Shock and 'awesome': Dickinson senior Alec Lindsey, a No. 6 seed, reaches Class A championship match
BISMARCK — Alec Lindsey bought a first-class ticket to his first Class A state wrestling finals match.By: Royal McGregor, The Dickinson Press
- Alec Lindsey
More...
BISMARCK — Alec Lindsey bought a first-class ticket to his first Class A state wrestling finals match.
The Dickinson High wrestling team’s lone senior came away with 5-4 decision against No. 2 seed Anjelo Shepherd of West Fargo in the semifinals of the individual tournament Friday at the Bismarck Civic Center.
Lindsey came into the tournament as the No. 6 seed and has defeated the No. 2 and 3 seeds at 138 pounds to reach the state championship.
And the senior leader couldn’t be happier about it.
“It feels awesome,” said Lindsey, who attends school is South Heart. “This is what I’ve been working for all season. It’s been my goal to get to the finals all season and I’m glad I’m here.”
After scoring a takedown in the third period to put him up for good, Lindsey had to stave off an eager Shepherd. Once the clock struck zero, however, Dickinson head coach Bruce Heppner thrust his fist with glory.
“Alec had been a good kid for us all year,” Heppner said. “He’s been good for the team. He came out and wrestled a solid match. We knew we had to go 6 minutes with Shepherd. He’s a tough kid.”
The road for Lindsey isn’t over.
He faces No. 1 seed Ryan Blees of Bismarck High in the finals today at approximately 3 p.m. today. The final day of the tournament starts at 10 a.m.
“We’ve seen him before a couple times, so at least we have a scouting report on him,” Heppner said. “Alec’s mindset is he’s here to win a state championship and he’s going to take care of business.”
The Midgets are in 14th place with 45.5 points. West Fargo is still in first with 188 points. The Packers hold over a 40-point lead over Bismarck High (144.5).
The Midgets also had No. 3 seed Devin Berger (120) in the semifinals, but the sophomore fell in a 7-0 decision against No. 2 seed Terry Lavallie Jr. of Belcourt. Berger said he was somewhat impressed with his performance, but he thought it could have been better.
“I was average happy with my performance,” Berger said. “I know that I have to work a lot harder for next year to make it to state finals. This is going to motivate me. I’m going to work really hard in the summer and the offseason.”
Berger faces the winner of the match between Anthony Coronato of Fargo North and Ross Pergande from West Fargo in the consolation round.
“He’s got to bounce back and come with a third-place finish,” Heppner said.
Dickinson’s last wrestler left in the tournament is freshman Austin Hutzenbiler (106). He is guaranteed a place today. The freshman wrestles West Fargo’s Reed Cronin.
“Austin secured a spot on the podium and he’s just got to take care of business,” Heppner said.
The Midgets had 11 guys heading into the consolation rounds. Ryder Peterson (138), Jacob Brooke (195), Clayton Tangen (145) and Jacob Shypkowski (145) each claimed one win in the tournament.
“The first round wasn’t too bad on us. The second round we got beat up,” Heppner said. “We’re young and we’ve got almost everyone coming back next year.”
At best, the Midgets can have a first place and two third-place finishes today. Lindsey knows it will be hard work.
“I just want to finish out the tournament the best that I can,” Lindsey said. “I know it’s going to be even tougher match. I’m just going to come out and do my best.”
Tags: dickinson midgets, alec lindsey, sports, wrestling, preps, midgets
More from around the web
RSS Feeds