Sault Grapplers Take Third in St Ignace Invitational; Ohman Wins Bracket

Saturday the Sault High Blue Devils wrestling team traveled to St Ignace to compete in the Lions Club Invitational. The team wrestled tough all day and placed third in a field of eleven teams from all over the state. Grayling won the tournament with 136 points while hosts St Ignace came in second place with 125 points. The Sault had 119.5 points by the end of the day. The last time the team placed in the top five in this tournament was during the 2015-2016 season. 

The Blue Devils had eight of their thirteen wrestlers qualify for the top four spots in their brackets, with senior Will Ohman winning his bracket in the 138 lb weight class. Over the years there were always a number of wrestlers that qualified for the medal round, but this year there were five Blue Devils vying for the championship. 

Junior Cody Russo placed second in the 190 lb weight class. He had a bye in the first round, then beat Hayden Lapointe of Cheboygan by points (4-0) to qualify for the finals. Russo fell to Jake Huspen of Grayling (9-5) in the championship match. 

Junior Calvin Aldrich placed third on the day in the 215 lb weight class, after wrestling five matches. In the first round, he pinned Zeke Wright from Grayling (3:00), then got pinned by Michael Bouche of Manistique (5:01). Aldrich rallied, pinning Jayce Causley from St Ignace (1:39) and Michael Beck of Cheboygan (3:29) to qualify for the third place match. He sealed the deal with a major decision (10-2) over Robert Johns of Munising. 

Junior Sawyer Kuenzer was runner up in the 285 lb bracket. He qualified for the championship match by pinning Avery Much of Munising (0:40) and Caleb Pugh of Grand Rapids Christian (3:57). Kuenzer fell to Logan Maloney of Grayling by a pin (1:44). 

Junior Max VanDoren placed fourth in the 126 lb weight class. In his first match, he lost by points (13-7) to Zayden Fatic of Atlanta. He qualified for the third place match by pinning Grayden Holt of  Manistique (0:55). In the end, he was pinned by Bodie Lipnitz of St Ignace (1:22).

Senior Will Ohman won the 138 lb bracket. In the first round, Ohman pinned Quintin miles of Atlanta (0:38), then won by technical fall over Chase Swanson of Cheboygan (18-2). In the championship match, he beat his opponent Isaac Sung from Grand Rapids Christian by points (7-0).

Sophomore Caleb Klier was runner up in the 144 lb weight class. He qualified for the championship match by pinning Cody Lincoln of Munising (0:23) and Harry Hilts from Grand Rapids Christian (1:52). Klier was pinned by Hayden O’Neill of Newberry (0:28). 

Junior Brett Siesel earned second place in the 150 lb weight class. He pinned Rodrigo Lazaro of Grayling (1:10) and Xander Leatherman from Grand Rapids Christian (0:39). In the championship match, Siesel was pinned by Gabe Werkheiser of St Ignace (1:09).

Sophomore Jonah Rishmawi placed fourth in the 165 lb weight class. In the first round, he pinned Garret Howland of Rudyard (0:55), then got pinned by Jax Lipnitz of St Ignace (1:02). He advanced to the third place match after pinning Chris Kulik of Munising (1:18), then lost to Shan Rumbharose by a pin (1:38). 

The first individual tournament of the season, Head Coach Jacinto Arreola shared the benefits of his team being able to compete in this type of tournament. “Individual tournaments give more freedom to the wrestler and a chance for them to showcase their skills.  Less focus on trying to score team points and just competing solely. A way to prove you deserved to have that “1 seed” or prove that seeding doesn’t matter. Whoever shows up to wrestle that day is what counts. A chance to earn bragging rights that you can claim the bracket for that weight class.” 

The Blue Devils (2-0) will host a pair of events this coming week. On Wednesday, Parents Night, they will host a Straits Area Conference dual meet beginning at 5:30pm. Friday afternoon they will host the Bridge Brawl, which brings teams from above the bridge and below the bridge to compete in team duals. The Bridge Brawl begins at 2:00pm.