Hurons grapplers on the home mats three times over the next week
Following Rogers City’s fifth place finish at the New Lothrop Invitational last Saturday, the Huron wrestling team is now home for the next three scheduled dates including the Bill Barrett Memorial Super Dual Saturday. Rogers City hosts Newberry, Hale and Gaylord B tonight for a quad meet and takes a day off before welcoming seven schools for the annual January meet, which the Hurons have won two out of the last three years. Whittemore-Prescott captured first place last year and will be one of the favorites to win it again, along with the orange and black.
Pool A includes Whittemore, Newberry, Hale, and Onaway, while Rogers City is in Pool B with St. Ignace, Oscoda, and Alpena. At the conclusion of pool wrestling, the semifinals will take place. The number one seed will wrestle the two seed from the other pool and vice versa. That will determine who wrestles in the finals.
“It’s a great chance to get out and support your local Hurons,” said coach Pat Lamb. Next Thursday will be Parents Night which shouldn’t disappoint with Mio and Sault Ste. Marie in town for matches.
THE NEW LOTHROP Invitational lived up to its billing of bringing some of the state’s best wrestlers under the same roof. Of the 11 Huron wrestlers who competed in the tournament, 10 scored points to help earn the fifth place finish. “Rogers City was the last team to finish in triple digits,” said Lamb of Rogers City’s 115.50 points. Montrose was first with 226 points and crowned five champions. In second was Addison with 211.50 points, which placed all 14 wrestlers. Caro (157.50) was third, while Corunna (131) was fourth. “It was unbelievable competition,” said Lamb. “I told our guys not to be intimated by anybody when we went down there. When we went, they wrestled to the best of their ability, and the placing shows.” Chris Rhode (189 pounds) won all three of his matches to take first. He won a major decision 20-7 and a decision, 13-6, before edging Brice Grant of Durand, 11-9, in the championship match. Earning third place medals were Dylan Centala (130) and Brian Krueger (103).
CENTALA EARNED a 24-12 technical fall in his first bout but lost in the semifinals to Vince Lahar of Montrose 11-9. He then finished with a 10-6 win in the battle for third. Krueger pinned Trevor Williams of Montrose in 1:38 but then lost 3-2 to Troy Rill of Bay City Western. Rill went on to defeat the number one seed for first. Krueger easily won his match for third, 12-1. Cody Wenzel (140) fought his way to a fourth place finish, while unseeded freshman Chase McLennan made noise at 160 pounds with a fifth place finish. Brent Freel (119), even with a 17-1 record, could get no higher than a sixth seed because the competitors at his weight class were so tough, and finished in sixth along with Scott Kamyszek, who continues to impress the head coach with his continued progress at heavyweight.
Tharin Wilk (112), Mark Grulke (171), and Tyler Gorlewski (215) all earned points for the Huron grapplers. “This team has amazed me to this point. It’s just a wonderful group of young men. They are willing to work ha
IN JV ACTION at New Lothrop last Friday, Mike Mierzwinski (125) and Jerome Gapczynski (152) finished in first, while Mike Vogler (112) was second. Alex Matthews (130) earned a third, and T.J. Sobeck (103) finished in fourth. The Hurons traveled to Rudyard last Thursday to take on the host school and St. Ignace in Straits Area Conference action. Rogers City blasted St. Ignace 60-21 and destroyed Rudyard 67-6 to improve its record to 9-2. Double winners included Krueger, Wilk, Freel, Centala, Wenzel, Gapczynski, McLennan, Grulke, Rhode, and Gorlewski.
Single winners were Mierzwinski, Matt Tomas (152), and Kamyszek. Vogler won two JV matches.