After a thrilling weekend in the sectional round, the amount of local wrestlers still in contention in the state tournament has been weeded out. 27 local grapplers, six of which are top seeds, remain in regional tournaments taking place at Rochester and Fort Wayne this weekend.

Warsaw Aiming To Beat The Odds Again

At last weekend’s Plymouth sectional the Warsaw wrestling team brought a grand total of 10 wrestlers to compete. Of those 10, seven advanced to Rochester for the regional this weekend. With a pair of top seeds, this Saturday could prove to be another exciting one for the Tigers.

“If we can get half our guys to semi-state, that would be great,” said Warsaw head coach Justin Smith. “We’ve talked all season, as a coaching staff, about being able to get six or seven guys through to the regional and two or three to semi-state. We’re in a position to do that now. We have a few four seeds coming out of the sectional, so it will be tough for those guys. But we are happy with what we’ve got going into regional.”

Kyle Hatch (36-1) has been solid all season and his sectional title at 120 last weekend helped to earn him the top seed at the regional this weekend. Andrew Brock (31-8) will also be sitting at the top of his bracket as he won the 220-pound title at Plymouth on Saturday.

Spencer Gareiss has hit a stride recently as he finished second at 160 at both the conference and sectional meets. His 16-11 record has clearly not been an accurate measuring stick for his late-season effort. Gareiss will look to continue his hot streak as he enter Rochester as a three seed.

Lone Tiger senior Rory Nolin (32-4) will enter the regional as a four seed after finishing as runner-up in the sectional at 195.

132-pounder Jeremy Lee (24-13) will be seeded seventh in his bracket while Kameron Hile (19-15) and Anthony Penn (25-9) will both have eight seeds at 126 and 285, respectively.

No Top Seeds, But Plenty Of Fight For Warriors

Wawasee rebounded at this year’s sectional in a big way. After sending no wrestlers on to the regional last season, four Warriors will be making the trip to Rochester this year.

Tristin Ponsler has been riding one giant wave of energy through his entire junior season. Ponsler won his first conference title two weeks back and claimed the sectional title at 126 last week. His sectional triumph and 38-1 record have earned him the two seed at the regional.

Ponsler faces the best chances of advancing to semi-state as he is the only top-four seed for Wawasee on Saturday.

Senior Zach Ford (18-9) punched his ticket at 160 by finishing third at Plymouth. Ford will be a five seed in the regional. Ricardo Romo (12-21) defied some odds last weekend by finishing fourth and claiming a spot at the regional. Romo will have a tough road as he is the seven seed at 106. Stephen Possell battled through a nagging ankle injury in order to get himself to the regional level. Possell has put up a 29-12 record so far this season but will need to wrestle his very best as he enters as the eight seed at 170.

“Tristin (Ponsler) will wrestle the four seed from the other sectional,” Wawasee head coach Paul Meyer stated. “A few years back the top seed from our sectional lost to that sectional’s four seed. You just can’t take anything for granted.

“Every day is a new beginning. Everyone is 0-0 going into regional so we’ll see what happens.”

Triton Looking To Continue Hot Streak

The Trojans brought home four champions at the sectional last weekend, more than any other team. In addition to that, Triton also advanced an additional three wrestlers to Rochester for this weekend.

Malachi Greene (31-7) will be the top seed at 106 after winning the sectional. Greene will be joined by Gage Waddle (26-6) as the only two Trojans with top seeds. Waddle will sit atop the 160-pound bracket.

Grant Stichter (27-9) also won a sectional title but he will be seeded second at 152. Nate Spangle will also have a two seed. Spangle won the sectional at 170 and enters the regional with a 33-3 mark.

Justin Hefner wrestled his way to the title match at 285 last weekend. The sectional runner-up will be seeded fourth with a 25-11 record at 285 this weekend. John Salinas and Jeremy Jones will both be seeded seventh at 182 and 220, respectively.

Childers, Bell Hope To Stay On Top At Regional

Tippecanoe Valley managed to overcome a rough season and advance three wrestlers to the regional this weekend. While head coach Scott Smith was hoping for more than three regional qualifiers, having two top seeds is nothing to be unhappy about.

“The three we have going to regional have a great opportunity,” Smith stated. “They have the opportunity to move on to semi-state. It’s now a mental challenge. They have to prepare themselves mentally for the challenge ahead.

“I really believe all three of our guys can make it to semi-state. The story will be about who shows up. That’s true for every kid, at every school, all around the state. Who is ready to go mentally? Physically, our guys are there. They just have to show that they are ready to persevere mentally.”

Devin Childers passed the challenges at sectional last weekend as he earned a sectional title at 132. Childers (37-1) will be the top seed at Rochester.

Garrett Bell (35-2) claimed a sectional title at 182 in dramatic fashion with a takedown in overtime. Bell will also be a top seed at the regional.

Wyatt Nelson will need to master his mental game as he enter that 138-pound bracket as the eight seed. Nelson finished fourth at the sectional and will enter the regional with a 32-8 record.

Six Wildcats Heading Back To Carroll

After spending all day at Carroll High School last Saturday, six Whitko wrestlers are more than pleased to return to the Summit City this weekend.

Erick Loe (13-3) will lead the Wildcats back to Carroll for the regional as he enters the field as the two seed at 160. Loe was the lone Wildcat to claim a sectional title last weekend.

Lane Collier was runner-up at 113 in the sectional. His efforts have earned him a three seed at the regional. Collier has a 12-9 record for the season.

Loe and Collier represent the highest two seeds for the Wildcats.

Dalton Hite (10-9) will be the eight seed at 120 after finishing fourth at the sectional. Tom Werstler claimed third at the sectional and will enter the regional as a five seed at 152. Werstler is 24-10 on the season.

Whitko will have two six seeds on Saturday as Evan Cozad (27-7) will hold down that spot at 145 and Zach Baughman (30-3) will represent the Wildcats with that seed at 182.