By PHILIPP NGUYEN
Tiger Media Network
To view full-size images and captions, click on each photo.
Story by CAYDEN SANDERS
Tiger Media Network
The Fort Hays State University men’s wrestling team hosted its annual Black and Gold Scrimmage on Saturday at Gross Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers sent out 25 of the 34 on the roster to compete.
“This is just more of a showcase event,” said FHSU head coach Erik Wince. “A lot of people use these as wrestle offs. We want to have our guys go out and put on a show and just showcase what we got coming in this year. We had a great crowd tonight pairing with the women’s wrestling team, so it was a great night for FHSU wrestling.”
Wince believes the underclassmen are showing their worth to the program, while the older wrestlers are being tested.
“We got a lot of young guys that were pushing the upperclassmen, which is what we always need,” he said. “We had some matches where we didn’t know how they were going to go. It’s great to see some of the new guys test our old guys and our older guys do what they are capable of doing.”
The team was split into black and gold teams. By the end of the night, Team Gold won 33-16.
“Tonight was just a grid of some of our guys to get on the mat,” Wince said. “We had some of the young guys go down early to some upper classmen and then claw their way back and pull out some wins. Mike Castro was a transfer from Northwest Tech. He got down early against Marcell (Dely), who was our starter last year, and then hit him with a really nasty little super duck with 10 seconds to go to win by one. Ender Rider coming from behind to beat Hunter Harris, who’s a third- or fourth-year guy, and Ender is a true freshman. So it bodes well for our future.”
Sophomore Riah Ostrander was a big piece to the team last year and looks to continue to help build up the program.
“For me it’s about setting the example for the guys on and off the mat,” Ostrander said. “We just need to have dedication and hard work. We need to stay focused on ourselves, stay out of distractions — whatever they may be — and just focus on how we get better on the mat.”
After a second-place finish by Tereus Henry in the 197-pound weight class last year, Henry returns to the Tiger program as an assistant coach.
“The fact that he’s been in the national finals and has placed and been there four times, and his leadership, we are glad he is with us,” Wince said. “It’s good for these guys to have him around, because he knows what it’s like to be there. He’s great for Ryan Patterson, who was the guy in his spot when Tereus (Henry) was hurt, and it’s now his spot this year. So it’s great to have him come in and help coach.”
The wrestling team does not compete until Nov. 8 at the Dakota Wesleyan Open in Mitchell, S.D.
This story was written as part of INF 322: Sports Writing, a course in the Department of Informatics at Fort Hays State University.
You must be logged in to post a comment.