By Pat Dailey (For OzarkSportsZone.com)
JOPLIN — Neosho gave notice Saturday it could be on the verge of starting another streak of COC Tournament championships.
Three years removed from a nine-year run as COC champions, the Wildcats are COC champs again. They took the team title by 48.5 points and did so with none of their five individual champions being seniors.
Neosho totaled 280 points, while Ozark was second with 231.5 and Willard third with 170.5.
Winning championships for the Wildcats were Marztian Ioanis at 106 pounds, Carter Howard at 157, Lincoln Howard at 165, Kaymen Rhone at 175 and Chase Kivett at 190.
“This is big for us,” Rhone said. “We had a young team last year. To see our growth, I’m pretty sure coach (Jeremy) Phillips is proud of us.”
“Last year, we had a couple kids out sick (for the COC Tournament),” Lincoln Howard said. “This year, we were strong and ready.”
Rhone (31-8) edged Ozark’s Dayton Moison 7-5 in their title tilt.
“This was a good win for me,” Rhone said. “I wrestled (Moison) last summer at an MU camp and he beat me. He pinned me in the second period. I was ready to get back a loss.”
Rhone rallied from a 3-2 deficit at the start of the third period. Upon taking the lead, he lost track of the score and thought it was 5-all.
“Honestly, I thought the match was tied and I was ready to go to overtime,” Rhone said. “I was really locked in. I wasn’t thinking about (the score). I was trying to get turns. I didn’t know (the score) until the last :20 when I saw it was 7-5. That definitely took a lot of stress off my chest.”
Lincoln Howard gained a sense of redemption by winning by majority decision 16-4 versus Nixa’s Owen Diemoz in their title tilt.
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When they met at the Winnetonka Tournament last weekend, Howard won by fall. But that tells only part of the story.
“I was down 0-10 to him at Winnetonka. He got a takedown and I got on my back. It was a bad situation,” Howard said. “I came back and got a cradle and pinned him. It was a wakeup call. This match was a lot different.”
Ioanis (28-14) won at 106 by technical fall in 3:49 against Ozark’s Frankie Pichler.
Carter Howard (39-3), who won at 144 last year, downed Nixa’s Kaden Young by majority decision 14-5 at 157.
Kivett (36-3) beat Wilalrd’s Alex Nunez 9-4 in the 190 final.
Willard has four champions crowned
Of the four repeat COC Tournament champions, three of them were Willard’s Noah Rogers, Porter Talbot and Brady Griffin.
Caleb Caldwell, at 144, gave the Tigers four champions.
“I’m pumped to see our team succeed today, especially the seniors coming in and having a good time in their last COC,” Talbot said.
Talbot (31-2) renewed acquaintances with Ozark’s Ruben Arvizu (33-8) in the 215 final and picked up a pin in :54.
It was their third matchup this season, in addition to several matches against each other last season.
“It’s a fun matchup,” Talbot said. “We have wrestled each other so much. We both know each other. After going back and forth a million times, it means a little more. It makes it more exciting. He’s a great kid, a great competitor. I love his sportsmanship. Before and after matches, we say hi to each other and congratulate each other. I’ve loved having him around.
“He was definitely the strongest guy I wrestled today. I kind of just got lucky with a quick pin,” Talbot added. “He’s an opponent I still need to watch out for.”
Griffin (31-4) also won by pin in the 285 final. He recorded a fall in 4:42 against Everson Tomlinson, of Neosho.
Rogers (30-4) won at 150 by beating Nixa’s Reed Wilson 7-2 in their title tilt.
Caldwell downed Teagon Patterson, of Ozark, 9-2 in the 144 final. In the semifinal round, Caldwell (20-4) edged Fisher Butler, of Neosho, 2-1.
Carthage duo take back-to-back titles
Carthage’s Tanner Putt claimed the 120 championship and then watched teammate Caden Groom capture the 126 title.
They’ve been practice partners for two years.
“We’ve been working toward this for a while,” Putt said. “We wanted to be COC champs together. We succeeded. There was no doubt in my mind we weren’t going to lose.”
“(Putt) has helped me become the wrestler I am now,” Groom said. “I’m thankful to have him.”
Putt (22-5) pinned Joseph Garner, of Lebanon in 1:27 in the 120 final. In their most recent meeting last month, Garner shut out Putt 3-0.
“I hadn’t been wrestling my best. I hadn’t been doing the routine I was supposed to be doing. That was a big part of it,” Putt said of his loss to Garner. “I really wanted to put it on him today. I went out and got it done.”
Putt is eyeing Class 4 District 3 in three weeks and a possible matchup with Branson’s Ryzen Isringhausen, a state champion at 106 last year who is undefeated at 120 this season.
“Ryzen is next,” Putt said. “I’m going to get Ryzen in two weeks. I’m ready for him.”
Groom (27-2) came back from a 4-0 deficit to edge Ozark’s Keaton Hurst 5-4 in their 126 title tilt.
“First period, I was a little skittish,” Groom said. “I didn’t want to shoot and get caught. I waited it out, got the opportunity and won. I knew it was going to come down to us and whoever wanted it more.”
Hensley becomes Glendale’s first COC champ
Glendale’s Chance Hensley was a surprising champion at 138 only because he was all set to compete at 132. It wasn’t until Friday night when Hensley received word that Republic 132-pounder Keaton Overcast was injured and would not compete that Hensley opted to go to 138.
Hensley (35-2) won by majority decision 17-3 against Kelton Shaffer, of Neosho in the 138 final.
“The initial plan was to be 132 for this tournament. I was going to take back my loss (to Overcast),” Hensley said. “But I found out he wasn’t wrestling at 11 o’clock last night. I should have been asleep. I wanted to get back my No. 1 seed for districts. I was the No. 1 seed before I lost to him.”
Hensley pinned two-time COC Tournament champion Caden Harrington, of Ozark, in the semifinal round.
“I was worried about my match against Caden,” Hensley said. “I was worried that I had shown my cards to him in our match at (the Kinloch Classic) and he might have an edge on me. But I had a more dominating victory against him today than at Kinloch.”
Ozark’s Wilson lone freshman champ
Ozark had six finalists, but 138-pounder Colton Wilson gained the Tigers’ only championship. He was also the lone freshman champion in the field.
Wilson improved to 30-10 by posting a pin in 3:15 against Jax Adams, of Nixa in the 138 final. It was Wilson’s third win in as many matches against Adams.
Lebanon sophomore champion at 113
Kaleb Branch became Lebanon’s first COC champ, as the 113-pound sophomore posted a pin in 4:30 against Tucker Feagens, of Neosho, in their title tilt.
Branch upped his winning streak to 16 matches. His record is 33-7.
