The Battle Mountain High School wrestling team took to the mats last Saturday with one goal in mind, qualifying as many individuals for this weekend’s state tournament as it could.
When the action was over in the Pershing County High School gym in Lovelock, the Longhorns had qualified 12 of their 14 wrestlers and in the process claimed their third consecutive Northern Division III League title.
“We go into the post season focused on each individual,” said BMHS coach Mitch Domagala. “If each of the kids is ready to accomplish their goals, then the whole team thing will take care of itself.”
Heading into the day it was clear that it was going to be a three team battle between familiar foes such as Pershing County and Yerington high schools each hoped to grab the title.
“Our kids had a great week of practice,” Domagala said. “They focused in on what they needed to improve on and it showed today.”
Battle Mountain advanced 12 wrestlers to this Saturday’s state championships in Primm and accumulated 236 points to outdistance second-place Pershing County which advanced 14 wrestlers and scored 201 points. Yerington was a distant third at 153 and Wells (113) and Eureka (32) rounded out the top five.
“We wrestled tough all day, we did a lot of pinning and that’s what got us the win,” said the coach.
Jake Legarza at 106 pounds, Cameron Thompson (113), DeAndre Powell (120), Andrew Cox (132), Jeff Oakes (195) and Cooper Burkhart (285) all claimed league titles with first place finishes.
Legarza and Thompson needed just two matches to win their titles. Legarza pinned Pershing County’s Cody Scholl in the final, and Thompson needed just 45 seconds to pin Wells’ Enrique Aguilar for the championship.
Powell received as bye into the semifinals where he defeated Eureka’s 16-0 and he earned a 9-6 decision over Pershing County’s Kasey Brown in the final. Cox was one of the wrestlers that had to win three matches. He pinned his first two opponents and knocked off Pershing County’s Eric Wagner 17-1 in the final.
Oakes moved up a weight class to 195, but it did not change what he has done all year. The senior All-American beat Yerington’s Efren Campos 21-9 and Eureka’s Wyatt Gibbs 12-4. Burkhart took down a pair of Pershing County wrestlers, beating Ty Gentry by pin in 10 seconds in the semifinals and Logan Murphy in 83 seconds in the final.
Bobby Kester (126) and Mason Chopp (152) finished in second place. Matt Rochester (138), Daegen McClary (145), Tristin Cordingley (182) and Zach Heese (220) secured third-place finishes. Ricardo Carrillo (170) came home in fifth place, while Brandon Stallard (126) finished sixth in his weight class.
Battle Mountain will attempt to win its fourth consecutive Division III state championship this Saturday at the Star of the Desert Arena in Primm. Action begins at 8 a.m. For those who can not be in Primm, follow www.trackwrestling.com for all the action.
