Fallon's Ben Dooley is one of five wrestlers heading to the state championship in Las Vegas.
The Greenwave qualified five wrestlers, including three champions, for next week’s state tournament after Fallon finished fifth in the Class 3A Northern Region Tournament at Spring Creek.
The host Spartans, and last year’s regional and state team champion, won this weekend’s tournament with 298.5 points over Lowry’s 230.5. Elko took third with 139, followed by Fernley at 133 and Fallon with 120. Spring Creek also crowned the most individual champions with seven.
“I was hoping for 10 kids even though I knew it would be tough since we had a bunch of young kids in the lineup,” said Fallon coach Trevor de Braga. “Most of my kids weren’t far off. We just didn’t win all the matches we should have. A mistake or two cost big for some of the boys. I’ve been trying to get them over that edge and express how important it is to finish a match and find a way to win the close ones.”
Tommy McCormick (132 pounds), Sean McCormick (160) and Ben Dooley (285) each won their division while Mason Smith (120) and Marcel Poracky (170) finished second and third, respectively, to punch their ticket to the state meet.
“My five qualifiers are veterans and have been wrestling great all year,” de Braga said. “The past few years we have had eight to 10 kids competing at state and we’ve been right there at the top so this year is going to be tough. But if things go our way and certain kids from other teams fall, we could be up there.”
Tommy McCormick has been on a roll in the last month after falling short in the Sierra Nevada Classic in December. The sophomore grappler defeated Spring Creek’s Q Boyd, 3-0, to win his second regional title. McCormick pinned Fernley’s Allen Mckibben and South Tahoe’s Nate Singelyn in the first two rounds.
Sean McCormick won his third regional title in as many years, defeating Spring Creek’s Clay Campbell, 5-0. McCormick will also be going for his third state title this week. McCormick pinned his first two opponents, Dayton’s Hayden Spencer and Sparks’ Brandon McCraney to advance.
Dooley, who didn’t wrestle in last week’s duals due to illness, showed no lingering effects, pinning all three opponents over the weekend. Dooley pinned Fernley’s Lonnie Slapinski with 49 seconds left in the first period. His previous two pins occurred each in the second period.
Smith lost the battle with Spring Creek rival Josh Tripp, who pinned the senior wrestler with 55 seconds left in the final period. Smith pinned Sparks’ Robert Hiatt and Lowry’s Caden Ricci each within the first minute of the bout.
Poracky faced one of his season rivals in the battle for third. The only wrestler who needed to win his final match to go to state, Poracky prevailed by pinning Spring Creek’s Xzavier Edson 1:25 into the bout. Poracky lost to Lowry’s Cade Billingsley to drop into consolation before defeating his teammate, Caleb Sanchez.
Although they didn’t qualify, Wyatt Hatch (120, fifth) and Sione Otuafi (285, sixth) still medaled in their first year with the program. Hatch, wrestling in the same bracket as Smith, dropped his first match but won twice in consolation to earn fifth over Hiatt. Otuafi lost the battle for fifth against Lowry’s Josiah Chapman.
“Wyatt was a win away from wrestling for third,” de Braga said. “He improved a bunch this year and is going to be a big part of this team these next three years. I have big expectations for him.”
Leo Aicher (152) finished 1-2 while Case Cornmesser (113), Josiah Rosario (113), James Dixon (126), Drew Kramer (138), Blane Aicher (152) and Mark Moyle (220) each lost their two contested bouts.