EVANSVILLE

Seymour wrestling coach Todd Weaver said showing up to a wrestling match and looking like you want to wrestle was a hump that his team was trying to get over, and the Owls did that in Saturday’s Evansville Semistate.

Weaver was pleased with Brandon Penegar’s effort wrestling against No. 19-ranked Ryan Bigelow of Brownsburg in the first round at 138 pounds. Weaver said if there were a couple more seconds in the second period, Penegar might have had a chance to pin Bigelow.

Penegar was turning into his back as the period ended, but he ended up losing 7-3 to end his season.

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“Brandon really went out super hard against a really tough kid who placed in the tournament about us,” Weaver said. “It could have been different, but I think he wrestled pretty hard.”

Justin Ruddick (120) drew No. 1 Ty Mills of Brownsburg and saw his season with a pin. Zach Newton (152) fell in the first round to Southridge’s Tucker Schank, who went on to place fourth.

All three wrestlers will be returning for Seymour, and Weaver said that is what’s exciting about the future. Ruddick and Penegar will be juniors next year, while Newton will be entering his senior year.

“We don’t bring three kids, then they all graduate and start over again,” Weaver said. “That’s a big thing. When you go for your very first time, sometimes everything looks a little bigger. Everything is a little louder, and it’s intimidating. Those guys will have experience next year.”

Weaver said the Owls have had good offseasons the past three years, and he is expecting this one to be no different and hopes to have even more wrestlers make it to semistate next year.