Wrestling:
Semifinalists abound for city teams
Fifteen
Aurora wrestlers within win of state
By COURTNEY OAKES
The Aurora Sentinel
Published:
Saturday,
February 14, 2009 1:07 AM MST
AURORA | The state wrestling
picture began to take shape after the
first day of regional action Feb.13.
Grandview, Eaglecrest and Overland
combined to send seven wrestlers to the
semifinals at the Class 5A Region 1
tournament at Eaglecrest, with a win
assuring them of a spot at the 5A state
tournament Feb. 19-21 at the Pepsi
Center in Denver.
The Wolves led the way with four
semifinalists in John Godin (112
pounds), Eric Wilson (119 pounds),
Michael Balagna (125 pounds) and Joshua
Starr (152 pounds), all returning state
qualifiers. Grandview sits in fourth
place in the team standings with 60
points, trailing Pomona (90.5),
Ponderosa (86) and Arapahoe (66).
Eaglecrest's best hopes lie with
119-pounder Lee Halpin — who faces
Wilson in the semifinals — and
130-pounder Dan Moore, who won his 100th
career match in the quarterfinals to
give himself an inside shot at making
state.
Overland senior Josh Christopher was a
state placer last season and is within a
match of assuring himself a third career
trip to state.
Consolation matches resume at 9:30 a.m.
Feb. 14. They will be followed by
championship semifinals, with finals
expected to begin at 4 p.m.
Wrestlebacks, if necessary, will follow
championship matches.
Gateway and
Regis netted four semifinal slots each
at the Region 3 tournament at Legacy
High School in Broomfield and sit in
seventh and eighth place, respectively,
in the team standings.
The Olys — seeking their largest state
contingent in many years — have their
two returning state qualifiers in the
mix in junior 130-pounder LaDaris Mungin
and 152-pound senior Justin Freeman,
with 145-pound senior Brent Willis and
freshman 119-pounder Brendan Muniz .
Regis' two returning state qualifiers
are also in the semifinal mix in
140-pound senior Zach Atencio and
145-pound senior Powell Slinkard, while
135-pound junior Andrew Onorato and
152-pound freshman John Crawley also
stayed alive in the championship
bracket.
Results weren't available for Region 2
at Smoky Hill and Region 4 at Central of
Grand Junction.
Losers of semifinal matches can still
qualify for state by making their way
through the consolation bracket to the
third-place match.
CLASS 5A WRESTLING REGIONALS
Feb. 13 (through quarterfinal rounds)
Region 1 (at Eaglecrest)
Team scores — 1. Pomona 90.5,
2. Ponderosa 86, 3. Arapahoe 66, 4.
Grandview 60, 5. Standley Lake 55, 6.
Sand Creek 46.5, 7. Columbine 45, T8.
Doherty 38, T8. Green Mountain 38, 10.
Highlands Ranch 37.5, T11. Eaglecrest
35, T11. Fountain-Fort Carson 35, 13.
Monarch 31, 14. Fairview 28, 15. Denver
East 27, 16. Overland 16
Aurora Semifinals
112 pounds — John Godin
(Grandview) vs. Andrew Lujan (Standley
Lake)
119 pounds — Lee Halpin
(Eaglecrest) vs. Eric Wilson (Grandview)
125 pounds — Alex
Hinojosa (Ponderosa) vs. Michael Balagna
(Grandview)
130 pounds — Dan Moore
(Eaglecrest) vs. Mike Jaquess (Sand
Creek)
135 pounds — R.J.
Gaither (Columbine) vs. Josh Christopher
(Overland)
152 pounds — Steven
Kelly (Ponderosa) vs. Joshua Starr
(Grandview)
Region 3 (at Legacy)
Team scores — 1. Chaparral 92,
2. Legacy 66, 3. Lakewood 64. 4. Air
Academy 55, 5. Fruita-Monument 53.5, 6.
Brighton 53, 7. Gateway 42, 8. Regis
41.5, 9. Westminster 41, 10. Durango 40,
11. ThunderRidge 33, 12. Chatfield 22,
13. Lincoln 19, 14. Thornton 15, 15.
Hinkley 12, 16. Dakota Ridge 11
Aurora Semifinals
112 pounds — C.J. Hamby
(Durango) vs. Brandon Muniz (Gateway)
130 pounds — LaDaris
Mungin (Gateway) vs. Chris Wessel
(Legacy)
135 pounds — Dallin
Milner (Air Academy) vs. Andrew Onorato
(Regis)
140 pounds — Justin
Frazer (Lakewood) vs. Zach Atencio
(Regis)
145 pounds — Taylor
Hollister (Air Academy) vs. Powell
Slinkard (Regis)
145 pounds — Brent
Willis (Gateway) vs. Tyler Stenger
(Chaparral)
152 pounds — Jacob
Southard (Legacy) vs. John Crowley
(Regis)
152 pounds — Justin
Freeman (Gateway) vs. Jackson Julian
(Chaparral)
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