MINERAL POINT — Belmont sophomore Isaac Wiegel took another step in his development, placing second at 106 pounds at Saturday’s SWC/SWAL Clash.

After spending much of the year at 113 pounds, Wiegel dropped down to 106 for the conference tournament.

He received a first-round,  then pinned Fennimore’s Kohl Wardell in the middle of the second round.

Wiegel (33–6) then gutted out a 2–1 decision over Mineral Point freshman Danny Pittz (28–6), the sixth-ranked wrestler in Division 3, in the semifinals.

Pittz used a second-period escape to take a 1–0 lead and had the top position in the final period, but Wiegel got a reversal to score the one-point win.

In the finals, River Valley’s Zach Licht (30–4), the top-ranked wrestler in Division 2,  scored an early takedown and a pair nearfalls and held on to narrowly defeat Wiegel 13–11 for the 106-pound crown.

“The big points in the championship match that hurt us were giving up a takedown in the first 15 seconds of the match and then getting rolled twice for four points each time,” said Belmont/Platteville head coach Andrew Campbell. “You can not give up that many points and beat a kid as good as Licht.

“But I was happy with Issac’s second-place finish, especially after having to beat Danny Pittz from Mineral Point in the semifinal match.”

The Braves other chance for an individual conference title ended in the semifinal round of the 160-pound weight class.

Second-seeded Lucas Fugate suffered a heart-breaking loss in the closing seconds against Mineral Point’s Riley Workman.

Fugate (14–2) was firmly in control, leading 10–4 with 15 seconds remaining, but got turned and pinned with two seconds left in the match in a stunning turn of events.

Workman went on to suffer a 19–9 major decision to Iowa–Grant/Highland sophomore Brady Peat in the finals.

Meanwhile, Fugate bounced back with a first-period pin of Cuba City/Southwestern/Benton’s Tyre Hall to finish third.

“As heartbreaking as that (semifinal) loss was, I think Lucas is the type of wrestler who will use that as motivation for the last push of the season,” added Campbell. “You never want to have a loss like that, but I would rather have it at conference than at regionals, sectionals or state.”

Only three others Braves took part in Saturday’s Clash. Junior Alex Sargent (126), freshman Jacob Niehaus (138) and sophomore Tristan Prater (145) each went 0–2.

The Braves scored 50 points and finished 12th out of 13 teams. SWAL champion Fennimore won the team title with 282 points. SWC champion River Valley (250) finished second, one point ahead of Mineral Point (249).  

Belmont/Platteville will return to action Saturday at the WIAA Division 2 River Valley regional.

The top two finishers in each weight class will advance to the D2 Richland Center Sectional on Saturday, Feb. 20. The regional team champion will qualify for the D2 River Valley Team Sectional, that will be held Tuesday night. 

SWC/SWAL Clash

(from Saturday, Feb. 6 @ Mineral Point)

Team scores — 1.Fennimore 282, 2.River Valley 250, 3.Mineral Point 249, 4.Iowa–Grant/Highland 208.5, 5.Darlington/Black Hawk 194, 6.Prairie du Chien 189, 7.Dodgeville 149, 8.Lancaster 148, 9.Riverdale 113, 10.Boscobel 101, 11.Cuba City/Southwestern/Benton 84.5, 12.Belmont/Platteville 50, 13.Richland Center 30.5.

Belmont/Platteville individual results

106 — Isaac Wiegel (7-2) placed 2nd and scored 26.00 team points.

Champ. Round 1 - Isaac Wiegel (Belmont/Platteville) 7-2 received a bye () (Bye)

Quarterfinal - Isaac Wiegel (Belmont/Platteville) 7-2 won by fall over Kohl Wardell (Fennimore) 3-3 (Fall 3:20)

Semifinal - Isaac Wiegel (Belmont/Platteville) 7-2 won by decision over Danny Pittz (Mineral Point) 9-1 (Dec 2-1)

1st Place Match - Zach Licht (River Valley) 9-0 won by decision over Isaac Wiegel (Belmont/Platteville) 7-2 (Dec 13-11)

126 — Alex Sargent (1-5) place is unknown and scored 0.00 team points.

Champ. Round 1 - Logan Wilson (Iowa Grant/Highland) 3-4 won by fall over Alex Sargent (Belmont/Platteville) 1-5 (Fall 1:47)

Cons. Round 1 - Alex Sargent (Belmont/Platteville) 1-5 received a bye () (Bye)

Cons. Round 2 - Mitchill Schaaf (Mineral Point) 7-4 won by fall over Alex Sargent (Belmont/Platteville) 1-5 (Fall 1:58)

138 — Jacob Niehaus (1-5) place is unknown and scored 0.00 team points.

Champ. Round 1 - Shaedyn Lane (Cuba City/Southwestern/Benton) 19-19 won by fall over Jacob Niehaus (Belmont/Platteville) 1-5 (Fall 1:28)

Cons. Round 1 - Jacob Niehaus (Belmont/Platteville) 1-5 received a bye () (Bye)

Cons. Round 2 - Tyler Smock (Prairie du Chien) 6-4 won by fall over Jacob Niehaus (Belmont/Platteville) 1-5 (Fall 0:45)

145 — Tristan Prater (0-6) place is unknown and scored 0.00 team points.

Champ. Round 1 - Chase Beinborn (Boscobel) 26-9 won by fall over Tristan Prater (Belmont/Platteville) 0-6 (Fall 4:33)

Cons. Round 1 - Tristan Prater (Belmont/Platteville) 0-6 received a bye () (Bye)

Cons. Round 2 - Caleb Novak (Darlington/Black Hawk) 6-5 won by fall over Tristan Prater (Belmont/Platteville) 0-6 (Fall 2:57)

160 — Lucas Fugate (4-2) placed 3rd and scored 24.00 team points.

Champ. Round 1 - Lucas Fugate (Belmont/Platteville) 4-2 received a bye () (Bye)

Quarterfinal - Lucas Fugate (Belmont/Platteville) 4-2 won by fall over Brendan Fleshner (Prairie du Chien) 4-6 (Fall 1:30)

Semifinal - Riley Workman (Mineral Point) 8-2 won by fall over Lucas Fugate (Belmont/Platteville) 4-2 (Fall 5:58)

3rd Place Match - Lucas Fugate (Belmont/Platteville) 4-2 won by fall over Tyre Hall (Cuba City/Southwestern/Benton) 15-19 (Fall 0:02)