By Kary Booher (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Battle-tested might be the best way to describe the Carthage Tigers wrestlers this season, and it’s why longtime coach Kenneth Brown is optimistic.
“We honestly had to deal with a lot of adversity last year and went on to have a very successful season,” said Brown, noting a number of factors – football players joining the team five weeks into the season and three starters suffering season-ending injuries. “(Those issues) forced a lot of the members of this current team to have to step up and produce for the team.
“The kids did just that and demonstrated the importance of everyone on the team, not just the starters.”
Carthage returns eight starters, including five state qualifiers. But the Tigers also graduated six starters/state qualifiers off a team that was 10-1 in duals and won the Farmington Duals and tournaments/invitationals at Harrisonville, Monett and Platte County. Carthage was second at Class 4 districts.
The roster includes: sophomore Kip Castor (106), senior Carlos Reyes and freshman Bradyn Tate (113), Reyes or junior Christian Brown (120), senior Dagan Sappington (132), senior Brayden Benefiel and sophomore Lucas Jones (138), sophomore Davion King and junior Braxdon Tate (145) and senior D.J. Watt, junior Eli Sneed and sophomore Gabe Lambeth sophomore at 152.
In the upper weights, look for senior Creed Lambeth, junior Brett Rockers and sophomore Grey Pettigrew (160), sophomores Lucas Land (170) and Luke Gall (182), senior Obed Gonzalez (195), junior Kanen Vogt (220) and senior Alexis Vasquez (285) and freshman Malachi House (285). The 126-pound weight class is up for grabs.
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The returning state qualifiers are Reyes, Sappington, Tate, King and Vogt.
Reyes is only in his fourth year of wrestling and was 32-12 last year, finishing 1-2 at the state tournament.
“He has turned into a leader for us on the mat,” Brown said. “If he is able to make it back down to 113, he has a very good opportunity to make it to the third day of wrestling at state.”
Sappington reached the bubble match at state and finished 26-12 last season. He is a three-time state qualifier.
“Dagan has put in a lot of mat time since March,” Brown said. “He and Carlos has worked a lot this offseason together. He has always been a successful wrestler for us, and we just need to him to step up this year and start putting up more bonus points.”
Tate was 12-6 after a 7-0 record on junior varsity, qualifying at 106 two seasons ago. He was stuck behind Selvin Estrada and Sappington last season.
“Last season was a difficult one for Braxdon coming off a state qualifier season as a freshman. “It is going to be interesting to see who comes out on top in the fight for 145 with Davion King. I expect the loser of this to either drop to 138 or bump up to 152 to push for the starting spot.”
King was 30-14 last year, winning one state match in the 138-pound weight class.
“Davion has the ability to catch just about anyone,” Brown said. “He lifted all summer and got bigger and stronger, which is paying dividends on the football field. We’re hoping to see those same benefits on the mat this year.”
Gall suffered a broken arm in a dual against Neosho. He was 21-3 at the time.
“He lifted all summer and has put up some amazing numbers in the weight room and on the football field. He wasn’t a state qualifier last year, but I have no doubt in my mind that he would have ended up on the podium if he hadn’t been injured,” Brown said. “He beat multiple state placers last year as a freshman competing against primarily juniors and seniors.”
Vogt was 26-18 on varsity and qualified for state in the 195-pound weight class.
“Having a big guy with the ability to actually wrestle is going to allow him to have a lot of success this season,” Brown said.
Keep an eye on Castor, who reached the bubble match at the district tournament last year.
“Last year he was an undersized 106 who struggled to even get to 100 pounds,” Brown said. “This year, he is bigger and will actually have to cut down to 106, so I look for him to win those matches that he lost last year just because of his size.”
Brown also is intrigued by six wrestlers combined at the 152- and 160-pound weight classes. Gonzalez was 14-12 on varsity after spending time on JV and reached the bubble match at districts.
Overall, Carthage won’t be lacking in numbers.
“Our numbers are still through the roof,” Brown said. “I’ve got 80 kids signed up right now and I will cut it down to 70. I credit our junior high coaches for a lot of our numbers. They’ve got 93 signed up for this year.”
