Cowboys host dual meet tourney Saturday

MEEKER I The No. 2-ranked 2A Meeker Cowboys wrestling team will host seven teams Saturday for a dual meet tournament, starting at 9:30 a.m.
All the Cowboys got on the mat last week, when they wrestled in Palisade against the host Bulldogs and the Hotchkiss Bulldogs, losing to the former and beating the latter, then nine Cowboys, mostly JV, competed in a tournament in Grand Junction on Saturday, claiming several champions.
“We wrestled pretty well,” head coach J.C. Watt said.
The Cowboys gave up three forfeits to Palisade, won seven of 11 matches and lost the dual 35-31. Meeker won six of eight matches against Hotchkiss and won the match 50-16.
Tristin Pelloni (113), J.C. Henderson (138), Casey Turner (145) and Tyler Ilgen (285) won both of their matches in Palisade. Dillan Frantz (152), Devon Pontine (160) and T.J. Shelton (170) only wrestled one match and won. Kylloe Goedert (126) and Aaron Cochran (132) each won one and lost one. Sheridan Harvey (106) and Calvin Shepherd both lost their matches.
In Grand Junction, Goedert and Cochran both won their brackets as did Anthony Watt (145).
Coach Watt said Frantz and teammate Jake Henderson tied for first place “in an epic 22-22 match.”
Hunter Garcia finished third in his bracket and Caleb Bradford was fourth. Nick Burri and Cody Nielsen each won a match but did not place.
Wrestlers from Hayden, Coal Ridge, Grand Valley, Glenwood Springs, Rifle, South Routt County (Soroco) and Battle Mountain will be in Meeker on Saturday for the tournament. Teams will be split into two pools and each team will duals the other three teams in their pool, and each team will get one additional dual, wrestling between the two pools.
Matches start at 9:30 a.m.
“We hope to have a lot of community support again,” coach Watt said.