By RICHIE HALL
FISHERS – Wednesday night’s Mudsock wrestling meet between Hamilton Southeastern and Fishers was almost like a bowling competition.
Why? Because there were pins all over the place.
That may qualify as a “dad joke,” but there is a solid amount of truth to it. Twelve of the 14 matches between the Royals and the Tigers were decided by fall. Southeastern got more pins, and thus won the meet, 48-30 in a loud, competitive dual at the Tiger Den.
The Royals picked up seven falls, while Fishers got five pins. Southeastern also won the two bouts that were not decided by fall; both of those were hard-fought decisions. That gave the Royals a total of nine victories; they clinched the meet by winning four matches in a row late in the meet.
“It’s very emotional,” said Southeastern coach Nick Brobst. “It’s like wrestling your brother. Like I say every year, I hope that Fishers wins every other dual except for this one.”
Both teams had several talented wrestlers in their lineup for the Mudsock trophy. The meet started at 126 pounds, and the Tigers’ Griffin Ingalls, No. 7 in IndianaMat.com’s state rankings, got a pin just 35 seconds into the first period.
Fishers’ Quenton Riley won at 132 by fall, giving his team an early 12-0 lead. The Royals came back to take the next three matches, starting with the two decisions. Chris Casler won the 138-pound bout 5-0, while Adam Gerstner was a 4-1 winner at 145 pounds.
After that, everything else was a pin. HSE’s Zach Lang tied the meet at 12-12 with a pin at 152, getting the call with one second left in the period. Lang is ranked No. 12 at 145 pounds.
The Tigers’ Xavier Smith moved his team ahead 18-12 with a second-period pin at 160 pounds. Southeastern won the next two matches, with Zack Wagner taking the 170-pound bout and Said Soufiyane winning at 182.
Fishers’ Chris Quarles tied the meet again with a quick pin at 195, making the score 24-24. But the Royals took care of business by winning the next four matches. Jackson Goodyear was the 220-pound winner, No. 4-ranked Dom Burgett got a first-period fall at 285, Aidan Smalley won at 106 and Tyler Jackson had a first-period pin at 113.
Burgett
“It’s all about just being consistent and mentally staying strong,” said Burgett, who is undefeated for the season. “If you see your teammate going out there and getting pinned, it’s knowing that it’s an individual thing, and no one’s out there but you, so you got to do your best. And also, there is a team aspect. We have to rally behind each other, too. I think we did a good job of doing that.”
Chayce Yant finished the meet at 120 with a first-period pin for Fishers.
Fishers’ Chayce Yant got a win for the Tigers, taking the 120-pound match. (Kirk Green)
“Our kids that were expected to win came out and did their job,” said Tigers coach Frank Ingalls. Fishers got all of their wins by pin, but the Royals got more pins, and that made the difference.
“If we would’ve got some guys to fight a little harder and just lose by decision as opposed to getting pinned, it would’ve been a much better outcome,” said Ingalls. “That’s just something we got to keep working on.”
Both teams are back in action Saturday. Southeastern will wrestle at the Paul Loggan Memorial Invitational at North Central, while Fishers travels to Zionsville for the Mike Fendley Hall of Fame tournament.
View more photos at the following link: https://capturephotographybydkirk.smugmug.com/HSE-vs-Fishers-Wrestling-01042023
HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN 48, FISHERS 30
Meet started at 126 pounds
126: Griffin Ingalls (F) def. Matt Billet (HSE) by fall, 0:35
132: Quenton Riley (F) def. Kyler Sapp (HSE) by fall, 3:13
138: Chris Casler (HSE) def. Anthony Riley (F) by decision, 5-0
145: Adam Gerstner (HSE) def. Teyon Leonard (F) by decision, 4-1
152: Zach Lang (HSE) def. Stephen Breck (F) by fall, 1:59
160: Xavier Smith (F) def. Nick Jakubs (HSE) by fall, 2:53
170: Zack Wagner (HSE) def. Zach Pence (F) by fall, 5:11
182: Said Soufiyane (HSE) def. Diego Garabano (F) by fall, 2:54
195: Chris Quarles (F) def. Evan Lawhead (HSE) by fall, 0:55
220: Jackson Goodyear (HSE) def. Tucker Arnold (F) by fall, 2:32
285: Dom Burgett (HSE) def. Walid Oumammar (F) by fall, 1:36
106: Aidan Smalley (HSE) def. Will Hruskoci (F) by fall, 4:57
113: Tyler Jackson (HSE) def. Garrett Thompson (F) by fall, 1:44
120: Chayce Yant (F) def. Nick Anderson (HSE) by fall, 1:49