G-R among top teams at Clash at the Crossroads

Girls second, boys third at tournament in Shoshoni

Greybull-Riverside went 5-2 against Rocky Mountain and 5-3 against Lovell, but couldn’t overcome open weights and dropped decisions to both of their north-end rivals at Thursday evening’s Big Horn County Dual Championships.

“We were pretty depleted and didn’t have a couple varsity guys in the lineup,” Coach Mark Sanford said, referring to Camden Schriner and Braxten Link. “If we’d have had Braxten, we’d have won both duals.”

Against Rocky, the final was 38-35, and against Lovell, it was 36-35.  

The Grizz won the title this year, ending G-R’s reign.

“It was a little disappointing,” Sanford said. “We figured the points were going to be what they were going to be, but that we weren’t going to get outwrestled. We weren’t ... but we looked a little sloppy.”

G-R’s fortunes improved Friday and Saturday in Shoshoni. It was the Clash at the Crossroads, and with Moorcroft and Cokeville in the boys field, it doubled as an early show of 2A strength heading into the final stretch of the regular season.

The Wolves and the Panthers did end up battling for the title, with Cokeville tallying 163 points to Moorcroft’s 160. Thermop was further back with 130, followed in fourth by G-R with 126.5, then Lovell with 115 and Rocky Mountain with 100. 

With just one class of girls wrestling in Wyoming, the Clash was not a state tourney preview like it was on the boys’ side.  G-R made a run at the team title, finishing second and just 6 1/2 points behind Shoshoni.  

“If just a couple (outcomes) were turned around, they may have won it,” Sanford said.  “They did a heck of a job.”

Rhianna Gaytan and Ellie Holloway led the way, with each winning their weight class.

Gaytan shook off a Thursday night loss in Cowley, going 4-0 to win at 130 pounds.

Holloway went 5-1 over the two days.  She suffered her only loss in the pools, when she was pinned by Alix Sorensen of Thermopolis, but avenged it the next day in the 155-pound final with a pin of her own. 

Other G-R placers included Melanie Perez, second at 120 pounds, going 2-3; Tawny Bertolini, second at 145, going 2-2; Kaluha Woolsey, third at 110, going 5-2; Adeline Kunkel, fourth at 115, going 3-3, and Kadence Powell, fourth at 140, going 1-6.

Ashlyn Chacon (115) and Emily Foote (135) did not place, but made strides, Sanford said. 

Boys

G-R entered 12 boys and seven of them place.  

Loomis Alexander wasn’t tested at 157 pounds, going 4-0 with three pins and a tech fall to capture G-R’s only boys title. 

Zack Kuntz was one win from matching his teammate, pinning three straight foes before falling by that same fate to Kashton Walker of Cokeville in the final at 190. The end came at the 4:21 mark of the match.  Walker is the top-ranked 190-pounder in 2A.

Bennett Sanford, at 138, and Garrett Wiggins, at 150, were third-place finishers for G-R. 

Sanford went 4-1 over the two days, losing only to the top-ranked kid at his weight, Trey Schneider of Upton, 15-6.  

Wiggins won three of four, highlighted by a come-from-behind win over Cash Vollmer of Tongue River.  He lost his only match to Zavier Clifford of Big Piney in the semis.

Hayden Jensen, at 144, Caiden Sorenson at 165 and Nikoah Sorensen at 175 all went 2-2 and captured fourth place.

Wrestlers who competed but did not place included Carlin Mulley at 120, Riley Wiggins at 138, Levi Cochrane at 144, Corbyn Godfrey at 190 and Phillip Thomas at 285.  Of that group, Cochrane had the most success, going 2-2 with a pair of pins. He earned kudos from Sanford for his 13-9 loss to Trey Breen of Tongue River, who is ranked.

G-R returns to Fremont County later this week for the Lander Invitational.