Grapplers have a solid core of returning athletes

With a solid core of returning grapplers, the Columbia Falls wrestling team should make some noise this season.

The Cats return Sal Baccaro, Justin Whitman, Kelly Houle, Joe Gross, Doug Woodworth, Jared Smith and Aaron Howland.

Baccaro took third last year at 98 pounds at the state A tournament and Houle took second at 215.

"We had a really good off-season," said fifth year coach Jessie Schaeffer.

The team has had at least a dozen kids weightlifting every morning. The other day there were 20, he said.

This year many returning wrestlers will move up a weight class, maybe two. Look for Baccaro at 112 or 119, Whitman at 119 or 125, Gross at 160 or 171, Woodworth at heavyweight, Howland at 171 and Smith at 152 or 145.

Senior Houle will wrestle a 'solid" 215, Schaeffer noted. Last year he wrestled at that weight, but was also competing at 189. He wrested 215 at state when he took second to Libby's Justin Graham last season.

Howland is in just his second year wrestling, but he showed the team some good things at the end of the season.

Baccaro was third at state last season as a sophomore with a win against Belgrade's Ethan Bristol. Gross and Whitman were just one win away from placing at state last year, Schaeffer noted. It looks like the team will fill all its weight classes except for 105, Schaeffer said. Lower weight classes are always harder to fill.

The Cats open the season away against Whitefish Dec. 4. Schaeffer said he expects a lot of open matches because the Bulldogs don't seem to have the numbers this year.

Expect Ronan to be tough this year as well as Polson. Polson lost just one wrestler. Libby has a new coach, but the logging community always cranks out a good wrestling squad, Schaeffer noted. Schaeffer is assisted by Kelly Houle Sr. and his brother, Ben.