Petersen finishes third

BILLINGS — Jame Petersen had thirty seconds.

With a 1-1 tie score after regulation and a one-minute sudden death round, the 145-pound match last weekend came down to the third overtime where the Mission/Charlo wrestler had the chance to make it to his first state finals match.

And in the blink of an eye, it was over.

Conrad’s Johnny Schlosser was able to score a point on the senior and move on at the Class B-C State wrestling tournament in Billings.

“He did an excellent job otherwise,” head coach Lyle Cronk said.

Petersen went on to pin Florence-Carlton’s Zach Newbary to take third place.

Petersen and Newbary developed a rivalry previously during the Choteau tournament, where Newbary was able to get Petersen on his back, a rare position for Petersen.

“[Newbary] was the only one to do that this year to Jame,” Cronk said.

Petersen was winning 13-0 in the third period before getting the pin.

“It was bittersweet because third is the highest he’s ever taken,” Cronk said. “Jame looked absolutely fantastic in that match. It was a strong finish to cap off one great career.”

Petersen dominated the first day with two pins under a minute. He earned a 59-second pin over Big Sandy’s Lane Martin in the opening round and a 51-second stop over Baker’s Clint Mrnak in the quarterfinals.

Scotty Gilleard

Sophomore Scotty Gilleard improved from his sixth place state tournament finish last year to take fourth at 125 pounds.

“He’s had a rough season,” Cronk said. “He wrestled outstanding.”

In the weight class, third, fourth and fifth place came from the same area, as Superior’s Mason Chatterly took fifth.

“It was great to see all of them place,” Cronk said.

In the third-place match, Gilleard faced Arlee’s Logan Lefler, a familiar opponent, and lost 11-4.

Gilleard won 12-10 in his opening match against Forsyth’s Craig Nelson and Conrad’s Colt Harris 16-1 in his next bout.

“He handled the other kids,” Cronk said. “It was great to see him wrestle at the top of his game.”

Nick Dinnell

Senior Nick Dinnell entered his first state tournament after his first year of wrestling and was one match away from placing.

“That’s quite an accomplishment,” Cronk said.

The heavyweight wrestler opened up the tournament with a pin over Fort Benton’s Robert Shinaberger before losing to Broadus’ Maverick Quiroz.

“He opened up and went after it,” Cronk said. “It was great to see him wrestle like that.”

As a team, Mission/Charlo finished 16th, 8.5 points behind Arlee.

Even though many of the younger wrestlers didn’t place, Cronk said the experience is very invaluable for next year.

“It’s difficult to come in your first year and place high,” he said.