Racine Park/Horlick Wrestling
Dec 3rd at Nicolet Knight Scramble
All of the Park wrestlers placed at or above their seed at the Nicolet Knight Scramble where the Panthers finished in 7th place as a team. Park was led by freshman JoJo Mendoza at 113 lbs who placed 2nd at the tourament. Mendoza had a 3-2 record on the day with a tech fall and major decision. In the finals, he lost to Jalen Spuler of Hartford who was a Kids Folkstyle State Champ last year. Isaiah Dobbs at 182 lbs finished 3rd, also going 3-2 on the day, finishing with 3 pins on the day while improving his record to 4-2 on the year. Freshman DeShaun Bolten finished 4th at 126 lbs for Park with a tech fall and a pin on day. Bolten is now 3-3 for the year. Ethan Weaver(132 lbs), Austin Siegal(145 lbs), and Abbel Anderson all finished in 5th for Park. Michael Nielson finished 3-2 on the day, taking 7th with 2 pins on the day.
Dec. 8th vs Oak Creek(box score)
The Panther wrestlers were overmatched in a SEC dual as Oak Creek flexed their muscles with a 69-12 victory over Park. Park gave up multiple forfeits on the night as they scored only 2 wins on the evening. Park did have a few bright spots, however. Freshman JoJo Mendoza at 113 lbs improved 4-3 on the year with a dominiating performance. He was on his way to a technical fall when he recorded his 1st ever pin. The other lone winner for Park was Isaiah Dobbs at 182 lbs. Dobbs improved to 5-2 on the year with his 4th pin of the year.
Dec. 10 at Whitewater Invite
Led by freshman Jojo Mendoza at 113 lbs and Ethan Weaver at 132 lbs, the Panthers took 7th place at the Whitewater Invite. Mendoza took 2nd in the tournament losing to fellow SEC wrestler Cole Ramos of Bradford in the final. Mendoza was scoring at will most of the day, recording 2 technical fall victories and pin. Mendoza improved to 7-4 on the season. Ethan Weaver had his best day as a Panther to this point. The junior went 4-1 on the day improving to 5-6 on the year. He had a tech fall to go along with a pin on his way to a 6th place finish. Also having a successful day was heavyweight Tre Williams, going 3-2 while finishing 3rd on the day and evening his record at 3-3 for the season. Finishing in 4th place for the Panthers were DaShaun Bolton, Abbel Anderson, and Isaiah Dobbs.
Dec. 15th vs Tremper
The Panthers closed out the first half of the dual season with a 57-24 loss to Tremper in The Pit. Isaiah Dobbs got the Panthers off on the right foot for the night with a pin in the 2nd period. He was domininating his opponent at the time while improving his record on the year to 8-4. Tre Williams and Aderion Adkisson would earn forfeit victories for Park at 285 and 106, respectively. At 113, freshman JoJo Mendoza came out of the gate ready to pummel his opponent, and that's what he did. Mendoza had 4 takedowns before earning the pin in :51. Mendoza improved to 8-4 on the year. Austin Seigal pulled out a last second escape in his match at 145 lbs to send it to overtime, but fell 5-3. The powerful Tremper lineup was able to subdue the rest of the Panther lineup the rest of the match.
Dec 29th & 30th at Oshkosh On The Water
Tre Williams went 5-2 at 285 lbs to lead the Panthers at the prestigious 65 team Oshkosh On The Water Tournament. Facing some of the toughest competition the state has to offer, Williams finished in 6th place. After a quick pin the preliminary round, Williams beat conference foe Ben Simar from Indian Trails 6-4 with a takedown on the edge of the mat with less than 10 seconds remaining. For a chance to move into the quarterfinals and a sure Top 12 finish, Tre beat a good opponent from Andrews(IL) High School 3-2. After falling in his next match to the top ranked wrestler in D2, Tre beat 2 ranked opponents by fall. Williams closed out his tournament by losing a touch match to the top ranked heavyweight in D3. Williams improved to 9-5 on the season. The surprise of the tournament for Park was Austin Siegal at 145 lbs. Despite coming into the tournament with a losing record, Siegal pulled off 2 big upsets. In the preliminary round, Siegal was down 3-1 with 10 seconds left and caught his opponent Bryan Jordan(16-5) from West Allis Hale in a cradle to get a 3 point near fall and the win 4-3. In the next round facing Jimmy Intribus(12-4) from Waupaca, Siegal kept rolling and recorded a pin. In his next match, he face the #1 seed which was too much to overcome and Siegal lost. He won his next by pin before bowing out the tournament having gone 3-2 at the OTW and improving his record on the year to 6-12 at 145 lbs. Jojo Mendoza also went 3-2 at the tournament improving to 11-6 on the year. After winning his first 2 matches, Mendoza lost a close 9-7 decision to the #4 ranked wrestler in D1. After winning his next match 12-7, Mendoza lost and was eliminated from the tournament. Park finished in 45th place and with 58.5 points, the 2nd most they have ever scored in the tournament.
Jan. 5th vs Bradford(box score)
The Panthers were outmuscles in their SEC dual meet vs Bradford that was held in The Pit. Park was downed 59-15 by a Red Devil team that has several talented starters capable of placing at the State Tournament. Picking up a win for the Panther matmen was Dominic Ford at 160 lbs, who won a close 6-5 decision. It was Fords' 2nd SEC win of the year. At 182 lbs, Isaiah Dobbs made quick work of his opponent getting a first period pin, his 8th of the year. The senior improved to 11-6 on the year. At 285 lbs, Tre Williams continued his recent tear getting a first period pin as well, his 6th of the year. Williams improved to 10-5 on the year.
Jan. 12th vs Franklin(box score)
Park lost 46-25 to Franklin on the road in an SEC dual. The Panthers were down 29-0 before scoring their first points of the dual. Tre Williams got Park on the board with a 5-2 decision at 285 lbs. The match was tight throughout, but Williams got a late takedown and a 2 pt nearfall as time wound down in the match. Williams improved to 11-5 for the year. At 113 lbs, Jojo Mendoza used 6 takedowns to score a major decision over Josh Finerty of Franklin. The final score was 14-6 as Mendoza improved to 12-7 on the year. Austin Seigal at 145 lbs continued his strong performances recently by getting 2 takedowns and stacking his opponent and getting a first period pin. Siegal improved to 7-13 on the year with his 5th pin of the season. Ending the dual at 152 lbs, Abbel Anderson came out strong and overpowered his opponent in a tense match. The senior notched his 3rd pin of the season while improving his record to 5-13 in a match that he controlled from the start.
Jan 14th at Badger Invite
Isaiah Dobbs led Park at the Badger Invite by going 4-1 on the day. As a team, Park finished 7th at the tournament. Park only brought 5 wrestlers to the tournament for various reasons. Wrestling at 182 lbs, Dobbs lost his first match of day, but then reeled off 4 straight wins to finish the day. He finished with 3 pins and a technical fall on the day. The senior improved to 15-8 on the year. Junior Austin Siegal, 152 lbs, went 3-2 on the day and finished in 7th place. Siegal had 3 pins on the day and improved to 10-15 on the day. DeShaun Bolten had the highest finish of the Park contingent, finishing in 3rd place. Bolten went 3-2 on the day at 126 lbs with a major decision and a pin on the day. The freshman improved to 9-14 on the year. Perhaps in the toughest bracket of the tournament, Jojo Mendoza went 2-3 on the day and finished in 4th place. Mendoza, wrestling at 113 lbs, had a major decision and a fall. All 3 of Mendoza's losses came to kids ranked in the state. He lost 3-2 to Jake Stritesky(#6) of Badger 3-2 and Wyatt Thlel(Honorable Mention) of Sun Prairie 10-8. Ethan Weaver, at 132 lbs, picked up his 6th and 7th wins on the year, including a fall and finished in 7th place.
Jan 19th at Case(box score)
The Panther wrestling team earned it's first SEC victory of the season, beating Case 41-35 in an intercity dual. With many JV wrestlers thrust into the lineup, the Park wrestlers scratched and clawed for every point in a dual that figured to go to the wire. The meet started with Park forfeiting 285 lbs and Case forfeiting 106 lbs, making the dual 6-6. Before the meet, bonus points were stressed to the wrestlers, and they did not disappoint. At 113 lbs, Jojo Mendoza started with 2 quick takedowns before pining Joshua Leonard in the 1st period, making the scored 12-6. At 120 lbs, Devyn Gruender gave it all she could and fought off her back for most of the match before being pinned in the 2nd period making the score 12-12. At 126 lbs, Joshua Dartell almost had a quick takedown in the first period but was outmatched by Josiah Aguillar who has more experience and was pinned at the end of the 1st making the team score 18-12. At 132 lbs, junior Ethan Weaver started fast and finished strong against Julian Cintron. Jumping out to a 7-0 lead after the 1st period, he quickly scored 2 takedowns in the 2nd before securing the pin to even the score at 18-18. At 138 lbs, Marcellus Stills, making his varsity debut, fought hard to stay off his back and only gave up a technical fall, saving the team a valuable team point. The score was now 23-18 in favor of Case. At 145 lbs, Austin Seigal evened Park back up with a tech fall of his own, beating Zach Mano 15-0 quickly to make the team score even again at 23-23. This was the start of a run that would earn Park the victory. At 152 lbs, Abbel Anderson scored a 1st period pin to put the Panthers on top 29-23. At 160 lbs, Dominic Ford won a thrilling overtime victory 9-6. After riding his opponent out in the first :30 second tiebreaker, Ford was able to get an escape and a last second takedown to put the Panthers in contol at 32-23. It was a pivotal victory. In a shrewd move by Head Coach Jon Burdick, 170 lber Jarrel Campbell and 182 lber Isaiah Dobbs were moved up a weight to try and save team points. After a victroy by Case at 170 lbs making the score 32-29, Jarrel Campbell stepped in at 182 lbs and scored 6 takedowns on his way to a 12-7 vicotory which gave Park a 35-29 lead. Isaiah Dobbs was bumped up to 195 lbs only needing to earn a victory to secure the win for the Panthers. Dobbs did better than that, scoring 3 quick takedowns in the 1st period before putting Caleb Novine on his back for the pin making the score 41-29. Park forfeited at 220 lbs making the final 41-35.
Jan. 26 vs Horlick(box score)
The Panther wrestling team closed out the conference dual season with a loss to crosstown rival Horlick 41-33. The dual started at 220 lbs, where senior Isaiah Dobbs moved up 2 weight classes. Dobbs came out firing on all cylinders scoring multiple takedowns and near fall points before securing his 13th pin on the year to put Park up 6-0. Dobbs improved to 17-8 on the year. After losses at the next 3 weights, freshman Jojo Mendoza scored 6 takedowns in the first period before notching his 6th pin of the year at 120 lbs and improving to 16-10. DeShaun Bolten won by forfeit an evened the score at 18-18. Ethan Weaver stepped on the mat at 132 lbs and lost a close decision 8-5, putting Horlick up 21-18. After a loss at 138 lbs, Austin Seigal stepped up at 145 lbs. Seigal wrestled tough and had Jason Cihler of Horlick on his back in what would have been a big upset, however Cihler was able to wiggle free and score an 8-5 victory. At 152 lbs, Abbel Anderson wrestled tough before bowing to Horlick State Qualifier Subhan Umar. At 160 lbs, Dominic Ford got the Panthers back in the victory column scoring a thrilling victory over Horlick's Ethan Gegare. Scoring a barrage of takedowns late in the match after trailing for most of it, the freshman scored a 15-11 decision to improve to 4-3 in SEC duals this season. At 170 lbs, Jarrel Campbell closed out the matches for the night with a loss to a more experienced wrestler. 2 forfeit victories for Park at 182 lbs and 195 lbs closed out the scoring on the evening.
Feb. 4th at Southeast Conference Tournament
Park was the host for this years SEC Tournament, but the home mats were not kind to the Panthers. The Panthers struggled throughout the day culminating in a disappointing 8th place finish. Leading the was for Park was freshman Jojo Mendoza. Mendoza went 3-1 on the day to improve to 19-11 on the year. After dispatching his 1st round opponent with a tech fall, Mendoza lost to Cole Ramos of Bradford in the semi's. Mendoza pinned Josh Finerty of Franklin in the wrestlebacks before winning a thrilling overtime match vs Horlick's Antonio Puentes in the 3rd place match. Freshman DeShaun Bolten took 4th while notching 2 pins on the day. Senior Isaiah Dobbs took 4th and went 2-2 at 182 lbs and is currently 19-10 on the year.
Feb. 11th at Regionals
Angel Rodriguez, DeShaun Bolten, and Isaiah Dobbs all advanced to next weeks Sectional Tournament at Burlington to give them a chance to go to the State Individual Tournament. Rodriguez, wrestling at 106 lbs, won his last 3 matches of the day after losing his opening round match to finish in 4th place. The very undersized freshman tallied 2 pins in the wrestlebacks to give him a chance at the 4th place match where he was in control the entire match and beat Union Grove's Zach Meyers 12-7. Rodriguez came into the meet only having 5 matches on the year, but improved to 4-6. DeShaun Bolten took 3rd at 126 lbs. After an opening round win that saw him pile up 21 points, he moved onto the semi's. He had Abel Castillo from Bradford on his back early, but couldn't close out the match and eventually was defeated. In his 3rd place match he pinned Tremper's Avry Nichols quickly in the 1st period, setting up a wrestleback to go for 2nd place. The freshman was beaten in the 2nd place match, finishing in 3rd. Bolten is 14-20 on the year. At 182 lbs, Isaiah Dobbs won his first round match by fall, before falling in his semi final match and the 3rd place match. This set up a wrestleback for 4th place with a trip to Sectionals on the line. In what turned out to be a tightly contested match, Dobbs pulled out a takedown in the final 4 seconds of the match to win 12-10 over Case's Caleb Novine. Finishing 5th for Park was Jojo Mendoza in perhaps one of the toughest Regional brackets in the state. The freshman finishes his season 20-14. Junior Austin Seigal finish 5th at 145 lbs for Park, finishing with a record of 14-20 for the year. Michael Nielson, wrestling for the first time in over a month, finished in 5th and ended the season 5-12.
Feb. 18th at Sectionals
The Park season came to an end at Sectionals. The Panthers had 3 wrestlers qualify for Sectionals, but none were able to advance to the State Tournament. Freshman Angel Rodriguez at 106 lbs and senior Isaiah Dobbs both lost in the 1st round and ended their day. At 126 lbs, freshman DeShaun Bolten won his first match of the day, but lost in the semi-finals to Abel Castillo of Bradford and then lost in the 3rd place match to finish in 4th place.
Dec 1st at Indian Trail(box score)
The Panthers split the matches that were actually wrestled with ITA 4-4, but forfeits were the downfall as Park fell 50-21 in the away dual. The meet started with Park forfeiting 113. Up next at 120 lbs was freshman JoJo Mendoza making his varsity debut. Mendoza lost 9-0 to Ben Stevenson, last years Kids Folkstlye State Champ. A 126 lbs, freshman DeShawn Bolten made an impressive debut by quickly taking down his opponent and pinning him in 36 seconds. At 138 Ethan Weaver lost to Cole Nelson. At 145, Abbel Anderson was able to outlast Joeseph Hughes 11-7 to pick up another Panther victory. At 152, Austin Siegal dropped a 13-3 decision to Leo Kizer. At 160, another Park freshman came out vicotorious at Dominic Ford posted a 10-8 victory over Cameron Spencer. At 182 lbs, Isaiah Dobbs was in a high scoring match that featured a lot of back and forth between both wrestlers. Dobbs came out victorious 20-15. Park forfeited 195, 220, and 285. Ending the night at 106 was freshman Aderion Adkisson who lost his first ever wrestling match to a more experienced wrestler.