Five wrestlers make it to podium at Arizona tourney

Traveling to Tucson, Arizona, over the weekend, the Boulder City High School wrestling program placed fourth out of 32 programs at the Salpointe Catholic Duals.

Finishing with five wrestlers who made it to the podium, junior 195-pound wrestler Ryan Vanario highlighted the group with a first-place finish.

“I felt that the tournament at Salpointe Catholic was executed perfectly,” Vanario said. “The matches were back to back with little down time. It gave me a look at fresh competition, something I’m not used to. It made me uncomfortable and forced me to work outside my comfort zone. I believe that it is then that you get better as an individual.”

Building confidence and keeping a positive mindset, seniors D.J. Reese (132 pounds) and Garrett Leavitt (120 pounds) finished third and fourth, respectively, while juniors Jimmy Dunagan and Thorston Balmer each finished in sixth place.

Placing just outside the podium, sophomores Curtis Brown (106 pounds) and Ladd Cox (145 pounds) each finished in seventh place.

“What I saw this week was a lot of guys who have gotten better,” head coach Jim Cox said. “Guys who are putting in the work and it’s showing out on the mat. Guys who have a clear mindset and are worried about the guy in front of them. This was a good weekend for our program.”

With the season coming to a close, the Eagles followed this weekend’s triumph with an emotional senior night against Chaparral on Tuesday.

Picking up their last home victories of their prep careers, Reese, Leavitt, Adam Clary (182 pounds) and Wyatt Harling (220 pounds) went out on top against the Cowboys.

“It was a very emotional night for everyone,” Reese said. “This was the last home dual I’ll ever have at Boulder City so it’s something special. Winning last night’s match is something that I will always remember.”

Focusing their attention now toward postseason success, the Eagles will have a week to prepare before regionals Feb. 2 at Western High School.

Results from the Eagles’ final regular season matchup against Moapa Valley will appear in next week’s issue.

Contact Robert Vendettoli at BCRsports @gmail.com.