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At the Nationals in Cedar Falls Iowa.
This is something every one of our kids should be experiencing. I think this trip is a must no matter what your skill level. There are 20 mats going at once and over 2100 competitors. We are having a great time. Landon Carr had a rough go of it, but wrestled well. He got last years National Champ at this event in the first round and when you see the video I think you will agree Landon represented himself and his state well. He then drew another tough kid and lost. I am proud of the work this young man has put in and he had a great time. Talk to him and I am sure he will say the same.
Ben Wileford had a tough draw too. He wrestled the #1 Minnesota entry at 98lbs. I thought Ben would wrestle well, but he was too conservative and lost the match. He decided to open it up after that and won his next two matches. There are allot of very talented wrestlers here and Ben will have to be at his best to make a splash on Saturday. No matter what happens this kid has showed heart and should be commended.
Marshall Leavoy opened up his tournament with a 2-1 victory over a wrestler from Oklahoma. Forgot his name, but Marshall wrestled a great match. His next match was against a specimen and Marshall came up a little short. We had our chances to pin the guy and I thought we might get it done, but it was not to be. Marshall advanced to Day 2 with Ben and we hope to continue with some wins. I am sorry that this got on so late, but that is how it goes. This tournament is tough and anyone that says it isn't has no idea.
We will be back at it at 10:30 Saturday morning.
Geaux Warriors!!!
Regular Season closes and State Tournament Summary
The regular season has come to a close. Wow!!! What a ride. This season has been tremendous. I am so blessed to have had this experience. I have never taken a full team to the State Tournament. It was a memorable and rewarding experience. There were many firsts and groundwork has been laid for an unbelievable future. New life has been breathed into this program and it has come from so many places.
Before I get into the recap of the tournament I have to express my thanks. Thanks to the parents for their never ending support of their kids and this program. You guys have provided so much and I will never be able to express my thanks enough. Thanks to the coaches. Coach Patla, Coach Cam, Coach Tommy, Coach Brock, Coach Austin, and Coach Brent. These guys gave endless amounts of time to this team and to these wrestlers. They have instilled a work ethic that will influence these kids for the rest of their lives. They have encouraged and taught these young men lessons that will last a lifetime. And I would be remiss if I did not thank the wrestlers. I appreciate all of your effort throughout the season. In the beginning I told you that we had one goal in mind and that was to be better each weekend. We were exactly that. I thank you guys for the pleasure of coaching you and for the memories we made together. There are still more things to accomplish and I am confident that all of you will see the fruits of our labor.
You guys are the lifeblood of this new uprising. You are the caretakers of this program. We need you to encourage others that may have never considered wrestling as an option to try it out. We need all of you to do what you can in the off-season to improve your wrestling skills. We have many opportunities before us and we need to take advantage of those opportunities.
Now for the recap.
Ben Willeford(Freshman) 3rd- Ben wrestled well in the two preliminary bouts pinning both of his opponents Zach Sloan(Chalmette) and Austen Waguespack(East Ascension). He then met Ryan Carriere(Northside) in the semis. Ben wrestled a tough first period and then made one mistake that cost him the match. Carriere went on to win the State title. After that disappointment a wrestler can chose to do one of two things lose interest and quit or make the most of it and win 3rd. Ben chose to win. He pinned his next two opponents Brandon Surrency(Shaw) and Austen Waguespack(East Ascension). The two wins over Waguespack were critical in us holding off East Ascension for 4th place.
Landon Carr(Freshman) 6th - All Landon did was make the semis and win 6th at the State tournament. He pinned two of his opponents and looked very good in the Championship rounds. His first opponent was Ramanand Naik(Bossier) who won 5th a year ago at 103. Landon pinned him in just 1:18 and then pinned Lenny Swim(Zachary) in just 0:49. Carr lost to State runner-up Raymond Savoy(Shaw) in the semis. After the match Savoy said, "Wow that kid has gotten allot better. He's tough." I guess the skinny kid has a little respect now.
Tonny Desselle(Junior) - Tonny had a tough tournament and his lack of mat time showed. After losing to the state runner-up Landon Robin(Parkway) in the first round he beat Benjamin Deaton(Northwood) in the first round of consolations 11-5 before dropping an 11-6 decision to Raymond Clawson(Belle Chase). A full year will help Tonny next season.
Will Bellefontaine(Freshman) 3rd - Will pinned Zack Armand(Chalmette) in 1:22 and then beat Stefen Valencia(Shaw) 17-9 to make the semis. In the semis he wrestled state runner-up Anthony Smith(East Ascension) and dropped a 17-9 decision. He did have Anthony in a precarious position and an early whistle may have cost Will the match. Will took it in stride and proceeded to beat #4 Kevin Senegal(Northside) 6-3 and Stefen Valancia again, this time 12-6 to claim 3rd.
Michael Podnar (Freshman) - Michael was1-2 at the State tournament with a win over Jacob Babin(Zachary) 3-2. His two losses were to Joshua Parker(St. Thomas More) 10-6 and James Breland(Belle Chase) 9-4. Parker finished 5th and Breland finished 3rd. I was very proud that Michael did not get pinned. This was one of the critical points for this tournament. Michael lost, but kept his matches close to avoid giving bonus points to our opponents.
Zach Braud(Sophomore) 4th- Zach pinned his two first opponents Tyler Collins(St. Thomas More) 1:31 and Ossie Moten(Riverdale) 1:49. In the semis he lost a close 7-4 decision to Kelly LeBlanc(Shaw). Braud then beat Brandon Benitez(Belle Chase) 12-4. In the third place match Zach dropped another close decision 8-4, this time to Sidney Pierre(Northside).
Seth Fontenot(Junior) - Seth had the toughest bracket in our division. The 140 bracket had 6 seeded wrestlers and was full of talented experienced wrestlers. 4 guys in this bracket placed last year. Seth faced the State Champ in the first round Ben Collins(Shaw) and was pinned. He then rattled off 2 wins against Colton Hunter(Northwood) and Jason Rucker(Istrouma) before losing to #6 Kyle Cloinger(Parkway). Seth was just one round away from a state placing. Next season will be a good one for Seth.
Jared Dietrich(Sophomore) - Jared went 0-2, but I was proud of the way he wrestled. Jared became the man without a weight class after dropping a few pounds he showed up at state almost 10 pounds under his weight class limit. This put him at a disadvantage, but nothing discourages this kid. He lost to Todd Thomas(Istrouma) and #2 seed Alex Rutledge(Shaw). Another kid that will have an impact next season.
Seth Leblanc(Senior) 4th - Seth came in confident pinned Joseph Neitzschman(Chalmette) to make the semis. He then lost to State runner-up Trevor Goodie(Northside) 9-3. Seth then had an impressive pin over Ryan Baldridge(St. Thomas More) in 1:44. He met last years 135 lb. State Champion Trey Johnson(Parkway) for 3rd place. He came up a bit short and took 4th. Seth was a first year wrestler. He made the most out of his one shot and I appreciate his dedication. He did not have the luxury of saying well maybe next year. He left it on the mat. Thanks
Derek Lemoine(Freshman) - Derek went 0-2, but wrestled hard. Little mistakes cost him his matches. His first loss was to #3 seed Josh Wolverton(Parkway) in the consolations he lost to Kurt Theriot(Shaw). Hoot you better keep working and come back with a vengance. I am guessing you and Marshall will both move up a weight class.
Marshall Leavoy(Sophomore) State runner-up - Marshall looked good on the first day pinning Arthur Hoover(Lee) in 3:08 and earning a major decision over David King(Belle Chase) 14-2. In the semis he faced Ross Gary(St. Thomas More) who was last years State runner-up at 171. Even though Marshall was the higher seeded wrestler most picked Gary to win this match do to experience. Marshal silenced the critics with a dominating win by pin in 4:23. In the finals he met last years 152 lb State Champ Jamel Wheatley(Northside). Jamel posted a 15-6 victory over Marshall to take this years 171 crown. This was a much better showing that last years 0-2 performance.
Clay Tucker(Sophomore) - Clay went 0-2. One loss was to 5th place finisher Jose Johnson(Northwood) and the other to Coty Johnson(Bossier). Clay made some big strides this year. We are looking forward to the off season to make next season a successful one for Clay.
Corey Creed(Senior) 4th - Another guy that had one shot and made the most of it. Corey came in unseeded. In his first match he pinned Jan Cox(Haughton) in 5:39. He then faced the eventual state runner-up Steven Sandrock(Riverdale) and lost by pin. Corey then reeled off 3 straight pins over Mason Briant(Shaw) 1:22, Jayler Hebert(East Ascension) 1:35, and Nicholas Hayes(Northwood) 0:49 to make the 3rd place match. He lost a close 5-2 decision to last years 4th place finisher Raymond Stewart(Northside) in that match. Not a bad run Corey.
Jordan Staples(Senior) 5th - Jordan had a bye and then lost to #4 Eric Pease(Haughton) by pin. Jordan then came back and pinned Jaron Edmond(Northside) in 2:15. In the consolation semis he met highly touted #3 Jon Creel(Parkway). Jordan wrestled very well, but made a mistake that got him pinned. I was impressed with the progress he made this year. He looked good in that match. Eric Pease(Haughton) then forfeited to Jordan. I guess Jordan scared him back to Shreveport.
Wait till they see us next year!!!
#2 Ben Willeford enters the tournament with a 36-10 record. The only man to beat Ben in the tournament is the #1 seeded Joshua Flick. Ben will wrestle in the first round of competition against Zack Sloan of Chalmette.
Landon Carr enters the tournament unseeded and with a .500 record. He recieved a favorable draw and will meet Ramanand Naik(Bossier) in the first round.
Tonny Desselle comes in unseeded and will face #2 Landon Robin(Parkway) in the first round. He will have to be his best to make a run at Robin.
#3 Will Bellefontaine(13-7) comes into the tournament on some what of a roll. He placed 2nd in the JV city tournament and 3rd in the Varsity Tournament. That earned him the #3 seed and he will face Zack Armand(Chalmette) in the first round of the tournament.
Michael Podnar is coming off of an injury and making a go at the State tournament. He will face #5 Joshua Parker(St. Thomas More) in the first round. This is definitely a winable match for Michael.
#3 Zach Braud(18-7) is looking for a top finish this year. He lost a heartbreaker last year in the first round when, as an unseeded wrestler, he dropped a 4-3 decision to the #2 seed. Zach looks to be ready to make a run this year and will wrestle in the first round.
Every year one wrestler gets a tough draw. This year it is Seth Fontenot. He drew the #1 seed Ben Collins(Shaw). Seth is also in the only full bracket. He will have to wrestle his best to earn a top 6 finish. We have every confidence he will do so.
Jared Dietrich will wrestle in the first round against Todd Thomas(Istrouma). He can win this match if he sticks to his basics. He has had a good week of practice and looks ready.
#4 Seth Leblanc(25-12) is confident that he can win the tournament this weekend. He has wrestled well for the last couple of weeks and gets a first round bye. His first match will be in the second round most probably against #5 Chris Pastrana(Shaw). A win in that match will put him in the semis.
Derek Lemoine got an excellent draw. He has a first round bye and will probably wrestle the #3 Josh Wolverton(Parkway) in the second round. A victory in this match would put Derek in the semis.
#2 Marshall Leavoy(27-8) is looking to erase the memories of last year. He entered the tournament last year as the #3 seed and was beaten by the #6 seed 17-16. Marshall comes in on a role and looks focused. He won the City Championship and wants to add the State Championship to his resume. Marshall has to get past Arthur Hoover(Lee) in the first round to make a run this year.
Clay Tucker comes in unseeded and looked good in practice today. He has shown more fire than I have seen from him at any time this year and can win some matches this year at State. He has a first round match with Jose Johnson(Northwood)
Corey Creed is another guy that has been wrestling well and will be a darkhorse at the State tournament. Corey will face Jan Cox(Haughton) in the first round. I look for Corey to turn some heads at State.
#5 Jordan Staples has a first round bye. He will face the winner of #4 Eric Pease(Haughton) and unseeded Dedric Kelley(Bossier). Jordan looks ready to go.
So for those counting wrestling for us will begin at 11a.m. on Friday morning. The following wrestlers will have first round matches: Ben Willeford, Landon Carr, Tonny Desselle, Will Bellefontaine, Michael Podnar, Zach Braud, Seth Fontenot, Jared Dietrich, Marshall Leavoy, Clay Tucker, and Corey Creed. The second round of the championships will begin about 1pm. There are only 58 first round matches and with 4 mats going these matches will go fast(approx. 1 to 1.5 hours). There are only 9 matches in the first round of consolations. That should take less than 10 minutes on 4 mats. Let's go Warriors. Time to have some fun.
Warriors continue to build towards state tournament.
Warriors continue to build towards state tournament.
The JV tournament went well for the Warriors. We placed in 5 of the 10 weight classes we entered. We had 4 voids at 103, 125, 171, and 285. Even with that many voids we finished 4th just 7 points behind Zachary. Ben Willeford(103), Marshall Leavoy (171), Jordan Staples(285)and Zach Braud(135) were eligible to wrestle, but chose to take advantage of their seeds in the Varsity tournament. If we had those wrestlers in the JV tournament we would have done no worse than 2nd and would certainly have pushed Catholic for the title.
Landon Carr wrestled well and came away with a second place finish in 112. He wrestled 3 opponents from Catholic High beating Michael Harrison 6-4 in his first match and then pinning Justin Kennedy in 3:26 to advance to the finals. The finals did not start until 10:30. This certainly looked like a factor for Landon as he was pinned by Catholic's Steven Segura in 2:53.
Tony Deselle had a good showing at 119 and went 2-2. He was one win away from placing. He won a close decision against Catholic's Ethan Daigle 6-5 and then dropped an 11-6 decision to Catholic's Jacob Monistere. Once in the consolation bracket he pinned Brusly's Tommy Gomez in 1:16 befor coming up short against Catholic's Henry Laville 9-0.
Will Bellefonatine has come on strong after joining the team late. He went 3-1 in the JV tournament finishing 2nd. He pinned Tyler Fullmer(Redemptorist) in just 0:15 and followed that up with a 1:20 pin over Zachary's Ashton Pennington. Andrew O'Brien of Brusly suffered a 17-6 major decision loss to Will in the semis. In the finals Will met Catholic's 130 starter for next year Drew Boatner and dropped a 6-1 decision.
Seth Fontenot went 3-2 and finished 4th. He had a tough draw, but wrestled well. 4 of the 5 wrestlers he faced are on varsity rosters. Corey Levey of Zachary pinned Seth. Seth then rattled off 3 wins over St. Amant's Aaron Lebeau, Plaquemine's Gavin Landry, and Redemptorist's Josh Ramirez. In the third place match he dropped a 8-3 decision to Catholic's Stephen Bourgeois.
Jared Dietrich went 1-2 and T.C. Matherne went 2-2. Both competed hard and should be commended. Matherne lost two close matches a 9-7 decision to Devan Harifrod of Brusly and a 4-0 decision to Catholic's John Beieler.
Seth LeBlanc took a chance and gave up his seeding in the Varsity Tournament to wrestle the JV tournament. He thought that this might be a good warm-up for the upcoming State tournament as he will have to wrestle both Friday and Saturday. His decision paid off in the JV tournament as he pinned 4 straight opponents in a total combined time of less that 7 minutes. They were in order Dylan Goza(Zachary), Trey Laurent(Dutchtown), Jacob Rabalias(Catholic), and in the finals Dylan Wicker(Zachary) in just 1:26. Seth didn't leave the gym until after 11:15 and had to be back for weigh-in for the varsity tournament at 7:30 where he would be unseeded. He showed tremendous heart.
Corey Creed has all of the sudden turned it on. He went 3-0 to win the JV tournament. He pinned all 3 of his opponents. Adam Alfred(East Ascension) 1:41, Trevor Beach(Baton Rouge High) 0:23, and Chris Godso(Redemptorist) 1:32 all fell victim to the might Gene Mills half. The 26 points Corey scored for the team were critical and that total was just 2 points behind the 28 Seth LeBlanc scored for the team.
Good job guys. I am proud of the way you represented our team and our school.
Varsity Results
As a team we finished where I thought we would. I had aspirations of finishing 3rd behind Catholic and Brusly, but Redemptorist had strong showings in the consolation brackets and moved ahead of us to push us back to 4th. I wasn't disappointed with the effort our wrestlers gave. This tournament is tough and many good wrestlers are overwhelmed by the emphasis placed on this tournament. The draws we faced placed us in a tough position to start the tournament. In the first matches we faced 2-#1 seeds, 2-#2 seeds, and 1-#3 seed. We won 2 of those 5 matches. That is no small accomplishment. I thought that the guys that participated in the JV tournament were a step slow and that the amount of rest they had was a factor in how they wrestled Saturday. This is something they will have to overcome for State.
Ben Willeford(9) continues to surprise the area wrestling coaches with his consistent performances. He wrestled well scoring a tech fall over Austen Waguespack(East Ascension) 24-6 and then pinning Kyle Chaston(Redemptorist) in 1:40. He met rival Blake Savoie(Catholic) in the finals and wrestled well. He was down 4-3 with 15 seconds left in the match when the referee restarted the wrestlers in the middle of the mat. Off the whistle Savoie immediately shot and held on for 15 seconds to win the City title. Ben was disappointed, but I am sure he learned from this experience and this will help him at the State tournament.
Landon Carr(9) and Tony Deselle(11) had tough draws. Landon had to wrestle the #1 seed Luis Alexander(Catholic) in the first round. He was pinned before coming back in his second match against James Rawls(East Ascension) to score a pin in 2:31. His fatigue showed in his last match against Cameon Heil(Tara) where he fell in 2:31. Tony had to face #2 Tommy Ventress(Redemptorist) in his first match. Tommy pinned him in 1:45 Tony then lost to a speedy David Williams(Istrouma) 24-9.
Will Bellefontaine(9) continued where he left off in the JV tournament taking 3rd place in the Varsity tournament. Will first dispatched the #3 seeded Tre' Vaughn(St. Amant) with an impressive 13-9 decision. He then faced the #2 seeded Michael Oakley(Broadmoor) and dropped a 15-5 decision. Will came back strong and posted a pin in 3:45 over Kevin Olano(Parkview) before accepting a forfeit from Tre' Vaughn due to the 5 match rule to garner a third place finish as a freshman.
Zach Braud(10) had a tough day and dropped to matches to the #4 and #3 seeds Jay Veasman(Dutchtown) and Blake Forroux(Redemptorist). He also had a pin over Quniton Moore(Tara). Zach is looking to rebound and have a successful state tournament.
Seth Fontenot(11) and Jared Dietrich(10) went 0-2, but had flashes of briliance. They will work hard over the next 2 weeks and have a better showing at state. The determination these two guys have demonstrated this year is amazing. I am greatful that these guys are a part of this team.
Seth Leblanc(12) had some fatigue going for him after the four matches he wrestled on Saturday night. All he did was pin the #2 seeded A.J. McIlwain(Dutchtown) before falling to the #3 seed Beau Haydel(Brusly) in the semis. He followed this up with a pin over Michael Roberts of Redemptorist in just 0:45. Seth wrestled a great match for 3rd and had a chance to win, but was outlasted by Kenny Whittle(Catholic) 17-14.
Derek Lemoine(9) and Clay Tucker(9) posted 0-2 records in the varsity brackets. Derrick lost to a junior and a senior. Clay lost to #3 seed Tim Becnel(Parkview) and then lost a nail biter to Christian Colston(Zachary) 9-7. Two more guys that have made huge strides. I look forward to big things from these guys in the future.
Marshall Leavoy(10) had a scare in his first match against unseeded Willie Young. He survived with a 4-3 victory to advance to the semis where he met #4 seeded Arthur Hoover(Lee). Marshall got back on track with a quick 1:00 pin to make the finals. He left nothing to doubt in the finals pinning J.P Luckett(Catholic) in 5:01 after dominating the match. This made Marshall the first St. Michael City Champ. There had been City champs from Sullivan, but Marshall is the first from St. Michael. He wants to make it a double and be the first St. Michael state champion but may be second or third in line for that honor.
Corey Creed(12) had a good showing going 2-2 and could concievable made the finals with a better draw. By falling in the top half of the bracket he had to face the #1 seed Michael Johnson(Zachary) in the semis after pinning his first opponent Jugit Sandhu(St. Amant) in 1:56. Johnson pinned Corey in 3:45. Corey then faced Tyler Hebert(East Ascension) by pin in 1:40. Redemptorist's Ryan Hale took advantage of a Creed mistake to pin him in 0:30. If not for two mistakes I believe Corey could have won this tournament.
Jordan Staples(12) had a tough draw as well. He pinned his first opponent Michael Caine(Redemptorist) in a scant 0:39. He then had to face returning city Champ Alex Schofield(Brusly). Alex dispatched Jordan quickly. He has done this to all but one other opponent this year. A tough #2 seed Stephen Dodson(Zachary) also pinned Jordan leaving him with a 1-2 record for the weekend.
This weekend was a good tune up for state. I hope that these guys take the lessons learned this weekend and correct our shortcomings before the state tournament. If we do so and get some breaks who knows what could happen. Hold your heads high you represented your parents , your school and your teammates well this weekend. Geaux Warriors!!!!!!!!!!
Good showing at St. Amant Duals, but missing weights cost us top three finish
The inability to fill a roster again kills us at a tournament. We were void in 189 and 215. This cost us dearly this weekend and cost us a bid in the championship round and then cost us in the 3rd place dual. We were 3-1 in our pool. We had wins against Dutchtown, Istrouma, and John Ehret. Unfortunately we lost to Catholic by 6 points. If we had our 189 and 215 we would have won. Those wrestlers only had to accept forfeits for us to win because Catholic High did not have wrestlers in those weight classes. So that moved us to number 2 in our pool behind Catholic. So instead of competing for 1st or 2nd we had to compete for 3rd or 4th. St. Amant beat us 40-33. So again the 2 voids cost us a place. This is very frustrating for our team and the coaches. We have 30 kids on this team and are unable to fill 14 spots. The kids that were there did what they could. The kids that were not cost us dearly. Commitment to this team and your teammates is critical. What are you doing to support your teammates and this team?
I applaud the efforts of the wrestlers at St. Amant this weekend. They all got at least 3 matches with some wrestling as many as 5. That match experience is critical and those not present will find out how critical next weekend. The City tournament allows one wrestler in each weight class.
A note to parents. We need to have a parents meeting this Wednesday after practice. It will take about 30 minutes. We need to discuss State plans and the Wrestling Banquet. This is a separate function than the school sponsored event. If you have questions please call me.
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