PERRY — Dominant at the front of the lineup, but lacking the depth and balance it has become accustomed to in recent years, the Webster City wrestling team settled for a ninth-place finish in the monstrous 17-team field at Saturday’s Perry Invitational.

The Lynx crowned three individual champions, which tied West Delaware for the tournament lead, but managed just one more top-eight finish among its 11 competitors en route to 98 points.

“I think we could have definitely had a better showing as a team, but we did some silly things at some of the weights,” WCHS head coach Chad Hisler said.

Second-ranked (Class 2A) West Delaware, meanwhile, had the goods and then some. In addition it three gold medalists, it sent seven grapplers to the finals and all 14 individuals placed among the top five at their respective weight classes.

In other words, the team race wasn’t even close.

West Delaware piled up 271 points and buried runner-up and eighth-ranked (2A) Sergeant Bluff-Luton (1961⁄2). No. 10 (1A) Logan-Magnolia (161) was a distant third.

South Hamilton put three wrestlers in the medal round and tallied 301⁄2 points to finish in the 15th position.

Tenth-ranked (2A) Camron Phetxoumphone (106 pounds), second-ranked Drake Doolittle (120) and seventh-ranked Caleb Olson (195) all seized the top step of the podium for WCHS, as they combined to register 75 of the Lynx team points.

Chase Rattenborg (126) finished fourth.

“We didn’t compete as well as we wanted, but we came away with three champions and we’ve got that as a positive,” Doolittle said.

Phetxoumphone (25-4), the No. 2 seed, steamrolled his bracket. He outscored his quarterfinal and semifinal round opponents 15-2 and then pinned top-seed Aime Mukiza of Des Moines North-Hoover in 3:42 in the title bout.

Phetxoumphone built a 7-0 lead on Mukiza before the fall. A first-period takedown and two-point turn put the WCHS freshman in charge and he added a three-point near fall in the second.

“(Mukiza) was a state qualifier last year, and he was big, strong and explosive, but Cam just broke him,” Hisler said. “He’s gaining more confidence with each match.”

Doolittle (27-1) was equally dominant in his run to the finals with a fall and major decision, but he was tested in the spotlight against Sergeant Bluff-Luton’s Nate Curry. Doolittle pulled out a 3-1 victory on the strength of a first-period takedown; the two traded escapes in the second and third periods.

“He was a tough opponent,” Doolittle said of Curry. “He always kept his feet moving when we were neutral, so it was a little difficult to get in on deep shots. But I felt like I was controlling the ties.”

Hisler said Doolittle was solid despite a size disadvantage in each of his final two matches.

“Both of those kids were really big,” Hisler said. “Curry was solid and strong, but Drake was in control the whole time.”

Olson (25-2) went six minutes just once, that in a 10-6 semifinal win over Gabe Hemsted of Carlisle. In the finals, the WCHS senior hit a Granby role for a reversal and three-point near-fall to take the lead for good in the second period against West Delaware’s Jordan Bries. Olson eventually moved to a headlock and got the fall.

Rattenborg (21-12) pinned three opponents. His only two losses were to West Des Moines Dowling’s Carson Murray in the quarterfinals and third-place match.

South Hamilton picked up a seventh-place finish from Nathan Wilson (182), while Brent Greenfield (152) and Trevor Thompson (195) were both eighth.

Wilson (19-9) decked three opponents in the first period. Greenfield (6-7), just a freshman, dropped a first-round bout to top-ranked Easton Graff of Sergeant Bluff-Luton, but then rattled off three consecutive falls to reach the podium. Thompson claimed a pair of victories.

It’s league week for both WCHS and South Hamilton. The Hawks will head to Story City on Friday for the Heart of Iowa Conference tournament, while WCHS will travel to Clarion on Saturday for the North Central Conference tournament.

South Hamilton will begin its week with a home quadrangular with Gilbert, Nevada and Ogden on Tuesday.

Perry Invitational

Saturday

Team Standings

1. West Delaware 271; 2. Sergeant Bluff-Luton 1961⁄2; 3. Logan-Magnolia 161; 4. West Des Moines Dowling 1481⁄2; 5. Van Meter 1351⁄2; 6. Carlisle 1321⁄2; 7. Woodward-Granger 121; 8. Carroll 1121⁄2; 9. Webster City 98; 10. Perry 961⁄2; 11. Eagle Grove 79; 12. Panorama 74; 13. Spencer 631⁄2; 14. Des Moines North-Hoover 401⁄2; 15. South Hamilton 301⁄2; 16. West Marshall 27; 17. Saydel 18.

Championship Matches

106 — Camron Phetxoumphone (WC) pinned Aime Mukiza (DMNH), 3:42. 113 — Brayden Graff (SB-L) dec. Hagen Heistand (L-M), 1-0. 120 — Drake Doolittle (WC) dec. Nate Curry (SB-L), 3-1. 126 — Briar Reisz (L-M) dec. Carter Logue (CARL), 4-3, TB-2. 132 — Jack Gaukel (SB-L) dec. Ryan Phillips (WD), 2-0. 138 — Kaleb Olejniczak (PER) pinned Jadyn Peyton (WD), 6:29, SV-1. 145 — Mark Dawson (EG) dec. Cael Meyer (WD), 10-8. 152 — Mitchel Mangold (WD) dec. Easton Graff (SB-L), 3-2, UTB. 160 — Caleb Swalla (VM) dec. Parker Klocke (CARR), 6-4. 170 — Wyatt Voelker (WD) tech fall Luke Woosley (CARR), 16-1, 5:32. 182 — Jack Neuhaus (WD) dec. Ethan Reed (CARL), 3-2. 195 — Caleb Olson (WC) pinned Jordan Bries (WD), 3:15. 220 — Greg Hagan (DOWL) dec. Cody Fisher (W-G), 2-1. 285 — Derrin Sesker (VM) dec. Tyler Lawrenson (W-G), 1-0.