Rocky Mountain Middle School wrestlers battle through packed tournament

It was a weekend to remember for the Rocky Mountain Middle School wrestling team, as athletes battled through a massive 19-team tournament featuring nearly 600 competitors. Despite the challenge, the young Grizzlies turned in strong results, with six wrestlers placing and three others just missing medals.

Dally Malson and Wyatt Blank led the way, both taking home first-place finishes at 175 and 100B respectively. Gus Loyning earned third place at 75A, and Hudson Moore finished fourth at 105A. Several others, including Henry Pincoske, Barry Jolley and Ridge Wilson, won multiple matches and advanced deep into the consolation rounds.

Like a New York City subway

Head coach Tim Jones said the atmosphere was unlike anything he’d experienced.

“It felt like a New York City subway at rush hour,” he laughed. “There were so many people trying to move around the gym. Given the number of athletes, the organizers did as good a job as they could. It’s just exhausting fighting through the crowd to get to the mat or finding your wrestlers when it’s their turn.”

Two meets this week

The team now looks ahead to a smaller meet in Greybull on Friday and a larger one in Powell on Saturday.

“We’re just trying to learn from our mistakes from week to week,” Jones said. “The kids are working hard and making the adjustments to improve their technique.”