There is no way to explain it right now, but (winning the title) is the greatest feeling in the world. – Juab wrestler Ashton Seely
OREM — “There’s no better way to end the season.” Those words, the first uttered by Juab star Ashton Seely (195) after he walked off the mat Saturday night, could not have been more appropriate. Not only did Seely prove victorious again, winning his fourth individual title, but the Wasps, with a team score of 242.5, took home the 3A state championship.
“As a captain, I have seen my team bust their butts every day. I’m proud of them. I am proud of us as a team,” said Seely. “There is no way to explain it right now, but (winning the title) is the greatest feeling in the world.”
In addition to Seely, Gentry Warner (120), Jayce Lind (126), and Dylan White (285) all took home individual titles for the Wasps, with Warner securing his second straight title.
Juab also had state placers all over the bracket, including Conner Ingram (106) and Joey Aagard (170) with second-place finishes, as well as Kalob Nybo (113) and Talon Mangelson (182), who each finished third in their respective weight classes.
It was truly a team effort by Juab.
“This has been our goal all season long,” said Juab coach Joel Holman. “We didn’t get it done last year, and that has motivated us all season. I have a personal relationship with each and every one of these guys, and they knew exactly what they needed to do for us to be here. This is great.”
It takes an army to win a state championship, not just a few talented wrestlers, and with no team was that fact made more clear than with the Wasps.
The Juab fan base was electric, and their cheers thunderous, but it was the coaches who the wrestlers singled out.
“My coaching staff, where do I even start,” Seely said. “They have bent over backwards for me. We are truly blessed to have them. Coach Holman, him being willing to spend time away from his family, away from work, to train us, I can’t express in words how grateful I am. He has helped me and my teammates become better people inside and out.”
Seely wasn’t done praising coaches however, and added about coach Bell, “He gives everything to be there with us. Same with Tyson and Garrison. They are always there for us.”
The Wasps' combination of great wrestlers and stellar coaches proved to be too much for the rest of 3A to overcome, but the classification did not go down without a fight.
Bear River finished in second place with a score of 204, and the Bears had two repeat champions in Kaygen Canfield (145) and Cooper Skinner (152). Both wrestlers had to overcome difficult finals opponents in Desert Hills’ Chance Bundy and Brady Jones, but the Bears' duo came out ahead.
The Thunder, who finished in fourth place with 165.5 points, had two individual champions as well in Ryker Boyce (106) and Liam Williams (170). Williams was especially impressive with an 8-2 win over Aagard in a matchup that pitted defending champions against one another.
Morgan’s Owen Pentz (182) was yet another repeat champion, and his efforts along with Chase Trussell (220) helped Morgan secure a third-place finish.
The night belonged to the Wasps, however, and Seely in particular.
“This was my last time wrestling in the crimson and gold,” said Seely. “I wanted to go out with a bang, and I did.”
Class 3A
Team scores
1. Juab 242.5; 2. Bear River 204.0; 3. Morgan 168.5; 4. Desert Hills 165.5; 5. Stansbury 110.5; 6. Cedar City 96.0; 7. Canyon View 88.5; 8. Ridgeline 75.5; 9. Hurricane 67.5; 10. Union 60.0.
Individual results
106 — Championship: Ryker Boyce (Desert Hills) 42-4, Fr., over Conner Ingram (Juab) 43-10, Fr., (Dec 9-2); 3. Chris Payne, Morgan; 4. Zackery Bingham, Bear River; 5. Kamren Rees, Bear River; 6. Joseph Mecham, Morgan.
113 — Championship: Jarett Jorgensen (Morgan) 27-8, Fr., over Dylian Moore (Stansbury) 23-10, So., (Dec 5-2); 3. Kalob Nybo, Juab; 4. Jared Viramontes, Desert Hills; 5. Cole Lake, Canyon View; 6. Dyllon Arenivar, Cedar City.
120 — Championship: Gentry Warner (Juab) 29-6, Jr., over Josh Larsen (Stansbury) 33-11, Sr., (MD 10-1); 3. Brady Knight, Tooele; 4. Nate Olsen, Desert Hills; 5. Ashton Gualtier, Ben Lomond; 6. Colter Ricks, Ridgeline.
126 — Championship: Jayce Lind (Juab) 45-12, Sr., over Caleb Armstrong (Hurricane) 36-5, So., (dec 5-2); 3. Jate Frost, Union; 4. Casey Shiner, Carbon; 5. Maverik Skinner, Bear River; 6. Chance Parker, Ridgeline.
132 — Championship: Brady Lowry (Canyon View) 49-3, So., over Ben Worlton (Pine View) 38-7, Sr., (fall, 2:42); 3. Anthony Herrera, Stansbury; 4. Tanner Wilde, Snow Canyon; 5. Carlos Nava, Morgan; 6. Ryan Bell, Canyon View.
138 — Championship: Logan Gustafson (Stansbury) 37-7, Jr., over Antonio Nava (Morgan) 31-8, Jr., (Dec 9-8); 3. Holden Richards, Bear River; 4. Nathan Richards, Union; 5. Caden Armstrong, Hurricane; 6. Zavien Dunihoo, Juab.
145 — Championship: Kaygen Canfield (Bear River) 39-5, Jr., over Chance Bundy (Desert Hills) 48-5, Sr., (dec 4-2); 3. Rex Westmoreland, Bear River; 4. Treyson Abbott, Hurricane; 5. Gatlin Peterson, North Sanpete; 6. Wyatt Harmon, Juab.
152 — Championship: Cooper Skinner (Bear River) 39-4 Sr., over Brady Jones (Desert Hills) 46-3, Sr., (dec 9-8); 3. Isaac Semadeni, Logan; 4. Dawson Stewart, Stansbury; 5. Michael Anker, Cedar City; 6. Jason Longmore, Dixie.
160 — Championship: Connor Wengreen (Ridgeline) 43-10, Sr., over Bryken Jensen (Bear River) 30-7, Sr., (fall 5:58); 3. McKay Belinski, Morgan; 4. Mason Mangelson, Juab; 5. Hobbs Nyberg, Dixie; 6. Alex Mcfarland, Morgan.
170 — Championship: Liam Williams (Desert Hills) 40-2, Sr., over Joey Aagard (Juab) 42-13, Jr., (dec 8-1); 3. Tyler Haley, Canyon View; 4. Bracken Stokes, Bear River; 5. Tyler King, Logan; 6. William Sampson, Ridgeline.
182 — Championship: Owen Pentz (Morgan) 19-0, Sr., over Byron Anderson (Desert Hills) 35-9, Jr., (fall, 1:39); 3. Talon Mangelson, Juab; 4. Keegan Eliason, North Sanpete; 5. Angel Garcia, Tooele; 6. Conley Breshears, Morgan.
195 — Championship: Ashton Seely (Juab) 53-3, Sr., over Quaid Murray (Cedar City) 26-7, Sr., (MD 16-6); 3. Wyatt Peterson, Richfield; 4. Tanner Nelson, Snow Canyon; 5. Carson Bywater, Bear River; 6. AJ Adams, Carbon.
220 — Championship: Chase Trussell (Morgan) 38-4, Jr., over Hootchy Brewer (North Sanpete) 52-4, Sr., (dec 5-4); 3. Jordan Watson, Bear River; 4. Nathan Ellis, Cedar City; 5. Cason Messersmith, Juab; 6. Inoke Kaufusi, Union.
285 — Championship: Dylan White (Juab) 48-6, Sr., over Daniel Jordan (Cedar City) 20-4, Jr., (TB-1 5-4); 3. Joshua Madsen, Bear River; 4. Kody Pope, Ridgeline; 5. Bronco Cloward, Grantsville; 6. Enoka Fuailetolo, Desert Hills.
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