PITTSBURG — Many things were left undecided in the first day of the Class 4A Regional Wrestling Tournament in Pittsburg, except for one thing — Stephen McDonald will compete in Salina for a state championship. As for the rest of the Mustangs, their fate is yet to be decided. All remain alive. Third round action for the Mustangs created a tougher road to follow for Colborn and Misenhelter. Coach Carson said he was positive about his team’s performance overall for the first day of the tournament. No wrestlers were eliminated .
McDonald, after a bye in the first round, faced off against Columbus High’s Bradley Vanhoose in the 220-pound division. He had control from the beginning with seven points in the first period, with VanHoose off of his feet several times from the get-go.
The second period started the same, but a hard flip from his opponent apparently torqued McDonald’s recently injured shoulder. He called a two-minute injury break midway through the period. But, the break ended and he was ready for action.
“It was just a sting in my shoulder,” McDonald said. “I know there is going to be a sting, but my arm feels good.”
He bounced back after the break to cap a 18-5 decision for the win.
In the semi-final matchup, McDonald hit the mat hard against Chanute’s Gage Clark — and there was no sign of an injured shoulder. He had a near pin the in the beginning of the first period, and several other moves that had Clark on the mat for the majority of the first two periods.
McDonald garnered six total points before he flipped Clark on a powerful move at the beginning of the third. Clark struggled for several seconds before his back hit the floor, and the referee ended the match.
The win secures a state berth for McDonald in the state tournament in Salina next Friday and Saturday. But first, he faces off against Pittsburg’s Gershom Avalos for the regional championship today.
“There were hard matches today,” McDonald said. “I just had to relax and get physical, that’s what coach (Brad Carson) always tells us.”
Carson said he has high expectations for McDonald in the state tournament.
“In my mind, he can be a state champion, he has got the speed and the explosiveness,” Carson said.
McDonald has high expectations for himself as well.
“My goal is to become the first state wrestling champ at Iola High School,” McDonald said.
Andrew Garber and Bryce Misenhelter were the only wrestlers with first-round matches, the rest had byes. Garber opened the tournament with a win over Ty Gatton from Labette County in the 170-pound division. He had a pin in the second round, after a close first against his opponent. Misenhelter had a quick victory over Louisburg’s Brenton Wrigley in the 182-pound division with a pin in the first round with 36 seconds remaining.
Then came the second-round action. Both Misenhelter and Trey Colborn had solid victories over their opponent.
Misenhelter, in the 182-pound match against Chanute’s Josh Smeed, started out from behind. Smeed had two solid reversals on Misenhelter for four points. A slow second round, with one point from Misenhelter, held the score at 4-1. In the third, Misenhelter came back with a burst of energy. He garnered a quick two points from dropping Smeed to the mat. The score became irrelevant when Misenhelter made a surprising pin before the third round came to a finish.
As for Colborn, a slow first round had both he and Fort Scott’s Brendon Blackburn scoreless in the 285-pound division. However, a quick move from Colborn had his opponent’s shoulders on the mat in the blink of an eye, midway through the second period.
Garber suffered a tough loss in the second round, against Field Kindley’s Cory Turner, which pushed Garber into the second round of the consolation bracket.
Cody Conner lost to Anderson County’s Stephen Kaufman in the 145-pound division by pin in the second round. Zeph Larney lost by pin in the first to Frontenac’s Trace Baldwin and Brice Aiello lost by pin 24 seconds into the first round — courtesy of Ethin VanAnne, from Chanute.
Misenhelter had a tough match against Jake Bradley of Prairie View. Bradley had control for the majority of the match, with five points in the first two rounds. But, Misenhelter wasn’t ready to roll over and die.
A quick four points put him back in the match. Another reversal from Bradley in the third put the lead out of reach, with a 7-4 victory.
Colborn faced off against Joe Pomatto from Paola, and things did not go as well. Pomatto quickly gained the upper hand. He had two points off of a flip on Colborn in the first round. He added two more late in a 4-0 win.
“My expectations were to advance everyone to the second round, and we did that,” Carson said. “Our draws worked out perfectly.”
He said both Misenhelter and Colborn are in positions to advance to the state tournament — especially since both lost in close decisions. They only need one win in today’s matches to qualify for a berth.
“Both of those guys have very winnable matches,” he said.
As for those who lost matches in the second round, their work will be cut out for them today in Pittsburg. The double-elimination requires that Aiello, Conner, Larney and Garber must win three consecutive matches to qualify for a state berth.
McDonald earns state berth
