Weber proud of effort shown by Bluejay wrestlers in tough field

Perry head coach pleased to see team showing improvement; says team can enter Christmas break on positive note.

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Perry's Kaleb Olejniczak drives into W-G's Colt Palmer in their bout at 132 pounds Dec. 5. Olejniczak was 5-0 Saturday at the Waukee Duals.

WAUKEE — The official results will show the Perry wrestling team finished Saturday’s Waukee Duals 2-3. The numbers will also reveal outstanding individual efforts by several Bluejays.

What the raw numbers cannot reveal is intensity, effort and visible improvement, all of which Perry head coach Mark Weber noted in his remarks following the event.

“Today’s performance as a team was a big improvement when compared to last season on this day,” he said. “I always tell the team to be better than you were the day before .. and in this case we are improving as a team.”

“Every guy on the team had to earn each win — none of them came easy,” Weber added. “Our three leaders continued to step up, and others followed suit. For instance, Wilbur Ramirez stepped in at 145 for the first time and won some hard-fought matches.”

Waukee topped Perry, 58-14, with Ankeny claiming a 50-21 win while Des Moines Lincoln stopped Perry, 45-21. Perry collected victories of 40-34 over Harlan and of 54-23 against Des Moines North/Hoover.

Kaleb Olejniczak finsihed 5-0 at 126, where the junior is ranked third in Class 3A. He recorded three pins and received a forfeit while handing Waukee’s Cody Anderson — rated fifth — an 11-3 loss by major decision.

Senior Zach Stewart, fourth at 138, also finished 5-0. He received a forfeit, won twice by pin and once by major decision and also claimed a 3-1 win over fifth-ranked Connor Dalton of DM Lincoln.

Zachary Thompson is ranked fourth at 120, and the Bluejay senior finished Saturday with a 4-1 mark, his lone loss a 10-2 major decision setback to top-ranked Kyle Biscoglia of Waukee. Thompson had one win by forfeit, one by pin, another by technical fall and a 16-9 victory over No. 10 Derek Anderson of Ankeny.

Jacob Nelson had a strong day as well, finishing 4-1 at 132. He won twice by pin fall and twice with decisions.

“The goal as a team was to go into this Christmas break feeling proud of our fight and effort, and I think we can do that,” Weber said. “I made a big list of positions that we need to work on as a team after watching our wrestlers today, and consistent improvement is our goal.”

Ramirez was 2-2 at 145 with a major decision and a decision, with Miguel Gonzalez losing by fall in his one match at 145.

Bryan Funez (152) and Cole Snyder (170) were both 2-3 with all wins by pin, with Alex Tapia 1-4 with a pin at 285.

Angel Escobar was 1-1 with a forfeit at 220, with Erick Funez 1-4 with a win from a pin at 160. Cesar Ramirez (182), Jonathan Silva (195) and Riece Graham (106) were all 1-4 for the Jays, with a forfeit accounting for the single win each recorded. Perry left the 113-pound weight class open and forfeited three times at 220.

“There are a handful of guys who I believe need to work their weight down and drop a weight class,” Weber concluded. “The discipline that it takes to manage your weight can directly translate to the discipline that you train with in the practice room and compete with on the mat. Nothing wrong with learning a little sacrifice and a lot of discipline.”

Perry will resume their season Jan. 4 when they join Van Meter/Earlham for a triangular at Bondurant-Farrar, with a visit to the Mendenhall Invite in Ames scheduled for Jan. 6.

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