TWO-FOR-ONE SPECIAL

Trenton Scores Two Wins At Home Triangular

On his back fighting off a pin attempt on Thursday night, the prospects of Nate Burkeybile winning his 195-pound match against Polo’s James Davis appeared bleak.
But Burkeybile fought off his back, escaped and, before the first period was over, had his hand raised in victory after securing a pinfall of his own.
It was a highlight match for the Bulldogs, who secured a pair of home dual wins on the night, defeating Polo 48-18 and Marceline 45-24.
“It’s always a good night when we can put two dual wins on the board in front of the home crowd,” Trenton coach Charlie Bacon said. “In the Polo dual, Nate had the most exciting win. He was able to fight off of his back in the first period to come back strong and get the pin. I was really happy for Nate and with the effort he put forth to fight out of a tough situation.”
Burkeybile was able to get the pin with just eight seconds left in the opening period of his match. The win was the seventh of the dual for Trenton, but only the second on the mat. Only three matches were contested on the mat in the dual and the Bulldogs took two of those as Coleman Griffin secured a first-period fall as well at 152.
Griffin dominated his match, securing a handful of takedowns allowing releases each time. A minute in to the match, however, Griffin converted what would be his final takedown into a pin.
Gaven Kelsall was pinned at 160 in the only other match contested on the mat. Polo scored two wins by forfeit in addition to the pinfall win at 160, while Trenton won six matches by forfeit. Three weights resulted in double forfeits.
The win in the Polo dual was a conference victory for Trenton and pushed the Bulldogs’ league mark to 2-2.
Against Marceline, Trenton won five matches via forfeit while the Tigers got three non-contested victories. Two weight classes resulted in double forfeits.
On the mat, however, Trenton again controlled the action. The Bulldogs took three of four matches wrestled with Hunter McAtee (120) and Brice Gibler (138) each winning by fall. McAtee got his pin late in the second period while Gibler won his match just 41 seconds into the bout.
“Hunter got us off to a strong start scoring several takedowns before securing the pin,” Bacon said. “He looked quick on his feet and controlled the whole match. Brice followed that match up with an absolutely dominant performance. He got the first takedown and it didn’t take long for him to secure the pin. I was extremely happy with the way both of these young men performed tonight.”
Kaden Owen was pinned at 170 for Marceline’s lone win on the mat and Caleb Johnson picked up a 10-3 decision victory at 220 in the final match on the mat of the night.
“We ended the night with an exciting decision from Caleb Johnson,” Bacon said. “Caleb is a kid who is always going to give it everything he’s got and he did just that tonight.”
The 2-0 showing on the night pushed Trenton’s overall dual record on the season to 5-3.
The Bulldogs don’t have long to celebrate the night’s sweep as they travel to the Chillicothe Tournament on Saturday. Action begins at 9 a.m. and fans are not allowed at the event.
GIRLS
Trenton’s girls also battled Polo and Marceline on Thursday, falling 18-3 to Polo and 54-12 to Marceline.
Against Polo, Trenton dropped two of three duals contested on the mat. Makayla Hamilton (235) and Mercy Schweizer (117) were each pinned, however, Allison Yoder picked up a win by an 8-1 decision at 159. Polo added one win by forfeit to give the dual its final score of 18-3.
Against Marceline, Yoder scored a win by fall at 159 to make her 2-0 on the night. Hamilton earned a win by forfeit at 235 and Schweizer was pinned at 117. Marceline featured a nearly full girls lineup and won eight matches by forfeit.
The Trenton girls will also make the trip to Saturday’s Chillicothe Tournament.