Sunday, February 12, 2012
Best Montana Wrestler Ever?
The 2012 Wrestling season has concluded with Kalispel Glacier winning the AA, Corvalis winning the class A, and the BC champs are the Forsyth Dogies. There were 4 Champions who won for their Fourth time, bringing that total to 23 in the history of Montana wrestling.
Of the 23 four time state champs there are 3 who went undefeated for their entire high school careers. They are Gene Davis of Missoula who graduated in 1963, Beau Malia from Billings Skyview who graduated in 2004, and Jade Rauser who graduated from Townsend in 2011.
However their are two reasons why Ben Stroh of Chinook (This years 189 pound 4 time champ headed for Wyoming to wrestle collegiately) could arguably be considered the best ever. First, the vast majority of the others started out their careers as 98 pound freshman, thus their first years tourney was spent wrestling against other freshman and not versus bigger and stronger upper classmen. Ben wrestled at 160 pounds his freshman year. He wrestled at 171 his Sophmore year, and then 189 his junior and senior years.
Secondly, and most astonishingly he set a NATIONAL record by winning his last 101 matches in a row BY PIN!!! For the last 2 years plus - he not only went undefeated, but he beat EVERY SINGLE opponent by PINNING them!!!
Anyway, Congratulations go out to this years 4 four time state champs. They are Luke Schlosser of Conrad, Cole Mendenhall of Great Falls, Luke Zieger of Glasgow, and as previously mentioned, Ben Stroh of Chinook.
Of the 23 four time state champs there are 3 who went undefeated for their entire high school careers. They are Gene Davis of Missoula who graduated in 1963, Beau Malia from Billings Skyview who graduated in 2004, and Jade Rauser who graduated from Townsend in 2011.
However their are two reasons why Ben Stroh of Chinook (This years 189 pound 4 time champ headed for Wyoming to wrestle collegiately) could arguably be considered the best ever. First, the vast majority of the others started out their careers as 98 pound freshman, thus their first years tourney was spent wrestling against other freshman and not versus bigger and stronger upper classmen. Ben wrestled at 160 pounds his freshman year. He wrestled at 171 his Sophmore year, and then 189 his junior and senior years.
Secondly, and most astonishingly he set a NATIONAL record by winning his last 101 matches in a row BY PIN!!! For the last 2 years plus - he not only went undefeated, but he beat EVERY SINGLE opponent by PINNING them!!!
Anyway, Congratulations go out to this years 4 four time state champs. They are Luke Schlosser of Conrad, Cole Mendenhall of Great Falls, Luke Zieger of Glasgow, and as previously mentioned, Ben Stroh of Chinook.
