The Barton men’s wrestling team is making its case for the best in the Region VI. Oh yeah, the Cougars are only in their first year.
The Cougars continued to make that case with a pair of dual wins against Region VI foes Colby and Neosho County at the Panther Duals at Neosho with the region tournament less than two weeks away.
Barton defeated Colby by a 34-11 count and outwrestled host Neosho, 29-17. The Cougars closed the day off Saturday by stepping out of the region for a 45-12 win over Wentworth (Mo.) Military Academy.
The Cougars dominated the lower weight groups in the win over Colby. Barton took two matches by forfeit as Will Bardezbain (135) and Jaden McRoberts (141) won without taking to the mat. Caysen Smith (133) won by decision over Austin Swartz, Zach Vesta (149) won by fall over John Peeden, and Kade Sander (157) won by fall as well over Monquez Townsend. That gave Barton wins in the five lowest weights.
Colby picked up wins at 165 and 174 by major decisions. At 165 Dallin Dunn defeated Sean Taborsky and Thomas Gallery won over Devon Baker at 174.
The Cougars picked up decisions at 184 and 197. Tim Johnson won by major decision over Bo Brown at 184 while Jonathan Bowen picked up a 10-3 win over Collin Mahanay at 197. Colby won the 285 dual as DeVante Ragland won by a 7-3 decision over Justin Scarbro.
The second match of the day against Neosho was a tougher win. Barton won six of the 10 weights – two by forfeits. Neosho also received a forfeit win, giving Barton a 4-3 advantage on the mat.
Bardezbain won by fall at 125 over Jay Maxville. Winning by technical fall was Sander at 157 with a 17-0 blanking of Zachary Pitts. Vesta won by decision over Cole Franklin, 7-4, at 141 and Bowen picked up a 3-1 win over Josh Walker at 197.
The forfeits for the Cougars were Smith at 133 and Johnson at 184.
Barton closed out the day with an easy dual with Wentworth Military Academy. Barton won five matches by fall, one by decision and two more by forfeit for the 45-12 win.
Capping perfect 3-0 days for the Cougars were Bardezbain, Smith, Sander, Johnson and Bowen. Sander and Bowen were 3-0 on the mat while Smith and Johnson each received one forfeit. Bardezbain, wrestling at the lowest weight, received two forfeits.
Barton in now done for the regular season. The Cougars will next take the match in the Region VI Championships back at Chanute on Feb. 13.
The championships will consist of Barton, Pratt, Neosho, Labette, Colby, and Northwest Tech. The Cougars are 5-2 against those foes. Pratt is the only team Barton hasn’t beaten, losing 25-19 to the Beavers. Barton split with Northwest Tech, beat Colby twice and have wins over Neosho and Labette.
Colby is ranked No. 15 in the NJCAA. Pratt, Neosho, Labette and Northwest Tech all receive votes while Barton does not. The last poll released was in early January.
Barton finishes 8-4 overall in duals in its first season.

Duals Results
Barton 34, Colby 11
125 - Will Bardezbain (Barton) won by forfeit
133 - Caysen Smith (Barton) won by decision over Austin Swartz (Colby) 12-7
141 - Jaden McRoberts (Barton) won by forfeit
149 - Zach Vesta (Barton) won by fall over John Peeden (Colby) 3:55
157 - Kade Sander (Barton) won by fall over Monquez Townsend (Colby) 2:36
165 - Dallin Dunn (Colby) won by major decision over Sean Taborsky (Barton) 13-4
174 - Thomas Galley (Colby) won by major decision over Devon Baker (Barton) 12-3
184 - Tim Johnson (Barton) won by major decision over Bo Brown (Colby) 19-9
197 - Jonathan Bowen (Barton) won by decision over Collin Mahanay (Colby) 10-3
285 - DeVante Ragland (Colby) won by decision over Justin Scarbro (Barton) 7-3

Barton 29, Neosho 17
125 - Will Bardezbain (Barton) won by fall over Jay Maxville (Neosho) 2:26
133 - Caysen Smith (Barton) won by forfeit
141 - Dallas Vesta (Neosho) won by decision over Jaden McRoberts (Barton) 4-1
149 - Zach Vesta (Barton) won by decision over Cole Franklin (Neosho) 7-4
157 - Kade Sander (Barton) won by technical fall over Zachary Pitts (Neosho) 17-0
165 - Colton Looper (Neosho) won by forfeit
174 - Darick Jones (Neosho) won by decision over Devon Baker (Barton) 10-9
184 - Tim Johnson (Barton) won by forfeit
197 - Jonathan Bowen (Barton) won by decision over Josh Walker (Neosho) 3-1
285 - Scott Kleinert (Neosho) won by fall over Justin Scarbro (Barton) 6:25
*Neosho was adjusted by -1.000 for Flagrant misconduct

Barton 45, Wentworth Military Academy 12
125 - Will Bardezbain (Barton) won by forfeit
133 - Caysen Smith (Barton) won by fall over Tanner Jones (Wentworth) 4:20
141 - Brady Franklin (Wentworth) won by forfeit
149 - Tyler Jones (Wentworth) won by fall over Zach Vesta (Barton) 1:55
157 - Kade Sander (Barton) won by fall over Bradley Loveland (Wentworth) 1:07
165 - Sean Taborsky (Barton) won by fall over Marcus Yam (Wentworth) 0:40
174 - Devon Baker (Barton) won by decision fall over Iafeta Vou (Wentworth) 0:47
184 - Tim Johnson (Barton) won by fall Noland Puletasi (Wentworth) 1:05
197 - Jonathan Bowen (Barton) won by fall over Nathaniel Tuamoheloa (Wentworth) 6:52
285 - Justin Scarbro (Barton) won by decision over Onosai Pule (Wentworth) 2-0