Audubon crowns six champs to help secure first place as a team at host tournament
By Drew Herron - AJ Sports Editor / Feb. 5, 2014
AUDUBON – It’s been a while since Audubon has won its annual Wheeler Invitational tournament, but this year’s group of grapplers is getting used to doing the remarkable.
The Wheelers crowned six individual champions and used a monster final round to surpass Logan-Magnolia (last year’s champs) and win first place (195.5 to 182.5) as a team Saturday at the 2014 Audubon Invite.
Audubon had champions at 106, 113, 126, 132, 138 and 220 pounds to turn in perhaps its best collective performance to date.
“The kids have been wrestling hard all year, and not quitting,” coach Blane Kerkhoff said afterwards. “It showed up today with the bonus points and all the falls. I’m really proud of the effort and how our guys are competing right now. We’re looking forward to a good week of practice to finish this season out.”
The Wheeler Invite offered a dress rehearsal for the Class 1A Sectional Tournament this Saturday (Feb. 8), back at AHS with basically the same teams, plus Oakland Riverside.
The seven-team (Audubon, AHST, East Mills, Exira-EHK, Riverside, Treynor and Woodbine) section will feature ranked individuals from nine weight classes, as everyone involved tries to pick up the necessary wins to advance on towards the next week’s District Tournament in Underwood.
Audubon’s performance on its home mats ought to give the team a charge of confidence at this most crucial point of the season.
Last Thursday, the Wheelers picked up three team dual victories after a quad meet at AHS with Logan-Magnolia, West Monona, and Riverside.
Audubon swept through the night that climaxed with a 36-31 victory over Lo-Ma during the second dual of the evening.
Outperforming Logan-Magnolia on back-to-back competitions is an encouraging sign for a Wheelers squad that looks to be ready to peak.
“Logan-Magnolia always has a strong team, and the past few years we’ve had a strong team too,” coach Kerkhoff says. “They’ve won this tournament the past three, four, five, six or ten years. I’m not sure, but it’s been a long while since we’ve won this.”
“Where it counts is at the end of the year, and that’s where we are at now.”
By in large, the team performed on par with expectations, though victories at 106 (Collin Subbert) and 132 (Jake Mulford) might have proved particularly exciting.
Subbert took a step forward at 106 with a major decision and a first-period pin to take first place at the Wheeler Invite and pick up some speed heading into the sectional.
“He’s been battling a little bit of a slump, or just hasn’t really been on,” coach Kerkhoff says of Subbert. “Today, I think he got that taken care of. He looked impressive in all of his matches.”
Mulford finished off his championship at 132 match in thrilling fashion. In his finals match against Lo-Ma’s Remington Meeker, a 0-0 tie after two periods gave way to a 2-2 tie in the closing seconds of the third before Mulford scored a late takedown and take the match via 4-2 decision.
“He’s such a powerful, compact wrestler with a lot of speed and quickness,” coach Kerkhoff says. “And Jake got after it. He got his shot, and he finished it.”
The team now shifts gears into permanent tournament mode, where wins move you forward, and losses eliminate you.
It’s that time of year, and everyone understands the stakes.
“I tell the kids, anything can happen. So go make something happen,” coach Kerkhoff says. “Every individual has a shot at making it to the State Tournament, and it all starts next Saturday.”
“We always say every year goes by fast, and here we are already in February. The season, we break up in three parts, and we’re starting the final part of our season now with the state tournament series.”
No comments:
Post a Comment