Five Wildcats earn Ironman Award honors

Now that the summer is coming to a close, it’s time to announce the winners of the 2016 Ironman Award:

• Ryan Adams (157 points)
• Garrett Caldwell (151 points)
• Brandon Doles (138 points)
• Kyle Allen (106 points)
• Hunter Bindi (100 points)

These wrestlers will get their names printed on a t-shirt. Each year we’ll continue the tradition of the Ironman Award competition and award winners will have their names added to the list on the back of the shirts!

The following wrestlers made it to quite a few summer wrestling events and came close to getting their names on the shirt: Cade Holtzen, Harrison Laney, Kaden Allen, Collin Hamilton, Mason Koechner, and Hunter Millbern.

Wildcats surge on the backside, finish runners-up at Topeka

Topeka Invitational

January 17, 2015

With three open weights, the LHS wrestlers knew that it would be difficult to have a strong team showing, especially against teams like Topeka High and Highland Park who had full line-ups. However, thanks to a strong surge on the back side of the bracket, the Wildcats made a run for the team title, falling just shy of achieving the championship. Topeka High won its home tourney with 175.5 points, LHS was in 2nd with 166.5 points, and Highland Park was in 3rd with 125.5 points. With the exception of one wrestler, all Wildcats earned a place in the top-4 in his weight class.

The Wildcats pose after taking 2nd at the Topeka Invitational. Eleven out of twelve Wildcats placed in the top 4.

Three Wildcats brought home the gold: senior Zach Knox at 132, freshman Ryan Adams at 138, and senior Brenton Wrigley at 195. Knox opened the tournament with a first-period pin, then edged out the #3 seed by a decision in the semifinals. In the finals, Knox trailed by a point, scored a scramble takedown and put his opponent on his back to earn the pin and his first varsity championship of the season. Adams made quick work of all three of his opponents, going 3-0 with three pins to earn his first high school championship. Wrigley won his second championship of the season by pinning all three of his opponents, too.

Four Wildcats brought home 3rd place finishes: sophomore Nathan Keegan at 113, freshman Tucker Batten at 126, sophomore Connor Green at 145, and sophomore Mason Koechner at 220. Keegan’s only loss was to the #2 ranked wrestler in the state from Schlagle. Batten rebounded from a first-round loss to the eventual champion by pinning two opponents and tech-falling his third. Green fought through a hard-earned overtime victory to win his first varsity medal. Koechner lost a close semifinals match but had no trouble bouncing back to take third. Koechner had three pins on the weekend.

On the backside of the brackets, the Wildcats really showed a lot of heart. Freshman Kyle Allen (120 lbs.), sophomore Ben Hupp (160 lbs.), and sophomore Lyndon Smith (182 lbs.) each went 2-2, with all their wins by pin, to finished 4th in their respective weight classes. Junior Jordan Crowder was 1-2 with 1 pin to finish 4th at 170 lbs. Allen is filling in at 120 while Keegan drops down to fill in at 113, and Smith is filling in for Jimmy Dolan at 182 after Dolan was seriously injured in a car accident earlier this week. Freshman Thad Hendrix began the tournament at 106 lbs., but a rib injury suffered earlier in the week caused him to injury default from the tournament.

With our performance at Topeka High, the Wildcats have shown that they can rebound from a team tragedy and battle through against the odds. Next weekend, we travel to Parsons for the 4th Annual Parsons Duals, where we finished 2nd as a team in 2014.

Individual Results:
106 lbs. – Thad Hendrix (fr.) 0-1, injury default
113 lbs. – Nathan Keegan (so.) 3-1, 3rd place
120 lbs. – Kyle Allen (fr.) 2-2, 2 pins, 4th place
126 lbs. – Tucker Batten (fr.) 3-1, 2 pins, 1 tech fall, 3rd place
132 lbs. – Zach Knox (sr.) 3-0, 2 pins, CHAMPION
138 lbs. – Ryan Adams (fr.) 3-0, 3 pins, CHAMPION
145 lbs. – Connor Green (so.) 3-1, 1 pin, 3rd place
152 lbs. – open
160 lbs. – Ben Hupp (so.) 2-2, 2 pins, 4th place
170 lbs. – Jordan Crowder (jr.) 1-2, 1 pin, 4th place
182 lbs. – Lyndon Smith (so.) 2-2, 2 pins, 4th place
195 lbs. – Brenton Wrigley (sr.) 3-0, 3 pins, CHAMPION
220 lbs. – Mason Koechner (so.) 3-1, 3 pins, 3rd place
285 lbs. – open

Team Placing:
2nd place out of 11 teams (166.5 points)

Next Competition: Parsons Viking Duals (January 23, 2015)

Trio leads Wildcats with third place finishes at home invitational

Louisburg Wildcat Classic

January 10, 2015

With just one open weight and several unattached wrestlers entered in the tournament, the LHS Wildcats made a pretty good showing at the Louisburg Wildcat Classic Invitational. Louisburg finished in 6th place with 128.5 points. Rockhurst won the championship with 230 points, Baldwin was second with 206.5, and Lansing was third with 165. Three wrestlers finished in 3rd place in their respective weight class, and two finished in 4th place.

The Wildcats were led by 113-pound sophomore David Bindi, 139-pound freshman Ryan Adams, and 220-pound sophomore Mason Koechner. Adams, whose sole loss in the tournament was against a state-ranked opponent from Baldwin, had three pins and a major decision. Koechner was 4-1 with three pins. His lone loss was a 3-0 decision to a state-ranked opponent from Baldwin. Bindi, who is returning after sitting out due to a concussion, had two tough losses, but recorded three pins on the day. Freshman Kyle Allen made his varsity debut, wrestling unattached at 120 lbs. and taking 4th place. Junior Jimmy Dolan had an incredible tournament, but dropped two matches and finished 4th at 182 lbs. Sophomore Nathan Keegan was 2-2 at 120 lbs., earning 1 pin and 1 major to take 5th place, and senior Zach Knox was 3-2 at 132 lbs., earning 1 tech fall and 1 major to take 5th place.

Freshman Thad Hendrix was 6th place at 106 lbs., junior Jordan Crowder was 6th place at 170 lbs., and junior Bradley Trageser was 6th place at 220 lbs. Each of them earned at least one win by pin. Sophomore Dylan Meyer wrestled unattached at 132 lbs., losing by major decision to teammate Knox for 6th place. Sophomores Connor Green (145 lbs.) and Ben Hupp (160 lbs.) were each 2-2 and finished 9th in their respective weights. Junior Dillin Roberts, wrestling unattached at 160 lbs., finished 10th in his weight. Freshman Tucker Batten was 9th at 126, and junior Zach Jones was 8th at 152.

Some notable performances include Allen winning his first varsity medal at his first varsity meet of the season, Hendrix earning the tournament’s fastest pin in 0:09, and Koechner leading the team with his 19th win of the season.

Next week, the Wildcats will travel to Topeka High School for the Topeka Invitational Tournament. We hope to improve on our third-place finish from last season.

Individual Results:
106 lbs. – Thad Hendrix (fr.) 1-3, 1 pin, 6th place
113 lbs. – David Bindi (so.) 3-2, 3 pins, 3rd place
120 lbs. – Nathan Keegan (so.) 2-2, 1 pin, 1 major, 5th place
120 lbs. – Kyle Allen (fr.) 1-3, 1 pin, 4th place (unattached)
126 lbs. – Tucker Batten (fr.) 0-4, 9th place
132 lbs. – Zach Knox (sr.) 3-2, 1 tech fall, 1 major, 5th place
132 lbs. – Dylan Meyer (so.) 1-3, 6th place (unattached)
138 lbs. – Ryan Adams (fr.) 4-1, 3 pins, 1 major, 3rd place
145 lbs. – Connor Green (so.) 2-2, 2 pins, 9th place
152 lbs. – Zach Jones (jr.) 1-4, 8th place
160 lbs. – Ben Hupp (so.) 2-2, 1 pin, 9th place
160 lbs. – Dillin Roberts (jr.) 2-3, 2 pins, 10th place (unattached)
170 lbs. – Jordan Crowder (jr.) 2-3, 1 pin, 6th place
182 lbs. – Jimmy Dolan (jr.) 3-2, 1 major, 4th place
195 lbs. – open
220 lbs. – Mason Koechner (so.) 4-1, 3 pins, 3rd place
285 lbs. – Bradley Trageser (jr.) 2-3, 1 pin, 6th place

Team Placing:
6th place out of 13 teams (128.5 points)

Next Competition: Topeka Invitational (January 17, 2015)

White Team victorious at the Purple-White Scrimmage!

4th Annual Purple-White Scrimmage

2 December, 2014

Keeping the tradition going, the Wildcats unofficially kick-started the season with the 4th Annual Purple-White Scrimmage. Thirty-nine wrestlers took to the mat Tuesday evening to give our home crowd a show in a formal intersquad dual to determine who will represent LHS at the varsity level. Wrestlers also engaged in matches to determine the ranking in each weight class and exhibition matches to give them invaluable mat experience.

Ultimately, the White Team prevailed 66-45. The White Team is currently 3-1 against the Purple Team since the scrimmage’s inception in the 2011-12 season.

Although there were several pins on the evening, there were also many exciting match-ups. Winning a 7-0 decision at 145 lbs., freshman Will Ridley defeated sophomore Connor Green for the varsity spot. Sophomore Nathan Keegan edged freshman Kyle Allen at 120 lbs., and senior Zach Knox won a tough 6-4 decision against sophomore Dylan Meyer at 132 lbs. Senior Brenton Wrigley defeated junior Jimmy Dolan for varsity at 182 lbs. In other varsity wrestle-offs, sophomore Ben Hupp pinned Dillin Roberts in an exciting come-from-behind match at 160 lbs. Sophomore Mason Koechner pinned junior Bradley Trageser at 220 lbs., and junior Jordan Crowder pinned junior Marshall Rooney at 170 lbs. Uncontested for varsity positions were freshman Thad Hendrix at 106 lbs., sophomore David Bindi at 113 lbs., freshman Tucker Batten at 126 lbs., freshman Ryan Adams at 138 lbs., junior Zach Jones at 152 lbs., and Anders Vance at 285 lbs. Senior Joey Goode was to face off against sophomore Nathan Allen at 195 lbs., but a concussion suffered at practice prevented Goode from being able to wrestle.

The Wildcats feature several returning lettermen from last season. Bindi was 21-14 at 106, Knox was 27-15 at 126, and Goode was 13-9 at 195. Bindi, Meyer, Knox, and Wrigley were all one match away from qualifying for state in 2014. Other letterwinners in 2014 include Dolan, Jones, Roberts, Trageser, Vance, and Koechner. Senior Nephi Rodriguez, Hupp, Keegan, and sophomore Owen Staver also won varsity matches last season.

For the fourth year, we’ve been proud to welcome back several figures from Louisburg High School Wrestling history. This season we had the honor to have Shawn Crossley (’98), Dereck Kerr (’00), Justin Kircher (’00), and Jesse Myers (’00) serve as honorary coaches. Crossley was a 3-time state qualifier, sported an 83-31 career record, and was the 1998 Senior Wrestler of the Year. Kerr was a 4-time state qualifier, a 2-time Frontier League champion, and had an 80-28 career record. Kircher was a 2-time state qualifier for the Wildcats. Myers was a 3-time state qualifier, a regional champion, a 2-time Frontier League champion, and had a 63-21 career record. All four were members of the 1997 team that was undefeated Frontier League Duals champions and the 1998 team that won the Frontier League Tournament. That team was also 12-1 in duals and won team titles at Spring Hill, Louisburg, and Prairie View. Crossley and Kerr coached the White Team to its third straight victory in the Purple-White series.

The Wildcats officially begin the season with a home dual against Osawatomie on Thursday, December 4. The varsity then takes to the mats Saturday, December 6 at the Fort Scott duals where we’ll face off against Anderson County, Blue Valley Southwest, Fort Scott, Paola, and Shawnee Mission West. That same day, JV will compete at the Blue Valley North JV Tournament.

Varsity Challenge Matches:
120 lbs. – Nathan Keegan (Purple) def. Kyle Allen (White) dec. 6-4
132 lbs. – Zach Knox (Purple) def. Dylan Meyer (White) dec. 8-6
145 lbs. – Will Ridley (Purple) def. Connor Green (White) dec. 7-0
160 lbs. – Ben Hupp (White) def. Dillin Roberts (Purple) wbf
170 lbs. – Jordan Crowder (Purple) def. Marshall Rooney (White) wbf
182 lbs. – Brenton Wrigley (White) def. Jimmy Dolan (Purple) dec. 6-2
220 lbs. – Mason Koechner (White) def. Bradley Trageser (Purple) wbf

Ranking Matches:
132 lbs. – Jaylen Boileau (White) def. Sierra Sullivan (Purple) wbf
145 lbs. – Chris Turner (Purple) def. Jacob Mitchell (White) wbf
160 lbs. – Kylan Harper (White) def. Jud Deering (Purple) wbf
160 lbs. – Leland Koehn (White) def. Kain O’Keefe (Purple) wbf
182 lbs. – Lyndon Smith (White) def. Billy Rose (Purple) wbf
220 lbs. – Nephi Rodriguez (Purple) def. Matthew Rison (White) wbf

Exhibition Matches:
106 / 120 lbs. – Thad Hendrix (Purple) def. Alec Maler (White) wbf
113 / 120 lbs. – David Bindi (White) def. Nathan Keegan (Purple) dec. 6-4 OT
132 / 145 lbs. – Garrett Caldwell (Purple) def. Jaylen Boileau (White) wbf
138 / 152 lbs. – Ryan Adams (White) def. Zach Jones (Purple) wbf
160 lbs. – Owen Staver (Purple) def. Zac Meyer (White) wbf
182 lbs. – Austin Raetzel (White) def. Billy Rose (Purple) wbf
195 / 220 lbs. – Josh Vickrey (White) def. Nathan Allen (Purple) wbf
220 / 285 lbs. – Anders Vance (White) def. Bradley Trageser (Purple) wbf

Next Competitions:
Thursday, Dec. 4: Osawatomie Dual @ HOME, 6:30pm (Varsity and JV)
Saturday, Dec. 6: Ft. Scott Duals, 9:00am (Varsity)
Saturday, Dec. 6: Blue Valley North JV, 8:00am (JV)