By Justin Jarrett
Sports editor
It was only fitting that Earl Jones led the Labette Cardinal wrestling team through the doors of the LCC Multipurpose Building upon its return to Parsons on Sunday.
After all, it was Jones who led the Cards to the only place they wanted to go - the top of the standings at the NJCAA Wrestling Championships this weekend in Rochester, Minn.
Jones became Labette's first two-time national champion, winning the 133-pound title and clinching the Cardinals' first-ever national wrestling championship in the process. Jones 9-0 victory against Neosho County's Mark Frey in the championship match bumped Labette to 108 team points, putting the Cards out of North Idaho's reach. North Idaho finished with 99 points.
"That was exactly where I wanted to be," Jones said of wrestling with the team title on the line. "If I could, I wanted it to come down to me, and it did. We couldn't have done it without everybody else, but when it came time to seal the deal, I'm glad I had that opportunity."
Jones also was the first of nine national qualifiers to greet more than 200 fans upon the team's return, boasting his "Most Outstanding Wrestler" plaque as he came into the roaring crowd's view.
Two more Cards, 157-pounder Adam Ingram and 197-pounder Jared Shelton, fell just short of joining Jones as national champions. Ingram lost a heartbreaking 7-5 decision in three overtimes against Chase Walker of Northwest Wyoming, and Shelton gave up a questionable takedown with about 20 seconds left in his finals match, falling 6-4 to Yura Malamura of Highline.
The disappointment of losing their title matches did not quickly fade for Shelton and Ingram, though the blow certainly was softened by the Cards' team title.
"I think I got off the floor after about 25 minutes," Ingram said. "When I realized the big picture was 40-some people were getting a ring instead of one guy getting a national title, that made it worth it."
It took more than the three finalists to earn the Cards the team title, though. Six wrestlers earned All-American status with Luke Elmore placing fourth at 149 pounds, Cory Allison taking fifth at 141 and Alex Saunders finishing seventh at 184.
Brandon Pigorsch also helped the Cards' cause with an upset of Lassen's Johnny Rojas in his first match Friday, and Pigorsch was within 1:11 of becoming an All-American himself. Pigorsch led Corey Bowers of Mercyhurst 8-2 in their championship quarterfinal match when Bowers pinned Pigorsch midway through the third period.
The Cards left the arena Friday night under the impression their title hopes were fading. Little did they know they were in second place, trailing North Idaho by 3 1/2 points, and each team had six All-Americans.
"We didn't know how many North Idaho had left, and I had my doubts Friday night," Ingram said. "When we woke up Saturday and found out where we were, it kind of gave us a little boost. We knew we had to give them a dogfight Saturday, and we did."
The title was the final payoff for a season of hard work and dedication, said Labette coach Joe Renfro, who was named national coach of the year after the tourney. Renfro couldn't stress enough the hours of training his wrestlers put in to ensure their success, and Shelton said there were times when he and his teammates had their doubts about the value of their efforts.
"I've never worked so hard for anything in my entire life," Shelton said. "All year Coach has told us it would be worth it, and it was kind of hard to believe him at times because of the torture we were putting ourselves through. There were some times when I thought Coach was the devil, but looking back on it he was right. It was worth it."
