Pekin tops Sigourney-Keota in nostalgic wrestling dual

Fans from Sigourney, Packwood, Hedrick and the surrounding areas filed their way into the old Civic Center in Hedrick on the evening of January 22. Pekin was the host school, with their mats laid out in the center of the room composed of a stage and metal bleachers. A packed house of Panther and Savages fans were hoping to see a great dual unfold, with the result being a 42-24 win for Pekin.

Cael Baker of Pekin and Nick Ives of Sigourney got things underway with a 138-pound dual. Neither Baker nor Ives could find any big success throughout, the most points coming from a fall or escape. In a fairly even match that went the distance, Baker was able to come out on top 4-2, giving the Panthers an early lead.

Hunter Conger (145-pounds) was up next for Pekin, while Sigourney was hoping to rebound by sending Trent Hendricks out onto the mat. Conger was able to keep Hendricks from scoring, but wasn't able to pin him in the allotted six minutes of time and win in a 7-0 decision.

Keaton Baayen (152-pounds) was able to give the Panthers four more points after winning a 14-5 decision over Zech Boender of Sigourney. Jordan Hixson (160-pounds) followed up his teammate with a pin in the first minute of his match against Jesse Fritz, extending the Panthers lead.

"We concentrated this not on an individual but our team of seniors," Pekin coach Al Chapman said. "They paid their price for a night like this. Whether you're a senior or not, for the underclassmen to perform like they did, I couldn't ask for anything more."    

Kaden Baker (170-pounds), Skyler Juhl (182-pounds) and Mason Juhl (195-pounds) continued the streak of points for the Panthers. Baker squared off with Nate Schuster, went the distance, and came out on top of a 10-4 decision. Skyler pinned Zeke Webb in the middle of the first period, while Mason took down Mac Conrad late in the first period of their match.

"We knew what matches we had to get in that first half. Those were the ones that were close, kept us on edge and probably gave the crowd their money's worth," Chapman said. "We worked it out on paper to keep Sigourney under 30. That was the goal and we made it work."

Pekin had a 31-0 lead heading into a break, which featured some youth wrestlers representing Pekin and Sigourney. Although it didn't count on the scoreboard, the Savages were able to beat all three of their opponents on the mat, as both teams and the general assembly cheered them on.

Sigourney came out of the break with a strong start, getting three straight pins. Gavin Bird (220-pounds) took down Kaden Pollock in just under a minute's time, while Kaleb Reeves (285-pounds) continued his undefeated season by pinning Dakota Phillips in 53 seconds. Mason Dye also received six points for pinning Tyler Gillum late in the first period.

"I expected the guys who came out and pinned to dominate," Sigourney coach Craig Reeves said. "Kaleb and Mason are both going to be State qualifiers, probably close to the top of the podium. I expect them to come out, put some points up and put the team on their back."

Sigourney picked up its final six points due to a forfeit at the 120-pound weight class. Following the addition of those points, Sigourney still trailed 31-24, but had narrowed the deficit considerably.

The Panthers didn't let up, as they were able to win the final two matches of the night. Elijah Sieren made quick work of Zane Hahn in the 126-pound match, pinning him in under 30 seconds. Zach Hammes also had a big win for Pekin, winning a 17-0 major decision over Luke House in the 132-pound weight class matchup.

"They're going to condition and drill to get ready for the conference tournament," coach Reeves said. "I'm going to preach to them that they need to be wanting to move on to the State tournament. It's up to them whether or not they want to move on or watch someone else get there."

For Sigourney, it was their last match before the SICL tournament on January 27 at Montezuma, while the Panthers had one more quad at Louisa-Muscatine on January 25, before their SEISC tournament at Columbus Junction on January 27.