DENVER — Looking to finally get over the proverbial hump and secure an elusive state title after years of close calls, Greeley Central senior Mikai Alirez didn’t need to look far for proper inspiration Saturday night at Ball Arena.
The two coaches that sat in his corner have six state titles between the two of them.
But, as he stared at a third-period deficit in the last shot he would have at a high school state wrestling title, one of those voices coming from Alirez’s corner resonated beyond just that of a fellow wrestler who has been there and done that.
When Alirez needed him the most, big brother — Andrew Alirez — was there with just the right words to help lift Mikai (29-1) to an exhilarating 8-4 win over Pueblo East junior Niko Fernandez (45-7) in the 132-pound finals of the Class 4A state wrestling championships.
Mikai trailed 2-0 entering the third and final period.
“Big bro told me that high crotch is there,” Mikai said of his winning move. “I went and got that high crotch, just like (Andrew) told me. … He’s given me that confidence, that boost. Hearing him just talking me through that match the whole time gave me the right moves at the right time. It kept me in a good mindset.”
No doubt, Mikai couldn’t have asked for more qualified coaches in his final year of high school wrestling.
Greeley Central’s head coach, Jacob Duran, was a two-time high school state champion at Fort Lupton. The Wildcats’ assistant coach, Andrew Alirez, was a four-time state champion in high school and is a national champion at the University of Northern Colorado.
Andrew is taking this college season off as he trains for a potential Olympic bid.
Mikai ultimately hopes to join his big brother as a member of the Bears program.
Waiting to exhale
Moments after her dominant performance in a state wrestling title match, Fort Lupton senior Rylee Balcazar took a seat in a Ball Arena tunnel and took a deep breath.
It was seemingly the first time in three months the talented Balcazar had allowed herself to exhale.
That is one more time than the number of times she has allowed herself to slip up during a grueling, relentless 45-match campaign.
Balcazar capped a perfect season Saturday night by pinning Pueblo Central freshman Acelyn Duran (34-3) in 4 minutes in the 105-pound final of the girls state wrestling championships.
She finished her season 45-0.
“Words can’t explain it,” Balcazar said. “I feel amazing. I’m proud of myself. I always wish I could do better. But, overall, I feel good.”
This was Balcazar’s second state title. She won her initial title as a sophomore in 2022. A year ago, she fell just short, placing fourth overall.
On Saturday, she wasn’t about to be denied.
After a scoreless first period, Balcazar broke the ice with a reversal with 30 seconds left in the second period. Moments later, she broke Duran’s spirit.
Balcazar wrestled Duran to her back, went up 5-0, then recorded the pin just as time expired in the second period.
Until the final second of her final period of high school wrestling, Balcazar refused to lose focus.
“I’ve always wanted to go undefeated,” said Balcazar, who will wrestle in college at Chadron State College in Nebraska. “But, this year, I didn’t really think about that. I just went out there and wrestled. Then, slowly, as the season went along, I realized, I actually am (undefeated). From there, I kept it a goal to keep (the undefeated record) runnin’.”
Speaking of perfection …
Remarkably, Balcazar wasn’t the only local wrestler to go months and months without a single loss, ultimately capping their campaign with a state title Saturday.
Severance’s standout freshman Drake VomBaur finished his undefeated season (41-0) by defeating Eaton sophomore Blake Hawkins (42-6) in the 3A 106-pound final, 7-3.
With his own championship, Drake effectively followed in the footsteps of his two older brothers — Will and Vance — who were multi-time state champions at Windsor.
“I was so excited for this moment, and I made the best out of it,” Drake said.
VomBaur and Hawkins grew up wrestling each other, trading marquee victories.
The two proved to be equally matched adversaries, sitting tied at 2 through two periods in the title match.
Finally, VomBaur took control with an escape with 1:13 left in the match, followed by a couple late takedowns.
“That was the best I’ve ever wrestled (Hawkins),” VomBaur said. “I was thinking about it the night before. And I came out and I thought, ‘I don’t want to beat him, I want to (really) beat him.’ I want it to be solid. I want nobody to say it was because of luck. I want nobody to say it was because I was feeling better that day. I wanted to beat him.”
Team success
Though no local teams were able to capture team state titles this time around, eight local programs earned top-10 finishes in their respective classifications.
Eaton wasn’t able to win its third consecutive team title, but it still managed a third-place finish (119 points) behind Mullen (140.5) and Brush (122.5). Resurrection Christian finished fourth (107), Severance was eighth (94.5), and Valley placed 10th (74.5) in 3A.
Another perennial contender, Windsor was third (105.5) in 4A behind Mead (177.5) and Pueblo East (132.5). Roosevelt was seventh (71) in 4A.
Highland (67.5) was seventh in 2A, a classification won by Meeker (150).
Fort Lupton was ninth (57) in the girls division. Pomona won a team title with 135.5 points.
Falling just short
Not every local finalist was fortunate enough to top the podium Saturday night.
Of the 18 local wrestlers that competed in title matches, 14 had to settle for being runners-up.
Eaton’s Hawkins placed second for the second consecutive season.
Windsor senior James Pantoja (39-4) fell just short in the 4A 106 title match, losing to Pueblo East junior Manuel Amaro (44-4) via a tight 4-2 decision.
Severance senior Jonathan Morrison (36-8) was unable to secure the second state title of his high school career, falling 6-0 to Mullen senior Dale O’Blia (44-5) in the 3A 120 finals. Morrison won a state title as a freshman in Kansas.
Resurrection Christian went 0-3 in title matches. Junior Grant Slinkard (28-9) fell to Jefferson junior Samuel Rosales (45-3) via a 14-2 major decision in the 3A 126 final. Junior Isaiah Johnson (32-4) dropped an 8-0 major decision to Centauri senior Josh Polkowske (38-2) in the 190 title match. Sophomore Samuel Stockston (9-1) gave up a takedown in the final few seconds of an overtime period to fall via a 3-2 tie-breaker against Englewood senior Jayce Prante (41-4) in a dramatic 215 final.
Brush junior Nick Dardanes (34-2) pinned Fort Lupton sophomore Josiah Gonzales (46-9) in 3:57 in the 3A 132 title match.
Roosevelt sophomore Chris LaLonde (46-5) was unable to repeat as a state champion. He dropped a 3-2 tie-breaking loss in overtime to undefeated Mead senior Otto Black (49-0) in the 4A 138 final.
Ditto for Rough Riders senior Bronco Hartson (34-2), who also entered the tournament as a defending state champion. Hartson fell 4-0 in the 4A 190 title match against Mead senior Dalton Berg (38-3).
Severance senior Cadie Percy (42-4) was unable to cap her strong season with a title. She fell 8-0 in the girls 135 title match against Pomona sophomore Timberly Martinez (39-1).
Mullen sophomore Isaak Chavez (42-7) pinned Valley junior Nehemiah Whaley (35-7) in 3:13 in the 3A 157 finals.
Pueblo Central junior Genaro Pino (46-1) pinned Eaton senior Preston Smith (31-14) in the 3A 165 title match.
Highland junior Ira Sittner (40-5) lost a 4-2 heart-breaker to Meeker senior Brendan Clatterbaugh (49-1) in the 2A 190 final.
Calhan senior Ciara Monger (33-0) won her fourth state title by pinning Fort Lupton senior Anastacia Salazar (35-6) in 3:47 in the girls 235 title match.
More to come
For more results from the state wrestling tournament, including a complete listing of local place-winners, read the Prep Roundup at greeleytribune.com on Monday or in Wednesday’s print edition of the Greeley Tribune.
— Bobby Fernandez covers high school sports for the Greeley Tribune. Reach him at (970) 392-4478, by email at bfernandez@greeleytribune.com or on @ @BobbyDFernandez.
