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Photo
by
Courtney
Oakes/Aurora
Sentinel
&
Daily
Sun
Grandview
senior
Tyler
McGoffin,
top,
tries
to
pin
Cheyenne
Central’s
Ethan
Mulhern
Jan.
19
in a
second-round
135-pound
match
at
the
Top
of
the
Rockies
Invitational
at
Centaurus
High
School
in
Lafayette.
McGoffin
won
the
match
16-5
and
placed
third
for
the
Wolves,
who
were
14th
out
of
29
teams.
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Wolves exceed goals
at brutal Top of the
Rockies
Grandview finishes
14th, collects 27 wins;
Smoky Hill takes Conifer
Invite
By Courtney Oakes
The Aurora Sentinel &
Daily Sun
The Top of the Rockies
wrestling tournament
provided Aurora's top
team a top-notch test
with just a few short
weeks left before
regional qualifying.
Grandview was among the
29 teams from four
states on hand for the
Jan. 19-20 tournament at
Centaurus High School in
Lafayette. The
top-ranked squads in
each of Colorado's three
largest classifications
in 5A No. 1 Ponderosa,
4A No. 1 Alamosa and 3A
No. 1 Roosevelt were
there, along with top
teams from New Mexico,
Utah and Wyoming.
The Wolves scored 76
points to finish 14th,
with senior Tyler
McGoffin leading the way
with a third-place
finish in the 135-pound
division. Junior Patrick
Brown took fifth at
125s.
"That is definitely
tougher than the state
tournament," Grandview
coach Greg Maestas said.
"We set goals of winning
22 matches and getting
11 pins, and we ended up
with 27 wins and 10
pins, so I'm really
pleased with that."
McGoffin's 18-3 record
earned him a first-round
bye, then he handily won
his first match before
he was stopped in the
quarterfinals by Justin
Prieto of Monte Vista.
Three wins later
McGoffin earned a
rematch with third place
on the line, this time
beating Prieto 7-4.
Brown rebounded from a
tough 11-10 loss to
Palmer's Brian Wilson in
the second round to win
four of his five
consolation matches -
including a victory over
Centaurus' Dominic
Valenzeula, No. 1 in 5A
coming into the
tournament. He earned an
18-10 major decision
over Monte Vista's Adam
Garcia for fifth.
Smoky Hill bested Golden
by three points to win
the Conifer
Invitational, the
Buffaloes' third
tournament victory of
the year. Coach Aron
Weber - who was without
nicked up 119-pound
standout Nolan Myers -
got championships from
112-pounder Joe Jones
and Nick Shamburg at 140
pounds.
Coach Conrad Parra's
Aurora Central team has
been improving by the
meet, and the Trojans
took eighth among 15
teams at the Kennedy
Invitational Jan. 20.
Daniel Armijo at 135
pounds won his third
tournament since
Christmas break, adding
the Kennedy title to
those he earned in
competition. |
