Wrangell’s high school wrestling team finished up its season at the state championships in Anchorage last weekend, securing 11th overall with 58.5 points.
Competing at the Alaska Airlines Center Friday through Sunday, students from 56 different schools took part in the 1-3A tournament. Wrangell’s inclusion comes after its third-place finish at Region V in Ketchikan the week prior.
“It went very well,” said Wolves coach Jeff Rooney. “We didn’t have any champions, but we had some great wrestling. It was a good time.”
Wrestling in the 106-pound weight bracket, senior JD Barratt took third overall in the meet. He opened against Ethan Tucker of Redington High, winning by technical fall after 3:22. Following this, in the quarterfinals he won by pin over Anchorage Christian Schools’ Luke Hofacker. Moving along to the semifinals, a prolonged match against Eielson High School senior Deven Perez ended in a 6-10 decision for Barratt, who moved to the finals fighting for third. He prevailed, finishing over Grace Christian student Jude Merriner by 12-5 decision. Barratt finished his final season with a 31-5 record.
In the 152, Hunter Wiederspohn finished fourth overall with a season record of 34-12. He opened with a win by 7-2 decision over Edward Nick Jr. of Manakotak. In the quarterfinals he won by 14-0 major decision over GCS’ Jeremy DeVries. Coming against Bethel senior Mian Alexie-Leonard, Wiederspohn lost in a 2-11 decision, but in the backbracket semifinals bested GCS sophomore Michael Kuentzel by a 7-5 decision. In the finals, Sitka student Sid Fleming won by 13-4 major decision.
In the girls tournament’s 145 bracket, Hannah Brown finished her sophomore season with a 16-15 record. After opening in a close 4-6 loss to Desarae Matheny of Lathrop, Brown won by pin over Barrow’s Amyaa Davis in 4:58. She finished her tournament after Nome’s Sierra Tucker won by 4-1 decision.
Chase Kincaid finished his first season on the Wolves team with a 15-17 record, competing in the 113 bracket. He lost his opening match to Voznesenka’s Maxim Kusnetsov by technical fall. In the back-end, he won his next round over Houston senior David Revilak by pin in 2:41. Kincaid went on to win his next match against Glenallen freshman Isaiah Hoffman, before finishing in the semifinals by fall to Barrow senior Anthony Librado.
Senior student Ian Jenson finished fifth overall in the 145 weight bracket, ending his season with a 34-11 record. He opened with a win by major decision over ACS’ Cole Smith, 9-1. Jenson won the quarterfinals over Eielson student Graham Staley by fall in 3:12, but was pinned in the next after 5:26 by Bethel’s Hayden Lieb. He rematched Staley in the consolation bracket, finishing with a win by fall in 2:18.
Competing in the 182 bracket, Dillon Rooney finished his season with a 28-12 record. He lost his opening round against Susitna Valley’s Aiden Jolley by 12-6 decision, but finished his next two matches by pin against Houston’s Justin Gericke and Dillingham’s Matthew Krause. He was knocked out of the bracket by Dillingham’s Sam Jenkins, who after a tough match was able to win by 6-5 decision.
“They wrestled a great tournament,” Rooney said of his team. “It was a lot of learning for the younger guys.”
In the year’s final weeks the team will gather for a final celebration, but things should be wrapped up for high school wrestling. Looking ahead, Rooney was enthusiastic about the upcoming seasons for Stikine Middle School and Wrangell’s peewee program.
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