In the toughest region in 2A wrestling, the Mancos Bluejays held more than held their own – they flourished.
In the two-day event hosted by Hayden, the Bluejays flattened opponents and stockpiled team points, taking third place in the region with 186.5 points, thanks to eight state-qualifying individual performances.
Four different Jays took regional titles in their weight divisions, while four others took top-four spots to earn their way to the state championships next weekend at Ball Arena in Denver.
Senior Isaiah Martinez, juniors Levi Martin and Cole Dainty-Guilfoyle, and sophomore Brandon Vannest took home top honors in their weight divisions, while Ayden Mathews, Jacob Martin, Colten Vannest, and Elliot Sam also punched tickets to the state’s premier competition.
Under first-year head coach Ty Penning, the Bluejays maintained their cutting edge throughout the weekend’s proceedings, steadily advancing through the brackets to continue their mission.
Martinez opened the festive weekend for the Jays, requiring less than a minute in two of his four matches to win via pin, before controlling his match with Platte Canyon’s Andrew Hannigan in the regional title match at 120 pounds and winning 14-5.
The 2021 state champion, Levi Martin, punched his third straight ticket to the finals field, heading to the 132-pound bracket after cruising to the semifinals before needing to go to the third period to topple North Fork’s Peyton Armstrong. Martin then edged Meeker’s Trae Kennedy, 7-3, in the title match.
Brandon Vannest will make his state debut in style, grinding out a pair of six-minute matches in the 138-pound class, including a thrilling 3-1 win over North Fork’s Charlie Miller in the final to propel the sophomore to the Ball Arena floor.
Maybe no Bluejays wrestler was more dominant than Dainty-Guilfoyle, who pinned four competitors in four tries, winning the 175 crown over Nucla’s Arthur Connelly with his second period pin.
The regional champs ignited the day, but the fun just started for Penning’s squad, as Mathews battled his way to the finals in the 165-pound division, outscoring North Fork’s Jakob Carver 13-6 in the semifinal before dropping the title match to settle for the regional runner-up spot.
In the heavyweight class, junior Elliott Sam rallied from a championship semifinal defeat to win both the consolation semifinal and third-place match via pins to take a top-three spot and his first-ever appearance in the state finals.
Meanwhile, Jacob Martin and Colten Vannest both needed late drama to add their names to the state qualifying roster. Martin, competing at 144, had to top Dolores’ Braden Schmittel, 8-3, in the consolation semifinal, before taking down Ignacio’s Keaton McCoy via pin at 3:33 to take the fourth and final spot.
Vannest also needed to rebound his way through the wrestlebacks at 190 pounds, topping Bo Ives of North Fork in the consolation semifinal to earn his first state appearance with a fourth-place finish and fill out the list of Bluejays who will make the trip to Denver Feb. 16-18.
Dove Creek junior Tyson Beanland also will represent Southwest Colorado at the state championships. The Bulldog battled back from a semifinal loss to win back-to-back matches in the consolation semifinal and third place matches with first period pins. He will wrestle at 150 pounds in the state championships.
Dolores senior Braden Schmittel came closest to sending a Bear to the state championship mats, winning three matches in the regional tournament, but dropping his last wrestleback match with to fall just short of the final qualifying spot.
Meanwhile, in the 3A regionals at Basalt High School, four Montezuma-Cortez M-CHS wrestlers finished in fifth place, with Ryan Pipkin (138), Marcus Harris (175), Hunter Goodall (190), and Jasper Gilliland (215), all coming within one spot of the coveted state appearance.
Regional champs North Fork (253 points) and runner-up Meeker (249.5 points) join the Bluejays in the state title team race heading into the weekend’s action. Opening-round matches get underway Thursday, with each weight division’s field of 16 working toward the championship action on Saturday on the state’s biggest stage.
