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Cowell’s victory sets the tone for entire day

DES MOINES — Before Fort Dodge faced top-ranked Southeast Polk in the championship round at state duals here on Wednesday, the Dodgers had to take out No. 2 West Des Moines Valley.

And before Valley, there was third-rated North Scott.

None of it would’ve been possible without the performance of FDSH freshman 106-pounder Brooks Cowell — an unlikely, almost serendipidous springboard that got the Dodgers serious about making a title run as a precursor to the tournament that matters most.

Cowell’s 10-4 victory over Lancer Cael Bredar in the last match of the dual pushed Fort Dodge past North Scott in the quarterfinals, 30-27. Head coach Bobby Thompson’s squad then reached the finale by prevailing against the Tigers, 34-31, in another showdown that went to the limit.

”We’re very proud of Brooks,” Thompson said. ”His performance was important for us, obviously, but it was also important for his own confidence. That was a big situation for a freshman, with (the score being tied) and everything hanging in the balance.

”As most people know, I’m not the biggest fan of (the current state duals format). But the fact that a kid like Brooks was able to come here the day before (the traditional state tournament) and get the jitters out — it’s an advantage from that point of view. I’m glad our first timers (Cowell, senior Keaton Dornath, junior Dorian Franklin and sophomores Triston Licht, Kaden Smith and Drevon Ross) were able to break the ice.”

Cowell (16-11) didn’t become a varsity regular until early January. He scrapped his way into the lineup and continued to make the most of every opportunity, eventually clinching a state tournament bid with a district runner-up performance last Saturday.

”He was back and forth for a while (between junior varsity and varsity in December), but he kept battling and really settled into a rhythm,” Thompson said. ”Like a lot of our guys, Brooks is wrestling as well as he has all year right now, which is what you want to see.”

Cowell wasn’t the only unheralded Dodger underclassman to deliver with the pressure on against North Scott. Smith, a 170-pounder, was down 9-3 to Avion Lard before storming back and sealing a 10-9 victory.

”Kaden’s win was huge,” Thompson said. ”That was a perfect example of being conditioned the right way and having the proper mindset no matter what (the score) is in a match.

”We’ve been stressing since day one that we’re never going to be satisfied. We believe no one has trained harder than us or prepared for (this week) as much as we have.”

Thompson admitted the gameplan and mentality changed once Fort Dodge (15-2 overall) saw it had been seeded sixth. The Dodgers were ranked in the top three all year long before dropping a dual at Valley to conclude the regular season.

”We felt pretty disrespected as the No. 6 seed,” Thompson said. ”State duals was never a top priority for us, but when the brackets came out, that put a little chip on our shoulder. We felt we had something to prove.

”We busted up the bracket pretty good.”

Despite running out of steam in a 48-18 championship-round loss to the Rams last night, Thompson was encouraged by the tenacity his squad showed on Wednesday.

”We knew it was going to be a tough task (in the finals), but I’ll still take my 32 guys against their hundred — or any other team, for that matter, no matter how much bigger than us they are,” Thompson said. ”We’ll be up at dawn and right back at it (on Thursday morning). Hopefully, this is just the start of a few big days for our program down here (at Wells Fargo Arena).”

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