DOVE CREEK – Last year, the San Juan Basin League sent over 20 athletes to the Ball Arena mats for the 2A state championship tournament. Among those, 11 came from Mancos and Dove Creek, while Dolores narrowly missed out on sending even more.
With the lion’s share of those athletes returning for their respective programs this winter, the Bluejays, Bulldogs and Bears envision another send-off parade is coming in February.
A pair of local athletes graced the podium at the 2A state championships last February, with Mancos senior Brandon Vannest and Dove Creek sophomore Teagan Larimore both earning top-six finishes.
“The ultimate goal is to get kids on the podium at state,” said DC head coach Colten Huskey, “but every week we’re wanting to see the kids set individual goals that they’re going for, as well.”
The Bulldogs will field a squad of five wrestlers this winter, with Larimore leading a group that also includes 2024 state qualifiers Frankey Montoya and Cael Beanland.
Dove Creek fends their way through some of their preholiday action, including a trip to Montrose over the weekend of Dec. 13-14, with the ambition of building momentum for the championship portion of the schedule.
“We want to get as much good mat time as possible, and the best thing to help gain confidence is to get those opportunities at these tournaments and duels,” added Huskey. Dove Creek will enjoy their home meet on Jan. 16.
Mancos returns several state qualifiers from their eight-man convoy to state last year, led by Brandon and Colten Vannest. Both are no stranger to the bright lights of Ball Arena, while Jacob Martin and Teagan Mestas aim for a return visits as well.
The Jays continue their status as a 2A power – capping last year with the SJBL title and a top-10 team finish at state – while welcoming in first-year head coach Travis White to lead the way.
Mancos hits the road to join DC in Montrose before both squads head to John Mall HS in Walsenburg for the Pete and Ina Gomez Tournament in their final action of 2024. The Bluejays will take to their home mat on Jan. 24 for home duel action.
Dolores continues their climb up the standings in the SJBL, with head coach Casen Eldridge bringing back the top Bear performers from a year ago, with an extra year of experience under their belts. Sophomore River Wickstrom and junior Nathan Hill enjoyed plenty of wins during a year of growth for the Bears program, and look to take the next steps this year.
DHS hosts their home duels on Dec. 18, while also heading to Price and Manti (Utah) for tournaments on consecutive weekends before the holiday break.
For the SJBL schools, the Bluejays hope to defend their league title on Thursday, Jan. 23 in Ignacio, before the schools return to Bobcat territory for the 2A Regional competition on Feb. 7-8. The top four individuals in each weight division will advance to Denver for the 2A state championships over the weekend of Feb. 13-15.
