Catlin returns from injury in time for Wyoming’s premiere wrestling tourney

For the first time in more than a month, the Powell High School wrestling team will be complete.

And not a moment too soon.

The Panthers enter this weekend’s Ron Thon Memorial Tournament in Riverton as the No. 2 team in Class 3A, a distinction they earned without their full complement of wrestlers.

But this week, Powell senior and three-time Class 3A state champion Kye Catlin returns from a meniscus injury that kept him off the mat since Dec. 30, just in time for Wyoming wrestling’s biggest stage.

“Basically, every team in Wyoming is there. It’s the super state, and something we look forward to every year,” PHS head coach Nate Urbach said of the Ron Thon. “The bigger the stage, the more fun it is. You always want kids to seek the highest levels of competition, and to be disappointed if they’re not pushed.”

The Panthers will be pushed, all right, as the best teams from Class 3A and 4A‚ along with squads from lower divisions, will be in attendance.

That includes Star Valley, the top-ranked team in Class 3A, which bested Powell at the Lander Invitational on Jan. 22-23.

“They’re going to be tough to beat, just like they were in Lander,” Urbach said. “They’re loaded. They just got done beating the No. 1 (Class) 4A team in a dual last week so they’re going to be tough.”

The Braves bested the Green River Wolves 35-21 on Thursday.

Powell is coming off a strong week of local competition. The Panthers beat Lovell 75-3 in a road dual on Thursday and placed seven wrestlers in the top three of the Greybull Invitational on Saturday.

“It’s nice, we get to sleep in our beds, we don’t have to travel forever,” Urbach said. “It’s kind of an off week for them because we’re getting ready for Ron Thon.”

Urbach said the Panthers wrestled better than they did the previous week in Lander, and continued improvement from underclassmen fortifies Powell’s depth.

“A bunch of our young kids did really well and our veterans did what they’re supposed to do, so I was happy,” Urbach said.

All but one of Powell’s victories in Lovell came by way of fall. Heavyweight Terrence McLaughlin capped off the night with a 7-0 decision.

Junior Zach Easum (195 pounds) and freshman Cole Davis (106) won the title in Greybull, which featured mostly 2A competition. Easum went 2-0 and Davis went 3-0 (all of his wins coming by pin) to take their respective weight classes.

McLaughlin and freshman Dalton McMillan (132 pounds) were the runners-up in their weight classes, while junior Marshall Wittick (132), freshman Matt Jones (120) and junior Eli Briggs (220) each placed third.

Sophomore Brian Brazelton won by pin in Lovell and went 2-2 to take fourth at 120 pounds in Greybull.

“He looked really good against Lovell. He went out there and got himself a pin, so he was really excited,” Urbach said. “He’s an easy guy to cheer for. He’s not as athletically gifted as other kids but he works really hard and always gives you 100 percent.”

Freshman Brody Wells (113 pounds) also won by pin in Lovell and went 2-2 in Greybull

“He had a tough kid from Lovell that really kind of came after him and he responded and ended up getting a third-period pin, so I was really proud of him,” Urbach said.

Catlin will enter the lineup at 145 pounds, and even though he isn’t in championship form, his impact will be felt.

“We’ll do what we can with him. He won’t be 100 percent but Kye Catlin at 80-85 percent is still a scary guy to have,” Urbach said. “And he’s a tough kid, he’s mentally real tough so we’re going to work him hard this week and try to get his conditioning as high as we can.”

Catlin gave a boost to the Panthers when he resumed practices last week.

“We missed having Kye, not only because Kye is such a good kid, but we miss having his level of ability in (the practice room),” Urbach said.

Powell wrestlers Nic Urbach, Chance Karst and Teagan Cordes regularly spar with Catlin in practice.

“It’s a benefit for everyone to have him back in,” Nate Urbach said.

The Panthers will get a final warm up for the Ron Thon today (Tuesday) at 6 p.m. in Basin.

Nic Urbach (152 pounds) will face off with Greybull’s Cole Hill, who is the No. 2-ranked wrestler in Class 2A.

The Ron Thon begins at 9 a.m. Friday and continues at 9 a.m. on Saturday in Riverton. Varsity action is held at Riverton High School while the JV competition is at Riverton Middle School.