Lehi Sports
Falcon’s Millward wins bronze in state wrestling
Skyridge freshman Asher Millward earned a bronze medal in the 106 bracket at the Class 6A boys wrestling tournament Saturday (Feb. 17) at Utah Valley University’s UCCU Center.
In the first round, Millward won by technical fall over Rave Morby (14-17) of Layton 19-2. In the quarterfinal, he took on Kacen Jones (41-8) of Corner Canyon and defeated him with a solid 10-4 decision.
In the semifinal, Tanner Telford (48-6) of Corner Canyon turned the tables on Millward and bested him by 10-4 decision. In the consolation semifinal, he won a thriller over Kaden Oldroyd (40-11) of Westlake by edging him in a 5-3 decision.
The third-place match went to overtime, where Millward triumphed by sudden victory over Perry Fowler (41-8) of Syracuse in the first extra period 3-1. He earned 15.5 team points and compiled a 24-4 record for the year.
“I thought Asher wrestled a great tournament,” said Falcon Coach Lyle Mangum. “He was in a very tough weight with some national-caliber kids there. Four out of the five kids he wrestled placed.
“He did not get a full season of wrestling in because of some injuries but he trained hard and won a sectional title and top three at State,” the coach continued. “I wish people understood how great a tournament the top class was this year, by far the deepest it has been since I started 35 years ago.
“Asher is an exciting wrestler to watch, and his overtime match was a redemption win over Fowler from Syracuse from early in the season,” Mangum said. “He will wrestle all spring and do some great stuff to prepare for next season. His little brother will be in the room next year too and that will be fun.”
Junior Elias Nickel was the only other Skyridge wrestler to earn points for the team during the event. He lost his first match in the 190 weight class by major decision but pinned Collin Ralphs of Riverton at 2:51 in the first round of consolation for 3.0 points.
He was edged by a narrow decision in his second consolation bout to finish his tournament appearance with a 31-15 overall record for the season.
The Falcons came in 16th in the team standings with 18.5 points. Some team members who are football players did not compete at the state events because they have already started conditioning for the spring drills.
Skyridge had eight other wrestlers who qualified for the tournament but were eliminated after two matches. They included (final season record):• At 113, sophomore Cooper Sorenson (14-22)• At 144, senior Jacob Craft (19-25)• At 150, sophomore Dallin Davidson (17-12)• At 157, senior Dodge Collins (40-23) and sophomore Chandler Curtis (31-19)• At 165, junior Noah Mansker (6-10)• At 175, senior Chance Peterson (28-16)• At 285, sophomore Bradshaw Cox (16-28)
“The team had some higher goals and we wrestled well at sectionals but had some really tough matchups here,” Mangum said. “Elias Nickel had a good shot after a win but lost a tough one.
“I had hopes for some others, but we bring back seven of the 10 state qualifiers and have a fantastic eighth-grade group coming in. This spring and fall we will prepare to have a great year,” he said.
“I want to thank the seniors for bringing a really great group to have been with for so long,” the coach added. “They will be missed. Making lifelong memories is why I coach.
“Also, I have the best assistants in the world. Brian Bond, Ryan Harmon, Troy Josie and Dave Terrazas are fabulous. Without them it would be not possible,” Mangum concluded.
