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Ignacio's Aven Bourriague prepares to finish off Durango's Isaiah Aguilar during the teams' clash Wednesday, Jan. 17, during the IHS-hosted La Plata County Duals. Bourriague would go 2-0 at the event, pinning Aguilar and Bayfield's Connor Martindale, then go unbeaten at the 1/19-20 Sand Devil Classic in Page, Ariz. DHS won the Duals, defeating Ignacio 42-27 and Bayfield 41-30, and BHS concluded the event defeating the Bobcats 46-28.
Ignacio's Lincoln deKay attempts to twist Durango's Cole Pontine into pin position during the teams' clash Wednesday, Jan. 17, during the IHS-hosted La Plata County Duals. deKay would defeat Pontine 7-2, then later pin Bayfield's Keegan Johnston, and cap off his week going unbeaten at the 1/19-20 Sand Devil Classic in Page, Ariz. DHS won the Duals, defeating Ignacio 42-27 and Bayfield 41-30, and BHS concluded the event defeating the Bobcats 46-28.
Photo Credit: Joel Priest | Special to SU Drum
Photo Credit: Joel Priest | Special to SU Drum
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Bobcats tenth at Sand Devil Classic

Friday - January 26, 2024 by Joel Priest | Special to the Drum

Bourriague, deKay conquer all for IHS 

Traveling to the 33rd Annual Sand Devil Classic in Page, Arizona, Ignacio’s boys wrestled to two individual championships and ultimately a tenth-place finish after the January 19-20 spectacle at last concluded. 

Totaling 98.5 team points, the Bobcats trailed ninth-place St. George, Utah, Dixie by just one, but were 24.5 behind eighth-place Phoenix, Ariz., Barry Goldwater (123). Placing first was Cedar City (UT) Canyon View, by a slim 280.5-278.5 margin over Queen Creek, Ariz., Casteel, with Phoenix, Ariz., Desert Vista (235) coming in third. CHS and DVHS – last season’s Classic champion over Casteel and CVHS – had placed top-five at last season’s AIA Division I State Championships; Canyon View placed eighth in UHSAA Class 3A. 

Blanding (UT) San Juan finished fourth at the Classic, totaling 172 points, and Kayenta (Ariz.) Monument Valley rounded out the 24-team standings’ top five with 158.5 points. 

Both Ignacio and Dixie had nine wrestlers entered, as did 11th-place Montezuma-Cortez (83 points), while the crews above them in the standings all had 13 or more (Canyon View, for example, entered 23 individuals). 

At 106 pounds, IHS sophomore Aven Bourriague went 3-0 and placed first. His first two foes – including M-CHS’ Bodie Stiegelmeyer in the semifinals – fell via pin, and he then edged Casteel freshman Dionicio DePaolo 6-5 in the finale, to improve to 28-2 overall (DePaolo dipped to 23-3) this season. 

Now 28-1 on the year, Bobcat sophomore 150-pounder Lincoln deKay also copped a SDC title by going 4-0 and ending his run with an 8-3 win over CHS junior Mike Johnson, after defeating CVHS senior Jack Cavalieri 6-3 in the semifinals. Fellow sophomore Zane Pontine (25-7 overall) went 3-2 and placed fifth at 144 by pinning M-CHS senior Airoughn Morris 39 seconds into the third period. 

Junior Kendrick Nossaman (19-13) ended up 2-2 with two pins at 165 pounds but did not place. One of his losses came against eventual weight champ Zachary Fankhanel, a senior at Casteel, and the other came against Page junior Landon Mansker – who went on to finish fourth (he took third in ’23) after eliminating Nossaman one win short of the placing round. 

Senior heavyweight Kyle Rima (21-5) also went 2-2 with two pins, and also did not place after being eliminated by Monument Valley senior Leander Tsinigine (2-2 at the 2023 AIA Div. IV State Championships), who went on to place sixth. 

IHS sophomore Joshua Kerrigan (11-17) went 0-2 at 120, but was a tough out against fellow 2A San Juan Basin Leaguer Jaiden Green of Dolores, who prevailed 3-2 by ultimate tiebreaker. Freshman Brandon Blevins (4-14) went 2-2 at 157 pounds, pinning both his victims, but did not place at the weight. 

Bobcat sophomore Dillon Brann (8-19) went 2-2 at 132 including an 18-3 technical-fall defeat of Tuba City, Arizona’s Jordan Adson. And at 126, freshman Judah Ashley (3-14) went 0-2 including a 16-0 tech administered by Page sophomore Connor Peterson, who placed fourth at the weight last season in AIA Div. IV. Peterson ended the SDC winning third place and improving 30-3 overall; he went 25-8 last winter. 

Ignacio will next compete Saturday, January 27, when the ’Cats host the Butch Melton Memorial Invitational. IHS will also host the 4 Corners Women’s Invitational that same day. 

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