Central's Bartlett, East's Fox claim state tiles

Feb. 25—CASPER — Keagan Bartlett felt an overwhelming sense of relief when he wiggled out from underneath Sheridan's Aiden Selcher and took control for a takedown.

That score gave the Cheyenne Central senior a 3-1 lead with 18 seconds remaining in the 220-pound championship at the Wyoming Class 4A boys state wrestling tournament Saturday at the Wyoming Center in Casper.

Selcher scored an escape late, but that couldn't keep Bartlett from winning his first state title, 3-2.

"It was like a weight lifted off my back when I got behind him and saw the clock," Bartlett said. "I knew it was over. I can't put into words how it feels to finally get the thing I've been working for for four years. It's something I've been so close to getting before, and it feels amazing now that it's happened.

"I don't have as many state titles as I wanted, but it feels sweet to finally get one."

Bartlett — a two-time state runner-up — took a 1-0 lead on an escape with 1 minute, 15 seconds remaining in the second period. Selcher evened the score 1-1 with an escape in the middle of the second period.

With time running out, Bartlett shot for a single-leg takedown only to have Selcher sprawl and land on top of him. Bartlett clung to Selcher's leg and eventually wiggled through Selcher's legs and got behind him for two points and the lead.

"I could feel that he was high on me when he threw his leg over, but I was afraid we were so close to the edge of the mat the referee was going to stop it and call us back to the center," Bartlett said. "When you get to the point it's about to go, you don't want to hear the whistle."

Bartlett was greeted by family and a bevy of well-wishers after his victory. Few people were happier for Bartlett than Central coach Kyle Brightman, who was a state runner-up his senior year.

"When you get close a few times, you start wondering if you can do it," Brightman said. "It's a huge sense of relief to see him finally win one. There's no one more deserving. He's such a good kid and has been such a great leader for us.

"He works so hard in our wrestling room and has set such a good example for our younger kids. I was never able to do it, but helping other kids win a state title gives me a sense of pride."

Capitalizing on a missed opportunity helped Cheyenne East sophomore Liam Fox capture his second consecutive state championship with a 7-5 win over Star Valley senior Joseph Naef.

Fox scored a takedown midway through the opening period, but Naef forged a tie on a reversal.

Fox pulled ahead 3-2 with an escape, at which point East coach Thad Trujillo encouraged him to close the period with another takedown.

Fox obliged, grabbing an ankle and executing a low trip to go up 5-2.

"You can never take a second off in a match, you have to keep pushing the pace and keep wrestling," Fox said. "If you take little breaks in the match, you get scored on."

Fox spent the second period on top of the referee's position and tried a number of ways to score back points by tilting Naef. The Star Valley wrestler was able to stay off his back, and even tallied a late escape as the pair went out of bounds.

Fox held a 5-3 lead midway through the third period when Naef snatched his left foot and raised it to waist height. Fox was able to stabilize himself, and even skipped a trip attempt, but was ultimately sent to his stomach for a takedown that knotted the score 5-5 with 1 minute, 8 seconds remaining.

Naef clung to Fox's leg as he tried to escape with 38 seconds left. This time was different.

Fox was able to hook his arms inside Naef's right arm in close and got a trip of his own for a reversal and a 7-5 win.

"I knew if I could stay close to him, I could get my leg around him and get the trip," Fox said. "Being able to keep my balance and keep a steady head in that moment helped a lot.

"The first time he scored off that, I thought I could get it. When we came back up and he still had that leg in the air, I was able to get close enough to trip him backwards."

Fox was the 132-pound champion as a freshman. He finished this season 50-8, and now has 102 career victories.

"(Fox is) great at making adjustments like that because of all the matches and mat time he has under his belt," Trujillo said. "He knows how to respond and change things the next time he sees them."

A late takedown allowed Sheridan senior Colson Coon to hold on for a 5-3 win over East junior Colby Olson in the 182-pound title match.

Coon took a 2-0 lead with a first-period takedown. Olson cut into the lead with a quick escape. Coon started the second period on bottom and escaped early to go up 3-1. Olson trimmed that advantage to 3-2 with an escape just 11 seconds into the third.

Coon scored the winning takedown with 24 seconds remaining for a 5-2 lead. Olson cut it to 5-3 thanks to an escape with 10 seconds left.

Coon was able to keep Olson at arm's length when he shot in an effort to forge a tie, and held on for the win.

"Both of us are really good at defense, so it's really hard to get shots and have a high-scoring match," Olson said. "I kind of relaxed for a minute, and he capitalized on that opportunity."

Thunder Basin senior Lane Catlin — a University of Wyoming signee — pinned Cheyenne East's junior Charlie Green in 45 seconds to win the 285-pound championship.

"Catlin is a pretty special wrestler, he's big, tall and has long levers, he's different than most heavyweights you see all year," Trujillo said. "He's a next-level guy and it shows. I don't think I've seen him win a match any other way than pin, so Charlie had a pretty tall task in front of him and wrestled his best."

East finished fifth in the team standings with 158 points. Sheridan captured the title with 260, while Thunder Basin was runner-up with 247.5.

Central took sixth as a team (142.5), while Cheyenne South was 12th (13).

East also had Sammy Sanchez (106 pounds), Ben Whitright (126) and Trevor Eldirdge (195) place fourth. Kolby Williams (120) took sixth.

Central's Wyatt Weiss was fourth at 120 pounds, while classmate Davin Mattimoe placed fourth at 285. Isael Beal (113), Andrew Gonzales (126), Jack Miller (182), Thomas Berta (195) all took fifth. Sam Smith (106) and Tripp Vigil (126) both placed sixth.

Burns-Pine Bluffs placed 17th in Class 3A. Senior Cale Haws placed third at 220 pounds.

BOYS WRESTLING

CLASS 4A STATE TOURNEY

Team Scores

1. Sheridan 260; 2. Thunder Basin 247.5; 3. Star Valley 235; 4. Natrona County 193.5; 5. Cheyenne East 158; 6. Cheyenne Central 142.5; 7. Kelly Walsh 135.5; 8. Rock Springs 111; 9. Campbell County 74; 10. Laramie 57.5; 11. Jackson 25; 12. Cheyenne South 13.

Cheyenne Central results

106 pounds: S. Smith, sixth, 3-3; 113: Beal, fifth, 3-2; 120: Weiss, fourth, 3-2; C. Smith 1-2; 126: A. Gonzales, fifth, 3-2; Vigil, sixth, 3-3; 132: R. Gonzales 1-2; Ackerman 0-2; 138: Herget 0-2; Medina 0-2; 145: Bazinet 0-2; 152: Rodriguez 2-2; 160: Jones 0-2; 170: Young 1-2; Fernandez 1-2; 182: Miller, fifth, 4-2; 195: Berta, fifth, 4-2; 220: K. Bartlett, first, 4-0; 285: Mattimoe, fourth, 4-2.

Cheyenne East results

106 pounds: Sanchez, fourth, 3-2; 113: Gonzalez 0-2; Atencio 0-2; 120: Williams, sixth, 3-3; 126: Be. Whitright, fourth, 3-2; 132: Mansur-Holaday 2-2; Briggs 1-2; 138: Hamilton 1-2; 145: Fox, first, 4-0; 152: Jonas 1-2; Mathews 0-2; 160: Hames 1-2; 170: J. Zahm 2-2; Jo. Culver 0-2; 182: Olson, second, 3-1; H. Van Dell 1-2; 195: Eldridge, fourth, 3-2; Resendiz 0-2; 220: Anderegg 1-2; Davis 1-2; 285: Green, second, 3-1; Kirkbride 1-2.

Cheyenne South results

106 pounds: Gregory 0-2; 120: S. Trujillo 2-2; 126: C. Trujillo 0-2; 152: Warburton 1-2; 160: Hedum 1-2; Haws 0-2; 182: McColl 0-2; 285: Dixson 0-2.

CLASS 3A STATE TOURNEY

Team Scores

1. Green River 223.5; 2. Cody 167; 3. Evanston 164; 4. Pinedale 152; 5. Rawlins 133; 6. Worland 128; 7. Douglas 126.5; 8. Powell 96.5; 9. Lander 87.5; 10. Buffalo 72.5; 11. Newcastle-Upton 72; 12. Mountain View 62; 13. Lyman 58; 14. Wheatland 50; 15. Torrington 45.5; 16. Riverton 41.5; 17. Burns-Pine Bluffs 39.

Burns-Pine Bluffs results

120 pounds: N. WallowingBull 0-2; 126: Ba. Smith 1-2; 138: C. Smith 1-2; 145: McLaughlin 0-2; Sanchez 0-2; 152: C. James 2-2; McGinnis-Sparks 0-2; 160: Archer 0-2; 170: E. James 0-2; 195: Holmes 1-2; 220: Ca. Haws, third, 4-1; 285: Stoneking 2-2.

Jeremiah Johnke is the WyoSports editor. He can be reached at jjohnke@wyosports.net or 307-633-3137. Follow him on Twitter at @jjohnke.