By Marisa Dawson
On Tuesday evening, January 27, the Bennington High School wrestling programs hosted Plattsmouth in a multi-level dual meet that showcased strong performances across the girls’ varsity, boys JV, and boys varsity squads. Despite both teams dealing with injuries and lineup changes, Bennington emerged victorious in all three competitions.
Girls JV/Varsity: Bennington 42, Plattsmouth 36
The girls’ dual was a closely contested battle, with Bennington edging out Plattsmouth by a final score of 42-36. Several key pins highlighted the action for the home team.
Addi Shippen (Bennington) secured a quick fall over Josie Nielsen (Plattsmouth) in 1:09 at 105 pounds, while Sabhana Thapa (Bennington) pinned Nora Decker (Plattsmouth) in 1:12 at 115 pounds. Bennington also benefited from multiple forfeits at 110, 125, 140, and 145 pounds, as well as a win at 235 pounds by Eliza Flores.
Plattsmouth countered with strong showings, including a forfeit win for Jaylee Ingham at 100 pounds, a fast pin by Symantha Cherek (fall in 0:50 over Riley Harris at 120 pounds), and additional forfeit victories at 130, 155, 170, and 190 pounds.
Girls coach Craig Pokorny reflected on the evening’s performance, noting the challenges of a smaller matchup but satisfaction with the outcome.
“I thought we performed well,” Pokorny said. “I know we didn’t get a lot of matches. We were anticipating winning most of our matches that we did match up. We had injuries, they had some holes and injuries, that sort of thing. There’s a couple matches that didn’t happen, but I think we went out and took care of business.”
He emphasized strategic planning: “Before every dual, I chart out their lineup, projected lineup, ours, how I think we’ll do if we can move people around, up a weight class, shift people around, and try to maximize our points… When we weighed in it changed and adjusted a little bit. In the end, we didn’t have as many matches but still won the duel.”
Boys JV: Bennington 24, Plattsmouth 6
The boys JV squad dominated with four pins to build a commanding lead. Jake Crawford pinned Ryder Ford in 2:49 at 138 pounds, Trey Almond took down Ralph Carmona in 2:00 at 150 pounds, Liam Nye pinned Axel Schippert in 2:33 (also at 150 pounds), and Jaiden Heywood secured a lightning-fast fall over Donovan Landon in 0:20 at 165 pounds. Plattsmouth’s lone win came from Nathaniel McKinney’s pin over Preston Sheets in 1:09 at 175 pounds.
Boys Varsity: Bennington 47, Plattsmouth 25
The varsity boys delivered a decisive performance, racking up multiple technical falls and pins en route to a 47-25 victory. Standouts included Easton Anderson’s pin (1:58 over Donavan Baxter at 106 pounds), Elijah McCrery’s fall (1:09 over Deegan Milczski at 126 pounds), and a series of technical falls by Finn Williams (20-5 at 132 pounds), Brayden Kreikemeier (19-2 at 144 pounds), Paxton Morgan (17-2 at 150 pounds), and Knox Naughton (17-2 at 157 pounds). Additional pins came from Kellen Mann (1:02 at 175 pounds) and Ty Bouaphakeo (0:45 at 190 pounds), plus a decision win by Ty Thomsen (6-3 at 215 pounds).
Plattsmouth earned points with Ryder Milczski and Jack Laney taking forfeits at 113 and 120 pounds, Odin Anschutz earning a major decision (18-6) over Brodee Scobee at 138 pounds, Jackson Eby securing a pin (3:45) over Dominic Gillett at 165 pounds, and Edward Loontjer winning a close decision (4-3) over Elliott Weisbrodt at 285 pounds.
Boys coach Alan Pokorny praised his team’s effort despite being shorthanded.
“We’re a little bit short handed, so I was kind of nervous that these guys are pretty tough,” Pokorny said. “So if we didn’t win the matches we were supposed to, we could be in trouble and lose the duel. But I liked how our guys came out wrestling hard, scoring a lot of points. If we couldn’t get the pins, we were getting tech falls. We took a good lead and had it wrapped up about three or four matches before the duel was over.”
Looking ahead to the state tournament next month, he added: “First we have to get our guys healthy,” he said, noting that several of his team members are due to return to the mats soon. “Once we do get them back, that’ll be a lot stronger team… Just happy to get to win because these guys are a dangerous team and they gave us two years ago here in our place. They gave us a really good, tough dual, so we’re glad to get to win.”
