WILTON

Highland Results 

The state tournament in Des Moines beckoned to all high school wrestlers this past weekend as the Huskies traveled to Wilton last Saturday to compete in the Class 1A District 12 state qualifying tournament. 

In each weight bracket the first and second place wrestlers earned the right to continue their season at state. Including Highland, 11 teams entered the foray at Wilton with state dreams on their mind.

Highland had eight Huskies compete at Districts and they ended the day with one wrestler winning enough matches to head to state. 

A first-place outing by senior Luke Guseman made sure Highland will be represented in the upcoming state tournament. 

Guseman, wrestling at 120 lbs, went undefeated at Wilton to finish at the top of the podium and punch his ticket to state for the second consecutive year. 

Guseman’s semifinal match against New London’s Kane Forseen went to overtime. In OT, Guseman delivered a takedown to win by sudden victory, 6-4. 

In the first-place match Guseman was matched up against Austin Etzel of the hosting school Wilton, needless to say the crowd was very much behind Etzel. 

A back-and-forth match, both wrestlers were knotted up at 5-5 going into the third period. Guseman knew he had to stay focused to reach victory. 

“My whole thought process during the whole match was just, I got to score the next point and I got to fight through every position, even if it means not scoring a point or trying to score a point, that was my whole thought process during the whole first place match,” Guseman said. 

His focus and determination paid off, even in the face of what felt like the entire gymnasium rooting against him, Guseman scored seven points in the final period to win by decision, 12-6. 

After suffering a leg injury earlier in the season Guseman has not wrestled as much compared to last year but he proved that time off did not diminish his ability to win when it matters most. 

Guseman will head into state with a 16-5 record. 

Coming close to state was sophomore Brock Thomann, who placed third at 126 lbs. After a loss in the quarterfinals, Thomann battled his way back, winning twice to advance to the second-place match. 

In the second-place math Gage Burden of New London defeated Thomann by decision, 6-2. Thomann’s season ends with a 31-17 record.  

The 2024 IHSAA State Wrestling Tournament will take place at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines from Feb. 14-17.

Lone Tree Results 

Out of the 12 locations in Class 1A hosting districts last Saturday, the Lions traveled to Pleasantville to compete in the District 8 tournament.

Lone Tree competed with 10 other schools at Pleasantville, and they had five Lions vie for a spot in the state tournament. When it was all said and done, one Lone Tree wrestler earned the right to head to Des Moines. 

Getting the opportunity to continue his freshman campaign, Brock Nebergall went 2-1 at districts, finishing in 2nd place to punch his ticket to state. 

Nebergall, wrestling at 113 lbs, won his semifinal match by fall in 43 seconds but was defeated in the first-place match by fall in 1:18.

In his last match of the day, Nebergall earned second place with a victory by fall in 52 seconds over Plesantville’s Brendan Baker. 

Neberall was the only Lion to win a match at districts with his teammates Cole Walmsley (6-19), Clemens Swaink (3-21), Jacob Bell (2-24), and Brody Magruder (5-14) all having their seasons end at Pleasantville. 

This will be Neberall’s first trip to the state tournament and he will enter the tourney with a 14-15 record. 

Mid-Prairie Results 

The Golden Hawks went to Solon last Saturday to battle it out with seven other schools in the Class 2A District 9 state qualifying tournament. 

Mid-Prairie had 11 wrestlers compete at Solon. As a team they scored 53 points to finish sixth in the final standings. 

Multiple Golden Hawks came close, but ultimately with no first or second place finishes, Mid-Prairie had no one qualify for state and their wrestling season came to a close. 

The highest placement Mid-Prairie had was third, and this was accomplished by three Golden Hawks: Tucker Miller, Quinn Callahan, and Burke Berry. 

Miller, wrestling at 138 lbs, went 3-2 to place third. Miller’s first two wins were by fall in 3:14 and 3:35 respectively and his last win came by decision, 6-4. His senior season ends with a 27-9 record. 

Callahan, at 215 lbs, won three matches in a row to advance to the second place match after he lost his first match by fall in 2:38. 

Unfortunately his winning streak was snapped in the second place match, being defeated by Solon’s Lucas Feuerbach by fall in 2:21. Callahan’s junior year ends with a 24-20 record.

Berry ended the tourney with three wins and two losses. Wrestling at 285 lbs, Berry won all three of his matches by fall in 33 seconds, 57 seconds, and 4:25 respectively. 

In his second place match he was defeated by fall in 3:57. Berry’s junior year ends with a 31-10 record. 

Next up for Highland and Lone Tree is participating in the 2024 IHSAA State Wrestling Tournament, taking place at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines from Feb. 14-17.