Competing at the Class 2A Western Region Tournament in Grand Junction on Feb. 14, the Dolores High School wrestling team finished ninth out of 14 teams and qualified three wrestlers for state.
"We had five guys made the podium out of the seven that we brought," said Dolores head coach Leo Garand. "Overall, I felt like we wrestled very well."
Among the Bears state qualifiers was 106-pound sophomore Brandon Ward, who continued his torrid late season run by winning all three of his matches and finished first overall. Ward defeated Dove Creek's Colin Hobbs 20-8 to capture the regional title.
"Brandon was unstoppable," said Garand. "I would not be surprised to see him in the finals or as state champ the way he is wrestling right now."
Also qualifying for state was 145-pound senior Guy Wallace, who qualified for state for the first time after winning two of his four matches and finishing fourth overall.
"Guy wrestled in one of the toughest weight classes in the state," said Garand. "He had a great day."
Rounding out the Bears state qualifiers was 113-pound freshman Austin Hackney, who won three of his five matches and finished fourth overall. Among Hackney's wins were a 9-5 victory over Mancos wrestler Rudy Archuleta and an 8-6 victory over Hotchkiss's Chris Lavato.
"Austin came out with some big surprises," Garand said. "He never gave up, and he surprised Lavato late by fighting off his back. He is peaking at the right time."
Other Dolores wrestlers who made the podium included 120-pound sophomore Tristan Medina and 170-pound senior Kellen Gatzke, who both finished sixth. Medina was forced to forfeit his final two matches after suffering a concussion and Gatzke wrestled with a broken collarbone.
"Tristan was wrestling really well and was on his way to qualifying for state," said Garand. "Kellen showed a lot of toughness and that was great."
Riley Syra finished the day with a 1-2 record and Aiden Hopcia finished the day 0-2.
Next up for Dolores will be the Colorado State Tournament, which will take place at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Feb. 19-21.
"At this point, they are in as good a shape as I can get them in," Garand said. "We're just working on technique."
Look for live coverage of the tournament will be available on the Dolores Star's Facebook page and at www.doloresstar.com. Updates will also appear on twitter @imac_34.
