It all led up to this: a trip to the State Wrestling Tournament at the Well. Maquoketa Valley sent three wrestlers up to Des Moines this year, the Big Three, hoping for strong runs in their respective classes. Brady Davis, Aidan Salow, and Nathan Beitz battled hard but fell short of their ultimate goal, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t win in the eyes of many Wildcat fans. Competing with just three wrestlers, Maquoketa Valley and Lisbon tied for 8th with 59 points. Of the Top 10 teams in Class 1A, 7 were from Eastern Iowa. Three teams were from the Tri-Rivers: Lisbon, Maquoketa Valley, and Alburnett, who placed 2nd.
Wrestling in the 190 weight class, Beitz earned a Bye in the 1st round. During the 2nd round, he pinned Bryce Wiskus of Kuemper Catholic in 3:19. With a 10-8 decision, he beat Taite Peach of Iowa Valley Morengo in the Quarterfinal round. Unfortunately, Beitz fell to Louden Huisenga of WACO in a 5-3 OT decision. He wrestled back to compete in the 3rd place match where he took down Landon Fernandez of Don Bosco with a 6-4 Decision. With a 3rd place title, he earned 18 team points. He ended the season with a 46-3 record.
Davis also received a Bye in the 1st round. In the 2nd round, he scored a major decision 8-0 over Indy Ferguson of Lisbon. In the Quarterfinal round, he pinned Kyler Sallis of Don Bosco (2:53) which propelled him to the Semifinal round where he beat David Smith of West Hancock by a 5-1 decision. In the championship round, he lost a heartbreaker in OT to Ashton Honnold of Nodaway Valley (6-4). With a 2nd place finish, he earned 23 team points. Davis ended the season with a 41-4 record.
Wrestling at 285, Salow received a Bye in the 1st round and went on to pin Cody Koepke of Denver in the 2nd (2:38). In the Quarterfinal round, he lost a 3-1 decision in OT to Trenton Warner of Nodaway Valley. He wrestled back before ending up in the 5th place match where he pinned Payton Jacobe of AC/GC in 4:25. With his 5th place finish, he earned 19 team points. Salow ended the season with a 42-5 record.
The team was welcomed back to Delhi by a caravan of fire trucks and EMS vehicles and supporters at the high school about 1:00.
Coach Hatfield thanked the crowd and said how proud he was of the team and their work effort. To finish a 2nd, 3rd, and 5th is a proof of the character of this team. Most teams in the top 12 places were fielding teams of 6 to 10 wrestlers. To finish tied for 8th with Lisbon with just three wrestlers showed the quality and stamina of our wrestlers. Congratulations to the entire team!