Maple Mountain Boy's Basketball Win against Timpanogos and PG.

In a boys basketball game that featured 15 made 3-pointers accounting for almost half of the 109 total points scored, the one that mattered most Wednesday night in Pleasant Grove was one that didn't go in.

The visitors from Maple Mountain were up three but missed a pair of foul shots with five seconds left in the game, giving Pleasant Grove got one more chance to force overtime.

Viking senior guard Spencer Pincock raced up the floor and got a pretty good shot from beyond the arc, but it sailed wide right and the Golden Eagles hung on to get the 56-53 win.
"We finally got that win," said Maple Mountain head coach Johnny Averett. "There have been several during this preseason that I thought we deserved but we didn't close the deal. This time we made plays but give Pleasant Grove credit. The way they were shooting tonight made them hard to put away."
Since the Golden Eagles have lost some heartbreakers earlier in the year, Averett said at the end of this game he was counting on finally getting a break to go his team's way.
"When they were taking the ball up the floor, I was thinking that this can't be happening again," he said. "We lost a couple of big leads in games in St. George, including one to Pine View on a last-second shot. Luck was finally in our favor this time."

For Pleasant Grove head coach Randy McAllister, it was a tough way to lose. Although he appreciated the fight his team showed, he said the Vikings are sick of being in that position in the first place.

"We've had three or four of those, so it's time for us to stop getting in that position where we have to fight back," he said. "We need to figure out how to get a lead rather than play from behind."

Both teams put their shooting ability on display during the game as they rained down bombs from beyond the arc.

The first half shooting edged belonged to Maple Mountain, who knocked down six of their eight treys before halftime. That allowed the Golden Eagles to build a 10-point lead at one point.
"Those are shots we've been missing," Averett said. "When we miss those, teams pack it in. When we make them, that gets the defense to come out and that's to our advantage because we are small and quick."

Pleasant Grove responded with five 3-pointers in the second half, four of them coming from sophomore guard Forrest Pincock (who finished with five total and 15 points for the game).

That allowed the Vikings to rally but Maple Mountain had the edge for much of the final 16 minutes of play. Late foul shooting problems for the Golden Eagles (who were 10-of-18 from the charity stripe for the game) gave the home team the late chance to tie.

"We've got to do a better job at the free throw line, but I think we will," Averett said.

Both teams have now completed non-region play and will start league action.

"We're in a tough region, so we have our work cut out for us," McAllister said. "If teams are going to beat us, we're going to make them work to do it."

Daily Herald sports editor Jared Lloyd can be reached at 801-344-2555 or at jlloyd@heraldextra.com. He can also be followed on Twitter at @JaredrLloyd.

Read more: http://www.heraldextra.com/sports/high-school/basketball/maple-mountain-boys-basketball-survives-late-pleasant-grove-surge/article_87e65d34-375e-11e1-84ba-001871e3ce6c.html#ixzz1kE0PMA1S

Thomas Mortensen
Spencer Allred

Drew Bates

Justin Bradford

Devin Gillies

Jackson Gunther

Nate Guymon

K.J. Hall

Bryson Hunt

Josh Phelps

Jayden Whitehead

Devin Barker

Porter Brown

Jace Edmunds

Zach Porter

Jake Varney

Maple Mountain rolls at The Rumble

Grant LaMont didn’t need long to get his sixth pin of the weekend. Facing Payson’s Zac Loveless for the second time this season, LaMont knew what buttons to push, what speed to work. It was less than a minute and a half before the junior had two-time state champ Loveless on his back.
“I knew I had to go strong,” LaMont said. “It’s the second time I’ve beaten him, and I just keep pushing the pace.”
LaMont’s school, Maple Mountain, has similarly taken almost no time at all — on a relative scale — to establish itself as arguably the state’s best wrestling program. It took another step toward earning that title on Saturday, winning The Rumble tournament at Utah Valley University.
To get the team title, the Golden Eagles had to best Pleasant Grove, Delta and Payson — three of the strongest traditional powers in the state. But led by LaMont at 138 pounds — he was named one of the tournament’s most outstanding wrestlers — and Kimball Bastian at 152, Maple Mountain took home one of the most prestigious team titles in the West.
They had to sweat out first place, waiting on a few consolation matches. But by the time the heaviest wrestlers were competing, the win was assured. And despite winning in only the program’s third year of existence, LaMont emphasized that Maple Mountain has come a long way since its beginnings.
“It’s kind of awesome that a third-year can do this,” he said. “We’ve matured a lot. When we first started, we were all freshmen and sophomores. But our whole team is just getting more focused.”
That didn’t mean Payson, the second-place finisher, didn’t go home with some hardware as well. In the 132-pound match, Jed Mellen came away with the highlight of the tournament when he beat Centennial’s Hayden Tuma, the No. 7-ranked wrestler in that class in the country



By Kyle Goon The Salt Lake Tribune
First published Jan 14 2012 09:21PM
Updated Jan 17, 2012 12:51PM

Another article was posted in the Herald.

In a classic back-and-forth battle, Maple Mountain outlasted Utah County rival Payson to win The Rumble Wrestling Tournament on Saturday night.

"I'm beyond excited," said Maple Mountain head coach Justin Judkins. "To win The Rumble is cool. It says a lot about our program.
It wasn't exactly easy for the Golden Eagles. Payson held a slim lead after the first day of competition. The Lions put four wrestlers on top of the podium compared to two for Maple Mountain, but in the end the Golden Eagles were just a bit deeper.
Maple Mountain scored 255.0 points while Payson ended with 251.0. Pleasant Grove was a distant third with 210.0. Centennial (Idaho) finished fourth at 203.0 and Delta was fifth with 185.0.
Maple Mountain crowned champions in Grant LaMont (138 pounds) and Kimball Bastian (152).
LaMont had six pins in the tournament, including one over Payson's Zach Loveless in the championship final. For his efforts, LaMont was named as one of the tournament's outstanding wrestlers.

"I expected to get some pins, but not six," LaMont said. "It feels good to get the (team) win for Coach Judkins."
Maple Mountain nearly had one more champion, but Britain Carter lost to Cedar City's Dusty Hone 2-1 in overtime.
Austin Rowley (126) and Jesse Carlisle (145) placed third for the Golden Eagles, while Landon Knutzen (132) and Jordan Argyle (170) finished fifth. Two Maple Mountain wrestlers -- Mitch Kay (138, fourth) and Brooks Robinson (132, seventh) -- were wrestling unattatched (non-scoring) at the meet.

Full article can be read at:

Read more: http://www.heraldextra.com/sports/high-school/wrestling/maple-mountain-edges-payson-at-the-rumble/article_0d47e4b5-7482-58f7-b078-c071a8722c0e.html#ixzz1kDtVutwL

Maple Mountain Wrestling making a name for itself.

They remember when nobody knew who they were.  It was only two years ago when the Maple Mountain wrestling team would go to meets almost anonymously. The school had just opened, and few in the state were even looking out for the Golden Eagles.

Of course, once they wrestled Maple Mountain, they wouldn’t soon forget it.

"We try to remember that every time we wrestle, we’re trying to make a statement," junior Britain Carter says. "We want people to remember us. We want to represent our school."

It’s hard to imagine Maple Mountain doing a better job of representing itself than it has in its first two seasons. Last year, the Golden Eagles took a step forward by winning second place in the Class 4A tournament and getting three individual state champions.

They’re already hungry for more, and this year they have a team that could challenge Box Elder, the squad that surged far ahead of the field last year.

Maple Mountain so far has been the precocious new school with a wrestling team consisting of individually accomplished members. But the Golden Eagles’ goal is to be seen as one of the elite perennial powers — and it appears they’re well on their way. Winning The Rumble last week at UVU over Payson, Delta and a few out-of-state powers should be a warning sign to all opponents.

"For someone like me, it’s a lot about finally getting the feel of wrestling," says Jordan Argyle, who wrestles at 170 pounds. "I’m getting to the point where I can wrestle with my eyes closed. A lot of guys are wrestling a lot better this year."

Although returning state champs Brandon George, Grant LaMont and Carter are stalwarts, this year’s team has been about balance. Wrestlers such as Austin Rowley, Kimball Bastian and Jesse Carlisle are breaking through as title contenders, and others might be potential state placers.

It starts with the team’s conditioning — coach Justin Judkins has the Golden Eagles convinced they have the most challenging workout routine of any program in Utah. They lift weights in the morning four times a week. After school, they’ll practice until 5:30 p.m. using a variety of wrestling drills, plyometrics and cross-training exercises.

A typical stretch: They wrestle a partner for two minutes. Judkins blows a whistle. They do pushups for two minutes. Whistle. They do squats with a partner on their shoulders. Whistle. More wrestling. Whistle. They climb ropes to the ceiling. And this goes on and on, all the while with Judkins pacing the room like a drill sergeant, telling them they aren’t going fast enough or working hard enough.

"The other day, I went home and didn’t talk to anyone," Rowley says. "My parents were worried I was depressed or something was wrong. No, we just wrestled live for an hour, then ran sprints for an hour. I’m just tired — don’t have any energy left."

The work is only part of it. Most of the people on the team have wrestled together since their days at Mapleton Junior High, when they were also a dominant program. They’ve spent years on the road together, sharing hotel rooms and celebrating each other’s achievements.

"We’re all kind of brothers," George says. "People say this is an individual sport, but we really do have a team."

That team resolve has been tested. Several wrestlers last season and even this season were discontented with the program and elected to quit.

But that hasn’t had a divisive effect on Maple Mountain. The wrestlers who remain are OK seeing others go.

"I think some of that held us back last year," LaMont says. "I think we could’ve been even better. This year, we definitely have higher goals, and the people who are still here are pretty motivated."

It won’t be easy to deal with Box Elder and Mountain Crest, seen as two of the top contenders this year. Maple Mountain has some of the strongest wrestlers in the light weights, but depth gets thinner and thinner in the heavier groups.

Of course, it’d be dangerous to count them out, either.

"We’re going to keep pushing," Carter says. "We’re going to keep working until that extra work shows on the mat."

kgoon@sltrib.com
http://m.sltrib.com/sltrib/mobile/53346871-190/mountain-maple-team-wrestling.html.csp