RESULTS FROM ABRAHAM LINCOLN TOURNAMENT JANUARY 26TH, 2007

The Devils placed 12th out of 28 teams.

Eagle Valley had two champions in Brendan Best and James Harvey.

Harvey wrestled like a man on fire. He recorded 4 falls on his way to the finals at 130 lbs. One of the falls was against the number one ranked 3A wrestler, Richard Apodaca of Arrupe Jesuit. Apodaca was 2nd in state and won the Abe Lincoln Tournament last year. Harvey was winning 15-0 at the time of the fall. In the finals, Harvey won 4-0 over 5A ranked wrestler Dylan Lewis of Wheatridge. Harvey earned the tournament's outstanding wrestler award.

Best won four matches to claim the title at 189 pounds. In the finals, Best beat Willie McClure of Pomona 7-3. McClure was the 5A state champion last season. "Brendan was battling a cold and not wrestling his best. To beat a state champion when you are not feeling 100 percent shows how much heart you have," said coach Ron Beard.

Chad Strakbein, Josh Wamboldt, Andrew Hill and Trent Book each won two matches for the Devils but came up just short of placing.

This week the Devils face Grand Junction Central and Moffat County in dual meets. Both meets are "on the road." The Devils head to Ralston Valley High School February 9th and 10th for the regional tournament. The top four place winners in each weight at regionals will advance to the state wrestling tournament, held at the Pepsi Center February 15th - 17th.