The Hoxie Indians look to continue their dominance in 321A wrestling again in the upcoming season. They return 134 team points from 2023, which is more than double the points of any other team. The real race is going to be for the other 2 trophies. Five teams; Sabetha, Effingham-Atchison, Hill City, Norton, and Phillipsburg will all be battling for trophies and are all within 6 team points of each other. These five teams all look very similar, as each one has some high placers returning, low placers returning and several state qualifiers returning. What does this mean? It means, that whichever team or teams get hot and out perform the others will be coming home with a trophy next February! And, as many of you know, anything can happen in high school wrestling. A few bad brakes one way and some good brakes another way, a new team could be crowned in 2024!
Rank
School
Returning Points
2023 State Finish
1
Hoxie
134
1st Place
2
Sabetha
63
3rd Place
3
Effingham-Atchison
60
5th Place
3
Hill City
60
6th Place
5
Norton
59
2nd Place
6
Phillipsburg
57
8th Place
7
Howard West Elk
33
17th Place
8
Larned
32
10th Place
9
Haven
31
11th Place
9
Smith Center
31
4th Place
#1 Hoxie Indians – 134 returning state team points
The 3 time defending State Champion Hoxie Indians look to be in the driver’s seat again for the upcoming season. Coach Porsch and company keep cranking out great talent in Hoxie. The All-Class number one team from a year ago (that bears repeating, HOXIE, A 2A SCHOOL WITH ONLY 133 TOTAL STUDENTS WAS THE NUMBER 1 RANKED TEAM IN ALL OF KANSAS) returns a stellar group of wrestlers. The Indians return 7 state returners including, two 3rd placers, a state runner-up and three state champions.
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Kash Schiltz
11
106
State Runner-up
Ian Giancola
10
113
State Champion
Carson Ochs
12
132
State Champion
Duncan Bell
11
144
3rd Place
Easton Nickelson
11
150
S.Q.
Sam Watkins
11
175
3rd Place
Gavin Schippers
12
285
State Champion
#2 Sabetha Bluejays – 63 returning state team points
Coming off a third place finish a year ago, the Sabetha Bluejays look to take home another team trophy in the upcoming season as they return the second most team points in 321A. They are in a great position to do just that, as they also are tied with the most state returners at 8. They will be lead by two State runner-ups from a year ago and 6 state qualifiers that gained valuable experience last year and will be ready to get on the podium this year.
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Caleb Renyer
11
106
S.Q.
Dennis Mortorff
Unkown
113
S.Q.
Zach Kibbe
12
126
S.Q.
Cullen Wikle
12
132
S.Q.
Colin Menold
12
138
State Runner-up
Cole Hinton
12
144
S.Q.
Dalton Rokey
12
215
S.Q.
Joshua Grimm
12
285
State Runner-up
#3 Effingham-Atchison Tigers – 60 returning state team points
Effingham-Atchison finished in the top 5 last year just out of a trophy. This season the Tigers are tied for the number 3 spot with 60 returning team points. The Tigers also look to be in a great place to trophy this year as they also return 8 state returners. They will be led by two state placers including a state runner-up and will also have 6 returning state qualifiers to help lead the charge for a trophy.
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Rance Vessar
10
120
S.Q.
Adler Koontz
12
126
4th Place
Max Bottorff
10
132
S.Q.
Austin Smith
12
138
S.Q.
Kannon Crossland
11
144
S.Q.
Easton Schletzbaum
11
150
State Runner-up
Carter Page
12
175
S.Q.
Vincent Webb
12
215
S.Q.
#3 Hill City Ringnecks – 60 returning state team points
The Hill City Ringnecks (my favorite mascot) finished just out of the top 5 last year with a 6th place finish. The Ringnecks are tied for the 3rd most returning team points with 60. This team will be looking to bring back another team trophy this year as they are led by 3 state placers including a defending state champion. They also have a supporting cast of 3 state qualifiers that will look to help their team out by getting on the podium in February.
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Alexander Hamel
11
106
3rd Place
Tyler Ashbaugh
10
126
S.Q.
Sylar Rohr
11
144
S.Q.
Dayton Stephen
11
150
6th Place
Cade Dinkel
11
157
S.Q.
Aiden Amrein
12
175
State Champion
#5 Norton Bluejays – 59 returning state team points
Last year’s State Runner- up team, the Norton Bluejays round out the top 5 returning point teams. The Bluejays are no strangers to team trophies, as you can find their name towards the top of the team race each and every year with many of those years at the very top. This year Norton will once again be in the trophy hunt as they return six state wrestlers. They have plenty of opportunities to add valuable team points as the highest returning state placer is 3rd place.
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Ayston Kats
10
106
S.Q.
Derek Clydesdale
10
113
6th Place
Jatin Weigel
10
120
6th Place
Brennen Pfannenstiel
11
138
4th Place
Corbin Puga
11
285
3rd Place
#6 Phillipsburg Panthers – 57 returning state team points
I usually stop at #5, but the Phillipsburg Panther are only 6 points behind the number 2 team with 57 returning state team points. The Panthers return all 6 of their state qualifiers a year ago. Led by a state runner-up, 2 placers, and 3 qualifiers, Phillipsburg will most definitely improve on their 8th place finish a year ago and should be in the hunt to bring home some team hardware in February.
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Kaden Sisson
11
120
State Runner-up
Hunter Sisson
11
126
S.Q.
Blake Buresh
10
132
4th Place
Cole Keeten
11
144
S.Q.
Carsen Meitl
12
150
S.Q.
Seth Keeten
11
157
4th Place
#7Howard West Elk Patriots – 33 returning state team points
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Evan Coble
12
126
5th Place
Creyo Koop
11
165
3rd Place
#8 Larned Indians – 32 returning state team points
Name
This Year’s Grade
Last Year’s Weight
Last Year’s State Finish
Jai Sean George
11
106
S.Q.
Landon Haney
11
175
S.Q.
Luke Fischer
12
190
State Champion
#9 Haven Wildcats – 31 returning state team points
Hoxie
Sabetha
Effingham-Atchison
Hill City
Norton
Phillipsburg
Howard West Elk
Larned
Haven
Smith Center