Marion sends 7 wrestlers to Hays for state
Kyle Palic wins 220-pound weight bracket
Staff writer
Max Gerlach, Jarrett Johnson, Cody Shipman, Bryce Shults, Remington Putter, Adam Janzen, and Kyle Palic — though they didn’t go the distance on horseback, these seven Warriors will ride west Friday for this season’s final showdown at the 3-2-1A State Wrestling Tournament in Hays.
Scoring 152 team points over the weekend, Marion High School’s wrestling team tied Burlington for second place at the 3-2-1A Regional meet in Fredonia. The Warriors were second only to Fredonia, who scored 159 points.
Friday, after the first day of competition, Fredonia was up to 141 points. Marion only had 95 points.
By the end of the tournament, Marion was about one individual win away from tying Fredonia as a team.
“We had a good second day,” coach Chad Adkins said Monday. “Our guys wrestled really tough. Everyone gave it all that they had, and every point mattered.”
Adkins and assistant coach Andy Hansen anticipated the possibility of taking up to 10 wrestlers to state. However, some team members lost matches in the blood round, which determined if they would go or not.
“Noah Albin and Corbin Wheeler lost some heartbreaking matches,” Adkins said. “They each wrestled well; they just came up short.”
Hansen said he was proud of the team’s performance this season.
“This group of kids is the hardest working bunch of self-motivated kids I have ever coached,” Hansen said. “They make coaching easy. They have a lot of heart.”
Adkins echoed Hansen’s sentiments.
“We don’t preach hard work,” he said. “The team just works hard and makes things happen.”
Adkins went on to say a team goal for the state tournament is to place in the top 5.
“It’s not going to be easy, but it is attainable,” he said.
Individual results
Max Gerlach placed third at 106 pounds; Jarrett Johnson, second at 113 pounds; Cody Shipman, fourth at 120 pounds; Bryce Shults, third at 132 pounds; Remington Putter, third at 160 pounds; Adam Janzen, third at 182 pounds, and Kyle Palic, first at 220 pounds.
Last modified Feb. 25, 2015