Gladstone Braves Win U.P. Wrestling Championship

MARQUETTE---Four Gladstone High School wrestlers won U.P. Championships and several others advanced to the podium Saturday night as the Braves easily captured the Upper Peninsula team championship at the Marquette High School Gym.

Three Escanaba Eskymos won U.P. championships and the Eskymos finished third overall in the team competition, with the Norway Knights taking second place overall.

Gladstone had 253 points, Norway had 210, and Escanaba ended up with 194.5.

Gladstone's Sam Taylor wins a UP Title.

The Braves got an improbable championship from 145-pounder Sam Taylor, who was seeded sixth in his bracket but won all of his matches to top the podium.

The Braves' other U.P. champions were Jake Cronick (189 pounds), Jack Cronick (215 pounds), and heavyweight Tommy Bailey. Bailey won all of his matches by pin.

Gladstone's Bobby Beauchamp took second place at 135 pounds, losing to Norway's Cole Gonzalez in the final. And Brave Jared Syverson took fourth at 140 pounds.

The Eskymos got three wrestlers to the finals, and all three won championships. Zach Priebe won the championship at 130 pounds, topping Marquette's Hunter Moore along the way. Then, there were two Escanaba-Gladstone matchups at 152 and 160 pounds.

Escanaba's Kaleb Rahoi won the 152-pound championship, with Gladstone's Jeremy Kadish finishing third.

Escanaba's Travis Heller is Named MVP.

And at 160, Escanaba's Travis Heller beat Gladstone's Brandon Gagnon, 5-0, in the championship match.

Heller won his fourth straight Upper Peninsula championship, becoming only the sixth U.P. wrestler ever to gain that accomplishment.

Heller was named the Upper Peninsula's Most Valuable Wrestler.

On the team scoreboard, besides the top three, Sault Ste. Marie finished fourth with 156 points and Iron Mountain took fifth with 121.

Gladstone hosts Menominee this Thursday night before travelling to Gaylord for the Northern Michigan Championships next Saturday. Escanaba will also travel to Gaylord for that tournament next weekend. The Eskymos will first travel to Menominee on Tuesday.

Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see photos from the U.P. Finals, taken by Marjery Heller and Renae Kadish.