Weiser hosts duals, invitational in busy week

Weiser wrestling hosted District III/IV duals with Fruitland, Parma, Buhl, Gooding, and Kimberly last Thursday.
 This is an interesting set of duals for SRV 3A, because the middle of the state comes to compete the night before the Weiser Invitational.  
 Three mats were laid out with the SRV 3A teams assigned to one. Buhl, Kimberly, and Gooding rotated through each mat to complete three duals for the night.
 Weiser faced Gooding first with only five live matches fought. Gooding came out on the bottom, because of the number of their forfeits 60-18.       
 Because this tournament can have seeding criteria, there is a lot of strategy involved and some wrestlers don’t compete.
 Individual results vs. Gooding were:
 132 pounds: Ander Barbot lost by fall.
 138 pounds: Braden Edwards lost by fall.
 152 pounds: Matthew Morris lost by decision.
 160 pounds: Boones Ksiazek lost by decision.
 170 pounds: Malachi Hoobery won by fall.
 All other matches were won by forfeit by Weiser, except for 113 pounds, which was a double forfeit.
 Weiser then faced Kimberly, where there were some well-fought matches and less forfeits. Weiser came out on top of this dual as well 60-20.  
 Individual results vs. Kimberly were:
 182 pounds: Calvin Clapperton won by forfeit.
 195 pounds: Rylee Willet won by forfeit.
 220 pounds: Jesse Lockett won by forfeit.
 285 pounds: Elijah Carter won by forfeit.
 98 pounds: Bobby Nevarez lost by fall.
 106 pounds: Aaron Despain won by decision.
 113 pounds: Weiser forfeit.
 120 pounds: Conor Marsh lost by decision.
 126 pounds: Kooper von Brethorst won by fall.
 132 pounds: Ander Barbot won by fall.
 138 pounds: Braden Edwards won by fall.
 145 pounds: Maddox Stevens won by fall.
 152 pounds: Robert Sudderth won by decision.
 160 pounds: Matthew Morris won by fall.
 170 pounds: Malachi Hoobery lost by decision.
 To finish off the night, Weiser competed against the Buhl Indians. Weiser still made quite a few points with forfeits recorded, and ended with a final score for the night against Buhl 61-12.  
 Individual results were:
 195 pounds: Oscar Cruz won by forfeit.
 220 pounds: Jesse Lockett won by fall.
 285 pounds: Elijah won by forfeit.
 98 pounds: Bobby Nevarez won by forfeit.
 106 pounds: Aaron Despain won by forfeit.
 113 pounds: double forfeit.
 120 pounds: Mason Strong lost by tech fall.
 126 pounds: Kooper von Brethorst won by decision.
 132 pounds: Ander Barbot won by decision.
 138 pounds: Braden Edwards lost by decision.
 145 pounds: Maddox Stevens lost by decision.
 152 pounds: Matthew Morris won by forfeit.
 160 pounds: Boone Ksiazek won by forfeit.
 170 pounds: Malachi Hoobery won by forfeit.
 182 pounds: Rylee Willet won by fall.
 Wolverines were back in action the next day for the 31st Annual Weiser Invitational. This tournament is well run with minimal breaks and lots of high energy wrestling.  
 This is also one of the tougher tournaments in the state with lots of consequences in regard to seeding criteria. It is also a lot of work to put this tournament on. Many hours of work from family and supporters goes into this tournament with a lot of help from the community as well.  
 “We have a lot of people who step up and help to make these two days as good as they can be. From local businesses to our families, the work that is put in months in advance is something that is extremely appreciated,” coach Drew Dickerson said.  
 Weiser wrestlers finished fourth place as a team this year at the invitational behind 5A powerhouse Columbia, 3A competitor South Fremont, and Burns.  
 A total of 20 teams competed this year. Seven wrestlers on the Weiser roster had some magical moments in the tournament and earned some hardware for the Wolverines.  
 Sixth place finishes were: Robert Sudderth at 152 pounds and Stetson Beesley at 170 pounds.
 Third place finishers were: Matthew Morris at 152 pounds, Malachi Hoobery at 170 pounds, Rylee Willet at 182 pounds, and Jesse Lockett at 220 pounds.
 Taking first place for Weiser wrestling was Kooper von Brethorst at 126 pounds. Von Brethorst wrestled three tough matches and received one medical forfeit during the tournament. His first two matches went all three rounds and were won by decisions 10-4 and 9-4 respectively.  
 von Brethorst was set to face a Caldwell opponent, but a medical forfeit prevented the match. So Saturday, Kooper positioned for the finals and had to sit and wait all day to wrestle. He beat a 5A wrestler from Borah by decision again with a score of 5-1.  
 “That kid has a ton of energy!  Take the most energetic, hyper person you know and multiple that by a hundred and you get Kooper. So for this kid to have to wait all day to wrestle had to have been like waiting to open presents on Christmas Day,” Dickerson said.
 “I saw a lot of heart this weekend not just by Kooper and his win, but by some very tenacious young men who had some tough competition and came through for their teammates to score some points and see the podium.  I am more than proud of these young men.”  
 Weiser will be back in action this Wednesday, Feb. 12, in Fruitland.