Riddle hot after 3rd place

MIXED EMOTIONS

I am going to miss when you’re sitting in the tunnel and wanting to go out and watch some matches, and I do that when I can, but there will obviously be some mixed emotions.”

Ryan Smith, Fort Madison Head Coach

CONFIDENT

I think I came in a little under seeded. I said that before. But now I’m just hoping I can get to that third-place match. I feel pretty confident about that.”

Nolan Riddle, FMHS senior

DES MOINES –  It was a day to walk up to podiums for the remaining two Bloodhounds at the IHSAA State Wrestling Tournament in Des Moines Friday.
Both Nolan Riddle (157 lbs.) and Ike Thacher (190 lbs.) started the day with wins which put them both on the stage as one of the top eight wrestlers in the state in their respective weight classes.
Riddle got things going quickly in fourth-round consolations with a pin with three seconds left in the period. The Norwalk coaching staff was upset after the slap saying the referee was not in position, but Riddle had Dominic Tigner on his back for about 15 seconds before getting the call.
His match in the fifth-round consolations was even quicker. Riddle got Wyatt Vlasek, who he beat on the first day of wrestling in the championship bracket second round with a pin, sent Vlasek to the 7th-place match with a pin in just 30 seconds. The win moved Riddle to the next round against Abe Bushong (15th-seed; 28-7) of Southeast Polk. Bushong recorded a 5-4 upset win over No. 2 Cinsere Clark (35-1) of West Des Moines with an early third-period escape. He advanced to the semis before losing and moving into consolation wrestling against Riddle.
Riddle said, after losing to top-seeded Grant Kress in the quarters, he had to wrestle better to keep going.
“That kid I lost to is a pretty good wrestler and I knew if I didn’t wrestle like I should be, this would be over quick,” Riddle said.
“I think I came in a little under seeded. I said that before. But now I’m just hoping I can get to that third-place match. I feel pretty confident about that.”
Standing in the way is Bushong and then Clark or Grant Kress. Kress was carted off with an injury in his bout with Cael Voinovich in the other semifinal.
“I’m just going out there and getting the job done and trying to aggressively move on to that third place match,” Riddle said.”
Head Coach Ryan Smith said Riddle was on a mission in his two matches Friday.
“He’s wrestling really well. I like where his head is at and that’s a big reason why he’s getting the results he is. He has a confident mindset.”
Thacher dominated his first wrestleback bout Friday, holding a 10-2 lead and getting a slap as time expired in the second period. He had a 2-point and a 3-point nearfall for a 9-0 lead and had Wyatt Young (11th-seed; 30-8) flat on his back when the clock hit :00. The referee slapped the mat, but after conferring with the second ref on the mat, ruled time had expired.
The Bloodhound appeared a little deflated as wrestling resumed and suffered a quick takedown, but caught his breath and cleared the takedown with an escape. Young tried a lateral lift, but Thacher countered and fell on top of the Cedar Rapids Washington junior and cinched up the fall.
The next wrestleback in consolation had Thacher matched up against Pella’s Jackson Van Kley (3rd seed; 37-5). Van Kley got a quick takedown and had control of the match with a quick 2-0 lead. The Dutch senior worked the ride for the whole period and got a 2-point nearfall with six seconds left in the first period. The Fort Madison senior was almost able to turn that into a takedown, but Van Kley quickly moved out of danger and was able to re-establish control.  He would score a reversal in the second period and ride Thacher to the win in the third at 6-0.
The Bloodhound will wrestle Saturday morning for 7th place against Kolby Gibbons (8th-seed; 18-3). Thacher finished 4th last year wrestling at 195 lbs.
“It’s not a time to be satisfied,” Smith said. “Ike can still get 7th and Nolan can get third. Being finishers is one of our focuses this year,” he said.
Smith, who’s coaching in his last year, said he’s grateful for each additional day he gets.
“I’m just trying to enjoy the moment and celebrate their wins but console them in their losses. The biggest thing right now, no matter what happens tomorrow, just be there to support them,” he said.
“I am going to miss when you’re sitting in the tunnel and wanting to go out and watch some matches, and I do that when I can, but there will obviously be some mixed emotions."