WP’s Bryner falls in heartbreak round, Holmes loses two at state

    The Wauneta-Palisade wrestling team showed improvement this season, qualifying two for last week’s state meet and picking up two wins at the meet.
    Conner Bryner went 2-2 at 170 lbs. while Cody Holmes finished 0-2.
    Bryner started off his tournament appearance with a first-round pin of Dylan Pooschke (27-22) of Overton, an opponent he’d also beaten in December.
    Bryner got an early throw then settled in with Pooschke flat on the mat.
    WP Coach Danny Schluckebier said Bryner looked great in the match and moved well.
    “Conner had great attitude and knew what he needed to do,” Schluckebier said.
    In his second match, Bryner faced the same wrestler who knocked him out of last year’s tournament, Neligh-Oakdale’s Austin Rudolf (20-3).
    Bryner found himself off his feet early in the match, but recovered well.
    With time running down in the first period, Bryner was thrown once more and ended up on his back.
    Bryner went to readjust but got tighter, Schluckebier said, adding that Bryner bridged really well as he fought off the pin.
    Zeroes showed on the clock when the official ruled a pin. WP Head Coach Shad Wiese challenged the call but, after a conference between the two officials, the call stood.
    Schluckebier said Rudolf was a very aggressive wrestler, but Bryner matched the effort and looked good.
    Rudolf went on to finish third.
    Bryner bounced back with a win Friday over Jadeyn Kohl  (24-15) of Hi Line.
    Bryner got a pin early in the second period, but it was a back-and-forth match leading up to that point. After choosing down to start the second period, Bryner was caught for a second before turning the hold around getting the win.
    Mullen’s Sean Simonsen (36-13) waited for Bryner in the heartbreak round.
    Both found themselves on the bottom during the first period and Bryner had a 2-0 lead going into the second period. By the end of the period, Bryner trailed 3-6 and just missed a reversal as time ran out in the period.
    Wiese questioned a headlock Simonsen used and, once more, lost the challenge. Bryner pulled to within one point, 5-6, with 42 seconds left, and with a flurry of activity, trailed 7-8 with 20 seconds left. Simonsen picked up two points over the final seconds, finishing Bryner’s season with a 7-10 loss.
    Schluckebier said Bryner was down and escaped well, but got in a bind.
     “Conner couldn’t roll him over or get behind him for more points. Simonsen held his ground and got the win,” Schluckebier said.
    “Conner is a great wrestler and his ability to work hard will only increase with time. He knows what to do and when to do it and doesn’t back down from any opponent,” Schluckebier added.
    Holmes, a senior, qualified for state with an 8-13 record and was matched up with eventual state champion Reece Zutavern (40-0) of Sandhills/Thedford in the first round. Holmes was pinned in 34 seconds.
    Despite the loss, Schluckebier said Holmes had a great attitude and didn’t back down from the aggressive Zutavern.
    Holmes took on Rio Remund  (25-19) of South Loup in the consolation round.
    Holmes was able to pick up early points and was tied with Remund.
    Schluckebier said Holmes nearly got caught, but made a readjustment that Remund was ready for. Holmes was pinned in 52 seconds.
    Although he lost, Schluckebier said Holmes wrestled well with an injured collarbone and came through the tournament without a worsened injury.
    “Cody’s goal was to make it to state during high school wrestling so he is more than happy to have made it as a senior,” Schluckebier said, adding Holmes said he wrestled as well as he could and had no regrets.
    Schluckebier said Holmes will be missed at the school and on the team next year.

170—Conner Bryner (38-16) won by fall over Dylan Pooschke (Overton), fall 0:55; lost by fall to Austin Rudolf (Neligh-Oakdale), fall 2:00; won by fall over Jadeyn Kohl (Hi-Line), fall 2:35; lost by decision to Sean Simonson (Mullen), dec 10-7.
D195—Cody Holmes (8-13) lost by fall to Reece Zutavern (Sandhills/Thedford), fall 0:34; lost by fall to Rio Remund (South Loup (Callaway/Arnold), fall 0:52.
Regional results
    The RPAC and SPVA conferences were well represented in Class D at Omaha.
    Southern Valley’s Braxton Hammond beat Alma’s Carter Brandyberry for the Class D 106 lb. championship.
    Sutherland’s Cauy Kohl was the runner up at 126 lbs. and teammate Matt Bruns was fourth at 132 lbs.
    Sutherland’s team championship was helped along by championships at 138 lbs. and 152 lbs. by Jon Peterka and Hunter Cook, respectively. Each had undefeated seasons.
    Southwest’s Jacob Kerns at 132 lbs. and Cole Broeker of Southern Valley at 138 lbs. were both sixth.
    The 145 lb. bracket was full of local athletes. Sutherland’s Samuel Foster was fourth. Mason Noel of Southern Valley beat Perkins County’s Colton Pouk in the fifth-place match.
    Arapahoe’s Tristan White was third at 152 lbs.
    Bridgeport’s Steven Menke won the 160 lb. championship.
    Kyler Gaston of Hitchcock County was fifth at 170 lbs.
    Cambridge’s Julien Grindle was sixth in the 182 lb. bracket.
    At 195 lbs., Hitchcock’s Keegan Shuler was fourth.
    Sutherland’s Gavin White won 220 lbs. Maxwell’s Isaac Stubbs beat Southwest’s Clayton Hardy in the third-place match. Perkins County’s Austin Meyer placed fifth.
    Arapahoe’s Levi Kerner capped off an undefeated season and the tournament with a win in the 285 lb. championship match.
    From McCook, Alex Anthony placed fifth.
    The Bisons’ Makayla Pate advanced to the girls’ 152 lb. championship bracket.
    In the first year of NSAA sanctioned girls’ wrestling, 144 girls qualified across 12-weight brackets in one class.
    The girls took to the mat Friday. Their championship matches were mixed in the with boys’ matches Saturday. Across the four classes of boys’ championship matches, boys would wrestle five-weight brackets before four girls’ matches until the end of the meet.