CEDAR CITY, Utah (March 23, 2024) - Canyon View High School in Cedar City hosted two days of non-stop wrestling matches for the first event in the 2024 Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games calendar.

The March 22-23 tournament saw a 16-percent increase in athletes from the 2023 competition, with approximately 750 individuals competing in the three different styles of wrestling offered: Greco, Freestyle and Folkstyle.

For many of the wrestlers, the ultimate goal was to walk away with a 'Triple Crown' award, having dominated their age and weight class in each of those styles. Over 50 athletes successfully took home the honor, marking themselves as some of the most talented competitors among the five different states represented in the series (Utah, Arizona, Idaho, Nevada and Wyoming).

One of these skilled wrestlers, Canyon View's Nellie Carter, put on a clinic in the junior high division, pinning every opponent she faced on her way to a trio of gold medals.

"I really enjoyed it; it was a fun experience," Carter said. "[Changing styles] was kind of hard because you have to switch over sometimes, but once you get used to it, it's pretty easy."

While Carter got to show off her abilities at home, North Sanpete High School's Teagin Poulsen traveled from almost three hours away to represent central Utah and take home a 'Triple Crown'.

"The tournaments I've been going to are smaller ones, so they're a little easier," Poulsen said. "I thought this one would be harder and it was. There were some tough kids here; they're more diverse; and most of my matches were with people who out-muscled me."

Even going up against stronger foes than he usually does, Poulsen still tore through his 126-130 weight class, pinning and winning by major decision twice. 

Dallas Lowry, the LHM USG Wrestling sport coordinator and Canyon View wrestling coach, said he believes athletes like Poulsen searching for more competitive matches are one of the reasons for the huge increase in participation.

"I think that we're getting better [here], so there's better competition," Lowry said. "Through the years southern Utah has gotten better and better, and we have two national champion girls right here. Just having better competition brings better competition."

He added that the growing numbers brought an even stronger sense of the wrestling family to the event. Even though their athletes were competing against each other, teams and clubs collaborated to make the tournament as successful and smooth as possible. Out-of-town teams even transported mats to the event so that eight showdowns could happen at the same time.

The palpable feeling of community - one of the principal goals of the Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games - gave wrestlers a great opportunity to mingle with and learn from competitors from around the Intermountain West. An example of this could be found in dedicated father and competitor, Ryan Gonzalez, who personified the spirit of competition that is uniquely found in events like wrestling. 

Just over a year ago, Gonzalez faced a difficult cancer diagnosis and underwent a major surgery. Yet, when his son started trying to convince him that they should compete in the Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games together, there was an agreement that the father and son would compete together at the event.

Despite not having wrestled since being a state champion in 2006, Ryan Gonzalez made his way back onto the mats to ensure his children would get to watch him wrestle at least once. He may not have won, but his son Callan Gonzalez proved to be a star in the 6U bracket, locking up a Triple Crown to make his family proud. In the process, Gonzalez also spread cancer awareness and referenced the lyrics of country singer Cody Johnson's "'Til You Can't" as his motto. He shared with those around him the virtue of taking advantage of moments and opportunities as they come, speaking with many throughout the event. 

With the conclusion of the wrestling tournament, the first event of the Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games is officially in the books, indicating the start to another outstanding summer of sports in Iron County. The next scheduled event for the series is the 'Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games Water Polo' event, which is scheduled for April 4-6 at the J.L. Sorenson Physical Education Building pool on the campus of Southern Utah University. 

Teams and individuals interested in registering for the Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games can visit https://utahsummergames.org/sports/2024/1/3/sport-registration-table.aspx.