Submitted by Colin & Karis Troyer

On the last night of winter break, the undefeated FC Wildcat wrestling team traveled to Greensburg to take on the Pirates.

Also traveling to Greensburg to cheer on the team and compete was the FC youth wrestling program. Going into the dual, Franklin County was highly favored as Greensburg did not have a full roster. 

Starting things off for the Cats were Carter Smith (157) and Keegan Clark (165) with pins in the first and second periods, respectively. Then came Lane Westerman (175), sporting a black eye from a cross-face at the Spartan Classic, and Breck Bohman (190), both with quick pins in the first.

A series of three Greensburg forfeits ensued up to a double forfeit at the 113-weight class.

The toughest challenge for FC on the evening was a rematch of Cole Freese (120) and Preston Merritt. Their previous meetings ended with Freese's only two losses of the season and Freese was hopeful that he could come away from this third meeting victorious. The first period ended with the only points being a takedown by Meritt- down by 2, Cole remained optimistic. To start the second, Meritt chose down and quickly escaped, giving him a three-point lead over Freese- still a manageable deficit for the two-time semistate qualifier Freese. Unfortunately, Meritt scored another takedown and then three near fall points with a cradle. In the third, Freese chose bottom to attempt an escape and was successful, but ultimately succumbed to Meritt 10-1.

Next up was Colin Troyer (126) who pinned his opponent in 54 seconds with a move called a chicken wing, which immobilizes an opponent's arms behind the back in a painful looking hold. Kyle Bolser (132) versus Landon Shepherd went into the second period with Bolser giving up a pin :49 into the period. At 138, Logan Troyer was up against a very tall opponent but was able to pin him halfway through the second with a move called a stack. 

Last match of the night featured Trevor Bruns (144) v Adam Underhill. Bruns opened the match with a takedown and was able to keep Underhill on the mat for the remainder of the period. Underhill chose down to earn an escape point to come within one of Bruns but was thwarted by Bruns' considerable skill in the top position and was pinned halfway through the second period. Following Bruns' match, Kody Schwab (150) finished off the dual with a forfeit, leading the Cats to a 66-10 win. 

At the conclusion of the meet, the youth wrestling team wrestled for fun and experience as no score was recorded. 

Wrestling started Friday at the Wayne County Classic hosted by Centerville. Their first opponent, Winchester, fell 52-19 to the Cats. The teams went back and forth, starting off with a 150 forfeit for FC, followed by a pin to tie it up for Winchester. After that it was FC dominating through the heavyweights until a score-heavy bout at 106 to put the score at 31-10. A few more Cats fell to the Golden Falcons and the 138 match was stopped for a hard-hitting slam on L. Troyer which had the fans worried and upset. Luckily, Troyer was able to get up and finish the match, leading with 46 seconds in the match until a headlock throw had him down with a pin. 

Next up was Jay County, who sent their JV team and were shut out 79-0 - seven matches given up as forfeits, seven ending with pins in the first, and only three going a full three periods. FC wrestlers had their eyes on the last opponent of the night, Beech Grove, as they had given other teams very close competition. In the end they were also soundly defeated 66-16.

Saturday morning started with a dusting of snow and rematch of FC v Northeastern, with the same result of a Wildcat win - 63-15. Then it was time for the 19-0 Cats to go up against their toughest competition of the year, taking on tournament hosts Centerville. Leading off were two losses for the Cats at 144 and 150, followed by a pin for Smith in the second period. Two more wins for Centerville brought the score to 6-21 and the fans were getting a little nervous hoping that their first loss of the season wasn't on the horizon. Two wins for FC (Bohman 190 and Dylan Mulvey 215) and a win at HW for the Bulldogs had the score at 18-27. Forfeits for Centerville at 106 and 113 had the Cats in the lead for the first time, 30-27. A decision loss at 113 and win for C. Troyer at 126 had FC up by a narrow lead, 33-30. A decision win for Bolser (132) left the score 36-30 with one match left and the fate of the undefeated season in the hands of freshman 138 L. Troyer. With a win or avoiding a pin, the Cats would win outright. The only points scored in the first was a takedown on Troyer, making the score 0-2. The third saw Troyer's opponent choose bottom and score a single escape point, bringing the score to 0-3. Logan chose bottom to start the third and was able to escape and scramble to avoid more points or a pin, losing the match 1-3 but helping to ensure FC's unbeaten season. 

Other results: Tri 66-18, Ben Davis 47-33, Blackford 78-6.

FC competes at the Eastern Indiana Athletic Conference tournament Saturday, hosted by the South Dearborn Knights.