Could this be the year of the rockets in 4A?

The Rose Hill Rockets seem poised to take over the top spot in 4A Wrestling in 2024. They return the most team points by more than 35 to the next team and many of their wrestlers competed all summer to get better for this season. But, as I am sure Coach Saferite and the rest of the coaching staff are probably preaching, now is not the time to try and coast into a State Title. If you look behind them, there is a whole slew of great wrestling programs that are used to winning and they will have something to say about that State Title. They will all have a pretty big uphill battle to catch Rose Hills’ returning points, but these teams know how to win. Teams like Andale, the defending State Champions, take a look back in the record books and you will see they know how to win State Titles. Paola and Tonganoxie both have great winning traditions and will be looking to improve from a year ago. With these teams and many others, the 4A State Championships should be a barn burner as it usually is.

If you have not yet seen my broadcast on the teams returning the most team points in the boys 4A classification, here is another look at the top 10.

Rank	School	Returning Pts	2023 State Finish
1	Rose Hill	118.5	2nd
2	Andale	83	1st
3	Paola	79	4th
4	Tonganoxie	77	6th
5	Independence	58	9th
6	Colby	50	12th
7	Pratt	48	10th
8	Scott City	40	14th
9	Clay Center	39	5th
10	Wamego	38	15th

#1 Rose Hill Rockets – 118.5 returning state team points

Since Coach Saferite’s move to Rose Hill, they have steadily moved up in the 4A rankings each year. Coach Saferite and company have done a great job of building this program into not only a 4A powerhouse but an All-State powerhouse as well. The Rose Hill Rockets finished as runner-ups at last year’s state tournament and are looking to improve on that in the upcoming season. Many of the returners have been busy in the offseason training and competing state wide as well as on the national scene to help their team to a state title in 2024! See below the list of returners;

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Johnny Leck	11	106	State Runner-up
Adam Bilby	11	113	3rd Place
Julio Aguirre	10	120	State Champion
Damon Ingram	11	126	State Runner-up
Rhett Briggs	12	150	5th Place
Tyren Emberson	11	157	S.Q.
Milan Colvin	11	285	3rd Place

#2 Andale Indians – 83 returning state team points

Coach Eck and the Andale Indians are coming off of another State Championship season. The Indians have been a powerhouse in 4A and the state for years. Their strong kids club have been feeding them with great wrestling for a number of years. With this great feeder program and the returners they have, Andale will be looking to compete well with Rose Hill for another state championship. See below their list of returners;

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Triston Cox	10	106	5th Place
Ethan Eck	10	126	S.Q.
Owen Eck	12	144	State Champion
Ian Aouad	12	165	3rd Place
Isaiah Wilson	11	175	State Runner-up

#3 Paola Panthers – 79 returning state team points

Paola has been contending for state titles and trophies for a long time. They also have a great youth feeder program building a good wrestling foundation for the high school. Coach Willard and the Panthers finished 4th last year, just out of a trophy and will be looking to get into the top 3 in the upcoming season. See below for their returners;

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Brook Johnson	10	106	State Champion
Bryson Rockers	10	113	State Runner-up
Kaiden Powell	11	120	3rd Place
Brody Latto	10	126	S.Q.
Hagen Blanck	11	132	S.Q.

#4 Tonganoxie – 77 returning state team points

Tonganoxie is another program that has traditionally been towards the top in the team race in 4A as of late. Coach Delich and staff are doing a great job with the Chieftains Wrestling Program. Tonganoxie finished with a solid 6th place finish at last year’s state tournament but with the most returning 4A state qualifiers, they will look to make a big jump in the coming year and compete for a team trophy. See their state returners below;

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Brodie Starcher	10	106	S.Q.
Dax Duffett	10	126	S.Q.
Braeden Moore	12	132	State Champion
Emmett Crookham	11	138	S.Q.
Brady Martin	10	144	State Runner-up
Noah Bailey	12	150	3rd Place
Gannon Sonntag	12	157	S.Q.
Colton Brusven	12	165	5th Place

#5 Independence – 58 returning state team points

With a top 10 finish (9th) a year and returning the 5th post points in 4A, Coach Camacho has the Indy Bulldog Wrestling program moving in a very positive direction. They have a solid bunch of upperclassman state returners that all placed but have room to gain valuable team points and move up on the podium. See below the state returners;

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Mason Gibbons	12	106	4th Place
Keith Sanders	11	113	5th Place
Kohen Wright	12	132	State Runner-up
Josh Lawrie	12	138	5th Place

#6 Colby – 50 returning state team points

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Ryder Dempewolf	10	106	3rd Place
Kaeden McCarty	12	126	4th Place
Tucker Wark	12	138	4th Place

#7 Pratt – 48 returning state team points

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Maddox Riffey	12	113	S.Q.
Blake Winsor	11	144	4th Place
Taye Wilson	11	150	State Champion
Wyatt Lovell	11	157	S.Q.
Raul Perez	11	165	S.Q.

#8 Scott City – 40 returning state team points

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Ayden Presson	12	132	S.Q.
Alex Rodriguez	11	138	S.Q.
Collin McDaniel	12	150	6th Place
Houston Frank	12	165	State Runner-up
Tanner Gooden	12	215	S.Q.

#9 Clay Center – 39 returning state team points

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Hayden Kalivoda	11	120	S.Q.
Talyn Pfizenmaier	12	157	S.Q.
Tucker Jackson	12	175	3rd Place
Ethan Tiers	11	190	S.Q.
Braylon Berry	12	215	S.Q.

#10 Wamego – 38 returning state team points

Name	This Year’s Grade	Last Year’s Wt	Last Year’s State Finish
Harry Costa	10	106	S.Q.
Knox Karnowski	11	126	5th Place
Thomas McIntyre	12	150	4th Place
Brody Oviatt	12	157	S.Q.
Jake Meyer	12	190	S.Q.