Bronco wrestlers take third in Division Tournament, qualify 16 for state tournament

by Art Adair
Contributing Writer
The San Juan boys wrestling team hosted the 2A Division A Tournament this past Saturday, January 23 in Blanding.
Seven teams competed, with the San Juan Broncos placing third overall with 193 points, finishing behind Beaver (302 points) and divisional champion South Summit (322 points).
At 106 pounds, Kage Johnson went 2-2 to earn ninth place and will serve as a state alternate if needed.
At 113 pounds, Liam Lacy advanced to the championship match after defeating a North Summit opponent by fall in the semifinals.
In the title match, Lacy faced Thornton of South Summit. Lacy gave a valiant effort but was defeated 12-4, finishing second.
At 120 pounds, Grady Lacy advanced to the championship match after pinning Atkinson of South Summit in the semifinals.
In an exciting finals matchup against Staton Cox of Beaver that had both fan bases on their feet, Lacy gained the edge midway through the second period and secured the fall.
He enters the state tournament in two weeks as the 120-pound Division A champion.
Also at 120, Andre Yellow placed sixth, earning one victory by fall in an exciting match.
At 126 pounds Ender Lacy went 3-2 and placed seventh with all of his victories coming by fall.
At 138 pounds San Juan entered two wrestlers. Unfortunately Staley Dandy suffered an injury in his quarterfinal match and was forced to default the tournament.
Koyer Johnson also represented the Broncos at 138, going 3-2 on the day to earn fifth place and a trip to the state tournament.
At 144 pounds Miken Keith put together an outstanding performance, going 4-1 on the day.
After a tough semifinal loss, Keith rebounded with a fall in the consolation semifinals followed by a dominant 17-0 technical fall to claim third place.
Also at 144 Kade Snyder, a first-year wrestler, competed hard but was unable to qualify for state.
Chance Laws went 5-1 at 150 pounds, winning several key matches. Laws recorded four victories by fall and avenged an earlier loss to a Beaver wrestler with a 5-4 decision in the consolation championship, finishing third.
At 157 pounds Jayce Raisor placed fourth after going 3-2, with all of his wins coming by fall.
Also at 157, El’Myron Begay qualified for the state tournament by placing eighth but was unable to wrestle his seventh-place match due to injury.
Zacharias Long wrestled hard and finished tenth at 165 pounds.
Teammate Hunter Keith earned a fall in the quarterfinals before suffering a semifinal loss to the eventual champion.
Keith bounced back with a 12-6 decision in the consolation semifinals and then secured a second-period fall in the third-place match to claim third place at 165 pounds.
At 175 pounds San Juan’s two freshmen both had strong tournaments. Tallon MacArthur placed seventh, earning three wins by fall, while River Von Haden finished fifth.
Von Haden recorded all of his victories by fall, including his fifth-place match over a South Sevier opponent.
Thomas Hardin advanced to the championship match at 190 pounds after an exciting semifinal victory over a Beaver opponent by 8-4 decision, a match that had the crowd on its feet.
Hardin then faced Beaver’s returning state champion and finished with a strong second-place showing.
At 215 pounds, Ian Mark placed sixth, while Adney Singer finished seventh. Both wrestlers qualified for the state tournament.
At heavyweight, Cian Mark placed fifth in a thrilling match against a Beaver opponent.
With the score tied 13-13 late in the match, Mark earned an escape for the go-ahead point and followed it with a takedown to secure a 17-13 victory.
Stan Jones also competed at heavyweight, placing ninth to earn an alternate spot.
In total, the Bronco grapplers qualified 16 wrestlers for the state tournament.
The Utah State Wrestling Championships will be held February 6-7 at the Sevier Valley Center in Richfield, UT.