Fort Calhoun 125-pound wrestler Madi Larrick was determined to impress Saturday during her first high school home tournament.
“I get to represent this school and show them what we're made of,” she said.
The Pioneer and teammate Gage Nixon both went unbeaten in their weight classes, claiming bracket titles. Larrick's girls team finished eighth overall, while Nixon's boys squad took third behind first-place Schuyler and Millard South.
“I knew what I was going to do kind of before I did it,” Nixon said after his first-round pin of the champion Warriors' Arturo Ovando at 132 pounds. The FCHS senior used a “wing and a half,” stopping his opponent in 3:02.
“It was kind of something I wanted to do all year, but, I mean, it was there, so I took it,” Nixon said.
From there, the 4-2 wrestler pinned Omaha Roncalli's Daniel Westcott and Landon Schneider of Millard South to win his bracket. It took him just 1:39 to claim the final by fall.
Larrick, meanwhile, faced Palmyra's Scarlett Weitzel first. The Panther was strong, earning some leverage against the Pioneer before Larrick pinned her in 45 seconds.
“I was a little bit intimidated, but I wanted to come at it strong,” the 125-pound tourney champ said.
Larrick beat Omaha Northwest's Elena Bridges and Faith Schamp of Gretna next, never leaving the first period to claim first in her bracket.
In addition to its two first-place finishers, three Pioneers earned second in their weight classes Saturday. Freshman brothers Merritt and Presley Olberding claimed silver at 106 and 113 pounds, respectively, while TJ DeMilt was second to Wahoo's Noah Bordovsky at 165.
DeMilt said he enjoys wrestling on the home mats, noting the comfortability.
“I feel like it is easier because you have your own area,” he explained.
After a quarterfinals pin of Sun Moo Aung of Omaha Northwest, DeMilt said his goal was to reach the finals.
“I've got to be focused through the whole entire day,” he explained. “Make sure I get warm before each match.”
The 165-pounder met the goal, while FCHS' Fred Altstadt, AJ Duros and Tacey Belina all claimed third in their weight classes. Altstadt was 3-1 at 150 pounds, while Duros amassed the same record at 157. Both boys pinned their third-place match foes.
Belina, meanwhile, lost her opening 155-pound match by decision, but wrestled back to pin Melody Johnson of Gretna in the bronze-medal bout.
The Pioneers' Ali Dill also medaled in her first home tourney, going 1-2 at 130 pounds. She was fourth, besting her third opponent of the day by pin.
Connor Holmstedt medaled for Fort Calhoun at home, too, but Friday during its junior varsity tournament. He was third at 215 pounds, going 4-1 in contested matches.
Pioneers fall short in road duals
Before fulfilling their hosting duties, the Pioneers' wrestling teams hit the road Thursday.
FCHS competed against the host Ralston Rams and Arlington, going 0-for-4 in duals during a triangular. The boys lost 45-36 and 40-33 to the Eagles and Rams, respectively, while the girls lost 57-0 to AHS and 60-6 to the home team.
Against Arlington, Seth Waters, DeMilt, Merritt Olberding and Presley Olberding earned pins for the FCHS boys. Both Olberding brothers, Duros and Nixon notched pins against Ralston, too, while Landon Bernasek claimed a 9-4 decision.
Merritt Olberding's pin against the Rams took just 12 seconds.
Larrick, meanwhile, claimed the Fort Calhoun girls' lone team points Thursday night. The Pioneer earned six by forfeit against Ralston.
FORT CALHOUN VARSITY TOURNAMENT
Saturday at FCHS
BOYS
Team standings: Schuyler 201.5, Millard South 143.5, Fort Calhoun 107, Columbus Scotus 94, Wahoo 91.5, Boys Town 86, Omaha Northwest 77, Palmyra 65, Omaha Roncalli 46.
FCHS top-6 finishers: 1, Gage Nixon, 132 pounds, 3-0 tourney record. 2, Merritt Olberding, 106, 2-1. 2, Presley Olberding, 113, 2-1. 2, TJ DeMilt, 165, 2-1. 3, Fred Altstadt, 150, 3-1. 3, AJ Duros, 157, 3-1.
GIRLS
Team standings: Omaha Westview 122, Conestoga 100, Palmyra 89, Gretna 67, Raymond Central 61, Blair 55, Omaha Northwest 54, Fort Calhoun 44.
FCHS top-6 finishers: 1, Madi Larrick, 125 pounds, 3-0 tourney record. 3, Tacey Belina, 155, 2-1. 4, Ali Dill, 130, 1-2.
