The Mission-Charlo High School co-op wrestling team got much needed mat time at the Western Montana Duels Friday and Saturday at the Ronan High School Events Center.

The Bulldogs-Vikings’ wrestling team got a lot of mat time competing against teams such as Townsend, Sentinel, Hamilton, Columbia Falls, Stevensville, and Great Falls Central. Mat time, according to their coach Lyle Cronk, is exactly what his young team needs.

“It was a great weekend and bigger tournaments are always good for our kids to see a lot of competition,” Cronk said. “That was nice because we got to wrestle quite a few times against teams out of our division. We had a number of different kids that did really well over the weekend.”

Cronk said his team is approaching the most critical point of the regular season as they prepare for district, divisional and state competition.

“I think right now we are at the most crucial point of the season where kids really start to make big jumps,” Cronk said. “There are a lot of good matches and more opportunities to make those big jumps if the kids maintain a positive attitude and approach each match working and learning from their mistakes. Getting experiences like this are a huge benefit for this time of the year.”

Walker Murphy finished 6-3 at 103-pounds and Robert Dempsey, a 103-pounder, was 5-4 on the weekend. Isaac Dumontier was 7-1 in the 120-pound bracket, Gus Bosley, was 7-1 at the 182-pound bracket, and Trent Dennison was 5-3 at the 160-pound weight division.

“We had a few kids out and that was unfortunate because we got a lot of wrestling in,” Cronk said. “It was a great weekend.”