Libby wrestling getting warmed up

The Libby High School wrestling team faced Bonners Ferry Tuesday after two first-place finishes at the Bob Kinney Invitational Saturday. Though forfeits caused the short-rostered Loggers to lose on team points, the Greenchain won four of the seven matches wrestled against Bonners.

Libby Head Coach Kelly Morford said by email that junior Trey Thompson wrestled “what was probably the best tournament of his career” at the invitational.

He faced three tough matches against three very different types of wrestlers, Morford said.

“On top of it all, winning that tournament was very special for him as his Dad is from Superior and they have a lot of family ties there. He definitely had the biggest cheering section of anyone there. It was fun to watch,” Morford said.

Thompson went on to win his match against Bonners Ferrys’ Eli Richards by pin on Tuesday, continuing to build on his success.

Against Bonners, Morford said that Thompson and senior Buddy Doolin both faced difficult opponents.

“Those were probably the two main ones that we knew that would be pretty tough matches,” Morford said Tuesday. “Even though they both made some mistakes, they pulled it out at the end, and stayed resilient.”

Doolin battled into sudden victory for his win Tuesday.

“We told Buddy he was going to have to be solid to beat that guy,” Morford said. “He stayed tough and dang sure did enough to win, and beat a good kid.”

Morford said that he felt the team looked a little tired Tuesday, but pulled it off.

“For the most part, when we had to get tough and dig down deep, we did enough to win the match,” he said. “Anytime you can beat a good wrestler, like we did a couple times tonight, you should be proud of that.”

During the tournament, the Greenchain showed their grit.

Morford said by email that he had anticipated sophomore Zach Morrison would make some big leaps forward this season. “And he is proving that to be true.”

“He is hungry for success and it shows every time he steps on the mat,” Morford said.

Morford said that Morrison is learning to effectively channel his tendency toward being an aggressive wrestler, avoiding tight spots it has put him in previously.

“I am excited to watch him continue to grow this season and he is going to just keep getting better,” he said.

With about half the team new to the sport or at least to high school wrestling, Morford said he was also pleased with how the greenest of the Greenchain are coming along.

“We have a group of kids that don’t have a lot of experience, but as they keep getting mat time and working in practice, they are really going to keep improving,” he said.

The Greenchain wrestles next in Coeur d’Alene at the Tristate Tournament on Today and Saturday. Their next home dual is against Sandpoint on Jan. 3.

2018 Bob Kinney Invitational

Saturday, Dec. 8

1. Cutbank 132, 2. Whitefish 117, 3. Saint Ignatius 110.5, 4. Florence 99, 5. Corvallis 91, 6. Libby 83, 7. Stevensville 79, 8. Thompson Falls 70, 9. Glacier 67, 10. Plains 67, 11. Superior/Alberton 52, 12. Arlee 32

132: Zack Morrison (7-1, 1st) - First place match: Morrison won by 5-0 dec. over Conrad Vanderwall (Plains)

145: Trey Thompson (6-1, 1st) - First place match: Thompson won by pin in 5:01 over Andrew Anderson (Cutbank)

152: Cody Crace (7-3, 3rd) - Third place match: Crace won by major dec. (9-0) over Tucker Masters (7-4, 4th)

170: John Tinnell (2-4, 4th) - Third place math: Zach Cather (Florence) won by pin in 0:50 over Tinnell

182: Daniel Rigney (2-4, 4th) - Third place match: Trey Green (Superior/Alberton) won by pin in 0:56 over Rigney

Bonners Ferry at Libby

Tuesday, Dec. 11

Bonners Ferry 48, Libby 17

103: Jake Summerfield (Bonners) won by forfeit

113: Austin Madden (Bonners) won by forfeit

120: Buddy Doolin (Libby) won in sudden victory (11-9) over Evan Barajas (Bonners)

126: Double Forfeit

132: Zack Morrison (Libby) won by technical fall (16-0) over Bryan Durette (Bonners)

138: Manuel Naccarato (Bonners) won by forfeit

145: Trey Thompson (Libby) won by pin in 5:55 over Eli Richards (Bonners)

152: Kyle Smith (Bonners) won by pin in 0:32 over Cody Crace (Libby)

160: Tucker Masters (Libby) won by 9-4 dec. over Nathaniel Varelman (Bonners)

170: Jessie Bradley (Bonners) won by pin in 4:37 over Jonathan Tinnell (Libby)

182: Connor Underhill (Bonners) won by pin in 3:42 over Daniel Rigne (Libby)

205: Wade Rice (Bonners) won by forfeit

285: Larry Hoehne (Bonners) won by forfeit