Eagles in double dual, tourney

Wrestling

     A double dual meet and a tournament occupied the Midland High School wrestling team last week.

     Midland split two dual matches in a double dual meet Jan. 7 at Starmont. The Eagles opened with a 41-31 loss to East Buchanan. Midland wrestlers winning by fall included Damon Huston at 126 pounds and Cael Eganhouse at 195. Jared Crock won by major decision at 145, and Shayden Hansen won by decision at 120.

     The Eagles then rolled to a 52-18 win over Starmont. Winners by fall were Huston at 132, Caden Ballou at 160, Cayden Miller at 182, and Hansen at 120. Crock won a major decision at 145, and decision victories went to Jordan Buford (138) and Logan Bicknese (126).

     “We lost a few matches that I feel were winnable, but we did get some good matches out of Cael Eganhouse and Jared Crock,” Midland coach Casey Huston said.

     On Jan. 9, the Eagles traveled to Delhi for the Farr Jebens Invitational, hosted by Maquoketa Valley. Midland had two finalists, including one champion, and finished seventh of 12 teams with 110 points.

     DeWitt Central won the tournament with 185 points, and Notre Dame of Burlington was second with 157.

     Damon Huston, who now has a record of 19-1, won the championship at 126 pounds, pinning Nick Schmidt of Dyersville Beckman at 1:18 of the title match.

     Cayden Miller was runner-up at 182 pounds, and Caden Ballou finished third at 160. In fourth were Shayden Hansen at 120 and Jared Crock at 145.

     “The boys battled well in a tough field,” coach Huston said.

Girls basketball

     Midland split a pair of home girls basketball games last week to come away with records of 1-3 in the Tri-Rivers Conference East Division, and 1-9 overall.

     Midland outscored Cedar Valley Christian 24-5 in the second quarter to take a 36-12 halftime lead, and went on to score a 70-19 win Jan. 5 in Wyoming. Three Eagles scored in double figures. Ari Hacke had 16 points and seven rebounds. Amaya Terrell had 15 points and five steals. Ella Rupp had 13 points, four rebounds and three steals. Allison Paulsen grabbed seven rebounds, and Hannah Fishwild had five.

     “Scoring 24 points in a quarter was a season high for us, and we really did a nice job being aggressive and sharing the ball,” Midland coach Jason Soper said. “Our shot selection was really good.”

     The Eagles then lost a 53-35 decision to Clinton Prince of Peace Jan. 8 in Wyoming. POP led 29-19 at halftime, then pushed the lead to 20 by the end of the third quarter. For Midland, Paulsen scored eight points, while Hacke and Rupp had six points apiece.

     “We won the second and fourth quarters, and did a really good job of forcing them to settle for threes,” coach Soper said. “Our game plan, I felt, was appropriate. We just need to execute better in spots, especially on offense.”

Boys basketball

     Midland divided a pair of Tri-Rivers Conference boys basketball games last week.

     The Eagles (1-3 division, 3-7 overall) started the week with a 55-49 home win over Cedar Valley Christian Jan. 5 in Wyoming, as Zain Sauer scored 21 points. Midland led 44-31 after three quarters, then held off a CVC rally.

     Sauer also had eight rebounds, six assists and four steals. Iziek Soper had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Jon Thomsen had nine points and 10 rebounds. Warren Etten had eight points and four assists, and Cale Crist had three assists. Jamisen Dodge made four steals.

     “It was a much-needed win, and I’m proud of how our kids kept fighting,” Midland coach Dalton Harms said.

     On Jan. 8, the Eagles played host to Clinton Prince of Peace, and lost 47-31. Sauer had 13 points and four assists, while Soper contributed 12 opints and six rebounds. Aaron Bixler made two steals and blocked two shots.

     “This one was frustrating because I felt like we beat ourselves,” coach Harms said. “We had too many mental mistakes to win. We lost assignments and turned the ball over way too much.”