Grand Junction, Pomona still have powerful teams
On paper, it’s a two-team race for the Class 5A wrestling championship. Two-time defending state champion Pomona and ultra-tough Grand Junction are loaded with championshipcaliber wrestlers.
The Panthers, winners of five state titles since the turn of the century, have a roster packed with top-tier talent.
“With having a lot of good kids in the room, we’ve got to find spots for them,” Pomona coach Sam Frederico said. “Right now, I’ve got two guys both weighing 138 pounds, and we’re logjammed between 130 and 150 — we’ve got 25 guys in those weight classes. We have to spread them out a bit in order to be successful as a team.”
Pomona is headlined by defending champions in junior Justin Pacheco (113), junior Colton Yapoujian (138/132) and junior Theorius Robison (138/132), with Robison searching for his third straight title.
Plus, the state experience provided by sophomore Wyatt Yapoujian (106) and senior Doug Mills (220) will compliment the addition of two highly touted freshmen, Elias Gonzales (113) and Frank Cruz (160).
Grand Junction may be the only 5A team that can compete with that roster top to bottom.
The Tigers return eight state qualifiers, including two-time champion senior Josiah Rider (152), as well as 2017 runners-up in sophomore Dawson Collins (113) and senior Dylan Martinez (145).
“We have a lot of tradition and a lot of tough kids, but the front range teams don’t see us a whole lot,” Grand Junction coach Cole Allison said. “So we can kind of sneak up on people, too — we’ve got five guys who are a known commodity, but we do have about four others who are flying under the radar, including a couple freshmen who are very good but just need some time to prove it.”
Frederico and Allison, though at the helm of the two topranked teams by On the Mat, aren’t buying into the championship hype just yet. They know there’s a lot of tough wrestling still to be done, both under the lights and in the room, as well as health to be maintained in a classification the Pomona coach described as “a lot more even of a field than it has been.”
In particular, Poudre, Brighton, Monarch, Ponderosa and Castle View all have state tournament contenders.
Poudre is once again led by the brother tandem of senior Jacob Greenwood (145) and junior Job Greenwood (132), as well as their cousin, senior Brody Lamb (138). The older Greenwood is attempting to becoming the 21st wrestler in Colorado history to win four state titles.
“They both just keep getting better,” Poudre coach Barrett Goyer said. “Job’s becoming more of a leader on the team, and Jacob is pretty focused as he goes for his fourth. He signed with Wyoming, which is a load off his shoulders because he can just wrestle freely now without having to worry about the future.”
Meanwhile, Brighton seniors Jarron Martinez (113) and Ian Helwick (285) lead the continued resurgence of the Bulldogs, while Monarch is defined by seniors Cole Polluconi (132) and Parker Mcquade (152).
Castle View boasts a pair of two-time state champions in seniors Malik Heinselman (120) and Tate Samuelson (182), plus a 2017 third-place finisher in Adrian Marquez (113), while tradition-laden Ponderosa has the one of the best wrestlers in the world, two-time defending state champion and cadet world champion Cohl Shultz (285), in addition to seniors Jayden Woodruff (195) and Parker Benekas (160/170).
The dispersal of talent across those five programs is why the team title outcome will have to be earned by front-runners Pomona and Grand Junction come Feb. 1517 at the Pepsi Center.
“The interesting thing about the state tournament is that if one guy that was supposed to do well doesn’t, you could be talking anywhere from 10 to 20 missing team points, and that’s a margin between first and 10th place in some cases,” Ponderosa coach Tito Rinaldis said. “So the title is always up for grabs.”