Wednesday's action started with a battle of returning All-Americans in a 125/133-pound match-up. Sophomore 133-pounder Raymond Dunning (Nashville, Tenn.) scored five takedowns and a second period near fall to post a 13-7 win over senior 125-pound Rob McCabe (Nucla, Colo.).
Dunning finished sixth in last year's NCAA Division II National Championships and begins 2005-06 ranked fifth. McCabe finished fourth at last year's national championships and is tabbed second this year.
The green team extended its lead to 6-0 after junior Brian Pitts (Rio Rancho, N.M.) scored a 6-4 win 141-pound win over Joey Deaguero (Commerce City, Colo.). Pitts, a 2002 All-American at 125 pounds, trailed 3-2 after the first period but rallied to defeat the 3-time state champion from Adams City High School.
The white team got on to the scoreboard in dominating fashion as Jacob Sheridan (Manassa, Colo.) thrashed Joe Kelso (Monte Vista, Colo.) in a battle of San Luis Valley natives. Sheridan scored all four of the white team's near falls throughout the evening and posted a 15-0 technical fall win that closed the overall deficit to 6-5.
The green team quickly regained momentum as Dan Intlekofer (Fort Collins, Colo.) edged Noomis Jones (Arvada, Colo.) in a 149-pound battle of 2005 Class 5A State Champions. Intlekofer, a 2-time state champion at Rocky Mountain High School, scored the only takedown of the match in the first period and then escaped the Pomona High School product's grasp to secure the win in the third period. Intlekofer wrestled at 145 pounds in high school while Jones grappled at 152 pounds.
The Green team then went up 12-5 with a key win at 157 pounds. Senior Aaron Thompson (Newton, Kan.) reversed junior Dusty Vaughn (Montrose, Colo.) to begin the second period and then scored a 3-point near fall while using riding time to post the 6-0 win.
The punches kept on coming as returning All-American Evan Copeland (Las Cruces, N.M.) blasted freshman Andre' Jones (Gold Canyon, Ariz.) in the 165-pound match-up giving the green team a 17-5 lead. Copeland, who finished third at nationals in that weight class, scored 10 of the green team's 21 takedowns and then ended the match 44 seconds early with a near fall to close out a 23-8 win. Jones, a 2-time freestyle state champion from Apache Junction High School, scored all of his points on escapes.
The white team closed the gap in one of the most exciting matches of the night at 174 pounds. Sophomore Max Smith (Parker, Colo.) scored a first period takedown of returning national qualifier James Reynolds (Monte Vista, Colo.) to take a 2-0 lead. Smith then escaped for the only second period action before Reynolds, a returning national tournament qualifier, closed the gap to 3-2 with a third period takedown. He also erased Smith's riding time advantage but could not turn him as the white squad closed the gap to 17-8.
The white team also squeaked out a 5-4 win thanks to riding time at 184 pounds as returning national qualifier Josh Vialpando (Walsenburg, Colo.) overcame an early 2-0 deficit to 4-time state champion Torben Walters (Olney Springs, Colo.) with a pair of escapes. Vialpando then scored a second period takedown before Walters, a Crowley County High School graduate, tied the score at 4 with two escapes of his own. However, he could not find a late takedown to overcome Vialpando's 82 seconds of riding time.
That win closed green's lead to 17-11 heading into the final match-up of the night, a inter-weight class battle of former national tournament qualifiers. 197-pound junior Casey Woodall (Morenci, Ariz.), a 2004 184-pound qualifier, scored the first point of the match senior Heath Soderstrom (Englewood, Colo.) tied the score at 1 with an early third period escape. Woodall then scored a pair of takedowns on the heavyweight to close out his win and the dual win for his team.
The Grizzlies will begin their regular season at the University of Wyoming's Cowboy Open on Sunday in Laramie, Wyo. Action in UW's War Memorial Fieldhouse begins at 9 a.m.
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