News
Archive:
LeBlanc Claims Western Wrestling Conference Award24 January, 2012OREM, Utah - University of Wyoming 184-pound senior Joe LeBlanc (Meeker, Colo./Meeker HS) on Tuesday was named the Western Wrestling Conference Wrestler of the Week after a stellar performance on the mat last weekend. Wyoming wrestlers have won or shared the honor seven times this season. LeBlanc, the top-ranked wrestler in the nation at 184 pounds, had one of his most impressive performances of the season Jan. 20 versus Cal Poly, in which he wrestled at 197 pounds. The three-time All-America honoree from Wyoming moved up to take on the 18th-ranked Ryan Smith of Cal Poly. LeBlanc built an 11-0 advantage over Smith and kept up the pressure throughout the match, as he ended up winning with a 12-1 major decision. The next night, LeBlanc followed up his outstanding effort by pinning Utah Valley's David Prieto in the first period (2:23). The two victories give LeBlanc 20 for the season and the win over Smith was his sixth of the year over a ranked opponent. The WWC weekly honor is LeBlanc's second of the season and fifth of his career. The Western Wrestling Conference, which is in its sixth year of competition, is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming. Nov. 9 - Cole VonOhlen (Air Force) Nov. 15 - Shane Onufer (Wyoming) Nov. 22 - Kasey Garnhart (Wyoming)/Steven Monk (North Dakota State) Nov. 29 - Ryan Loder (Northern Iowa) Dec. 6 - Joe LeBlanc (Wyoming) Dec. 13 - Zach Zehner (Wyoming) Dec. 20 - Shane Onufer (Wyoming) Jan. 4 - Steven Monk (North Dakota State) Jan. 10 - Pat Martinez (Wyoming) Jan. 17 - Cole VonOhlen (Air Force) Jan. 24 - Joe LeBlanc (Wyoming) Alfonso Hernandez Interview24 January, 2012What other sports did you play throughout your childhood and high school years? When and why did you choose wrestling? How does your family support you? What is a typical day of practice for you? How do you balance school and wrestling? What do you want to do with a Kinesiology and Health Promotion degree? What changed from high school to college wrestling? What are some daily pressures you deal with every day? What are your goals for the rest of this season? What do you wish to accomplish before you graduate from UW? Why did you redshirt the 2010-2011 year? What advantages do you feel like you gained from this decision? What is your most memorable collegiate meet? How do you prepare for each meet? What qualities will you take away from the program? Pokes Earn First-Ever Win Over Mustangs21 January, 2012Jan. 20, 2012 LARAMIE, Wyo. - For the second time this month, the Wyoming wrestling program earned its first-ever dual victory over an opponent as the Cowboys cruised past Cal Poly on Friday night in Laramie, 26-9. The Pokes (3-2 overall, 0-0 Western Wrestling Conference) beat Oklahoma for the first time Jan. 3 in Laramie, and now can lay claim to a win over the Mustangs, a team which held a 4-0 all-time mark over UW. Wyoming used a drastically different lineup than in its previous four duals, and it paid dividends for the wrestlers and the 847 fans who packed the UniWyo Sports Complex. Three Pokes made their dual debuts Friday night, including redshirt freshmen Robert Stroh, Andy McCulley and Leland Pfeifer. Senior Michael Martinez, ranked 19th, took down Cal Poly's Michael Clemmensen at 125 pounds with a 17-6 major decision to start the dual and give Wyoming a 4-0 lead. No. 18 Zach Zehner, UW's redshirt freshman, followed up with a 15-5 major decision over Chris Calcagno to give the Pokes an 8-0 advantage after two matches. The Mustangs (4-4, 2-2 Pac-12) got on the board when fourth-ranked Boris Novachkov defeated Wyoming's Chase Smith at 141 pounds in a 6-2 decision. That bout made the score 8-3, but Cal Poly would draw no closer. Stroh gutted out a 9-2 decision over Cal Poly's Kyle Chene at 149 pounds, followed by McCulley, who took home a 6-0 decision over Gianpier Yanez at 157 pounds. "I saw some attitude out of McCulley," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said. "He's got a mean streak in him and I like it. (Stroh and McCulley) performed well enough that we'll see them again." Senior Shane Onufer lived up to his billing as the No. 3 wrestler in the nation at 165 pounds, as he defeated Mustang Paul Woodman in a 20-4 technical fall. That win gave Wyoming a 19-3 lead with just four bouts remaining. But Cal Poly's fourth-ranked Ryan DesRoches beat Wyoming's Pat Martinez in a gritty 6-1 decision at 174 pounds to give the Mustangs six total points after seven matches. Senior Dallas Hintz got his first dual action of the season for Wyoming, and he didn't disappoint. Hintz defeated Sean Dougherty of Cal Poly in a 6-2 decision. That victory gave Wyoming 22 points with just two matches remaining. "We wanted to get Dallas into the lineup," Branch said. "He works hard and is a good leader for us. We wanted to give him an opportunity to give him a match in front of his home crowd." The highlight of the night for UW fans was the performance of three-time All-America honoree Joe LeBlanc at 197 pounds. LeBlanc, the top-ranked wrestler in the nation at 184 pounds, moved up a weight class to take on 18th-ranked Ryan Smith of Cal Poly. LeBlanc built an 11-0 advantage and kept up the pressure throughout the match, ending up with the 12-1 major decision for four team points. Pfeifer battled in the heavyweight match, but Cal Poly's Kelan Bragg proved to be too much, as Bragg took home the 11-7 decision in the nightcap. "It all kind of worked, because we wanted to give Joe a tougher match and we wanted to get Leland (Pfeifer) in the lineup," Branch said of his lineup shuffle. "We were working some different scenarios, depending on how the dual went and we didn't make any final decision until right there at the end. Everything worked so we could wrestle Dallas, bump Joe up and wrestle Leland at heavyweight. "Things worked out to where we could reward some guys. It was nice to see some new faces out there. It was a little risky, because Cal Poly has a good team. We didn't know a lot about some of their new kids. You never take anything for granted. It was a little bit of a risk because we committed to this, but we were fortunate to do things the way we wanted to." The Cowboys will open WWC action at 7 p.m. Saturday versus the Utah Valley Wolverines. Results Wyomings Pat Martinez Named WWC Wrestler of the Week11 January, 2012Wyoming's Pat Martinez Named WWC Wrestler of the Week Jan. 10, 2012 OREM, Utah -- University of Wyoming 174-pound sophomore Pat Martinez (Hemet, Calif./Temecula Valley HS) has been named the Western Wrestling Conference Wrestler of the Week by the league on Tuesday after an outstanding performance on the mat last week. Martinez sealed Wyoming's first-ever dual victory over ninth-ranked Oklahoma with a bonus-point win in the 174-pound bout on Jan. 3, dominating OU's Nolan McBryde in a 15-2 major decision. His win came at an opportune time, as UW entered the final match down three points. Martinez's win, worth four team points, vaulted the Cowboys to 18 points, one point better than Oklahoma. The conference honor is Martinez's first of the season and first of his career. The victory was also the Wyoming-grappler's 23rd of the season. The Western Wrestling Conference, which is in its sixth year of competition, is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming. Other Nominees: Air Force: Cole VonOhlen, 149 pounds, Jr., (Jackson, Minn./Jackson County Central HS) Northern Colorado: Casey Cruz, 141 pounds, Sr., (Colorado Springs, Colo/Wasson HS) Northern Iowa: Blayne Beale, 285 pounds, Jr., (Davenport, Iowa/Davenport West HS) Utah Valley: Blake Mangum, 125 pounds, RFr., (Heber City, Utah/Wasatch HS/Oklahoma) 2011-12 WWC Wrestlers of the Week Nov. 9 - Cole VonOhlen (Air Force) Nov. 15 - Shane Onufer (Wyoming) Nov. 22 - Kasey Garnhart (Wyoming)/Steven Monk (North Dakota State) Nov. 29 - Ryan Loder (Northern Iowa) Dec. 6 - Joe LeBlanc (Wyoming) Dec. 13 - Zach Zehner (Wyoming) Dec. 20 - Shane Onufer (Wyoming) Jan. 4 - Steven Monk (North Dakota State) Jan. 10 - Pat Martinez (Wyoming) 2011-12 WWC Dual Standings School Conf. Overall Northern Iowa 2-0 3-3 North Dakota State 1-0 1-2 Air Force 0-1 1-1 South Dakota State 0-1 3-3 Northern Colorado 0-1 1-2 Utah Valley - 2-2 No. 13 Wyoming - 1-2 In Loving Memory of T-BearBy James Carter08 January, 2012  T-Bear on his way to his 2nd Ron Thon Title
In Loving Memory of Taylor Bear As an extremely devoted wrestling fan in the State of Wyoming, I attended a dual match in Gillette (the Camels) and the first match that caught my eye was a young, quick, and skillful wrestler of whom I had never heard of before. People in the crowd informed me it was Taylor Bear and that his family had relocated to Gillette from Colorado and owned a local business. I asked around to the other wrestling fans; who this wrestler was and the answer was it was a Bear kid from Colorado who was supposed be pretty good. I was instantly mesmerized by his aggression and his “smile”. His skill techniques were as good as any freshman, with maybe the exception of Tyler Cox that I had seen in Gillette as a 9th grader. However it was not his aggression and skill techniques that mesmerized me as much as he loved what he was doing. When he was dominating the boy he was wrestling he broke a bone in his hand; the doctor said he would not wrestle again during his freshman season. However, due to T-Bear’s drive as well as his father’s (John Bear), they made contact with a personal friend of John’s who is a doctor and low in behold T-Bear made it back to regionals. He not only dominated regionals but state as well that year. In February of 2009 (State Wrestling Championship) is when I realized what “the T-Bear style of wrestling” really meant. He was a gracious champion and had a smile that would grace even the most ill person. It was at that moment that I became aka “#1 Bear Fan”. I followed him continuously throughout the years as he became a 3X State Champion. His 3rd championship was vs. a very talented Sheridan boy of who had beaten Taylor in regionals by a sizable margin. However, T-Bear doing it his way studied films, mastered his mistakes and came back to win his 3rd consecutive championship against a wrestler who was an odds on favorite to beat him. Not once did I, aka “#1 Bear Fan”, as well as T-Bear or his father John ever doubt that he would in fact win. Though T-Bear’s wrestling was an awesome site to see, I have never seen any young man touch the lives of so many thousands of wrestlers, fans, family, friends and people that never knew him on a personal basis. T-Bear was not only an outstanding wrestler and a student body president but was also a devout Christian and helped unite other young men and women into the youth ministry program. My last memory of T-Bear, “doing it the T-Bear way” was his 3rd state championship, his junior year winning with class and dignity as a true champion does, complimenting his opponent, then began to run around to the Gillette crowd with his GREAT smile holding up three fingers for his 3X state championship. He showed the same class and dignity in defeat complimenting his victor as well he had an innate determination to make that loss his last one! The T-Bear smile will be forever be in my memories as well as his drive and determination to be the best. However, in his passing GOD instilled a great friend into my life, T-Bear’s father John Bear. Through John’s pain and incredible faith I have grown in my own spirituality to a level I have never before experienced. I had a sister who lost two children at the ages of 2 and 16 to tragic events and lost her own life in her prime at the age of 48. Through John’s strength, pain and faith it has helped me in my acceptance of my loss as well. G OD Bless all the wrestling family in Wyoming who have lost their loved ones to tragic events. I will never say goodbye but will look forward to the time where we will see each other again and I know you will have that smile on your face that established me as #1 BEAR FAN. I know your aunt challenged me with who was actually the #1 Bear Fan but for me it is indisputable. 3X State Wrestling Champion 4 EVER in my heart Jim D. Carter, aka “#1 Bear Fan” Wyoming Overcomes Oklahoma 18-17, Earns Historic Win04 January, 2012Jan. 3, 2012 LARAMIE, Wyo. Dual Results The wins don't come much bigger - or more exciting - than Wyoming's on Tuesday in the Arena-Auditorium, as the Cowboy wrestling team defeated ninth-ranked Oklahoma 18-17 in a dual that came down to the last match. It was a win of historic proportion for UW, which had lost in each of the previous 16 meetings with the Sooners in a series that began in 1955. The Pokes now are 1-14-2 all-time versus Oklahoma. The Sooners rode into town with a season record of 3-1, with wins over Missouri and Iowa State, while Wyoming won its first dual of the season to move to 1-2 overall. "It's a great win. I knew we could compete with them, but right there at the end, you don't know if you're going to win, tie or lose," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said. "I thought it was sloppy and ugly, but sometimes getting over hurdles, you knock them down. You don't always clear them with a breeze. We knocked down the hurdle more than we cleared it, but we did get past it." Sophomore Pat Martinez sealed the Wyoming victory with his bonus-point win in the 174-pound bout, dominating OU's Nolan McBryde in a 15-2 major decision. It came at an opportune time, as Wyoming entered the last match down three points. Martinez's win, worth four team points, vaulted UW to 18 points, one point better than Oklahoma. Senior Shane Onufer gave Martinez the impetus to perform well, as he drew Wyoming to within striking distance on the scoreboard with his 7-3 win over No. 18 Bubby Graham in the 165-pound match. Onufer moved to 17-1 on the season with the win, and his decision gave Wyoming a fighting chance heading into the last match with the score OU 17, Wyoming 14. The dual began on a high note for UW, as third-ranked senior Joe LeBlanc (184) won his second-straight match by technical fall, beating No. 16 Erich Schmidtke 19-3. LeBlanc now is 17-1 on the season, and 4-1 versus ranked opponents. Junior Alfonso Hernandez (197 pounds) kept the momentum rolling, taking out OU's Keldrick Hall with a comeback 6-5 decision. Hernandez's win, his team-leading 25th of the year, made the team score Wyoming 8, Oklahoma 0. But OU showed its strength in the heavyweight match, as Kyle Colling took down Wyoming's L.J. Helbig with a 13-3 major decision, which cut Wyoming's lead to 8-4 after three matches. Senior Michael Martinez nabbed his 16th win of the season at 125 pounds, beating No.5 Jarrod Patterson in a thrilling 4-2 decision which came in the second tiebreaker period. Patterson took a 2-1 lead in the first tiebreaker, but a caution infraction and a stall penalty against Patterson gave Martinez a 3-2 advantage. He added an escape point with 5 seconds remaining to pad the lead. Martinez now is 2-3 versus ranked opponents this year and his victory gave Wyoming an 11-4 lead on the scoreboard. "Michael wrestled smart and stayed in position," Branch said. "It was good for him in the long run because he hasn't been getting the respect he deserves. Having a quality win over a top-five guy really sets you up for qualification (to the NCAA Championships)." The Sooners again fought back, as No. 12 Jordan Keller beat UW's Zach Zehner, ranked 14th, in the 133-pound battle in a tough 2-1 decision. No. 7 Kendric Maple took down UW's Mike Hamel at 141 pounds in a 6-1 decision, and No. 12 Nick Lester beat Brandon Richardson in an 8-1 decision. OU would earn one more victory in the 157-pound match as No. 11 Matt Lester won by major decision over Dakota Friesth, 16-4. The four straight wins gave OU the 17-14 advantage, but the Sooners wouldn't score the rest of the way. "We had such tight battles in several matches that could've went the other way and we could've been sitting here, disgusted," Branch said. "I'm happy we got a win. In some of those individual matches, although I didn't like what I saw, (Wyoming wrestlers) got their hand raised and we've emphasized that." The Pokes have a short break before they hit the road for the next test, versus Oregon State in Corvallis, Ore., on Jan. 15. Match-by-match results Wyoming Wrestlers Battle, But Come Up Short In 24-17 Loss To Oklahoma State01 January, 2012LARAMIE, Wyo. - Despite holding a lead with three matches to go, the Wyoming Cowboy wrestling team let a close dual slip away to No. 2 Oklahoma State on Sunday, 24-17. But the Pokes gave the 1,184 fans in the Arena-Auditorium something to cheer about, winning four consecutive matches. Wyoming's Shane Onufer (165 pounds), Patrick Martinez (174), Joe LeBlanc (184) and Alfonso Hernandez (197) earned wins to keep Wyoming in contention the whole day. "I don't care who you're wrestling, the loss is the same," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said. "We had some good efforts, put ourselves in position against a great team to have an opportunity to win, but when you lose, you lose. I liked a lot of things and the fact we got some things rolling, but we dropped off there at the end and didn't capitalize. To beat a team like that, we have to have an inspired effort from 10 guys." Wyoming's first win of the dual came courtesy of Onufer, the sixth-ranked senior, when he beat 19th-ranked Dallas Bailey of Oklahoma State in a 9-3 decision at 165 pounds. Onufer, who beat Bailey in the title match in the Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 18, fell behind 3-1 in the second period, but used two takedowns and an escape to build a 6-3 lead. Two stalling penalties on Bailey and a riding-time advantage gave Onufer the 9-3 win. Onufer now is 16-1 on the year and 4-1 versus top-20 opponents. "Shane reacted like a champion," Branch said of Onufer's win after the early deficit. Sophomore Patrick Martinez had one of the most exciting wins of the dual, pinning Oklahoma State's Zach White at the 2:52 mark of the 174-pound bout. The two traded blows early, but it was Martinez who caught White on a takedown attempt and stuck his shoulder to the mat. The win, worth six points, made the team score 9-9 after five matches. "Patrick gave up a takedown, and was getting ridden, and made an adjustment and hit a nice sit-out and popped up and went right back on the attack," Branch said. Third-ranked senior LeBlanc kept the momentum rolling in the 184-pound match, beating OSU's Chris McNeil in a 17-1 technical fall. LeBlanc scored a takedown and four near-fall points in the first period en route to the dominating performance, as McNeil scored just one point through the 5-minute, 47-second match. LeBlanc's win, his 16th of the year, gave Wyoming a 14-9 lead in the team scoring. Perhaps the most impressive performance of the night came from 12th-ranked Alfonso Hernandez. The Wyoming junior beat No. 5 Cayle Byers of OSU in a hard-fought 8-4 decision to give Wyoming a 17-9 lead with three matches remaining. Byers was the highest-ranked opponent Hernandez has beaten this season, and he earned his 24th win of the year. "Fonz had probably the biggest win of his career," Branch said. "He's continued to show that he's been solid for us this year." The dual began with the 141-pound match, and OSU's Josh Kindig, ranked 13th, defeated Wyoming's McCade Ford in an 8-2 decision. After that, OSU's Jamal Parks, ranked second, beat UW's Brandon Richardson in another 8-2 decision. The 157-pound match went OSU's way as well, as No. 19 Albert White defeated Dakota Friesth in an 8-3 decision. That win gave Oklahoma State a 9-0 lead in the team standings. Second-ranked Alan Gelogaev of OSU pinned Wyoming's L.J. Helbig in the heavyweight bout at the 3:22 mark. No. 10 Jon Morrison (OSU) beat Kasey Garnhart in a 4-1 decision in the 125-pound match, and in the final bout, the 133-pound matchup, No. 1 Jordan Oliver pinned Wyoming's Zach Zehner, ranked 14th, at the 5:44 mark. The conclusion of the dual was a disappointment to Branch, but he and the Cowboys must regroup for a dual versus Oklahoma on Tuesday night. "When you give up bonus points and a pin and only have a couple more matches ... We knew it was going to be tough at that point," Branch said. "You have to make something happen. We didn't make it happen those last three matches. "We have things we can build on. There's good things to take from it and things to work on." Wyoming will battle the Sooners at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Arena-Auditorium. 141 pounds: No. 13 Josh Kindig (OSU) dec. McCade Ford (UW), 8-2/OSU 3, Wyoming 0 149: No. 2 Jamal Parks (OSU) dec. Brandon Richardson (UW), 8-2/OSU 6, Wyoming 0 157: No. 19 Albert White (OSU) dec. Dakota Friesth (UW), 8-3/OSU 9, Wyoming 0 165: No. 6 Shane Onufer (UW) dec. No. 19 Dallas Bailey (OSU), 9-3/OSU 9, Wyoming 3 174: Pat Martinez (UW) fall (2:52) Zach White (OSU)/Wyoming 9, OSU 9 184: No. 3 Joe LeBlanc (UW) tech. fall (5:47) Chris McNeil (OSU), 17-1/Wyoming 14, OSU 9 197: No. 12 Alfonso Hernandez (UW) dec. No. 5 Cayle Byers (OSU), 8-4/Wyoming 17, OSU 9 285: No. 2 Alan Gelogaev (OSU) fall (3:22) L.J. Helbig (UW)/Wyoming 17, OSU 15 125: No. 10 Jon Morrison (OSU) dec. Kasey Garnhart (UW), 4-1/Oklahoma State 18, Wyoming 17 133: No. 1 Jordan Oliver (OSU) fall (5:44) No. 14 Zach Zehner (UW)/Oklahoma State 24, Wyoming 17 Wyoming Tangles With Oklahoma State and Oklahoma To Begin 201231 December, 2011Weekly News and Notes Live Stats | Oklahoma State Live Video | Oklahoma Live Video LARAMIE, Wyo. - The Wyoming wrestling program has a golden opportunity to climb the national ladder this week, as the Cowboys face two top-10 teams on their home mat. Oklahoma State and Oklahoma will visit Laramie for duals that could set the tone for 2012. The details Breaking it down OSU, which finished fourth at the NCAA Championships last season, is 3-0 this year and will face Boise State on Friday in Idaho. Oklahoma (3-1 overall) will go to the Midlands Championships in Chicago on Thursday and Friday. The Sooners were 16th in the team standings at last year's national championships. No. 20 Wyoming is 0-1 on the year, losing to Nebraska in its only dual of the season so far. Climbing the mountain "I think it's proven to be helpful, the fact that we've toughened our schedule and wrestled teams like that has helped us in the end," he said. "Even individually, we've turned some of those matches around when it counts at the NCAA Tournament. Those are important duals for the experience our kids get. We want to compete well and win but that's not the deciding factor. That's a pretty stiff challenge to win those duals, but our kids will get some experience you can't put a value on. "This is part of the process, to help them get prepared for the NCAA tournament, to be in a big-time environment with a lot of pressure on their shoulders and competition that's among the top of the country. I think we can compete in both duals, and if we wrestle outstanding, we'll put ourselves in position to be in a tight battle. But we have to wrestle our best to make that happen. We can wrestle well and come up a little short and the team score can get lopsided. That's what we've seen in the past. We've competed hard but we lose those close matches and it makes for a long night. If we turn those in our favor, we'll be in the battle. That's what we're looking to do." What happened last year Series history Steve Fraser "A Call to our Wrestling Community"By wawawrestling.org27 December, 2011 Steve Fraser “A Call to Our Wrestling Community” The 2011 NCAA Championships in Philadelphia were fantastic. While enjoying this year’s close team race between Penn State, Cornell and Iowa, I was struck by how much talent we have in the USA. The competition was fierce among the many tough and skilled athletes. As national Greco-Roman coach for our U.S. team I could not help but think how we might capture this great wrestling talent and turn it into Olympic gold medals. I sat in the crowded Wells Fargo Center thinking about how we can help many of these wrestlers go on to the biggest sporting event in the world… the Olympic Games. My thoughts were, “why do so many of these great athletes end their wrestling careers after college? Why are there so few wrestlers that go on and compete in the two Olympic styles, Greco-Roman and freestyle?” The Olympics! Without a doubt the Olympic Games are the most prestigious sporting event on the planet. You think winning the NCAA Wrestling Championships is a thrill?! Think about the title, “Olympic Champion.” I can tell you it is the thrill of all thrills! Winning a medal in the Olympic Games or a World Championship is the ultimate high. Even the big money professional athletes realize how special the Olympic Games are. That is why so many famous pro-tennis players and pro-basketball players try so hard to compete in the Olympics. So what is it – with our sport? Why does it seem so difficult for the wrestling community to get together and work toward a common goal of creating a wrestling country that promotes all three styles of wrestling… folkstyle, freestyle and Greco-Roman? Am I wrong when I imagine that “all” wrestling people in the USA feel proud when our country does well in world and Olympic competition? Don’t middle and high school folkstyle coaches walk a bit taller when they see the U.S. wrestlers winning these medals? I get the fact that the three styles of wrestling in the USA have vastly different rules. But still…. it is wrestling! And the fact is – the wrestlers that wrestle and learn all three styles actually do better in high school and college wrestling than the athletes that specialize just in folkstyle. For our country to win Olympic and world medals it takes a unified nation. It takes an organized and interrelated approach to guide and develop our talent. As the Greco coach I can tell you that we need help. We need a lot of help from our youth coaches throughout America. We need young wrestlers getting more experience and learning Greco and freestyle skills early in their careers. We need more kids wrestling Greco and freestyle in the spring and summer – throughout their high school and college years. Why not? We are a smart country. We can surely figure out this dilemma. These days more and more wrestlers are wrestling folkstyle year-round and do not experience Greco or freestyle at all. I submit that this is a huge problem, a problem that all wrestling enthusiasts, coaches and athletes will regret down the road. You don’t have to be a brain surgeon to figure out that this system is not helping our nation’s Olympic effort. It is frightening how few Greco wrestlers we have coming up through the youth ranks. It is amazing how well we have been able to do world-wide considering this fact. In 2007 Greco-Roman actually won the World Team Title. In the last four Olympic Games the U.S. Greco team has won more Olympic medals than every country in the world, except for Russia. Just think if we had a U.S. system that better developed Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestlers. I am telling you we would be beating the Russians consistently. Agree or disagree? I would love to hear your comments, ideas and/or suggestions regarding our nation’s international wrestling effort. Please email me at sfraser@usawrestling.org. As always…Let’s expect to win, in all styles of wrestling! Seven CSC Wrestlers Place at Iowa TourneyBy CSC Sports Information13 December, 2011 Dec 12, 2011 STORM LAKE, Iowa – While the Chadron State College varsity wrestlers won three of their four matches during the Newberry College Duals in South Carolina on Saturday, a dozen other Eagles participated in the Buena Vista University Open Tournament in Storm Lake, Iowa. The tournament drew nearly 200 wrestlers from 15 schools, most of them in Iowa. Seven Chadron State wrestlers placed among the top eight in their weight classes. Freshman Damon Lappe of Box Elder, S.D., finished second at 197 pounds for the highest placing. Michael Hill of Fort Laramie, Wyo., finished third and Ryley Dawson of Rawlins, Wyo., was fourth at heavyweight. Both won four times before Hill edged his teammate 2-0 in the match to determine third place. Tyler Smart of Wheatland, Wyo., had reason to be tired at the end of the competition. He wrestled eight matches, going 6-2 while finishing fourth among the 25 entries at 165 pounds. Also placing were Briston Brenton of Casper, Wyo., sixth at 184 pounds; Tyler Pownall of Gillette, Wyo., seventh at 157; and Phil Bullington of Benson, Ariz., seventh at 174. The CSC wrestlers will take a break over the holidays and resume their schedule with a dual at Fort Hays State on Jan. 8. The Eagles’ results at the Buena Vista Open: 133—Tyler Hatch, NW Iowa, pinned Spencer Hunt, CSC, 4:05; Hunt pinned Landon Long, Buena Vista, 2:38; Devin DeRocher, Briar Cliff, dec. Hunt 3-2. 141—Tommy Kozak, William Penn, pinned Josh McCance, CSC, 1:06; McCance dec. Jeff McManigal, Morningside, 5-4; McCance dec. Luke McClure, Central Missouri, 7-2; Nathan Manful, NW Iowa, pinned McCance :53. 157—Trevor Devestern, Dakota Wesleyan, pinned Taylor Pownall, CSC, 2:48; Pownall dec. Sanford Skylar, Briar Cliff, 8-1; Pownall pinned Jason Mozley, William Penn, 6:01; Pownall won by forfeit over Scott Jovan, Iowa Western; Dallas Houchins, Grand View, dec. Pownall 9-3; Hunter St. John, Buena Vista, pinned Pownall :52 for seventh. 157—Lance Jeffries, CSC, major dec. Evjan Mark, NW Iowa, 14-5; Mike Sandy, unatt, dec. Jeffries 3-0; Jeffries, major dec. Tyler Schneider, Morningside, 14-5; Mike Miller, Morningside, pinned Jeffries 1:54. 157—Tyler Frederick, CSC, pinned Eric Held, Wayne State, 1:52; Zach Mullins, unatt, dec. Frederick 8-4; Massey Derek, Iowa Wesleyan, pinned Frederick 1:19. 165—Tyler Smart, CSC, dec. Ken Dunlap, Iowa Western, 5-0; Isaac Ring, NW Iowa, dec. Smart 5-0; Smart dec. Jason Swets, NW Iowa, 7-2; Smart dec. Matt Peters, Wayne State, 9-4; Smart dec. Nathaniel Stataker, unatt, 9-5; Smart dec. Ben Taylor, Briar Cliff, 10-5; Smart pinned Seth Shatto, Briar Cliff, 2:17; Joe Range, William Penn, dec. Smart 5-3 for third. 165—Nathan Stataker, unnatt, dec. Kaleb Hoyt, CSC, 6-5; Dillon Freeman, Briar Cliff, dec. Hoyt, 9-4, 174—Phil Bullington, CSC, pinned Casey Paprocki, Buena Vista, 1:32; Mike Edginton, Augustana, S.D., dec. Bullington 7-4; Joe Sumner, William Penn, dec. Bullington, 8-5; Bullington pinned Tyler Baughman, Briar Cliff, 1:42 for seventh. 184—Briston Brenton, CSC-unatt., dec. Tyler Pullin, Grand View, 3-2; Brenton dec. Will Worthy, Grand View, 7-6. Brenton injury defaulted his next two matches, but finished sixth. 197—Damon Lappe, CSC, pinned Jordan Meier, unatt, 5:22; Lappe pinned Joe Kunkel, Buena Vista, 5:27; Brian Broll, Buena Vista, dec. Lappe 7-2 for first. Hwt—Ryley Dawson, CSC, dec. Quinnel Willingham, Wayne State, 4-2 in overtime; Dawson dec. Eric Draper, Morningside, 5-2; Dawson pinned Nathan Craig, William Penn, 3:48; Matt Sefcik, Buena Vista, pinned Dawson 5:58; Dawson pinned Casey Muessigmann, Morningside, 3:30; Michael Hill, CSC, dec. Dawson 2-0 for third. Hwt—Michael Hill, CSC, major dec. Matt Eads, Grand View, 8-0; Hill pinned Tyler Styrk, William Penn, 1:31; Hill pinned Casey Muessigmann, Morningside, 6:25; John Sievert, Morningside, pinned Hill 5:37; Hill dec. Eric Gruis, Dakota Wesleyan, 7-2; Hill dec. Ryley Dawson, CSC, 2-0 for third. Wyoming's Zach Zehner Wins WWC Weekly Honor13 December, 2011OREM, Utah -- University of Wyoming 133-pound redshirt freshman Zach Zehner (Tomahawk, Wis./Tomahawk HS) has been named the Western Wrestling Conference Wrestler of the Week after defeating a ranked opponent last week. The conference award was announced Tuesday by the league. Zehner was one of four Cowboys to win matches in Wyoming's dual versus No. 21 Nebraska last Saturday. Zehner, who was ranked 16th, took on the Cornhuskers 18-ranked Ridge Kiley in the 133-pound bout. Zehner earned an escape point at the beginning of the second period to take a 1-0 lead. Kiley then went ahead 2-1 after a takedown, but Zehner got a reversal to retake the lead at 3-2 entering the third period. Kiley picked up a late escape point to tie it, but Zehner earned a riding time point to win 4-3. The Wyoming grappler is now 4-2 on the year against ranked opponents and the victory also marked Zehner's third-straight win over Kiley this season. Zehner's victory gave the Cowboys a 9-3 advantage in the dual, but the Pokes eventually fell to the Huskers, 19-15. The WWC weekly honor is Zehner's first of his career and the fourth weekly conference award won by a Wyoming grappler this season. The Western Wrestling Conference, which is in its sixth year of competition, is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming. Other Nominees: Northern Iowa: Ryan Loder, 184 pounds, So., (Granite Bay, Calif./Granite Bay HS) South Dakota State: Nick Flynn, 157 pounds, Sr., (Lansing, Kan./Lansing HS) Utah Valley: Dustin Dennison, Heavyweight, Fr., (Pleasant Grove, Utah/Pleasant Grove HS) 2011-12 WWC Wrestlers of the Week Nov. 9 - Cole VonOhlen (Air Force) Nov. 15 - Shane Onufer (Wyoming) Nov. 22 - Kasey Garnhart (Wyoming)/Steven Monk (North Dakota State) Nov. 29 - Ryan Loder (Northern Iowa) 6 - Joe LeBlanc (Wyoming) Dec. 13 - Zach Zehner (Wyoming) Excel Wrestling Winter Camp in Gillette13 December, 2011The Excel Winter Training Camps will focus specifically on takedown wrestling. Technique areas include setups to shots – single, double, low heel finishes, extend position finishes, etc., short offense, defensive and more! We will do a lot of “live wrestling”. Clinicians will also speak about life, motivation for the sport and specifically what it takes to step up to the next level of achievement! Click here to view / print an application. Cost is $150.00 Twin Spruce Middle School 100 East 7th Street Gillette, WY 82716-4319 December 29th 4:30 – 5pm, Registration/check in Session One, 5pm – 8pm – Technique and live wrestling with Steve Knight December 30th Session Two, 10am – 12noon – New Technique with Evan Knight Session Three, 2 – 4pm – Technique and live wrestling with Cort Peterson December 31st Session Four, 9 – 11am – Technique Review, Tournament Preparation & Motivation Ben Vom Baur Learned Respect!By wawawrestling.org13 December, 2011 A lot of people from Wyoming already know who Ben VomBaur is, but for those of you who don’t know or can’t quite remember here is a quick rundown of some of his career highlights:
When I was looking for volunteers to write about how wrestling has impacted them Coach VomBaur was more than willing to help out. Following is the story he wanted to share with us. I grew up playing a lot of sports. I played organized soccer, football, baseball and basketball, but it wasn’t until I wrestled that I could channel my energy. Wrestling has made me the person I am today. It helped me transform my life from a struggling youth to a successful person. I was a bright kid growing up. I scored high on several standardized tests in Kindergarten; even high enough to be placed in a new school for gifted students. But over the years I struggled more and more with discipline and motivation. By the time I finished the 6th grade I was failing several subjects, was visiting the principle on a regular basis and my relationships with my family was struggling at home. I had physical altercations with my parents and at one point pulled a knife on my sister and threatened her life. I specifically remember my 6th grade teacher telling my parents at a parent-teacher conference that I was “headed for prison.” Near the end of the 6th grade school year, after getting in a fight at school, the principle asked my dad if I would stay home the rest of the school year. So I did. I started wrestling in the 7th grade. I was a natural and won most of my matches. Wrestling was fun for me because I liked being physical. I have a mean streak, but in wrestling that was a good thing. Junior high school was still a struggle, but wrestling helped me channel my aggression and helped me dedicate myself to something I valued. I made big improvements in my life, but the biggest changes didn’t come until my 9th grade year when learned about respect. In the 9th Grade I started wrestling for Roy Pitman at Peninsula Park. It’s an inner city club in Portland, Oregon with a heavy emphasis on respect, not wins and losses. I learned to respect my coaches, my family, my community and myself. From that point on I dedicated myself to the sport of wrestling. I finished high school with 102-0 record and earned DI All-American honors twice at Boise State University. But what I’m most proud of myself is who I’ve become. Wrestling helped keep me out of jail. It’s helped me earn a college degree. It’s helped me be a better husband. It’s helped my be a better father. It’s helped me be a good leader. Wrestling has simply made me a better person. Cowboys Wrestlers Drop Dual On Road To Huskers, 19-1511 December, 2011Dec. 10, 2011 LINCOLN, Neb. - The Wyoming Cowboys dropped a close dual on the road Saturday night to the 21st-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers, 19-15. No. 14 Wyoming (0-1 overall) earned four wins in front of a crowd of 836 at Nebraska Coliseum, but couldn't overcome the Huskers (5-0) on their home mat. Junior Kasey Garnhart, redshirt freshman Zach Zehner, senior Joe LeBlanc and redshirt junior Alfonso Hernandez each won their matches for the Pokes. It was the 46th meeting between the programs, and Wyoming now is 14-32 versus Nebraska all-time. "I think all the guys wrestled hard, but we had a couple matches that were really physical," Wyoming head coach Mark Branch said. "(Nebraska's) kids just dug down deep and I think they wrestled with more heart. They wanted it more than we did. They were putting the matches out there to take from them and we didn't get it done. "We didn't find the will to win and those things hurt us. I think it could've been a lopsided dual in our favor, but that's the way the sport goes. When you do that against a team at their place, I think you're going to have the results we had. Where we had chances to go take matches from them, we didn't. When they came in as underdogs, they wrestled it away from us." Junior L.J. Helbig started off the night's action with a battle versus No. 10 Tucker Lane in the heavyweight bout, but fell in an 8-1 decision. That match gave Nebraska a 3-0 lead. Garnhart started in the 125-pound bout versus Shawn Nagel, and earned a dominating win for the Pokes. Garnhart earned an early takedown for a 2-0 lead, then added a nice takedown and near-fall points to take an 8-1 lead into the second period. Garnhart earned a stall point and an escape to go up 10-1, and added an escape to go up 12-1. Several takedowns later, Garnhart pinned Nagel at the 6:37 mark. Wyoming took a 6-3 lead in the dual. Zehner, ranked 16th, took on No. 18 Ridge Kiley in the 133-pound bout. Zehner earned an escape point at the beginning of the second period to take a 1-0 lead. Kiley had a takedown to go up 2-1, but Zehner got a reversal to retake the lead at 3-2 entering the third period. Kiley got a late escape point, but Zehner earned a riding-time point to win 4-3. It was Zehner's third-straight win over Kiley this season, and he now is 4-2 versus ranked opponents. Wyoming padded its lead and went into the fourth match of the night with a 9-3 advantage in the dual. "Zach didn't wrestle that flawlessly, but he had a lot of guts. He sucked it up and got the job done," Branch said. McCade Ford took on No. 12 Jake Sueflohn in the 141-pound bout. Sueflohn earned the 11-2 major decision. The Husker grappler had a takedown at the 1:21 mark in the first period to go up 2-0. Sueflohn added an escape point at the beginning of the second period and added to his advantage to go up 3-0, and added a takedown for a 5-0 lead. Ford got an escape point to shave the lead to 5-1 early in the third period, but Sueflohn got a takedown to add to his lead and make it 7-1. Ford got an escape, but Sueflohn got a stall point and a takedown to go up 10-2. Sueflohn added a point with a riding-time advantage and won 11-2. Nebraska cut Wyoming's team lead to 9-7 after that. Brandon Richardson took on Brandon Wilbourn in the 149-pound tilt. Wilbourn got a takedown just a minute into the match for the 2-0 lead, but Richardson got an escape just 30 seconds later to cut the lead to 2-1. Richardson got another escape to even things up at 2 in the second period. Richardson then tried for a takedown, but Wilbourn avoided the attack and got a takedown and back points to go up 7-2. Wilbourn then added an escape point to go up 8-2 to start the third period. Wilbourn got a takedown but gave up an escape to keep the advantage, which moved to 10-3 with one minute remaining in the match. Richardson kept fighting and got a takedown with 20 seconds left to make it 10-5, but Wilbourn had the advantage in riding time, which made the final score 11-5. That gave Nebraska a 10-9 lead in the dual. Dakota Friesth battled No. 16 James Green in the 157-pound match, and the action was frenetic to start the match. Two takedowns by Green and two escapes by Friesth made it 4-2 in the first period. Friesth wrestled well on the defensive end, thwarting several takedown attempts by Green to keep it 4-2 heading to the second period. Friesth cut the lead to 4-3 with an escape at the beginning of the period, and had a nifty takedown to go up 5-4 at the 4:30 mark. Green got an escape with 5 seconds to go in the period to tie things up at 4. Green added another escape point to take a 6-5 lead, which proved to be the final margin. Nebraska went up 13-9 in the team points. No. 3 Shane Onufer lost his first match of the season to No. 10 Robert Kokesh in the 165-pound match. The two wrestlers showcased their defensive skills to battle to a 0-0 tie after two periods, but Kokesh earned an escape point to take a 1-0 lead at the beginning of the third period. Onufer then was penalized for stalling for a 2-0 lead for Kokesh. The Nebraska wrestler then added a takedown with 5 seconds left, and had the advantage in riding time for the 5-0 win. Nebraska took a 16-9 lead in the team points. No. 18 Patrick Martinez was up next, and he wrestled Nebraska's Tyler Koehn. Martinez had an early takedown for a 2-0 lead in the match, and Koehn countered with an escape to shave the lead to 2-1. Seconds later, Koehn added another escape to tie the match at 2. Koehn then added a takedown for the 4-2 lead heading into the third period. Martinez made it closer with an escape at the 5:37 mark, but Koehn got a takedown with 32 seconds remaining for the 6-3 lead. Nebraska took a 19-9 lead in the team points. LeBlanc, ranked third in the country, picked up a nice win over No. 10 Josh Ihnen in the 184-pound match, winning a 4-3 decision. Ihnen took the early 2-0 lead with a takedown with 30 seconds remaining in the first period, but LeBlanc cut the lead to 2-1 with an escape several seconds later. Ihnen then had an escape to go up 3-1 and the two stayed that way heading into the third period. LeBlanc got an escape point to cut the lead to 3-2, and then added a takedown with just 30 seconds to go. Wyoming cut the lead to 19-12, and LeBlanc moved to 3-0 versus ranked opponents. "I was proud of the way Joe wrestled after the way the previous two matches went," Branch said of Leblanc. "He stepped on the mat, wrestled better, more technical, and didn't bail out." In the last match of the night, the 197-pound bout, No. 13 Alfonso Hernandez took on James Nakashima. Hernandez took a 1-0 lead due to an illegal maneuver by Nakashima, and the wrestlers battled with that score into the second period. Nakashima got an escape point to even things up at 1, and the pair didn't score anything else in that session. The third period featured an escape by Hernandez to take the 2-1 lead, and he got a takedown at the 6-minute mark to build the lead to 4-1. Nakashima got an escape 25 seconds later to move the score to 4-2, but Hernandez's defense did not allow another point. Wyoming made the lead 19-15, which was the final margin. "Fonz ended up wearing the kid out," Branch said. "I was proud of the way he performed. He stayed patient and wrestled at a hard pace." Wyoming now will have for its next dual on Jan. 1, when the Oklahoma State Cowboys come to Laramie. Branch and the Cowboys will have to shake off the first loss and focus on improving. "It wasn't all bad, but it was not the outcome we wanted and not the outcome that reflects our team," Branch said. Wyoming will head to the Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 18. Match results (Wyoming wrestlers listed first) 125 pounds: Kasey Garnhart, Jr. (8-2) wins by fall (6:37) over Shawn Nagel, So. (4-7) - Wyoming 6, Nebraska 3 133: No. 16 Zach Zehner, RS Fr. (15-5) wins by 4-3 decision over No. 18 Ridge Kiley, Jr. (7-5) - Wyoming 9, Nebraska 3 141: McCade Ford, RS Jr. (4-5) lost by 11-2 major decision to No. 12 Jake Sueflohn, Fr. (11-3) - Wyoming 9, Nebraska 7 149: Brandon Richardson, RS Fr. (14-7) lost by 11-5 decision to Brandon Wilbourn, RFr. (5-4) - Nebraska 10, Wyoming 9 157: Dakota Friesth, RS Fr. (16-8) lost by 6-5 decision to No. 16 James Green, Fr. (15-3) - Nebraska 13, Wyoming 9 165: No. 3 Shane Onufer, Sr. (11-1) lost a 5-0 decision to No. 10 Robert Kokesh, RFr. (13-2) - Nebraska 16, Wyoming 9 174: No. 18 Patrick Martinez, So. (17-6) lost by 6-3 decision to Tyler Koehn, Jr. (10-4) - Nebraska 19, Wyoming 9 184: No. 3 Joe LeBlanc. Sr. (12-0) wins by 4-3 decision over No. 10 Josh Ihnen, Jr. (9-2) - Nebraska 19, Wyoming 12 197: No. 13 Alfonso Hernandez, RS Jr. (18-3) wins by 4-2 decision over James Nakashima, Sr. (8-4) - Nebraska 19, Wyoming 15
Brenton Wins Over National Champ For Bronze10 December, 2011Monday, November 28, 2011 - Jessica Brenton from the University of Winnipeg won a bronze medal in the women's 59 kg weight class at the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Open this past weekend in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Brenton beat the reigning Canadian National Champion in the bronze medal match without having a single point scored on her (6-0 and 4-0). She finished the tournament with a record of 3-1. Jessica is ranked fifth in CIS at 59kg. She also placed fifth at the Sunkist Kids open in Phoenix in October. Week 1 rankings are postedBy Shane Stinson08 December, 2011 Week 1 ranking are up on the rankings page! Pokes and Huskers Set to Battle on the Mat08 December, 2011Dec. 7, 2011 LARAMIE, Wyo. - Wyoming coach Mark Branch and his Cowboy wrestling squad will face quite a test this weekend. The Pokes will compete in their first dual of the season Saturday as they travel to Lincoln, Neb., to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Matches will begin at 6 p.m. Mountain Time. A look at the Huskers The Huskers were ranked 21st in the latest NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll, a dual-based ranking, which was released Tuesday. The details On Jan. 17, 2010, the Cowboys upset the Huskers 29-10 in Lincoln. But Nebraska got its revenge just 11 months, beating Wyoming 20-12 in Laramie on Dec. 4, 2010. "Looking at the matchups, from top to bottom, every match is competitive. I think our best kids match up with some of their best kids," Branch said. "It's going to be a dogfight. We're going to have to go in and really wrestle well. Two years ago, we went there and wrestled really well at their place. "We have a lot of new faces in the lineup, so it's not the same team but I think these guys can go on the road and perform well. Every effort is going to count. I think it's going to be that kind of dual. There's a ton of matches that could go either way. We have to go in there and wrestle our best and it's a dual that means a lot to this program." The Cowboys will ride into town with a boatload of confidence from their performances in the Las Vegas Invitational, which included two event titles and five additional placers. But there's a fine line the Pokes must walk. Where can fans see it? The matchups 125 pounds: No. 16 Michael Martinez, Sr. (11-6) OR Kasey Garnhart, Jr. (7-2) vs. Shawn Nagel, So. (4-6) 133: No. 16 Zach Zehner, RS Fr. (14-5) vs. No. 18 Ridge Kiley, Jr. (7-4) 141: Mike Hamel, RS Fr. (6-8) OR McCade Ford, RS Jr. (4-4) vs. No. 12 Jake Sueflohn, Fr. (10-3) 149: Brandon Richardson, RS Fr. (14-6) vs. Brandon Wilbourn, RFr. (4-4) 157: Dakota Friesth, RS Fr. (16-7) vs. No. 16 James Green, Fr. (14-3) 165: No. 3 Shane Onufer, Sr. (11-0) vs. No. 10 Robert Kokesh, RFr. (12-2) 174: No. 18 Patrick Martinez, So. (17-5) vs. Tyler Koehn, Jr. (9-4) 184: No. 3 Joe LeBlanc. Sr. (11-0) vs. No. 10 Josh Ihnen, Jr. (9-1) 197: No. 13 Alfonso Hernandez, RS Jr. (17-3) OR L.J. Helbig, Jr. (8-6) vs. James Nakashima, Sr. (8-3) Hwt: Leland Pfiefer, RS Fr. (9-4) vs. No. 10 Tucker Lane, Sr. (10-2) Cowboy Grapplers Finish 3rd at Las Vegas Invitational04 December, 2011Dec. 3, 2011 LAS VEGAS - The Las Vegas Invitational is an event where unknowns can make a name for themselves, and over the weekend, some Wyoming wrestlers did just that. Seniors Joe LeBlanc (184 pounds) and Shane Onufer (165) won their weight-class title, and five other UW wrestlers placed in the top eight Saturday in the conclusion of the two-day event. Wyoming finished third in the team standings, just behind champion Ohio State and runner-up Michigan. "The important thing walking away from this tourney was some guys made a name for themselves," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said. "That's awesome, because we won't see some of these schools until the end. We really did ourselves a lot of good. Our guys were under the spotlight, and they responded well to the exposure." Onufer, currently ranked third in the country, went 5-0 on the weekend, and had his best day Saturday, beating two ranked wrestlers en route to the 165-pound crown. In his first match, Onufer beat Joe Booth of Drexel, ranked 17th in the nation, and took out Paul Gillespie (Hofstra), who was ranked fourth. Onufer won a 4-2 decision over Gillespie for the title, and now is 11-0 on the year. LeBlanc continued his dominating run this season as well, beating 10th-ranked Josh Ihnen (Nebraska) and third-ranked Steve Bosak of Cornell. LeBlanc was solid in the title match, beating Bosak in a 7-3 decision. LeBlanc, ranked fourth in the nation, moved to 11-0 for the season. Senior Michael Martinez (125) recovered from a loss on Friday to win two matches in the consolation bracket Saturday, but lost to Western Wrestling Conference foe Trent Sprenkle of North Dakota State in the fifth/sixth place match. He dropped a 3-1 decision to Sprenkle to finish sixth. Redshirt freshman Zach Zehner finished fifth in the 133-pound bracket after qualifying for the semifinals Friday with three wins. Zehner dropped his first match of the day to 10th-ranked Aaron Schopp of Edinboro and suffered his second defeat to No. 18 Steven Keith of Harvard. He recovered with his second win of the tournament over Ridge Kiley of Nebraska, who was ranked 17th in the nation. Zehner beat Kiley in a 6-5 decision to place fifth. Dakota Friesth, a redshirt freshman at 157 pounds, finished eighth overall. He started Saturday's action in the wrestleback bracket, and won a 7-3 decision over Josh Kremier of Air Force. Friesth then dropped the next match to No. 14 Josh Demas of Ohio State, and fell to Corey Mock of North Carolina in the seventh/eighth-place match in a 7-0 decision. The Pokes had another placer in redshirt freshman Patrick Martinez, who was fourth at 174 pounds. He started Saturday with three straight wins to get to the third/fourth-place match, but couldn't get by fourth-ranked Nick Heflin of Ohio State, who won a close 3-2 decision. The final placewinner for Wyoming was redshirt junior Alfonso Hernandez, who was fourth at 197 pounds. Hernandez won three bouts on Saturday in the consolation bracket to get to the third-place match, but lost a 5-3 decision to No. 7 Matthew Wilps of Pittsburgh. "We didn't wrestle our best by any means (Saturday)," Branch said. "Our best wrestling is ahead of us. We went in there with big boys and went toe to toe with them. I feel really positive. I think we can wrestle better and I know we will wrestle a lot better. We earned respect today. That'll help as the season goes on." CSC Wrestling Team Adds Four Early SigneesBy CSC Sports Information28 November, 2011 Nov 28, 2011 CHADRON – Four high school wrestlers have signed National Letters of Intent during the early signing period to compete for Chadron State College, head coach Scott Ritzen announced. Three of the four are from Nebraska and the other has won a state title in Wyoming and placed twice at the state tournament in Colorado. Zach Denney, a senior at North Platte who will wrestle at 141 pounds, is a three-time place winner at the Nebraska State Tournament. He also owns the Nebraska high school record for most wins in a season (49) and enters his senior season with an overall record of 117 wins to just 13 losses. Bryce Wiedeman, a senior at Mitchell who is projected to wrestle at 149 or 157 pounds at CSC, is a two-time state qualifier and was runner-up at the 2011 tourney. He owns the Mitchell High School record for most pins (98) and has a record of 126-22 with a year to compete. The other Nebraska wrestler to sign with the Eagles is Derek Pollock, a senior from Ainsworth. Pollock, who was all-state honorable mention in 2011, is expected to wrestle at 149 or 157 pounds. Chadron State’s final early signee is Alex Klopp from Yuma, Colo. Klopp, who is expected to wrestle at 125 of 133 pounds, was a state champ in Wyoming in 2009 and has finished in the top four in Colorado the past two years. He owns a career record of 141-15.
UW Wrestling Coach Mark Branch To Be Featured `On The Mat'22 November, 2011Nov. 22, 2011 LARAMIE, Wyo. - Wyoming wrestling head coach Mark Branch will be featured on a prominent wrestling radio show Wednesday night. Branch will appear as a guest on the show "On the Mat." The show is a presentation of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum and can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com from 4 to 5 p.m. Mountain or in Northeast Iowa on AM 1650, The Fan. An archive of the show can be found on www.themat.tv. E-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with any questions or comments about the show. Branch will be joined by Heath Grimm, who is the head wrestling coach at Upper Iowa University. Garnhart Takes Home WWC Weekly Honor22 November, 2011Nov. 22, 2011 OREM, Utah - Wyoming 125-pound junior Kasey Garnhart (Ten Sleep, Wyo./Riverside HS) and North Dakota State 157-pound sophomore Steven Monk (Wausau, Wis./Wausau West HS) have been named Co-Western Wrestling Conference Wrestlers of the Week after both won tournament titles last week. The weekly award was released Tuesday by the league. Garnhart won the Elite 125-pound title at the Nebraska-Kearney Holiday Inn Open on Saturday. He began the day by defeating Shawn Nagel of Nebraska in a 13-3 major decision. He went on to defeat teammate and 10th-ranked Michael Martinez in the next bout, winning a 3-3 decision that came down to riding time in the first tiebreaker. The Cowboy then defeated Greg Rinker of Air Force in the title match by a 12-2 major decision score. Garnhart now is 7-2 on the season. The award was Garnhart's first of the season and first of his career. Monk won the 157-pound title at the Finn Grinaker Cobber Open last Saturday, scoring an upset over conference-rival No. 19 David Bonin of Northern Iowa in the final, 7-2. On the day Monk went a perfect 4-0 en route to the title. The Bison grappler won his opening bout by decision and his quarterfinal bout by fall. He also claimed a 9-2 win in the semis. With the solid performance Monk improved his season record to 7-1 with three pins. The Western Wrestling Conference, which is in its sixth year of competition, is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming. LeBlanc Victorious in All-Star Classic22 November, 2011TEMPE, Ariz. - Senior wrestler Joe LeBlanc again showed why he's considered one of the top wrestlers in the nation on Monday night in the NWCA All-Star Classic. LeBlanc had the most dramatic win of the night in the event, scoring a late takedown to get past No. 8 Ben Bennett of Central Michigan. LeBlanc overcame an early deficit to claim the 5-4 decision. LeBlanc and senior teammate Shane Onufer wrestled on the Arizona State campus against some of the top collegiate wrestlers in the country. Both Onufer and LeBlanc competed Saturday in the Nebraska-Kearney Open and traveled to Arizona the next day. "It was a long week of travel but neither one was complaining," UW assistant coach Chris Pendleton said. "They were excited to be here." LeBlanc gave up an early takedown to Bennett to go down 2-0, but managed a crafty escape to make it 2-1 just a few seconds later in the first period. Bennett then added an escape point to go up 3-1 at the beginning of the second period, which accounted for all the scoring in the period. But LeBlanc worked for a reversal to tie it up 3-3 and continue to control Bennett, but then gave up an escape to go down 4-3. LeBlanc then made his nicest move of the night, faking out Bennett to score a takedown with less than 15 seconds to go to take the 5-4 decision. "Joe did what Joe does. He found a way to get it done," Pendleton said. "He's disappointed because he wanted to highlight some of the things he worked on over the summer and this fall. Even though he won, he's not very happy with his performance. It's surreal to see a guy that won mad at himself. His only goal this year is to be an NCAA champion." Onufer wrestled well, but fell to No. 3 Josh Asper of Maryland in a hard-fought 6-4 decision. Asper scored an escape point to make it 3-1 early in the second period. He gave up another takedown at the edge of the mat to go down 5-1 at the end of the second period. Onufer had a nifty escape at the beginning of the third period to make it 5-2. He added a takedown to make it 5-4. Onufer was forced to give up an escape point to create an opening for an attack, but couldn't manage a takedown. Asper had another point added for riding time for the 6-4 win. "Shane got his motor going just a little too late," Pendleton said. "I don't think he felt like he lost the match. He just ran out of time. Luckily it's November and the NCAA (Championships) aren't until March. "Sometimes you need a loss to get going. He's excited to get back to work." The annual event is put on to create the best possible match-ups at each weight class in an effort to draw attention to the sport and the NWCA's fund raising efforts. All matches are exhibition in terms of season records and do not count in national rankings. Wyoming Wrestlers Capitalize In Kearney20 November, 2011KEARNEY, Neb. - Elite Final Brackets The Cowboy wrestlers took advantage of their opportunities Saturday in the Kearney Open, and won six weight-class titles. In a small but talented field, which included wrestlers from Nebraska and Air Force, Wyoming had one of its best overall performances of the year. "We had some guys that started to show the consistency we're looking for," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said. "It wasn't a big tournament in terms of numbers, but we had some guys from Nebraska and Air Force, and we got to see some good competition." Junior Kasey Garnhart won the Elite tournament title at 125 pounds. He was among three UW wrestlers to place in the top four. He started out by defeating Shawn Nagel of Nebraska in a 13-3 major decision. He then beat a teammate in the next match, senior Michael Martinez, in a 3-3 decision, which came down to riding time in the first tiebreaker. In the title match, he took out Greg Rinker of Air Force in a 12-2 major decision. Sophomore Tyler Cox, competing unattached, was third and Martinez was fourth at 125. In the Elite 133 class, redshirt freshman Zach Zehner went 3-1 and finished third, while sophomore Jake Eitzen was 2-2 and was fourth overall. Redshirt freshman Mike Hamel finished fifth at 141 pounds, while senior Chase Smith suffered his first loss of the season at 149 pounds. Smith won his first two matches, but fell to No. 6 Cole VonOhlen of Air Force in a 12-9 decision in the title match. Smith now is 11-1 on the season. Redshirt freshman Brandon Richardson was fifth at 149. Redshirt freshman Dakota Friesth was fifth at 157 pounds, going 4-2 on the day. Senior Shane Onufer went 2-0 on his way to the 165-pound title, defeating Joey Wilson (Nebraska-Kearney) in a 9-2 decision and Robert Kokesh of Nebraska in a 6-2 decision. Sophomore Pat Martinez went 4-0 en route to the 174-pound championship, beating Tyler Koehn of Nebraska in a 4-0 decision in the title match. Senior Dallas Hintz was fifth at 174 pounds. "Pat had his best performance of the season," Branch said. "He put together a great tourney and dominated the field." Senior Joe LeBlanc put on a dominating display during his 184-pound title run, going 3-0 with one pin and two wins by technical fall. He was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler. LeBlanc and Onufer will wrestle Monday in the NWCA All-Star Classic in Tempe, Ariz. The event is a showcase of some of the nation's best collegiate wrestlers. "We weren't sure they would wrestle the whole tournament," Branch said of LeBlanc and Onufer. "Shane had some tough competition, especially in the finals. He had to dig down deep, and those were good wins for those guys heading into the All-Star matches. I'm glad they showed their experience and leadership in getting the job done today." Redshirt junior Alfonso Hernandez won his second tournament title of the season, going 4-0 in the 197-pound bracket, beating teammate L.J. Helbig in a 7-2 decision in the title tilt. Freshman Jace Jensen finished fourth in the Amateur 165 division, but the star of the Amateur bracket for the Cowboys was freshman V.J. Giulio. He was the 184-pound champ of the Amateur division, going 4-0 on the day. He pinned Cory Brester of Nebraska in 2:12 in the title match. "He dominated his bracket, beating a kid from Nebraska that had a pretty good history," Branch said of Giulio. "To see him come through was awesome." Branch and the Cowboys will have their toughest test to date in their next event as a team. The Cowboys will go to the Cliff Keen/Las Vegas Invitational, which is Dec. 2-3 in Las Vegas. The Kearney Open will serve them well for that event, Branch said. "Our young kids stepped up, more up to their capabilities," Branch said. "Unfortunately for me, we've got a lot of figuring out to do. Some of the kids are not showing me they have an edge. Someone needs to step up. We have a lot of weights still up in the air. I told our team we had some good and bad (from Saturday). I think we can be a better team and I know we will. I think we got a lot out of it." Wyoming Wrestling Inks Five Student-Athletes18 November, 2011Nov. 18, 2011 LARAMIE, Wyo. - The Wyoming wrestling program already has built a solid program over the last three seasons, and announced Friday that it had added more talented pieces to that foundation. Wyoming coach Mark Branch and his staff announced the signing of five student-athletes for the fall of 2012. The signees include Dylan Schumacher, Brent Havlik, Ben Stroh, Jordan Hanson and Drew Templeman. The five were recruited because of their skill on the wrestling mat and their dedication to academics. "All these guys are strong academically. That's what we were looking for when we were recruiting them - kids who can come here and succeed in the classroom," Branch said. "But the things they've done on the mat (are exceptional.) ... I think with what we add in the spring, we're going to be looking at the best recruiting class we've ever had here." Here's a breakdown of the five signees, with their hometown, high school and projected college weight class: Dylan Schumacher, Hays, Kan. (Thomas More Prep-Marian) - 133 pounds "Schumacher is one of those hidden-gem kids, from a small Kansas school," Branch said. "He was a multi-sport athlete, so he didn't get that national (wrestling) exposure, but he's tough as nails. He was a real find for us just because when you play other sports, you don't get the exposure at the national level. He's dominated the Kansas state high school championships the last three years." Brent Havlik, Kimball, S.D. (Mitchell HS) - 165/174 pounds Ben Stroh, Chinook, Mont. (Chinook HS) - 184/197 pounds "Not a lot of people knew about him (early on)," Branch said of Stroh. "We knew about him and tried to keep it quiet, but he went up to Fargo (at Junior Nationals) this summer and beat some of the best kids in the country, and all of a sudden, everyone started recruiting him." Stroh's older brother, Robert, currently is a redshirt freshman for the Cowboys. "The family felt comfortable with the coaching staff and with the campus," Branch said. "(Getting the commitment) wasn't easy, because he's definitely a highly sought after kid. That was a big pickup for us." Jordan Hanson, Lander, Wyo. (Lander HS) - 285 pounds "He's a big heavyweight, which is what we're looking for," Branch said. "He's a Wyoming kid who got a late start and just dominated his junior year. He went across the county and wrestled at (four-time Olympic medalist's) Bruce Baumgartner's heavyweight camp, which is the best heavyweight camp in the world, so his commitment is to wrestling. The fact he's got just a few years under his belt and he's already having so much success made him really attractive to go out and make sure he stayed in state." Drew Templeman, Orting, Wash. (Orting HS) - 125 pounds "He's a kid we wanted to keep out in the West," Branch said. "We feel very fortunate because all we've heard is the guy is a hammer in the wrestling room and he's a hard worker. He's also a kid who's very strong academically." Branch believes this class could vault his program into the upper echelon of NCAA wrestling, which has been his goal since he was hired. "It's an outstanding class. We've got three of these kids who will try to win their fourth straight state championship, which is pretty awesome," Branch said. "They've competed at the national level and have been very successful. They're nationally ranked kids. "When it's all said and done, I think we're looking at the future of Wyoming. These kids are really going to get us to that next level. We've had to go head-to-head against some of these bigger schools (in recruiting) and win, which is a positive thing. We're getting these kids away from a Big 12 or Big Ten school. It's a good class for us, and we're looking for big things. What we sold them on is we've come a long way in three years, but they're the next step to get us into the top five. That's where the future of this program is headed. They've got some big shoes to fill with our outgoing seniors." Wyoming's Shane Onufer Named WWC Wrestler of the WeekBy James Warnick17 November, 2011
OREM, Utah -- University of Wyoming 165-pound senior Shane Onufer (Auburn, Wash./Auburn HS) has been named the Western Wrestling Conference Wrestler of the Week by the league on Tuesday after an outstanding performance on the mat last week.
In his first action of the season, Onufer went 4-0 at the Cowboy Open, winning his weight class at the event for the fourth-straight year.
He started the tournament by pinning Jorge Benitez of Western State at the 6:30 mark and followed that up with a 5-0 decision over Jordan Larsen of Colorado School of Mines. He then defeated Tyler Juby (unattached) with an 11-0 major decision, and beat Steve Vasquez (Cal Poly) 5-1 in the championship bout. Onufer allowed just one point to his four opponents over the course of the tournament.
The conference award Onufer's first of the season and fifth of his career. The Wyoming grappler is currently ranked second in the nation by InterMat at 165 pounds.
The Western Wrestling Conference, which is in its sixth year of competition, is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming. Two Wyoming Wrestlers to take part in NWCA All-Star Classic14 November, 2011Nov. 11, 2011 LARAMIE, Wyo. - Wyoming wrestlers Joe LeBlanc and Shane Onufer have been selected to take part in the 46th NWCA All-Star Classic, presented by the United States Marines Corps. The event, which pits some of the nation's best collegiate wrestlers against one another, will be Nov. 21 in Tempe, Ariz. "It's always an honor and it's great exposure for our program," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said. "I really put (the decision) in their hands. It's not easy. You have to fly out to Arizona, and it's another time of making weight and you're getting really stiff competition. They both wanted to do it. That's awesome. I think they were proud to be invited, and they saw it as an opportunity to test themselves." Three NCAA Champions and 19 All-Americans make up the 20 wrestlers selected for the event. Fifteen universities will be represented in the event, with Wyoming, American, Maryland, Illinois and Oklahoma State, each with two wrestlers competing in the event. Onufer, a 165-pound senior, will have a rematch from last year's All-Star Classic when he faces No. 3 Josh Asper of Maryland. Asper beat Onufer 3-2 in last year's event, but Onufer was able to defeat Asper in the NCAA National Championships in 2011 with a 5-4 decision in the fifth/sixth place match. LeBlanc, who took a 10-5 decision over Purdue's A.J. Kissel in last year's event, will wrestle No. 8 Ben Bennett of Central Michigan in the 184-pound match. The senior is Wyoming's third three-time All-American. "Those guys will represent us well," Branch said of LeBlanc and Onufer. "They've really been a big part as to why we have high expectations this year. It shows you where our program is at and gives us a lot of hope for the future." 2011 NWCA All-Star Classic Line-Up Wyoming brings home 4 titles at Cowboy Open13 November, 2011LARAMIE, Wyo. - Wyoming Results The War Memorial Fieldhouse served as the friendly confines to the Wyoming wrestling program Saturday, as four Cowboys took home tournament titles at the Cowboy Open. The event culminated quite a weekend for Wyoming wrestling, as the Pokes also wrestled in the Brown vs. Gold ranking matches Friday. On Saturday, seniors Michael Martinez (125 pounds), Chase Smith (149), Shane Onufer (165) and Joe LeBlanc (184) each won their respective weight class, finishing a combined 14-0 in the Elite brackets. Martinez began with a 12-2 major decision over Marco Tamayo of Colby Community College, and followed it up with a 3-2 decision over Boise State's Isaac Romero. Sophomore Tyler Cox, competing unattached, would have wrestled Martinez in the 125-pound title match, but the UW coaches chose not to wrestle the match, giving the championship win to Martinez. Smith started the day with a 10-0 major decision over Mikie Burgess (Colorado School of Mines), and went on to win two more matches to make it to the title bout with teammate Brandon Richardson. Smith and Richardson battled into two overtimes, and Smith secured a 4-2 decision with a late takedown. Onufer began his tournament by pinning Jorge Benitez of Western State at the 6:30 mark, and went on to win two more matches before beating Steve Vasquez of Cal Poly in the championship bout in a 5-1 decision. Onufer has won the Cowboy Open in his weight class every year since 2008. LeBlanc got the Open started off right, winning by technical fall 17-2 over Nick Petersen of Colorado Mesa, then pinning Ryan Swanson (Colorado School of Mines) at the 6:38 mark. He took a tough 3-2 decision over Jake Schwartz of Boise State in the final for the tournament crown. Other notable performances for the Pokes included Cox, who went 3-0 (not counting the final-match forfeit) with one major decision and two falls. Redshirt freshman Zach Zehner was second in the 133-pound bracket (Elite) and finished 3-1. Redshirt freshman Brandon Richardson was second in the Elite 149-pound bracket, going 3-1. Redshirt freshmen Dakota Friesth and Robert Stroh were third and fourth, respectively, at 157. Redshirt freshman Shane Woods was second in the 174-pound bracket, going 3-1, while senior Dallas Hintz was third at 174 pounds, going 6-1. Redshirt junior Alfonso Hernandez was third at 197 pounds, tallying a record of 5-1 on the day, and redshirt freshman Leland Pfeifer went 3-1 to finish third at heavyweight. "I'll have to look at it a little better to reflect, but with 10 mats going, there were a lot of good things I saw and there was stuff I was pulling my hair out about," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said regarding his team's overall performance. "Technically, I thought we saw a lot of clean stuff. ... We really improved in some of those areas that we were sloppy in last week but my biggest concern is immaturity and letting matches get away from us that we should've won. I did see a lot of positives, but some of these kids showed their immaturity and their lack of experience and that's not OK." The Pokes will head to the Kearney Open in Nebraska on Saturday for their third event of the season. "Hopefully we can see more improvement and grow up a little," Branch said. "We have to make sure when we have a match within our grasp, we take care of it. I'm not hitting the panic button by any means, though. We've got time." Wyoming Results Preseason RankingsBy Shane Stinson10 November, 2011 The first edition of the 2011-2012 rankings are posted on the rankings page. Go to the forum and give us your opinion. Two Wyoming Prep Wrestlers make Wrestling USA’s top Frosh/Soph listBy John Bear10 November, 2011
The November issue of Wrestling USA announced their pics for the nation’s top lower class high school wrestlers. Wyoming posted two competitors to the list:
At 123 pounds Bryce Meredith, a Sophomore from Cheyenne Central, was ranked 13th in the nation.
At 152 pounds Shay McCurdy, a Sophomore from Green River, was ranked 28th in the nation.
Congratulations to these up and coming wrestlers from Wyoming. Wyoming wrestlers take home 4 tournament titlesBy Shane Stinson07 November, 2011 POWELL, Wyo. - Click here for results. Four Wyoming wrestlers finished first overall in the Northwest Open tournament on Saturday in Powell, Wyo., in their first action of the year. Redshirt junior Alfonso Hernandez (285 pounds) and senior Dallas Hintz (184) took first overall in their weight brackets, while redshirt junior McCade Ford and senior Chase Smith split the title at 149 pounds. Twelve UW wrestlers were forced to wrestle one weight class above their slated position due to a certification mix-up, but they came through with flying colors. Wyoming wrestlers finished with four titles, four second-place finshes, five third-place finishes and two fourths. "I was really impressed with our 197-pounders (including Hernandez, LJ Helbig and Leland Pfeifer) going up," Wyoming coach Mark Branch said. "They had the best tournaments of any our guys. It's hard to tell with the weights (being mixed up), so they were at a little bit of a disadvantage. But I told them it's a challenge. They were giving away weight." Branch did see room for improvement, especially on the mental side. "We were really sloppy in some places. I thought we were poor defensively. Those are the fundamentals we've got to brush up on," he said. Junior Kasey Garnhart picked up three quick wins at 125 pounds to get to the semifinals, but dropped a match to Jade Rauser (Utah Valley) and went into the consolation bracket. He wrestled his way into the third-place match, but lost by fall to Colby Christensen (UVU) to finish fourth. Garnhart was 4-2 on the day. Redshirt junior McCade Ford and senior Chase Smith each made the finals in the 149-pound division, but neither wrestled the title match due to medical forfeit. Ford and Smith shared the title after Ford went 4-0 on the day and Smith was 5-0. Redshirt freshman Brandon Richardson was third in the same weight class, going 5-1 after recovering from an early loss to Anthony Weerheim of Montana State Northern. Redshirt freshman Dakota Friesth made the finals at 157 after going 3-0, but lost by fall to Chase Cuthbertson of Utah Valley in the final. Friesth was 3-1 on the day. Sophomore Patrick Martinez recovered from an early pin to make it to the third-place match of the 174-pound division. He defeated Trevor Grant of CSU-Pueblo by technical fall 15-0 and finished third overall after going 5-1 on the day. Three UW wrestlers made it to the semifinals in the 184-pound bracket, including Hintz and redshirt freshman Shane Woods, who faced one another in the finals. Hintz came away with the victory, beating Woods in a 5-1 decision. Hintz went 4-0 on the day with one fall and one major decision, while Woods was 3-1. Freshman VJ Giulio lost to Woods in the semifinals, but managed two wins in the consolation bracket for the third-place title. It was the UW show in the heavyweight division, as junior LJ Helbig and redshirt junior Alfonso Hernandez squared off in the title match. Hernandez took a hard-fought 2-1 decision for the crown, and Helbig was second. Hernandez was 3-0 on the day, and Helbig finished 2-1. Redshirt freshman Leland Pfeifer was third, going 4-1 on the day. The Cowboys who had to wrestle up in the weight classes will be back to their normal positions next week. "I walk away from this tourney the same way I do every year," Branch said. "I feel educated. I saw a lot of things we need to work on, and I know we're a better team than what we showed. I do see some potential from our guys. "But we didn't have a good mental game today. It wasn't about our physical game, it was mental. It's an urgent fix, and it's a fix we can turn around quickly." The Pokes will compete twice next week, starting with Friday's intrasquad Brown versus Gold matches, which start at 5:30 p.m. Friday in the UniWyo Sports Complex. Then, Wyoming will host the 39th annual Cowboy Open tournament, which starts at 9 a.m. Saturday in the War Memorial Fieldhouse. WAWA wants your opinionBy Shane Stinson04 November, 2011 Dear Wrestling Enthusiast, The WAWA Board is seeking your input. Please take a few moments to enter your thoughts by clicking on the following link. The survey will only take a couple of minutes and your input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Interview with Mark BranchBy Shane Stinson04 November, 2011 University of Wyoming Head Wrestling Coach Mark Branch First off I would like to send out a huge thank you to the University of Wyoming Head Wrestling Coach, Mark Branch for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer some questions. Q.)How old were you when you started wrestling? Q.)What was your favorite style of wrestling to compete in? Q.)Who is your Favorite Wrestler from the past and why? Q.)Now that you have been in Wyoming for a few years and survived the winters, How do like living here? Q.)How important do you think Freestyle & Greco Roman are in building successful college wrestlers, and briefly why do you feel that way? Q.)What does it mean for amateur wrestling in Wyoming to have the University named a Regional Training Site by USA Wrestling? Q.)How can the wrestling community here in Wyoming or around the region help ensure that your program continues to grow and be successful? Thank you to wawawrestling.org for conducting this interview. Three Wyoming High School Juniors make Wrestling USA's top listBy John Bear26 October, 2011  Gillette's Dani Fischer on his way to his first state championship in 2010.
Congratulations to the Wyoming Juniors named to the Wrestling USA’s “Best 2011-2012 High School Juniors.” Two of Gillette’s double champions made the top 30 in the nation list. Lukas Poloncic is ranked #23 at 126lbs and Dani Fischer is ranked #24 at 138lbs. Also receiving Special Mention honors at 285lbs is Coulter Bentley of Natrona who placed 3rd at Heavy weight in last years 4A State championships. Excel Wrestling Begins Two Wyoming Junior Olympic Training SitesBy Shane Stinson17 October, 2011 Excel Wrestling has kicked off their season in Wyoming with two Junior Olympic training sites. In Gillette, WY, Cort Peterson heads up the program again this year. Cort was a 2 x Wyoming State Champion. He went on to Central Oklahoma where he was a 2 x NCAA All American for the Bronchos. Peterson brings a wealth of knowledge to the program. In Cheyenne, University of Wyoming assistant Ethan Kyle is coaching the Wyoming Junior Olympic Program this year. Kyle was a 3 x Missouri State Champion and HS All American. He went on to wrestle for Oklahoma State University being a part of 4 National Championship teams and their team captain his senior year. Excel's Head Coach Steve Knight commented, "Both of these guys are excellent clinicians and we're pleased to have them with us in Wyoming. We are still accepting applications in Wyoming at both locations. We hope the Wyoming Junior High and High School wrestlers who make the commitment to our program will continue to make big gains this season. The Excel Junior Olympic Programs in Wyoming are a "Sunday only" programs. For more information, please go to www.excelwrestling.com or call the Excel National Development Office at 303-931-3973.
Wyo Wrestling Schedule Page is UpdatedBy Shane Stinson17 October, 2011 Pre-season and some season scheduling is up on the schedule page. The schedule has a youth page, high school page, and a college page. Western Wrestling Conference Gears Up for Sixth Season of Competition in 2011-12By James Warnick03 October, 2011
The WWC recognizes student-athletes on both a weekly and full-season basis. Individual awards include Wrestler of the Week; All-Conference teams; an Academic All-Conference team; and Wrestler, Newcomer and Coach of the Year awards. The league also crowns a team champion following the conclusion of the regular season conference competition and the postseason tournament.
The governance of the Western Wrestling Conference remains primarily with the member institutions. Scheduling of contests, assignment of officials and certain media relations functions remain with member institutions.
With league members spread out over six states and two time zones, schools are required to compete against five league schools in dual action to be eligible for the regular season conference championship. However schools are encouraged to schedule all conference members.
A major benefit of having a league that is geographically spread out so far is the added exposure - both in terms of media and recruiting - in new destinations. Theconference affiliation also generates much interest within the seven schools’ substantial alumni base, which numbers nearly 800,000 combined.
North Dakota State, Northern Colorado and South Dakota State have all made the move fromDivision II to Division I since joining the WWC. UVU moved directly from Junior College (NJCAA) Athletics to NCAA Division I and completed its reclassification before the 2009-10 season.
-WWC-
James Warnick Director of Media Relations Western Wrestling Conference Four Wyoming Seniors Honored by Wrestling USA Magazine in Pre-SeasonBy John Bear01 October, 2011
Wrestling USA has released their senior rankings for this pre-season and four Wyoming preps made the cut. They are:
at 106lbs Preston Blankenship of Lovell ranked 28th in the nation at 120lbs Cody Vichi of Rock Springs receives Special Mention at 152lbs Tanner Olson of Campbell County receives Special Mention at 170lbs Burke Burgess of Campbell County receives Special Mention
Congratulations to these outstanding senior wrestlers for representing our state so well. |
