DES MOINES – Today’s action at Wells Fargo begins at 6 p.m. with six Bloodhound wrestlers competing in second-round consolation, followed by one in quarterfinal wrestling in the championship bracket.
Ike Thacher at 195 lbs. is the lone wrestler qualifying for the quarters. Thacher got a bye in round one and then pinned Marshalltown’s Johan Gomez in the Round of 16. Thacher, seeded 6th, will take on Dreshaun Ross, a freshman out of Fort Dodge and the No. 3 seed in the tournament. Ross is 41-2 on the year.
That quarterfinal match will take place after 2nd round consolation wrestling concludes. With a win, Thacher would move to the semifinals. With a loss, the junior Bloodhound would slip into fourth-round consolation wrestlebacks.
In 2nd-round consolation, Noah Swigart will be the first Bloodhound on the mat Thursday. Swigart lost in first round wrestling at 120 lbs., drawing a No. 24 seed putting the sophomore up against a 9th seed. Thursday's 2nd round consolation match isn’t much better with 10th-seed JJ Maihan, an Ankeny senior (24-12). A win would move Swigart to the third round of consolation, also being wrestled Thursday night.
Next up would be No. 8-seed Logan Pennock at 126. Pennock had a frustrating Round-of-16 match with Jashua Anglo, a Johnston sophomore. Pennock had to be evaluated for a concussion midway through the match, which also had multiple blood stoppages, before falling 15-4.
His first match Thursday night will be against 10th-seed Alex Bumba, a junior from Cedar Rapids Prairie. Bumba is 32-16 on the year, while Pennock sports a 39-12 record.
A win here would move Pennock into 3rd-round consolation and a loss would end Pennock’s run.
Fort Madison’s Nolan Riddle just missed making the quarterfinals in a heartbreaker in the Round of 16. Riddle, an 11th seed, had 6th-seed Dom Rumino of Waukee Northwest’s shoulders almost to the mat as time expired, resulting in a 12-9 loss for the Hound. Riddle will face Dallas Center-Grimes’ senior Luke Benson (26-12).
A loss would end a stellar season for Riddle, and a win would move him into third-round consolation wrestling.
FMHS senior Aidan Pennock also suffered a tough loss in his opening-round match after having Urbandale’s Hunter Bagby almost locked up in the first period, but Pennock couldn’t capitalize on the move and ended up suffering a pin in the second period.
Pennock, the 19th seed wrestling at 152 lbs., will take on Dallas Center-Grimes’ Ethan Riesselman, a 20th-seed senior with a 29-17 record. A loss ends Pennock’s run, while a win moves him to 3rd-round consolation.
Junior Teague Smith just missed getting into a sudden overtime in his Round-of-16 match Thursday. He couldn’t separate from a hold despite getting to his feet at the end of his match with Johnston’s Kaia Fox Wednesday.
Smith, a 6th seed, will take on Jace Fullhart of Spencer in early wrestling Thursday night. A win moves him to 3rd-round consolation and a loss would end his first-ever run at Wells Fargo.
Senior Daniel Sokolik, wrestling in his second straight state tourney, won in first-round action to move to the Round of 16 but was pinned there at 220 lbs. He moves to 2nd-round consolation and will face West Des Moines Valley’s Jacob Moeller, a 19th-seed carrying a 29-21 record. With a loss Sokolik will be eliminated, and a win moves him into 3rd-round consolation wrestling.
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