Garrett Reece believes Saturday is his time to put his stamp on the Colorado high school wrestling map. But he’ll have to go through a familiar face to do it.
The Regis Jesuit sophomore gritted his way into the Class 5A 132-pound final, winning one close match and one blowout on Friday at Ball Arena to propel him into Saturday’s championship bout. It sets up an all-Black Fox final against Ponderosa junior Jacob Myers, Reece’s club teammate.
“In the summer we’re practice partners for the most part, so there’s a lot of mutual respect,” Reece said. “We haven’t wrestled in competition together in a long time — since we were six years old — so it will be a fun one.”
While Reece took fourth at 126 pounds last year, Myers won the 120-pound title. So neither wrestler is new to the bright lights of the tournament, and Reece — the last man in the running for gold among Regis Jesuit’s five qualifiers — believes he’s ready for his moment.
“I want that state title for sure, and beyond this season I’m hoping to eventually make the top Cadet U17 team (through the U.S. wrestling team) this summer,” Reece said. “That’s the end goal. I’m so much better from last year when I was here… The confidence has gone up so much. There’s not as much nerves. I’m just going out there, ready to win.”
At Fargo Nationals last summer, Reece placed fifth in the freestyle tournament, and seventh in the Greco-Roman tournament. So far in this weekend’s state tournament, he pinned Denver East’s Alijah Paris in the opening round, beat Cherokee Trail’s Chance Mathews in a 3-0 squeaker in the quarterfinals and then dominated Brighton’s Josiah Gallegos 17-2 in Friday night’s semifinals.
“I’ve just got to keep my foot on the pedal, keep grinding, to get to where I want to go,” Reece said. “I was more defensive than I wanted to be in the start of my quarterfinal match, but once I open up my offense, it usually comes to me…. I came out more aggressive in the semis. The first match (Friday), I was flat on my feet in the first period. In the last match, I kept the offense going the whole time.”
Reece and Myers are two of 35 qualifiers from Black Fox at this year’s tournament, including 27 in Class 5A alone. It marks a continued ascension for the club based out of Franktown after Black Fox had a dozen finalists and four state champions in 2022.
Other Black Fox finalists this year include Ponderosa freshman Jaylen Burge at 113, Ponderosa freshman Thomas Verrette at 126, Ponderosa senior Brandon Cannon at 138, Mullen senior Kaleb Valdez-Lemos at Class 3A 175 and St. Mary’s senior Anthony Isek at Class 2A 126.
“I’ve been training with (Black Fox founder) Luke Morris throughout the last 10 years of my life, and it’s gotten me here,” Reece said. “Training at the Black Fox facility, plus going down to the Olympic Training Center to train with World Team members, has prepared me for this. It’s been a long ride…. (Friday night) was a big test for the emotions part of it. I like the pressure and the crowd. I feel like it gives me something to prove. I’ve just got to be myself tomorrow, and not let the nerves get to me.”
Notable girls to advance. Among the headliner female wrestlers to advance to Saturday’s title matches were five defending state champions. Loveland senior Morgan Johnson (going for her fourth title, including the 2020 pilot season) beat a fellow defending champion in Alamosa junior Sarah DeLaCerda, a tough 8-4 decision that is Johnson’s closest tournament match of her CHSAA career.
Pomona junior Persaeus Gomez, going for her third straight title, rolled into the finals following her third straight first-period pin. Her classmate, Desza Munson, is also a defending state champion and also pinned her way into the finals for the Panthers.
Plus, Eaglecrest senior Blythe Cayko (190) advanced within one win of her second title, and Calhan junior Ciara Monge (235) is now one win from her third title after a thrilling win over Denver East’s Alejandra Alfaro.
Meanwhile, Vista Ridge sophomore Hayden Newberg upset defending champion Rylee Balcazar in the 105 bracket, beating the Fort Lupton junior in a 13-9 decision.
Team scores entering the final day. Wray leads Class 2A by a commanding margin; Eaton is on top in Class 3A, with Severance and Mullen in contention. Pueblo County, Pueblo East and Windsor are bunched atop Class 4A and Pomona cruising toward a five-peat in Class 5A. Discovery Canyon, a Colorado Springs co-op team, is in charge of the girls bracket, leading Chatfield, the Jeffco co-op team and three-time defending champion.
