Wrestling Places 2nd at Don Johnson Invitational
Dan Ward: One of the guys yelling things for the corner of the mat

Oh, Saturday night’s alright for fighting
Get a little action in

One of the interesting things about wrestling are Saturday Tournaments. As a wrestler in High School, Friday Nights meant no eating on a date because I had to make weight Saturday Morning (yeah, I’m Onsite Weigh-Ins old) and Saturday’s meant “we can make plans” but I might be in a gym at 6:00. Believe it or not, sitting in a gym all day with a couple hundred sweaty wrestlers is not anybody’s definition of romance. Saturday Tournaments are really where you get your mat time. On a weekday, at the most you are going to wrestle twice. Saturday’s are where you are going to wrestle maybe 5 matches. Also when you see a wrestler with a Varsity Jacket with 12 lbs of metal sewn to it, they earned that on Saturdays. Saturdays are also where wrestlers develop the ability to eat any food cold. But the other thing, and maybe the most important thing about Saturday Tournaments is the family that it creates. I can’t really speak to other sports, but when you spend all Saturday in a gym with like minded people you tend to bond and given that you are likely to see the same people a few times a year, you develop a family. The wrestlers become every parent’s “kids” ; they cheer when they succeed and ache when they are defeated. There is no sound more deafening than the roar of an entire team’s worth of parents yelling “THREE” when a wrestler secures a takedown in the final seconds of a close match. Coaches become friends with other coaches, the officials and the other kids. I look forward, every season, seeing people I haven’t seen in a year and catching up with them. It’s a bond that only can be forged by sitting in a cold gym, yelling “THREE” or “HALF” or “HE’S PINNED” while eating a cold breakfast burrito or cold spaghetti.

This Friday the St. Johns JV traveled back to Waverly to participate in the Waverly Boys and Girls Jamboree. Despite some technical glitches that delayed wrestling for a few boys, they were very successful. They started out a little slow, winning 12 of 22 in the first round and finished 43-24.
Going undefeated on the night were Bennett Ward, Ayden Marcheck, Jesse Mason and Greyson Osborne. Bennett, Ayden and Greyson pinned all three of their opponents.

“There was a lot of improvement in the 2nd year guys that was fun to watch. The progress our 1st year guys have made in the last 4 weeks is absolutely amazing,” said Coach Pettigrew.

The Varsity Boys and Girls were in action on Saturday at the Don Johnson Invitational at Don Johnson Fieldhouse in Lansing. They competed against 16 other teams and fell just a bit short of defending their championship, taking runner-up to Springport by 6 points 198 to 192.
At 120 lbs Jameson Halsey placed 5th and scored 15 team points.
At 126 lbs Gabe Mares did not place
At 132 lbs Tristan Demsmore place 4th and scored 16.5 team points.
At 138 lbs Tyler Riedel placed 2nd, bringing home the silver medal and scoring 24 team points.
At 144 lbs Xaiver Benjamin did not place but scored 4 team points.
At 150 lbs Hayden Billings did not place but scored 2.5 team points.
At 157 lbs Fletcher Whitford placed 5th and scored 16 team points
At 165 lbs Brady Heibeck placed 3rd, bringing home the bronze medal and scored 18 team points.
At 175 lbs Will Wharton did not place but scored 4 team points
At 190 lbs Brody Abendroth is our first Tournament Champion bringing home a gold medal scoring 28 team points. Brody pinned all three of his opponents.
At 215 lbs Abram Matice Placed 2nd.
At 215 lbs Gavin Moreno is our 2nd Tournament Champion bringing home a gold medal scoring 26.5 team points.
At 285 lbs Jackson Armstrong did not place but scored 7 team points.

In the Girls Division:
At 115 lbsHaley Prohaska Placed 2nd bringing home a silver medal.
At 130 lbs Lori Morris Placed 4th
At 130 lbs Olivia Pettigrew placed 2nd and brought home a silver medal.

Coach Pettigrew summed up the day by saying, “This was a team effort, and despite being down 2 weight classes we brought home a runner up trophy, losing by only 6 points to a very talented Springport team who had 3 Champions and 4 Runner-ups. I’m very proud of this group of kids but we have more to do. We need to stay hungry, trust the process and work to be our best everyday.”

The Varsity is back in action this week taking on Division 3 #7 Lakewood and #10 Williamston at Sexton High School on Wednesday. The entire team is heading to Fowlerville on Saturday for a HUGE tournament.

Click photo for Gallery by Glenn Armstrong