Wildcats find positives after winless December Duals

Louisburg senior Harrison Laney works for a pin at 138 pounds Thursday during the Louisburg December Duals Tournament. Laney finished with two wins on the night.

The schedule ramped up for the Louisburg wrestling team last week as the Wildcats squared off with five teams during the Louisburg December Duals Tournament on Thursday.

The Wildcats faced off with several difficult squads and saw their day come to an end with an 0-5 record. Louisburg had to overcome obstacles before the tournament even started as junior captain Ben Wiedenmann was a late scratch at 170 pounds due to injury, and the Wildcats had to give up points at that spot.

Still, there were a few positives for the Wildcats to build on from their home opener.

“Although we went 0-5, the duals were pretty close,” Louisburg coach Bobby Bovaird said. “Three of them came down to one match. Ben was out with an injured knee, and that was a last minute decision and we didn’t have a backup ready to go. With a healthy Ben in the lineup or a chance to plan ahead, we might have been able to do things a little differently team-wise, but it is what it is. The wrestlers stepped out there and competed tough. It was a long night and I’m proud of how they battled.”

Louisburg opened the tournament with a close loss to Prairie View (42-32), fell to Burlington (47-33) and then lost a close match to Baldwin (42-36). The Wildcats lost to the tournament champion, Basehor-Linwood (54-25), and then to end the night they came up short to Independence (42-39).

Juniors Ryan Owens and Cade Holtzen provided with the Wildcats with a pair of perfect performances. Owens, who wrestles at 120 pounds, recorded three pins on the night to go along with a technical fall and a major decision.

Holtzen had a big night at 132 pounds as he also finished with a 5-0 record. He recorded two pins and won the other three by decision, including a close 2-1 decision to Independence’s Zak Al-Bureni to end the night.

Freshman Kaven Bartlett had just one loss at 113 pounds, including a pin of Burlington’s Owen McManus and a 12-5 decision over Baldwin’s Nakos Benton.

Sophomore Brandon Doles and Aiden Barker also had a winning record. Doles went 3-2 at 160 pounds and won by pin, a technical fall and a major decision. Barker was 3-2 at 182 pounds with two pins.

Harrison Laney (138 pounds), Xander Chennault (152), A.J. Reed (195) and Sam Kratochvil (220) each ended the night with two victories. Luke Kelly (126), A.J. Drew (145) and Elijah Eslinger (285) each recorded a win for Louisburg.

The Wildcats will try and bounce back tonight when they travel to Olathe West for a dual. Matches are set to begin at 6 p.m. Louisburg will then travel to Tonganoxie Saturday for another dual tournament.

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