The Battle Mountain High School wrestling team got its last taste of non-league competition for the season as they participated in the Vaquero Classic this past weekend in Fernley.
This tournament featured 28 teams from all classifications in Northern Nevada.
After two hard fought days, the ‘Horns ended the tournament in second place with 198.5 points. Lowry won the tournament with 235.5 points. Fernley (193.5), Yerington (158.5) and Pershing County (145.5) rounded out the top five.
“This was a good tournament for us,” said BMHS coach Mitch Domagala. “The kids did a good job of bringing what we’ve been working on in practice to the mats this weekend.”
The Longhorns placed a total of nine wrestlers in the tournament. Jordan Gonzalez won the championship at 126 pounds after a three-overtime thriller over Lowry’s Taylor Corak. Gonzalez won the match 6-4. Gonzalez made his way in to the finale with a 6-5 victory over Sparks’ Walter Gudiel.
Jose Guizar (132), Daegan McClary (160), Kris Hall (182) and Tristin Cordingley (195) finished as runner-ups.
Guizar won his first two matches by pin and advanced to the final with a 15-0 win over Lowry’s Jimmy Rackley. Guizar lost to Chester’s Callum Klremer 7-2 in thew championship.
McClary had little trouble in his first three matches, winning two by pin and another by technical fall at 17-0. He was defeated by Sparks’ Tyler Green in the 160-pound title bout.
Hall won his first two matches by pin and he advanced to the final after a 2-1 win over Yerington’s JayDan Vazquez. Hall was knocked off in the finale at 182 pounds by Lowry’s Anthony Peterson.
Cordingley cruised to two pins in his first two matches and made his way into the 195-pound final after a 5-4 win over Sparks Aleki Pooi. Cordingley lost in the final to Douglas’ Chad Singer by a 5-4 decision.
Owen Oakes (170) and Lyle Whitten (285) won bronze medals with third place finishes. Declan McClary (113) secured fourth place while Ricardo Carrillo (220) came home with sixth place.
Michael Malone (138) added to the team total as he posted a 2-2 record over the weekend but fell short of placing. Jorge Chavira (182) and Tyler Rochester (220) went 3-2 just missed placing by one match each.
“The kids really turned it on,” added the coach. “All of our wrestlers scored points for the team and each was key as we beat the third place team by only four points.”
On Saturday, Fernley hosted a second pod style tournament. The ‘Horns entered six wrestlers into that tournament and they all came back with some wins. Zach Duggan posted a 3-1 record, Brice Domagala went 2-0, while Dalton Shake, Catrina Shake, Jacee Herald and Alex Jones all recorded one win each.
The Longhorns have a busy week as they travel to Elko for duals on Wednesday and then host duals on Friday starting at 1 p.m.
The Northern 2A Regional Championships will take place on Saturday, Feb. 2, at Pershing County High School in Lovelock. The top four finishers in each weight class advance to the state championships.
The NIAA State Championships will be held Feb. 8-9 at the Winnemucca Events Center.
