Powerful Pirates looking for another strong wrestling season
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The Polson Pirates are ready to make another run at the Class A wrestling state championship.
One season after earning fifth place at the state meet, the Pirates are returning 10 lettermen, including six wrestlers with valuable state tournament experience.
“Our strength is in the experience many of our guys gained by wrestling in the state tournament last season,” coach Bob Owen said. “Our weakness will be that we have a number of newcomers and freshmen that will also be in the lineup.”
Led by three-time state champion Brock Picard, The Pirates finished the 2009-2010 season with a 15-6 record in dual matches and are the reigning divisional champions.
This year’s Pirates will be led by sophomore Craig Feistner, who won the divisional tournament last season and placed third at state. Feistner led the Pirates with 36 wins last season, 23 of which came via pin.
“Craig has outstanding quickness and works very hard in and out of the season,” Owen said.
Feistner is predicted to wrestle in the 119-pound division.
Joining Feistner as one of the Pirate’s key wrestlers will be senior Jake Young, who finished last season with 35 wins.
“Jake is another killer in the top position with 20 pins last season,” Owen said. “He also had 55 takedowns last year.”
Young is predicted to wrestle in the 140-pound division.
Junior Josiah Clairmont will be looking to improve on a great season from a year ago, one in which he finished second at divisionals and fifth at the state meet.
Projected to wrestle in the 215-pound division this year, Clairmont is very good at takedowns for an upper-weight wrestler according to Owen.
Senior Jessie Alfiero also made the trip to state last season after earning a second-place finish at the divisional tournament. The 130-pound Alfiero recorded 36 takedowns last season.
Sophomores Mike Devlin and Drew Fouty will also play key roles for the Pirates this season, according to Owen. Devlin finished second at the divisional tournament last season while Fouty was third.
Along with those returning with state tournament experience, the Pirates will also be returning four other lettermen this season, including Jose Quinones, Raz Walhood, Lucas Polk and Alex Nystrom.
Numbers will once again be a strength for the Pirates, according to Owen, as the squad has once again filled out its roster.
“We have another great turnout this season with over 30 wrestlers in the room at this time,” Owen said. “The team has shown great work ethics in practice, which should help us improve through the season.”
Along with the leadership of the returning wrestlers, the Pirates will be relying on many newcomers to help bring success this season.
“I am looking forward to working with some very promising freshmen and newcomers that seem to be buying into our system and are working hard to improve,” Owen said. “Our ability to compete with this group will depend greatly on how we improve and if we can get all of the weight classes filled.”
The Pirates will once again have to make their way through a tough conference this season if they hope to make another strong showing at the state level.
“Ronan will have a strong team again this year, led by state champion Toby Cheff,” Owen said. “Columbia Falls has a group of good freshmen coming in and should have a good number of participants. Libby also has a couple of state placers to lead them but Whitefish does not have very good numbers and lost their coach from last season. I see the conference title race to be a battle between Ronan and Polson once again this season.”
Owen said the competition at the state level should also be tough once again as returning champion Harve will be hard to knock off.
Corvallis also returns a number of top-level wrestlers and Sidney has a great freshman class that should help them compete for a title.
While the outcome of the year is uncertain, Owen said he is more than ready for another great year of wrestling in Polson.
“We’re ready for the big tournaments. The 64-team Tri-State and the 32-team Rocky Mountain Classic are always fun to be a part of,” Owen said. “It will be strange having a state tournament that is not attended by all classifications, but I am glad that Butte will host as they have a great reputation for taking care of our sport.”
