Jr. High Wrestlers Place 4th
The Northwest Kansas League Junior High Wrestling Tournament was held in Atwood on Monday, February 20. The St. Francis Indians placed 4th in the team scoring with seven wrestlers participating. Three St. Francis wrestlers won individual championships and three others placed in the medal positions.
Hoxie won the team championship scoring 121 team points. Rawlins County placed 2nd with 104. Other team finishes included: 3rd -Decatur Community 88.5, 4th St. Francis 70.5, 5th - Greeley County 39, 6th (tie) - Lakin 0, and 6th (tie) Wichita County 0. (Dighton, Quinter, and Wallace County do not have wrestling teams. Lakin and Wichita County were added to the tournament for more entries, but none of their wrestlers were scored.)
Three Indians won championships in their respective weight divisions: Shadryon Blanka (154), Jesse Baxter (170), and Colton Neitzel (182). Tyson Poling placed second at 138. Vladimir Chinik won the 3rd place medal at 86 pounds and Garin Cooper won 4th place at 122.
The match results for the St. Francis wrestlers are listed below.
86 - Vladimir Chinik (0-5) placed 3rd and scored 4.00 team points.
Click here to view Vladimir's bracket.
Round 1 - Jose Paz (Rawlins Co. Junior High) 6-8 won by fall over Vladimir Chinik (St. Francis Junior High) 0-5 (Fall 0:51)
Round 2 - Breckin Sauvage (Oberlin Jr. High) 13-4 won by fall over Vladimir Chinik (St. Francis Junior High) 0-5 (Fall 0:27)
110 - Caleb Todd (3-11).
Click here to view Caleb's bracket.
Quarterfinal - Alex Eskew (Oberlin Jr. High) 12-5 won by fall over Caleb Todd (St. Francis Junior High) 3-11 (Fall 0:38)
Cons. Round 1 - Eddie Hanson (Rawlins Co. Junior High) 15-6 won by fall over Caleb Todd (St. Francis Junior High) 3-11 (Fall 0:55)
122 - Garin Cooper (9-7) placed 4th and scored 7.00 team points.
Click here to view Garin's bracket.
Quarterfinal - Garin Cooper (St. Francis Junior High) 9-7 received a bye () (Bye)
Semifinal - Myles Conard (Wichita Co Junior High) 7-1 won by decision over Garin Cooper (St. Francis Junior High) 9-7 (Dec 2-0)
Cons. Semi - Garin Cooper (St. Francis Junior High) 9-7 won by fall over Zander Kempt (Oberlin Jr. High) 5-8 (Fall 2:12)
3rd Place Match - Kade Lovelady (Lakin Junior High) 5-2 won by decision over Garin Cooper (St. Francis Junior High) 9-7 (Dec 2-1)
138 - Tyson Poling (13-3) placed 2nd and scored 18.00 team points.
Click here to view Tyson"s bracket.
Quarterfinal - Tyson Poling (St. Francis Junior High) 13-3 won by fall over Sheldon Waylon (Wichita Co Junior High) 2-5 (Fall 0:35)
Semifinal - Tyson Poling (St. Francis Junior High) 13-3 won by fall over Yoni Castillo-Flores (Wichita Co Junior High) 5-3 (Fall 3:05)
1st Place Match - Joaquin Castillo (Wichita Co Junior High) 9-0 won by tech fall over Tyson Poling (St. Francis Junior High) 13-3 (TF-1.5 0:00 (16-1))
154 - Shadyron Blanka (11-2) placed 1st and scored 14.00 team points.
Click here to view Shadryon's bracket.
Round 1 - Shadyron Blanka (St. Francis Junior High) 11-2 won by fall over Matt Comfort (Wichita Co Junior High) 3-6 (Fall 0:32)
Round 2 - Shadyron Blanka (St. Francis Junior High) 11-2 won by fall over Matt Comfort (Wichita Co Junior High) 3-6 (Fall 0:38)
170 - Jesse Baxter (10-4) placed 1st and scored 14.00 team points.
Click here to view Jesse's bracket.
Round 1 - Jesse Baxter (St. Francis Junior High) 10-4 won by fall over Brandon Baker (Hoxie Junior High) 11-6 (Fall 1:26)
Round 2 - Jesse Baxter (St. Francis Junior High) 10-4 won by fall over Omar Sanchez (Rawlins Co. Junior High) 1-13 (Fall 0:17)
Round 4 - Jesse Baxter (St. Francis Junior High) 10-4 won by fall over Conner Finley (Rawlins Co. Junior High) 3-13 (Fall 0:36)
Round 5 - Jesse Baxter (St. Francis Junior High) 10-4 won by fall over Manuel Chavez (Greeley County Junior High) 8-5 (Fall 1:20)
182 - Colton Neitzel (8-5) placed 1st and scored 13.50 team points.
Click here to view Colton's bracket.
Round 1 - Colton Neitzel (St. Francis Junior High) 8-5 won by tech fall over Laustat Chessmore (Rawlins Co. Junior High) 0-4 (TF-1.5 0:00 (18-2))
Round 3 - Colton Neitzel (St. Francis Junior High) 8-5 won by fall over Kendrix Loy (Wichita Co Junior High) 6-1 (Fall 2:56)
Coach Dylan Loyd submitted the following comments.
"This past week the Junior High Wrestling Team had the opportunity to compete in front of our home crowd. I know this group was excited to finally compete at home and they put on quite the show. This group has come a long ways from where they were at the beginning of the season. It’s always amazing to see the amount growth every year in such a short time. This group works hard and there is a lot of young talent in this group.
Individually, Vlad Chinik was back on the mat again and it was good for him to get a tough win. He goes hard and is fearless when he steps out on the mat. Kobe Tice continues to make strides. He lost a tough hard fought battle with a real tough kid, those are the matches that get you better. He was only one move away, but he battled the whole match. Caleb Todd gets better and better each time he steps out on the mat. He still makes some minor mistakes but, he has a bright future ahead of him. Garin Cooper was very dominant in both of his matches. He is another one with a really bright future. He’s one that always asking questions and certain positions and situations and that’s always encouraging. Tyson Poling continues to be dominant. He has a very unique style that makes it difficult for him opponents to match up against. Shadyron Blanka wrestled tough again and it was good to see him open up on his feet. When he gets the confidence in his shots this kid will be very tough to beat. Jesse Baxter really has come a long way from where he was a year ago. He continues to make strides each time he steps out on the mat. Colton Neitzel wrestled real well and did a lot of good things. He had one minor mistake in his first match that cost him the match, but this kid learns from his mistakes and I know he wants to have that match back."
This past week the 2017 St. Francis Junior High wrestling team capped off our season with a 4th place finish at the NWKL League Tournament in Atwood. Due to illness that hit our team the last week of the finish you can see from the results that we were shorthanded. Anytime you lose two quality wrestlers to sickness it plays an effect on the team and I was very pleased with how this group responded. Wrestling is very much so an individual sport and these kids took it upon themselves to perform at their highest level knowing good and well if they did that the team score would take care of itself. This group had a very good season and one that they should be proud of. The junior high wrestling season is very short and it’s hard to see a whole lot of improvement in that short amount of time. However, this group really did improve each time they stepped out on the mat. There is still a lot for them to learn and grow and for a couple of them we will have the opportunity to watch them continue their careers as they go into high school wrestling. There is a good amount of talent in this group and you couple that with their work ethic we can see a lot of them go on and do big things as they move on to the next level.
Coach Loyd made the following comments about the NWKL Tournament.
"Individually, Vladimir Chinik had never wrestled before until this season. For anyone to try wrestling it shows they have courage. I really enjoyed my time with this kid throughout this season. He has a great motor and does a good job of listening. He’s a good kid and he’s fearless, and that’s a great combination to have. Kobe Tice had himself another great season. It was disappointing to not see him try to defend his league title due to sickness, but it’s one of them things that he had no control over. This kid has jumped levels in his two years of junior high wrestling. He’s a coachable kid with a good work ethic and he could go a long way in this sport. I don’t believe he has scratched the surface yet of his potential and that’s exciting. Caleb Todd really has come a long way from where he was at the beginning of the season. He doesn’t have a whole lot of experience but, he works hard and he’s another one who listens. He is one of them kids who will only continue to get better as he grows and develops. He is one that you know and trusts is going to do the right things and he’s proven that already. I’m excited for this kid’s future. Eli Mills really had a good season. He is another who doesn’t have a lot of mat time experience but, he’s got a style that makes him dangerous as a wrestler. He steps out on the mat with no fear and if we can work with him on his technique and he works on the little things he is one I feel can do some great things. Garin Cooper competed in the toughest weight class at this tournament and he did a great job. Every time this kid steps out on the mat you know that he is going to give you everything he has and I think his opponents know that as well. He has a very bright future not just because he has the talent and skillset to do so, but he has a work ethic that is going to take him places as he goes through the stages of his life. I really am looking forward to watching him continue to develop. He’s going to continue to get better and it’s going to be a lot of fun to watch. Tyson Poling had a great season and has shown glimpses of what his potential as he moves onto the next level. Every wrestler as they grow in this sport develop their own unique style and this kid has a very unique, unorthodox style of wrestling that makes him dangerous and fun to watch. He doesn’t get too awful worked up and literally just lets it fly when he wrestles. He still has things he needs to work on and clean up but, I am excited about this kid’s future as well. He will only continue to get better. Shadyron Blanka finished up his season with a dominating performance at the league tournament. This is a kid with a lot of experience and you can see that by watching him wrestle. He has a very good feel and mat awareness that only comes with time. For the amount of success, he has already had I believe he’s another one who hasn’t really scratched the surface of his potential. You get him in a high school practice room you will see tremendous growth. I look forward to what’s to come with this kid. Jesse Baxter had himself a season that he should feel very proud of. Last year he took his lumps and I believe only won 4-5 matches. This season he won 16 matches and beat some very good quality kids in the process. He’s a very coachable kid who is really a good wrestler. He has a great skillset and you can see as he went through the year how he just got better and better as each match went on. In order to win the league championship, he had to beat a kid who not only beat him twice previously but pinned him both times in the process. Jesse was beating that kid 13-0 before he pinned him. That shows tremendous growth and mental toughness! Colton Neitzel had himself a very special season. This is a kid who had never stepped on the wrestling mat until he was a 7th grader and to see how far he has come in two short junior high wrestling seasons is amazing. Every kid who beat Colton this year Colton was able to redeem every one of those losses. He has a great work ethic and really does a tremendous job of listening. He is very coachable and really just carries himself very well. He’s one after a tough loss who doesn’t get down on himself, he simply just asks questions in what he should of done in certain situations and I really like that."
The junior high wrestling season is now complete.
