In a remarkably unselfish act, Cascade (Mont.) High wrestler Clancy Ludvigson went to wresting officials at an opponent's senior night and offered himself up as a sacrificial lamb. Ludvigson openly asked to be put in a matchup against a Townsend (Mont.) High senior that he knew would defeat him. There's a good reason for that knowledge, too: Ludvigson planned to let him win.
As covered by Great Falls CBS affiliate KRTV, Ludvigson's charitable act was made for Townsend's Troy Spurlock, a senior wrestler with special needs who had never won a varsity match via a pin or decision (he had only won via forfeit). After watching Spurlock finish his final dual meet with two forfeits and two defeats, Ludvigson unilaterally approached the meet officials and asked for one additional match, between himself and Spurlock.
The officials agreed, and what followed next was magic. As you can see in the video above, all other activity at the meet came to a halt, with Spurlock taking control and then taking Ludvigson down for the first time in the first period.
Three periods and choruses of excited fan chants and cheers later, Spurlock finally finished Ludvigson off with a pin and delivered a celebration that was truly four years, if not a lifetime, in the making.
"I picked the kid up and threw him on the mat and my face like burst into flames, like, I had him! That was the best moment of my life," Spurlock told KRTV. "The best moment of my life, getting that first win. [Townsend wrestling coach John] O'Dell is always saying 'Don't give up, try your best and don't have bad sportsmanship, always have good sportsmanship.'"
Spurlock may have lost a bit of that sportsmanship message in the excitement over his historic victory, with fans and the entire Townsend and Cascade squads celebrating alongside him. In the moments after the win, Spurlock claimed he was going to be a celebrity, that he and Mack Brown (seemingly the Texas football coach and not some other Mack Brown) would be "getting my championship on in Pasadena" and that he was only going to focus on wrestling, not girls in the final push of his wrestling career.
If anything, those giddy celebratory quotes may have made Spurlock's victory even more endearing, and the act of sportsmanship voluntarily put forward by Ludvigson even more impressive.
Not that the Cascade sophomore didn't get some pleasure from losing in such spectacular fashion because of his special opponent.
"This match will stand out in my mind forever," Ludvigson told KRTV. "I don't think I've ever enjoyed losing that much in my life."
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