Greenchain wrestlers get ready to hit mat

Gasping for air after running sprints in the Libby High School hallway, members of this year’s edition of the Logger Greenchain were working hard to get in shape for Saturday’s season opener.

“C’mon Puckett, finish strong,” teammates called out to senior Lucas Puckett, who appears to be in line for a varsity spot at heavyweight. Later during an end-of-practice meeting up in the wrestling room, first-year coach Todd Schatz stressed the importance of team unity.

Compared to a powerful conference opponent such as Polson, this year’s Greenchain lineup appears to be a little light on experience. Schatz has a lot of first-year wrestlers and of the returnees he does have, only Kyle Leir placed at last year’s state tournament.

“It seems like we have quite a few more guys who have never wrestled before,” said Schatz, who served as an assistant coach under Jay Graham for 20 years. “This year, we haven’t lost anybody (in practice) … that’s a good sign.”

Last season as a freshman, Leir placed fifth at 125 pounds with a thrilling 7-6 victory over Laurel’s Tommy Cooper. In all, he won three of five matches in the spotlight at state.

“Leir’s going to try to make it at ’30, which he can do,” Schatz said. “He may go to 135 but he’s telling me that he’s going for ’30.”

Senior Cody Elliott, sophomore Dylan Berget, senior Kyle Sweedman and junior Dean Willey are all returning state qualifiers. Along with Leir, those five wrestlers had a combined record of 9-10 at state.

But Schatz had an open mind regarding the athletes that would be in the varsity starting lineup. Intrasquad wrestle-offs were scheduled to be staged on Monday with a collection of new faces ready to challenge.

Schatz is a new face himself by taking over the head chair on the edge of the mat. He came to Libby High the same year as Graham and served as his assistant over the past two decades. He did fill the role of interim coach during one season in the early 1990s.

A Superior High School graduate, Schatz was a top wrestler in his day and lost in the state semifinals two years in a row by just one point. He grew up around wrestling with a brother that won state and a father, Bob Kinney, who coached for about 35 years after starting the program at Superior.

“I wanted to coach and teach English and Libby was a good fit,” Schatz said about his arrival at the school.

Schatz will coach with assistants Bill Moe and Mort Curtiss at his side.

Two other underclassmen wrestlers that appeared at state are not on this year’s roster. Tate Wilson, sophomore, won two of four matches in Billings to finish the season strong. But he’s not in the lineup this year after suffering a knee injury in football. Josiah Coker, sophomore, switched to basketball.

In all, the Greenchain as of Nov. 24 had 28 athletes in the program – about eight or nine fewer than last season.

The team started practice on Nov. 19 and will take the mat on Saturday at home against Ronan. This coming Tuesday, the Greenchain will wrestle at home again with an appearance against Polson.

Following is a weight-by-weight rundown of Libby’s wrestling prospects:

• 98 – Candidates for the varsity spot include freshmen Ian Edwards-Myslicki and Isaac King. Edwards-Myslicki has not wrestled in several years after getting a taste of the sport in the Little Guy program. King has never wrestled.

• 105 – Levi Erickson, freshman, has seen success at the youth wrestling level. Erickson is getting over an injured shoulder.

• 112 – Aaron Seefelt, sophomore, is new to the sport. Erickson is sizeable for 105, however, and could end up at this weight.

• 119 – Mike Roby, senior, is trying to get down to this weight although he could compete at 125. Dakota Bassett, junior, is in that same category. Seefelt could be a candidate here as well.

• 125 – Mitch Haugen, a freshman who has seen success as a youth freestyle wrestler, is a candidate at this weight class along with Roby and Bassett.

• 130 – As Schatz indicated, Leir is going for 130 but may end up at 135 if he can’t drop the weight. Devin Williams, sophomore, is back with the program after skipping wrestling during his sophomore year. Based on wrestle-off results, athletes at the lighter classes could move up here.

• 135 – Elliott is a top candidate at this weight class, although he may be a better fit at 140 or even 145.

• 140 – Candidates for the varsity spot include Elliott, and freshmen Edson Vences and Aundre Condit.

• 145 – Dylan Berget hopes to wrestle at 145 but could be starting the season at 152. In preseason weight checks, Berget has been weighing in at around 150. If Berget does go 152, Elliott could end up at 145 based on wrestle-off results.

• 152 – Among possibilities here are Berget, junior Morgan Peek, sophomore Robin Kyes and freshman Gunnar Moe.

• 160 – Schatz has several candidates at this weight class, including Willey, freshman Austin Bailey, sophomore Will Lee, junior Justin O’Brien and senior Jeff Miller.

• 171 – Sweedman appears at the top of the list for this weight class with one final year to get a placing at state. Sophomore Logan Neubauer is also in the running and Kody Berget, junior, could be a possibility if he’s not competing at 189.

• 189 – Kody Berget is the probable athlete penciled in at 189 – at least to start. Wes Whelchel is back after competing last as a freshman. Juniors Adam Alsbury and Anthony Garcia are also in the running, although the latter has an ankle injury.

• 215 – Candidates include Rigo Ibarra, sophomore, and Karson McCollum, junior. The coach will get answers here from wrestle-offs.

• Hwt – Puckett, who weighs in at 248, will occupy the heavyweight slot.