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Entering the championship round of the Dick Burns Mat Classic Saturday afternoon, the Bonner Springs Braves were sitting pretty in third place and had ample opportunity to stay there if they wrestled like they had all day.

It would be a big feather in their caps to finish near the top with such a solid field of schools including Class 5A powerhouses Gardner-Edgerton and St. Thomas Aquinas, as well as Bishop Miege and Bellevue (Neb.) East.

However, the Braves did not take advantage of the opportunity. They lost three of the four championship matches and settled for fourth place with a total of 114 points. Gardner cruised to a first-place finish with 152 points, followed by Bellevue with 144 and Aquinas with 141.

“I thought it was an up-and-down day,” BSHS coach Brandon Jobe said. “We won a lot of matches that we should have, but we also lost some that we shouldn’t have. Coming in, I would have been happy with finishing fourth, but it is hard to overlook the way we finished. I am a little disappointed with that.”

Junior 119-pounder Caleb Seaton entered his championship match attempting to go 20-0 to start the season and show that he is a state title contender. His opponent, Fort Scott senior Denzell Davis (17-3), got off to a good start in the match by getting Seaton off his feet and scoring a takedown for an early lead.

Seaton struggled to get back into the match against his tall, lanky opponent but eventually pulled within 4-3. Davis spent much of the last half of the match stalling as he laid on his stomach without attempting to get to his feet. At one point, Seaton (in the top position) raised both of his arms in the air to show the referee that Davis wasn’t attempting to get up, but all Seaton received in return was a lecture from the official.

“I was down a few points and I finally got on top of him and I tried to score and he just laid there; it happens to everybody,” Seaton said. “He was winning the match.”

Seaton cut Davis free for an escape point as the final seconds wound down, and then Seaton scored a takedown with one second on the clock to force overtime.

About one minute into the extra period, Seaton went for the winning takedown, but Davis countered by slipping behind Seaton for the match-winning takedown.

“It was a scramble. I had to hold him where I was at, but that happens,” Seaton said. “You can’t win them all. It may take a loss to make me better.”

Caleb’s younger brother, freshman Justus Seaton (17-2), wrestled well all day and ran up against Basehor-Linwood junior Michael Torrez (10-1) in the 103-pound title match. Torrez is a rare upperclassman that is able to wrestle at that weight, but his experience helped him dismantle Seaton over three periods. The match was over early after Torrez used the same move twice in a row to build a 4-0 lead in the first period.

“He is stronger and bigger than me, but I thought I did (well) against him,” Justus Seaton said. “I know that I should start working harder and start to lift weights. My goal was trying not to get pinned and last the whole match, which I did, but I was tired at the end of the match.”

The 140-pound championship match featured Bonner freshman Aaron Puckett (10-2) against Gardner-Edgerton senior Micah Flora-Swick (21-1). Puckett battled hard the entire match but was unable to close it out.

“I felt like I did my best; I just need to be better on my feet,” said a bloodied Puckett who took a shot in the nose during the match. “I can get takedowns, but I just can’t get them when they count, like in the last period (of that match).”

Puckett was winded as the match closed and he said he would work to improve his conditioning.

The only title match that went well for the Braves was junior Brian Callahan’s (13-5) 171-pound contest against Fort Scott’s Dane Cummings. Callahan said he rarely was stronger than his counterparts, but he certainly used his strength to shut out Cummings over three periods.

“After today, I know I can beat anyone,” Callahan said. “I think we need to focus on wrestling harder, just going as hard as you can.”

Jobe was impressed with Callahan’s performance.

“I am thrilled for Brian,” Jobe said. “He wrestled with confidence, and when he does that he is a very dangerous wrestler. He has a lot of upside and always puts in the extra effort.”

Bonner can gain momentum from this weekend, but Jobe said his team needed to learn how to close out tournaments in order to compete with the best teams in the Kaw Valley League and the state.

“I always stress to the guys that finishing strong is what I am about. We are going to get back to work,” Jobe said. “With some guys we are going to have to X some things out, and with some guys we are going to put some new things in. We are getting later in the season and we need to start picking up their intensity and pick it up a little bit.”

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