​Eagles JV wrestlers get chance to shine in varsity dual wins over Ruskin, Truman

by Michael Smith


Going into Wednesday’s Suburban White Conference tri dual against Truman and Ruskin, the Grain Valley boys wrestling team had some of their best wrestlers out of the lineup.

Zac Bleess, Colston Parks, Gavin Barker, Brody Braa, Kobe Hughes, and Sjoeren Aumua were all held out of the lineup, but that didn’t stop the Eagles from dominating.

Some junior varsity wrestlers like freshmen Jett Parks, Dalton Burch and Aiden Schaaf; and juniors Aidan Larson and Timmy Harris had their chance to show what they could do at the varsity level. And they didn’t disappoint as all of them won at least one match as Grain Valley didn’t miss a beat. Defeating Ruskin 66-18 and Truman 60-21 at Truman High School.

Harris (215 pounds) went 2-0 on the day as he pinned Truman’s Nate Reece and won by forfeit against Ruskin. He said it was a valuable experience to go against varsity wrestlers as it will prepare him to go against that kind of competition next season.

In the match against Reece, he said he surprised himself with how well he did.

“I thought that match was going to go way worse,” Harris said. “I was nervous. I didn’t really know what to do. I was like ‘I will work through what I usually do and do that.’ The kid tried to hip toss me, but I sunk under it and pinned him.”

Burch (157), like Harris, also went 2-0 on the day as he pinned Truman’s Jonathan Ruiz and won by forfeit against Ruskin. Parks (132) finished the day unbeaten as he had two forfeit wins. Schaaf (144) and Larson (138) each finished 1-1, with both getting a pin against Ruskin’s Quadarrius Williams and Elijah Clark, respectively.

Those normally in the lineup stepped up for Grain Valley to ensure victory. Junior Tyler Jones (120), who missed making weight in a dual against Platte County the week before. He made sure he was able to wrestle at 120 this time around as he worked with his mother to get his weight down.

“For me, it was just about getting my water down and being smart with what I am eating,” Jones said. “I had to take a salt bath for the first time.  My mom put me in a hot tub for 30 minutes. It drained all the water out of me and shocked me.”

He made that hard work count as he pinned Ruskin’s Roshan Khan and won by forfeit against the Patriots.
“I got to my ties pretty easily,” Jones said. “I need some work on top. I kind of struggled to turn him, but I ended up getting him.”

Junior Chase Brenner (150), who is a first-year varsity wrestler, also had a big day for his squad. He pinned Ruskin’s Elias Medina and got an upset win over Truman senior Caden Deeney by fall. While he had a good day result wise, he said there is still plenty of room for improvement.

“I wrestled pretty good in neutral, but I just need to work on my conditioning,” Brenner said. “I wrestle a little bit differently than I used to. I am getting used to it.”

Others to finish 2-0 for the Eagles were Justin King (126), Brady Jones (113) and Kaeler Byrd (106).

Girls
The Grain Valley girls wrestling team split a pair of duals, defeating Ruskin 48-30 but fell to Truman 42-39.
Junior Jayden Moehle (235) pinned Truman’s Majesty Harrison and won by forfeit over Ruskin. Senior Evie Wyatt (170) won two matches due to opens and freshman Ella Hay (190) pinned Truman’s A’Nyla Davis and won by forfeit against Ruskin.

Sophomore Valerie Bleess (120) had a productive day as she won by fall in the third period over Ruskin’s Cali Vaughn and she edged Truman’s Liliana Buri Trou 12-9.

​Junior Addison Cross (145), sophomore Lucy Dampf (140) and senior Makenzie Davis (125) finished 2-0, as well.

Grain Valley junior Justin King, left, looks for a takedown against Ruskin's Asad Shakeeb during a trip dual against Ruskin and Truman. King finished the day 2-0 including a pin over Shakeeb. Grain Valley defeated Truman 60-21 and beat Ruskin 66-18. Photo credit: Michael Smith