Scottie Grapplers Finish Third In Harlem

Following a warm-up mixer in Chinook Jan. 20, the Scottie wrestlers competed at the Harlem Invitational Jan. 21.

Despite wrestling shorthanded for the day, the Scotties placed third with 83.50 points, just behind Malta (92.50 points) and Shepherd (120 points). Head coach Jory Casterline explained that there were several factors that prevented Glasgow from having a full team of competitors for the weekend.

Darrin Wersal did not compete due to a minor injury, Kevin McDonald was recovering from pneumonia, and Cale Swanson was out of town and unable to make it back in time to compete.

Those three alone are significant contributors to the team, which likely impacted the overall results.

"Honestly," said Casterline, "we just need to work on getting healthy."

A trio of Scottie wrestlers earned top spot on the podium for the day.

Matt Reyling (120) was undefeated in Harlem and finished at 2-0. Following a first-round bye, Reyling faced Alex Kirkaldie of Harlem and made quick work of the match with a pin in :19. In the championship round, Reyling had to work for the win, defeating Kolter Schipman of Malta with a 17-5 major decision.

Tony Kaiser, wrestling at 182, also went undefeated for the day, winning the top spot by pinning three Shepherd grapplers. In his first match, Kaiser defeated Trent Saunders with a 1:35 pin. In his next match, it took just a bit longer for Kaiser to pin his opponent. Gage Schmitt fell to Kaiser in 1:43. For the championship match Kaiser faced off against Taylor Johnson and earned the win in 1:58.

Jacob Meiers (103) defeated Mason Henry, Shepherd, twice by pin to advance and defeat Zach Jackson of Harlem in the championship match.

Gabe Hallock (113) and John Cremer (126) each grabbed second-place finishes for the day. G. Hallock was 2-1 for the day, defeating Carter Peterson, Wolf Point, in the first round with a 4:16 pin and Triestan Kemp, Wolf Point, by pin (1:12) in the second round. The two wins gave G. Hallock a spot in the championship round against Tanner Cook of Shepherd, but Cook out-wrestled G. Hallock for the win by decision (8-6).

Cremer, who wrestled at the 126 varsity spot after Kaden Zimmerman became ill, defeated his first opponent, Enrique Doney, Hays, with a :29 pin to advance. In his second match, Cremer defeated Ken Todd, Ft. Benton, with a 3-1 decision and advanced to the championship match against Calleen Mears of Malta. Cremer held his own for 5.5 minutes until he was pinned by Mears for the second-place finish.

Oden Hallock, wrestling at 132, went 2-2 for the day. O. Hallock won by decision (8-5) in his first match against JT Hauer, Chinook, then lost by fall (:16) to Quinn Whitmus, Wolf Point. He wrestled back to gain a spot in the third-place match with a technical fall (18-3) against Colten Barsness, Cut Bank. In his final match of the day, O. Hallock faced Hunter Reum, Poplar, for third and fourth place, and lost by technical fall (18-2) to take the fourth-place spot.

Although it was a good weekend for the Scotties, Casterline thinks the best is yet to come. "I think we are going to peak at the right time," he explained. "We're just going to keep working hard and keep grinding." This Thursday, Jan. 26, the Scotties will host Watford City and honor their three senior wrestlers: Gabe Hallock, Tony Kaiser and Presly Hallock. The event starts at 6 p.m.

Following the dual against Watford City, the Scotties will travel to Malta for two days of wrestling, including a dual Friday, Jan. 27 and an invitational meet on Saturday, Jan. 28.