Pinning Pirates: Alburnett tallies 8 falls, powers way to Class 1A regional duals championship

ALBURNETT — Close matches. A big comeback. Heated competition and a result decided by the final match.

That was the first-round contest between Earlham and Pleasantville. Then, Alburnett entered the gym to warm up for a dual that did not resemble the opener.

The top-ranked Pirates began with three consecutive first-period pins and cruised to a dominant 60-14 win over No. 17 Earlham in a Class 1A regional duals final Tuesday night at Alburnett High School. They won 11 weights with eight pins.

“I didn’t think it would be like this. I thought it’d be a little tighter,” Alburnett Coach Clayton Rush said. “That’s just a testament to our guys. It’s an example of what kind of attitude and effort they bring to the mat.”

The Pirates (30-4) earned their eighth, and second straight, berth to the state duals tournament, which is Saturday at Xtream Arena in Coralville.

“That’s been out main goal this whole year,” Alburnett 144-pounder Dawson Becker said. “After taking fourth last year, we wanted to get down there again and get our second chance. Do a little better and hopefully win it.”

Becker is normally tucked in the middle of the Pirates lineup. The weight draw forced him into the starting bout for the third time this season. He sparked the Pirates with a 53-second pin over Cole Eitel.

“I think getting the dual started with a pin and bonus points is important to get everybody going and on the same page,” Becker said. “The more points on the board the better.”

Reece Klostermann (150) and Shayden Washburn at 157 stoked the flames, following with pins in 1:13 and 1:05, respectively. They provided all the points Alburnett needed to open their state duals apparel store.

“Everybody knows that you have to start the dual off the right way,” Rush said. “Whether you win or lose you bring the fight and send a message to your team.”

Teammates received the memo. Emmitt Fleshman (215) posted a pin for his 150th career win. Heavyweight Josiah Redel, Rowdy Neighbor at 120, Cooper Franklin (132) and 138-pounder Preston Klostermann added falls. None lasted into the third period.

“If I’m being honest, at the start of the year, we didn’t know if that was realistic goal for us,” Rush said about a state duals appearance. “There are some teams out there with a lot of firepower. It turns out we’re one of those teams, I think.”

Even the wins that went the distance were impressive. The meeting produced two top-10 matches. At 106, Alburnett’s No. 3 Atlee Dewitt faced No. 9 Max Millage. The Pirates’ No. 3 Tayten Coufal took on No. 5 Payton Harger at 132.

Dewitt used a reversal in the ultimate tiebreaker for a 4-2 decision. He scored the match’s lone takedown in the first. Millage forced sudden victory with two escapes. They remained scoreless through tiebreaker-1 before Dewitt won in the decisive 30-second period.

“OT (overtime) matches are always tough but it’s fun,” Dewitt said. “I haven’t had one like that in a while. It was good, though.”

The wrestlers controlled each other during the tiebreaker-1 frames. Dewitt opted to go down after almost getting out in the previous period and despite a rideout.

“Coach said go down,” Dewitt said. “He knows more than I do. He’s always there for me, so I’m going to listen to him.

“I knew I had to dig deep and I did.”

Coufal scored three takedowns in the first period and dropped Harger, 7-3.

“Ultimately, you’re put in pressure positions,” Rush said. “They both had some grit to them.

“It goes back to the training and the process and all the things they put into it. Not all the time will it go that way for us, but if you bring the fight you’ll put yourself in position (to win).”

Earlham ended the season 12-4. The Cardinals avenged a loss to No. 16 Pleasantville. They came back from a 14-point deficit for a 42-35 victory over the Trojans. Earlham’s 126-pounder Josh Winey secured the win with a pin in the finale.

Alburnett will be the No. 1 seed in the 1A state quarterfinals set for Saturday morning. The Pirates are looking for their third state duals title and first since 2016.

Alburnett 60, Earlham 14

AT ALBURNETT

(Individual takedowns in parentheses)

144 pounds – Dawson Becker (A) pinned Cole Eitel, :53 (1,0); 150 – Reece Klostermann (A) pinned Jackson Berkley, 1:13 (1,0); 157 – Sydney Washburn (A) pinned Konnar Stiles, 1:05 (1,0); 165 – Ryan Stiles (E) dec. Hunter Sauer, 4-2 (2,0); 175 – River Williams (A) won by forfeit; 190 – Ty Willem (E) pinned Wyatt Schrader, 2:35 (1,1); 215 – Emmitt Fleshman (A) pinned Corbin Etter, 1:11 (1,0); Hwt. – Josiah Redel (A) pinned Keegan Long, 2:37 (1,1); 106 – Atlee Dewitt (A) dec. Max Millage, 4-2 UTB (1,0); 113 – Dallas Canoyer (E) tech. fall Clayton Strang, 16-0 (2,0); 120 – Rowdy Neighbor (A) pinned Nathan Hansen, 2:59 (2,0); 126 – Tayten Coufal (A) dec. Payton Harger, 7-3 (3,0); 132 – Cooper Franklin (A) pinned Josh Winey, 3:37 (1,0); 138 – Preston Klostermann (A) pinned Malachi Hruska, :56 (3,0)

MEET STATISTICS

Takedowns – Alburnett 16, Earlham 6. Reversals – Alburnett 2, Earlham 0. Escapes – Alburnett 4, Earlham 9. Nearfall points – Alburnett 2, Earlham 11. Penalty points (awarded) – Alburnett 0, Earlham 1. Total match points – Alburnett 42, Earlham 33.

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