Milford starts season with mat success

Picks up third straight win at Friend tournament

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The 2021-22 season got off to a good start for the Milford wrestling team. Milford swept a triangular Dec. 2 and won the Bob Arehart Invitational in Friend Dec. 4 for the third consecutive year.

MHS wrestled Lincoln Lutheran and Louisville at Louisville. Milford beat Lincoln Lutheran 58-12 and dominated Louisville 72-0, winning every contested match by pin.

“We knew we were favored to win the duals,” Coach Joe Schluckebier said.

The Eagles don’t have a lot of duals on their schedule this season. With the goal of the state dual tournament in February, Schluckebier said, MHS needs to win them.

“We can’t have a blunder or we won’t make the state duals,” he said.

Schluckebier said it’s been an interesting six years at the helm of Milford wrestling, going from four wrestlers to being the clear favorite to win tournaments and duals.

“It’s fun but different. You have to take a different approach,” he said.

He said teams assume even the MHS freshmen are good.

“We get everyone’s best shot,” he said.

Milford finished the Bob Arehart Invitational with four champions – Jack Chapman, Carter Springer, Christopher Scdoris and Thomas Vance. Runners-up were Conner Kohout, Eli Vondra and Hunter Oborny. Cooper Rea and Trey Lyon finished third, and Ethan Buchli was fourth.

Schluckebier said the tournament went about as well as it could have. While Oborny and Vondra were favored, their losses are a stepping stone for the two, the coach said.

“They were toss-ups anyway and can be constructive,” he said. “We want to see tough competition.”

Overall, he said, the week was a good start to the season.

The Eagles will host Seward and Centennial for the county triangular Thursday, Dec. 9, with matches starting at 5 p.m. On Saturday, Dec. 11, the Eagles will wrestle at Crete in a tournament featuring Classes A and B schools.

“We are excited for it,” Schluckebier said. “It’s a big deal to win it. It presents a lot of challenges for us.”