Buckaroos take third in divisionals, qualify ten wrestlers for state tournament

by Anna Fredericks
Contributing Writer
Under the bright lights of the 1A Division B Wrestling Tournament in Panguitch this past Saturday, January 31 the Monticello Buckaroos battled through the brackets to a third-place team finish.
The Buckaroos put six wrestlers in the finals and qualified ten members of the team to the State Tournament in two weeks.
Leading the way for Monticello was junior John Leber at 150 pounds. Leber made his way to the top of the podium and was crowned champion, winning by fall in the first period. He won his semifinal match by fall in the second period.
Also earning trips to the spotlight match and finishing with second-place medals were Arturo Gutierrez, Bryson Adair, Landon Shuwmway, JJ Atwood, and Noah Dilts.
Gutierrez, a junior, earned a huge 17-2 technical fall win in the semifinals at 126 pounds. It was the fastest tech fall of the tournament coming at 1:21.
Freshman Bryson Adair earned a first-period fall in the quarterfinals and a second period win by fall in the semifinals at 132 pounds. Shumway, a senior, earned a first-period fall in the semifinal round at 138 pounds.
Freshman Atwood won by fall in the first period of the semifinals at 190 pounds followed by sophomore Dilts at 215 pounds also earning a first period win by fall in the semis.
Earning a strong third-place finish was sophomore Diego Cortez at 120 pounds. Cortez earned a second-period fall in the first round followed by a tough loss but came back strong to win the next two by fall and earn his medal. Cortez was fourth at the tourney for most pins in the least time with three in 9:09.
Finishing fourth for the Buckaroos were sophomore Miles Coleman with a first period win by fall at 144, and junior Zamian Lopez who battled hard at 285.
Senior Evan Carpenter earned two first-period wins by fall at 120 pounds, including the second-fastest fall of the tournament in 21 seconds. He was the last Buckaroo to earn a bid to the State Tournament.
Also finishing fifth were freshmen Christian Hunt at 126 and Hayden Peterson at 132. Both Buckaroos earned two wins by fall and are the first alternates in their weight for the state tournament.
The Buckaroos now have a weekend off before they travel to Richfield on Saturday, February 14 to compete in the 2026 Utah State Wrestling Tournament at the Sevier Valley Center. Wrestling is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m.