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The Neosho wrestling team wins again.
Behind seven top-2 finishes, the Wildcats dominated the field at the Branson Tournament to claim the team title.
“I was very pleased with how we wrestled today, but even more than that, I was proud of the way the kids did the little things right,” Neosho wrestling coach Jeremy Phillips said. “Sometimes the biggest compliments come from other coaches or officials or parents. Today I had a parent from Smith-Cotton come up to me and say ‘you guys have got the most disciplined team that I’ve ever seen.’ And that meant a lot to me because that’s what we talk about all the time is being disciplined and hard-working and respectable. The fact that those characteristics are seen by our opposition makes us proud as a coaching staff.”
The parent from Smith-Cotton wasn’t the only one to pay compliment on the day. The Branson athletics director commented that he was impressed with the program and the way the wrestlers, from youth on through high school, conduct themselves.
“Hearing those things makes me proud,” Phillips said. “It lets me know that we are doing things right.”
Neosho results for the meet are as follows:
106- Austin Lewis 1-3 (8th)
113- Dakota McGarrah 3-2 (6th)
120- River Buttram 4-1 (2nd)
126- Nate Rodriguez 5-0 (1st)
132- Paxon Fowler 4-1 (5th)
138- Sam Williams 4-1 (5th)
145- Rimo Elwise 4-1 (4th)
152- Ethan Pogue 4-0 (1st)
160- James Townsend 3-1 (2nd)
170- Brandon White 4-1 (2nd)
182- Austin Hailey 3-1 (5th)
195- Jacob Brock 4-1 (2nd)
220- Christian Lopez 3-1 (2nd)
285- Aaron Clardy 3-2 (4th)
Neosho also had five junior varsity wrestlers compete in Branson on Saturday. Emily Harrell competed at 113 pounds, Jason Box competed at 120, Garrick Fausett competed at 145, Ben Elledge wrestled at 195 and Cody Fox competed at 285.
Box and Elledge both finished 2-2 and placed sixth.
“Results are one thing, but I told the team that our results are taking care of themselves because we are doing the little things right,” Phillips said. “We concentrate on outworking, outhustling and outfighting our opponents. And we know that if we do those things, the rest will take care of itself. I think this weekend we made some very good progress and that things are starting to come together. Some kids are starting to turn some corners.”
Neosho will return home and host Carthage in the Black & Blue Bash Tuesday night. That dual will feature 10 wrestlers currently ranked in the top-11 in the state of Missouri in their respective weight classes.
“There is not one particular thing that we need to work on as a team,” Phillips said. “We need to get in the practice room and evaluate what is working for (individual wrestlers) and what is still a target area. We’ll continue to work and evaluate ourselves. I truly believe we’ll be where we need to be in the end.”
The Neosho wrestling team wins again.
Behind seven top-2 finishes, the Wildcats dominated the field at the Branson Tournament to claim the team title.
“I was very pleased with how we wrestled today, but even more than that, I was proud of the way the kids did the little things right,” Neosho wrestling coach Jeremy Phillips said. “Sometimes the biggest compliments come from other coaches or officials or parents. Today I had a parent from Smith-Cotton come up to me and say ‘you guys have got the most disciplined team that I’ve ever seen.’ And that meant a lot to me because that’s what we talk about all the time is being disciplined and hard-working and respectable. The fact that those characteristics are seen by our opposition makes us proud as a coaching staff.”
The parent from Smith-Cotton wasn’t the only one to pay compliment on the day. The Branson athletics director commented that he was impressed with the program and the way the wrestlers, from youth on through high school, conduct themselves.
“Hearing those things makes me proud,” Phillips said. “It lets me know that we are doing things right.”
Neosho results for the meet are as follows:
106- Austin Lewis 1-3 (8th)
113- Dakota McGarrah 3-2 (6th)
120- River Buttram 4-1 (2nd)
126- Nate Rodriguez 5-0 (1st)
132- Paxon Fowler 4-1 (5th)
138- Sam Williams 4-1 (5th)
145- Rimo Elwise 4-1 (4th)
152- Ethan Pogue 4-0 (1st)
160- James Townsend 3-1 (2nd)
170- Brandon White 4-1 (2nd)
182- Austin Hailey 3-1 (5th)
195- Jacob Brock 4-1 (2nd)
220- Christian Lopez 3-1 (2nd)
285- Aaron Clardy 3-2 (4th)
Neosho also had five junior varsity wrestlers compete in Branson on Saturday. Emily Harrell competed at 113 pounds, Jason Box competed at 120, Garrick Fausett competed at 145, Ben Elledge wrestled at 195 and Cody Fox competed at 285.
Box and Elledge both finished 2-2 and placed sixth.
“Results are one thing, but I told the team that our results are taking care of themselves because we are doing the little things right,” Phillips said. “We concentrate on outworking, outhustling and outfighting our opponents. And we know that if we do those things, the rest will take care of itself. I think this weekend we made some very good progress and that things are starting to come together. Some kids are starting to turn some corners.”
Neosho will return home and host Carthage in the Black & Blue Bash Tuesday night. That dual will feature 10 wrestlers currently ranked in the top-11 in the state of Missouri in their respective weight classes.
“There is not one particular thing that we need to work on as a team,” Phillips said. “We need to get in the practice room and evaluate what is working for (individual wrestlers) and what is still a target area. We’ll continue to work and evaluate ourselves. I truly believe we’ll be where we need to be in the end.”
