Hillsboro High School wrestler Bret Mueller finished fourth in the 138-lb weight class at the Eureka Invitational Tournament.

Mueller lost his first match to eventually champion, and the top-ranked wrestler at 138 in 4A, Austin Hughey of El Dorado. Mueller then put together a stretch of four consecutive victories.

“Through that stretch of four wins, Bret began showing some flashes of things really starting to click for him,” head coach Scott O’Hare said. “He attacked things very strong and he is starting to transition from one move to the next much better.”

Mueller fell victim to the limit of five matches in one day enforced by the Kansas High School Activities Association. He was forced to forfeit the third-place match.

“I felt like he grew a lot throughout the day and hopefully he continued to improve as we near the final of this his senior season,” O’Hare added.

Cody Delk, 145 lbs., and Tanner Jones, 160 lbs., each recorded wins in their brackets but did not place. Matt Reeh competed at 285 lbs. but could not win a match.

Jon Carey, River Cecil, and Jesse Meier competed in the Stafford junior varsity tournament.

Carey finished 3-2 in the 120-pound class for third place. Meier finished 2-3 in the 145-lb bracket to finish fourth. River Cecil finished 1-4 at 132 lbs, good enough for a fifth-place finish.

“These are three young wrestlers that we are excited about seeing how they progress over the next few years,” O’Hare said. “They all have some nice upside potential, they all work hard, and they have great attitudes.”

With dual tournaments at Hoisington Friday and Southeast of Saline on Feb. 4 and the Marion JV tournament Saturday, O’Hare has decided to have coaches work one-on-one with wrestlers.

“As a coaching staff, we need to watch some film, decide what our strengths and weaknesses are, and begin focusing on getting each individual to wrestle to their strengths,” O’Hare said.