The Evanston High School wrestling team had a solid showing at the Thoman-Jackson Invitational in Green River over the weekend, with three wrestlers finishing the tournament undefeated, and the team placing second overall in the Silver Division.

The Red Devils went 5-2 in the dual-meet format, beating Pinedale in the semifinals 46-27, but falling to Roosevelt 45-31 in the finals. Brady Roberts (175 pounds), Kyson Hamilton (144 pounds) and Jaxon Haider (150 pounds) finished a perfect 7-0.

The Red Devils opened the tournament Friday with a 62-12 win over Grantsville, followed by a 48-21 win over Worland. Evanston followed that with a 72-6 drubbing of South, a team made up of wrestlers from various schools. The Red Devils were given a forfeit win over Mountain View — a team unable to make it to Green River due to inclement weather — then closed out the day with a hard-fought loss to Rock Springs, 40-36.

On the girls side, all five Lady Devils earned a spot on the podium, with one champion in Sidney Liechty at 115 pounds.

“It was a good tournament for us,” said EHS head coach Garth Wagstaff. “We had some sickness going around the team, and some kids elected not to travel because of the weather, so there were some changes in our lineup. But the kids we threw in there stepped up and wrestled well. We had three make it to the Best of the Best, and that’s always good to see.”

All three of the Red Devils’ undefeated wrestlers were chosen to wrestle in the Best of the Best match at their respective weights. Roberts was the lone Best of the Best champion, winning the 175-pound match in a thriller, 6-5 over Uintah’s Christian Hartle.

“Brady was wrestling a good kid out of Uintah,” Wagstaff explained. “[Hartle] is a big, strong, physical kid, but Brady just kept hanging in there, and got a nice takedown right at the end to win it. I think there was maybe 10 seconds to go in the match, so it was pretty exciting.”

For Roberts — who lost to Hartle last year in this same tournament — it was a chance for a little payback.

“It felt great to beat a good kid, because he’s gotten me before,” Roberts said. “I told everyone after the last time, ‘Never again,’ so it was fun to win a good, tight match. And to let [Hartle] know that he won’t beat me again.”

At 144 pounds, Hamilton’s 7-0 record consisted of a bye, five pins and a 10-0 major decision. Hamilton squared off against Uintah’s Jaxon McCurdy in the Best of the Best match, losing 9-1.

Haider was equally impressive at 150 pounds, with six pins and a forfeit, though he met his match in Best of the Best against Cheyenne East’s Liam Fox.

“Both Kyson and Jaxon are wrestling really well right now,” Wagstaff said. “Haider is just figuring it out — it’s good to see him have success, he’s put in a lot of time and energy in the offseason, and it’s paying off for him. He comes to everything we offer, and he’s really bought in. Kyson’s just Mr. Consistent — he just comes and does what he’s supposed to do, and gets it done.”

Tarrin Haws at 215 pounds also finished undefeated at 5-0, with three pins and two forfeits. Sophomore Keith Shelton continues to impress at 120 pounds, posting a 6-1 record, while seniors Ryder Wilson (138 pounds) and Aiden Liechty (190 pounds) finished 5-2.

Freshman Bridger Roberts also finished 5-2 at 157 pounds, while fellow freshmen Timber Fitch — making his varsity debut over the weekend — and Tayson Moon finished 4-3 at 126 pounds and 106 pounds, respectively.

Kolby Hamilton (132 pounds) also finished 4-3, as did Karter Moore (144 pounds), who wrestled as a member of the Renegades. Riggs Reeves (165 pounds) and Waylon Martinson (285 pounds) each posted 3-4 records.

“Timber Fitch at 126 really picked up his intensity and did well for us,” Wagstaff said. “Riggs Reeves at 165 — this is his first year of wrestling, and he did well for his first varsity experience; didn’t back down, went out and tried a few things. And those young kids like Bridger and Tayson — they don’t back down from anyone. They don’t care who they’re going out against — if they’re outmatched or outsized — they go out there and let it fly. They’re not so concerned about wins and losses as they are about getting better, at this point.”

As for the duals, Wagstaff said the showdown with Rock Springs may have been the most memorable of the weekend, even though it was a 40-36 loss.

“Our most exciting dual was probably Rock Springs — we had a chance to beat them, and fell a little short,” Wagstaff said. “It came down to the last match, and that’s always good to help team unity. We came up a little short, but I was really pleased with how we competed against them. We had some good matchups, and some really big wins there.”

The EHS wrestling team is back on the road this weekend, and the level of competition will continue to increase from this point of the season forward, with Ron Thon the following weekend, and Regionals and State looming.

“This week, we head up to Jackson, and we’ll dual a team South Fremont, out of Idaho, a very solid program,” Wagstaff said. “Then we head to Idaho for the Tiger/Grizz Tournament, which is a big tournament — a lot of Utah, Idaho and Wyoming schools there. It doesn’t ever get easier for us.”

Lady Devils place five on the podium

The Lady Devils wrestling program had a great weekend in Green River, placing sixth overall as a team, with all five wrestlers who competed earning a spot on the podium.

Grantsville won the team title with 243 points, followed by Pinedale in second with 150 points and Campbell County with 117 points. Kemmerer and Green River rounded out the Top 5 in the 17-team field with 105 points and 94 points, respectively.

The Lady Devils were sixth, with 92 points.

Sidney Liechty won the championship at 115 pounds, pinning Pinedale’s Alexis Thompson in the finals to claim the title.

Leah Larkin finished runner-up at 125 pounds, winning her first three matches by pin, before losing to Worland’s Rylee Anderson in the finals.

Seriah Lamb also finished runner-up at 190 pounds, pinning Wheatland’s Jessie Graves in the quarterfinals and winning a forfeit over Lyman’s Janessa Kirk in the semifinals. Lamb lost a close 3-2 decision to Grantsville’s Kira Hart in the championship match.

At 130 pounds, Johana Saavedra battled back in the consolation bracket with three straight pins to advance to the 3rd-place match.

Saavedra pinned Grantsville’s Hannah Miller to take the bronze.

Shaelyn Larkin placed fourth at 115 pounds, beating Rawlins’ Daniela Lopez and Lyman’s Neveah Major to advance to the 3rd-place match, but losing a 10-0 major decision to Avianca Guzman to finish outside the Top 3.