Mancos wrestlers defeat MCHS JVs

Mancos wrestlers defeat MCHS JVs

Dec. 23, 2000

BY JIM THOMAS
Journal Sports Editor

PHILIP WILSON (RIGHT) of the Mancos High School varsity wrestling team grabs a hold of Ryan Gray of Montezuma-Cortez High School JVs Wednesday night in the Mancos Performance Center. Wilson manhandled Gray and won by technical fall. The Blue Jays won the dual match.

It was a good dual wrestling meet Wednesday night, Dec. 20, in the Mancos Performance Center. Mancos High School held on, after taking a large lead, to beat Montezuma-Cortez High School JVs 41-36.

Mancos dominated the middle weights, where MCHS is a little light in wrestlers at those spots, winning 130, 135, 140, and 145 pounds.

At 130 pounds, Mancos’ Jeremiah Muniz dominated his match against Cade Fox, who wrestles varsity for MCHS. He made a reversal in 1:32, put Fox to his back and pinned him in 1:07.

Scott Kopenhafer toyed with Panther Dallas Reed. After a quick takedown, he allowed Reed to escape and then took him down again. Kopenhafer, who finished second at the Class 2A State Tournament a year ago, led 6-2 with 1:18 left in the first period. He led 10-3 and soon was up 15-3 before finally pinning him in with 51 seconds left.

Matt McGuire had a tougher time against MCHS’s K.C. Pratt. McGuire fell behind early and nearly got pinned in the opening seconds of the first period. He scored off a reversal but Pratt made a reversal and then nearly pinned him again. McGuire led 10-4 at the end of the first period. The battle tightened and Pratt held a 10-7 lead when the second one ended. McGuire tight the score at 10-all and went ahead 13-10 with a near fall. McGuire finally put Pratt’s shoulders to the mat with a cradle move in 5:32.

Mike Montoya, who also placed second at State last year, took on Panther P.J. James, who has been wrestling on the varsity. The match was close through the first period with Montoya holding a narrow 2-1 lead. In the second, Montoya took James down for a 5-1 lead at 1:36. Montoya got James in a cradle but couldn’t pin him. The Mancos wrestler led 10-2 when the period ended. In the third period, James got the better of him but James rolled too far and Montoya made a reversal and pinned James in 5:48.

After all those matches, Mancos held a commanding 36-18 lead.

MHS’s Vince Bazile took Cody Allmon down and quickly pinned him in 50.2 seconds in the 103-pound bout. Cortez’ Ryan Meany led 9-4 after two periods against Anthony Maestas at 112. Meany got Maestas in a half and pinned him in 5:31. Cortez led the team score 12-6. Daniel Wilson, 125, received a forfeit which tied it at 12-all.

But Cortez made a comeback by winning 152 and 160. Panther Kyle Archibeque had all he could handle with first-year wrestler Jakob Tallent. Archibeque led 7-4 after the first period and pinned him in the second in 3:05. Connery Benally had no problems with Mancos’ Dave Malinsky. Benally nearly pinned Malinsky twice in the first period and led 7-1 when the period ended. Benally took Malinsky down, cradled him, and pinned him in 2:05.

Philip Wilson won by a technical fall against Cortez’ Ryan Gray, who has been wrestling on the varsity lately. Wilson got his shorter legs around the much taller Gray and nearly pinned him as the first buzzer sounded. Wilson led 9-0. Wilson continued to work his legs and nearly pinned him again for a 12-0 lead. Wilson was penalized a point for unsportsmanlike conduct. But Wilson came back and nearly pinned him again for a 15-1 lead at the end of two periods. Wilson shot and took Gray down for the 17-1 win early in the third.

The 189 bout was a double forfeit (no points awarded in this case). Panther varsity member Michael LeCompte won by forfeit at 215. MCHS’s Elias Lehi, coming off an injury, trailed early 2-0 but led 3-2 when the first period ended against Kevin Schlemmer. Both wrestlers were cautioned for stalling in the second. Lehi still led 3-2. In the third, Lehi took Schlemmer down. Schlemmer made a reversal and then Lehi countered with a reversal and pinned Schlemmer in 5:31.

The MCHS varsity traveled to Ignacio and came away with a 45-36 win over a good Bobcat squad. The Panthers are perfect 4-0 in duals so far.

"This was a really good match. Ignacio has a very good team. We were lucky to have left there with a win," MCHS head coach Mike Allison said.

The two coaches of the schools decided to get the forfeits over early. Lehi, who had wrestled the night before in Mancos, won by forfeit. Ignacio’s Trevor Bellino won at 125 and IHS’s Jordan Bilwin won at 130.

Because of a new rule change this season that allows for the meet to start with an arbitrary match (the beginning weight class is randomly drawn), the deciding match was the battle at 135 pounds between Panther Jared Carver and Jarad Lyons.

Carver started out slow and got caught by Lyons. Carver got turned over and was pinned in 1:58. MCHS’s Nick Martinez came out wrestling solid and took a 8-1 after the first period. Martinez used good technique and pinned Peter Justesen in 2:42. James rolled and rolled and pinned Mike Martinez in 1:09. Archibeque wrestled Ross Melton and lost by fall in 5:44 at 152. Panthers Dan O’Neal, at 160, and Cole Allison, 171, both won by easily with pins in 50 seconds and 38 seconds, respectively, over Terrell Pursley and Lawrence Cloud.

Gray, 189, lost to a good wrestler in Bobby Kinney by fall in 4:56. LeCompte pinned Adam Seibel in 2:27. Cortez’ Richard Yake, 103, pinned Phillip Weaver in 2:58. Ignacio’s Rocky Cundiff pinned Maestas, 112, in 2:49.

The final bout came down between Ignacio’s Adrian Abeyta and Cortez’s Lyle Benally at 119. Abeyta nearly pinned Benally, which would have resulted in a 42-42 tie, but the Cortez wrestler came alive for a 10-7 decision and a 9-point win for the Panthers.

"Benally is such a solid wrestler. He has such good technique. Abeyta dropped Benally to his back and led 5-0 at the end of the first period. I thought, oh man, we are going to wind up in a tie. We choose neutral and took Abeyta down in the second and Abeyta escaped. Benally really came alive in the final period. Benally escaped after being down to start. Benally takes him down and then nearly pins him. Abeyta escaped and then we took him down for the win," he said.

The Panthers are finished for the 2000 portion of the schedule.

"Although we have won all our duals, I feel we have been up and down. At times we have wrestled very well and at other times not so good. I thought we wrestled very well at Kayenta and at the Warrior. We have some things to correct. I will spend some more time with our younger wrestlers than I have so far to bring them up," Allison said.