Indians Wrestle in Wray Invitational
Norris Wins 1st at 195
Photo by Tiffany Poet
Luin Norris took first place at 195 in the Wray wrestling invitational on Saturday.The St. Francis Indian wrestling team traveled to Wray, Colorado, to participate in the Bob Smith Invitational Wrestling Tournament on Saturday, December 17. The Indians placed 8th in the tournament as a team and had four individuals place in their weight brackets. Four of the six wrestlers participating in the tournament placed including Tiernan Poling (4th at 126), Cody Baxter (2nd at 160), Kouper McQuigg (4th at 170), and Luin Norris (1st at 195). Aaron White and Perla Yanez each wrestled two matches at 106 for the Indians.
Sedgwick County/Fleming won the team championship with 152 points. Wray placed 2nd with 130.5. Other team results were: 3rd - Limon 91.5, 4th - Yuma 65.5, 5th - Crowley County 74, 6th - Stratton 65, 7th - Merino 56, 8th - St. Francis 55, 9th - Holyoke 53, 10th - Akron 46, and 11th - Highlands Ranch 24.
Individual results for St. Francis wrestlers in the tournament are listed below.
106 - Aaron White (1-6) scored 0.00 team points.
Quarterfinal - Anthony Rojo (Holyoke High School) 3-3 won by decision over Aaron White 1-6 (Dec 12-5)
Cons. Round 1 - Alec Holtorf (Yuma High School) 8-6 won by fall over Aaron White 1-6 (Fall 4:25)
106 - Perla Yanez (0-6)
Quarterfinal - Jessica Mosqueda (Holyoke High School) 2-7 won by fall over Perla Yanez 0-6 (Fall 0:33)
Cons. Round 1 - Caden Lone (Highlands Ranch High School) 7-5 won by fall over Perla Yanez 0-6 (Fall 3:28)
126 - Tiernan Poling (6-6) placed 4th and scored 11.00 team points.
Quarterfinal - Tiernan Poling 6-6 won by fall over Josh Morris (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 1-6 (Fall 2:19)
Semifinal - Jesus Trejo (Holyoke High School) 9-3 won by fall over Tiernan Poling 6-6 (Fall 1:10)
Cons. Semi - Tiernan Poling 6-6 won by fall over Colton Franklin (Highlands Ranch High School) 5-9 (Fall 2:35)
3rd Place Match - Bradyn Tacha (Limon Jr-Sr High School) 4-5 won by fall over Tiernan Poling 6-6 (Fall 3:01)
160 - Cody Baxter (6-5) placed 2nd and scored 18.00 team points.
Quarterfinal - Cody Baxter 6-5 won by fall over Max Quint (Merino Jr/Sr High School) 2-8 (Fall 1:10)
Semifinal - Cody Baxter 6-5 won by fall over Wyatt Buccelli (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 9-6 (Fall 2:31)
1st Place Match - Emmanuel Huerta (Wray High School) 9-2 won by fall over Cody Baxter 6-5 (Fall 1:40)
170 - Kouper McQuigg (5-6) placed 4th and scored 10.00 team points.
Quarterfinal - Layne Green (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 14-4 won by decision over Kouper McQuigg 5-6 (Dec 10-7)
Cons. Round 1 - Kouper McQuigg (St. Francis High School) 5-6 won by fall over Carson Reese 0-2 (Fall 2:46)
Cons. Semi - Kouper McQuigg 5-6 won by disqualification over Carlos Tarin (Wray High School) 7-3 (DQ)
3rd Place Match - Layne Green (Sedgwick County/Fleming High School) 14-4 won by fall over Kouper McQuigg 5-6 (Fall 1:44)
195 - Luin Norris (4-3) placed 1st and scored 16.00 team points.
Round 1 - Luin Norris 4-3 won by fall over Travis Sellers (Crowley County High School) 2-9 (Fall 1:13)
Round 2 - Luin Norris 4-3 won by fall over Jayce Reser (Wray High School) 8-5 (Fall 2:23)
Round 3 - Dustin Poss (Akron High School) 5-1 won by fall over Luin Norris 4-3 (Fall 5:31)
Round 5 - Luin Norris 4-3 won by fall over Antoni Martinez (Holyoke High School) 4-7 (Fall 2:29)
Photo by Tiffany Poet
"It was a lot of fun watching the boys wrestle," said Reagan Beims, Saint Francis junior. "Seeing a classmate, Luin, place first is always exciting."Coach Dylan Loyd submitted the following information.
Coach’s Awards:
Most Exciting Match: Cody Baxter pinning Buccelli of Sedgwick County in the semi-final round to advance to the finals
Coach’s Award: Cody Baxter
Practice Wrestler: Trayton Doyle
Key Match Award: Luin Norris pinning Martinez of Holyoke to guarantee the 195-lb. championship
Most Outstanding Wrestler: The St. Francis coaching staff has selected Luin Norris as the wrestler of the week. Luin finished the day with the 195-lb. championship. All three of Luin’s victories came by fall.
Coach’s Comments: "This past weekend we fought the weather and made our way up to Wray, Colorado, to compete in the Bob Smith/Wray Invitational. We have competed in this tournament for a number of years and is one that I enjoy ending our “pre-season” on. The first part of our schedule is pretty front heavy with Colorado competition. We like to wrestle and compete against schools that we typically will not see as the season progresses. This season is pretty short and these guys have already had to deal with some adversity but, I am proud to see how they have all handled it. We had some matches this weekend that I know we would love to have back, but these kids know right now we are building and as the season goes they will keep getting better and better.
We will practice this week and then these guys will get some time off and celebrate Jesus’s birth with their families and friends. I love this group; they understand the big picture and what life is truly about. We are going to have a fun year, and they will all be ready once the new year rolls around. We have to get some kids healthy and keep working hard and keep having fun.
Photo by Tiffany Poet
Kouper McQuigg, Saint Francis sophomore, took fourth at 170 in the Wray Invitational on Saturday.Our pre-season is now done, right now these kids will get a couple of weeks off from competition. This break comes at a good time for us. Anytime you can spend time with family and celebrate the pure joys in life it’s always good. As we go into break I just want to continue to thank our alumni and wrestling fans who support this group. From our wrestling family to yours I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas!! Enjoy this time with family and be thankful for all of our blessings."