The Clarion-Goldfield-Dows Cowboys wrestling team made the trip east on Highway 3 on Saturday morning, to compete in the 56th annual North Central Conference Tournament at Hampton-Dumont-CAL High School in Hampton. The Cowboys were joined by the host Bulldogs, as well as Algona, Clear Lake, Humboldt, Iowa Falls-Alden, St. Edmond and Webster City.
The Cowboys finished with 4 runner-ups in the tournament, the first being Caleb Seaba at 145 lbs, where he lost a nail-biting 1-point decision to HD-CAL’s Taylor Mahler. At 152 lbs, CGD’s Cale Kirstein charged back from a late deficit to hold a lead over Jase Goodell of Humboldt, before Goodell got a late take down to take a 9-8 lead before controversy arose over how much time should be on the clock late in the 3rd period. The clock remained at 2 seconds, had it not, Kirstein came very close to a reversal that would have given him a conference title. Instead, Goodell was the conference champion at 152 lbs.
Mack Seaba would then lose a 5-2 decision to Humboldt’s Ty Gargano to finish 2nd at 160 lbs, before Ashtin Willms was quickly pinned by Webster City’s Jaxon Cherry in the 220 lbs final. CGD would see two 3rd-place finishers, as Rigo Bobadilla managed to pin HD-CAL’s Jaymes Steven in the 113 lbs 3rd-place match, while Ethan Traub pinned Humboldt’s Owen Mayall in the 3rd-place match at 132 lbs.
Other placers for the Cowboys included Reid Huntley, Erick Perez and Mason Allen placing 4th at 285 lbs, 195 lbs and 182 lbs, and Ryan Hartwig and Nash Lienemann placing 5th at 106 lbs and 170 lbs.
Clarion-Goldfield-Dows would place 3rd as a team, scoring 173.5 points, edging out Clear Lake by 4 point, and 15.5 points behind 2nd-place Humboldt. The Cowboys return to action on Tuesday, when they face off with Humboldt and St. Edmond in a tri-dual.