Adam Hettel, left, of Marysville underhooks Chris Cox of North Union during a bout in the 195 class. Hettel ended up winning the match by pin fall in 3:04.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Sam Dillon )
The North Union Wildcats hosted their annual Don Wasserbeck Classic on Saturday, inviting 17 teams from across the region to come and take part in the event.
Marysville, being one of those teams, claimed second place at the event with a varsity Blue team score of 209.5, while the host school, North Union, finished fourth with a score of 153.
Marion Pleasant won the meet with a score of 227.
Although the goal was for the Wildcats to win their home meet, head coach Garret Andrews was not disappointed.
“About two months ago, our team sat down and discussed our goals for the season,” he said. “One of those goals was to win our home tournament.
“Although we fell short of that goal by finishing fourth out of 17, I was not disappointed in the effort and heart that the Wildcat wrestlers put into their home invitational.”
Chris Cox-Wilson of North Union was the only champion out of the two schools as he captured the 182-pound class over Jacob Legge of Marysville by a 4-3 decision.
Both schools were also able to place several runners-up.
Austin Jamison of North Union claimed second in the 126 class after losing by technical fall to Donnell Marshall (Centerburg).
Nick Miller of North Union fell in the final round of the 132 class to claim second by pin fall to Mason Sparks (Marion Harding).
Chris Lambert of Marysville lost by a 9-7 verdict to Dallas Scott (Centerburg) in the championship round of the 138 class to claim second.
Joey Robison of Marysville also fell by a decision of 7-5 in the title match of the 152 class to claim second place. He lost to Greg Clark (Pleasant).
Joseph Palmer of Marysville lost by pin fall in the championship round in the 220 class against Jamie Baisden (Pleasant) to place second.
Dylan Thompson of North Union was the runner up in the 285 class after losing by pin fall to Mitchell Hurlbut (Fredericktown).
Marysville head coach Shawn Andrews said the event gave some of his younger wrestlers the opportunity to wrestle at a varsity level.
“It was great to see sophomores Chris Lambert, Ian Johnson and Joey Palmer wrestle well in addition to freshmen Nathan Thompson and Jagger Snyder,” said.
Other local wrestlers finished as follows (victories unless noted):
-106: Nathan Thompson, Marysville, third, 4-3 decision;
-132: Lincoln Heard, Marysville, fifth, 2-1 decision;
-152: Blaine Landon, Marysville, fifth, technical fall;
-160: Zach Lowe, Marysville, fifth, 5-1 decision;
-170: Ian Johnson, Marysville, third, 12-3 major decision;
-182: Jacob Ishmael, Marysville, fifth, 5-2 decision;
-195: Chris Cox, North Union, sixth, pin fall (loss);
-285: Steven Shamhart, Marysville, third, 11-1 major decision
“We took a few hard losses during the final round to some really strong opponents,” said NU’s Andrews. “Some of those wrestlers we may get rematches with in the coming weeks. I believe this tournament was a tremendous test for us and learning from it will make us better as we go through the second half of the season.”
North Union will return to the mat on Friday at the Sally George Invitational, while the Monarchs will start their state duals matches at Delaware Hayes on Wednesday.
In junior varsity action, the Monarchs claimed third place at the Whitehal-Yearling Invitational with a team score of 181.
Jayden Simmons claimed first place in the 138 class. Parker Reese was on top at 160, while Grant Marshal went 5-0 on his way to the 170 crown.
Additional MHS wrestlers finished as follows:
-132: Alex Reverson, fourth;
-145: Jadin Natividad, second;
-182: Dexter Coffey, third;
-195: CJ Grose, second;
-220: Zach Eades, fifth.