Rock Bridge ponies up a win over Fulton
Bruins collect six pins on night.

Not long before the Rock Bridge wrestling team faced Fulton last night, Taylor Crane and Dane Griffin made a friendly bet.

The wager was $1, and it went to whoever could come away with the fastest pin.

The 135-pound Crane and the 145-pound Griffin both ended up with pins, and they came during a four-match string in which the Bruins pulled away from Fulton for a 46-33 victory.

Griffin’s first-period pin of Robbie McCoskie was nice. He took McCoskie down early, let him up and took him down again and pinned him - all in 1 minute, 12 seconds.

But Crane’s performance two matches earlier earned him the buck. It took him just 11 seconds to lock Eric Healy into a cradle and get the fall.

"I just went out there and knew we needed some points, and I knew I was going to do that move," Crane said.

Both teams went into the dual with bonus points on their minds, with Rock Bridge winning six of the 14 matches by fall and Fulton coming up with four.

Crane’s six points came right after Kyle Lewis pinned Ryan Enderle in 1:29, ending a Fulton run of five straight wins that catapulted the Hornets to a 27-12 lead. Crane’s quick pin gave the Bruins a 27-24 lead.

"I like having" Lewis and Crane "back-to-back. They work out together, and they push each other," Rock Bridge Coach Brook Harlan said. "I knew that’s where we were going to get the ball rolling."

Kiffer Slate kept it rolling with his 12-1 major decision over Brian Hammerstone that gave Rock Bridge the lead for good. Griffin’s pin extended the lead to 34-27.

"We’re pretty tenacious as far as getting the pins," Fulton Coach Clint Brooks said. "But, then again, we’re also young, and sometimes that hard fight is just too much for us."

For the first seven matches, it was Fulton taking quick and aggressive shots and getting the Bruins on their backs.

After Fulton forfeited the 189-pound match and Rock Bridge’s Nathan Baker pinned Dustin Salter with just four seconds remaining in the first period at 215 pounds, the Bruins led 12-0.

But starting with heavyweight Drew Dawson, who pinned Dan Shufeldt in the second period, the Hornets won five straight matches. Fulton got first-period pins from Chris Perry (103), who stuck Matt Reehl in 47 seconds, and Madison Books (125), who turned Elliot Rutter in 1:12. A Rock Bridge forfeit at 112 pounds and Dustin Hill’s 10-3 decision over Pete Schemer at 119 helped Fulton take a 24-12 lead.

Both teams came into the dual after long layoffs over the holiday season. Fulton hadn’t seen action since Dec. 15, and Rock Bridge hadn’t wrestled since Dec. 17. And because of that, Harlan said, the sluggishness he saw in some matches wasn’t a surprise.

"We’ve had kids that have been hurt and had a hard time with kids making weight. It’s always tough coming back from the holidays," he said. "Some guys were a little bit sluggish, but I know they normally wrestle a whole lot better than that."

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Reach Troy Schulte at sports@tribmail.com.

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