ST. IGNATIUS — The Mission/Charlo wrestling team opened up competition by hosting a five-team dual competition last Tuesday.

The Bulldogs went 3-0 with wins over Darby, Florence and Noxon. Five wrestlers, Scott Gilleard, Ross Fullerton, Dallin Torrell, Trevor Wersonic and Jame Peterson, went 3-0 on the night as well.

“There were also numerous exhibitions throughout the night, altogether we gained experience and a moderate measure of success which is always nice at the start of the season,” head coach Lyle Cronk said.

Mission/Charlo followed the meet with a mixer at Superior where no team scores were kept.

Russel Schultz, Casey Nitschke, Travis Dumont, Barrett Sargent, Joel Lewis, Nick Dinnell, Warsonic and Petersen both won with pins. Gilleard went 2-0 with two pins and Dakota Matt won with a technical fall and an 18-7 victory.

The Bulldogs took the practice into the Superior Invitational last weekend and came away with five wrestlers who placed and, as a team, took sixth place.

Schultz took second after being pinned by Frenchtown’s Quanto James in the 112 class. He made it to the finals after winning his semi-final match in the final seconds.

Petersen also took second after losing to his longtime rival, Frenchtown’s Brad Nordahl at 145.

“Russel Schultz wrestled outstanding, showing a lot of heart in his semi-final match,” Cronk said. “Petersen wrestled his heart out against his longtime rival. He made a few small mistakes against a wrestler who made even fewer. I was proud of the effort and intensity he brought to the match however.”

Nitschke, at 119,  Matt, at 140, and Dumont, at 160, each took fourth place after losing to a wrestler from Missoula Big Sky.

The sixth-place finish behind Thompson Falls and Arlee was a bit of a disappointment, Cronk said.

“We lost a few key matches by our veterans that could have made up that difference,” Cronk said.

The Bulldogs went on to battle two in Arlee on Monday night.

After dueling with Eureka, the Bulldogs went on to beat Arlee 54-30.

Nitschke, Petersen, Torrel, Sargent and Dinnell all registered pins to win their match. Sargent finished his in 13 seconds at 189 pounds and Dinnell only needed 16 seconds to get his in the 285 weight class.

Overall, the team has improved their intensity.

“We have a long way to go, however, many of our young wrestlers are showing improvement even in their losses,” Cronk said.

Mission/Charlo will travel, once again, tonight to Superior before going to the Deer Lodge Tournament this weekend.