After three days of tough wrestling at the Colorado State Wrestling Tournament, two Dolores High School seniors will be returning home with hardware.

Upton fights to third place finish

Leading the way for the Bears in his final high school tournament, 182-pound senior Ethen Upton wrestled tough, finishing third overall in the state.

Beginning action on Feb. 22 against Fowler High School's Blaine Larson (26-6), Upton recorded a 4-2 victory.

With the win, Upton moved into the consolation finals where he met Hayden High School's Taylor Lewis with third place on the line.

After pulling ahead of Lewis 4-0 in the first period, Upton continued to apply pressure, puling ahead 6-0 by the end of the second and 10-4 after the third.

"It definitely was a great tournament," said Upton. "Coming out of my tough semifinals loss and coming back to take third feels pretty great."

With the win, Upton concluded his final season of high school wrestling with an impressive 22-4 record.

Valdez places fourth at state

Also competing in his final high school tournament, Bears' 145-pound senior Deano Valdez wrestled his way to the podium, placing fourth overall.

After defeating Center High School's Jeremiah Moreno (24-2) 3-1 to begin the day on Feb. 22, Valdez defeated Burlington High School's Madison Grinnan 7-6 to move into the consolation finals.

Wrestling against Merino High School's Leon Johnson with third place on the line, Valdez lost 8-4 in a hotly contested match.

With the loss, Valdez concluded his season with a 33-9 record.

Martinez bows out of state tournament

Looking to advance through the consolation bracket, Bears' 113-pound freshman Richard Martinez lost his only match on Feb. 22, falling 12-1 to Rocky Ford's Jeremy Fraser.

With the loss, Martinez concluded his season with a 31-13 overall record.

A full recap of the Bears' state tournament action, along with several pictures of Dolores High School wrestlers in action, will appear in the Feb. 27 edition of the Dolores Star.