Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports
Free State’s Damien Quick leads the way for the Firebirds during a seventh-place finish at the Sunflower League duals tournament on Feb. 7 at Gardner Edgerton High School. This is a photo of Quick during the team’s dual against Lawrence High on Jan. 21.
GARDNER — The Free State boys wrestling team notched a seventh-place showing at Saturday’s Sunflower League tournament at Gardner Edgerton High School.
Free State drubbed Olathe East 54-29 in its opening-round dual. The Lions collected a half-dozen wins by pin from Damian Quick (120 pounds), Emmet Williams (126 pounds), Aaron Whalen (144 pounds), Brogan Hagen (150 pounds), Coghlan Odom (165 pounds), and Cameron Salb (215 pounds). The Firebirds also netted a trio of uncontested victories as they piled in the points.
“We kind of outmatched them in a few weight classes, and also had a few disappointments,” Free State coach Randy Streeter said. “But overall, it was a good start to the day.”
Streeter was delighted by the return of Whalen, who he said had been on the mend with a hamstring injury.
“Aaron came out and performed really well,” he said, adding that he was also pleased with Hagen’s performance after the junior was “bumped up” a division.
“And Cameron Salb at 215 looked sharp.”
Free State was then pitted against crosstown rival Lawrence High in its second round dual, cruising to a 51-22 triumph.
The Firebirds scored eight victories by pin, including from Tristan Moore (132 pounds), Hagen, Hudson Andrew (157 pounds), Odom (165 pounds), Ben Lyles (175 pounds), Zane Shaw (190 pounds), and Leo Salb in the heavyweight bout. At 215 pounds, Cameron Salb earned an 11-8 decision over Lawrence senior Quendal Johnson.
“I woke up feeling pretty good today,” Moore said, after arriving at 7 am for weigh-in.
Quick added: “My expectation coming into the day was to go 3-0 in pool-play and then see what happens from there.”
After opening the day with a pair of decisive victories, Free State lost 36-30 against Olathe West in its third dual of the day. The Firebirds earned five victories via pin from Quick, Moore, Odom, Lyles, and Shaw.
Free State was then edged 40-39 in a consolation bracket clash with Shawnee Mission East.
For the Firebirds, junior Kash LaForge broke into the win column with a pin in the 132-pound bout. Also securing victory for Free State were Quick, Moore, Hagen, Odom, Shaw, and Cameron Salb.
After narrowly missing an opportunity to compete for fifth place, Free State wrapped its day with a convincing 64-12 win over Shawnee Mission South in the seventh-place match.
Firebird victories coming by way of pin or decision included: LaForge, Moore, Hagen, Hudson, Lyles, Shaw, Cameron Salb, and Cesar Martinez in the heavyweight division.
The Firebirds receive a week of reprieve before hitting the mat for their 6A regional tournament on Feb. 21 at Wichita North High School.
Due to an assortment of injuries ranging from day-to-day to season-ending, Streeter said his squad is in survival mode. Free State grapplers out for the Sunflower League tournament included Davauri Goodman (106 pounds), Avitt Landis (126 pounds), Justin Lamarche (165 pounds), and Xander Swoyer (heavyweight). The team has also frequently had to concede the 113-pound division after Jax Reese was lost to a season-ending injury.
“Literally half of our team is either hurt or sick, so we’re doing everything we can to kind of pick the pieces up,” Streeter said. “We’re just trying to get through this weekend and be ready for regionals in two weeks.”
With the regional tournament looming, Quick said that he’s focused on making strides in several areas.
“Being quicker, finishing my shots, and not getting stuck underneath,” Quick said, adding that he’s made significant improvements since his freshman campaign a season ago.
“I’m just excited for regionals,” he said.
Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports
Lawrence High’s Lou Elsten delivered four wins in four matches for Lions during the Sunflower League duals tournament on Feb. 7 at Gardner Edgerton High School. This is a photo of Elsten from his team’s dual against Free State on Jan. 21.
Lawrence grapplers struggle on way to 13th-place finish at league
Three months into a grueling campaign on the mat, the limitations of a depleted and inexperienced roster are more apparent than ever for Lawrence High boys wrestling coach Pat Naughton.
“We have not looked good today; we look tired,” he said, midway through Lawrence’s 13th-place finish at the Sunflower League boys wrestling tournament on Saturday.
Naughton noted that his varsity squad has had a relatively light workload over the past few weeks and should have entered the tourney somewhat fresh.
“We just didn’t have a good day at practice yesterday,” he said, “and we have some other things going on with our focus right now.”
Naughton added, “You usually need to figure out if you’re a tournament team or a dual team — and we are not a dual team. So that just kind of feeds [a narrative of] ‘Why are we here? We’re not going to win anything since we have too many ‘opens’ and stuff like that.”
Lawrence’s opening-round dual resulted in a 54-22 loss to Olathe West. Bright spots for the Lions included pins by senior Lou Elsten in the 126-pound bout and sophomore Drennen Shorter at 132 pounds — a 14-0 major decision victory notched by junior Galen Dewhirst at 120-pounds — and sophomore Logan Druen’s open win at 106 pounds.
The Lions were then upended by crosstown rival Free State in the second round, 51-22. Elsten again emerged victorious via a 16-0 tech fall over Emmett Williams. Lawrence also received a boost from Liam Beardsley, as the sophomore secured a pin in just under a minute to dispatch Bryce Warner. Druen also came away with another uncontested win at 106 pounds.
But the Lions did not fare well in their upper-division bouts.
“We’re giving up a lot of weight at 150 and above,” Lawrence assistant coach Relle Dye said. “We have some young guys there.”
Lawrence dropped its third-round dual to Olathe East, 51-27. Elsten and Shorter continued to shine for the Lions, tallying pins. Also aiding the Lions’ cause, sophomore Ryan Farrell was victorious via 14-9 decision at 144 pounds. Lawrence also got into the win column courtesy of Blaine Schwada’s open victory at 138 pounds.
Lawrence wrapped its day on a high note, toppling Shawnee Mission North 46-34 in the consolation round. After picking up uncontested wins earlier in the day, Druen tasted victory via a quick pin in the 106-pound bout — as did Beardsley at 138 pounds and senior Quendal Johnson at 190 pounds. Elsten and Schwada emerged victorious in their matches, winning by tech fall in the 126 and 138 pound bouts.
The Lions also seized a trio of uncontested victories.
In addition to the multiple wins notched by Elsten and Shorter, Naughton said he was also pleased with the performances of Farrell, Beardsley, Cameron Dozier, and Johnson.
“We’re having some good matches and seeing some good things individually, but overall, we need to make some fixes before next weekend,” Naughton said of his squad as it prepares for its postseason journey.
Lawrence will have a week off from competition before returning to the mat for the team’s 6A regional on Feb. 21 at Shawnee Mission North High School in Overland Park.
“The regionals are a one-day tournament,” Naughton said, meaning that a competitor could hit the mat as many as six times in a single day if they were to drop their opening-round match.
“We have to get our conditioning and strength up so we can last the entire day,” he said, adding that he will look to address the situation through increased drills that focus on specific scenarios.
“We will be practicing our setups and takedowns, clearing hands on ‘bottom’ and getting to our feet,” Naughton said. “And then doing our running and lifting afterward.”
Elsten, who entered the match as the state’s fourth-ranked grappler in the 126-pound division, discussed his goals as Lawrence enters the home stretch of its season.
“I just want to go out there and have fun, and perform for my team,” Elsten said. “And I think I’ve been pretty consistent throughout the year in preparing for matches.
“At the end of the day, I just go out and wrestle and don’t think about it too much.”
