On Saturday, Jan. 22nd the varsity wrestling team traveled to Lowell for a dual tournament with numerous state ranked teams and came out as the runner up.  In the opening round we competed with division 2 Jackson Northwest and came out with a 68-18 win.  We continue to be short handed with several starters out of the line up but the team continues to persevere and find ways to not only win but separate themselves from teams.  Key pins came from Captain Connor Busz at 119, Zak Shadley at 125, Maurice Ames at 135, Ethan Younts at 145, and Jake Felts at 171 pounds.  Captain Chase Packard picked up a technical fall at 130 pounds 15-0.  Three year captain Kent McCombs earned a 6-4 decision over Braden Gariety who is currently ranked 8th in the state.  Others with wins during the dual were Wyatt Hicks at 215, Braylon Long at 103, Connor Younts at 112, and Coy Perry at 140.  

In the second round Clinton picked up a 43-30 win over division two Bay City John Glenn who is ranked 10th in the state.  Chase Packard picked up a 5-0 win at 125, while Zak Shadley battled the entire match and showed how gritty and tough he is as a competitor as he won a war of a match 6-5.  Coy Perry picked up a technical fall 15-0 at 140 pounds.  Kent McCombs picked up another technical fall 19-3 at 171.  Nate Smith stepped in at 189 and battled for position all match to earn a 9-1.  Others with wins were Brandon Felts at Heavyweight, Connor Busz at 119, Ethan Younts at 145, and Joey Preston at 160.  

In the third round Clinton defeated division 2 Middleville Thornapple Kellogg who is ranked 8th in division two with a score of 53-14.  Braylon Long picked up a pin at 103, Connor Younts earned a 17-2 technical fall.  Connor Busz earned a great win 6-3 at 119.  Zak Shadley picked another pin in 5:13 at 130 pounds.  Cory Perry earned a 5-2 win at 135 pounds.  Maurice Ames earned a pin at 140 pounds.  Joe Preston came back for a dramatic 6-5 win as he showed ice in his veins throughout the match at 160 pounds.  Kent McCombs picked up another solid win 4-1 at 171 pounds.  Logan Badge picked up a pin in :35 seconds at 189 pounds.  Wyatt Hicks then picked up a pin at 215 pounds.  Brandon Felts picked up a pin at heavyweight to finish the dual.  

The finals saw Clinton against the host team Lowell who in ranked in the top 50 of the nation and is going after a state record 9th state championship in a row in division 2.  Lowell showed way they are where they are at as a program and flexed their muscle against a short handed Clinton team as several more starters were forced to sit out of the dual for various reasons.  But Clinton used the next man up mentality and continued to battle but were over whelmed with many starters out.  Kent McCombs competed well and earned a 5-2 win at 160 pounds over state ranked Tacho Gonzales.  And Connor Busz earned a pin at 119 over Easton Lyons.  The Redwolves will be back in action on Wednesday, Jan. 26th at Hillsdale for their final LCAA match of the year.  Wrestling starts at 5:30 and we will wrestling Hillsdale first then Adrian Madison for the second match.  On Friday, Jan. 28th Adrian College hosts the Lenawee All Star meet in the Merillat Center with wrestling starting at 5pm.  The top four wrestlers in every weight class are invited to this meet and will have an opportunity to compete in front of packed house.  We look forward to competing this week as we working closer to the post season.