Wrestling team places sixth at Mid-State Tournament
By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
The East Troy High School wrestling squad closed 2014 on a strong note at last week’s Mid-States Tournament on the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater campus.
East Troy finished sixth overall in the 32-team event and came home with a pair of first-place trophies to boot.
The Trojans posted 130 points, behind first-place Stoughton’s 279, Elkhorn’s 221, Oconomowoc’s 165.5, New Trier’s 159 and Harvard’s 135.5.
Winning individual titles were Cody Vogel (120) and Andy Strey (145).
Vogel finished at 5-0 to improve to 17-1 overall. After two victories in the opening rounds, he defeated Whitewater’s Irving Sedano 7-2 in the quarterfinals, followed by a 9-4 win over Stoughton’s Kaleb Louis to advance to the championship round.
In the finals, Vogel edged Harvard’s Sergio Esquivel 6-4 to bring home the title.
Strey rolled to a 4-0 record to improve to 17-1 for the season.
In the quarterfinals, he defeated Wrightstown’s Josh Verbeten 6-3, followed by a 6-4 win over Stoughton’s Tyler Dow in the semifinals. Strey capped his perfect day with an 11-5 win over Elkhorn’s John Olsen to win the 145-pound crown.
East Troy also had two other place winners, as Jeremy Dedick (160) finished second at 3-1, while Kyle Storandt (285) was third at 5-1.
Dedick, now 16-2 overall, defeated Jefferson’s Ben Dillavou 8-3 in the quarterfinals and Stoughton’s Patrick Reilly 8-4 in the semifinals. In the championship matchup, he was pinned in 1:43 by West Bend East’s Jordan Gundrum.
Storandt, now 18-2 overall, lost his quarterfinal match 14-7 to Vernon Hills’ Joe Biltstein, but bounced back to win three straight consolation matches, including an 8-1 decision in the consolation semifinal over Beloit Turner’s Dan Draeving.
That win sent Storandt to the third-place match against Whitewater’s Daniel Soto, which he won 5-4, to finish third overall.
Other East Troy wrestlers who competed but didn’t place were Joe Moede (106), 0-2; Albert Fischer (113), 0-2; Devin Peterson (126), 1-2; Jake Rose (132), 0-2; Griffin Baker (138), 2-2; Ryan Engel (152), 1-2; Mario Hernandez (170), 2-2; Travis Cadman (182), 0-2; and Nathan Dallas (220), 0-2.
Prior to Christmas, the Trojans hosted Johnson Creek in a non-conference dual meet Dec. 22, and came away with a 43-18 victory.
Posting wins for East Troy were Engel (152), 10-5; Hernandez (170), by pin in 4:38; and Vogel (120), by major decision, 11-3. The Trojans also picked up forfeit wins at 132, 160, 195, 285 and 113 pounds.
East Troy traveled to Whitewater Tuesday night for a RVC dual meet. Results were unavailable by press time. The Trojans will compete at the Burlington Tournament Saturday, Jan. 10.
