ROCHELLE — Locked in a tough battle with the Sandwich Indians, Rochelle senior Noah Messer entered the ring looking to score a crucial victory for the Hub varsity wrestling team Thursday evening, when Rochelle hosted a three-team meet that featured the Byron Tigers.

With the Hubs trailing Sandwich 27-23, Messer faced off against Kaiden Gustafson in the 220-pound bout. In a must-win situation, Messer took the early lead, scoring on an escape and a takedown before pinning Gustafson near the end of the second period to secure six Rochelle points. Sophomore Jaden Cook then received a forfeit at 285 pounds, sealing a 35-27 win for the Hubs, who then defeated Byron 53-29 to end the night 5-1 overall and 2-0 in conference.

“We’re wrestling really well and we have a lot of kids who are getting stronger and better,” Messer said. “I feel like I’ve started off the season really well. I feel that I’m a lot better this year than I was last year. We have a chance to be really good and even though we don’t have a lot of numbers, we’re able to move some people around and score some points for the team.”

Freshman Riley Damask (106 pounds) and senior Ivan Pineda (113 pounds) took forfeits to open the dual before Sandwich scored 15 unanswered points with two pins and a decision. Senior Grant Thompson gave Rochelle the lead once again in the 138-pound bout, dominating Sandwich’s Sy Smith with four takedowns and three near-falls in a 19-2 technical fall win.

A key victory came in the 152-pound matchup, where Hub junior Caleb Nadig outlasted Indian grappler Aidan Linden with an 8-6 sudden victory in overtime. The back-and-forth between the two Interstate 8 foes continued, with Sandwich earning a pin at 170 pounds and Rochelle senior Ben Harvey holding off 182-pounder Alex Alfaro with a 4-2 decision. A forfeit at 195 pounds gave the Indians a four-point lead before wins from Messer and Cook sealed the Hub victory.

Byron

Sophomores Josey Weber (120 pounds) and Weldon Nay (126 pounds) took forfeits to open Rochelle’s nonconference dual with the Tigers. After Byron scored a pin at 132 pounds, Thompson continued his perfect start to the season, taking down and pinning Byron’s Coy Lind in 50 seconds for a 138-pound victory. Nadig then cruised over Tiger wrestler Yon Zirk in the 145-pound bout, recording four near-falls and two takedowns to win via 17-1 technical fall.

Two forfeits at 152 pounds and 160 pounds brought Byron within five points, and the Tigers held a brief lead after 170-pounder Andrew Claunch notched a hard-earned pin against Hub freshman Leo Stoffel. Harvey quickly erased the Tiger advantage, however, making easy work of 182-pounder Josh Johnson with a 34-second pin that put Rochelle ahead by five points.

“We’re wrestling great and we have a lot of good energy,” Harvey said. “We should have a chance to win the conference title this year and we have our eyes set on that. We’re going out there and enjoying ourselves. I think we’ll continue to do well if we keep the right mind set… I’ve started off a little slow, but I know I have the skills to be successful and I think my conditioning will come back with time as I continue to have more practices.”

Messer scored his second pin of the night at 220 pounds, using only 44 seconds to pin his opponent and keep Rochelle in the lead. At 285 pounds, Cook fell behind 2-0 before flipping the script on Byron heavyweight Nick Brass, scoring a near-fall and ultimately pinning him. The Hubs iced the win with forfeits for Damask (106 pounds) and Pineda (113 pounds).