Bison mat squad downs Rustlers in another tight dual

Wrestling fans from both sides of the river converged on the C.M. Russell High Fieldhouse Tuesday night as the CMR and Great Falls High mat squads battled for the second time in less than a week.

In a rematch of the third-place match at Saturday’s AA Duals, the Bison took a 40-33 decision over the Rustlers in front of 1,000 fans on Senior Night for both schools. It was the second tightly contested victory for Great Falls High over rival CMR in the past week, with the Bison winning 39-33 last weekend.

Senior state champion Brendan Lockart earned a first-round pin to get things started for the Bison, stopping Dane Deranleau at the 1:10 mark at 205 pounds.

Raven Hensley took a hard-fought triumph in a matchup of senior heavyweights with CMR’s Jacob Reeves, who came out to a 4-2 lead after one period. However, Hensley threw a successful head-and-arm takedown in the second to secure the pin.

A pair of Rustler seniors locked up big victories in their final crosstown dual, with Logan Younkin earning the technical fall over Cash Clark 20-5 in the second period at 113, while Dalton Ecklund snagged an 11-2 decision over Bladen Mandel at 120. It was a reversal for Ecklund, who fell to Mandel 10-9 on Saturday at the AA Duals.

Sophomore Landon de la Garza kept the CMR momentum going at 126 with a first-round pin of Luke Allen before pins from freshman Jace Komac (132) and Gage Clothier (138) put the Bison on top for the remainder. Komac took the fall over Kael Dixon in another rematch from Saturday, while the sophomore Clothier pinned CMR’s Joe Fernandez with 47 seconds remaining in the second.

Sophomore Kale Baumann pulled away in the third stanza after a tight opening pair of rounds, downing Ethan Jarrett at 152 by 12-3 decision.

Great Falls High senior Irish Furthmyre topped Mason Spahr by first-round fall at 152 before Dylan Block stopped Cayden Doran at the 1:14 mark of the second frame at 160.

CMR finished out the dual strong with a pair of pins, as A.J. LaFurge wrestled down at 170 and took his match with Dameon Furthmyre with 14 seconds left in the first round.

Fellow Rustler senior Nick Bodge likewise earned a fall victory over Braedon Rankin of the Bison, getting his hand raised after just 27 seconds at 182.

The Rustlers honored a large group of seniors prior to the dual, including Younkin, Ecklund, Joe Fernandez, Ethan Jarrett, Cayden Doran, Levi Giles, Logan Sloan, LaFurge, Bodge, Reeves and Bridger Stoll.

Seniors for Great Falls High include Furthmyre, Lockart, Hensley, Teancum Palmer, and Aaron Liscum.

The Bison of head coach Luis Carranza and the Rustlers of mentor Aaron Jensen head to the Eastern AA divisional tournament in Belgrade on Feb. 3-4 ahead of the state tournament at the Billings Metra on Feb. 10-11.

Great Falls High def. CMR 40-33

205 - Brendan Lockart, GFH, def. Dane Deranleau (pin 1:10)

285 - Raven Hensley, GFH, def. Jacob Reeves (pin 2:43)

103 - Paydon de la Garza, CMR, win by forfeit

113 - Logan Younkin, CMR, def. Cash Clark (Tech fall 20-5)

120 - Dalton Ecklund, CMR, def. Bladen Madel (dec 11-2)

126 - Landon de la Garza, CMR, def. Luke Allen (pin 0:11)

132 - Jace Komac, GFH, def. Kael Dixon (pin 2:36)

138 - Gage Clothier, GFH, def. Joe Fernandez (pin 5:13)

145 - Kale Baumann, GFH, def. Ethan Jarrett (dec 12-3)

152 – Irish Furthmyre, GFH, def. Mason Spahr (pin 1:42)

160 – Dylan Block, GFH, def. Cayden Doran (pin 2:46)

170 – A.J. LaFurge, CMR, def. Dameon Furthmyre (pin 0:14)

182 – Nick Bodge, CMR, def. Braedon Rankin (pin 1:33)

Grady Higgins covers prep sports for the Tribune and can be reached at ghiggins@greatfallstribune.com. Photos were provided courtesy of Matt Ehnes of Jared's Detours.

This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: Great Falls High wrestling downs CMR in another tight dual