Mendoza, Kester strike gold

The Summerland Bobcats wrestling team competed at the West Holt Invitational in Atkinson on Friday, Jan. 17, finishing eighth in the 10-team field with 66.5 points. Burwell captured the team title with a dominant 180-point performance.

Despite their mid-pack finish, the Bobcats saw standout efforts from two individual champions, along with medal-winning performances in several weight classes.

Austin Mendoza secured first place in the 144-pound division, earning 26.0 team points. After receiving a bye in the opening round, Mendoza pinned Sam Titus of Ainsworth in 5:33. He advanced to the finals with an injury default victory over Grady Rasmussen of Ravenna and clinched the title with a thrilling 8-7 decision over Cort Buss of Burwell.

Ethan Kester also claimed first place, dominating the 150-pound bracket to contribute 18.0 points. Kester pinned Tagen Kramer of West Holt in 1:17, Wyatt Wroblewski of Ravenna in 1:04, and edged out John Leija of Randolph with a 3-2 decision in the final round.

Jason Shaver earned a fourth-place finish at 190 pounds, scoring 10.0 points. He opened with a 17-7 major decision over Lakin Stange of Creighton before falling to Jhett Eklund of Burke/Gregory in the semifinals. Shaver pinned Kaden Ripp of Ravenna in the consolation semifinals but lost an 8-1 decision to Gavin Wortman of Randolph in the third-place match.

Jacob Schlecht placed fourth at 215 pounds, contributing 6.0 points. After falling to Grant Osborne of West Holt in his opening match, Schlecht pinned Carson Koch of Ainsworth in 1:36. He suffered defeats to Cale Buss of Burwell and Dale Smikle of Burke/Gregory to finish just off the podium's higher tiers.

Other Bobcats competing included:

Lane Sanne's tournament included a quarterfinal loss to Holden Hodges of Burwell by technical fall. He received a bye in the consolation bracket but lost an 8-4 decision to Holden Beel of Ainsworth in the semifinals.

Liam Cleveland earned 1.0 point for Summerland. He fell to Ora Chaffin of Burwell in 37 seconds during the quarterfinals but rebounded with a 6-0 decision over Talyn Meyer of Randolph in the consolation bracket. Cleveland's run ended with a fall to Zach Frahm of Plainview.

Ayden Bazelman's efforts came up short despite two byes in the bracket. He was pinned by Jensen Kumm of Plainview and Wakinyan Sleeping Bear of Todd County.

Isaac Mendoza added 5.5 points with a solid showing at 132 pounds. After a first-round bye, he dropped an 11-6 decision to Cole Jensen of Randolph. Mendoza later earned a technical fall victory over Joe King of Ravenna before a medical forfeit to Drew Dawe of Burwell ended his tournament.

Steven Mast was unable to break through at 138 pounds. Following a first-round bye, he suffered a fall to Trenton Wedemeyer of Ravenna and a technical fall to Tate Brodersen of Randolph.