High School Wrestling

Poplar Bluff's Swesey finishes third in state wrestling (02/17/08)
By TOBY CARRIG ~ Southeast Missourian COLUMBIA -- Perhaps the hardest part of the MSHSAA Wrestling Championships for most wrestlers is dealing with that first loss. With the exception of the state finalists, it happens to everyone. It happened to Poplar Bluff senior Paul Swesey during Friday night's semifinals, when the 189-pounder was pinned by Carthage's Austen Heidlage in the first period...

Trio of Mules wrestlers stay alive at state (02/15/08)
By DAR STAFF COLUMBIA -- Paul Swesey got off to a good start in his quest for another allstate medal. The Poplar Bluff senior advanced to the second round of the MSHSAA Class 3 championships with a pin Thursday in his 189-pound match. Swesey, who is making his fourth straight state appearance, finished sixth last season...

Sikeston's Bland, Murphy advance to state wrestling (02/11/08)
Gavilan Bland is district champion at 171; Jacob Murphy third in 112 class.

Surque wins 112 district title in overtime (02/10/08)
By DAR STAFF FARMINGTON -- Poplar Bluff qualified five wrestlers for the MSHSAA Class 3 Championships and finished sixth as a team Saturday night. Paul Swesey became the first Poplar Bluff wrestler to qualify for state in all four years, while Zach Surque became the youngest Mule to ever win a district title...

Mules look to pin down trip to state (02/08/08)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor It's been two weeks since Poplar Bluff's last match so when the Mules open the MSHSAA Class 3 District 1 tournament today will they'll be rested or rusty? "Every coach says something different," Mules coach Brian Wisdom said. "The way I see it, I think it makes them more hungry."...

Poplar Bluff wrestlers end up second at De Soto (01/27/08)
By DAR STAFF De SOTO -- Poplar Bluff had three wrestlers win their weight class and two more reach the finals Saturday night, but the Mules finished second as a team by the slimmest of margins. De Soto edged Poplar Bluff by half a point in the team standings...

Gavilan Bland, Sikeston (01/26/08)
Bland won his first tournament title of his wrestling career, capturing the 171-pound division championship at the SEMO Conference tournament in Sikeston in dramatic fashion. Bland pinned Ste. Genevieve's Tyler Thomure in the final 20 seconds of a tight match...

Poplar Bluff pins Dexter for a third time (01/25/08)
Seniors sent off in style with 59-22 victory.

Sikeston's Bland wins SEMO championship (01/21/08)
Sikeston senior wins 100th match and his first tournament title

Sikeston wrestlers chase SEMO Conference titles (01/19/08)
By Andrew Powell ~ sd_sports@yahoo.com SIKESTON -- The SEMO Conference Wrestling Tournament kicked off Friday night with the Sikeston Field House playing the host to some of the top wrestling schools from around the area. Ste. Genevieve, Poplar Bluff, Farmington, Jackson, New Madrid County Central, Windsor, Park Hills, Cape Central, North County, Dexter, and Sikeston all locked it up to see who could for the pin...

Sikeston wrestlers geared up for SEMO Conference meet (01/17/08)
By Josh Mills ~ sd_sports@yahoo.com SIKESTON -- The SEMO Conference Tournament for high school wrestling is coming to the Sikeston Field House on Friday and Saturday, bringing in schools from all around southeast Missouri. Cape Central, Dexter, Farmington, Jackson, New Madrid County Central, North County, Park Hills, Park Hills Central, Poplar Bluff, Ste. Genevieve, Sikeston and Windsor will all be represented on the mat...

Poplar Bluff wrestlers ready for test at SEMO meet (01/17/08)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor After a disappointing weekend in a tournament that featured many of their district opponents, the Poplar Bluff Mules will try to get back on track at the SEMO Conference championships. The two-day tournament starts Friday at Sikeston...

Poplar Bluff pins New Madrid 72-6 (01/16/08)
By DAR STAFF NEW MADRID -- The Poplar Bluff Mules got ready for the upcoming SEMO Conference tournament by dispatching New Madrid County Central 72-6 Tuesday night. Three of Poplar Bluff's eight pins were in under a minute as the Mules bounced back from a tough weekend...

Poplar Bluff wrestlers try to pick up intensity (01/09/08)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor PARK HILLS -- Following a second-place finish over the weekend in which they missed the tournament title by eight points, the Poplar Bluff Mules returned Tuesday night to Park Hills Central. The Mules, who took six matches by forfeit, got four pins and a technical fall to win 65-15...

Dexter pins 58-18 loss on Sikeston wrestlers (01/08/08)
By Chris Pobst ~ sd_sports@yahoo.com SIKESTON -- The Dexter Bearcat wrestlers defeated the Sikeston Bulldogs in a duel match Monday night, 58-18. "Our experienced guys wrestled well," head coach Kent Gibbs said. "Our inexperienced guys did some things that they shouldn't have done. Overall, I thought it was a good night for us."...

Mules pin Sikeston (12/19/07)
By Brian Rosener ~ DAR Sports Editor POPLAR BLUFF -- Perhaps Tuesday night at Peters Gym didn't even count. A pair of state qualifiers met in an exhibition match as Poplar Bluff's Paul Swesey beat Gavilan Bland of Sikeston 9-2. Both wrestlers finished second Saturday at the Tiger Classic in Cape Girardeau but both won by forfeit Tuesday as the Mules won 71-9...

Poplar Bluff wrestlers try to build on finishing second (12/13/07)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor Poplar Bluff's second-place finish at the Farmington Invitational last weekend was nice, unless you're Mules coach Brian Wisdom. "Honestly, I'm a hard-to-please coach," Wisdom said. The Mules won four dual matches by a combined score of 258-65 Saturday but a 48-24 loss to the host in the final match gave Wisdom plenty to be not pleased about. Farmington, the defending district champion, is currently ranked third in Class 3...

Poplar Bluff wrestlers pin down win vs. Dexter (12/07/07)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor DEXTER -- Before his first-ever wrestling match, Poplar Bluff senior Brent Wagner got plenty of advice from his coach, a friend and even a neighbor. Of course, it helped that all three were once state qualifiers...

Dexter tops host New Madrid County in wrestling (12/05/07)
Staff reports ~ Standard Democrat The New Madrid County Central wrestling held their first home match of the season Monday night, falling to the Dexter Bearcats 48-33. NMCC will be in action again on Monday when they host the Sikeston Bulldogs.

Three Sikeston wrestlers win at Affton tournament (12/04/07)
Staff Reports ~ sd_sports@yahoo.com AFFTON -- The Sikeston wrestling team took home three first-place finishes in the Affton Wrestling Tournament Saturday. As a team, the Bulldogs finished seventh in the 11-team field that consisted mostly of schools in the St. Louis area...

Poplar Bluff's returning wrestlers challenged (12/04/07)
Starting spots up for grabs in Mules' lineup

Dexter defeats Sikeston in wrestling (11/30/07)
SEMO News Service DEXTER -- The Dexter Bearcat wrestlers defeated Sikeston in a dual match Thursday night 54-23. Sikeston winners were Jacob Murphy (112), Gavilan Bland (189), Demadre Stenard (215) and Robert Madison (HWT). Varsity 103 - Justin Robey (Dex.) won by forfeit 112 - Jocob Murphy (Sik.) won by tech. ...

Sikeston wrestlers young but experienced (11/20/07)
By Andrew Powell ~ sd_sports@yahoo.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston Bulldog wrestling team will try to work their way off the mat this season when they try to pull a reversal off their 2006-07 season. After finishing the season with a low number of participants, Sikeston's new head coach, Kent Gibbs, will fill out his roster with a lot of young talent...

Mules pin back Dexter (12/08/06)
By TROY HYDE/DAR Sports Writer It wasn't exactly how Poplar Bluff coach Brian Wisdom drew it up, but it was a win nonetheless. The Mules and Dexter traded five pins on the wrestling mat Thursday night in Poplar Bluff, but the home team recorded two decisions and got 12 points from forfeits in a 48-30 victory...