Rogers City tops field at Gaylord meet
by Angie Asam, Staff Writer
Saturday the Rogers City Hurons wrestling team traveled to Gaylord for the 29-team Northern Michigan Championships with just 10 wrestlers. What they accomplished was finishing the day with 151 team points to capture the tournament title. Rogers City, currently ranked #8 in Division IV (D4) had three champions, two runner ups, a fourth and a fifth on the day to take the title over #10 ranked Iron Mountain who finished second with 131.5 points.
?It?s unbelievable. On the way over there we were thinking going in with only 10 guys we would be happy with taking home the Division IV trophy and/or being in the top five. Our kids just stepped up to the plate big time. I am still on cloud nine. I still can?t believe it. Going in there with only 10 guys and winning that particular tournament is just a major accomplishment,? said coach Pat Lamb. The 2010-11 Hurons accomplished something no other Rogers City wrestling team has done by winning the Northern Michigan Championships, which were celebrating their 20th year.
Sophomore Evan Lamb was the Hurons first champ as he went 4-0 to take the 125-pound title. Lamb won by pin in 46 seconds and then by technical fall at 3:06 before defeating Escanaba?s Travis Heller 6-3 to advance to the finals. The finals set a match up between Lamb, ranked fourth in D4, and Jared Fekete of Benzie Central who is ranked 9th in Division III (D3). Last Saturday in Benzie, Lamb defeated Fekete, handing him his first loss of the season. This time would be no different as Lamb handed Fekete his second loss of the season with a 7-2 decision.
Senior Greg Tulgestke (140) won his first two matches by pin before defeating Roscommon?s Drake Lewandowski 2-0 to advance to the finals. Tulgestke, currently ranked 6th in D4, then defeated Chris Hebert of Ogemaw Heights 4-2 to take the title. Hebert is ranked 9th in D3. Senior heavyweight Devin Pommerenke was the other champion for the Hurons as he won his third Northern Michigan Championship in convincing fashion, pinning his way to a 3-0 record. Pommerenke, ranked 1st in D4, defeated Tyler Croton of Kinglsey, ranked 8th in D3 in the finals in 2:51. Pommerenke also earned outstanding wrestler for the upper-weight classes.
Following his win, Pommerenke was slow to get up and was taken to the training room with a possible knee injury, a scary moment for Huron fans as well as wrestling fans across the state who follow the big man on his journey for a third-consecutive state title. SENIOR DANIEL Marx (145), a sixth seed at the tournament, battled his way through the tournament winning by fall in 39 seconds before defeating Lou Radecki of St. Ignace 8-7 and Brandon Mikowski of Gaylord 7-1 to advance to the finals. Marx then faced Joey Leach of Kinglsey, ranked 4th in D3, and fell 15-3 to place second. Junior Joe Sobeck (112) scored two quick pins to reach the semi-finals where he faced Kingley?s York Ash, ranked 7th in D3 and pinned him in 1:22 to move on to the finals. Sobeck, ranked 10th in D4, took on third-ranked (D4) Ryan Gauthier of Iron Mountain in the finals and fell 7-2 to place second. Both Marx and Sobeck defeated wrestlers who had defeated them earlier this season en route to their second place finishes. ?When we send our guys out there and they beat people who have beaten them earlier in the year, it shows tha
Senior Keegan Urban (135) was fourth on the day as he won by tech fall in the first round and pin in the second round before falling to eventual champion Nathan Wynkoop of Ogemaw Heights 7-2 and losing to Grayling?s Joe White 2-1 in the match for third place. Freshman Andrew Selke (215) won his first match before falling by pin to Oscoda?s Jacob Wood. Selke then battled back with a win by pin to reach the match for fifth place. Selke defeated Pinconning?s David Snell 4-3 to finish fifth.
Other wrestlers on the day for the Hurons were Travis Fleis who was 1-2 at 130 pounds, Noah Sobeck, 0-2, 103 pounds and Jared LaFleche (160) who was 0-1 on the day. LAST WEDNESDAY the Hurons hosted a Straits Area Conference quad where the Hurons defeated Onaway 51-29 and Mio 49-27. Double winners were Zach Beland (103), Lamb, Fleis, Urban, Tulgestke and Pommerenke. Winning one match were Noah Sobeck, Joe Sobeck, Daniel Pflug, LaFleche and Chris Pflug. The Hurons were in Alpena Wednesday (after press time) for a tri-meet with the Wildcats and Ogemaw Heights. Saturday the Hurons will be in Onaway for the conference tournament.