Winter Sports---Ending on a Good Note
by Katie Finley
March 02, 2010
The Kenesaw-Shelton wrestling team walked away very happy from the Red Cloud/Blue Hill Invitational on January 30. The team took first place with 158 points; and Nick (103), Cogan (152), and Josh (215) all placed in their weight brackets. All this would make the meet a good one, but what made it extra special was Josh reached his personal goal of 100 wins. Tanner Hawks, another member of the team, also reached his personal goal of 100 wins. "It feels good to reach the accomplishment; sharing it with my teammate, Tanner, made it even better," Josh explained.
February 6, the team traveled to Grand Island Central Catholic to participate in the Crusader Wrestling Invitational. The team placed ninth out of 16 teams. Josh (215) was the only member from Kenesaw to wrestle at the invitational. Josh had two byes to start off the day and went on to win first place in the 215-pound weight bracket, pinning both his opponents in the first period.
Wrestling Districts took place on February 12 and 13 in York. The team did great, placing seventh out of 12 teams, and sending five teammates to State. Nick (103) wrestled hard, but wasn't able to pull off a win. Cogan (152) did not take part in the district meet. Josh (215) won his first match of the day with a decision 14-1, but fell to Brock Sherman from Crete with a pin in the second period. Even with the setback, Josh placed third in the 215-pound weight bracket, which was good enough to send him to State. Tanner Hawks, Collin Donahoo, Traven Claffin, and Jordan Rodriguez also attended the State Wrestling Tournament at the Quest Center in Omaha on February 18-20.
To send the boys off and wish them luck, the school held a pep rally in honor of the five wrestlers going to State and for their coaches. Kindergarten through seniors all attended, along with the families of the five wrestlers. During the pep rally the boys participated in games that the dance squad had prepared for the event, and the coaches and players expressed their excitement and hopes for State. State Wrestling started on Friday, February 18, Josh (215) was matched up against Tyler Sleicher from Broken Bow and pinned him in the second period, advancing Josh to the quarter-finals where he lost to Shaquill Berrett. The loss sent him to the second round of the wrestle backs where he beat Tanner Collin with a 4-3 decision. In the quarter finals of the wrestle backs Josh lost to Tom Keck with an 8-3 decision, ending his career with a 108 wins. Among the other Kenesaw-Shelton wrestlers participating, Tanner Hawks (171) placed third in the 171-pound bracket.
