The Nemaha Central Middle School wrestling team traveled down to Perry for the Big 7 League wrestling meet on Monday, December 6. The Thunder wrestlers performed amazing and placed second at the league meet. There were two divisions in some weight classes consisting of an A-Division and a B-Division. The A-Division is the top of the field and they’re the wrestlers who wrestle for medals and team points. The B-Division is for the wrestlers who don’t get to wrestle for medals or team points.
All but one of the 8 eighth graders made the trek down south and all that attended wrestled in the A-Division. Wrestling at 105 pounds, Layton Thomas went 4-1 and placed third; wrestling at 115 pounds, Jordan Lewis went 2-3 and placed fourth; wrestling at 120 pounds, Sebastian Randall went 4-1 placing second; wrestling at 134 pounds, Jayden Seitz went 3-1 and placed third; wrestling at 141 pounds, Cameron Strathman went 2-3 placing fourth; wrestling at 165 pounds, Daniel Childress went 5-0 and placed first; wrestling at 180 pounds, Carter Hajek went 3-1 and placed second.
All the seventh graders participated and here are the results of the seventh-grade A-Division. Wrestling at 80 pounds, Harry Langill went 2-0 and placed first; wrestling at 90 pounds, Isaac Heinen went 1-3 and placed fourth; wrestling at 95 pounds, Harper Foster went 2-2 and placed third; wrestling at 100 pounds, Brady Koch went 4-1 and placed second; wrestling at 105 pounds, Colten Corby went 0-5 and placed sixth; wrestling at 110 pounds, Conner Lueger went 1-1 and placed second; wrestling at 127 pounds, Caleb Hynek went 3-2 and placed fourth; wrestling at 165 pounds, Kalem Schmelzle went 0-5 and placed sixth; wrestling at 215 pounds, Kyler Ganstrom went 2-1 and placed second.
One of the seventh graders, Gus Rusche wrestled in the B-Division at 110 pounds and went 0-2 and placed second.
“It was a fun experience, but it would have been better if we won,” said Harper Foster.
The Thunder wrestlers’ hard work paid off with a second place team finish at the league tournament. The Thunder athletes have improved immensely over the course of the season. NC will look to improve their wrestling skills for next year.
Coach Schulyer Mayberry said, "The Big 7 tournament went well, as we finished in second place as a team overall, losing by only 3 team points. I'm extremely proud of the kids and they deserve all the praise as they worked really hard for us this season. It's our third year into the program and to finish where we did in a competitive league, like the Big 7, is something our kids and staff are very proud of. The future is bright for NC wrestling, and I can't wait to continue to watch the program and the kids grow."
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