A bunch of Washington County youth wrestlers and their families made the drive to Grand Island last weekend.
It turned out to be worth the trip for many if not all of them, I reckon.
Settled in at the Heartland Events Center, the grapplers sought top finishes during the NEUSA Wrestling State Folkstyle Tournament with two Blair Wrestling Club and three Pioneer Wrestling Club (PWC) kids ultimately earning first in their brackets.
Firstly, Sam Desmond and Forrest Uhing of Blair successfully earned state championships. Desmond did at 75 pounds in the first- and second-grade age division, while Uhing was first at 150 pounds in the seventh- and eighth-grade tournament.
Brody Desmond and Landry Larsen added third-place finishes across grades 1-8 boys competition, while PWC's Bennett Gossman claimed his own third-place finish at 85 pounds in the third- and fourth-grade category. Arlington's Lane Moore and Alex Blake both earned seventh-place results, too, earning their hometown's top finishes.
In girls grades 1-8 competition, three Fort Calhoun wrestlers secured their own state titles. Olivia Nekolite was first at 49-50 pounds in the first- and second-grade division, while Baelie Gossman wrestled at 65 pounds in the fifth- and sixth-grade competition for first, too.
Champion Cara Caruso earned her fifth- and sixth-grade weight class championship at 101 pounds. Notably, two PWC wrestlers — Marley DeMilt and Dakota Cheloha — earned second on the girls' side, too.
Blair's Lorelai Fangmeier, meanwhile, led her club with a second-place finish at 89 pounds in the third- and fourth-grade tournament. Abbigail Schakat secured Arlington's top finish, too, securing sixth at 120 pounds in the seventh- and eighth-grade division.
In what I assume was the most-fun-to-watch division of competition, pre-kindergarten to kindergarten, Pioneer Wrestling Club's Kellan Cole and Arlington's Myles McElroy both earned second-place finishes. Blakely Hopple led all Blair girls with a sixth-place finish, too, while Blair boys Ezra Keller and Anderson Watts each earned team-leading seventh-place wrestling results.
Finally, in the high school division, Eagles Braxton Soll and Dianna Flores led the way in fifth and seventh, respectively, while Merritt Olberding and Presley Olberding both secured sixth-place finishes.
It took a drive to Grand Island, but these Washington County wrestlers — and many more — impressed.
