Lovell wrestlers stay strong at Lander invite

By: 
Avery Layne

Lovell wrestlers stay strong at Lander invite

By Avery Layne

The Lovell Bulldogs have been working hard on the mat as they inch closer to Regionals and State. 

Last Thursday, the team welcomed the Worland Warriors to their home mats for a dual. By the end of the night, the Bulldogs had triumphed over the Warriors with a final score of 53-12, only giving up two losses. Hudsen Mickelson (120), Zayden Stahl (126), Dino Delacruz (132), Mason Christenson (138), Chance Hatch (144), Hunter Krei (150), Owen Hill (157), Kasey Jordan (190) and Kyler Mickelson (215) all contributed to the score in the varsity lineup by defeating their opponents.

The following day the team stepped on the mats to wrestle at a tournament in Lander.

“We battled through illness and injury when we wrestled in Lander,” noted head wrestling coach Ty Hecker, adding that the team saw a lot of competition in Lander and walked out with a few placers.

Danika Crumrine came out of the tournament as the team’s highest placer, taking first place in the 145-pound girls weight bracket. Crumrine pinned her first two opponents in the bracket within the first period to land her in the finals against Nicole Sumare of Burns. Crumrine defeated Sumare by fall in the first period, ending the tournament in first place in her bracket. 

“Crumrine won first the third week in a row,” Hecker said. “Crumrine is lethal in the neutral position.” 

Delacruz placed fourth in the 132-pound varsity bracket.

“Delacruz was our highest varsity boys placer,” said coach Hecker, who also noted that Delacruz will be “looking to place at Ron Thon this weekend.” Delacruz defeated his first two opponents by technical fall and pinned his third opponent to land him a spot in the semi-finals. A tough loss sent him to work through the left side of the bracket where he took fourth place, ending his weekend with a 4-2 record. 

Coach Hecker also highlighted Jordan for his performance this weekend.

“Jordan has been getting better and better, scoring the second most points on the team during the Lander tournament,” Hecker said, adding that Jordan faced a tough bracket with 20 other competitors and managed to hold a record of 3-2 for the weekend.

Harley Tillett competed in the 105-pound girls bracket and finished the tournament in sixth place. A tough first-match loss sent her to work through the left side of
the bracket, and she finished the tournament with a 2-3 record.

Junior varsity

Several younger bulldogs dominated on the mat throughout the JV portion of the tournament, with many placing in their respective brackets.

Krei took first place in the JV 150-pound A bracket, maintaining a clean record of 4-0. His finals match was a 17-1 tech fall victory against Luciano Daniele of Laramie.

“Krei has been coming into his own as of late,” noted coach Hecker.

Travis Asay was the second highest placer for the JV boys, taking third place in the 150B pound bracket. Asay worked the left side of the bracket after losing his semi-finals match, finishing the tournament with a 3-1 record. 

Jaxen Baxendale competed in the 126B bracket and finished the tournament in fourth place overall with a record of 2-2. 

Monte Blank wrestled in the 175A bracket and ended up taking fourth place overall. His first match sent him to the left side of the bracket where he won two matches and lost his third, placing him fourth overall with a 2-2 record.

Taevyn Gruell placed fourth in the JV 190-pound bracket. He held a record of 2-2 with two of his victories coming as the result of a pin.

This weekend the team will travel down to Riverton to compete in the largest tournament in the state – the Ron Thon Memorial. This tournament brings every team in the state of Wyoming, regardless of class, to wrestle and compete for a spot on the podium. The tournament will last three days. The girls will wrestle Thursday, Jan. 30, and the tournament will carry over to Friday, Jan. 31, for them. The boys will start wrestling Friday and finish Saturday, Feb. 1.

The team will wrestle a tough couple of days in Riverton for a chance at a belt, the prize for first place.

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