Deacon Haag, a 182-pound Mexico sophomore, looks up at the time clock Thursday moments before he pins Kennett sophomore Hayden Higgins in the first round of the 2020 MSHSAA Class 2 Wrestling Championships.

A friendly grudge competition with his father, Mexico sophomore Deacon Haag is using this tactic to serve him motivation as he makes his prep debut at the 2020 MSHSAA Class 2 Wrestling Championships that began Thursday at the Mizzou Arena in Columbia.

Deacon said his father, Steve Haag, who serves as Mexico varsity head football coach, gives great inspiration and motivation for Deacon to excel at a higher level when it comes to Bulldog athletics.

“My motivation for wrestling is that I want to go out and become better than what my dad was able to do. That's what keeps me focused and going,” Haag said. “When my dad attended Brookfield High School he wrestled and played football. He got first place at state wrestling his senior year, third place his junior year and he was a state qualifier as a sophomore. He went on to play football at the University of Missouri so he was a pretty good athlete.”

For the younger Haag, the 182-pound grappler can find some satisfaction knowing he met a standard set by his father simply because Deacon happened to first qualify for state as a sophomore.

On Thursday, Haag took his first step toward a goal of reaching the medal podium Saturday evening as Deacon won his opening match to advance to Friday's quarterfinal round.

He's in good company too.

That's because all seven of Mexico's state qualifiers under the guidance of Bulldogs head coach Gayle Adams remain in the hunt for a state medal as well. A total of four in the quarterfinals and three are battling through consolation wrestlebacks in this grueling double elimination tournament.

Quarterfinal winners will advance to Friday evening's semifinal round and are guaranteed a state medal Saturday, while a loss sends them into the consolation wrestlebacks where a state medal can still be achieved. However, the journey to reach the podium is more labor intensive in wrestlebacks.

In the team standings, the Bulldogs have totaled 19 points Thursday and rest in eighth place out of 44 schools. Last year Mexico finished 12^th in the team standings.

Odessa High School, who qualified 13 wrestlers to state, has a first place total of 35 points after the first day. Monett is second with 31.5 points, Kirksville is third with 27, and Oak Grove qualified its entire varsity lineup of 14 wrestlers and sits in fourth place with 24 points. Cameron is fifth with 22 points, Bolivar has 21.5 and Pleasant Hill is seventh with 21.

Haag met Kennett sophomore Kayden Higgins in the first round and the duo wrestled a scoreless tie in the opening stanza. Haag acquired an escape point early in the second period and about 20-seconds later recorded a take down, leading up to Haag's win by fall with 19-seconds left.

“In the first period I think both of us were trying to feel each other out so that's why no one scored. I found out he was pretty quick, but not as strong as a lot of competitors I've faced this season,” Haag said. “In the second period I chose to go bottom so I could get one point with the escape. I started to work some different things on him to take him down and when he took a shot at me and missed, I got him into a good position to take him down and then get the pin. Getting my first win at state and doing it in the first round is a great feeling.”

Haag takes his 25-21 record with him as he tangles with Buffalo senior Pete Herrera (35-7) in Friday's quarterfinal.

Sophomore Keith Ransom, Mexico's light-weight qualifier at 106 and returning runner-up state champion, set the tone for Bulldog wrestling early with him pinning Dexter sophomore Diego McCormick with 52-seconds remaining in the first period.

“It's important to get off to a first win at state so you can relax the rest of the day, not worry and conserve some energy for (Friday),” said Ransom, who led McCormick 5-0 before ending the match. “To be honest, I don't like pinning kids quick. I like to feel them around a bit so I can work on some of my stuff a bit to help me with my next match and then I'll go after the pin.”

Ransom (40-1) will meet Seneca freshman Brady Roark (46-2) in Friday's quarterfinal.

At 113, senior Brayan Juarez is a three-time state qualifier and labored hard with Seneca sophomore Brayden Thief for three periods Thursday morning. Juarez led 3-2 after the first period and extended the distance to 10-6 in the second with the aid of a 3-point near-fall.

Juarez yielded a 3-point near-fall to Thief in the third and Juarez came close to being pinned. But the Bulldog senior found a way to survive, garner three take downs to pull away and win by a 17-11 score decision.

“When he threw me on my back like that at first I thought it was game over. But I held strong and pushed through it,” said Juarez. “I got off my back for the escape, found a moment where I thought he was not in good position and went to get the takedown to stay ahead of him on points. “I'm happy to have held on for the win.”

Juarez (32-13) contends with Ste. Genevieve sophomore Gavin Gross (34-8) in the quarterfinal.

Also winning his first round match was senior Kevin Duong, who pinned Ste. Genevieve sophomore Levi Wiegand in the second period at 145. Duong (39-3), the District 2 champion in his weight class and is making his fourth appearance at state, squares off against Lafayette-St. Joseph freshman Jay Greiner (50-3) in the quarterfinal.

Fighting their way through consolation wrestlebacks are sophomores Ricardo Juarez (33-12) at 120 and Dylan Mosley (30-13) at 126, and Bulldog junior Terrill Williams (24-22) at 160.

 

 

 

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