Fallon 45 McQueen 33

[Alumni]

Thank you all for the great information. Nice to see scores coming in.


Fallon 45 McQueen 33

103 Merkley(F)pin Cooper(M)
112 Frazier(M)pin Gregory(F)
119 Frazier(M)by forfiet
125 Ju Lee(M) pin Quist(F)
130 Kapphan(F) def Jo. Lee(M)
135 DeBraga(F) by forfeit
140 E.Sorgani(M) pin Sanchez(F)
145 Reibsamen(F) pin Julian(M)
152 DeBraga(F) pin Gottlich(M)
160 McCormick(F) pin Hiett(M)
171 Shutz(M) def Hicks(F)
189 Riggins(F) pin Higgins(M)
215 Gooch(M) pin Scharman(F)
285 Gardner(F) pin Armstrong(M)

[Alumni]

THOMAS RANSON

RENO - Keeping a 33-match winning streak alive fell on the shoulders of the Greenwave's biggest wrestler and then quickly to the smallest wrestler.

Lyle Gardner and Colin Merkley recorded back-to-back pins in the heavyweight and 103-pound bouts, respectively, to extend Fallon's league winning streak to 34 duals Wednesday with a 45-33 victory over McQueen.

"When you look at a dual meet that close, every match matters," Greenwave coach Mitch Overlie said. "In a dual meet, you can't win without pins."

Tied at 33 points in the duals with two bouts remaining, Gardner jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first round before cradling Karrington Armstrong near the Fallon bench for the pin with 29 seconds left. Gardner's win set up a worst-case scenario that if Merkley were to lose, the match would end in a tie.

Instead, the 88-pound wrestler competing in the 103-pound division pinned Tony Looper with 14 seconds left to seal the High Desert League win.

"I wasn't worried about Merk," Overlie said. "I knew Colin would win a match. The size difference is a scary thing that could make the match."

With the match beginning at 112 pounds, the Lancers jumped to an 18-0 lead behind two pins at 112 and 125 and a forfeit at 119. Overlie said McQueen continues to be strong in the lower weights, and he expected the Lancers to give his wrestlers trouble.

"They took it to us last year," Overlie said.

Cody Kappahn helped Fallon get on the board in his 130-pound contest with Jordan Lee. Although the Greenwave grappler didn't win by pin, Kappahn outlasted Lee for the 7-2 win to cut McQueen's lead to 18-3.

Overlie said he wasn't too worried about the large deficit because of his upper weights.

"I was a little bit worried. I knew we had the points coming," Overlie said.

Trent de Braga won by forfeit at 135 and Fallon picked up three consecutive pins beginning with Tyler Reibsamen at 145. Reibsamen quickly jumped ahead of Derek Julian in the first round before cradling him for the pin with 1:03 left.

Trevor de Braga's pin 13 seconds into the second round at 152 put Fallon within three points of McQueen, 24-21, and Ryan McCormick gave the Wave its first lead of the night. McCormick wasted no time with Spencer Hiett in pinning him with 38 seconds remaining in the first round of their 160-pound bout. Fallon led McQueen, 27-24, before Zack Hicks lost by decision, 6-3, at 171.

Ahead 7-1 in the third round at 189, Clint Riggins rolled David Higgens for the pin with 28 seconds left. Ronnie Scharmann's loss by pinfall at 215 tied the match at 33 points.

"I didn't expect Zack to lose and Ronnie to lose to that kid," Overlie said.

Fallon begins competing in the first of three tournaments this weekend at the Las Vegas Classic followed by the Reno Tournament of Champions next week. The Sierra Nevada Classic wraps up the last week of December.

The Las Vegas tournament is also going to give Fallon an idea what the Southern 4A will bring to the state tournament.

"The Vegas trip is big. It's really important for state," Overlie said.

Overlie said seeding for the regional tournament in February will come down to the number of wins compiled by each wrestler.

"A win's a win. Those matches all count toward zone," Overlie said. "You don't want those seedings coming up. You want to win as much as you can. It's very important to do that."