WINDSOR >> Some wrestlers exceeded expectations and some didn’t, but Lower Lake High School coach Ed Fuchs gave an overall thumbs up to the Trojans’ day on the mats Saturday at the annual King of the Mat tournament in Windsor.
“We had the highest finish of any CMC (Coastal Mountain Conference) school there, so that was good news right there,” Fuchs said.
Lower Lake finished 13th out of 39 teams. Of the eight Trojans in attendance, seven won at least one match, four brought home medals in the championship bracket, another placed high in the gold bracket, and yet another won his weight class in the silver bracket.
Under the tournament format, wrestlers who lose their first match fall into the silver bracket where first- and second-place medals are available. A wrestler winning his first match but losing in the second round drops into the gold bracket where first- and second-place medals are also available. Wrestlers who don’t lose until the quarterfinals or later remain in the championship bracket where medals are awarded down to eight places in each weight division.
“So really there are medals for the top 12 places (in each weight class),” Fuchs said of the combined medals awarded in all three brackets.
Lower Lake’s top finisher was heavyweight William Isaacs, who didn’t lose until the finals against Nic Iverson of Ukiah High School. After the two wrestlers battled through a scoreless first period, Isaacs chose the down position to start the second period and was pinned a short time later by Iverson.
“That kid (Iverson) made no mistakes,” Fuchs said. “He got William onto his back and William couldn’t fight off his back.”
Iverson and Isaacs are two of the top-ranked heavyweights in the North Coast Section and could very well meet again at the sectional tournament.
“The top four heavyweights (in the section) are all pretty close,” Fuchs said. “I think any of them could take it on a given day.”
Isaacs did notch two more pins at Windsor, moving him closer to the school record for most career pins.
The next best finish by a Lake County wrestler went to Clear Lake High School’s Julian Lewis, who ended up third in the championship bracket at 220 pounds. Lewis pinned his way into the semifinals before losing his only match. He battled back to take third and run his season record to 17-5.
Lower Lake’s Weeden Wetmore placed fifth at 220 pounds. He won his first two matches before falling in the quarterfinals, but rallied for the fifth-place medal.
“He hit that switch and wrestled well,” Fuchs said. “It was nice to see.”
Lower Lake also picked up a seventh-place medal at 126 pounds where Daniel Meyer beat the No. 2 seed by 13-5 decision in the seventh-place match. He also scored a technical fall over Upper Lake’s Zack Sneathen earlier in the tournament.
Meyer had a chance for a higher medal before losing an 8-7 lead in the final seconds of another consolation match. According to Fuchs, his opponent turned him at the last second and pinned him.
“He blew me away with how well he wrestled,” Fuchs said of Meyer. “He had a great day.”
Two other Lower Lake wrestlers, Gabe Freeman and Brendan Maninger, secured medals in the gold and silver brackets, respectively. Freeman lost his second match of the day at 138 pounds and came back to finish second in the gold bracket. Brendan Maninger lost his first match of the day at 152 pounds but rallied to win the championship in the silver bracket.
Looking back on the tournament, Fuchs said many of the losses incurred by his wrestlers could prove beneficial down the road, such as at the sectional tournament.
“If they learn from their mistakes, it could be a positive thing later on,” Fuchs said.
Lower Lake opens its CMC dual season on Wednesday against Middletown and St. Helena in Middletown. Action starts at 5 p.m.
