By CONOR NICHOLL
Last spring, Sports In Kansas and the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association published the first-ever girls’ wrestling all-time records. This winter marks the fourth year that Kansas has sanctioned girls’ wrestling.
After last year, Great Bend’s Bre Ridgeway was the all-time record holder with 124 victories. She has 11 more than any other Kansas girl. Nine wrestlers had reached 100 career wins.
Three wrestlers, Pratt’s Jadyn Thompson, Washburn Rural’s Addison Broxterman and Lakin’s Josiah Ortiz, ranked first, second and third respectively among returning wrestlers. Thompson and Broxterman had both captured at least one team championship and had at least an individual state runner-up. Ortiz is a defending state champion. Thompson and Broxterman entered this year with 103 and 95 wins, respectively. Ortiz had 85.
It was expected that Thompson and Broxterman would both pass Ridgeway, a multiple state champion. Plus, several wrestlers had strong chances to reach 100 career victories.
Recently, both Thompson and Broxterman surpassed Ridgeway’s mark. Thompson stands at 133-13 and is the current leader. Broxterman stands at 127-24. Ortiz also hit 100 career wins. Other wrestlers to reach 100 have included Hays High’s Sarah Zimmerman, Columbus’ Addison Saporito, and Valley Center’s Grace Timmons. Those are the most wins in school annals for all of those girls.
Thompson is ranked first at 130 in 4-1A. She is part of the Pratt squad that had historical dominance at the state meet last winter and is again ranked first. Pratt has four ranked wrestlers: freshman Gracelyn Hembree is fifth at 125, Thompson at 130, her sister Keimarla is first at 140, and sophomore Wendy Candia is first at 135.
Currently, Broxterman is ranked second in 5-6A at 125 pounds. Washburn Rural is ranked second in the team standings. WR has finished first, first and second at state the last three years. Timmons is ranked second at 170 in 5-6A behind Bonner Springs’ Olivia Stean, a two-time state champion. Zimmerman is third at 110.
Pratt will next compete at the Wellington regional. Rural is at the Wichita Southeast regional. These will be held Feb. 11.
Andale boys take second at prestigious Rocky Welton
Garden City’s 65th annual Rocky Welton tournament is arguably the most prestigious regular season competition of the wrestling year. The tournament had 32 teams. Pine Creek (Colo.) won with 198 points. Andale was second with 190. Garden City took third at 164.5. Newton was fourth at 149.5, while Rose Hill was fifth at 145. Among other Kansas schools, Great Bend took eighth at 118. Scott City was No. 11 at 106, while Valley Center delivered 101 points.
In the 4A rankings, Rose Hill is first, Andale second.
For Andale, Tristen Cox (26-5) was fourth at 106. He is ranked third at 106.
Ethan Eck (27-9) was fourth at 126. For 138, AJ Furnish (30-8) finished third. Furnish is ranked fourth.
Owen Eck (33-0) remained perfect at 144. Eck won four matches by fall and defeated Abilene’s Tucker Cell by major decision. Cell is 23-2. Eck is ranked first at 144.
At 150, Kelby Eck (12-4) was seventh. For 165, second-ranked Ian Aouad (30-4) won the championship. After a fall, he won two straight by fall and a pair of decisions. Riley Marx, perhaps the state’s best male athlete, took third and improved to 23-8. He is ranked second.
Garden City, ranked second in 6A, had several high finishers. Braydon Pacheco (35-5) took fifth at 106. The sophomore is ranked first in 6A.
For 132, Ryan Heiman (28-9) took third at 132. He finished 4-1, including a win by sudden victory. Heiman is ranked first at 132.
Dakota Smith (20-10) was eighth at 144. Ethan Allen (29-10) finished seventh at 157.
For 165, Colin Kleysteuber (28-11) took third with a 5-1 record. Kleysteuber is ranked first in 6A. Alan Chairez (26-7) took fifth at 190. David Holguin (22-11) was sixth at 215.
Top-ranked Sebastian Lopez (29-3) captured the championship at 285. Lopez had a bye and three wins by fall. In the championship, Lopez defeated Newton’s Rio Gomez by a 3-2 decision. Gomez went 26-4 and is ranked second in 5A.
Four wrestlers finished with five pins, including two from Kansas: Liberal’s Trystian Juarez and Great Bend’s Keyven Schroeder. Fifteen wrestlers had four pins. Among Kansas wrestlers, GB’s Cooper Liles, Matthew Johnson and Brody Schnoebelen, Scott City’s Collin McDaniel, Andale’s Riley Marx, Owen Eck and AJ Furnish, Hugoton’s Adam Mendoza and Scott City’s Houston Frank.
Nine wrestlers recorded at least 30 points, seven from Kansas: Andale’s Owen Eck (33), Scott City’s Collin McDaniel (32), Newton’s AB Stokes (30.5), Dodge City’s Luke Barker (30.5) and three with 30: Sebastian Lopez, Goddard’s Zachary Wessley, and Valley Center’s Dai’mont Mucker.
Newton had multiple champions. Nick Treaster (26-1) won at 120. Treaster had a bye, won by fall, sudden victory, fall and decision. AB Stokes (26-4) captured the 126-pound championship. Marcel Gonzalez (16-12) was the 215-pound runner-up. At 285, Gomez finished second.
Rose Hill’s Johnny Leck (18-3) took second at 106. Adam Bilby (19-6) was fifth at 113. Damon Ingram (25-3) was second at 126. Rhett Briggs (27-7) took fourth at 150. Milan Colvin (25-3) was third at 285.
Mid-Continent League champions
The following wrestlers won a MCL boys title:
106: Hill City sophomore Alexander Hamel (27-5) – ranked fourth in 3-2-1A
113: Hoxie freshman Ian Giancola (26-2) – ranked first
120: Phillipsburg sophomore Kaden Sisson (18-1) – ranked third
126: Ellis junior Mason Younger (29-1) – ranked first
132: Hoxie junior Carson Ochs (24-0) – ranked first
138: Hoxie senior Dayton Bell (29-1) – ranked first
144: Hoxie sophomore Duncan Bell (26-3) – ranked third
150: Smith Center senior Bentley Montgomery (37-1) – ranked first
157: Hoxie senior Derek Johnson (29-0) – ranked first
165: Hoxie senior Drew Bretz (27-0) – ranked first
175: Russell senior Brayden Strobel (15-6) – unranked (Hoxie No. 1-ranked Sam Watkins did not wrestle)
190: Norton senior Garrett Urban (27-3) – ranked first
215: Norton senior Jefferson Otter (27-7) – ranked first
285: Norton sophomore Corbin Puga (29-4) – ranked first
