SPRINGDALE — Bentonville and Russellville were the winners in the Northwest Arkansas Duals Wrestling Tournament at Springdale Har-Ber over the weekend.
Bentonville won the Blue Bracket while Russellville took the title in the Navy Bracket. The two-day tournament consisted of 16 teams divided into two eight-team brackets and the emphasis was on team scoring rather than individual performances.
Springdale Har-Ber and Springdale High School each finished second in separate brackets.
Final Standings
Northwest Arkansas Duals
BLUE BRACKET
First Place: Bentonville
Second Place: Springdale Har-Ber
Third Place: Little Rock Catholic
Fourth Place: Rogers Heritage
NAVY BRACKET
First Place: Russellville
Second Place: Springdale High
Third Place: Conway
Fourth Place: Greenwood
”I thought the tournament was a huge success,” Har-Ber coach Nika West said. “There were a lot of good teams and you saw more six-minute matches instead of pins. That shows the competition is getting better.”
Wildcat Arena was a hub of activity for high school wrestlers, who competed in 14 weight classes. The action began at 4 p.m. on Friday and fi nished Saturday afternoon after a 9 a.m. start. Four matches went on simultaneously as wrestlers competed in weight classes beginning at 106 pounds.
High school wrestling in Arkansas is still in its infancy, but the turnout for the Northwest Arkansas Duals showed the sport is growing in terms of participation and fan support.
“You can see how far wrestling has come just by looking around this gym,” Little Rock Central coach Shawn Hickey said on Friday. “The sport has been going for only about six years in Arkansas, but wrestling is infectious. It gets in people’s blood and they want more. Arkansas is a perfect state for wrestling and I think it will continue to grow and get stronger.”
West said he was particularly pleased with how freshmen Treyton Baker and Kimble Jennings competed for the Wildcats.
“I don’t think Kimble lost a match all weekend and Treyton was able to get us a pin against Bentonville,” West said. “Overall, we made some minor mistakes but nothing that can’t be corrected. This is all a dress rehearsal for the state meet in late February.”
Har-Ber, the defending state champions in Class 7A, will compete Tuesday in a double dual meet at Springdale with the Bulldogs, Rogers, and Rogers