Jackson ends state wrestling meet on high note

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Jackson senior Clay Darnell pulled the ultimate reversal in wrestling.

On Thursday the end of his high school career was one loss away.

By Saturday, the end was one win away.

When it all was over, Darnell had shook off a first-round loss to win five matches in a row to claim third place in the Class 4 220-pound division.

"Not very often do you lose the first one and come all the way back to third," Jackson coach Steve Wachter said. "That really was a great feat. That was a positive thing for our team to end on. I was really happy for him, and a great thing for our team."

Darnell became one of the feel-good stories of an otherwise difficult state tournament for the Indians.

He was one of three Indians to claim all-state honors in what was a tough three days for the Indians, who had won their first district title in 10 years after an unbeaten regular season that included a 10-0 dual record and four tournament titles.

Junior Jarrett Reisenbichler placed fourth at 106, while sophomore Carson McCord finished sixth at 170.

"It exceeds my expectations," Darnell said. "I knew I could place. I was just going to have to work really hard. I'm thrilled."

Darnell's unlikely all-state status started with a 7-3 loss to Lee's Summit senior Ali I Loyola in the first round. It was just the fifth loss of the season for Darnell, and his last.

Jackson's Clay Darnell lifts to throw Francis Howell's Caleb Gossett during their third place match in the 2014 MSHSAA Class 4 Wrestling Championships at Mizzou Arena on February 22, 2014 in Columbia. (David Welker/For the Southeast Missourian)

He instead began to build on the 30 wins he brought to Columbia.

A 6-2 decision over Corey Duncan of Waynesville hours after his loss launched the run, which picked up momentum Friday with pins against Ben Milton of Nixa and A dew ale Adeoye of Ritenour. They guaranteed him a top-six, all-state finish.

He took it all the way to third Saturday with two more wins.

He first extricated himself from a loss to Liberty's Keyen Braughton with a takedown as time expired to turn a one-point deficit into a 5-4 victory. Braughton's coaches argued Darnell's takedown came too late, but to no avail.

The last-second heroics advanced him to the third-place final against Francis Howell Central's Cale Gossett. It was there that Darnell recorded his third pin of the wrestlebacks, disposing of Gossett at the 1:47 mark.

"The pin was huge. It feels great to come back all the way from one loss and get third," Darnell said.

Darnell said there was plenty of incentive for him to recover from the opening loss, which included some sibling rivalry.

"It was a lot of people relying on me, and a lot of people wanting me to do well," Darnell said. "My brother [Justin] graduated in '09 and he got sixth place, and I was really just wanting to beat him. I just kept pushing to beat what he got up at state."

It also helped leave a palpable taste for the Indians, who also received an unexpected all-state finish by McCord. He finished with a 15-4 record after undergoing leg surgery in November.

"He just kept improving from Christmas on," Wachter said. "He had a late start because of a leg injury. He just kept getting better, better and better."

McCord traveled much the same path as Darnell, losing his first-round match and then winning three wrestletback matches. The latter two wins on Friday assured him of all-state status. He dropped both his matches Saturday, getting pinned by Jefferson City's Jalen Martin with 23 seconds left in their third-place semifinal, then falling 7-1 to Eureka's Zach Seiler in the fifth-place match.

Reisenbichler arrived in Columbia as the most decorated of the nine Jackson qualifiers. He finished fourth as a freshman in 106 and second as a sophomore. He also was the only undefeated Indian and lone unbeaten wrestler in the 16-man 106 bracket that included seven freshmen.

The freshmen proved to be his undoing.

A day after Reisenbichler was relegated to the third-place match with a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Eureka freshman Kyran Hagan, a similar situation played out.

Rockhurst freshman Cameron Valdiviez was able to post a takedown in overtime to record a 6-4 victory to claim third.

That came after Reisenbichler used a takedown at the buzzer in the third-place semifinals to defeat freshman Gage Harmon 3-1.

"Age really in the world of wrestling, in some weight classes maturity level makes a difference, but in some areas it doesn't," Wachter said. "Those freshmen have as much experience as the juniors and seniors because they've been wrestling little league so long."

While expectations might have been high for Reisenbichler, Wachter noted his accomplishments.

"It's his third time here and third time all-state. It's a lot to be proud of," Wachter said.

Reisenbichler also was the lone Indian to reach the semifinals on a tough day for the Indians on Thursday, when all five of their first-round winners took a loss and were taken out of title contention.

Darnell admitted the Indians were down after Thursday's matches.

"We were a little bit, but we knew we had to come back and fight for today and make sure we did our best today," Darnell said. "If you lose your focus, you're not going to win those matches, and we just had to focus on the next one."

And in the end, Darnell made sure a difficult tournament ending on a winning note for the Indians, who went into the tournament with the hope of a top-four finish and placed ???? in the team standings.

"That's what you have to take out when things aren't quite the way you want them to be," Wachter said. "Once again, I'm not disappointed in the kids, I'm disappointed for them."