MONROE - Last year, there was a hoops team that played on the Cheesemakers' hardwood that everyone called "a year away."
Saturday, a wrestling team from Darlington showed some similarities to last year's Division 2 state basketball champs in nearly chasing down Janesville Craig on the same wood grain at the Monroe Invitational.
Junior Dylan McGuire came away with the Redbirds' lone individual title in the 145-pound weight class, but six Redbirds had a shot to bring home the gold. The Redbirds entered the championship flights trailing the Cougars' stacked lineup by a mere 10 points.
McGuire came up just centimeters shy of adding two points to his first-place finish as Parkview's Ben Neal fought to keep his left shoulder blade above the surface in McGuire's 9-2 victory.
Sophomore Devin Malott fell victim to a grueling 3-2 decision against Craig's Siven Furseth, a solidly-built firecracker against whom Malott wrestles regularly in Advance meets in Madison.
"Those two have seen plenty of each other and I really think Devin was satisfied with how he wrestled," Mathias said.
Malott didn't blink until Furseth wriggled loose with 41 seconds remaining in the third period in regulation, his second crucial rolling reversal of the afternoon.
Furseth rode Malott to a zero in overtime before escaping with 15 ticks left in his half of the extra session and fending off his friendly foe.
Malott was visibly satisfied afterward, a telling sign of a leader who's a bit ahead of the curve.
"Devin knows that he's wrestling well and knows what he's capable of," Darlington head coach Tom Mathias said. "His maturity goes beyond his age."
"It's a match that I know could've gone either way," Malott said.
In a 189-pound match that resembled an audition tape for the new season of "American Gladiators," hulking Redbirds senior Logan Taylor took a 4-2 lead into the final period against Blair Kessler of Janesville Craig.
Taylor, who's battled diabetes since the age of 3, couldn't battle back from an elbow injury in the second and a nagging recurring abdominal injury, as Kessler jumped on his laboring opponent and nearly pinned Taylor in the third.
Incredibly, to Taylor's credit, he refused to be subdued, and even earned an escape to fall just two points short at 7-5.
"Logan may have hit a diabetic low where he needed some more energy out there and we unfortunately run into that," Mathias said.
But no excuses were furnished.
"(Kessler's) just in great condition and very strong," Taylor said. "I've just gotta step it up. I'll be there."
Fellow senior Isaiah Goebel remained one of the hottest Redbird wrestlers in falling a point short of Clinton's Brian Bahn in the 125-pound championship.
Bahn started down in the third and escaped to secure a gritty title.
"It was one of those things where Banh wins on an escape," Mathias said. "It just shows you've gotta be able to score points from the bottom."
Two months ago, Mathias was using phrases like "staying competitive in every meet" and "shooting for a .500 mark". Now his squad is 14-5 in dual meets and even gave the cats from Craig a good scare Saturday.
Saturday, a wrestling team from Darlington showed some similarities to last year's Division 2 state basketball champs in nearly chasing down Janesville Craig on the same wood grain at the Monroe Invitational.
Junior Dylan McGuire came away with the Redbirds' lone individual title in the 145-pound weight class, but six Redbirds had a shot to bring home the gold. The Redbirds entered the championship flights trailing the Cougars' stacked lineup by a mere 10 points.
McGuire came up just centimeters shy of adding two points to his first-place finish as Parkview's Ben Neal fought to keep his left shoulder blade above the surface in McGuire's 9-2 victory.
Sophomore Devin Malott fell victim to a grueling 3-2 decision against Craig's Siven Furseth, a solidly-built firecracker against whom Malott wrestles regularly in Advance meets in Madison.
"Those two have seen plenty of each other and I really think Devin was satisfied with how he wrestled," Mathias said.
Malott didn't blink until Furseth wriggled loose with 41 seconds remaining in the third period in regulation, his second crucial rolling reversal of the afternoon.
Furseth rode Malott to a zero in overtime before escaping with 15 ticks left in his half of the extra session and fending off his friendly foe.
Malott was visibly satisfied afterward, a telling sign of a leader who's a bit ahead of the curve.
"Devin knows that he's wrestling well and knows what he's capable of," Darlington head coach Tom Mathias said. "His maturity goes beyond his age."
"It's a match that I know could've gone either way," Malott said.
In a 189-pound match that resembled an audition tape for the new season of "American Gladiators," hulking Redbirds senior Logan Taylor took a 4-2 lead into the final period against Blair Kessler of Janesville Craig.
Taylor, who's battled diabetes since the age of 3, couldn't battle back from an elbow injury in the second and a nagging recurring abdominal injury, as Kessler jumped on his laboring opponent and nearly pinned Taylor in the third.
Incredibly, to Taylor's credit, he refused to be subdued, and even earned an escape to fall just two points short at 7-5.
"Logan may have hit a diabetic low where he needed some more energy out there and we unfortunately run into that," Mathias said.
But no excuses were furnished.
"(Kessler's) just in great condition and very strong," Taylor said. "I've just gotta step it up. I'll be there."
Fellow senior Isaiah Goebel remained one of the hottest Redbird wrestlers in falling a point short of Clinton's Brian Bahn in the 125-pound championship.
Bahn started down in the third and escaped to secure a gritty title.
"It was one of those things where Banh wins on an escape," Mathias said. "It just shows you've gotta be able to score points from the bottom."
Two months ago, Mathias was using phrases like "staying competitive in every meet" and "shooting for a .500 mark". Now his squad is 14-5 in dual meets and even gave the cats from Craig a good scare Saturday.
