Libby defeats Glacier in dual

The Libby wrestling team dominated a depleted Glacier squad, winning a dual 46-30 at Glacier High School on Tuesday.

The Greenchain, ranked No. 8 in Class A, pinned Glacier four times, winning at every weight between 112 and 135 pounds to turn a tie match into a decisive 39-18 lead. Libby went on to win two of the last three matches to seal the victory.

“We went on a pretty good run there,” Libby coach Kelly Morford said.

“We knew Glacier wasn’t at full force tonight. Regardless of that I was happy with the way we approached tonight.”

Glacier started the dual off strong as senior Dawson Day powered through his 171-pound contest, pinning Libby’s Patrick Valentine in 1 minute, 47 seconds.

But, the tide started to turn in the next match as Libby’s Austin Bailey shook off an early takedown to pin Jake Ferkin in 1:32. Greenchain teammate Zach Dolezal followed that match with a pin at 215 pounds, finishing Glacier’s AJ Robinson in 2:36.

After a heavyweight pin by Glacier’s Zach Dennehy and four straight forfeits, Libby’s Zach Crace spread his team’s lead to 30-18 with a dominant victory over Ryder Day at 125 pounds, scoring eight points in the first period before finishing the match with a pin at 2:59.

Skylar Higareda needed just 42 seconds to get a pin at 135 pounds and Ricky Roach used a strong third period to earn a 16-3 major decision victory at 145 to clinch the victory for the Greenchain.

In the best match of the night, Libby’s Garret Chapel pulled out a spetacular decision over Alek Mitchell. With Chapel leading 1-0 entering the third period, Mitchell took the lead on a reversal with 40 seconds left in the match. However, Chapel was able to get a reversal of his own with just 20 seconds on the clock, ending with a 5-2 victory to earn Libby’s final points of the night.

Glacier’s Jackson Barber finished the dual with a pin of Josh Bowers in 2:56.

“In the past, when we’ve wrestled AA schools, we’ve been a little intimidated,” Morford said.

“I was happy that our guys were ready to wrestle tonight. We did a good job of wrestling our style.”

Glacier coach Mark Fischer wasn’t ready to blame his team’s loss on its lack of healthy bodies.

“No excuses, we had what we had,” Fischer said.

“(Libby) sent out a team that was ready to wrestle, I felt we weren’t ready to wrestle tonight.”

The Wolfpack won just five matches in the dual, including two by forfeit.

“That Libby team, they’re well coached,” Fischer said. “You could tell they were doing what their coaches were asking. They were coming out being aggressive. They were taking advantage of every mistake that we made. They capitalized on us.”

Glacier has a day to rest before a crosstown dual against Flathead Thursday.

“I think we have a long ways to go attitude-wise. In the history of our high school we’ve had a lot of teams with grit,” Fischer said. “We’ve got to find that. I’m just not seeing it right now. It’ll come. I have faith that it’ll come. We’ve just got to get these guys rolling.”

Libby hosts a triangular against Whitefish and Columbia Falls Thursday.

“We talked about trying to end this week on a high note going into the break on some momentum,” Morford said. “This is the perfect way to start that.”

98 - open. 105 - Austin Cheney, G, win by forfeit. 112 - Dylan Roby, L, win by forfeit. 119 - Ian Edwards-Myslicki, L, win by forfeit. 125 - Zack Crace, L, p. Ryder Day, 2:59. 130 - Michael Ayala, L, dec. Quinn Barber, 5-2. 135 - Skylar Higareda, L, p. Donovan Macura, :42. 140 - Arik Lybeck, G, win by forfeit. 145 - Ricky Roach, L, maj. dec. Jake Barstow, 16-3. 152 - Garret Chapel, L, dec. Alek Mitchell, 5-2. 160 - Jackson Barber, G, p. Josh Bowers, 2:56. 171 - Dawson Day, G, p. Patrick Valentine, 1:47. 189 - Austin Bailey, L, p. Jake Ferkin, 1:32. 215 - Zach Dolezal, L, p. AJ Robinson, 2:36. HWT - Zach Dennehy, G, p. Josh McGough, :58.