Lowell Title Run Grows to 7 Straight
February 29, 2020
By Jeff Chaney
Special for Second Half
KALAMAZOO – When talking about a dynasty, Lowell wrestling coach R.J. Boudro says the cause and effect of his program’s reaches far outside of his wrestling room.
Boudro and Red Arrows added to their dynasty Saturday at the Wings Event Center when they won their seventh straight – and 10th overall – Division 2 team championship with a convincing 53-4 victory over previously-unbeaten Gaylord.
The win extended the team’s MHSAA record for consecutive Team Finals championships, which Lowell took over alone with their sixth in a row in 2019.
"Dynasty is a community; it's all about community," Boudro said. "It's about the kids. You see all of the young kids here today. It's about parents, it's about community, and Lowell is a great community and I am lucky to be involved. We are lucky to be involved.”
It didn't take long for Lowell to muscle control away from the Blue Devils on Saturday.
Starting at the 119-pound weight class, Red Arrows senior Nick Korhorn won by technical fall, 15-0.
From there, Lowell won 13 of 14 matches, and there was never a doubt which team would finish on top
During that stretch, there were some very big individual matchups – like the one at 145 pounds.
There, Lowell three-time Individual Finals champion Austin Boone scored a major decision victory over two-time individual champion and three-time finalist Chayse LaJoie, 11-3.
Boone reiterated his coach's sentiments on what it means to be a Lowell Red Arrow, and that he is a product of great people around him.
"We picked up where our old teammates left off, and we all get to carry on what they started," Boone said. "It is nice to see our seniors finish this off, and now it just moves on to the next guys.
Boone could write his name in the state's wrestling history book again next weekend at Ford Field as he will try to become just the second wrestler in the state to win four individual and four team titles.
If accomplished, he will join former Davison legend Brent Metcalf in earning that achievement.
"Lowell has given me so much." said Boone, who will be wrestling at Penn State University next year. "I have had (practice ) partners for so many years that have made me better than I ever thought I could be. I wouldn't be as good as I am today without them."
Gaylord's lone win came from John Henry Sosa at 130 pounds.
This was the second time in the past three years that the Blue Devils lost to Lowell in the Final.
"They are good, they are a well-coached team," Gaylord coach Jerry LaJoie said. "We had a couple of things that did not go right for us, so we had to adjust our lineup. So that forced our kids to wrestle up a weight or two."
PHOTOS: (Top) Lowell and Gaylord wrestlers work for control at the start of a match during Saturday’s Division 2 Final. (Middle) The Red Arrows celebrate their seventh-straight Division 2 championship. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
D2 Preview: Eager to Finish Business
March 1, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Many of Division 2’s contenders this weekend hope it’s an MHSAA Finals filled with second chances.
Six of 10 favorites highlighted below were runners-up a year ago, two losing by a mere point in their championship matches.
Follow all matches beginning with Thursday's first round on a subscription basis live on MHSAA.tv, and click here for results at MHSAA.com. And come back to Second Half this weekend as we’ll interview all 14 title winners.
The MHSAA Wrestling Finals are presented by the Michigan Army National Guard. College choices below are based on reporting by Michigan Grappler.
112: Corey Gamet, Parma Western sophomore (46-0) – Gamet defeated another then-freshman, Chaise Mayer of Warren Woods Tower, 3-2 to win last year's title at 103 and is now 61-1 over two high school seasons after losing most of last winter to a knee injury.
119: Branson Proudlock, Gibraltar Carlson junior (49-0) – After falling by just a point in last season’s 112 championship match, Proudlock enters as the top seed at 119 and a combined 100-2 over the last two seasons.
119: Elijuh Weaver, Warren Woods Tower senior (51-4) – Coming off last season’s championship at 112, he’s not seeded at this weight despite beating top seed Proudlock in last year’s Final; he also finished as an individual runner-up as a sophomore.
125: Dominic LaJoie, Gaylord junior (48-0) – An individual champion as both a freshman and sophomore, he missed a third title last year by just a point losing a 4-3 decision in the 119 Final; he’s seeded first this winter and will continue next season at Cornell University.
130: Drew Marten, Tecumseh senior (51-1) – The champion a year ago at 125 pulled off one of the day’s most unexpected triumphs, downing two-time champion Lucas Hall; it shouldn’t have been a huge surprise though since Marten entered that match 52-1, and now he’s a top seed with a two-year record of 104-2 and a future set at Central Michigan.
140: Trent Lashuay, St. Johns senior (29-6) – Last season’s runner-up at 135 enters this weekend as the top seed at this weight; he fell only 5-2 in last year’s Final and made that run despite entering the weekend with 10 losses.
152: Dustin Gross, Dearborn Heights Annapolis junior (51-0) – He’s seeded second behind also-undefeated Bret Fedewa of St. Johns, but Gross finished runner-up last season at 145 and handed reigning Division 1 145 champion Nathan Atienza of Livonia Franklin his only loss this winter.
171: Connor Charping, Trenton senior (54-1) – After just missing last year’s championship at 160 losing a 3-1 decision on a takedown with 10 seconds remaining, Charping is the top seed at 171 and looking to go out on top.
189: Jelani Embree, Warren Lincoln senior (32-0) – The champion at 171 last season hasn’t lost over the last two, moving to a combined 79-0 as an upperclassmen; he’ll continue his career after this at Michigan.
215: Eli Boulton, Lowell senior (37-3) – He lost by a 9-2 decision in the championship match at this weight last season, but enters his last Finals as the top seed and fresh off a team title last weekend.
Other 2016 runners-up: Warren Woods Tower sophomore Chaise Mayer (112, 48-1, 103 in 2016), Mason senior Brad Wilton (189, 38-3).
Also undefeated: Orchard Lake St. Mary’s freshman Joshua Edmond (135, 49-0), Sparta sophomore Alec Reese (145, 45-0), St. Johns senior Bret Fedewa (152, 49-0), Dexter senior Will Feldkamp (189, 48-0), Cedar Springs senior Patrick DePiazza (285, 44-0).
No. 1 seeds: Gaylord freshman Chayse LaJoie (103, 48-3), Parma Western’s Gamet (112), Gibraltar Carlson’s Proudlock (119), Gaylord’s Dominic LaJoie (125), Tecumseh’s Marten (130), Lowell freshman Austin Boone (135, 36-3), St. Johns’ Lashuay (140), Sparta’s Rees (145), St. Johns’ Fedewa (152), DeWitt senior Lucas McFarland (160, 50-2), Trenton’s Carping (171), Warren Lincoln’s Embree (189), Lowell’s Boulton (215), Cedar Springs' DePiazza (285).
PHOTO: Warren Woods Tower’s Elijuh Weaver (top) works toward a win during the Division 2 championship match against Lowell on Saturday. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)