WRESTLING: Flathead throttles Glacier in 9th annual crosstown showdown
<p>Flathead's Payton Hume uses a claw hold as he attempts to pin Glacier's Austin Cheney during the 145-bout at the crosstown dual at Flathead on Thursday. Hume pinned Cheney in the third period to help the Braves win 62-6. (Aaric Bryan/Daily Inter Lake)</p>
<p>Flathead's Trae Vasquez puts Glacier's Reuger Baier in a head and arm hold to pin him in the first period during the 132-bout at the crosstown dual at Flathead on Thursday. (Aaric Bryan/Daily Inter Lake)</p>
Trae Vasquez wasn’t going to hide the truth.
That final score felt good.
Vasquez helped pilot the Flathead steamroller over Glacier, 62-6, on Thursday night in front of an enthusiastic crowd at the Braves’ home gym in the ninth edition of crosstown wrestling.
“I definitely feel like score matters, especially when it’s crosstown,” Vasquez said with a smile.
“When the crowd’s here, we like to put on a show for our fans.”
And did the Braves ever put on a show. Flathead won seven matches by pin, including three in the first period, and led 12-0 just 23 seconds into the dual.
“(The score) is always nice in a crosstown, to dominate your competition, but that’s true with anybody,” Flathead coach Rich Vasquez said.
“It’s fun for the kids, it’s fun for the crowd to have big wins. For us it’s just a matter of how we compete — how we wrestle — that really matters.”
Trae Vasquez vanquished Reuger Baier at 132 pounds in a lightning-quick 23 seconds in the night’s first contest, setting the stage for the Braves’ forthcoming avalanche.
The defending 113-pound state champion had been wrestling primarily at 120 pounds this year and was penciled in to take on two-time state placer Justin Gibson at 126 pounds. Gibson, however, was scratched late with a hyper-extended right elbow and Flathead swapped in Jaden MacNeill to claim the forfeit at 126.
Both Vasquez and his father/coach were disappointed that the night’s presumptive marquee matchup did not come to fruition.
“(It was) our stud against their stud and we were hoping for a good match,” Rich said. “Trae needs to get some good matches along the way, too. We were hoping for that matchup but it didn’t work out and that’s all right.”
“I wanted to go up (in weight) to meet (Gibson) to get a good match tonight but that’s how it goes sometimes if you’re injured,” Trae said.
Glacier picked up the first of its two decisions at 138 pounds, where Tyler Eierdam defeated Kenyon Fretwell, 8-4. Heavyweight Eli Horn had the other Wolfpack win, outpointing Cody Howe, 8-3.
“Horn has been getting better and better each week,” Glacier coach Ross Dankers said.
“And Tyler Eierdam wrestled a good, hard match. Overall, we’re starting to see some of those things we’ve been pushing and getting to the places where we want to be.”
The only other match to go the distance was at 160 pounds where Flathead’s Tucker Nadeau won a 10-7 decision over Donovan Marura in the evening’s most entertaining battle. Nadeau held a 6-2 lead after two periods but had to survive a late five-point rally from Marura.
Hunter Rush (103), Bryce Shaffer (113), Cody DeVall (120), Payton Hume (145), Nate Somers (152) and Payton Boyce (205) all won by pin. Matt Gash-Gilder won by technical fall at 170 pounds.
Aside from the decisiveness of his team’s win, coach Vasquez was pleased with his wrestlers’ ability to rack up big points on near falls and secure seven pins.
“We got a lot of finishes to the back tonight, which is what we’ve been spending a lot of time working on,” he said.
“We want back points, and we’re going to need those when it comes to the state tournament if we’re going to bring home a trophy.”
For Dankers, his undermanned team’s performance still gave reason for optimism.
“The two things that I had the guys focus on tonight were their attitude and their effort,” he said.
“And I thought, even being a big underdog … our guys hustled and wrestled hard all the way through the end matches.”
Both teams will take part in Class AA duals in Great Falls on Saturday, an event that includes a dual with the three-time defending state champion Bison.
Flathead 62, Glacier 6
103 — Hunter Rush, FLT, pin Caden Willis, 1:07.
113 — Bryce Shaffer, FLT, pin Lane Wilson, 2:39.
120 — Cody DeVall, FLT, pin Kyle Mulcahy, 2:55.
126 — Jaden McNeill, FLT, forfeit.
132 — Trae Vasquez, FLT, pin Reuger Baier, :23.
138 — Tyler Eierdam, GLA, dec. Kenyon Fretwell, 8-4.
145 — Payton Hume, FLT, pin Austin Cheney, 4:49.
152 — Nate Somers, FLT, pin, Brandon Olson, 3:40.
160 — Tucker Nadeau, FLT, dec. Donovan Marura, 10-7.
170 — Matt Gash-Gilder, FLT, pin Ney-J Johns, tech. fall, 4:17.
182 — Logan Wilson, FLT, forfeit.
205 — Payton Boyce, FLT, pin Ashton Thompson, 1:50.
285 — Eli Horn, GLA, dec. Cody Howe, 8-3.