It was the best way to cap a long, difficult season as the Millard High School wrestling team secured the 2A state title Saturday at the Sevier Valley Center in Richfield.
“It feels good,” said coach Brenden Turner, who is in his second year of coaching the Eagles. “It was a three and a half month season of grinding, working hard and getting after it every day.”
Millard outscored second-place Beaver, last year’s state champs, 308.5 to 259.
Millard’s coaching staff opted to push the team hard in the early part of the season, pitting the Eagles against 4A and 5A teams.
“We wanted to compete with the best so that we could come here today and show up the way we did,” Turner said.
One of the most emotional individual matches of the tournament occurred in the 165-pound division as Millard’s Trayton Teeples outlasted Beaver’s Ayden Bradshaw in a grueling 4-3 decision.
For Teeples, it wasn’t just a state championship on the line, but a chance to prove to himself that he was healed after a series of injuries.
In the past two seasons, Teeples suffered a broken hand. Early in this season, he wrenched his neck during a match so severely, it nearly paralyzed him.
“I just appreciate so much my coaches and family and my girlfriend and her family,” Teeples said. “It’s been a rough patch for me.”
“He’s gone through some stuff,” Turner said. “He’s been through a lot, so to have him get that win was amazing.”
KC Whitaker, a junior, also brought home a gold medal for Millard at 190 pounds.
“I’ve never been in this condition before,” Whitaker said. “I lost some matches early on in the season I probably shouldn’t have, but I thought today I was able to pull through.”
Pull through he did as he was able to beat Kutlur Matheson of Beaver in an 8-3 decision.
Dylan Rees, another junior, also won a state title, going up against teammate Morgan Wade in the 150-pound division.
“I’m just glad that I can be part of this great team,” Rees said. “We’ve worked hard all year for this.”
In all there were three championship rounds with Millard wrestlers on both sides of the mat, including the 150 with Rees and Wade, 157 with Mack Bray beating Mark Roman and 106 with Dak Eldredge winning against Kolter Kelly.
Out of 28 wrestlers the Eagles took to state, 25 of them placed in the top six spots of their respective divisions.
Only three of Millard’s wrestlers at the state tourney were seniors.
“The future is bright for our team,” Turner said. “We told them if they put in the work through the whole season, good things will happen.”
Turner was named as the 2A coach of the year during Saturday’s wrestling finale.
2A state tournament
At Sevier Valley Center
Team scores
- Millard, 308.5
- Beaver, 259
- Enterprise, 147
- Duchesne, 128
- San Juan, 106
- North Sevier, 98
- North Summit, 90.5
- South Sevier, 86
Individual results
- 106 — 1. Dak Eldredge, Millard; 2. Kolter Kelly, Millard; 3. Landon Bagley, South Sevier; 4. Stephen Meek, North Summit; 5. Reagan Bradshaw, Beaver; 6. Michael Williams, Enterprise.
- 113 — 1. Cayson Curtis, Beaver; 2. Camden Moat, Millard; 3. Slade Mickelsen, North Sevier; 4. Caden Adams, Millard; 5. Deklan Helquist, San Juan; 6. Drey Stubbs, Kanab.
- 120 — 1. Gage Raddon, Beaver; 2. Andrew Hollingshead, Beaver; 3. Weston Blake, South Sevier; 4. Dierk Skewes, Duchesne; 5. Ayden Crane, North Sevier; 6. Miles Rees, Millard.
- 126 — 1. Douglas Evans, Beaver; 2. Gatlen Farnsworth, Duchesne; 3. Kraden Skewes, Duchesne; 4. James Crowley, North Sevier; 5. Oakley Walton, Millard; 6. Cordell Cluff, Parowan.
- 132 — 1. Bronson Richins, North Summit; 2. Conner Hem, Millard; 3. Bowdey Larsen, Duchesne; 4. Tavyn Hollingshead, Beaver; 5. Dillon Reynolds, Beaver; 6. Lane Sims, Kanab.
- 138 — 1. Russell Evans, Beaver; 2. Kaden Turner, Millard; 3. JB (John Billings) Skewes, Duchesne; 4. Morgan Tingey, Millard; 5. Cole Peterson, South Sevier; 6. Rhyley Brundy, North Summit.
- 144 — 1. Sam Rasmussen, Millard; 2. Dusty Clayburn, Duchesne; 3. Carson Reynolds, Beaver; 4. Lincoln Fullmer, Millard; 5. Tezlin Winn, Gunnison; 6. Kelton Langston, Beaver.
- 150 — 1. Dylan Rees, Millard; 2. Morgan Wade, Millard; 3. Cutler Blonquist, North Summit; 4. Tucker Blackburn, Duchesne; 5. Kyson Hollingshead, Beaver; 6. Landon Black, San Juan.
- 157 — 1. Mack Bray, Millard; 2. Mark Roman, Millard; 3. Brayden Evans, Beaver; 4. Tray Cox, Gunnison; 5. Trevor Evans, Parowan; 6. Tyler Winn, San Juan.
- 165 — 1. Trayton Teeples, Millard; 2. Ayden Bradshaw, Beaver; 3. Samuel Johnson, Enterprise; 4. Brayden Gardner, Enterprise; 5. Tayden Mark, San Juan; 6. Brooks Christensen, Millard.
- 175 — 1. Bowden Brown, Beaver; 2. Josh Whitaker, Millard; 3. Reilly Burr, North Sevier; 4. Luke Degraffenried, Millard; 5. Kyron Bracken, Enterprise; 6. Greg Leifting, Gunnison.
- 190 — 1. KC Whitaker, Millard; 2. Kutlur Matheson, Beaver; 3. Emilio Jackson, Millard; 4. Dean Hunter Bushar, Enterprise; 5. Boden Mackelprang, Parowan; 6. Max Kartchner, Kanab.
- 215 — 1. Callen Burke, San Juan; 2. Brock Hardinger, South Sevier; 3. Scoot DeHerrera, Millard; 4. Will Wescott, Gunnison; 5. Chaz Ashton, Millard; 6. Cael Day, Enterprise.
- 285 — 1. Tye O`Hanley, Enterprise; 2. Taylor Black, San Juan; 3. Chance Hoggard, San Juan; 4. Gabe Simons, Millard; 5. Logan Judd, North Summit; 6. Daniel Gates, Millard.