Three St. Clair wrestlers captured individual titles and a total of six advanced to state competition during the Class 2 District 1 Tournament last Friday and Saturday at Ste. Genevieve High School.
The Bulldogs finished third in the final team standings.
Ste. Genevieve won the district title with 247 points. Dexter finished second with 143.5 points. St. Clair was third with 130.5 points.
Sullivan placed fourth with 117.5 points followed by Park Hills Central (106), Sumner (96), Affton (83), Cape Notre Dame (78), Vashon (40), Lutheran South (34), Miller Career (31), Roosevelt (22), Soldan (21), Borgia (4) and Potosi (0).
The top four finishers in each weight class qualified for the state tournament Thursday through Saturday at Mizzou Arena in Columbia
“We wrestled hard all day, not only the six who made it through, but everyone,” said St. Clair Head Coach Brent Yule. “We preach to these kids on a daily basis to give great efforts and to keep wrestling. If they do that, good things happen.”
Capturing individual titles for the Bulldogs were Dustin Conner, Skyler Hutchison and Matt Gordon.
Also qualifying for state were Chris Algiere, Ethan Koenig and Chase Cohen.
Conner (170) went 4-0 in the tournament, improving to 26-6 on the season. He pinned Sullivan’s Alexander Crooks in the finals.
Conner meets Fulton’s Zach Benner (29-6) in the first round of state.
Hutchison (182) had a 3-0 record, improving to 27-4 on the season. He pinned Dexter’s Logan Quertermous in the finals.
Hutchison takes on St. Charles West’s Ryan Meyer (35-16) in the state opener.
“Dustin, Skyler, and Matt all wrestled well the entire weekend,” Yule said. “Dustin and Skyler showed a lot of heart at the end of their matches by getting a pin in a close match.”
Gordon (195) posted a 3-0 record, improving to 36-5 on the season. He pinned Sumner’s Carvaughn Boyd in the finals.
Gordon wrestles Excelsior Springs’ Ryan Meyer (29-18) at the state meet.
“Matt was dominant all day. He has been very tough all year,” Yule said. “He has a great opportunity this weekend to be a state place winner. He deserves the position he put himself in.”
Algiere (120) finished third with a 3-1 record, improving to 22-21 overall. He won an 8-3 decision over Park Hills Central’s Jonathon Goheen in the third-place match.
Algiere opens state against Osage’s Chris Johnson (32-7).
Koenig (113) registered a 1-2 record to place fourth, moving to 18-17 overall. He lost to Ste. Genevieve’s Andrew DeRousse in the third-place contest.
Koenig faces Cameron’s Trevor Burkhart (43-1) at the state meet.
Cohen (126) had a 2-2 record, improving to 18-22 overall. He lost a 12-3 major decision to Dexter’s Storm Massey in the third-place match.
Cohen takes on Mexico’s Jordan Jones (41-6) at state.
St. Clair wrestlers who saw their seasons come to an end were:
• Kris Heembrock (106) 1-2 to finish 25-16;
• Austin Koenig (132) 2-2 to end 20-22;
• Hayden Norton (152) 1-2 to finish 11-23; and
• Colton Huddleston (285) 1-2 to go 15-14.
St. Clair was open at 138, 145, 160 and 220.
“It really came together for us,” Yule said. “I was very proud of the way we wrestled all weekend and hope to be able to bring that mentality and effort this weekend to Columbia.”
Sullivan Qualifiers
Sullivan had seven state qualifiers from the meet.
Eagles advancing to state were William Corson (second at 160), Alexander Crooks (second at 170), Luke Pryor (second at 220), Austin Mertz (third at 138), Clayton Mayer (third at 152), Danton Creek (third at 182) and Dalton Turner (fourth at 195).
At the state meet, Corson (29-19) wrestles Owensville’s Cody Dolles (34-14), Crooks (20-6) meets Kirksville’s Kylan Easley (29-7), Pryor (31-9) takes on Clinton’s Logan Nold (45-5), Mertz (41-11) tangles Logan-Rogersville’s Brian Dickey (31-14), Mayer (37-17) wrestles Odessa’s Evan Young (21-1), Creek (33-13) takes on Mexico’s Payton Turner (33-12) and Turner (35-9) meets Smithville’s Jacob Bohlken (39-10).
