Bormann Leads List of First-time Qualifiers as City High Sends Six to State
Ryan Murken
Your Prep Sports
IOWA CITY – Garrett Bormann spends his winters on the wrestling mat and his summers on the diamond as a member of the City High baseball team.
As a pitcher Bormann understands the type of pressure an 0-2 count puts on a hitter.
Bormann felt the weight of being in a 0-and-2 hole all week leading up to his final chance to reach the state wrestling meet.
“After not making it (to state) the last two years and knowing this was my last chance, it’s pressure,” Bormann said. “The last couple of days have been pretty stressful.”
Bormann pushed the pressure aside and left the memories of district disappoint in the past on Saturday leading a charge of five first-time state qualifiers for City High at the Class 3A, District 6 meet at West High.
City High crowned four champs on Saturday and qualified six wrestlers for next week’s Class 3A state tournament while finishing runner-up in the teams standings just two points behind champion West High.
“I’m glad that its over with and I got through,” Bormann said. “It’s a big relief and now I’m looking to go have some fun.”
Bormann joined fellow seniors Ethan Wood-Finley and Reece Caven and freshman sensation Ben Kueter as district champions.
Seniors Jason Lemus and Reese Hayden earned state tournament bids as runner-up finishers.
Ranked sixth at 113 pounds, Wood-Finley is a two-time state medalist that finished fifth the past two seasons at 106 pounds.
The other five City High qualifiers all punched tickets to the state meet for the first time on Saturday.
“Five of our seniors got through so to be able to go to state with all my friends it going to be great,” Bormann said. “I was very happy.”
Bormann went 34-8 a season ago but went 1-2 in a challenging district and missed a trip to state.
After spending the last week worrying about going 0-for-3 in his career in district tournaments Bormann answered the bell on Saturday.
The sixth-ranked senior reached the 120-pound title match with a pair of first-period pins and downed West High sophomore Parker McBride 4-1 in the title match.
He’s a senior that has never been to the state tournament and that was a big goal of his,” City High coach Cory Connell said. “Now that he is there we need to get as high on that podium as we can.”
Bormann (29-10) allowed three takedowns in an 8-6 win over McBride in the quarterfinals of the Mississippi Valley Conference meet two weeks ago.
On Saturday he didn’t allow a single takedown while securing his trip to state.
“I wrestled him at conference and he took me down three times so I had a different game plan going out to finish my shots and that worked,” Bormann said. “The third period it wasn’t the prettiest but I got it done.”
Wood-Finley (24-2) posted a pair of quick pins on his way to the 113-pound title in his first action in nearly a month.
He needed just 54 seconds to put Cedar Rapids Kennedy sophomore Jonah Hallam on his back in the title match.
“It felt great,” Wood-Finley said. “I was really excited for today.”
Caven (23-1) pinned his way to the 152-pound title while second-ranked Kueter (20-0) used a first-period fall and a tech fall to win the 160-pound championship.
Reese Hayden (20-11) advanced with a runner-up finish at 126 pounds and Jason Lemus (29-7) was runner-up at 220 pounds.
“I think for the most part it was what I expected,” Connell said. “There were some other weights where we could have gotten through and some other matches we could have won and I wish we would have won the district.”
Class 3A, District 6 Meet
At West High
Team scores – 1. West High 208.5; 2. City High 206.5; 3. Cedar Rapids Kennedy 200; 4. Marion 139; 5. Cedar Rapids Jefferson 124; 6. Clear Creek Amana 94; 7. Cedar Rapids Washington 89; 8. Liberty High 47.5
Individual champions; state qualifiers
106 – 1. Grant O’Dell (ICW) major dec. Niyo Gady (MAR) 11-2
113 – 1. Ethan Wood-Finley (ICH) pinned Jonah Hallam (CRK) :54
120 – 1. Garrett Bormann (ICH) dec. Parker McBride (ICW) 4-1
126 – 1. Sam Stevens (CCA) pinned Reese Hayden (ICH) 1:25
132 – 1. Hunter Garvin (ICW) pinned Kael Scranton (CCA) 2:53
138 – 1. Ashtin Falck (CRK) dec. Austin Fritz (MAR) 11-4
145 – 1. Graham Gambrall (ICW) dec. Dylan Falck (CRK) 9-3
152 – 1. Reece Caven (ICH) pinned Divion Ocheltree (CRK) 2:19
160 – 1. Ben Kueter (ICH) tech. fall Collin Flannagan (CRK) 24-7; 2. Ben Gibson (MAR)
170 – 1. Ashton Barker (ICW) major dec. Alex Koch (CRK) 12-2
182 – 1. Will Hoeft (ICW) tech. fall Jay Oostendorp (CRK) 18-3
195 – 1. Anu Dokun (ICW) dec. Ethan Sullivan (CRK) 11-6
220 – 1. Gavin Bascom (CRK) dec. Jason Lemus (ICH) 8-7
285 – 1. Dawson Sweet (CRJ) dec. Tate Sykora-Matthess (CRW) 3-2
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