Sports
Simley Wrestlers Win Fourth Consecutive Class AA Crown
Spartans defeated Grand Rapids, Foley and Scott West 39-16 in the finals to claim another Class AA wrestling championship.
As the Simley wrestling team proudly hoisting the Class AA championship plaque on Thursday, each team member raised up four fingers to signify its importance.
The Spartans picked up their fourth straight title with a 39-16 win over Scott West at the Xcel Energy Center, and they couldn’t help but enjoy the moment.
“This is the fourth time,” senior Matt Kruse said. “It’s awesome.”
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Simley certainly earned it. The Spartans rolled through the first two rounds of the state tournament, beating Grand Rapids 56-7 before topping Foley 52-3 in the semifinals.
But against the hard-working Scott West team, things didn’t come so easily for the Spartans. The Panthers (24-1) hadn’t dropped a match this season, and Simley coach Jim Short said he knew a fast start was important.
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“We were really worried about Scott West,” Short said. “They’ve beaten a lot of good teams by a lot.”
The Spartans lost to the Panthers at this year’s Christmas Tournament, but this time around Simley got an early lead and never looked back.
Simley picked up quick wins by Kyle Gliva (103 pounds) and Juan Torres (112), before Pedro DeLao earned a technical fall at 119 and Cola Jensen pinned Andrew Fogarty at 125.
Despite two quick wins by the Panthers to pull within 18-6, Simley won the next four matches to quickly take command of the dual.
“If we can get six or seven of those wins, we know we’re going to pick up a couple somewhere else,” Short said. “Our first four kids are tough.”
Short said after graduating six kids last year, it took some time to get the Spartans adjusted to the new lineup. But once Simley (31-2) went through its holiday tournaments, Short said he knew the team was ready.
Now, four years running, the Spartans can call themselves state champions.
Short said beating Scott West helped make this championship a little more special.
“They’re a quality team,” Short said. “It’s kind of nice when you can beat a team that is that good in the finals.”
Simley 56, Grand Rapids 7
103: SIM Kyle Gliva def. GR Jackson Schauer by tech. fall (17-2). 112: SIM Juan Torres deef. GR Caleb Happy by fall (1:24). 119: SIM Pedro DeLao def. GR Jake Schlader by tech. fall (16-0). 125: SIM Cola Jensen def. GR Tyler Jobe by maj. dec. 8-0. 130: SIM Mack Short def. GR Dylan Casteel 14-7. 135: SIM Matt Kruse def. GR Ryan Bowers by maj. dec. 10-2. 140: SIM Jake Short def. GR Zac Bainville 8-7. 145: SIM Nick Wanzek def. GR Mitchell Jobe by maj. dec. (11-3). 152: SIM Dan Dick def. GR Pat Hopkins by maj. dec. (10-2). 160: SIM Micah Barnes def. GR Alex Seanger by fall (1:37). 171: SIM Joe Rief loses to GR Jamison Evan 8-1. 189: SIM Brandt Olson loses to GR Nick Hopkins by maj. dec. (11-0). 215: SIM Mykar Groves def. GR Will Rusch by fall (3:33). 285: SIM Matt Kadrlik def. GR Zach Grandia by fall (0:57).
Simley 52, Foley 3
103: SIM Kyle Gliva def. FOL Tristan Manderfeld 5-2. 112: SIM Juan Torres def. FOL Tyler Jenson by fall (0:59). 119: SIM Pedro DeLao def. FOL Mitchel Dunlap 3-1. 125: SIM Cola Jensen def. FOL Taylor Rothfork 7-0. 130: SIM Mack Short def. FOL William Sustercich 3-2. 135: SIM Matt Kruse def. FOL Sam Keeler 5-2. 140: SIM Jake Short def. FOL Tyler Benboom by fall (1:06). 145: SIM Nick Wanzek def. FOL Chavez Goble by tech. fall (20-5). 152: SIM Dan Dick def. FOL Nathaniel Struffert by tech. fall (20-4). 160: SIM Micah Barnes def. FOL Taylor Lewandowski 7-4. 171: SIM Joe Rief loses to FOL Nick Lefebvre 2-1. 189: SIM Cody Hazelett def. FOL Anthony Kipka 5-3. 215: SIM Mykar Groves def. FOL Samuel Olson 4-3. 285: SIM Matt Kadrlik def. FOL Cameron Svihla by fall (1:02).
Simley 39, Scott West 16
103: SIM Kyle Gliva def. SW Zack Sigle 8-3. 112: SIM Juan Torres def. SW Luke Betchwars by maj. dec. (10-2). 119: SIM Pedro DeLao def. SW Luke Zilverberg by tech. fall (25-10). 125: SIM Cola Jensen def. SW Andrew Fogarty by fall (1:07). 130: SIM Mack Short loses to SW Tyler Dobmeier 5-4. 135: SIM Matt Kruse loses to SW Gabe Fogarty 12-5. 140: SIM Jake Short def. SW Charlie Pesch 23-9. 145: SIM Nick Wanzek def. SW Jake Siegle 10-5. 152: SIM Dan Dick def. SW Tyler Zilverberg 9-3. 160: SIM Micah Barnes def. SW Nick Dvorak 4-1. 171: SIM Joe Rief loses to SW Marty Dvorak 6-4. 189: SIM Cody Hazelett def. SW Zach Dvorak 6-4. 215: SIM Mykar Groves loses to SW Micahel Kroells by fall (2:48). 285: SIM Matt Kadrlik def. SW John Lucas by fall (5:19).
