Warriors outlast Greybull/Riverside in 1st home dual

WORLAND – The first home dual of the year was a successful one for the Warriors on Thursday night as they hosted 2A Greybull/Riverside for their lone competition of the week.

Worland actually surrendered more losses on the night than its opponent – winning only three matches compared to six – but with Greybull/Riverside open in four weight classes, the Warriors were able to sneak away with a 40-33 win.

"It's our first home dual about 10 weeks into the season now and we had a lot of nerves tonight," Worland wrestling coach Josh Garcia said after the win on Thursday. "I thought our kids came out and wrestled well. They were open in quite a few weights tonight and that's one of the aspects of wrestling – when you've got a full lineup you don't have to give up any open weights. Tonight, that was a huge factor for us and we took advantage of that."

Rondo Hernandez started off the dual at 160, facing Dawson McEwan. The two battled early into the third period where Hernandez scored a pin in 4 minutes, 38 seconds to get the Warriors on the board with six points early.

With Worland open at 170, Wade Goncalves followed at 182 with a match against Jose Carmona. Goncalves led 5-0 after the first period before eventually pinning Carmona in 2:23.

With its opponent open at 220, 285, 106 and 113, Worland led comfortably 36-12.

Glen Anderson widened the lead a little more with a 13-0 major decision over Jorge Carmona at 130, but Greybull/Riverside won the next five matches to narrow the gap and make the score much more respectable.

Hayden Johnston dropped a 9-6 decision at 126 while Talon Lloyd lost by fall (3:56) to Tre Nelson at 132 and Isaac Goncalves lost an 8-3 decision to Alex Schlatmann at 138.

Milo Vega led his 145-pound match against Ryan Peoples 5-3 in the second period, but was disqualified for an illegal throw and Peoples collected six points to make the score 40-30.

The dual ended at 152 where JD Nelson faced off against Cole Hill in what was the closest match of the night. It was closely contested throughout, but Hill escaped with a 4-3 decision over Nelson to make the final margin.

"I was excited with their effort – that always pleases me as a coach. We teach our kids to go for six minutes – from start to finish – and in those matches that's what our kids did," Garcia said. "Anytime you get kids to battle and stay in a match, that's crucial – it's going to benefit us in the long run."

Thursday's dual was the only competition this week for the Warriors who will have practice Friday before enjoying a much deserved weekend off. They'll be back in practice on Monday as they make the final push toward the state tournament at the end of the month in Casper.

"We'll have the weekend off so I think it's going to be huge for us to get a little bit of a break," Garcia said.

Worland will have a meet next Thursday, Feb. 4, in Thermopolis before traveling to the Ron Thon Memorial Tournament in Riverton Feb. 5-6.