STATE MEET: Inspired Erickson pins down crown

Boulder City’s Kyle Erickson was struggling to preserve his 2-1 lead as time ran down in the Class 3A championship bout at 285 pounds Saturday.

 

Then the thought of his ailing grandfather crossed his mind.

 

With one sudden move, Erickson spun Fernley’s Pablo Gomez on his back and pinned him with 17 seconds remaining to win the state championship at Cox Pavilion.

 

“My grandpa called me earlier and told me he’s not doing well, and he would feel a lot better if I won,” Erickson said. “That just kicked in my mind, and I did it.”

 

Four other Boulder City wrestlers had reached the finals without winning, leaving Erickson as the Eagles’ last hope for an individual title.

 

“I heard they all had lost and was like, 'It’s all on me now,’ ” he said. “But sometimes that pressure gives you extra boost.”

 

Boulder City’s runners-up were Clinton Garvin (103), Allen Haines (135), Steve Kaposta (160) and Franklin Badgely (189). The Eagles finished with 128 points for fourth place, but Erickson called it a success.

 

“I wish some of my teammates could have done better, but they just had some of those unlucky draws,” he said. “I think overall we had a good tournament. We finished higher than last year, so that was a high point for us.”

 

Also winning a title was Moapa Valley junior Shae Bryant, who earned a satisfying 9-0 victory in the 125 final. He defeated John Stralla of Sparks, who had beaten him in the state semifinals last year.

 

“Revenge is sweet,” Bryant said. “I knew he was going to be tough. I just went out there and gave it my all.”

 

Bryant, the Pirates’ only state champ, dominated his weight class, pinning his first two opponents.

 

“To be honest, I didn’t know if I was going to win or not this weekend,” he said. “I worked hard all summer and all season. That’s what it takes.”

 

Moapa Valley teammate Cyle Durham finished second at 119, while Jade Jensen of Virgin Valley was the 130 runner-up.

 

Lowry won the 3A team title, compiling 226½ points behind Skylyr Bleck, who took first at 152 for the third state championship of his career.

 

It was Lowry’s 12th team championship, matching the state record held by Eldorado, and tied this year by Battle Mountain in Class 2A.

 

Nick Wooden of Spring Creek also captured his third state title, taking first at 145.

 

Fernley and Spring Creek tied for second with 141 points.

 

In the 2A tournament, Joshua Raimist of The Meadows was the runner-up at 189.

 

Laughlin finished fourth in the team standings, getting runner-up finishes from James Minniear (130) and Cody McGishick (160).
Indian Springs also had two runners-up in Richard Raso (119) and Dakota Sargent (135).

 

In the team standings, Battle Mountain took the state championship with 157½ points, capturing its ninth title in 10 years.
Pershing County (121 points) and Incline (100) rounded out the top three.
 

Lowry 226, Fernley 141, Spring Creek 141, Boulder City 128, Yerington 100, Moapa Valley 67, Virgin Valley 47, Sparks 19, Truckee 12

103—Perry, SC, p. Garvin, BC, 1:54. 112—Tate, SC, d. Poole, Low. 119—Pollock, Low, d. Durham, MV. 125—Bryant, MV, d. Stralla, Spa. 130—Duncan, Low, d. Jensen, VV. 135—Tibbals, Yer, d. Haines, BC. 140—Billingsley, Low, d. Fisk, SC. 145—Wooden, SC, d. Ricci, Fer. 152—Bleck, Low, d. Irvin, SC. 160—Billingsley, Low, d. Kaposta, BC. 171—Estrada, Fer, d. Nelson, Low. 189—Clutts, Fer, d. Badgely, BC. 215—Underwood, Low, d. Snider, Yer. 285—Erickson, BC, d. Gomez, Fer.

Third-place Matches

103—Garcia, Fer, d. Pollock, Low. 112—Gonzales, BC, d. Brown, Yer. 119—Ramirez, Yer, d. Cooper, Truck. 125—Marley, Low, d. Tripp, SC. 130—Tanner, Yer, d. Hullinger, Fer. 135—Maga, Low, d. Crandall, VV. 140—McGrath, Fer, d. Eaton, VV. 145—Mader, BC, d. Hoyos, SC. 152—Parker, MV, d. Cota, Yer. 160—Taylor, Fer, d. Nolte, SC. 171—DeBaca, SC, d. Foster, BC. 189—Usko, SC, Anderson, Low. 215—Huxford, BC, d. Wilson, Fer. 285—Snider, Yer, d. Ramirez, Low.

Battle Mountain 157, Pershing County 121, Incline 100, Laughlin 83, White Pine 83, Eureka 63, Pahranagat Valley 55, Indian Springs 48, Rite of Passage 45, Spring Mountain 33, Silver Stage 31, Tonopah 31, Lincoln County 30, The Meadows 27, Round Mountain 22, West Wendover 10, Wells 3.

103—Gorsline, PC, d. Ruggiero, WP, 19-4. 112—Feliciano, Inc, p. Whistler, BM, 4:51. 119—Hernandez, Inc, p. Raso, IS, 5:41. 125—Cutler, RM, d. Ricci, WP, 11-9. 130—Jones, PV, p. Minniear, Lau, 4:47. 135—Lasike, PV, p. Sargent, IS, 1:21. 140—Jensen, PC, p. Combs, SS, 4:49. 145—Jones, BM, d. Williamson, PC, 2-1. 152—Serfoss, Ton, d. Vialpando, ROP, 23-7. 160—Lewis, WP, d. McGeshick, Lau, 9-3. 171—Souza, Eur, d. Wanner, PC, 5-2. 189—Ashcraft, Eur, d. Raimist, Mea, 12-0. 215—Cronin, Inc, p. Cordova, BM, 1:01. 285—Diarte, PC, d. Craw, Eur, 6-2.

103—Lattana, SM, p. Wegener, Inc, 1:53. 112—Wilson, IS, d. Burkhart, BM, default. 119—Sparks, BM, d. Craspay, PC, 9-2. 125—Thompson, BM, d. Causey, Inc, 13-3. 130—Stanton, WP, d. Navarro, Inc, 11-1. 135—Andre, BM, p. Ratliff, WW, 1:31. 140—Tanner, BM, d. Lewis, WP, 9-7. 145—Cook, Lau, d. Jones, LC, 15-7. 152—Filippini, BM, p. Lopez, ROP, 5:04. 160—Humphrey, ROP, p. Gutierrez, SM, 3:22. 171—Kruse, Lau, p. Rufty, Mea, 0:56. 189—Holley, BM, p. Hultenschmidt, PC, 0:58. 215—Little, Lau, p. Howell, SS, 3:11. 285—Miller, LC, p. Clark, BM, 1:22.