Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Drew Bennett of Fort Dodge wrestles against Valley Caleb Corbin on Thursday in the Dodger gym. For more photos, please visit CU.messengernews.net

Fort Dodge’s passionate wrestling fanbase flooded the Dodger gym on Thursday, creating a dramatic atmosphere and a standing-room-only scene for their top-ranked team’s match against No. 2 West Des Moines Valley.

The community wanted to show appreciation for the program’s incomparable senior class on their night — a group that includes four stars who have accumulated 599 combined wins in FDSH singlets. The loud cheers and standing ovations were the Dodger family’s way of saying thanks, capturing a moment in time that both crystallized the team’s present success and resurrected memories of championship success from decades ago.

The wrestlers responded by sending a thank you of their own to the Fort Dodge faithful in the best way possible: a resounding 40-22 victory over the Tigers.

The undefeated Dodgers (14-0 overall) took nine of the event’s 14 matches, scoring four falls and a major decision to distance themselves from their long-time rival. Fittingly, consecutive pins by top-ranked seniors Brody Teske and Drew Bennett at 126 and 132 pounds, respectively, got the ball rolling downhill midway through the dual, and Fort Dodge never looked back.

”The fans go everywhere to see these kids — they’re treated like stars around here, because of our town’s deep love for the sport and the tradition our program carries,” said FDSH head coach Bobby Thompson, a former Dodger placewinner on a state championship squad himself. ”But this relationship is a two-way street. Our kids don’t take any of this for granted.

”They know it’s a special environment. They know you don’t see this kind of support at other schools. We constantly talk about and preach the value of the Dodger wrestling family, but it’s not just about the guys in our locker room. It’s the family and friends and supporters who believe in them. And so it’s always going to be our goal to return the favor and let them know they’re just as important to us as we are to them.”

Teske (32-1), Bennett (39-1) and third-rated Damond Lockner (38-5 at 145) all tallied bonus points via fall, as did No. 2 freshman Drake Ayala (34-1) at 106 with a forfeit. Sophomore Jeremy Ayala (4-2) prevailed by major decision at 120, and Drevon Ross (33-9 at 138), Levi Egli (21-7 at 160), Kaden Smith (35-7 at 170) and Triston Licht (14-5 at 195) all took decision wins.

When Teske — a Penn State University recruit — finished off Noah Micka in 75 seconds, he turned to the crowd and summoned them to get on their feet. Bennett stuck Chase Sandy a few seconds later, Ross won, and Lockner recorded a fall.

The Dodgers went from trailing 13-10 to up 31-13 in a relative instant, and any thoughts of a suspenseful conclusion virtually ended.

”It’s always been nice to have Brody and Drew back-to-back like that to get the momentum going in our favor, and Damond’s wrestling as well as anyone right now,” Thompson said. ”We picked up some big bonus points, but I think we left some out there, too. Still, it was a pretty solid overall performance. We wanted to make a statement, and I think we did that.”

If there was a glitch in Fort Dodge’s machine on Thursday, it came at 152 pounds. In a rematch of last week’s CIML Invitational championship, top-rated Dodger Cayd Lara was again edged in overtime by No. 2 Tiger Grant Stotts by the same 2-1 score.

Stotts, a defending state champion, three-time finalist and Iowa State University recruit, scored an escape in the extra session and held off Lara (37-3) the rest of the way to spoil the University of Northern Iowa recruit’s senior night experience.

Lara appeared to score a takedown on the edge of the mat late in the match, but officials ruled his feet out of bounds. Stotts celebrated vociferously in front of the Dodger crowd, attracting a chorus of boos in response to his audacious reaction.

”There are adjustments we still need to make; the stuff we worked on just didn’t transfer over enough (from last Friday’s match),” Thompson said. ”Stotts is a state champion who has been in plenty of big moments before, just like Cayd. He’s not going to go away quietly. But that’s the beauty of getting these matches in before (the postseason). It can and will be motivation for when it matters most.”

Tim Elliott, Dustin Handy, Keegan Lynch, Tate Porter and Calaeb Vance were the other seniors honored on Thursday.

Fort Dodge secured just its third unbeaten dual season since 1948-49. The ’85-86 squad went 7-0-1, while the 2002-03 and 2003-04 teams were both undefeated in the regular season beore bowing out at state duals.

The Dodgers host a regional dual meet on Wednesday. They will face either Ankeny or Des Moines East for a state berth in the FDSH gym.

FORT DODGE 40, WDM VALLEY 22

220 — Beau Lombardi, V, dec. Tim Elliott, 11-1; 285 — Carter Lawrence, V, dec. Logan Finowski, 1-0; 106 — Drake Ayala, FD, won by forfeit; 113 — Nick Oldham, V, pinned Dreyzon Phillips, 0:31; 120 — Jeremy Ayala, FD, maj. dec. Brendan Nielsen, 13-3; 126 — Brody Teske, FD, pinned Noah Micka, 1:15; 132 — Drew Bennett, FD, pinned Chase Sandy, 0:24; 138 — Drevon Ross, FD. dec. Zach Oldham, 2-1; 145 — Damond Lockner, FD, pinned Ryan Myers, 0:56; 152 — Grant Stotts, dec. Cayd Lara, 2-1; 160 — Levi Egli, FD, dec. Blake Underwood, 4-0; 170 — Kaden Smith, FD, dec. Bracken Cobb, 9-2; 182 — Joel Shapiro, V, pinned Austin Lee, 0:19; 195 — Triston Licht, FD, dec. Julius Imafidon, 7-0.