Competing at the Tiger Duals in Grand Junction on Dec. 13, the Montezuma-Cortez High School wrestling team defeated Moffat County, Coal Ridge and Eagle Valley. The Panthers lost to Glenwood Springs and Thunderridge.
Leading the way for M-CHS was 182-pound senior Seager Oliver, who won all five of his matches. Four of the returning state champion’s victories came by pin. Oliver’s decision victory came over Eagle Valley’s Devin Ward, who placed fifth at the state tournament last season.
“Seager wrestled tough,” said M-CHS head coach Shad Bellmire. “When he wrestled (Ward), he was physically dominant. (Ward) was tough, though. It was good for Seager to get pushed a little bit.”
Also finishing the duals with an unblemished were 106-pound freshman Colton Reynolds (4-0) and 132-pound senior Levi Gross (3-0). Gross was forced to withdraw after his third match because of sickness.
“Levi wrestled well, and Colton is coming out strong,” said Bellmire. “We bumped him up to 113 pounds for one match, and he got a win there. He can definitely medal (at state).”
Other Panthers wrestlers competing included 152-pound senior Justice Ramos (4-1), 138-pound sophomore Josh Ramos (4-1), heavyweight Victor Perez (4-1), 195-pound senior Elijah Lansing (2-2), 120-pound junior Jared Gray (1-4) and 126-pound Timmy Pearce (1-4).
Bellmire said that all eight of the M-CHS’s wrestlers wrestled well, but emphasized that the Panthers can still improve.
“We have a few guys coming off of injuries, and we can still get into better shape,” said Bellmire. “It’s been nice to win some duals though, especially since we’re not able to fill all of the weights.”
Next up for M-CHS will be the Warrior Classic, which will take place in Grand Junction, Dec. 19-20. Regarded as one of the toughest tournaments on the Western Slope, the Warrior will no doubt challenge the Panthers.
“(The Warrior) will be kind of like a regional tournament,” said Bellmire. “It will be tough. We haven’t had anybody win (first place) at the Warrior since Casey Lynn (in 2010). Hopefully this year we can bring home some medals.”
