Pekin wrestlers seventh at weekend tournament

MONROE ? The Pekin wrestling team, on the tail end of the flu bug that has decimated its roster in recent weeks, placed seventh overall at the Prairie City-Monroe Invite Saturday. Knoxville won the tournament.

Brandon Baayen and Aaron King were as close to becoming tournament champions as any Pekin wrestler got Saturday, with both making it to the finals round. Baayen finished second after losing a 4-2 decision in the 106-pound finals match, while King also dropped a 4-2 decision in the final at 120.

Austyn Vogel, still recovering from the flu, finished the day fourth at 132, while 182-pound Thomas Slaney came back to grab third at 182 after losing his semifinals match. Derek Morales was fifth at heavyweight and Trenton Conger placed sixth at 170.

Also for the Panthers, freshmen Scott Ensminger and Matt Bollinger alongside junior Tayte Schoff got a taste of the bigger tournaments and enjoyed a little bit of success in the process. Schoff (138), Entsminger (145) and Bollinger (160) each won one match Saturday.

?We?re pretty pleased with our conditioning,? said Pekin head coach Al Chapman. ?We just have to tweak some of our technique and this is a good week to do it with our next tournament Saturday.?

Pekin?s tournament on Saturday will be at WACO.