Mining City Duals boosts Ronan's confidence
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BUTTE – The Ronan Chiefs’ wrestling team faced off against some of the top wrestlers in the state this past weekend as they traveled to Butte for the Mining City Duals. Colby Roberts went 4-0 during the meet, while four others on the team went 3-1. The Chiefs picked up one win in four matches, and head coach Dustyn Azure said his team’s confidence made a big improvement throughout the tournament.
“We started turning things around towards the end,” Azure said. “Our younger guys need to work on their mat preparedness, and make sure they’re ready to go mentally and physically.”
In round four, the Chiefs took on Missoula Sentinel, where Missoula downed Ronan 54-33.
“It was a rough start, but we got things going,” Azure noted. “We started getting in our groove late. This meet was a real confidence-booster for us. My young team now realizes they can compete.”
In the 105-pound category, Trey Garcia won by forfeit, and teammate Chase Rhine also won by forfeit in the 119-pound class.
In the 135-pound category, Andrew Tegan defeated Sentinel’s Erik Mason 7-2. Shelby Grant pinned Gabe LaCroix in the 152-pound class in 3:40. Ronan’s Michael Cloud defeated Quinten Denton 9-8 in the 160-pound category.
In the 215-class, Colby Roberts pinned Jadyn Wilson in 3:59.
In round five, Ronan grappled against host Butte, where the Chiefs fell 56-27. The heavier weights proved to be the Chiefs’ strong suit, as they won the 135, 152, 160, 171, and 215-pound classes.
Ronan’s first win against Butte came in the 135-pound class, where Andrew Tiegen pinned Jarret Rowling in 3:28. The team’s next win came in the 152-pound class, where Shelby Grant downed Derek McGrath 10-8. Denton won his second consecutive match in the 160-pound class when he pinned Buzzy Davies in 2:19.
In the 171-pound class, Dusting Goldsby pinned Butte’s Clay Brozovich in 1:01, while Roberts won his second consecutive match in the 215-pound class, pinning John Walker in 1:33.
On Saturday, Ronan fell to Columbia Falls 42-42, with the Wildcats winning the match based on criteria. In the 119-pound class, Chase Rhine pinned Chris Pretat in 2:56, while Dumont pinned Chase Marmon in the 125 class.
In the following match, Tiegan won his third match of the duals, pinning Jake Tri in 5:24, while Kellan Couture won the 140-pound category by fortfeit.
Grant won his 152-pound class after he pinned Peyton Sexe in 2:15, while Denton pinned Justin Lebru in 4:24. In the 189 class, Roberts pinned Austin Fisher in 1:48.
The Chiefs began to feel more confident on the mat as they reached round 10, where they took on Columbia Falls, winning 53-27.
In the 105-pound class, Garcia won by forfeit, and Cole Snyder won the 112-class by pinning Harland Jordan in :41.
Rhine pinned Seth McCall in 3:05 in the 119-class, while Dumont defeated Colyon Gove 19-4 in the 125-pound category.
In the 130 class, Teigen defeated Josiah Osborne 13-9, and Grant won his 152-pound class with a win over Kohl Thompson, 7-3.
Denton picked up another win after defeating Jacob Burgess in 4:14, while Goldsby pinned Josh Folsom in 3:01.
n the 189-pound class, Jake Skelton pinned Cameron Patterson in :31, while Roberts won his fourth straight match, pinning Jacob Babcock in 3:21.
“We have young guys lacking competition and mat time,” Azure noted. “As long as we can perform and gain confidence and know what they can and can’t do, we’ll improve.”
