BELLE FOURCHE, S. D. – The Lingle-Fort Laramie Doggers had three wrestlers place during their 15th place showing at the Belle Fourche Invitational over the weekend.
“We wrestled at a very tough tournament this weekend and I am exited about where we are at as individuals,” coach Brandon Gifford said.
At 138 pounds, Todd Walker finished fourth, starting the weekend with a pin over Austin Seeley (Wright) in the first period to advance to the quarterfinals. Walker moved on to the semi-finals after a 5-0 decision over Austin Permann (Sturgis JV).
In the semi-finals, Walker went the distance, but lost by decision, 5-4, against Douglas’ Matt Ambrose. The Dogger won his consolation semi-final match by major decision over Wyatt Huffman (Lemmon). Walker again went the distance, but he lost by a 5-0 decision in the third-place match to Glenrock’s Garrett Schwindt.
Kash Kaufman (120) also finished fourth for LFL. He won his first three matches by fall. He pinned both Tyrone Oldenkamp (Lyman) and Chris Rondestvedt (Rapid City Stevens JV) in the first period and Sherman Taber (Douglas) in the second period. Kaufman lost 8-3 against Glenrock’s Joe Taylor in the semi-finals.
Kaufman faced teammate, Gaven Niles, in the consolation semi-finals. Kaufman scored a second-period pin to advance to the third-place match, where he lasted all six minutes, losing to Sturgis’ Shae Owens, 3-1.
“Kash and Todd had a solid outing and will need to find ways to pull the trigger and score in certain situations down the road,” Gifford said. “I believe we will be able to accomplish that at the end of the season because of their work ethic and their commitment to their goals.”
Niles was the final Dogger to place, but his efforts didn’t result in any team points because Kaufman finished higher in the same weight class. Niles took Owens the distance but lost the 7-4 decision in his first match of the weekend.
Niles came right back and rattled off four-straight wins. He won his first two matches by pin in the first period, before picking up a victory due to injury against Dickinson’s Troy Berg. Niles advanced to the consolation semi-finals due to a win by major decision. After his loss to Kaufman, Niles won by first-period fall over Taber in the fifth-place consolation match.
“I was extremely proud of Gaven Niles and how he wrestled,” Gifford said. “He was in a very tough weight bracket and battled his way back to medal.”
Christian Burton picked up two wins at 113 pounds. He started the weekend with a loss by fall in the second period. Burton pinned his next opponent in the second period and snagged another win by a 9-2 decision. Burton was handed his second loss of the weekend in the fourth round of the consolation bracket on a third-period pin.
Zane Rising was the final Dogger to wrestle in South Dakota. He got pinned 32 seconds into his second match of the weekend. Both of Rising’s losses came by decision, 15-10 and 7-3.
“Overall, our young men were able to compete with very tough competition against top-level talent at large schools across South Dakota and North Dakota,” Gifford said. “We have more work to do but our wrestlers are determined to make great things happen at the end of the year.”
The Doggers remain in Goshen County for their next action. LFL returns to the mat for the Southeast Duals on Saturday in Yoder. The action starts at 9 a.m.
