Wrestlers fare well at CMR Classic

The Malta Mustangs wrestling team ended the year with a slam at the CMR Holiday Classic. The event went from Friday, December 20, to Saturday, December 21.

The event featured 58 teams from across the state and at every Montana High School Association classification from AA to C. Malta was 31st out of 58.

Senior Callan Mears led the team, as the only athlete that qualified for more varsity action by going 2-1 on Friday in the 160 class. Mears would place seventh in the varsity meet.

"We had a shot of about four kids making it into that varsity bracket last Saturday with Cameron Mikesell, Camryn Mears and Dre Oshio being in that final round of the varsity tournament on Friday night," Malta wrestling Head Coach Steve French said. "They had a good chance to win those matches but they ended up losing them."

Though the bracket is called the JV bracket, it still featured some of the toughest wrestlers in the state, so Coach French was still encouraged by the competition.

"It's not a bad thing when they could go to the JV tournament and pick up a lot of matches," Coach French said.

Cam Mears, a freshman, took first place in the JV meet's 152-pound class.

"He just keeps listening and he keeps getting better," Coach French said. "When he wrestles, he is a freshman, he will make mistakes, but when you talk to him, the next time he has cured things up."

Fellow freshman Tye Jones would also take home first place in the Freshmen JV 160 class. Jones was voted the wrestler of the week by the coaches.

"Tye Jones had made some strides lately," Coach French said. "He didn't get to wrestle the first week because he was sick. He didn't look as good last week, but he has got a lot of effort, a lot of try and he is trying to get better."

Jones also had a quick pin of 24 seconds after he landed a double leg takedown to a half nelson on one of his opponents.

Spencer Gibbs was third in the Freshmen JV 152 pound class, and Dre Oshio was fourth in the Freshmen JV 205 pound class.

Cam Mears went 7-2 last weekend, Cam Mikesell went 3-4, Gibbs went 4-3, Zac Judd went 2-2, Cal Mears went 4-2, Kendall Moore was 2-4, Tye Jones was 3-0, Colt French went 2-2, and Oshio went 3-4.