Odessa wrestlers won the MRVC Tournament championship earlier this month, and 17 days later they officially clinched the MRVC West regular season championship by defeating rival Oak Grove 35-26 in front of a packed gym.

It marks the Bulldogs' first conference wrestling title since 2007.

The Panthers had won the previous four crowns and wanted desperately to at least share this year's with Odessa, and they had a chance. Bulldogs were leading 29-26 when the final match of the night, Levi Turley versus Preston Airrington at 182 pounds, took the mat.

"With all of the emotion, I could tell Levi was pressing early," Bulldogs head coach Kirk Gross said.

"Preston came out and wrestled real well in that first period and made us work. Turley wasn't bringing his hips through and was getting a little frustrated. On paper, we're a ranked wrestler, and we've beaten him before. But you just never know. You throw records out (at that point). I was confident we were going to win (the match), but it was a nail biter."

The battle ended with 12 seconds left in the second period with Airrington under Turley and the referee's hand slamming the mat.

"It was a great high school wrestling match," Gross said about the dual between two of the top three programs currently in Class 2.

"Heck, it was a great college dual. You couldn't ask for a better atmosphere. The crowd was into it. It was loud. So it was neat that it came down to the last match. We just happened to come out on top." Read more in The Odessan.

Sixth seeded Odessa ended the 2012 Grain Valley Eagles Sonic Showdown January 27 with a 48-38 loss to fifth seeded O'Hara in the fifth place contest.

Lady Bulldogs got 11 points out of Meghan Bamvakais, seven from Morgan Waibel and Erica Fieth and six points from Rayna Smith in the game. But shooting, or lack thereof, was the name of the game.

"We missed way too many easy shots that we need to find a way to get in the basket," head coach Tony Armstrong said. "We were 15-for-53 on two-point attempts, 28%, and they were 16-for-40, 40%. And we actually had easier attempts. They hit some tough shots, and when we got to the line, we were only two-for-eight. Not going to win many games shooting those percentages."

Odessa's shooting woes have been an issue all season long. So has the team's consistency.

"In the last two weeks, we have had every player play well at some time or another," he said. "Our problem is getting consistent play from every player. We need every player to play well at the same time. It seems that one game we have two or three girls play well, and then the next game they don't play as well, but then two or three other players step up and play well. We just keep hoping that all eight play well in the same game like they did against Warrensburg." Read more in The Odessan.

Sixth seeded Odessa boys basketball team gave the third seeded Tigers of Lincoln Prep trouble early in a quarterfinal game of the Grain Valley Eagles Sonic Showdown January 24. But Lincoln Prep, behind 33 points from Deron Toliver, pulled away in the second quarter and advanced with an 81-51 win.

"They came out and got up early on us 7-0," head coach Philip Courter said. "Then Colby Nickels hit a three, which keyed a nice 15-8 run for us. He had six points and Dakota Graham had nine in the first quarter to give us the lead. We were right there with them through half of the second quarter, and then they went on a run." Read more in The Odessan.

Odessa boys basketball team's Grain Valley Eagles Sonic Showdown ended January 26 with a 58-45 loss to seventh seeded Staley in the consolation semifinals. Sixth seeded Bulldogs led 12-9 after one quarter, but the next two quarters were a struggle.

"After a decent first quarter, we really didn't go too hot in the second quarter," head coach Philip Courter said. "The third was a struggle with us going scoreless for the first five minutes. We cut the lead from 12 to 5 in the second half but never could get any closer." Read more in The Odessan.

When you trail the number one team in the state by only seven points beginning the second half, you legitimately have a chance to win the game. But when you commit 11 turnovers in the third quarter and allow the top ranked team to open the half with a 16-0 run, your chance quickly disappears. That's what happened to the Lady Bulldogs Monday against Pleasant Hill.

Neither team played outstanding in the first half, but Pleasant Hill took a little bit better care of the ball and managed to open a 17-10 advantage by intermission. Then the third quarter happened.

"We hung around for a half, but their jump press during the third quarter really hurt us," head coach Tony Armstrong said. "It basically boils down to the fact they have a huge talent and skill advantage, and we just have to get better at some time in the future if we ever want to compete with them." Read more in The Odessan.

Wellington-Napoleon Lady Tigers led 17-6 after one quarter January 27 only to allow Kingsville to tie the game by halftime with an 18-7 run in the second quarter.

The second half, though, belonged solely to Wellington-Napoleon, which outscored Kingsville 33-22 over the final 16 minutes of play to earn their third road win of the season.

"We started out on fire shooting the ball in the first quarter," head coach Andy Hampton said. "For as hot as we were then, we were as cold in the second quarter. We took good shots, but we just couldn't get them to fall. We let Kaylee Herring get some really good looks in the second quarter mainly because we were not getting back on defense. And when you are as good as she is, she made us pay. But we came out in the third quarter with more intensity, and it paid off for us in the end." Read more in The Odessan.

The varsity doubleheader January 24 between Wellington-Napoleon and Lexington resulted in a pair of "no contests."

Lady Tigers scored 17 points in each of the first three quarters of the game and cruised to a 57-20 win.

In the nightcap, the boys team also put four solid quarters together and breezed to a 59-34 win.

"Our girls came out and started off great on both sides of the ball," Lady Tigers head coach Andy Hampton said. "We lost a tough one Saturday (in the finals of the W-N Invitational). We got everyone in the game, and they all did a fantastic job. We had 11 different girls score and all 14 contributed. That always makes for a fun night." Read more in The Odessan.

Knights of Columbus held an annual free throw contest January 26 at the Odessa Upper Elementary School gymnasium.

There were 51 participants age 10-13 who competed. Read more in The Odessan.

Bulldog wrestlers trailed Excelsior Springs Tigers 30-16 with five matches to go January 24.

Odessa, the third ranked team in Class 2, calmly rattled off five straight wins, three of which came by fall, to slip past Excelsior for a 43-30 win.

Tigers were open at 285, handing Levi Lathrop the win.

A. J. Edwards handled Aleks Pulliam easily at 106, scoring a 15-0 tech fall.

Aaron Lemen, 113, won a 14-1 major decision over A. J. Peterson.

Jack Shull needed 3:25 to pin Ricky Baird at 120.

At 126, Shaun Bunyan scored a win by major decision over Mark Fiegenbaum 17-9.

Luke Hudson won a 6-3 decision over Cole Bartow at 132 pounds. Read more in The Odessan.

The Odessa Invitational took place Saturday with 12 teams participating. Wrestlers were placed into two pools of six and wrestled a round robin. A Pool contained wrestlers ranked one through six. B Pool was made up wrestlers seven through 12. Team points were not recorded.

Jack Shull went 4-0 to win 120A. Josh Thomson also went unbeaten, 5-0, to win 160A. Michael Boyd, 170A, scored the win by going 4-0 on the day. Brett Shull won 106B with a perfect record of 3-0. All three of B. Shull's wins came by fall. Jake Bartow went 5-0 to win the 132B weight class. Read more in The Odessan.