By BRANDON SMITH
Barton Sports Info
The Barton Community College wrestling team closed out the fall semester Sunday afternoon producing 14 placers in hosting the second annual Cougar Open at the Great Bend PAC Center.
Competing against nearly 100 wrestlers from eight different colleges, 15 different Cougars picked up victories with eight of them manufacturing multiple victories over the afternoon as the squad of 19 compiled a 25-37 record.
Jarret Mader (149) and Skyler McMullen (141) notched team high honors each mingling 3-1 records to lead the Barton lineup.
Fresh off a fifth place finish a week ago at the Bob Smith Open, Mader sustained his strong stretch delivering the Cougars highest placing for the second straight week with a runner-up finish in the 149-division. The sophomore began his day rattling three straight victories to clinch his spot in the title behind a 10-0 major decision, 1:35 fall and 12-5 decision before suffering a 17-1 tech fall in the championship to Northeastern Junior College's Silas Thompson.
Skyler McMullen shaped the other top 3 finish in the Barton lineup concluding his day with three straight victories edging out teammate Colin Little in the third-place bout after suffering a heartbreaking 9-8 decision in the opener to Joe Zamora of Otero.
Little (141-division) and Logan Buchanan (285-division) finished the afternoon with fourth place finishes and 2-2 records, with Little accumulating a first period sudden victory and fall while Buchanan orchestrated two falls for his pair of triumphs.
Four other Cougars turned in two wins each, including a pair of falls from Joshua "AJ" Almanza (125), a first period sudden victory and fall by Ethan Boles (131), a major decision as well as a fall from Jaden Vetter (149) and pair of falls produced by Keyven Schroeder (285).
Kayden Blake (157), Kaden Foster (157), Deryk Yott (157), Kamden Wise (165), Alonso Frances-Aguilar (165) and Derek Truman (174) all finished the day with one victory each.
Keenon Gonzales-Brown (184) paced three unattached entrants with a third-place finish, beginning the day with a pair of pins before dropping his final two matches on a 10-7 decision and first period fall.
Overcoming an opening round fall, Matthew Cook (unattached 149) distributed two back flattening's over his final three matches for a seventh place finish and 2-2 record while Bryson Parker (unattached 125) delivered his lone victory on the day with a first-period pin.