Courtesy photo The Escanaba wrestling team won its third straight U.P. championship Saturday in Marquette. Pictured in front from left are individual champions Kahler Geyer (171), Hunter Larson (140), Brodey Bevins (145), Collin Arnt (125) and Tyler Lawson (135).

MARQUETTE — The Escanaba Eskymos continued their mastery of the Upper Peninsula Wrestling Championships here Saturday, winning for the third straight time with 209 points.

They were followed by Marquette 179 and Gladstone 156 1/2.

The Eskymos sent six to the title round where five were crowned champions.

Esky senior Hunter Larson was selected Most Valuable Wrestler, winning for the fourth consecutive time by pinning Marquette sophomore Wyatt Kuhlman three minutes, 39 seconds into the 140-pound title bout.

“It feels great to join other great Escanaba wrestlers on the wrestling board,” he said. “I was real confident, although you never want to take anyone lightly. He’s a good wrestler. It took a lot of hard training to get here. I just tried to rely on my muscle memory. I really appreciate my family and coaches being there for me and giving me the push to believe in myself.”

Junior teammate Brodey Bevins (145) won for the third straight time, taking a 10-3 decision from Bark River-Harris freshman Drew Allgeyer.

“My goal was to get as many takedowns as I could,” said Bevins. “He’s tough, but I definitely got some good shots. It feels great to win three in a row and even better to win three in a row as a team. Our 103-pounder is in his first year and took fifth and Dayton (Miron) did real well. The kid Dayton wrestled in the finals is very good.”

Esky junior Kahler Geyer (171) opened the championship round with a 10-4 triumph over Munising senior Gabriel Cole.

Cole was within 6-4 following a reversal early in the third period. Geyer answered with a reversal of his own before recording a near fall with 57 seconds remaining.

“It was very important to get those points,” he said. “The reversal gave me a good cushion for the rest of the match. He’s a great wrestler. Getting the extra points made all the difference in the world.”

Classmate Collin Arnt (125) received the award for most pins (three) in the shortest time (3:42) and gained his first title by pinning Iron Mountain freshman Evan Haferkorn at 1:47.

“Getting my first U.P. title feels really good,” said Arnt. “I tried to be aggressive and not let the noise get to me. I think this is a big momentum builder going into the rest of the season. I just kept working at it and it came.”

Junior Tyler Lawson (135) also earned his first title in an 8-2 conquest of Rudyard junior Austin Davis.

“I tried to use my speed and power to my advantage,” said Lawson. “I never wrestled him before. This was all new to me. Takedowns were big in this match. Getting beat in the semifinals the last two years was a big motivator. I just needed to break through. Winning as a team is awesome. It’s a great feeling to add that to my individual title.”

Miron fell to Sault Ste. Marie junior Nathan Heyrman on a technical fall (15-0) in the 152 final.

“He (Heyrman) is a real good wrestler,” said Esky coach Jeff Wright. “Dayton is also a great wrestler, but it just wasn’t his day. Hunter (Larson) dominated the tournament. Pinning a good wrestler (Wyatt Kuhlman) in the finals was huge. We were a team today. We make each other better everyday. Every match is important to every guy.”

Gladstone senior Cole Hansen (160) collected his third straight title by pinning Westwood senior Rocco Carlson in 58 seconds.

It was a tale of three periods in the 103 final as Gladstone sophomore Michael Brazeau posted a 10-3 victory over Rudyard junior Bradley Hall.

Brazeau gained a 5-0 advantage on a near fall at the end of the first frame, then narrowly avoided a pin in the second as Hall moved within 5-3 on a near fall. Brazeau answered with a takedown and near fall in the third.

“The second period was a little rough,” said Brazeau. “I kind of worked my elbow to avoid the pin. I think getting out of that gave me a little momentum. I was definitely thankful to have that cushion.”

Braves’ sophomore Brett Boudreau (285) recorded a takedown in the final eight seconds to secure a 5-1 triumph over Marquette sophomore Chris Ricker.

Boudreau led 2-1 after the second before taking a two-point lead with an escape early in the third.

“I basically felt a little more confident after the escape and the takedown was a desperation move,” he said. “I pinned him the first two times, but he was able to make adjustments which made it a little harder for me to score this time. This feels awesome. Last year was a big learning experience, but I put in a lot of hard work and it paid off.”

Coach Jeff Brazeau was happy with how the Braves performed.

“There was a lot of good competition here today,” he said. “We had a couple kids who didn’t make it through, but all of them did well. We can build on this. We have a lot of young kids who can help us for next year.”

Esky’s Noah Weaver (160), Gladstone’s Hunter Solis (119), BR-H’s Tyler Racicot (152) and Manistique’s Tony Williams (130), Jacob Berry (135) and Isaac Brewster (285) placed third.

Gladstone’s Lane Matzke (112) took fourth. Teammates Cole Potier (152) and Blake Servant (171) and Esky’s Reid Pruitt (103) and Adam Reimer (119) were fifth.

Team scores

Escanaba 209, Marquette 179, Gladstone 156 1/2, Iron Mountain 110, Negaunee 101, Westwood 98, Kingsford 96 1/2, Newberry 89, Ishpeming 87 1/2, Rudyard 85, Bark River-Harris 80, Sault Ste. Marie 51 1/2, Manistique 51, St. Ignace 44, Munising 42, Menominee 37, Gwinn 25.

Championship results

171 — Geyer, E, dec. Cole, Mun, 10-4

189 — Martin, I, dec. Bowler, New, 15-7

215 — L. Helppi, Neg, dec. Stanish, K, 8-3

285 — Boudreau, Glad, dec. Ricker, Mqt, 5-1

103 — Brazeau, Glad, dec. Hall, 10-3

112 — Mcguire, IM, dec. Holmstrom, Mqt, 7-1

119 — Lagrou, Mqt, pinned Wilson, I, 3:14

125 — Arnt, E, pinned Haferkorn, IM, 1:47

130 — Stroud, IM, dec. Luoma, Gw, 16-4

135 — Lawson, E, dec. Davis, Rud, 8-2

140 — Larson, E, pinned Kuhlman, Mqt, 3:39

145 — Bevins, E, dec. Allgeyer, BR-H, 10-3

152 — Heyrman, S, tech fall over Miron, E, 15-0

160 — Hansen, Glad, pinned Carlson, WW, :58