Grapplers wrestle with illness, too
Staff writers
It was a rough week for Marion wrestlers with majority of the team absent because of sickness.
Only three wrestlers made it to a tournament over the weekend in Wellington. Together Colby Lollar, Caleb Darrow, and Brian Nguyen compiled for a record of 8-6.
Lollar and Nguyen both finished 4-1, with Lollar placing 3rd and Nguyen 5th.
Caleb Darrow finished 1-3 in 7th place.
“The wrestlers did a great job stepping into another big school tournament and doing well,” coach Tyler McMichael said.
Mostly 4A and 5A teams participated.
On Friday Marion will be co-host for the Marion County Dual Tournament with Hillsboro.
“It will be a great way to end our first part of our season before heading into Christmas break.” McMichael said. “If we can stay healthy throughout the week, we should have 11 wrestlers competing in the duals,”
Trojans place 4th
It was a progressive Friday for the Trojan wrestling team, placing fourth in the Ellis Railer Scramble.
The Trojans’ 90.5 points were just four points shy of third-place Oberlin. Council Grove was the top finisher out of 12 schools, beating runner-up Beloit, 140.5-117.5.
“The guys competed hard and did a lot of good things on Friday,” coach Scott O’Hare said. “As far as the overall team performance, I felt very good with a top-four team finish with only three upperclassmen in the lineup compared to nine freshmen and sophomores.
“We have a lot of technique to add and improve on, but the guys battled and gave great effort against some solid competition.”
Senior David Schafer was the Trojans’ lone gold medalist out of eight wrestlers to reach the podium. He finished 5-0 in the 157-pound class.
The highlight for Schafer was handing Council Grove’s fourth-ranked Tyler Rogers his first loss of the season by a 13-9 decision.
Lane Rogers, Anthony Fickes, and freshman Sutton Redger all secured silver medals with Rogers going 4-1; Fickes 3-1; and Redger, 2-1.
Aaron Hein was fourth, Aidan Simmons took fifth, while Kole-Willis Dorks and Kayden Trimble each took sixth.
Others competing were Koren Powlowski, Gavin Bennett, Logan Rogers, and Evan Jones.