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Dodgers go unbeaten

-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Drew Bennett of Fort Dodge wrestles against Johnston's James Edwards on Thursday

DES MOINES — The second-ranked (Class 3A) Fort Dodge wrestling team opened their season with a pair of convincing dual meet wins over Ames and Des Moines Hoover/North here Thursday night.

Three-time defending state champion Brody Teske didn’t get the chance to compete, as both teams forfeited to the unbeaten and top-ranked senior.

The Dodgers went 24-0 in matches wrestled and earned 17 falls on the night.

Drake Ayala, Carson Taylor, Drew Bennett, Drevon Ross, Damond Lockner, Levi Egli and Austin Lee all picked up two falls, with Kaden Smith earning a pin and a victory via injury default.

“Our young guys really came out and wrestled without any jitters or feeling scared,” FDSH head coach Bobby Thompson said. “They had a lot of confidence and wrestled with poise. Last year, I didn’t think we had a really good showing in Ames against these two teams.”

Cayd Lara, a returning state finalist, had a fall and a forfeit, as did freshman Kody Cook. Heavyweight Logan Finowski picked up a decision and a forfeit.

“Levi and Austin really had good nights,” Thompson said. “Ames bumped one of their better kids up to face Levi and he handled him, and Austin, who is a first-year starter, bumped up from 170 to compete at 182 and won both of his matches.”

Teske, a Penn State University commit, is now 137-0 in his career, Lara (130-21) and Bennett (106-7) have both signed with the University of Northern Iowa, where they will join former Dodger state champion and the career wins leader, Triston Lara. Teske is tied for third with Erik Birnbaum on that list, with Lara moving into a tie with Grant Ruge for seventh overall.

The Dodgers head to the Independence Invitational, which takes place Friday and Saturday and brings 28 total teams with it.

“It’s going to be a completely different event compared to this meet,” Thompson said. “For some of our kids, it will definitely be an eye-opener.”

Fort Dodge went 14-1 in junior varsity matches, as Dreyzon Phillips, Zach Read, Dillon Zimmerman and Michael Schroeder all went 2-0 with two falls. Lane Cowell, Brandon Mills, Eli Handy, Keegan Lynch and Sawyer Springer all had a fall, with Hunter Alexander earning a technical fall.

FORT DODGE 63, AMES 12

106 — Drake Ayala, FD pinned Dominick Arce-Matos, 1:23; 113 — Carson Taylor, FD pinned Jordan Corrieri, 1:08; 120 — Kody Cook, FD pinned Maliek Johnson, 1:01; 126 — Brody Teske, FD won by forfeit; 132 — Drew Bennett, FD pinned Noah Barker, :55; 138 — Drevon Ross, FD pinned Ben Rogers, 4:48; 145 — Damond Lockner, FD pinned Carson Wright, 2:20; 152 — Caya Lara, FD pinned Aaron Turner, :36; 160 — Levi Egli, FD pinned Daimon Cloutier, 1:28; 170 — Kaden Smith, FD pinned Aaron Turner, 3:19; 182 — Austin Lee, FD pinned Aaron Wandling, 2:22; 195 — Gabe Greenlee, A won by forfeit; 220 — Jakob Steiert, A won by forfeit; 285 — Logan Finowski, FD dec. Sam Stuve, 4-0.

FORT DODGE 72, DM HOOVER/NORTH 0

113 — Carson Taylor, FD pinned Aime Mukiza, 1:21; 120 — Kody Cook, FD won by forfeit; 126 — Brody Teske, FD won by forfeit; 132 — Drew Bennett, FD pinned Cesar Orellana, :54; 138 — Drevon Ross, FD pinned Harris Pyne, 2:30; 145 — Damond Lockner, FD pinned Domique Wright, 3:47; 152 — Cayd Lara, FD won by forfeit; 160 — Levi Egli, FD pinned Angel Lottie, 1:48; 170 — Kaden Smith, FD won by injury def. over Arthur Sumie; 182 — Austin Lee, FD pinned Dalton Davis, 3:36; 285 — Logan Finowski, FD won by forfeit; 106 — Drake Ayala, FD pinned Asante Gordon, 1:41.

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