Opening its wrestling season at the Westminster Tournament last Friday and Saturday, Pacific had three medalists and placed eighth in the final team standings.
The top three wrestlers in each weight class earned medals.
Timberland claimed the team title with 306.5 points. Washington was second with 291.5 points followed by Ste. Genevieve (233), Moberly (228.5), Odessa (174.5), Westminster (162), St. Charles West (146), Pacific (138.5), Rockwood Summit (136.5), Owensville (101.5), Windsor (78) and MICDS (57.5).
The Indians competed in 11 weight classes and had five top-four finishes.
“We’re a little beat up. We had three varsity wrestlers out with injuries,” said Pacific Head Coach Rob Schimsa. “We’ll get better as the season moves along. We had some bright spots. Overall, I’m happy with how we wrestled.”
Pacific’s Josh Franek and Austin Repp both reached the championship match of their respective weight classes, settling for second place.
Franek, a freshman, had a 6-1 record at 106 pounds. He lost to Odessa’s Dakota Miller in the finals, 7-1.
“Josh dominated everybody until he got to the finals, where he lost to a national level type of wrestler from Odessa,” Schimsa said. “Josh is a good wrestler. He’s a little undersized, but he’s talented. There are good things ahead for him.”
Repp (170), a junior, had a 7-1 record. He lost to St. Charles West’s Casey Bartee in the finals, 5-2.
“The score was tied 2-2 going into the third period. It was a good, exciting match,” Schimsa said. “The highlight for Austin was he beat a kid who took fourth place in Class 4 at 152 in the semifinals, 9-2.”
Jeff Miller placed third at 138 pounds with a 7-1 record. He won a 16-8 major decision over Moberly’s Dominick Guthrie in the third-place contest.
“Jeff lost in overtime in the semifinals to a Timberland kid,” Schimsa said. “He dominated his third-place match.”
Joe Rind and Dalton Voyles both registered fourth-place finishes.
Rind reached the third-place match at 120 pounds, losing to Windsor’s Dirk Tucker, 11-4. He was 6-2 in the tournament.
“Joe had a solid tournament,” Schimsa said. “He beat a state qualifier from St. Charles West.”
Voyles also wrestled for third place at 160 pounds, losing to Windsor’s Tyler Warren. He was 4-4 in the tournament.
“Dalton was on the tougher side of the bracket. He lost in overtime to (Caleb) Summers of Washington in the semifinals,” Schimsa said. “Dalton is going to have a good season.”
Joon Kim placed eighth at 145 pounds.
Also wrestling for Pacific were Austin Gibson (113), Matthew Schimsa (126), Ryan Lause (132), Curtis Paglusch (152) and Andrew Cooper (182).
“It was a learning experience for those guys,” Schimsa said.
The Indians were open at 195, 220 and 285.
