The Pagosa Springs High School Lady Pirate wrestling team placed third at the Wolverine Classic on Saturday, Dec. 6.
The Lady Pirates were led by three juniors on Saturday, with each winning their individual brackets.
Coach Dan Janowsky explained he is proud of the girls, noting that placing third out of the 10 competing teams represented a strong start for the Lady Pirates.
The Lady Pirates returned four girls who qualified for last year’s state tournament and each of those four girls were impact performers in Saturday’s tournament.
Madisen Stretton, Kyley Matyniak and Laykyn Baxstrom were the three juniors who led the team, each taking first place in their individual brackets.
Stretton won her first-round matchup in the 110-pound weight class with a technical fall score of 19-3 in two minutes, 49 seconds. She won her second-round matchup by pinning her opponent after 1:34. In round three, she pinned her opponent after 1:03, in round four she pinned her opponent after 1:30, and in round five she pinned her opponent after 2:44 to take first place, earning 33.5 points for the team.
Matyniak pinned her opponents in all three rounds in the 130-pound weight class. In the first round she pinned her opponent after 1:42, in round two she pinned her opponent after three minutes, and in round three she pinned her opponent after 51 seconds, earning 26 team points.
Baxstrom won both her matches in the 190-pound weight class, pinning her opponent after 2:16 in the second round and after 21 seconds in the third round to earn 22 team points.
Sophomore Bella Jackson placed second in her bracket, wrestling in the 105-pound weight class. In round one, Jackson defeated her opponent by pinning her after 1:10. Jackson then pinned her opponent after 26 seconds in round two. She took second in her bracket after getting pinned in the first-place match in 1:22. She earned 18 points for the team.
There were a couple of first medals for the Lady Pirates on Saturday, as well.
In her first high school tournament, freshman Corinna Galabota placed third in the 125-pound weight class. Galabota lost by fall in the first round in 2:29, then rebounded to pin her opponent in 30 seconds in the second round. In the third round, she lost by fall in 1:13 and in the fourth round lost by fall in 2:54. She ended with a win in the fifth round with a fall in 1:03 to earn 15 team points.
Sophomore Audrina Smith also got her first medal, placing third in the 135-pound bracket. Smith lost by fall in the first round in 1:04, then won in the second round by pinning her opponent in 29 seconds. After receiving a bye in the third round, she won by technical fall 18-1 in 4:54 in round four. She fell in round five in 31 seconds and earned 14.5 team points.
In the 120-pound weight class, Neveah Castañeda pinned her opponent in 54 seconds in her round 1 match, received a bye in the second round and pinned her opponent after 38 seconds in her round 3 matchup. She lost by fall in the fifth round in 1:54 and by fall in the third-place match in 4:34, earning 12 team points.
MacKayla Beach finished 7th in the 115-pound weight class. She lost by fall in 1:19 in the first round, in 1:50 in the second round and by a 14-0 major decision in the third round. She received a bye in the seventh-place match.
Kelsey Matyniak took fourth in the 115-pound bracket at the tournament. She received a bye in her round 1 match and won her round 2 match, pinning her opponent after 49 seconds. She fell in round three in 1:07, and was pinned in the third-place match in 27 seconds. She earned eight points for the team.
Carli Duncan won two matches as well, pinning her opponent after 57 seconds in round two and pinning her opponent in round four after 2:53. She fell by pin in 1:57 in round three and by pin in 42 seconds in the fifth round.
The Lady Pirates took third with a team score of 149.
“The schedule gets tougher,” said Janowsky, “but this was a great way to start off the season.”
Next up, the Lady Pirates will be in action at the Rob Mickel Invitational in Salida, where matches are set to begin at 9 a.m.
jsellner@orourkemediagroup.com
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