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Colorado High School Boys “Wrestler of the Week” – Week Two

Week two of the 2021 – 2022 wrestling season for the Colorado high school have been put to bed with duals / tri / quad meet and tournaments all are in the record books. The start of the high school season began with a much-needed semi-normal wrestling program throughout the state. Colorado is still dealing with mask requirements for spectators, coaches and wrestlers.

InsideCoWrestling and Cliff Keen Athletic are proud to sponsor this weekly award for the season. Cliff Keen’s commitment to wrestling nation-wide has gone back over 60 years and their support as the sponsor of Colorado High School Boys “Wrestler of the Week “is greatly appreciated. Please check out their website for all your wrestling needs at www.cliffkeen.com

This week, seven nominees were sent to our committee members and voted upon by their record / results for the week with consideration for the competition that they have wrestled. The task to narrow it down to one choice is not an easy decision to make and it is one that is not taken lightly by the committee members.

Rivalry at its best in College Wrestling in Colorado

versus

By Tom Blair, ICW

Looking back on this past week dual meet of D2 colleges in Colorado one might just pass up a dual that took place on Dec 9th as Colorado Mesa men’s team wrestled cross state rival and #19 ranked nationally Western State (Western Colorado University) at their home arena. This dual was the 8th meeting between father and son head coaches in the programs. Colorado Mesa head coach Chuck Pipher earn his second dual meet win against his son Charlie Pipher, who holds a 6 – 2 lead in the family rivalry.

The dual would see each team have seven Colorado high school grads on their lineup for the Thursday night even. With six matches having head-to-head Colorado wrestlers doing battle to see who the king of the mat for the evening might be. Head-to-head matches were at 125, 133, 141,149, 174, and 184 pounds. The matches not only brought excitement to the crowd but was also fun to see an all-star studded lineup from both universities.

The night began with a revenge match of sorts. Colorado Mesa's Dawson Collins earned a 7-5 win over Mountaineer Cody Fatzinger to open the dual.

Colorado results at Walsh Jesuit Ironman

by Tom Blair, ICW

Six Colorado teams would travel to Ohio for the 27th Walsh Jesuit Ironman on Dec 10th & 11th. With 113 high school teams represented from 23 states in the one of the top three toughest tournaments in the nation.

Broomfield had two entries into this tough tournament - Ryan Vigil at 144 went 3 – 2 and Morgen Watt at 215 went 0 – 2.

With two wrestlers Monarch would not make it pass the cons round 4 – Emilio Trujillo-Deen at 132 lbs went 2 – 2 and at 138 lbs Dillion Roman would go 1 – 2.

Lone individual wrestler from Mesa Ridge at 285 lbs Matthew Moore (#7 seed) earned 3rd place with a 4 - 1 record, beating the # 2 and #5 seed in the weight class.

Pueblo East sent two wrestlers to Ohio to wrestle and test their skills, Weston Dalton earned a 8th place finish with a 4 – 2 record and Sebastian Freeman at 150 lbs went 3 – 2.

Ponderosa had four wrestlers at the tournament, 120 lbs Brandon Cannon earned a 5th place with a 5 – 2 record, at 138 lbs Jacob Bostlleman going 2 – 2, at 144 lbs Ty Eise also went 2 – 2 and Murphy Menke at 157 lbs earned Ponderosa second placer of the tournament with a 4th place finish.

The 4th team from Colorado was Pomona with 10 wrestlers looking for a top 8 finish at the Walsh Ironman tournament. Top seed at 150 lbs Daniel Cardenas would prove that he is the best wrestler at that weight with 5 wins and the 1st place medal to go with it. The other Pomona wrestlers wrestled their hearts out but could not crack the the top 8 spots. The team results were 113 lbs Geno Cardenas 0 -2, 120 lbs Mark Cardenas 0 – 2, 126 lbs Jeramiah Steele 2 – 2, 132 lbs Jakob Romero 3 – 2, 138 lbs Elijah Olguin 1 – 2, 144 lbs Josiah Parson 2 – 2, 157 lbs Dante Hutchings 1 – 2, 154 lbs Roman Cruz 1 – 2, and 285 lbs Jose Rosales 1 – 2.

Week One Ranking Colorado High School Wrestling - 5A & 4A

ON THE MAT RANKINGS

2021-2022 Week 1 - BOYS

December 9, 2021

Tim Yount

1310 Meadowlake Way

Monument, CO 80132

Cell: 719-351-2985 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Any reproduction of rankings MUST be approved by Tim Yount. No media agency can print beyond three deep per weight and mention of attribution must be made to Tim Yount On the Mat with my email address. Rankings cannot be sent to others w/o approval. Please, please honor this as it is a business where anything I can bring in support a massive cost line and sweat equity. I have kept my cost down for 28 years so that they do remain affordable for most fans of the sport. Thanks much for honoring this request.

Class 5A Team Ranking - 1-Pomona, 2-Ponderosa, 3-Monarch, 4-Chaparral, 5-Adams City, 6-Poudre, 7 -Brighton, 8-Pine Creek, 9-Grandview, 10-Regis

Class 4A Team Ranking - 1-Pueblo County, 2-Cheyenne Mountain, 3-Falcon,4-Pueblo East, 5-Roosevelt, 6-Loveland, 7-Greeley Central, 8-Mesa Ridge, 9-Erie, 10-Windsor

Class 4A - Individual Ranking

106lbs

1. Manual (Pocky) Amaro, Pueblo East

2. Ryder Christenson, Loveland

3. James Pantoja, Windsor

4. Joey Meza, Falcon

113lbs

1. Zion Mares, Pueblo County

2. LJ Herburger, Pueblo East

3. AJ Hague, Riverdale Ridge

4. Calvin Mendez, Skyline

Zach Eaton, Windsor

120lbs

1. Kobi Johnson, Loveland

2. Jackzen Rairdon, Thompson Valley

3. Frankie Gallegos, Mesa Ridge

4. Mikey Salazar, Palisade

Week One Ranking Colorado High School Wrestling - 3A & 2A

ON THE MAT RANKINGS

2021-2022 Week 1 - BOYS

December 9, 2021

Tim Yount

1310 Meadowlake Way

Monument, CO 80132

Cell: 719-351-2985 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Class 3A - Team Ranking - 1-Eaton,2-Moffat County, 3-Mullen, 4-Platte Valley, 5-Valley, 6-Bennett, 7-Jefferson, 8-Severance, 9-Weld Central, 10-Alamosa

Class 2A - Team Ranking - 1-Buena Vista, 2-Centauri, 3-Cedaredge, 4-Wray, 5-Mancos, 6-Highland, 7-Meeker, 9-Crowley County, 8-Rocky Ford, 10-Wiggins

Class 2A - Individual Ranking

106lbs

1. Tel Geyer, Cedaredge

2. Traven Sharon, Fowler

3. Dominic Gauna, Rocky Ford

4. Jordan Duran, Center

113lbs

1. Riley Valdez, Centauri

2. Waitley Sharon, Fowler

3. Miguel Franco, Dolores Huerta

4. Isaiah Martinez, Mancos

Ranked teams take on the battle in the first dual of the wrestling season.

Greeley Central vs Thompson Valley

By Tom Blair, ICW Staff

The Colorado high school wrestling season got into full swing with duals across the state. In northern Colorado area #7 rank team Greeley Central visited #11 ranked Thompson Valley for a earlier season showdown. The fans filled the bleachers not only to watch a great dual but also to honor Dan “DJ” Juergensen and his family, it has been 47 straight years that the family name on been connected to Thompson Valley high school wrestling.

The dual would start at 160 lbs Zander Alirez (GC) winning with a upper body throw/lateral throw in neutral to take Justin McLaughlin to the mat and earn the pin. Greeley Central wrestlers Armstrong Zaw (170 lbs) and Yahr Chairez-Salazar (182 lbs) would follow that up with to decision wins to take a 13 – 0 team point advantage.

Thompson Valley would win the next two matches – a pin at 195 lbs by Ronan Bitner and a forfeit win at 220 lbs by Taylor Graff. The next three matches all belonged to Greeley Central with pins at 285, 106 and 113 pounds. The #2 ranked wrestler in 4A Jackzen Rairdon (TV) would earn a first period pin at 120 lbs to stop the runaway train of Greeley Central for just a moment.

Team Capsules – 2021-2022 Competition Season 3A & 2A

The team ranking is presented by Tim Yount

One of the cornerstones of the rankings is team success at each of the divisional levels. How we do this mirrors what the team totals are at State (and every other 16 man/woman bracket for that matter) so that the predictions represent what we anticipate will happen at the final tournament of the high school season. In short, each place carries points and form 2016 through 2020, I have averaged what each weight receives for points BY DIVISION for each of the placewinners on a bracket since that is much different over time (5A 126 scores lower than 2A 126) because of bonus that we see more often at the 2A level. We will touch more on this during the season.

Class 3A - 1-Eaton, 2-Moffat County, 3-Mullen, 4-Severance, 5-Platte Valley, 6-Valley, 7-Bennett, 8-Jefferson, 9-Weld Central, 10-Alamosa, 11-Skyview 12-Brush 13-Gunnison 14-Classical Academy

1-Eaton. I don’t bet but I do think about odds a lot…and the fact is, the team to beat this year in Class 3A will be very small odds on favorite to win – Eaton. This is another team that is just covered with incredible athletes AND are coming off a FB season that saw them win a state title. I love their depth – from top to bottom – and with that there will be no resting when you have to go up against this squad in a dual. Points will also abound in tourneys. I see several high state placers – Alex Castaneda, Ryan Dirksen, Morgan Tribbett, Ryder True, and a big push of points from six other kids. If they close with eight placers, they win. If seven, it will be another tight team race in Class 3A. Coach Mustari knows how to transition kids from Football to wrestling in the few months that they have.

Team Capsules – 2021-2022 Competition Season 5A & 4A

On the Mat - Preseason Team ranking presented by Tim Yoiunt

Class 5A - 1-Pomona, 2-Ponderosa, 3-Monarch, 4-Chaparral, 5-Adams City, 6-Poudre, 7-Brighton, 8-Pine Creek, 9-Grandview, 10-Regis

1-Pomona. For the fifth year in a row, Pomona will start at the top of the rankings in big class. This team is loaded with some great kids as they see nine state placers return. They will be led by Daniel Cardenas, the 152 pounder ranked number one in the U.S. by some (Stanford commit) who will be pushing for his fourth state title this season. Others include state champions Elijah Olguin and Jakob Romero and two time state placers Jeremiah Steele, Jacob Judd, Josiah Parsons and Roman Cruz. I have six kids ranked first…and that is a record. This team will receive their first test right out of the chute when they travel to the Ironman in OH in week two.

2-Ponderosa. Ponderosa is probably the only team with the depth across all 14 weights to make a run at Pomona. They will be led by Brandon Cannon (google his come back story), a top five ranked kid in the U.S. at 120, who won the prestigious Preseason Nationals a few weeks ago. He will be joined by a throng of stars including state runners up in Murphy Menke (160) up from 132 and Jacob Bostleman, state runner-up from last season. World Cadet Team member Otto Black’s points will be critical as well and will compete at 113 pounds. They will also return great points from state placers and qualifiers from 2021. Newcomers will provide valuable points as they seek to topple Pomona from that top perch. New head coach Jarion Beets should be excited by how this young team will do this season.

2021-2022 On The Mat Pre-Season Rankings 2A & 3A

ON THE MAT RANKINGS

2021-2022 Pre-season Rankings - BOYS

November 29, 2021

Tim Yount

1310 Meadowlake Way

Monument, CO 80132

Cell: 719-351-2985 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Any reproduction of rankings MUST be approved by Tim Yount.

Class 2A

106lbs

1. Dillon Eichner, Mancos (10-5, Fr, 106, 4th) So

2. Kaiden Schelling, Fleming/Sedgwick County (17-5, 3rd in Regs, Fr, 106) So

3. Matthew Salazar, Centauri (25-3 in Jr Hi), Fr

4. Travin Sharon, Fowler (1A – Fr/So State – 2021-98) Fr

113lbs

1. Caleb Camp, Buena Vista (1A MS State 2019) (22-0, Fr, 106, 1st) So

2. Riley Valdez, Centauri (3rd Cosmic Clash-113 – 2021) (16-7, Fr, 106, 2nd) So

3. Waitley Sharon, Fowler (15-7, Fr, 106, 6th) So

4. Miguel Franco, Dolores Huerta (Transfer from Rocky Ford) (1A MS State – 2021 – 106) (5-2, lost in wrestleback,106, Fr) So, 106;

2021-2022 On The Mat Pre-Season Rankings 4A & 5A

ON THE MAT RANKINGS

2021-2022 Pre-season Rankings - BOYS

November 29, 2021

Tim Yount

1310 Meadowlake Way

Monument, CO 80132

Cell: 719-351-2985 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Any reproduction of rankings MUST be approved by Tim Yount. No media agency can print beyond three deep per weight and mention of attribution must be made to Tim Yount On the Mat with my email address. Rankings cannot be sent to others w/o approval. Please, please honor this as it is a business where anything I can bring in support a massive cost line from both pure costs and sweat equity. I have kept my cost down for 28 years so that they do remain affordable for most fans of the sport. Thanks much for honoring this request.

Note:

There are some weights where we have listed two kids per school. Once those schools have official wrestle offs, we will make those adjustments. Sometimes I placed kids side by side in that situation. Other times I split them because I have data to support those movements.

KEY:

1A = one away from a medal at state; Fr = Freshman; So = Sophomore; Jr = Junior; Sr = Senior; MS = Middle School State; Regs = Regionals; DNQ = Did Not Qualify; DNC = Did Not compete in Regionals Qual = Qualified for State; Nats = Nationals

• Transfers are noted; If a transfer moved to a school a few years ago, I still retain that detail for them in the description.

• All of this detail is based on coach submissions AND when absent, where I believe they will compete based on any additional level of detail I could find.

• Kids who are injured are still mentioned only if the plan is for them to return before end of season. They are NOT listed if they are not. These kids positions are also noted for this pre season team rankings but will be excluded in future submissions.

• In some situations, schools coop –for example Baca County, Sedgwick County/Fleming, County Line. But, those took place several years ago and are now just part of what we know for the state’s schools.

• My top team totals are still based on a 16-man State tournament bracket at state. I note how I do this in the team overview. I will make these team adjustments in the next few weeks.

• If you see name misspellings, please let me know. If you see stats that need to be updated, please let me know that as well. I will add that detail to my data base.

• There are a few weights where I didn’t go very deep. I would rather not rank kids who I don’t feel have proven to be recognized in rankings like this. We will add kids as they prove themselves through the course of the season.

Class 4A

106lbs

1. Zion Mares, Pueblo County (28-16, Fr, 106, 1A) (8th Preseason nats – 113 – 2021)(20-2, So, 106, 2nd) Jr, 106;

2. Manual (Pocky) Amaro, Pueblo East (2 time city champ.) (4th Fr/So State – 106, 2021) Fr, 106;

3. James Pantoja, Windsor (15-4, 4th in Regs, Fr, 106) So, 106;

4. Ryder Christenson, Loveland (Transfer from NY) 106;