A-W wraps up season with 1-2 mark

Chet Utesch, Akron-Westfield's third-ranked 119-pounder, suffered his first loss of the season during the Woodbury Central Duals last weekend.

Utesch, who was wrestling up at 130 pounds, lost by technical fall to Sioux City North's Chad Ryan, Class 3A's No. 3 130-pounder.

"There was some severe disappointment," A-W coach Mark Van Oort said. "But it's never bad to have a loss (going into the postseason). I think it's important that kids learn how to deal with losses and that loss didn't change what his goal is."

The Westerners had a rough weekend in Moville as they lost freshman 125-pounder Cole Oltmans for the remainder of the season to a back injury.

Ethan Hecht and Daniel Beitelspacher also suffered injuries as the Westerners went 0-5 on the weekend, but Van Oort said the two should be back for Saturday's sectional tournament at Inwood.

The Westerners went 1-2 in a trio of dual matches on Tuesday. A-W defeated Dakota Valley without a win on the mat as the Panthers forfeited 11 of their 14 weight classes.

The Westerners followed with a 50-27 loss to Beresford. Daniel Dirks recorded a pin in 5:22 at 125 pounds and Nick McGlaughlin won by fall in 52 seconds at 135.

Tyler Schneider won by fall in 1:06 at 140, Taylor James added a 6-0 win at 152 and Chet Willer won by forfeit at 145 pounds. The Westerners wrapped up the evening with a 57-15 loss to Vermillion. Dirks won a 10-3 decision, Taylor won by fall in the third period and Schneider claimed a forfeit victory.

Utesch dropped his second match of the season by a 2-0 score to Vermillion senior T.J. North, who is ranked No. 7 in the nation among 112-pounders.

"Chet put up a real good fight against a tough kid," Van Oort said. "One thing that set these two apart was experience. I think North has wrestled in (several) state tournaments and has wrestled more high-caliber kids."

The Westerners now turn their attention to Saturday's sectional meet in Inwood.

"As a whole the kids are wrestling well," Van Oort said. "They're fighting harder than they have all year. They're penetrating forward and pushing the pace. I think we're in real good shape heading into the sectional tournament."