Liam Fox rocked back onto his heels, let out a deep sigh and pointed both index fingers toward the ceiling.
It was a state championship celebration far more subdued than the Cheyenne East senior’s others. Instead of leaping to his feet when the referee’s hand slapped the mat, Fox paused briefly to bathe in the emotions of adding his name to the elite fraternity of four-time Wyoming state wrestling champions.
“I needed a moment to kind of take it in and give thanks to God,” Fox said. “I give all my praise to God, because none of this would have been possible without Him.
“I’m just grateful that I’ve been blessed to accomplish this.”
Fox pinned Sheridan sophomore Braxten Crow in the Wyoming Class 4A 157-pound state championship bout in 4 minutes, 50 seconds.
After a scoreless first period, Crow chose to start the second frame on bottom. Fox capitalized on that choice by turning Crow to his back for a four-point near-fall with 24 seconds remaining in the period. Crow got an escape to cut Fox’s advantage to 4-1.
Fox took bottom to start the third, and quickly registered a reversal to go up 6-1. Fox turned Crow to his back and closed out his high school career with a pin.
“I could feel (Crow) starting to get his elbow too deep on the claw ride earlier in the period,” Fox said. “He went right back to it, so I pinched and rolled, and that reversal was right there.”
Fox described ending up in a pinning position as a happy accident.
