Youth Wrestling: Four Sandites win gold at U.S. Junior Open Championship

Four members of the Sand Springs Team Big wrestling club won first place titles at the United State Junior Open Championship in Oklahoma City earlier this month. The Sandites placed fourteenth out of 175 teams. The Oklahoma Wrestling Academy, located in Edmond, won the tournament with ten champions.

Division 5

Kaden Glass (4-0) breezed through his competition at 200 pounds. He pinned Michael McCain (Hinton) in 34 seconds and Brody Cannon (Warner) in 58 seconds, teched Tieler Cummings (Henryetta) 15-0, and won a 5-2 decision over Kyle Hobill (Davenport) in the finals.

Owen Martin (9-1) had only two competitors at 75 pounds, but handled both for his third-straight tournament title. He defeated Caden Holman (Choctaw) 1-0 and pinned Boog Jeffries (Choctaw) in 2:27.

Blake Jones (5-2) placed fourth at 113 pounds. He defeated Darrius Dixon (Hard Knox) 4-1 and pinned Nicholas Denson (OKC) in 54 seconds before falling 10-8 to Reese Davis (Tuttle) in sudden victory overtime. In consolation he majored Aidan Rutnarak (NB Elite) 11-0, defeated Bk Seago (Threestyle) 3-0, and pinned Tyson Stevens (Blue T Xtreme) in 2:00 before falling 4-3 to Braden Anderson.

Division 4

Clayton Giddens-Buttram (11-0) won his third-straight tournament, handily pinning all five of his foes at seventy pounds. He took down Jackson Bodine (StandFast) in 2:34, Jace Province (OWA) in 0:31, Gage Walker (Jay) in 1:01, Colt Collett (Checotah) in 2:26, and Cash Holman (Choctaw) in 0:42.

Jaxon Trotter (10-4) placed third at 100 pounds. He pinned Clete Gilbert (Sulphur) in 2:13 and Andrew Williams (Hard Knox) in 2:19 before falling 5-3 to Kyle Harrall (Geary). He won consolation by pinning Jon Broehl Li (Tulsa) in 2:43 and Jessiah Baeza (Woodward) in 1:00, but fell to Ritson Meyer (Chickasha) in the second-place challenge round.

Division 3

Will Meredith (5-2) lost his opening match 4-2 to Cason Craft (Spiro) but won three-straight in consolation. He defeated Carlos Chay (Harrah) 4-0, Cooper Jackson (Tuttle) 6-5 in a tie-breaker, and teammate Jaxon Grigsby 7-1 before falling 2-0 to Lane Walters (Salina) in the finals for fourth place.

Grigsby (8-2) teched Chay 15-0 and pinned Dylan Ota (Team Punisher) in 2:41 before falling 7-2 to Talon Verbeck (Ark City). In consolation he was defeated 7-1 by Meredith, then won a 6-1 decision over Colt Fox (Maverick Elite) for fifth place.

Division 1

Asher Giddens (10-2) placed third at 46 pounds. He pinned Nate Edmonson (C4) in 57 seconds and scored a 16-0 technical fall against Ty Chavez (Woodward) before falling 6-0 to Easton Rodgers (RAW). In consolation he majored Nick Beidelschies (Paola) 11-2 and Cru Foster (Chickasha) 10-1.

Novice 4

Chase Kelley (5-7) placed second at 110 pounds. He majored Brett Reed (C4) 16-4 and won a 7-1 decision against Kareli Cadena (Maverick Elite) before falling to Luke Leonard (OWA) in the finals.

Novice 3

Lane Bailey (6-0) won his second straight tournament, taking first place at 61 pounds. He pinned Brannon McDonald (Spiro) in 2:13 and won decisions of 6-2 and 10-7 against Carver Barnett (Bristow), and Evan Notley (Tulsa), respectively.

Youth Wrestling: Six Sandites win First Place at Pryor Tournament

Six members of the Sand Springs Team Big wrestling club won their brackets at the recent Gage Underwood Memorial Tournament in Pryor. 

Division 5

Owen Martin (7-1) won his third tournament of the season. He drew only one competitor at 76 pounds and won a best-of-three series with a 15-0 technical fall and a 12-2 major decision against Bradley Vanblaricom (McAlester).

Wyatt Meredith (4-1) drew only one competitor at 84 pounds. He pinned Keynon Encinas (Pryor) in 3:49 and 1:26 for his first tournament championship of the season.

Division 4

Abraham Flores (9-1) won his third-straight tournament at 110 pounds. He drew only two competitors and pinned Joseph Robbins (Pryor) in 3:46 and scored a 16-0 technical fall against Alex Enfield (South Central).

Division 3

Matthew Moore (9-2) won his first tournament of the season at 64 pounds with three pins and a technical fall. He took down Joseph Ketcher (Pryor) in 1:24, Elijah Wilson (Claremore) in 1:04, and Bodie Elam (Pryor) in 2:01. He also scored a dominant 16-0 tech fall against Aiden Machado (16-0).

Division 2

Jayden Bussell (8-4) won his second tournament of the season at 64 pounds. He pinned Hagen McHenry (Catoosa) in 2:29 and won a 6-0 decision against Kolby Wickham (Jay) to make his way to the finals. In the first place match he pinned Luis Flores (Sapulpa) in 2:05.

Novice 3

Connor Beals (10-4) won his fourth tournament of the season at 76 pounds. He pinned Braxton Snow (Bentonville) in 1:57, won a 10-5 decision against Braxton Cook (Coweta), then pinned Drake Blue (Sperry) in 2:19 in the finals.

Novice 2

Brayden Grimes (2-1) placed second at 61 pounds, pinning Zachariah Dooley (Del City) in seventeen seconds, and Shelby Correa (Cushing) in 2:21 before falling to Carter Williams in the finals.

Novice 1

Spencer Grimes (1-1) placed second at 37 pounds, winning a 5-3 decision over Aubrey Holman (Sand Springs), but falling to Hutch Landrum (Broken Arrow).

Cooper Ellenburg (10-4) placed third at 52 pounds. He lost his opening match to Eli Phillips (Jay), but pinned his next three foes and received one forfeit. He took down Max Brown (Claremore) in 0:34, Madden Richenberger (Bentonville) in 2:41, and Hudson Williams (Pryor) in 0:54.

Youth Wrestling: Kasen McAffrey wins Collinsville Christmas Classic

Sand Springs Team Big wrestler Kasen McAffrey (7-0) recently took first place in his third-straight tournament at Collinsville Christmas Classic.

The Sandite competed in the seventy-pound weight class in Division Two with little effort, pinning all three of his foes. He defeated Payson Robinson (Sapulpa) in 1:02, Noah Boulware (Broken Arrow) in 1:07, and Kelton Shaffer (Neosho) in 2:32. 

He previously took first place at the Catoosa Tournament and the Claremore Youth Invitational earlier this season. 

NJCAA Wrestling: Karstetter brothers make waves at No. 2 NEO

Brothers Jack and Cody Karstetter have been ripping up the NJCAA circuit since arriving at the No. 2 ranked Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College (NEO) this past fall. The Charles Page High School graduates are among the winningest members of their team and Cody is currently ranked third in the country at 141 pounds.

From the CPHS Class of 2017, Jack Karstetter (18-1) is a true freshman with three tournament titles and a 5-1 dual record. Competing at 133 pounds, he has won the Oklahoma City University Open, the Drury University Open, and the Reece Wright-Conklin Jet Invitational.

The Sandite started his college career with fifteen straight wins before falling 5-4 to Erique Early in a dual against Indiana Tech University. Indiana Tech is an NAIA school, meaning Karstetter is still undefeated in the NJCAA division, and he holds a 14-4 major decision over No. 5 ranked Taylor Jeffries of Northwest College.

Cody, a Class of 2015 Sandite, took a less direct route to NEO and is currently a redshirt sophomore. As a true freshman he wrestled two tournaments unattached at the University of North Carolina and went 6-3. He then transferred to the University of Oklahoma and went 1-2 in his first tournament after suffering a season-ending injury.

The NJCAA has been a fresh start for the promising Sandite, and he has had an impressive year with a 26-5 record, bringing his collegiate career to 33-10. He has yet to win a tournament, but he placed third in the Swede Open and Oklahoma City University Open, fourth in the Lindenwood Open, and most recently he came in runner-up at the Drury Open. At the Swede Open he pinned No. 5 ranked Keaton Sander.

At the National Collegiate Wrestling Association Multi-Divisional National Duals, the Golden Norsemen steamrolled their way to the finals before being defeated 27-14 by No. 1 Clackamas Community College, out of Oregon City, Oregon.

In the first round they won their third shutout of the season, 54-0 against Colby Community College. Cody majored Chris Deters 13-5. In the quarterfinals they defeated No. 11 Southwestern Oregon 42-3 and Cody pinned Seth Lowen in 5:23. He pinned Jake Thompson in 55 seconds for a 36-9 semifinal win over No. 6 Western Wyoming, and he won a 5-3 decision over No. 4 Ralph Tovar in the finals. He was one of only three teammates to win their matches in that dual.

The Norsemen will compete at the University of Nebraska Kearney Duals this weekend. The NJCAA West-Central Qualifier will be held February 10th in Goodland, Kansas.

CPHS Basketball: Boys throttle Ponca City 83-40, Girls fall 65-55

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The Class 6A No. 9 ranked Charles Page High School boys’ basketball team (11-2, 4-1) took a break from tough Frontier Valley Conference play and traveled to Ponca City (2-11) Friday night for a staggering 83-40 victory, their biggest win since the 77-34 season-opener, also against Ponca.

University of Central Oklahoma-commit Colt Savage led all scorers with 25 points, but three other Sandites also broke double digits. Davon Richardson scored sixteen, Cole Durkee scored fourteen, and Matt Price had ten. Nine total Sandites made their way into the scorebook and fifteen saw action.

The visiting Sandites jumped out to a quick 21-11 lead in the first quarter, led by Durkee and Richardson with six points apiece. By halftime they were up 37-20 thanks to a seven-point second-quarter from Savage. Sand Springs led 57-30 after the third quarter and had their most explosive period in the fourth with 26 points, including eight from Savage.

CPHS: Colt Savage 25, Richardson 16, Durkee 14, Price 10, Cale Savage 8, Williams 3, Fox 3, Minney 2, Anderson 2.

POHI: Shymansky 13, Matson 9, Thompson 7, Seals 4, Gazaway 3, Crandall 2, Tawkawty 2.

Varsity Girls’ action was a far different story as the No. 20 ranked Ponca City underdogs (9-4) upset No. 8 Sand Springs (9-4) 65-55 to avenge a 77-61 loss in the season-opener. The Wildcats won their fifth-straight game while dealing the Lady Sandites their fourth loss in the past five games.

The Sandites started out well, leading 17-10 after the first quarter thanks to an eight-point performance from Destiny Johnson. The second quarter was a total reversal, however, and the home team flipped the script for a 28-24 halftime lead.

The Sandites fought hard in the third quarter with eighteen points, but it was also the Wildcats’ best quarter of the game with twenty. Ponca won the final stanza as well, 17-13.

University of Kansas-commit Holly Kersgieter led all scorers with seventeen points, closely followed by Johnson with sixteen. Isabella Regalado had eleven to put three Sandites in double digits. Ponca City was led by Baylee Fincher with fifteen, while Madison Birnbaum and Julissa Garcia had fourteen apiece.

POHI: Fincher 15, Birnbaum 14, Garcia 14, Jennings 9, Crowder 5, Beard 3, Branstetter 3, Badley 2.

CPHS: Kersgieter 17, Johnson 16, Regalado 11, Taber 7, Burris 3, Berge 1.

The Sandites will return to conference action Tuesday when they host the Broken Arrow Tigers. The Broken Arrow girls’ team is 2-8 overall, 1-3 in FVC. The boys, however, will be the Sandites’ toughest match of the season. Ranked first in Class 6A, the Tigers are 10-1 overall and 5-0 in the FVC.

CPHS Wrestling: Young, Weir win Bobby Lyons Invitational, Sandites place second

The defending State Champions from Class 6A No. 5 ranked Charles Page High School hosted the 53rd Annual Bobby Lyons Invitational Friday and placed second in their home tournament with two champions and five total finalists.

Standout freshman Carter Young (22-1) breezed through his opponents at 106 pounds, scoring a 21-5 technical fall against Martezz Carnes (Ponca City) in only 3:03, majoring Garrett Strickland (Collinsville) 17-4, and pinning Jared Hill (Broken Arrow) in only 31 seconds.

Defending State Champion Riley Weir (11-6 season, 73-24 career) cut to 113 pounds for the first time after spending most of the season at 120, and it paid off. After receiving a bye in the opening round, he scored a 7-0 decision over State Qualifier Corwin Strachan (Bartlesville) and won a 4-2 sudden victory decision over State Qualifier Rocky Stephens (Collinsville) in the finals.

Seth Jones (13-10, 15-13) made it to the tournament finals with a 9-7 sudden victory decision over Caron Watson (Union) but fell 5-0 to State Qualifier Laif Jones (Bartlesville). In the quarterfinals he pinned Chase Linder (Ponca City) in only 44 seconds.

Kaleb Tabor (11-7) was runner-up at 152 pounds, pinning Jake Weller (Cascia Hall) in 1:25 and winning a 4-2 sudden victory decision over State Qualifier Bailey Clampitt (Sperry) before falling 11-6 to Tony Connor (Collinsville).

Dayvon Taylor (13-11) pinned Hayden Knight (Collinsville) in 4:23 and Joey Cook (Sperry) in 2:37 before falling 9-1 to Bryce Mattioda (Broken Arrow) in the 170-pound finals.

Blake Sargent (8-3, 97-28) suffered a 7-4 defeat at the hands of State Runner-Up Reece Witcraft (Broken Arrow) but did well in consolation, defeating Cooper Park (Sperry) 5-2 and State Qualifier Brayden Strachan (Bartlesville) 2-0 in sudden victory for third place.  

Chris Kirby (8-3) pinned Nathan Waldrop (Sapulpa) in 3:44 but fell 14-3 to Blake Ramos (Union), whom he had just defeated in a dual the night before. The Sandite bounced back in consolation, pinning Kailieb Ruff (Ponca City) in 3:16 and Hunter Skaggs (Sapulpa) in 2:09 for third place at 145 pounds. Preston Medlin took fifth place on the junior varsity squad, pinning Waldrop and Ryan Primicias (Broken Arrow).

Irwin Portillo (16-13, 22-18) won a 3-1 decision over Tanner Frew (Sapulpa) to avenge a 9-6 dual meet defeat just three days prior. He was pinned by tournament champion State Qualifier Dylan Schickram (Ponca City) in the semifinals, but won a 6-4 sudden victory decision over Verdell Schoats (Union) in the consolation semis before forfeiting the placement match due to injury and settling for fourth place.

Scott Patton (14-14, 21-16) majored Diego Maturino (Broken Arrow) 12-4 before falling 5-2 to State Runner-Up Xavear Cullors (Collinsville) in the semifinals. In consolation he defeated junior varsity teammate Colby Heckenkamp 10-4 before falling 5-4 to Jalen Hernandez (Union) in the finals. Heckenkamp placed sixth.

Jasanee Harjo (3-3) lost his first 160-pound match 6-5 to Grayson White (Ponca City). From there he pinned Bryce Burdick (Union) in 1:29 and won a 4-3 decision over Laken Clowdus (Bartlesville) before meeting White once again in the consolation finals and falling 5-2 for fourth place.

Riley Magee (4-4) fell 5-1 to State Qualifier DJ Boone (Union) in the opening round at 182, pinned Dylan Thompson (Sperry) in 37 seconds, fell 3-1 to Grant Baber (Cascia Hall), then majored Blake Buoy (Bartlesville) 11-1 for fifth place.

Nationally ranked No. 24 Broken Arrow, first in Oklahoma Class 6A, took first place with 285 points, nine finalists, and four champions. The Sandites’ five finalists and two champions were enough for 210.5 points and second place. 5A No. 2 Collinsville came in third with 189 points and 6A No. 7 Ponca City had 161.5 points. The Sandite junior varsity placed tenth.

Sand Springs will return to action Tuesday when they host Broken Arrow in their toughest dual of the season. The Sandites are 5-0 this season with a 25-straight winning streak dating back to 2016. Broken Arrow is 5-1 with their lone loss coming 33-27 at the hands of Park Hill, Missouri.