Creston’s youngest wrestlers bring home duals win

PLEASANT HILL — Creston Express Wrestling’s debut performance at the Red Owens Holiday Classic at Southeast Polk Jan. 25 was a splash as the K-6 team took first place and the 7th/8th grade team placed fourth.

“The energy in the duals tournaments is something that is unparalleled to an individual tournament,” coach Will Harris said. “They get to watch their teammates go out on the mat, from smallest to largest.”

K-6

The younger team is made up of 16 wrestlers, starting at 46 pounds and going up to heavyweight, which is 140 pounds.

The team came out with wins against Bondurant (73-15), North Polk (70-10), Perry (59-21) and Newton (79-6). In each of these four duals, the Express team was able to handle business in dominant fashion.

"We are very solid in our lineup with kids that are experienced and well spread out throughout the roster," Harris said. “There’s not a lot of coaching involved. We really just send them out and then thank them for their effort when they are done.”

Against Southeast Polk Black in the semifinals, some of the young wrestlers experience one of the hardest types of losses in wrestling.

“We had a couple matches we were winning by 10, 12 points and we were upset,” Harris explained. “Instead of wallowing in that, the team rebounded really well and came back to regain that lead.”

In an individual tournament, losses are typically black and white. A win means advance, a loss means no shot at the title. In duals, a loss can still be a win for the team as it cuts down on the number of points the other team scores.

“Some of the kids, the best thing they could hope for is a close match, whether it’s win or lose,” Harris explained. “Some are looking for the bonus points for the team, keeping the excitement and the momentum going.”

The team advanced to face Waukee Northwest in the finals after winning 48-39 over Southeast Polk Black.

When it came down to it, the wrestlers were ready to get the job done. It was a nail biter against Waukee, but the Express team came out ahead 38-33.

“It’s a wonderful team-building exercise,” Harris said of the event. “It’s an opportunity for our youth club members to see what it will be like when they get into middle and high school.”

7th/8th

With mostly 3A teams to contend with, the middle school Express team had their work cut out for them. They ended the day fourth after going 2-3.

In a lineup that features 10 weight classes, only Southeast Polk was able to fill all the spots, though Norwalk was close with nine. Creston fills out a majority of the weight classes but lacks the upper end of 200 and 250.

The Express team started against Bondurant, winning 42-23 before facing Ankeny in a back-and-forth contest. Creston was down 35-30 with one bout to go. Axel Neisemier would either need a pin to win or a tech fall to tie.

"He did good. We knew within the first period or so he was trying to work for the fall," 7th/8th grade coach Matt Buck said. “In the second period, we said just wrestle your match. It looked like he was going to tech fall him, but he got him on his back and pinned him.”

Buck said the kids knew they would win with a pin and were really excited for the win.

“It was good team atmosphere, a good team win,” Buck said.

From there, Creston faced some of the toughest youth lineups including Norwalk and two Southeast Polk teams. Norwalk won 53-22 and the first Southeast Polk team won 74-3.

“The kids fought and wrestled hard the whole time,” Buck said. “That was a really good Southeast Polk team, and Norwalk is a big school.”

In the final dual, the second Southeast Polk team won a narrower 39-29 dual, giving the Express team fourth place.

Buck said the team will definitely be back next year. “It was just great, a fun event, a great team building experience,” He said. “It gave us the opportunity to learn as a team.”