After the highs and lows of last season’s state tournament, the Discoverer wrestlers are hoping to make improvements that will pay off at season’s end.  Columbus High’s own, Coach Keiswetter took the time to sit down with Anchor News and give us an insight as to what you, the fans, should watch for at future matches this season.

State

Coach Keiswetter stated that the CHS wrestling team has a good chance of sending 7-8 wrestlers to the state tournament in Omaha on February 18th. There are two wrestlers in the run for state titles with Adrian Bice and Brenyn Delano ranking in first in their respective weight classes at the time of writing. 

Keiswetter feels that if the team is able to win more bonus points, the CHS wrestling team will be able to compete with everybody at the state tournament and place highly as a team.  When the season started, the team had a rough start, losing to the Grand Island Islanders despite beating them at the state tournament in the past. Coach Keiswetter says there is always an emphasis on constant improvement, which is a big goal for the team. 

Matches

The dual record for CHS is 8-5. The wrestlers are doing well with winning the Bellevue West tournament and placing 2nd in the Manstedt invite at CCC. January 11th was a big day for the CHS wrestling team since it was a double dual day. Columbus first went up against Omaha Skutt immediately followed by a matchup with Maroon Cup rival Norfolk. 

Of the 28 matches across the 14 weight classes, Columbus broke even twice, finishing 7-7 against both Skutt and Norfolk. Tony Granados’ match against Norfolk was a huge highlight with him down 18-13 resulting in a match that was non-stop action. Granados reversed the match by scoring a pinfall victory at the end of the third period. Along with Granados’ success, Adrian Bice and Blake Cerny helped gain points for the team, contributing quick pins on their opponents in their matches. 

Rylee Iburg

Rylee Iburg is a senior at Columbus High School and a standout in this year’s team. Rylee was unfortunately injured last season during one of his matches and couldn’t wrestle at his full potential. However, at the start of this year, Iburg trained to get back into shape coming off his injury and even participated in district tournaments.  

Iburg has not decided if he would want to pursue wrestling after high school and wants to see how this current season goes. Iburg’s most effective maneuver is using the slide-by technique, mostly using his upper body to his advantage in matches.  Omaha wrestlers tend to be Iburg’s toughest competition in his weight class, but he hopes his training will allow to topple them at future meets. 

Liam Blaser

Junior Liam Blaser is another standout on this year’s team. Liam’s main goal is to finish high school wrestling and will then seek out a football scholarship after graduation. 

Liam’s most effective tactic in any wrestling match is to wear out his opponent using multiple kinds of takedowns and offense. Liam trains just as hard as anybody, pushing beyond his limit for his matches. The wrestlers at Millard North and Lincoln North East are Blaser’s toughest competition 

January 11th was an entertaining night for wrestling fans with two duals and many intense matches from all three of the gathered teams. Make sure to follow CHS News for more posts like these on Fusfoo, Twitter, and Instagram.