Trojan wrestlers place second, third in tournaments
With so many matches in such a short time, Hillsboro wrestling coach Scott O'Hare knew his team would be tested, heart, mind, and body.
He hoped his team would learn from the physical and mental struggle. But just getting through it without injuries was his primary goal.
In the aftermath, his wrestlers proved they had the the mettle to get the job done on the mat. And, they got through unscathed.
O'Hare was able to give his team a day off from practice Monday, but that was as much rest as could afford.
Hillsboro's version of "Wrestle Mania" continues Saturday, and there's no time to lose.
Led by a consistent group of grapplers who continue to to muscle their way onto the awards platforms at big tournaments, the Hillsboro High School wrestling team captured second and third in two tournaments recently.
On Jan. 22-23, the Trojans placed third in the Halstead Invitational Tournament. This past Friday, they placed second at the Hoisington Cardinal Classic.
Led by 171-pound junior Jacob Yoder, who placed first at Halstead and second at Hoisington. Five other wrestlers shared runner-up honors at the tournaments.
"I know that this stretch of our schedule was difficult," said coach Scott O'Hare. "Some of these guys have some high goals for late in the season. Hopefully this stretch of competition will have them better prepared for it."
The Halstead tournament was originally scheduled for Jan. 12-13 but was postponed because of the threat of bad weather and rescheduled.
Along with Yoder's win, Nicholas Mueller (130 pounds), and Sean Leihy (145 pounds) placed second.
Other top finishers at Halstead was a third-place finish by Tyler Jones (140 pounds), fourth-place finishes by Robby McClelland (112 pounds) and Grady Stultz (152).
Hillsboro finished third with 137.5 points, behind Smoky Valley, 145.5 points, and Circle, 181.5 points.
"This tournament concluded a grueling stretch of four competitions in less than a week," O'Hare said. "Many guys wrestled as many, or more, matches in this six-day stretch than they had wrestled all season."
The Trojans' "Wrestle Mania" continued on Monday and Tuesday at Hoisington. Hillsboro placed second with 129.5 points, behind the host team, which had 168 points.
Yoder, McClelland, Mueller, Leihy, and Toby and Tyler Jones all were runner-up finishers. Stultz and Alex Jost (103 pounds) were third.
O'Hare gave his wrestlers an extra day off Monday, giving them a chance to rest up for Saturday's dual tournament at SE of Saline.
