DENVER – Stocker Robbbins wasn’t pleased with the way he started the Ignacio High School wrestling team off as the first wrestler on the mat, but Josh Gallegos ended the preliminaries with a bang for the Bobcats.
Four of Ignacio’s five wrestlers advanced to Friday’s quarterfinals at the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 2A State Championships on Thursday at the Pepsi Center in Denver.
Robbins hit the mat first and ran into trouble early in his quest to return to the state championship match.
He trailed Swink’s Lincoln Ferris 4-2 at the end of the first period of their 113-pound preliminary round.
Robbins stayed patient and scored the next seven points for a comfortable 12-4 major decision to advance to the quarterfinals.
“That first-round match is a big match to get out of the way. The nerves are running,” IHS head coach Cody Haga said. “Stock started off slow in the first. I think he feels like he’s starting us off as a team being that he’s a lower weight. He finished hard, and that’s what matters.”
Robbins will face Centauri’s Quinton Montague in the quarterfinals.
Fellow sophomore Ethan Appenzeller felt significantly more comfortable in his second trip to the Pepsi Center than last season as a freshman. He cruised to an 8-0 win over Centauri’s Diego Fernandez, built on a reversal early and near fall late.
“I wanted to get the takedown, but I didn’t get it. I just wanted to wrestle smart and not give him any points. Once I got my reverse, I wanted to relax and get some easy points,” said Appenzeller, son of Ana and Tom Appenzeller. “I’m definitely not as nervous as last year. Last year was a tough year for me. This year, I think I’ll do alright.”
He’ll see Baca County’s J.D Chenoweth in the quarterfinals.
Iaasic Peña didn’t let first-time jitters affect him, even as a senior. He built a 5-0 lead on Holyoke’s Javier Rojo after the first period that stretched to 15-1 in the second. The match ended with a 17-1 technical fall 17 seconds into the third period.
“Being able to do what I’ve been able to do during the wrestling season was a good thing,” said Peña, son of Kenneth and Shasta Peña.
He will face Rye’s Jake Shaffer in the quarterfinals.
At 182 pounds, Blaine Mickey lost the only match of the day for IHS, to Sedgwick County/Fleming’s Brandon Anderson. He fought off a pin attempt at the end of the first period by rolling to his left shoulder hard and trailed 5-0 to start the second period. Mickey gave up bizarre stalling points down 7-0 in the third period before losing a 12-0 major decision.
“It’s tough placing fourth in the region then having to come in and wrestle someone first in another region,” Haga said. “He had a good fight against him, and hopefully he can battle his way back on the back side. That’s the way the true champs show their heart.”
Steady senior Josh Gallegos opened his third consecutive state tournament with an emphatic pin of Yuma’s DJ Snelling. He gave up an escape to start the second period, but made up for it with a takedown shortly after. Gallegos finished Snelling with 48 seconds left in the third period.
“Josh, he was sick coming in there because the nerves were showing,” Haga said. “He needed that win to start his tournament off right.”
Wrestling resumes at 10 a.m. Friday at the Pepsi Center.
“They all are going to have a really tough quarterfinal match,” Haga said of his four Thursday winners. “If they can pull that next match, though, then they obviously are going to take home some hardware. Their true goal is to stand up as high as they can on the podium.”
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
IHS: How they fared
Stocker Robbins, So., 113 pounds (34-2): Defeated Lincoln Ferris, Swink, 9-4. Next: vs. Quinton Montague, Centauri (37-10)
Ethan Appenzeller, So., 138 pounds (32-8): Defeated Diego Fernandez, Centauri, 10-0. Next: JD Chenoweth, Baca County (33-5)
Iaasic Peña, Sr., 152 pounds (31-5): Defeated Javier Rojo, Holyoke, 17-1. Next: Jake Shaffer, Rye (31-8)
Blaine Mickey, Sr., 182 pounds (14-11): Lost to Brandon Anderson, Sedgwick County/Florence, 10-0. Next: Dillan Salter, Del Note (17-19)
Josh Gallegos, Sr., 295 pounds (22-5): Pinned DJ Snelling, Yuma (3:13). Next: Greg Garcia, Roaring Fork (19-12)
