(Guthrie Center) The ACGC wrestlers will be on the mat on Saturday to compete for spots in the state tourney.
Under the Iowa High School Athletic Association’s new format, two wrestlers in each weight class across 12 sites will advance from this weekend’s district tournaments. Charger coach Lane Rumelhart is ready for a big day for his team-especially from guys like Chase Slaybaugh, Tegan Slaybaugh, Gavin Sloss, Michael Fuller, and Payton Jacobe. “We like our chances at a lot of weights. I think Chase Slaybaugh at 106 could get the day rolling for us. He’ll have a good kid from Logan and Canoyer from Earlham, so it’s going to kind of be those three fighting for the two spots there. Tegan I look to make a strong run. I don’t see anybody, unless Harger comes back down to 120, I look at him to roll through that. I think Sloss has a tough day, but Sloss is always in it. I think at the heavier weights Michael Fuller and Payton Jacobe both have good chances. They have to show up, they have to score points, and they can’t be timid. When those guys are aggressive good things usually happen.”
Coach Rumelhart’s squad has all week to prepare for Saturday. “This time of year it’s not about learning new things. It’s about fine tuning everything that you do well. Getting your bread and butter moves and working them to where you can hit them anytime you need them. That go to stuff is what’s important and then you also have to have your backup plan when things aren’t going your way. It’ll be a lot of situational work this week to make sure we are ready for anything and everything that is thrown at us.”
Last weekend the team welcomed a dozen teams for the re-scheduled Charger Invitational. “The first one that stood out was probably Michael Fuller. He had a great tournament and finished 2nd behind Ashton Honnold. Last time we saw him was at the John J and he pinned us in the 2nd. This weekend we wrestled him to a 1-point match. It’s going to be good to see him a 3rd time if we can make it that far. It was also nice seeing Tegan beat a really solid kid in the finals.”
Tegan Slaybaugh enters the postseason with a 43-2 record. Payton Jacobe is 39-6, Chase Slaybaugh 37-12, Michael Fuller 27-12, Gavin Sloss 36-15, and Charlie Christensen 30-15.
ACGC coach Lane Rumelhart:
