Four wrestlers from Jefferson County, two from the Jefferson County Activities Association and two from the Suburban West Conference, are in tonight’s championship round.
The Missouri State High School Activities Association Wrestling Championships conclude tonight in Columbia at the Mizzou Arena.
In the JCAA, the two Class 3 finalists are Windsor senior Ryan Yarnell (55-0), who will try to win his first state title at 182 pounds against Harrisonville junior Sam East (46-4). Yarnell would be the Owls’ second state champion in school history and second in the last two years.
De Soto sophomore Landon Porter (46-2) pinned his first two opponents at heavyweight before beating Carl Junction senior Zeke Wall in an 3-1 sudden victory Friday night. Porter faces Neosho senior Adrian Hitchcock (53-20 in tonight’s final. De Soto’s last state champion was Dakota Smith, who won the 215-pound title in 2009.
In the Suburban West, Seckman sends junior Kai Orine (120 pounds) and senior Cam Fusco (126) to the championship round in Class 4 against two CBC grapplers. Orine (52-2) is the defending Class 4 champion at 113 pounds. He’ll wrestle freshman Vincent Zerban (33-4), while Fusco (48-1) goes against undefeated senior Malik Johnson for the fourth straight year in a state championship bout. Johnson seeks his fourth state title.
Seckman’s highest finish as a team was third place in 2012. The Jaguars are in fourth place with 99.5 points going into the finals. The Cadets have five wrestlers in the finals and are in first place with 139.5 points. Park Hill is second with 137 points and Staley is third with 112.