The wrestling team at Mingus Union High proved once again they are one of the best teams in the state of Arizona by going to the 42nd annual Flowing Wells Tournament this past weekend and finishing second only to Sunnyside High, a perennial wrestling powerhouse.
The Mingus grapplers scored 162 points and finished second to Sunnyside’s 267.5. Safford High finished with 146.5 points for third place, Cibola High recorded 131 points for fourth place and wrapping up the top five was Desert Vista High with 126.5.
“With this effort, we have now earned bragging rights as the second-best team in the state of Arizona in all divisions and classifications,” Mingus head coach Tom Wokasch said.
What is more amazing besides finishing behind Sunnyside for second place is that Mingus was the second smallest school to attend this prestigious tournament, with Safford being the smallest contender at 3A. Seven of the 10 competing teams are 5A conference schools and the other two were 4A, including Mingus.
Sunnyside, Mingus and Safford have widely been considered the cream of the crop when it comes to wrestling teams in the state this year, but the Flowing Wells Tournament provided a quick peek to wrestling fans as to who is the best.
“This accomplishment has been a goal for this team for the last seven years and it all started when these kids were in middle school under coach Dain Tasa and the Mingus Mountain wrestling traveling team,” Wokasch said.
Top performances came from a plethora of Marauders wrestlers with 135-pound junior Josh Chang leading the way with a 4-1 record, finishing in second place.
Luke Goettle, a 125-pound sophomore, finished in third place with a 5-1 record, 140-pound junior Weston Lymangrover finished in second place with a 4-1 record and 189-pound senior Joey Loehr finished in third place with an impressive 5-1 record.
Not only were these Marauders impressive at the Flowing Wells Tournament, but the success has carried on all year.
On the season, Goettl is 36-3 overall and is currently ranked No. 1 in 4A-II, Chang is 33-3 and is ranked No. 1 in 4A-II, Lymangrover is 29-4 overall and is ranked No. 1 in 4A-II and Loehr is 21-4 and currently ranked No. 1 in 4A-II.
Other standouts included 145-pound David Wilber who finished in third place with a 5-1 record and 152-pound Matt Hamilton finished in fourth place with a 4-2 record.
With the tournament coming to completion on Saturday, Jan. 19, so has the regular season for the Marauders.
Next up, the Marauders will wrestle in the 4A-II Grand Canyon regional tournament on Wednesday, Jan. 23.
First match is set for 2:30 p.m.
