INDIANAPOLIS — Avon wrestlers Dylan Jones and Brian Snyder came up big for the Orioles Saturday as both advanced to their respective weight class’s fifth/sixth place match. Orioles coach Israel Blevins was happy for his two grapplers’ performances and for what it means to the Avon wrestling program.
“The did well to get where they were at today,” he said. “At the beginning of the season, if we’d have said we’d be where we are today, we would not have necessarily said we would have been there. We thought we had a chance, but we just weren’t sure. These guys getting here is good to show the young guys that if they just buy into what we are teaching and work hard, they can be here too.”
Jones admitted that he surpassed his own seasonal expectations by advancing past Friday night’s match. In the opening match Saturday, he took on Bellmont’s Ben Baker, a match he would lose 4-1.
The junior rebounded from that loss, defeating Jeffersonville’s Elijah Curtley 5-4 with a late takedown in the third period while down by a point.
That win propelled Jones into the fifth/sixth place match with No. 6-ranked Ian Early. With under five seconds remaining in the first period, Jones gave up a takedown to Early and then cut him from the bottom position early in the second, giving the Greenfield Central grappler a 3-0 advantage. Jones escaped in the third, but was unable to score from there as Early took a 3-1 victory.
“Dylan has wrestled really well here at the end of the season and that put him where he’s at,” Blevins said. “It is exciting to see him get here. We thought he had a chance at the beginning of the year and may not have said he had a chance at the top six, but he’s definitely improved and did well at the end of the year.”
Snyder lost Saturday’s opening match 8-6 to eventual state runner-up Dominque Stauffer of Elkhart Central. After falling behind 5-1, Snider pulled to within one at 7-6 and cut Stauffer loose for an escape with 24 seconds remaining in their match, hoping for a takedown to tie it up and force overtime. Unfortunately for the Orioles senior, it was not to be.
Snyder then defeated Evansville Mater Dei’s Nathan Wright in the first round of wrestlebacks, 4-2 for his second OT victory of the tournament.
In his fifth/sixth place match, Snyder ran into No. 11-ranked Brandon Daniels of Goshen. Daniels led 5-0 after the first, following a takedown and back points. Daniels caught Snyder in the third, taking him to his back and pinning him.
“I worked my butt off these four years of high school wrestling and really didn’t have a big goal in mind, but as I started progressing, I knew my goals had to get bigger if I wanted to succeed more,” Snyder said. “Coach Blevins is a great coach and is one of the best in Indiana. Without him and the rest of a great staff, I would have never gotten even close to where I am right now.”
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