The Trojans will send seven wrestlers to the Class 3A state championships in Reno starting on Friday. The wrestlers are sophomore Isaak Cruz (120 pounds), fourth place seed; sophomore Kyler Adams (126), fifth-place seed; sophomore Dylan Grossell (132), third-place seed; junior David Diaz (145), fifth-place seed; junior Dustin Rily (152), second-place seed; junior Jeremy Albertson (195), third-place seed; junior Cole Walker (195), fourth-place seed.
The Tonopah wrestling team won the Class 2A Southern Regional Championship on Saturday at White Pine High School in Ely. It was the school’s first regional wrestling championship.
Tonopah scored 153 points for the title, West Wendover took second with 145, Spring Mountain took third with 136 and Pahranagat Valley took fourth with 116.
The team sent 13 wrestlers to the regional meet and 12 of those wrestlers placed in the top five and will advance to state this Friday and Saturday in Reno.
The program has come a long way from three years ago when it was in jeopardy of being canceled because of a Nye County School District policy that said that the wrestling team must have at least five wrestlers. Superintendent Dale Norton stepped in to give the program a reprieve.
“It did not look good for the program, we were struggling to find wrestlers. It is a hard sport and it takes a lot of dedication and drive to compete,” Muckers wrestling coach Duffy Otteson said. “We have a lot of wrestlers quit each year because of what is required to be a good wrestler. This year’s team was different. This year we did not lose any kids. I kept waiting for kids to quit, but none of them did.”
Senior Tanner Otteson (145 pounds) took second place in his division and he felt the same way and was happy to share this event with his brother, who is the coach.
“This championship is something I will always remember as the best moment in high school,” Tanner Otteson said.
The Muckers trailed in points the entire tournament and it was not until the last two matches of the tourney that the team moved ahead with senior Freddie Lopez’s (220) pin over Tre Medina of West Wendover for first place and senior Jordon Bekowitz’s pin in his first-place match over Aaron Harry of Spring Mountain.