Here are some sights and sounds from the state wrestling championships last week at the Mizzou Arena in Columbia.
The Missouri State High School Activities Association put on what I think every year is its grandest show Feb. 25-28 by hosting the 95th boys and eighth girls state wrestling tournaments. The Show-Me Showdown (basketball) and Show-Me Bowl (football) are held at college venues too, and MSHSAA goes through the same intricate planning and detail to welcome fans, players and coaches from all corners of the state for those sports.
But there’s something different about state wrestling. The classes change, crowds shuffle in and out of the Mizzou Arena for four days, before the overall excitement comes to a boil for each state final round. Old-timers like me remember – this is before the girls started – the Friday night semifinals at the Hearnes Center, which of course is across the parking lot. The semifinal round broke a lot of hearts and minted a lot of school heroes, but it almost matched the intensity and drama of the finals.
Fortunately, Friday night finals are coming back. The addition of a third class for the girls forced MSHSAA to hold separate state events. Talking to coaches and wrestlers, they agree that it’s time. Starting in 2026-2027, the entire month of February will be postseason wrestling. The order is girls districts, boys districts, girls state and boys state. The girls state meet will be held at the Hearnes, and the boys are staying at MA. All four boys classes will be reunited – another change the coaches love – and the three-day format (Thursday-Saturday) returns.
In doing my job at state wrestling, there are certain restrictions and access limitations to the coaches and wrestlers – believe me when I say they’re swiftly enforced if you step out of line, but in a way I call, “Columbia Nice.”
The tunnel where the wrestlers are escorted to after their matches is prime hunting ground for interviews. Talk about seeing the entire range of emotions. From tears of joy and pain, to triumphant embraces, it’s the epitome of what it means to be an athlete in a sport that’s basically hand-to-hand combat. Don’t think for a moment that any of those experiences are any less for the girls. I’ve covered hundreds of girls matches and was lucky enough to watch the best one (Jaycee Foeller from De Soto) right off the bat. The girls’ movement on the mat isn’t any different than the boys. And the reaction of the fans after an emotional ending makes the little hairs on your arm stand up.
We’ll celebrate the champions and medal winners in this issue. Hillsboro’s incredible run continued. The Hawks were 0-3 in the finals, but remained in the winner’s circle (top four) among Class 3 teams. And this success will continue as long as head coach Matt Mitchell and a dedicated group of assistants, the school’s programs at the lower levels, and the general support of the community are involved.
I ask a lot of the coaches throughout the season. Texts, Sunday phone calls, updates and interviews after matches are the source of our connection. Trackwrestling, which is now Flowrestling, is the type of informational website I dream of having for all of the sports the Leader covers. Up-to-the-minute match notes and results and easy-to-navigate pages that take you to any weight bracket in seconds provide information being entered by paid professionals on site. I’ll say it again. Statistics and rosters with year in school, position and uniform number, this information is the lifeblood for sports stories.
I don’t want to just single out Hillsboro. All of the coaches and schools in the county are committed to the sport and its athletes. John Brown has been coaching wrestlers at De Soto High for decades. A few weeks ago, I was impressed with how he talked to one of the Dragons after she lost a district match. I couldn’t hear what he was saying, but I could tell it was helping her deal with the moment. A steady hand makes a world of difference. Ron and Robert Wilhelm have been the heartbeat of Northwest wrestling for as long as Brown at De Soto. Ron is the spokesman for the team and has intimated about retiring soon, along with his brother. I can’t imagine NW wrestling without them, and their unbridled enthusiasm for the sport, and I don’t say this lightly. I love listening to Ron talk with passion about his “Lionesses.” Stick around, guys, we all need you.
Seckman head coach Ryan Moyer and his dedicated band of brothers – I mean that literally with the Rubles, Orines, Wingbermuehle’s, etc. – are all energy, flash, pizzaz and most importantly, winners. Moyer and his assistants are known for their ever-changing collection of colorful clothing they wear at the state finals. This year was no different. Watching Moyer from a few feet away clap so hard I thought his hands would bleed as Kaemen Orine closed out the final few seconds of his first state title was one of those unforgettable moments.