Creston/O-M wrestlers begin title defense

CNA file photo Title team: Creston/O-M Panthers hoist the schoolÕs first wrestling championship trophy last year at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. A week later, the Panthers added a Class 2A state dual championship. The Panthers return nine starters from the 2006-07 lineup, including state champions Andrew Long and Kalab Evans, state runner-up Bret Kautz and three-time state placewinner Quin Leith.

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CNA sports editor The Creston/Orient-Macksburg wrestling team went wire to wire as the No. 1 team in Class 2A last season, claiming the traditional state tournament by 33 points with two individual state champions, and then steamrolling three opponents 144-58 to win the state dual title. Among the victims in the state dual tournament was Ballard of Huxley by a 52-15 score. Creston/O-M had only two seniors in the lineup last year, yet it’s Ballard ranked No. 1 in the preseason this year by both The Predicament and a new Web site, www.iawrestlinginsider.com. That’s OK with Panther coach Darrell Frain, who didn’t want his highly-touted squad thinking another set of state titles was waiting to be handed to them. “We try not to even look to last year,” Frain said. “I know that’s hard when you’re talking about high school kids. You can’t control what’s outside of the (wrestling) room and what people are telling them. I don’t mind that Ballard is ranked ahead of us in the first rankings. Maybe it shows we still have something to prove.” Creston/O-M begins its hunt for back-to-back titles Tuesday with a trip to Winterset for the annual double dual meet in which the two 2A schools — Winterset and Creston/O-M — each wrestle two 1A squads, Nodaway Valley and Interstate 35. This is not a soft opening night for the Panthers, who are riding a 39-match consecutive winning streak dating back to the Lewis Central meet in 2005. Nodaway Valley gave the Panthers their closest dual margin last season (four points) and the Wolverines open as the ninth-ranked Class 1A team on one poll this year. I-35 is ranked fifth. Road show Following their season debut Tuesday, the Panthers travel to Greenfield Saturday for the Nodaway Valley Tournament. Except for a JV tournament on Dec. 8, the Panthers don’t make their first home appearance until Jan. 3 in a double dual with Harlan and Oakland Riverside. Fans may not see the real Creston/O-M team until then, anyway. Frain and assistants Nick Hemann, Drew Duff and Matt Long have a lot of sorting out to do between now and then. The main focus will be on finding weight classes for all of the top wrestlers, since so many are bunched in the same weight ranges. For dual meets, Frain said wrestlers may “bump around” to whatever weight class they need to fill that night to give the team its best chance for success. For example, 160-pound state champ Kalab Evans may wrestle a lot at 171 and 189 early in the season. The trio of Quin Leith, Trent Tucker and Colton Dunphy will move around in the middle weights, while waiting for state runner-up Bret Kautz to recovery fully from a broken leg suffered in the state baseball tournament. “Bret has looked good in some of the running and things he can do, but he has not been cleared yet for any resistance-type wrestling,” Frain said. “His next doctor’s appointment is Friday. He’ll have to prove he can do a lot of things in practice before we put him out there (in a meet).” Jared Bevins and Evans may fill the 171 and 189 spots for the time being, while Kaleb Livingston and Casey Tanner seemed to be anchored at the top of the lineup at 215 and 285, respectively. Newcomers Zac Leith, 26-6 in a part-time varsity role last year, joins two-time state champion Andrew Long in the varsity lineup in the lower weights this season, with the graduation of four-time state wrestler and former champ Tyler Linderman. The other graduation was fifth-place finisher (145) Caleb Brus, who currently sports a 5-3 record for Simpson College at 141 and 149 pounds. Other newcomers to the varsity lineup include Brody Jay (135 or 140 with Quin Leith) and Todd Ramaeker (152 or 160). Freshmen Sean Eads, John Young and Isaac Adamson look to fill spots in the lowest weight classes. A squad of 35 original candidates has dwindled to 26 wrestlers in grades 9-12 this week. Depth could be a concern, and the lineup is not as filled with experience as believed to be for 2007-08 when the Panthers wrapped up their dual state title last March in Cedar Rapids. State placewinner Jesse Harris (140) is not attending Creston High School, and senior lettermen Tyler Harris (171) and Caleb McLain (171) are not out for the sport this winter, as well as sophomore Nick Henry (103). With Ballard having nine ranked wrestlers plus two freshmen considered good enough to place at state in the lower weights, Frain and his staff have their work cut out for them, despite the accolades of five ranked wrestlers. Long (125), who won his third national title last summer at 112 pounds in Greco-Roman style, Quin Leith (130), Kautz (135) and Evans (160) are all ranked No. 1 by The Predicament. Tucker is ranked seventh at 140. “On paper, our lineup is maybe not quite as strong as what we anticipated coming into the year, so some other kids are going to have to step up,” Frain said. “In the past, someone typically comes out of the blue to surprise you, and hopefully we have those people in our room.” Record chasing Long is trying to become Creston’s first three-time state champion. Evans has placed second, third and first at state. Leith and Kautz have both been state runners-up, and Leith took third place last year. Tucker also made it to state. While Brus tied Boone Hayes for career wins (156) last year, the reign could be short-lived. Long (129-13), Evans (129-7) and Quin Leith (128-15) are all knocking on the record door, and Kautz is close behind at 106-27. Last year, Evans, Brus, Long, Leith, Kautz and Tucker all won more than 40 matches. Evans was 51-1 and Long 48-1, both losing only at the KCI Expo in Platte County, Mo. This year, Long is ranked sixth in the nation by Amateur Wrestling News, and Evans is ranked 24th by Wrestling USA Magazine. Frain said Zac Leith, Bevins and the two veterans at the top of his lineup, Livingston and Tanner, could all become contenders for state competition this year. Creston/O-M is a two-time defending Hawkeye 10 dual champion, but the tournament title has been elusive. To gain it this year, a Class 3A rated Lewis Central team with four wrestlers in national competition last summer stands in the way. Clarinda figures to be balanced again after gaining the conference tournament crown a year ago. The sectional tournament lineup is much the same, except that Glenwood is up to Class 3A and replaced by host Atlantic, which dropped its sharing agreement with CAM and moves back to 2A. (Former Atlantic basketball player Kasey Juhl is wrestling heavyweight for Atlantic, on the advice of University of Iowa football recruiters.) District competition is again at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs. One change from team dual qualification is that two teams from each sectional advance to a regional dual meet. Earlier tourney The tournament season is pushed earlier this year to accomodate all of the earlier high school dates, as Wells Fargo Arena is being used for NCAA women’s tournament play in March. Sectional wrestling is Feb. 2, regional team duals are Feb. 5, district meets are Feb. 9, and the traditional state tournament is Feb. 13-16. State duals are Feb. 23 in Cedar Rapids, the weekend of the former traditional state meet. CRESTON/O-M WRESTLING Roster (* — Letterman) Seniors — *Kalab Evans (160-171), *Bret Kautz (130-135), *Quin Leith (135-140), *Kaleb Livingston (215), *Andrew Long (125-130), *Summer Sistad (125), *Casey Tanner (285), *Trent Tucker (140-145). Juniors — Clay Daggett (152), Jeremy Hayes (171), Zach Huddleson (152), Blake Lacina (189), *Zac Leith (119-125), *Todd Ramaeker (152), Tanner Royster (160). Sophomores — *Jared Bevins (171-189), *Colton Dunphy (145), Jackson Foreman (189), Brody Jay (135), *Ryan Maitlen (285), Cody Nordstrom (189), *Cortney Sandeman (130). Freshmen — Isaac Adamson (119-125), Sean Eads (103-112), Jordan Hayes (189-215), Aaron Hergenreter (171), John Young (112-119). Coaches — Head coach Darrell Frain; assistants Nick Hemann, Drew Duff, Matt Long. Schedule Bold - Home Meets Nov. 27 — Double dual (I-35, Nodaway Valley) at Winterset, 5:30 p.m. Dec. 1 — at Nodaway Valley Tournament, 10 a.m. Dec. 1 — at Winterset JV tournament, 9:30 a.m. Dec. 6 — Double dual (Atlantic, Clarinda) at Clarinda, 5:30 p.m. Dec. 8 — Creston JV tournament, 9:30 a.m. Dec. 11 — Double dual at Denison (Denison-Schleswig, Glenwood), 5:30 p.m. Dec. 14-15 — KCI Expo at Platte Co. (Mo.), TBA Dec. 17 — at Shenandoah JV tournament, 5:15 p.m. Dec. 20 — Double dual (Carroll Kuemper, Lewis Central) at Carroll Kuemper, 5:30 p.m. Jan. 3 — Double dual (Harlan, Riverside), 5:30 p.m. Jan. 5 — Panther Invitational, 11 a.m. Jan. 10 — Double dual (Perry, Winterset) at Perry, 5:30 p.m. Jan. 12 — Centerville Tournament, 10 a.m. Jan. 17 — Double dual (Red Oak, Shenandoah), 5:30 p.m. Jan. 18 — John Harris Tournament at Corning Jan. 19 — John Harris Tournament at Corning Jan. 19 — Perry JV tournament, 8:30 a.m. Jan. 21 — Harlan JV tournament, 4:30 p.m. Jan. 24 — at Chariton, 6:30 p.m. Jan. 26 — Hawkeye 10 Tournament at Carroll Kuemper, 10:30 a.m. Jan. 31 — Atlantic JV tournament, 5 p.m. Feb. 2 — Sectional Tournament at Atlantic, noon Feb. 5 — Regional dual tournament, 6 p.m. Feb. 9 — District Tournament at Council Bluffs Mid-America Center, noon Feb. 13-16 — State Tournament, Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines Feb. 23 — State Dual Tournament, U.S. Cellular Center, Cedar Rapids ____________ Larry Peterson can be reached at 782-2141, ext. 232 or lpeterson@crestonnews.com