Bulldog wrestlers earn sweep on opening night
<p>Sandpoint sophomore Mahonri Hunsaker lifts his Timberlake opponent in the Bulldogs’ season opening double dual on Tuesday night. (Photo by ERIC PLUMMER)</p>
SANDPOINT — Mahonri Hunsaker (138 pounds), Lewis Dunton (145), Casey Randles (160), Jacob Williams (170) and Josh Travers (220) each won twice to lead the Bulldogs to a sweep of Timberlake and Riverside in a season opening double dual on Tuesday night at Les Rogers Court.
As expected with a lineup featuring a host of freshman and sophomores, there were a lot of ups and downs, which is about what Sandpoint head coach Mike Randles was expecting.
“Our younger guys would do something great, then they’ll make a mistake,” said Randles. “We gave away 24 points by being overly aggressive.”
Randles praised the wrestling of Dunton and freshman Owen Stebbins, and though Casey posted a solid win in pinning Preston Rhodes, a senior with a lot of state experience.
On the flip side, a couple of mistakes proved costly for the Bulldogs. Tyler Brown (195) was leading 10-3 in the second period and dominating his opponent, before getting caught on his back.
Talon Egbers (285) came out aggressive in the final match of the night, body slamming his Timberlake opponent, a rare occurrence at the heavyweight level. After his opponent was checked for a concussion, Egbers again went for a pin, and ended up getting caught and pinned.
It’s all part of a learning curve that Randles expects to continue throughout the season. While there were mistakes, the overall effort was there, an encouraging sign moving forward.
“Last year we lost some of those matches by being lazy. This year we lost them by being overly aggressive,” said Randles, whose team dominated Riverside 69-9. “We’re way better than the last several years. I don’t remember the last time we hung 69 points on somebody.”
Sandpoint is at the Inland Empire Tournament on Friday and Saturday at Central Valley High School.
n SANDPOINT 43, TIMBERLAKE 36
98 — Double forfeit. 106 — Preston Bunty, Spt, by forfeit. 113 — Ryan Starr, TL, p. Scout Nash, 1:05. 120 — Dalyn Johnson, TL, p. Orlando Martin, 1:02. 126 — Addison Jansen, TL, by forfeit. 132 — Tanner McNelley, Spt, p. Dillon Grafton, 5:02. 138 — Mahonri Hunsaker, Spt, d. Justice Mills, 7-2. 145 — Lewis Dunton, Spt, md. Bradley Erickson, 11-1. 152 — Tyler Badertscher, TL, p. Owen Stebbins, :31. 160 — Casey Randles, Spt, p. Preston Rhodes, 3:38. 170 — Jacob Williams, Spt, p. Anthony Reimer, 5:00. 182 — Brock Browning, Spt, by forfeit. 195 — Andrew Hansen, TL, p. Tyler Brown, 2:16. 220 — Josh Travers, Spt, by forfeit. 285 — Clayton Rundgren, TL, p. Talon Egbers, 1:35.
n SANDPOINT 69, RIVERSIDE 9
98 — Double forfeit. 106 — Preston Bunty, Spt, p. Roach, 1:41. 113 — Nash, Spt, by forfeit. 120 — Martin, Spt, p. Pratt, :52. 126 — Scotto, RS, by forfeit. 132 — Jack Tyler, RS, d. McNelley, 6-3. 138 — Hunsaker, Spt, p. Yaws, :49. 145 — Dunton, Spt, p. Hartill, 2:10. 152 — Stebbins, Spt, p. Zale, 1:22. 160 — Randles, Spt, by forfeit. 170 — Williams, Spt, d. Wilcox, 6-4. 182 — Brown, Spt, by forfeit. 195 — Zach Alamillo, Spt, by forfeit. 220 — Travers, Spt, p. Wood, 4:37. 285 — Egbers, Spt, p. Tucker 1:41.