Panther wrestlers sixth at Tri-County

THORNBURG ? Eight Pekin wrestlers arrived at the Tri-County tournament in Thornburg Saturday, and six of them left as placewinners.

Pekin 113-pounder Brandon Baayen, 145-pound wrestler Austyn Vogel and 182-pounder Thomas Slaney all finished third in their respective weight classes. Tayte Schoff (138), Chase Copeland (160) and Trenton Conger (195) had fifth-place finishes for the Panthers.

All six placewinners recorded at least one pin in the tournament.

Pekin finished in the upper half of the team standings as well, claiming fifth place with 81 points. Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont topped the 12-team tournament with 230 points. Iowa Valley finished second and West Branch was third.

The Panthers return to their home mat Thursday to battle Van Buren and West Burlington/Notre Dame.

Cardinal, Van Buren tie

Cardinal and Van Buren finished in a 10th-place tie at the Tri-County tournament with 34 points apiece.

Ryan Cale led the Comets with his first tournament title of the season at 113 pounds. Cardinal?s Mikey Owings finished fifth at 120 pounds, and Josh Ramos (170) and Sam Schmidt (220) both ended up sixth.

For Van Buren, Jacob Heisel led the way with a third-place finish at 132 pounds. Curtis Thomas and Mitch Garrels had sixth-place finishes at 182 and 195 pounds, respectively.