{"id":31598,"date":"2025-12-22T16:17:21","date_gmt":"2025-12-22T21:17:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/?p=31598"},"modified":"2025-12-22T16:23:34","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T21:23:34","slug":"unbeaten-jets-braves-to-clash-in-front-of-monster-holiday-crowd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/22\/unbeaten-jets-braves-to-clash-in-front-of-monster-holiday-crowd\/","title":{"rendered":"Unbeaten Jets, Braves to clash in front of monster holiday crowd"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

DANE FUELLING<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

WZBD.com<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It will be an early Christmas present for a thousand high school wrestling fans Tuesday night as the Adams Central and Bellmont wrestling teams meet for the 55th time in a match that will feature two of the few remaining undefeated teams left in the state of Indiana. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Braves, who will be looking for their 50th victory against the Jets in the series, will hope that the home crowd will give them an additional edge and lead them to a 14th straight victory over their long-time rivals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Bellmont captains had the team ready to wrestle in last week’s NE8 Duals, with the Braves re-gaining that trophy with a 7-0 weekend. (Photo by Dane Fuelling)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Last year’s dual was a phenomenal display of the passion that exists in the county for the sport and it was the Braves who scored a 40-33 victory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the storylines that came out of last year’s dual was the victory by Dylan Ogg over Henry Faurote. Much talked about by both fan bases, the rematch happened three more times – in the sectional, regional and then the semi-state championship bouts. All four meetings were won by Ogg, who will face a different Faurote this year in Henry’s younger brother Charlie. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will there be a new rivalry born out of this year’s dual meet?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Henry Faurote will likely meet Myles Kaehr at 138. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another storyline to consider is at 106. The Jets have only been wrestling for two weeks and have already gone from thinking they had a pretty good freshman six-pounder, thinking they had no six-pounder, getting another one back on the team (in Ezra Liechty, a regional qualifier last year), and now they may have that freshman back from injury early if Cruz Bowers is back on the mat Tuesday night. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Jacob Binegar has not seen action yet this season due to an injury, but could be close to a return for the Braves. (Photo by Kristen Kaehr)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Braves have nearly had the same story. They went from expecting a returning semi-state qualifier in Jacob Binegar to be there, to replacing him with an unproven freshman due to injury, to realizing the freshman could hold his own, to maybe welcoming Binegar back. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One thing is for sure – there is plenty of competition at 106 in both rooms. Will it be Camron Barger vs. Ezra Liechty, Jacob Binegar against Cruz Bowers, or another combination of the two?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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New storefront open in Decatur!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Oh, did we forget to ask who will win the bout?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are certainly bouts that will feature heavy favorites on both sides. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the lower weights, the Braves will be expected to win at 113, 120 and 126. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Adams Central will hope that Kale Beer’s solid start to the season will land him bonus points at 132. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

State-ranked Henry Faurote and Gabe Myers will be counted on to win for the Braves at 138 and 144, but that will be followed by heart of the Jet lineup – Dubach, Ogg and Schortgen. Xander Schwartz will be favored at 175 with his 11-2 start to the season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Proudly supporting local athletes and their coverage on WZBD.com!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you’re keeping track, that is five matches for the Braves, five for the Jets if you’re not ready to declare a winner at 106. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Xavior Palacios expects to cradle every opponent he faces, much of the team score drama will likely come down to where Bellmont places him (either at 190 or 215) and how the Jets will set their lineup with Ethan Funk and Ryan Beer (215 and 285).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Proud to support high school wrestling on WZBD!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bellmont will hope that a win will secure them an advantageous seed in the upcoming 2A Team State tournament, with a loss potentially costing them a first-round bye for January 10th at Brownsburg. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dylan Ogg made a name for himself in last year’s dual meet against Bellmont. Now wrestling at 157, he carries a #8 ranking in the state from IndianaMat. (Photo by Kristen Kaehr)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For the Jets, a win over Bellmont would mean and accomplish many things, breaking the long losing streak, but also helping them skip past some teams in the 1A seeding. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dual meet will undoubtedly be the most consequential dual meet of the season in terms of seeding at the Jay County Sectional. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ryan Landis will take the chair for the first time as head coach of the Adams Central coach against the Bellmont Braves when his team takes the mat Tuesday night. (Photo by Kristen Kaehr)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Fans of the Bellmont program will enjoy pre-match festivities that will see every single third-place finisher in school history (except for one or two absences) honored before the varsity match. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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