Beeters Wrestle Their Way to Number 1

BILLINGS -- Saturday at the All-Class state wrestling tournament was a day of redemption for the Chinook wrestling team. Not only did the Sugarbeeters reclaim the Class C state title, they did so in large part because of Tate Niederegger, who won an individual title after losing in the finals in a season ago.

In the end, Chinook led by so much that it wouldn't have mattered if Niederegger took second but individual title for the sophomore was the cherry on top of a great two days inside the Rimrock Auto Arena at the Metra in Billings for the Beeters. When the final score was tallied, Chinook finished with 68.5 points, well ahead of second-place Arlee, which finished with 22.

Niederegger, who won the 132-pound weight class led the way for the Beeters but every wrestlers scored points for Chinook, highlighted by Jake Norby and Kenneth Pruttis, who each took home medals with fourth-place finishes.

"All of the kids did a phenomenal job this weekend," Chinook head coach Perry Miller said. "We came out here with seven guys in the fight, I would love to tell you we could place them all but the bottom line was that we got three. But, they all wrestled as hard as they could and we couldn't be more proud of them."

Also along the Hi-Line, Brenden Johnson of Harlem finished out his illustrious career with a second-place finish in the 160-pound weight class.

For full coverage see Monday's edition of the Havre Daily News.