The Jefferson High School wrestling team travelled to Whitehall for a mixer on Tuesday, January 9. In the mixer format wrestlers are matched up according to weight and ability and no team scores are kept.
The Panther wrestlers struggled to get much momentum going and wins were tough to come by on the evening. Panther wrestlers going undefeated on the evening were Cody St. Clair, Gino Dalbec, Jacob Travis, Asher Oliver, Drake Schake and Dakota Dorn.
On Thursday, January 11, Jefferson hosted Townsend, Anaconda, Three Forks and Deer Lodge for a mixer. This was senior night as the Panthers paid tribute to Jacob Travis, Nate Brunett, Brett Hale, Asher Oliver, Nick Workman and Nathan Rasch.
Two mats were used as 64 matches lined up to provide plenty of wrestling action for the spectators.
Jefferson came out on fire and the night would be a complete reversal from Tuesday’s competition. The first round found 17 JHS wrestlers – Christian and Dominick Davis, Emma Brown, Michael Mitchell, Cody St. Clair, Eli Hauptman, Jayzic Beaupre, Jacob Travis, Nate Brunett, Asher Oliver, Matthew Travis, Joe Campagna, Drake Schake, Nick Workman, Caleb Allen, Dakota Dorn and Nathan Rasch – all getting their hands raised for the victory.
In the second round the Davis twins, Brown, Mitchell, St. Clair, Gino Dalbec, Beaupre, Travis, Brunett, Oliver, Travis, Campagna, Workman, Allen and Dorn all found the winner’s circle. Jefferson would finish the night with a very respectable 33-8 record.
The Panther wrestling team got on the bus the next morning and traveled to Choteau to compete in a two day tournament on January 12 and 13. This tournament had 31 Class B and C teams participating out of a total of 45 in the state.
Jefferson had eighteen wrestlers entered into the tournament and was competing with a few varsity members out of the lineup. In the first round of competition Christian and Dominick Davis and Emma Brown at 103 pounds, Jacob Travis at 138, Nate Brunett at 160, Asher Oliver at 170, Nick Workman at 205 and Nathan Rasch at 285 pounds all won to advance into the quarterfinals.
In the first round of consolation Cody St. Clair at 120 pounds and Derek Nygaard at 182 won to advance. In the quarterfinals Travis, Brunett and Workman won by pin to advance them into the semifinals and assure them a spot on the awards podium. The second round of consolation found the Davis twins, Brown, St. Clair and Rasch advancing and assuring themselves a spot in Saturday’s action. Jefferson finished the first day in eighth place with 46 points.
Eight wrestlers remained for Jefferson in Saturday’s varsity tournament which meant they were already top eight finishers. In the opening consolation round Brown was injured and along with St. Clair, so they did not advance into the metal rounds. However, Christian and Dominick Davis along with Nathan Rasch did win to assure themselves a medal in the tournament. In the semifinals Jacob Travis and Nick Workman were defeated while Nate Brunett wore down and pinned his opponent to be the Panther’s lone finalist. Workman was unfortunately injured during his match and would have to settle for 6th place as he was not able to return to action.
In the consolation semifinals both the Davis brothers and Travis were defeated while Rasch won to advance into the consolation finals. In the final round Christian Davis beat his brother Dominick to capture5th place. Jacob Travis pinned his opponent to finish 5th as well. Nathan Rasch fought hard to the end, but ended up being defeated and finished in 4th place.
Next up was the final where Nate Brunett squared off against an opponent from Cut Bank that had beat him in the 3rd/4th place match the previous week. Unfortunately, the result was the same and Brunett would have to settle for second place.
Jefferson ended the tournament with 90 points which was good enough for a 7th place finish.
The other Panther wrestlers were entered into a JV mix and match competition on Saturday. Michael Mitchell, Derek Nygaard and Dakota Dorn pinned both their opponents to go undefeated on the day.
Coach Humphrey’s comments: “We had a long week that was a roller coaster ride. The Whitehall mixer was a big let-down; however, our home mixer was a great success. The Choteau Tournament certainly had its share of ups and downs. The most placers that I have had at this tourney in the past has been three, so to finish with six was a great accomplishment. I have also never been in the top ten for team finishes before either. Unfortunately, injuries are starting to take their toll on the team, so hopefully we can get back to full strength with the post season being a few weeks away.”
Jayzic Beaupre had the JHS Panther Quick Pin of the Week by dispatching his opponent from Deer Lodge in 16 seconds during our home mixer.
Nate Brunett has been selected by his coaches as the JHS Panther Wrestler of the Week. Brunett was the first Jefferson wrestler to reach the finals of the prestigious Choteau Tourney since 2011. Brunett also recorded five pins on the week.
Dakota Dorn has been selected by his coaches as the JHS Panther JV Wrestler of the Week. Dorn went a perfect 5-0 on the week with four of those being pins.
The Panthers have another busy week ahead: an Anaconda dual on Tuesday, January 16, a mixer in Deer Lodge Thursday, January 18, and the Class BC Dual Tournament on Saturday, January 20.
