After three weeks away from the mats, the Fountain Hills High School wrestling squad returned to action, competing in a dual meet and an invitational this past week.

On Jan. 8 the Falcons travelled north to Payson to compete in a dual meet against Mesquite, Payson, Flagstaff and Mogollon. FHHS ended up placing last overall.

That weekend, Jan. 10-11, the team participated in the Lions Club Invitational at Coolidge High School. As a team, FHHS went 4-3 in dual meets and six Falcons placed in the individual tournament.

The grappling Falcons will be back on the mat today, Jan. 15. They will be competing at American Leadership Academy at 3 p.m.

Looking back over recent competitions, head coach Luke Salzmann said he was happy to see his wrestlers put to work what they had been practicing for the past six weeks.

“The guys competed well and they showed a lot of improvement,” Salzmann said. “It was our first time on the mat after not competing in three weeks. During that time we worked on a lot of technique and fixed little mistakes.”

While the Jan. 8 meet didn’t go the way the team had hoped, the dual meets at the Lions Club Invitational went much better, with the Falcons besting Central High School, Hayden, Vista Grande and Team X.

Individually, the Falcons also shined at the invitational.

“A few Falcons placed in the 16-team tournament,” Salzmann said. “Luke Van Beek, Gavin Furi and Ryan Dyrkopp took sixth place in their weight classes. Also placing sixth was JT Despain at 182 pounds. Junior Dom Flynn(152) and Sophomore Hector Leon (heavyweight) placed fourth overall, wrestling a good tournament all weekend.”