February 2008: Draper Journal

Alta Wrestlers Ready for Regions
by Ron Bevan

Alta’s wrestling team is preparing for its region 2 championships by compiling a decent team record and some mighty impressive individual results.

Region 2 wrestling championships will be held Feb. 6-7 at Skyline High School.

Currently, Alta posts a 19-15 record overall with two wins and one loss in region matches. The team is led by the smallest wrestler on the team, Carson Kuhn, who has posted 27 wins this season with no losses. The sophomore team member wrestles at the lightest weight class of 103 pounds.

“Carson is a pretty tough kid,” said coach Barry Harrington. “He was one away from placing at state last year. He has worked hard since then to get where he is at. He is just a pure wrestler.”

Also doing well are brothers Mark Michels and Eric Michels. Mark, a freshman, wrestles at 119 pounds and sophomore Eric competes at 135.

“Both are hard workers and team leaders,” Harrington said.

Two other wrestlers were mainstays on this year’s defensive unit of Alta’s state championship football team and bring their athletic ability to the mat. Football defensive backs Brantley Dunn and Kaden Carli, both seniors who put fear into opponents on the gridiron, now are doing the same to competitors on the mat. Dunn wrestlers at 162 pounds and Carli up one weight class at 171 pounds.

“Dunn is quite fun to watch,” Harrington said. “He brings a lot of emotion and intensity to his matches and is doing well. [Carli] brings the same high intensity.”

Carli serves as a captain on the team along with 125-pounder Matt Tranter, 189-pound Jordan Pearson and 145-pound Kyle Cleveland.

Others wrestling at the varsity level are 130-pound Matt Hood, 145-pound Dakota Ewell, 215-pound Taylor and 285-pound Parker Erickson.  “All 14 varsity wrestlers are not only hard competitors but also great, outstanding young men,” Harrington said. “They are the kind of boys I would hope my daughters would bring home. And they are also hard-nosed wrestlers.”