Judd Harvey could wrestle blindfolded at Ball Arena and he’d probably still cakewalk to the 215-pound title.
The Meeker senior, already a two-time champion, has been untouchable this season as one of two undefeated wrestlers in Class 2A along with Trinidad senior 132-pounder Eddie Bowman.
Harvey improved to 47-0 in Thursday’s preliminary round with a first-round pin of Highland junior Donovan Juarez. All but two of Harvey’s wins have been by pin, with his last decision coming in the finals of the Tournament of Champions in Utah on Jan. 6, an 8-4 victory.
Had Harvey not been sidelined by impetigo in a cut on his neck as a freshman, knocking him out of regionals, he may very well be going for a four-peat. He had only four losses as a freshman before the skin infection kept him out of the postseason.
“I think I would’ve gotten at least top four at state,” Harvey said. “I was wrestling really well that year before that happened.”
To keep improving when he’s rarely being challenged in competition, Harvey’s relied heavily on grappling with the Meeker assistant coaches.
“I’ve got some amazing coaches to wrestle with: Nate Lee, a two-time Pac-12 champ at Boise State and four-time high school state champion (in Arizona), I wrestle with him a lot,” Harvey said. “That keeps pushing me. We’ve also got (three-time Colorado state champion) Stryker Lane, who wrestled at Cornell, and Trevor Grant, who was a Division II All-American at CSU-Pueblo. So I’ve got plenty (of talent) to test me in the room.”
Meeker brought 11 qualifiers to Ball Arena, and eight of them advanced with wins on Thursday. Heading into Friday, the Cowboys — who have won eight state titles but none since 2016 — are sitting in first place in Class 2A with 31 points. Cedaredge (29 points), Buena Vista (24) and Wray (22) are also in the mix. Wray is the two-time defending state champion and the Eagles won five of the last six titles.
But Harvey believes Meeker has the firepower to dethrone Wray, a feat that would be even sweeter considering head coach J.C. Watt is stepping down at the end of the tournament following a 12-year run as the Cowboys’ head coach.
“I think everyone here for us has a chance to place, then our four upper weights, 175 and up, I believe can win the state tournament,” Harvey said. “That’s a recipe to take home a team title.”
Six potential four-timers advance: Pomona’s Persaeus Gomez (130 pounds), Calhan’s Ciara Monger (235), Buena Vista’s Caleb Camp (2A 132), Mullen’s Dale O’Blia (3A 120), Fort Lupton’s D’mitri Garza-Alarcon (3A 138) and Thompson Valley’s Jackzen Rairdon (4A 144) all cruised into Friday’s quarterfinals. Gomez and Monger both made it look effortless with pins, as did the four boys. Garza-Alarcon dispatched of his opponent, Delta freshman Trenton Sukle, in just 12 seconds. It’s the fastest pin of the tournament so far.
Mathews brothers move on: Two of Cherokee Trail’s top qualifiers advanced to the quarterfinals with wins on Thursday. Freshman Cooper Mathews (47-6) won by tech fall over Legend freshman Isack Doumbouya, 20-3. A few minutes later, his brother, junior Chance Mathews (42-8), pinned Legacy’s Landon Hetrick 22 seconds into the second period. The brothers are two of eight qualifiers for the Cougars, five of whom advanced.
Billy Greenwood’s pursuit: The Poudre junior who has second-place and third-place finishes on his state tournament resume is hungry for another deep run this year. Greenwood had his older brother Jacob Greenwood, a four-time champ for the Impalas from 2015-18, in his corner for his 7-1 decision over Chaparral’s Dominic Cordray in the Class 5A 144-pound bracket. Billy Greenwood bounced back from a broken jaw he suffered during the first week of practice and returned to the mat at the end of January. He is now 10-0. His path to a state title will be steep, as he has a couple of other elite grapplers in his bracket in Pomona sophomore Derek Barrows and Ponderosa senior Jacob Myers.