline said. “At this age they have the opportunity to do every sport and by doing everything, it makes them well-rounded athletes.”

Cline said another function conflicted with the day and time of the Superior meet. He said that about 30 of Thompson Falls' 40 wrestlers competed at the duals.

The four-way duals in Superior was well attended; the gym at Superior High School was packed with young wrestlers, coaches and parents. Seven different mats were designated for matches and at any given time, there were three to five matches going on at once. Officiating the matches were volunteer referees made up of students from local high school wrestling teams.

The next action for Thompson Falls and Plains-Hot Springs will take place Saturday in Thompson Falls at the Valley Little Guy Tournament. The following Saturday, March 15, the teams will compete in the Inter Valley Little Guy Tournament in Libby. The State Little Guy Tournament will take place Saturday, March 22, in Missoula.