A slightly smaller group of Wrangell High School wrestlers competed at the Bill Weiss Invitational in Ketchikan last weekend. The team was down to nine wrestlers last week after several injuries and withdrawals.
“They did good,” said the Wolves’ coach, Jeff Rooney. “Of course we want to do a little bit better,” he added, as the season nears its midpoint.
Wrangell placed seventh overall in the two-day tournament, with 88 team points. The Ketchikan High School hosts took first place in the tourney with 216 points, followed by Craig with 149, Mt. Edgecumbe with 146, Thunder Mountain, Sitka and Haines. Beneath Wrangell in the rankings were Metlakatla, Thorne Bay, Petersburg, Juneau-Douglas, Hoonah, Kuskokwim, Hydaburg and Klawock.
Chet Armstrong took second place in the 182-pound bracket, winning by fall in 1:08 against Kirk Evens of Petersburg and a 10-0 majority decision against Metlakatla’s Alonzo Leisholmm. Armstrong was pinned in the final by Joshua Goeden of Sitka.
Ian Jenson placed second in his 126-pound bracket, winning his first match in a 42-second pin, against JDHS’ Christian Batac. Jenson won his next match by fall in 3:04, but was bested by Klawock’s Brandon Evans in the final with a pin at 3:49.
Dillon Rooney was 0-2 in the 138 bracket, after a 1:23 pin by Thunder Mountain’s Deven Mason in the opener and a 3-2 decision favoring Ketchikan’s Justin Albecker after a bye. Mason went on to take third for the bracket.
Sam Armstrong placed sixth in a crowded 145-pound bracket, winning his first two match-ups with pins before losing by major decision and then suffering an injury. Teammate Sig Decker finished out 1-2, after opening with a 3:10 pin against Klawock’s Garner Unok.
In the 160, Darren Shilts placed sixth with two wins. After losing by 8-4 decision to eventual third-placer Noah Castle of Craig, Shilts went on to finish with two pins, at 2:09 and 4:16.
Chris Seddon placed fourth for his 220 bracket, after two pins ending in 1:32 and 3:47.
“I’m really proud of the guys,” said Rooney. Despite getting caught by a few surprise showings he said the team would be making some change-ups ahead of the big tournament at Anchorage Christian Schools this weekend. Rooney explained the team will get to match up against schools from around Alaska, and how his wrestlers perform will be instrumental to their standings at State.
“I think we’re really going to pull it out,” he said. The wrestling team headed north by jet yesterday, and will be competing through tomorrow and into Saturday.
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