The talented, athletic wrestlers of Columbus have competed in the state wrestling tournament for decades. 

This year, Columbus brought a dozen wrestlers to the show of shows for a shot at taking home another state title. Wrestlers Liam Blaser, Adrian Bice, Caydn Kucera and Bryson Huey, Kaden Brownlow, Brenyn Delano, Carter Fedde, Levi Cerny and Marcus Beltran, Jaeston Delano, Mason Petersen and sole girls wrestler Marissa Anderson made the trek to Omaha and returned with several medals in tow.

Throughout the event, the wrestlers faced several challenges. The competition was at its highest level of the entire season. 

Head Coach Adam Keiswetter claims, “The biggest challenge of the state tournament for a wrestler is being able to perform their best when the level of competition is the highest. Our team has done a great job in the last few years of peaking.” 

The final results of the event are never guaranteed. Keiswetter says, “There is no guarantee that if you put in 100% effort and work hard that you will always win, but they will be proud of the effort they put in and be proud of the results.” 

“We seek out all of the top teams during our season, so there were not very many surprises. We had competed with almost every opponent in the tournament, so that we knew what to expect going in. We had some wrestlers defeat opponents they had lost to over the course of the season and that shows they were able to learn from that loss and make some changes whether it was strategic or a technique they did not execute properly and fix that for the next time they saw that opponent.”

The results from this year’s tournament speak volumes to CHS’s efforts this season. Junior Marissa Anderson won her first state tournament match, though she did not place in the top eight. Other wrestlers who did not place were Levi Cerny, Kaden Brownlow, Marcus Beltran, Carter Fedde and Bryson Huey. 

Senior Caydn Kucera ended the tournament by placing second, the highest in the Columbus group, and earning a place in the final match. Senior Adrian Bice placed third and Liam Blaer placed fourth. Junior Brenyn Delano and Freshman Jaeston Delano ended the event with a sixth place finish. Finally, Freshman Mason Petersen ended with a third place finish.

In conclusion, Columbus wrestling was well represented this year at state. The team worked hard and showed off at the event and in the end, left it all on the mat. For more sports and school events, be sure to follow CHS Anchor News on Twitter, Fusfoo, and Instagram!