BELOIT, Kan. – McPherson High School’s Boys Wrestling team traveled to Beloit on Saturday, Feb. 21, placing 7th as a team and qualifying four wrestlers for the 4A State Championships.
All four wrestlers who qualified finished in the top three in their respective weight classes, led by Carter Leathers winning the Regional Title in the 285 class. Dylan Hall (215) and Madison Burkes (120) finished as Regional Runners-Up, and Noah Garcia (113) finished in 3rd.
Leathers showed why he entered the 285 class as the No. 1 seed, winning all three of his matches by fall. All of Leathers’ matches ended within two minutes, winning in 1:27 in the first round, 1:13 in the semifinal, and 51 seconds in the championship.
Hall earned himself a first-round bye in the 215 class, entering as the No. 2 seed. The quarterfinal match was won via fall in 1:56, sending him to the semifinals. He then won his semifinal match via Tech Fall, sending him to the title match, where he lost via fall in a hard-fought 2:47 match.
Burkes won his first two matchups via fall, winning the first round in 58 seconds and the quarterfinal match in only 18 seconds. The semi-final went the distance, ending in Burkes winning in a 6-5 decision, but he fell in the title match via fall.
Garcia took the podium, getting a bye in the first round, then winning via fall in 52 seconds in the quarterfinal. The semifinal took 4:51, but he lost via fall. However, he turned around to win in 1:49, earning him 3rd place.
The four wrestlers will take a short road trip to Salina for the 4A State Championships at the Tony’s Pizza Events Center, taking place Feb. 27-28.
