After earning career win number 100, it was Gavin Zoucha’s next win that proved to be one of the most impressive of the season. Ranked fourth at his weight in Class C, the 160-pound Malcolm junior took the mat against Class C’s second ranked wrestler at 152 pounds.
Connor Kreikemeier of Raymond Central moved up a weight class to create a marquee matchup in a Jan. 14 dual at Malcolm. Zoucha outlasted the Mustangs’ junior for a 3-2 win.
“It was good for both of them to wrestle that match,” Malcolm head coach Matt Coufal said. “If they had faced the wrestlers from their actual weight classes, it wouldn’t have been much competition.
“They’re only about four or five pounds apart, so it was definitely a fair fight.”
It was Zoucha’s second win in a week against wrestlers ranked in the top three.
“Gavin has set some lofty goals for himself,” Coufal said. “His effort has been great so far this year and he’s competing well.”
Zoucha’s win was one of just four in the dual that Raymond Central won 43-24. Zane Zoucha (120) defeated Jacob Schultz while Riley Donahoo (220) and Caleb Courter (182) each earned pins.
Earlier that evening, Malcolm picked up a 54-18 dual win over Archbishop Bergan. Five Malcolm grapplers had pins against the Knights.
The Clippers hosted a seven-team round-robin meet on Jan. 16. Conestoga won with 151.5 points while Malcolm placed second with 141.5.
“For basically a Covid tournament, it went pretty well,” Coufal said. “We were just a bunch of teams looking for a place to compete.”
The Nebraska School Activities Association has guidelines in place this season suggesting tournaments be limited to eight full teams. Malcolm was supposed to participate in a tournament at Schuyler but opted out due to the Covid guidelines.
“We decided to put on a little round-robin event,” Coufal said. “It started out as five schools but we found a couple more that were in our same situation so we invited them to come join us.”
The second place finish was the best of the year for the Clippers who had three gold and two silver medalists.
Gavin Zoucha scored four pins in his four matches on his way to the meet championship. Josh Stewart earned top honors by going the distance in his three matches at 170. Caleb Courter got two pins and an overtime win to place first at 182 pounds.
“That was Caleb’s first tournament win,” Coufal said. “He’s wrestled better at times this year, but he’s learning how to overcome his mistakes. He’s doing well considering this is just his third year wrestling.”
Kale Nordmeyer had an efficient day as he earned pins in 21, 46, 22 and 20 seconds on his way to the championship match at 285 where Kazz Hyson of Fairbury got the best of Nordmeyer with a third-period pin.
“Kale beat him in our first meet this season,” Coufal said. “He’s a smart young man. He’ll learn from it and get better.”
The Clippers will travel to Oakland-Craig Saturday, Jan. 23, to compete in the Knights’ invitational tournament.
“We’re definitely a better overall team than we were a week ago,” Coufal said. “The kids want to be good and it’s starting to show up in how they practice and how hard they compete.”
