By Fred Kroner
Mahomet-Seymour’s wrestling team ended the regular season with an impressive Senior Night performance on Friday (Jan. 27) at home.
The Bulldogs won every match against both Taylorville and Mount Zion and secured the Apollo Conference championship.
M-S handled Taylorville 82-0 and blanked Mount Zion, 83-0.
The two dual meet wins enabled coach Rob Ledin’s team to break the single-season record for wins, which had been 30 (set one year ago). The current M-S squad is 31-7 in dual meets.
Besides the team heroics, there were numerous individuals who set a record, tied a record or moved into the school’s top 10 all-time.
Senior Mateo Casillas (195 pounds) registered one pin, the 80th of his prep career. He is now tied for first on the all-time M-S list with Hunter Crowley.
Casillas also had a technical fall victory, raising his career win total to 164 matches. He moved into sole possession of second place on the career wins list and is nine away from tying the all-time leader, Brett Camden.
Senior Brennan Houser (182 pounds) added two more technical fall wins to his totals. He already owned the school career record, which now stands at 46. He has 26 for a new season record. Prior to Friday, he shared the season mark with Ryan Berger.
Houser ranks in a tie for sixth in the all-time IHSA record book for technical falls in a season and with one more, will move into a tie for No. 10 with career technical falls.
With seven more takedowns in his two matches, Houser also raised his career takedown total to 398, which places him in a tie for ninth on the M-S career chart with Brett Porter.
A third senior, Colton Crowley (220 pounds) added another pin to his career total and has 70, which moved him into the school’s 10th-place position all-time.
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Taylorville forfeited 11 of the 14 weight wins.
Camden Heinold (132 pounds) posted a pin. Houser (180 pounds) and Casillas (195 pounds) each produced technical fall wins against their Taylorville foes.
Against Mount Zion, M-S wrestlers secured 11 pins, had one technical fall (by Houser) and had two athletes pick up forfeit wins.
The Bulldog pinners were Colton McClure (106 pounds), Caden Hatton (113 pounds), Justus Vrona (120 pounds), Reese Wilson (126 pounds), Tallen Pawlak (145 pounds), Gage Decker (152 pounds), Nick Demos (160 pounds), Cale Hillard (170 pounds), Casillas (195 pounds), Colton Crowley (220 pounds) and Camden Harms (285 pounds).
Nine M-S grapplers finished the season with unbeaten records in their Apollo Conference matches.
Going 6-0 were McClure, Hatton, Vrona, Wilson, Crowley and Harms.
Finishing 5-0 in Apollo matches were Hillard, Houser and Casillas.
One other Bulldog was 2-0 against Taylorville and Mount Zion after receiving two forfeit wins: Donovan Lewis (138 pounds). Brad Schoonover (170 pounds) won his lone match by forfeit.
In Friday’s matches, five Bulldogs captured pins in less than a minute. The quickest was a 31-second fall by Casillas. Other fast falls were by Vrona (43 seconds), Decker (44 seconds), Wilson (50 seconds) and Pawlak (53 seconds).
Six other teammates registered first-period falls: McClure, Hatton, Heinold, Demos, Crowley and Harms.
M-S returns to action on Saturday (Feb. 4) in a Class 2A seven-team regional tournament which it will host. The day’s action will start at 9 a.m.
Individuals who qualify will compete in the Highland Sectional the following weekend.
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M-S’ junior varsity team also won twice on Friday (Jan. 27), beating Taylorville, 6-0, and Mount Zion, 22-6.
Recording pins for the Bulldogs were Jack Jessup (138 pounds), Kaleb Roberts (145 pounds), Phil Daniels (220 pounds) and Noah Daniels (285 pounds).
The fastest Bulldog pin was by Jessup in 35 seconds.
On Saturday (Jan. 28), 15 M-S wrestlers were top-five placers in the Bloomington Freshman-Sophomore Invitational.
Eight of those grapplers reached the finals in the non-scored meet and three emerged as weight class champions.
The Bulldogs’ winners were Auggie Gaudio (106 pounds), A.J. Demos (152 pounds) and Noah Frank (182 pounds).
Teammates who suffered their first tournament loss in the title bouts were Preston Sriver (120 pounds), Conner Bennett (126 pounds), Jackson Davis (145 pounds), Hayden Hart (182 pounds) and Brayden Lamb (220 pounds).
Capturing third place for M-S were Jack Jessup (138 pounds), Blayne Maya (170 pounds), Phil Daniels (195 pounds) and Noah Daniels (285 pounds).
Finishing in fourth place were Adain Crull (195 pounds) and Austin Crull (220 pounds).
The school’s other medalist was Grant Munds (fifth at 132 pounds).
