The Scott West wrestling team improved its dual meet record to 23-5 this past week as the Panthers went on the road twice and won five meets in New Ulm and New Prague.  After beating New Ulm (36-24), Mankato East (50-20) and Hutchinson (48-24) on Thursday night in New Ulm, the Scott Wester's traveled to New Prague on Friday night where they rallied to beat Windom Area 29-28 before beating New Prague 41-22 in the night cap.  "We didn't wrestle particularly great as a team in any one of the five meets," states Scott West wrestling coach Darren Ripley.  "If we are going to be successful as a team from here on out, we will have to be at our best from top to bottom."

In the 29-28 dual meet win against Windom Area on Friday night, the Panthers proved to be successful at the top and bottom but struggled at different places in between.  "I knew going into the meet that we would be in for a battle," insists coach Ripley.  "Three years ago our team that finished as State Runner-ups beat them by a point to advance to State so we have a great deal of respect for their program and the one thing that you know for certain is that Coach Dave Elg is going to bring a group of hard nosed kids to the mat that are going to wrestle hard."

Wrestling hard for the Panthers out of the shoot at 103 was Lee Goldberg as he won a 7-2 rematch with Windom Area's Drake Borsgard.  Goldberg had beaten the Windom lightweight 3-2 on his way to the championship at the Rumble on the Red in Fargo, a 50 team tournament held this year in late December.  "Lee wrestled a much better match this time around," sites coach Ripley.  "He was much more aggressive and took the action to his opponent."

Freshman Tyler Zilverberg took awhile to warm up, but once he did, the Panther 112 pounder would take the action to his Cobra opponent in the second and third period.  After scoring the opening take down to take a 2-0 first period lead, Zilverberg poured it on Derek Swoboda by scoring six points in the second period and nearly pinning him in the third with a bar arm.  "Tyler started a little slow," states coach Ripley.  "But once he decided to really go after him, he really put it to him."

However, the Panthers would have it really put to them by the Cobras in the next four matches as they struck back with two pins, an overtime decision and a major decision at 119, 125, 130 and 135.  Trailing 19-7, Scott West would bounce back to even the team score at 19-19 behind a pin by Tyler Kivel over Matt Willaby at 140 and Windom Area forfeit to Tony Valek at 145.  "We certainly needed big points here," states coach Ripley.  "Tyler delivered and they made a decision to forfeit to Tony."

The two teams would trade wins at 152 and 160 as Panther Dillon Fogarty lost a 5-3 decision to Spencer Jonson at 152 and Kyle McDermand would pick up his team mate by following with a 10-6 win Jared Peterson at 160.  With the score standing at 22-22, Scott West would be deducted one team point and one match point when 171 pounder Connor Fogarty came to the mat after failing to have proper hair length as determined by referee Byron Olson at pre-match weigh-ins. After a quick chop from coach/barber Stauffacher, Fogarty took to the mat where he dropped a 6-4 decision to Mason Anderson.  "I don't think that Connor was too happy (about the hair having to be cut)," states coach Ripley.  "However, it's only hair, and it will grow back."

After Michael Kroells dropped a 6-2 match to Vance Blomgren, it would be the Panthers that would have to come back.  And that's exactly what they would do as senior Alex Krautkremer scored a decisive 7-2 win over Alex Garza at 215 pounds.  "Alex did a good job of putting the pressure on him early," states coach Ripley.  "I think that he could have scored a major decision or a disqualification had he kept the same pressure on his opponent in the third period."

The Krautkremer win would set the stage for a dramatic ending to the meet as Travis Hentges would come to the mat with his Panther team trailing 28-24.  A win and three team points would not be enough.  A major decision, a win by 8 to 14 points would not be enough because Scott West would lose on the tie-breaker.  However, a technical fall, a win by 15 points and good for five team points, or a pin and six team points would be what the Panthers needed from their heavyweight to win this meet over Windom Area.  "A technical fall by a heavyweight is pretty uncommon," states coach Ripley.  "But this has been a pretty uncommon year." 

Uncommon or not Hentges will build momentum early in the first period as he scored two take downs and a penalty point to take a 5-1 first period lead over Windom Area's Joey Rummens.  The momentum and the crowd noise would continue to pick up in the second period as Hentges scored three more take downs and a second penalty point to take a 12-3 lead into the third period.  Hentges continued his attack of Rummens into the third period and at 5:09 of the third period, after three more Hentges take downs and a two point penalty, the match ended with a 20-5 technical fall win for Travis Hentges.  "Sometimes it takes the uncommon to make the common," states coach Ripley, who watched Hentges pull the heavyweight daily double later that night when the Panther wrestler scored his second technical fall 24-9 over Brandon Svoboda of New Prague.  "Two technical falls by the same heavyweight and on the same night would be almost like one seeing Haley's Comet twice in one's lifetime."

The Scott Wrestling action would continue into Saturday as seven Panther wrestlers would wrestle in the Minnesota 9th Grade League State Championships held at Champlin Park.  Three Scott West wrestlers would earn Minnesota 9th Grade League State Placing honors as Marty Dvorak placed 4th at 130 pounds, Luke Betchwars placed 7th at 100 pounds and Scott Dvorak also placed 7th at 140 pounds.  Patrick Dvorak (119), Lance Weckman (125), Nick Dvorak (145) and Michael Kroells (171) all competed in the State Tournament but did not place.  "We had a successful 9th Grade League year," states coach Ripley.  "The team went to State and won the Tier II championship a couple of weeks ago in Hastings and then they finished individually with seven State Qualifiers and three State place winners."

The Scott West wrestling team will close out the regular season of wrestling action this coming Friday night in Belle Plaine.  The Panthers will be taking on the Watertown-Mayer-Mayer Lutheran Royals, who are currently rated #11 in Class AA.  "They are for real," comments coach Ripley.  "If you want to go by ratings, they are underrated."  See you at the mat and Go Panthers!