Weiser wrestlers beat Fruitland in final conference match

The Weiser Wolverine wrestling squad traveled to Fruitland for the last SRV Conference match of the year last Thursday, Feb. 13.  
 This year Weiser won the dual handily 57-25, a big improvement from the contentious tie last year that Weiser ended up winning based on the most wins of the dual.
 Before the actual dual even started, the crowd was entertained by eight exhibition matches from younger, less experienced wrestlers from each team.  
 It was comforting to see the Weiser wrestlers win every single one of these exhibition matches. The future of Weiser wrestling is bright.
 When Weiser and Fruitland match up, there is a lot of strategy to maximize points. This year was no different, with Weiser showing wrestlers in weights that they haven’t previously competed in this year.  
 Rafael Delgadillo made his return for the season at 113 pounds. Kooper von Brethorst went up to 138 pounds. Matt Morris came down to 145 pounds. Maddox Stevens went up to 152 pounds, Stetson Beesley went up to 182 pounds, and Rylee Willet went back up to 195 pounds.  
 With all of these changes, the dual was a very interesting one to watch.  
 Weiser handled the changes and won all but five matches on the night. Some strategy worked, some didn’t, but it was fun to watch.
 “These young men are team focused and when it comes to Fruitland, we do what is best for the team, Coach Drew Dickerson said. “They don’t question our strategy. They don’t care who they are wrestling. They just go out and wrestle.”
 Individual results vs. Fruitland were:
 113 pounds: Rafael Delgadillo lost by fall.
 120 pounds: Conor Marsh won by fall.
 126 pounds: Justin Williamson won by fall.
 132 pounds: Ander Barbot won by fall.
 138 pounds: Kooper von Brethorst won by fall.
 145 pounds: Matthew Morris lost by decision.
 152 pounds: Maddox Stevens won by fall.
 160 pounds: Boone Kziasek won by decision.
 170 pounds: Malachi Hoobery won by fall.
 182 pounds: Stetson Beesley won by forfeit.
 195 pounds: Rylee Willet won by fall.
 220 pounds: Jesse Locket lost by fall.
 285 pounds: Elijah Carter won by fall.
 98 pounds: Bobby Nevarez lost by fall.
 106 pounds: Aaron Despain lost by MD.
 The weekend wasn’t necessarily a free weekend for the varsity Weiser wrestlers. They learned what it is like to serve in a different capacity at the youth wrestling program’s tournament that was held, Saturday, Feb. 15, at Weiser High School.  
 There were approximately 700 wrestlers from elementary schools that converged on the high school to participate in this tournament. Sixteen mats are laid out and the high school wrestlers who are normally on the mat wrestling were actually the referees for the tournament.  
 “This is great experience for these guys to be on the other side of wrestling and see how hard it is to make some of the calls. It is also a great opportunity for our high school wrestlers to give back to wrestling and their community,” Dickerson said.   
 The Weiser Wolverine wrestling squad will be back in action this weekend at the District Tournament at Homedale on Saturday, Feb. 22.
 Good Luck Weiser wrestling!