Fresh out

INDIANAPOLIS — Having the Patriots reach the state meet is nothing out of the ordinary.

Returning without hardware, however, is.

Jay County High School freshmen wrestlers Cody Rowles, Tony Wood and Cameron Clark each lost in the opening round of the IHSAA Wrestling State Finals on Friday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

It marks the first time since 2015 and just the second time in nine seasons Jay County hasn’t had a state medalist.

“It’s upsetting,” said JCHS coach Eric Myers. “You like to put another name on that podium and get another medalist.

“It’s upsetting today to not have anybody wrestling into Saturday. I think in a few days we’ll be pretty happy with what we accomplished.”

Winners in each weight class Friday are guaranteed a top-eight finish and a medal as the state finals resume at 9 a.m. Saturday.

Tony Wood, a 120-pounder, was the only Patriot to score a point during his match. The ninth-ranked Wood fell behind 2-0 to No. 15 Braden Haines of Brownsburg in the first period before an escape and a takedown gave Wood a 3-2 lead heading into the third period. Haines broke free from his bottom position 10 seconds into the third period, then took Wood to the mat with 18 seconds to go in getting a 5-3 decision.

“He kind of got in the scramble position, those get to where you’re 50/50,” Myers said. “He was right there where he was going to finish that takedown and that Haines kid made a small adjustment and we ended up giving one up.

“That early takedown that we gave up really kind of hurt us.”

Wood, who was a sectional and regional champion as well as semi-state runner-up, ends his year 37-5.

Rowles, a 106-pounder, wasn’t able to get any offense going in his match against fifth-ranked Natham Smith, a Southport junior. Rowles had Smith in a headlock but wasn’t able to score the two-point takedown or get the pin early in the first period. Instead, he got rolled onto his back, giving Smith two points, and then Smith scored a three-point near fall.

Rowles (37-3) almost got a reversal later in the period but surrendered another near fall, this one two points, and he was down 7-0 after two minutes.

Smith got a takedown in the second period for the final points of the match.

“I just didn’t wrestle like myself,” said Rowles, who like Wood was a sectional and regional champion. “I didn’t wrestle great at all. I let him control the match when I should have.

“I almost had him a couple times but I just didn’t do what I could.”

So he’ll be using this as fuel going forward.

“Now I’ve got a chip on my shoulder and I’m going to come back and place high the next three years because that was not fun,” he said.

Based on state rankings, Clark had the toughest match of the three Patriots as he squared off against No. 4 Kysen Montgomery of Brownsburg in their 132-pound quarterfinal.

Montgomery, now a four-time state medalist, dominated the match to a 16-0 tech fall in 4:40. Montgomery led 9-0 after the first period and was ahead 14-0 at the end of the second.

Despite the lopsided loss, Clark (28-7) was not disappointed as he walked off the mat.

“I still feel like I wrestled pretty good,” he said. “He was a really tough kid. I got to his legs a few times, about took him down (and) about reversed him a few times.

“He’s just really good on top and really good at tilting so he got a lot of nearfalls. But overall I feel like I wrestled pretty good against him.”

Despite having three state qualifiers for the first time since 1987 and none of them earning a medal, the youngsters hope they have set the tone for the rest of their careers.

“When things don’t go the way you want them to you just have to take positives out of it,” Myers said. “These guys had the opportunity to come down here and feel what it’s like to wrestle in the state finals and get that experience.

“You just hope that they take what they learned here and build on it for another season and they’re ready to come back and place here.”