Wrestlers from Arlington Youth Sports, Blair Wrestling Club and Pioneer Wrestling Club competed Sunday at Fremont High School in hopes of qualifying for the Nebraska USA Wrestling State Folkstyle Tournament in Grand Island.
When all was said and done, 61 Washington County grapplers earned their spots with top-four finishes in District 5 Tournament competition. They'll now have a chance to win state championships March 16-17 at the Heartland Events Center.
Arlington's Lane Moore, Ericson Lozo, Finlan Reed and Marissa Blake all secured wins for first place in Fremont. Moore won a 9-0 major decision in his first- and second-grade division's 45-pound title bout, while Lozo, a third- and fourth-grade division wrestler, won two 140-pound matches in just 23 combined seconds.
Reed had a 42-second pin in her last kindergarten match of the tourney, while Blake's run through the fifth- and sixth-grade division closed with a second-period pin against a Wayne Wrestling Club 120-pounder.
Additionally, Arlington second-place finishers at districts were Mercer Monke, Bodhi Nath, Maverick Monke, Monte Monke, Brody Overholt, Caden Butler, Tucker Rehder, Tanner Meyer, Abbigail Schakat and Jaydee Overholt. Carly Sass, Kip Loberg, Ryker Wegner, Teagan Reed and Tyson Soll were third, too.
Blair's Easton Kruse, Emmet Rosterman, Berkley Kruse, Bentlie Roan, Lorelai Fangmeier, Kennedi Roan and Lily Warren earned first-place as well. Easton Kruse earned two fifth- and sixth-grade pins at 140 pounds, while Berkley Kruse had three at 58 pounds in her first- and second-grade division. Bentilie Roan and Fangmeier also earned a pair of pins in the same age group, while Warren had a team-best four pins in the 165-pound, seventh- and eighth-grade division. Rosterman, however, was 2-0 at 200 pounds in the fifth- and sixth-grade category.
Kane Nelson, Levi Baker and David Standen added second-place results for Blair, while Bryer Rosterman, Everette Culver, Greyson Nixon, Lainey Smoyer and Madelyn Kuhr were third to qualify for state. The fourth-place finishers were Wyatt Jensen and Brooks Davis.
Notably, Pioneer Wrestling Club notched nine first-place finishers at districts. Parker Smith was 3-0 with two pins at 48 pounds in the kindergarten division, while Bennett Gossman went 3-0 wth three pins at 75 pounds in the first- and second-grade category. Fifth- and sixth-graders Liam Combs and Kyler Pearson went unbeaten in Fremont, too, while Nathan Duros did the same in seventh- and eighth-grade competition at 195 pounds.
Fort Calhoun's Olivia Nekolite earned a pair of pins to win her 45-pound weight class, while Baeli Gossman and Cara Caruso won two matches apiece, too, for first in their's. Seventh- and eighth-grade wrestler Beckah Gossman was first with three pins at 138 pounds as well.
Taking second for the PWC were John Dennis, Laykyn Bernasek, Barrett Gossman, Korbin Kesteloot and Ledger Bernasek. Henry Jorgensen, Declan Wieczorek, Abel Christensen, Henry Christensen, Michael Dennis, Camryn Reynoldson and Marley DeMilt were third, too.
Pioneers Ryker Wieczorek, Eli Stamm, Michael Lehl and Quentin Billesbach claimed fourth place, state-qualifying results as well.
State Folkstyle wrestling begins 9 a.m. March 16 in Grand Island.
