The Manchester Enterprise
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Dutchmen gear up for districts with sweep
Manchester rallies to top Grass Lake before hammering Pirates
By Ed Patino, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: February 7, 2008
As the Cascades Conference and Division 4 team district tournaments draw closer, the Manchester varsity wrestling team is looking to keep its athletes healthy while building momentum for the postseason.
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Those missions were accomplished as the Flying Dutchmen swept a pair of duals Jan. 30 in a conference tri-match at Napoleon High School.
The Dutchmen opened the event with a 53-21 victory over the Grass Lake Warriors, then blasted their way to a 70-3 victory over the host Pirates.
Manchester (24-5, 6-0 Cascades) will host the Cascades Conference Tournament Friday, then compete in the Division 4 team district tournament Feb. 13 at Adrian Madison.
For the Dutchmen, the tri-match victories were the next step in their ultimate goal...making a deep run in the postseason.
"Both were basic matches for our league," Manchester coach Steve Vlcek said. "Keeping our kids healthy is the main thing. Our best kids are going to get the majority of the mat time, but we'll squeeze in the others when we get a chance."
Grass Lake appeared to have a shot at the upset in the opening dual of the night. After Mike Garrison pinned Doug Ellsworth (1:51) in the 135-pound match, the Warriors came back with three straight victories. Brandon Hager (140) and Tim Decker (145) recorded pinfall victories, then Nick Ulloa (152) edged out Isaac Miller for a 7-6 decision, giving Grass Lake a 15-6 lead.
Bill Cloke swung the momentum back in the Dutchmen's favor in the 160-pound match by pinning Cody Radabaugh in 2:15. Jason Alber (171) then scored a 10-0 major decision over John Voucolo, putting Manchester ahead 16-15.
James Voucolo pinned Will Rickert in the 189-pound match for Grass Lake, but that would be the last match the Warriors would win. Tyler King (215) scored a 7-3 decision over Travis Rubingh, then Kyler Ritter (heavyweight) pinned Will Ford in 2:55, giving the Dutchmen a 26-21 lead.
"(Grass Lake's) strength is from 140 up, so we knew it would be tight for a while," Vlcek said. "We had a swing match at 215, then Kyler got a big win at heavyweight. Once we got past the roadblock at 189 it was smooth sailing for us."
After collecting void victories at 103 and 112-pounds, Coyle Render kept Manchester's momentum going by pinning Mike Schulke in 1:51 during the 119-pound match. Cevin Walker (125) recorded a 15-1 major decision over Brad Dennis, then Scott Conway (130) closed out the match by pinning Kenny Kimberly in 1:51.
"Along with the heavyweights, we have a second batch of solid kids after 112-pounds," Vlcek said.
Manchester posted victories in 13 of the 14 matches against Napoleon. One of the highlights for the Dutchmen came in the 135-pound match where Garrison outlasted Brandon Heselshwerdt for an 11-8 decision victory.
"(Heselschwerdt) was a regional qualifier who beat Garrison twice last year," Vlcek said. "It was nice to see Mike get some payback."
The rest of the Dutchmen's victories came by pinfall or void. Jimmy Hamilton (112), Walker (125), Steve Sheler (145), Alber (171), Rickert (189) and Ritter (215) each scored pinfall victories for Manchester.
"We moved some kids around in the lineup to give them a chance to wrestle," Vlcek said. "We've been lucky the last two years with staying healthy, and we want to get through these next two weeks."
The Dutchmen finished the regular season Wednesday after the newspaper's deadline with a league quad at Napoleon. Manchester will look for a Cascades Conference title Friday when it hosts the league tournament. The Dutchmen and defending three time Division 4 state champion Addison are the odds on favorite, but Vlcek also says to keep an eye on East Jackson and the Warriors.
"It's going to be a dogfight to win the league title," Vlcek said.
Manchester will open the Division 4 district tournament against Blissfield. The winner will face the Clinton-Adrian Madison winner in the district final.
According to Vlcek, both Blissfield and Madison are young teams that, while low on numbers, are talented. Clinton defeated the Dutchmen on criteria after the teams tied 36-36 in a season-opening quad Nov. 28.
"Blissfield has some solid wrestlers and three or four quality kids," Vlcek said. "Clinton wrestles well as a team we have to be ready. We're taking everything one step at a time and don't want to underestimate anybody."
Staff Writer Ed Patino can be reached at 428-8173 or epatino@heritage.com.
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