The Hillsboro High School wrestling team defeated Bennington in a consolation bracket, 39-6, but lost to Bluestem, 54-30, in the 13th place match.

The Trojans dropped matches to Rock Creek, 67-10; Fredonia, 65-6; and Republic County, 42-27 in pool play.

“From a team stand point, it was a disappointing finish for us, but somewhat expected in this type of format,” head coach Scott O’Hare said. “We are going to struggle in duals just due to numbers.”

Several Hillsboro wrestlers finished above .500 individually. Tanner Jones went 5-0 in the 160-pound class.

“Tanner wreslted very well, although, late in the day, he was starting to feel the effects of wrestling five good matches in one day,” O’Hare said. “This will be beneficial later.”

Bret Mueller, (138) Cody Delk (145), and Tyrell Thiessen (heavy weight) all compiled three victories in the tournament.

“Bret started off with two losses against very solid wreslters, but came back with two dominating wins later in the evening,” O’Hare said. “He is beginning to compete with more confidence and transferring what he does in the practice room into competition.”

River Cecil (132) and Cody Craney (182) each notched two wins.

“In many instances we were competing very well in some matches, but a critical mistake put them into some bad positions,” O’Hare said. “As they experience these situations, hopefully they will learn from the mistakes. Many of these guys are experiencing new situations every time they step on the mat.

“The younger, inexperienced guys are making progress.”