Last Updated on February 10, 2016 – 2:50 PM CST
Above: Demon Wrestler Zach Garza, along with 11 other teammates, were finalists at District 3-5A finals matches Saturday, and seven of them claimed district champion titles. They will compete at Regionals on Friday and Saturday in Amarillo. (File Photo)
Editor’s Note: This report was published in the Amarillo Globe-News and is reprinted with their permission.
By Sean Steffen/Amarillo Globe-News
The District 3-5A finals matches were as if one was watching a Dumas wrestling duel as the Demons had a finalist in 12 of the 14 boys weight classes Saturday at Caprock. Dumas was able to convert those 12 finalists into seven district champions and an overall team title, topping Caprock 155-104.
Jesse Martinez (106 pounds), Landon Williams (113), Gilbert Falcon (126), Talen Widener (138), Zach Garza (145), Estevan Gutierrez (152) and Miguel Baray (182) were the seven district champions for Dumas.
“I don’t think it’s what we’ve worked on I think it’s our work ethic,” Williams said. “We bust everyday just to show up at practice and work hard so we can prove Dumas is someone to be messed with. I’m very proud of today because it shows we work hard.”
Dumas coach Clint Chamblin said the Demons are prepared to make a run in the postseason.
“We don’t really talk about that a whole lot,” Chamblin said. “We just expect to go out and give it our best and each individual take care of themselves and let the team points take care of themselves. We’ve really gotten to the point where we expect to win district, we expect to win regionals and we expect to go out and win state.”
Falcon had a big match against Caprock’s Adrian Maldonado in the 126-pound finals as Caprock was looking to make a run to catch Dumas for the team title. Falcon was able to squelch any Caprock momentum with an 11-2 victory.
“I couldn’t really get a grip,” Falcon said. “He was a little bit stronger than me and he was short so he had a bit more inside pressure. It was hard for me to try to get the crossface or try to pull out the arm for a bar-arm. I was able to tilt him and do more bridges.”
Overall the Demons will advance 13 of 14 possible wrestlers to next week’s regional tournament.
“That’s huge,” Chamblin said. “Regionals is a little bit about the numbers game. It’s how many guys you can get there and how many guys can score points. The more guys you have scoring points the better chance you have of winning the tournament. We were close to getting all 14 guys but we didn’t quite get there. I’m excited about what we’ve got going on and I’m looking forward to next week.”
Team Results: 1. Dumas, 155; 2. Caprock, 104; 3. Boys Ranch, 85; 4. Palo Duro, 64; 5. Borger, 32; 6. Pampa. 10; 7. River Road, 7.
106: 1. Jesse Martinez, Dumas; 2. Nano Godinez, Caprock; 3. Coltin Savage, Boys Ranch; 4. Jonathan Bilhartz, Borger.
113: 1. Landon Williams, Dumas; 2. Cris Rasco, Palo Duro; 3. Ryan Davila, Caprock; 4. Jaydin Elkins, Boys Ranch.
120: 1. Richard Sierra, Caprock; 2. Martin Mendoza, Dumas; 3. Jordan Archibald, Pampa; 4. Trever Christensen, Boys Ranch.
126: 1. Gilbert Falcon, Dumas; 2. Adrian Maldonado, Caprock; 3. Jake Little, Boys Ranch; 4. Christian Bloemker, Palo Duro.
132: 1. Mario Vasquez, Palo Duro; 2. Braxton Montgomery, Dumas; 3. Adryen Lara, Caprock; 4. Tacoma Matthews, Palo Duro.
138: 1. Talen Widener, Dumas; 2. Levi Godinez, Caprock; 3. Jasper Divina, Palo Duro; 4. Cade Ferguson, Pampa.
145: 1. Zach Garza, Dumas; 2. Seth Preas, Borger; 3. Jalen Armijo, Caprock; 4. Elisha Evans, Boys Ranch.
152: 1. Estevan Gutierrez, Dumas; 2. Josiah Temple, Boys Ranch; 3. Omar Anchondo, Caprock; 4. De’Moore King, Palo Duro.
160: 1. Zach Diaz, Boys Ranch; 2. Addison Trujillo, Dumas; 3. Gage Clement, Caprock; 4. Diego Escarcega, Palo Duro.
170: 1. JT Belcourt, Pampa; 2. Livan Loya, Dumas; 3. Joe Nieto, Caprock; 4. Gave Evans, Boys Ranch.
182: 1. Miguel Baray, Dumas; 2. Brendan Hinlsey, Boys Ranch; 3. Vanzandt, Palo Duro.
195: 1. Miguel Rangel, Borger; 2. Austin Elsheimer, Boys Ranch; 3. Richard Garza, Dumas; 4. Juan Anchondo, Caprock.
220: 1. Khalil Gipson, Palo Duro; 2. Carlos Sanchez, Dumas; 3. Damen Garcia, Boys Ranch; 4. Anfernee Glover, Borger.
285: 1. Marcus Smith, Caprock; 2. Austin Hernandez, Pampa; 3. Will Patton, River Road; 4. Will Hansen, Boys Ranch.