MatCats drop rival Dogs to give Knutson 200th victory
Hungry Horse News
The fate of senior night for the Columbia Falls wrestling team relied on two freshmen.
And they delivered, winning the last two matches of the dual and giving the Wildcats an exciting 39-31 home victory against Whitefish Saturday.
Clayton Patterson (98 pounds) finished strong to take a 15-10 decision in a back-and-forth match against Phillip Murphy. Then Cody Kolodejchuk (105) sealed the victory with a first-period pin.
"The little guys got it done for us," coach Wes Knutson said.
The victory gave Knutson the 200th dual win of his career and a 9-7 record for the season. It also provided the Wildcats a jolt of momentum heading into the divisional tournament Saturday in Polson.
"It pumps us up," said senior Ryan Buck.
"It's huge," senior Calvin Williams said. "It gets everybody amped."
Buck lost a tight 4-3 match at 145 pounds, but Williams had a stirring performance at 171. Williams got a late takedown to hold off fifth-ranked Tim Lehner 20-15.
"It was a real gutsy performance," Knutson said. "Calvin got a nice upset win for us."
Columbia Falls got more key wins from Aric Tarr (125), Keyvin Walter (130) and Dalvin Averill (135).
Three Whitefish forfeits also helped the Wildcats.
The Bulldogs had three pins: David Lautaret against Matt Sauter at 160, Matt Mangold against Jesse Woodward at 189 and Kyle Burns against A.J. Taylor at 215.
Along with gaining confidence from the win, Columbia Falls is also glad to be back near full strength. The Wildcats have had a steady rotation of wrestlers on their injured list but were only missing senior Nik Caron against Whitefish.
Knutson said Caron, who has a broken hand, will "give it a whirl" at divisionals, meaning the Cats will have all their regulars wrestling for the first time since before Christmas.
"It's giving us the momentum we need this time of year," Knutson said.
By CASEY DUNN
Hungry Horse News
Columbia Falls wrestling coach Wes Knutson always gives out a lot of hugs and handshakes after duals.
But the ritual went to the next level Saturday. The personable coach was mobbed by well-wishers after recording his 200th career win in a home dual against Whitefish. Senior Tommy Church even showered him with ice water from the team cooler.
Knutson said he didn't see Church coming, and he also almost missed noticing the impending milestone win. He said he only realized this would be his 200th win because he was putting some information together for a program.
"I don't even pay attention to that sort of stuff," he said.
Knutson has averaged nine wins a year in 22 years coaching. His first four years were at Valier, and the rest have been at Columbia Falls.
"It's gone by awfully fast," he said. "It's been fun."
He said the best part of his career has been watching each wrestler grow and develop, not just on the mat, but in their lives too.
His career highlights include winning state in 1990 and coaching two wrestlers who went on to be college national champions.
Knutson said some great assistant coaches have been crucial to his success.
"Nobody can do it by themselves," he said. "It takes a lot of people.
Knutson said he will keep coaching as long it remains fun.
"Every year has some great memories," he said. "That's why we keep doing this."