KMCH SPORTS: West Delaware and Independence Boys Wrestling teams finish well at State Dual Tournament

JON SWISHER – SPORTS DIRECTOR:

The West Delaware Boys Wrestling team took the runner-up slot for the 4th time in program history as they advanced to their 9th Finals appearance at the State Dual Tournament on Saturday night. WD slid past Winterset in round one, 29-28. In the semifinals, they took down Clarion-Goldfield-Dows 38-31. In the championship contest, the Hawks made a valiant comeback but fell 28-25 to Algona.

The Independence Mustangs came in 5th place. Falling to Williamsburg in their quarterfinals match 37-33, in the semifinals Indee beat Mount Vernon 41-33 and defeated Winterset in their final match 49-15.  West Delaware graduate and state medalist Michael Doyle picked up milestone victory number 500 with his team’s win over Mt. Vernon on Saturday afternoon. In his 26th season as the head coach at Independence, Doyle became the 12th boys’ wrestling coach in Iowa history to reach the 500-win plateau. He has led Independence to 13 State Duals appearances, securing his ninth top-six finish this season as the Mustangs were runners-up in 2022.