Four champs for Bison boys, CMR's Dieter takes Holiday Classic wrestling meet
The prep wrestling season got into full swing this weekend as C.M. Russell High and Great Falls High competed in the CMR Holiday Classic.
The Bison finished second as a team to Billings West behind four tournament champions and nine placers in the first major tournament of the winter, featuring over 60 teams from all divisions in Montana.
The Rustlers boasted an individual champion on the girls’ side, with freshman Madalyn Deiter earning her fifth pin of the tourney in the second round of the finals against Lockwood’s Rossi Gookin. None of Dieter’s matches made it past the second round in the 114-pound division over Friday and Saturday, and three came in the first frame.
Cael Floerchinger picked up an individual title at 103 pounds for Great Falls High, taking a 4-3 decision over Zach Morse of West in the finals, while sophomore Jace Komac took the 145 bracket on a third-round pin in the title round.
Kale Baumann earned a 3-1 decision over Demetrios Saliaris of Billings Senior to win at 152, and Dylan Block earned a second-round fall triumph at 160 in the championship match against Cut Bank’s Alex Wahl.
Sam Elliot also made the podium for the Bison, taking third at 132, while Ross Tolliver (126), Gage Clothier (138), Gavin Cotton (145) and Daniel Mann (205) all finished fourth in their respective weight classes.
Billings Senior earned the team title on the girls’ side for the second year in a row.
For full results, visit Track Wrestling's website here.
Here is a lookahead at the Rustlers and Bison mat teams for the 2023-24 season.
Great Falls High
The Bison finished third at the MHSA state tournament last February, boasting two individual champions and eight placers overall to earn the third team trophy in four years under head coach Luis Carranza.
While state champs Brendan Lockhart and Irish Furthmyre have graduated, Great Falls High returns another strong squad with five athletes who finished in the top six at state and a former state title-winner on the girls’ side.
Carranza said the teams’ intensity has been stellar in the early goings of the new year.
“The energy in the room is really good right now,” Carranza said. “This group of kids is really fun to work with.”
Helping lead the way is junior Kale Baumann, a state finalist at 145 pounds last season. Baumann was 3-0 in the championship bracket last weekend at 152 at the Jim Street Mining City Duals in Butte as the Bison finished third as a team.
“He’s put in a lot of time,” Carranza said of Baumann. “That’s a kid that lives on the wrestling mat, even outside of our season. He’s excited and he wants to compete.”
Senior Kaylin Taylor was the first Montana girls’ state champion in history as a freshman in 2021 before taking second the following season and third at state last year. Carranza said the senior is highly motivated to go out on top.
“She’s a great kid,” Carranza said. “Coming out hot her freshman year being the first ever girls’ state champion in Montana history was unbelievably cool. Being close last year, she wants one more and she deserves one more. That’s the goal, just to have fun and chase that top podium spot in her last ride.”
Gage Clothier was third at state at 132 pounds and has bumped up to 138 for his junior season. Carranza said Clothier has learned to be more aggressive on the mat over the offseason.
“The kid has a really nice shot,” Carranza said. “Last year he was a little hesitant at times and was a little slow to pull the trigger. This summer, we just hammered on him to just shoot and if you don’t get the takedown, that’s fine. His relentless attack has gotten better this year and has built into our philosophy that we’re an attacking team.”
Dylan Block is a senior leader for Great Falls High at 160, earning a trip to the state finals as a sophomore before a third-place showing last season.
“The kid is on a mission,” Carranza said. “He’s chasing one thing and one thing only, and if he keeps putting in the time, I believe good things are going to come in February.”
Jace Komac earned a trip to the podium as a freshman, taking fourth at 132. The brother of former state champs Jarren and Jordan and son of former coach Steve Komac, Jace is already setting an example for the team every day in practice, Carranza said.
“A younger leader, which is awesome,” Carranza said. “He’s always on kids and trying to get extra workouts. He’s really a leader by example and isn’t quite on the vocal side yet, which is all right. He just works his butt off every single day and it’s rubbing off on everyone.”
Senior Sam Elliot was injured last season but is back on the mat with purpose, Carranza said.
Layla Svigen and Mady Hammond will also be leaders along with Taylor on the girls’ side.
C.M. Russell High
Rustler mentor Aaron Jensen enters his 15th year with the program, bringing back a pair of state placers and four state qualifiers overall on the boys’ side.
CMR has shown great progress so far, Jensen said, and has been highly competitive in its early season duals.
“The kids are wrestling really hard right now,” Jensen said. “We’re kind of a young team with a lot of freshman and sophomores. But we’ve competed really well so far this season. We have a 4-3 dual record and two of the duals that we lost were really tight and came down to the end. So, we feel if keep progressing we can be a really competitive team at the end of the year.”
Leading the pack for the Rustlers is junior Landon de la Garza, a state finalist at 126 last season who is up at 138 this winter. De la Garza brings plenty of talent and a consistency that sets a fine example for the team, Jensen said.
“He’s just a really good leader for the team,” Jensen said. “Every day you get the same heart and effort from him. He’s kind of learned that from the upperclassmen that were in the program before him and he’s starting to pass it down to this group of young kids. The sky is the limit for him.”
Landon’s younger brother Paydon possesses the same intensity, Jensen said. The sophomore was fourth for the Rustlers at state last season at 103 pounds and was undefeated in dual action ahead of the Holiday.
“If you’re going to go with Paydon in practice, he’s going to demand your best effort,” Jensen said. “That’s always good to rub off on other kids. He’s been a leader so far. We really like where he is right now. He, like everybody else, has work to do, but it’s nice to have a kid that’s a sophomore that you’re going to have for years to come be such a leader. So, we’re pretty fortunate there.”
Sophomore Kael Dixon (145) and junior Liam Gage (182) were both state qualifiers last February and have both made strides, Jensen said.
“They’re both improved from last year but they’re going to have keep getting better,” Jensen said. “They’re in some tough weight classes with some tough kids. But they give a good effort in practice and they give a really good effort on the mat. If we keep that going there’s a good chance they’re going to be wrestling their best at the end of the year.”
The Rustlers also boast a pair of promising freshmen in Gage Allen for the boys and Madalyn Dieter on the girls’ side, with both entering their prep careers following much success at the club level.
Jensen said he knew Allen, who competes at 182, would be able to contribute right away for the varsity squad.
“We knew what we were getting with him,” Jensen said. “We knew when he was a freshman that he was going to be able to step in and be competitive. There’s some growing pains there for freshman but the effort, the attitude is right. If we keep making steady progress, it’s going to be really fun to see where he’s at at the end of the year.”
Like Allen, Jensen said he could tell the Rustlers would have a day-one varsity contributor in Dieter.
“She works extremely hard,” Jensen said. “Wrestling means a lot to her and she trains year-round. When I saw her in about sixth grade at the club level, we knew that she was going to be something special. She’s a good leader for the girls and for the boys.”
Andrea Kennedy is also a returning state qualifier for the CMR girls competing at 107.
“We’ve seen a huge improvement from her already this year from being a first-year wrestler qualifying for the state tournament,” Jensen said. “Now she’s got some goals to place at some tournaments and state. And I think if she keeps the effort that she’s got, I think that’s a very real thing.”
Photo provided courtesy of Matt Ehnes of Jared's Detours.
This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: Four champs for Bison boys, CMR's Dieter takes Holiday Classic wrestling meet
