When it comes to the 2023 Class AA state wrestling tournament, there is no shortage of storylines.
For starters, Class AA could have two wrestlers joining the exclusive 37-member club of four-time state wrestling champions in Bozeman’s Avery Allen and Teegan Vasquez of Glacier.
Another storyline is a team race that should be competitive at the top. Kalispell Flathead is the two-time defending champs. Most consider the Braves to be the favorite but Billings West, Great Falls High, Butte, Billings Senior, Belgrade, and Helena Capital can probably all make a case for finishing in the top three this weekend.
The action will start on Friday morning with the parade of athletes at 10 a.m., followed by first-round matches at 10:20. All-Class State Wrestling is once again being held at the Metra and here is a look ahead to the 2023 Class AA state wrestling tournament with our annual Takedowns.
Two 4-time champions?
There are 37 4-time state champions in the history of Montana High School wrestling and there could be two additions to that prestigious group by the end of the weekend.
Allen is unbeaten against Class AA competition this season and will be aiming for his fourth title, this time in the 145-pound weight class. Allen won his first state championship back in 2020, the same year that Leif Schroeder became a four-time champion for the Hawks. He was the first in Bozeman school history and was last Class AA wrestler to complete the achievement.
Vasquez is wrestling at 132 pounds this season and is also undefeated in Class AA competition. As with Schroeder, Vasquez would be the first ever Glacier wrestler to achieve the 4-time feat.
Just 11 wrestlers have started their career in Class AA and won four state wrestling championships and in the last decade, there has only been two — a number that could be equaled by Allen and Vasquez on Finals night.
Flathead eyes a 3-peat
It’s been another highly successful season for the Flathead Braves, who went undefeated this season in dual competition and put together some impressive tournament wins in the process such as the Mining City duals, the Class AA duals and the Jug Beck Rocky Mountain Classic.
“It’s just business as usual,” Flathead head coach Jeff Thompson said. “We aren’t trying to add any pressure to this team or individually. We’re just going to work and do what we do. We are focused on our little things that we can work on this week to get that 1 percent better and we try not to make it a big deal. These wrestlers have been in this situation multiple times this year. They know what they need to do and we’re just going to enjoy the ride.”
The Braves are hoping the destination is a third-straight Class AA state championship and once again, they have a deep roster and are one of four teams to have at least 20 wrestlers in the field. Billings West leads the way with 24. Butte, Great Falls High and Flathead each have 20.
“There are a lot of unknowns,” Thompson said. “They are only going to score the top 13 wrestlers this year so that’s going to add a little camouflage to the scoring system. But we’re just focused on competing and doing our best. I would look of course at Billings West. They qualified the most wrestlers. Great Falls High has really come on and Billings Senior had a fantastic divisional. Butte is also really deep. So it’s going to be really fun. We are looking forward to seeing how it all shakes out.”
West is the team in the strongest position to upend the Braves and part of it has to do with their 24 total wrestlers. The Golden Bears won the Eastern AA title last weekend and are seeking their first state championship since 1994.
The Bears also have one of the top wrestlers coming back in Keyan Hernandez, who is the son of head coach Jeremy Hernandez and a two-time state champion. The future Iowa Hawkeye is looking to become a three-time champion and joins teammates Jesse Arness (two-time champ) and Zach Morse looking to repeat.
“Flathead is the two-time defending state champions,” West head coach Jeremy Hernandez said. “So everyone has their eyes on them. But Great Falls has some really tough kids, Senior has some really tough kids, CMR had a great divisional tournament. There are a lot of teams that can definitely challenge for a team title. We’re just trying to go with no pressure — have fun and compete.”
For Flathead, it’s all about peaking at the right time and Thompson feels the Braves are doing just that, once again.
“I think we have done a really good job of peaking our teams in the past,” Thompson said. “You know we have a secret sauce formula that we try to use and it seems to work. We try to taper on our team the last couple of weeks before state and we really believe it’s not just the physical aspect, but that mental aspect too.”
A new rule change for Class AA
One thing that will be different for Class this season is that, as Thompson alluded to, only the top-13 wrestlers will be calculated into the team scores this season.
“We were the outlier,” Thompson said. “We were the only program that voted against it. Our philosophy was to get everybody to state and let everybody be part of the scoring system so they feel part of that team success. That’s my perspective. I’m not sure why others feel differently, but I’ve been pretty open and honest about that.”
For West, Flathead and other teams, winning a team championship usually means having double-digit wrestlers find the podium. Only the top 13 will be scored this season, but the wrestle backs will still have a big impact, at least in Thompson’s view.
“I think it will still be a big part of it,” Thompson said. “I think some of those kids know they might not be part of the scoring system. We have tried to keep quiet about that. We are just focusing on what we can control.”
The new rule could potentially have an impact and according to Hernandez, it might have changed the outcome in previous tournaments.
“There was a point where we have seven guys in the finals and we didn’t win state and that was before the 13 (rule),” he said. “That would have helped us out but I don’t think it’s going to impact anything too much. You have to get as many placers as possible to win a team title.”
A field filled with champions
In all, the 2023 Class AA state wrestling tournament has 12 former state champions. Not all of them are back in their same weight classes as last season, such as Zach Morse, who won at 103 pounds as a freshman. He’ll look to complete the second leg of becoming a 4-time champion this weekend in the 113-pound weight class.
Mason Gutenberger (126) and Carter Schmidt (138) of Belgrade will each be looking for their second state title this weekend, as will Izzy Moreno of Missoula Big Sky who is a two-time finalist and was a state champion in 2021.
The other returning state champions are Paolo Salminen (170) of Billings Skyview, Mason Christian of Butte (285), Talon Marsh of Helena Capital (285) and Brendan Lockhart (205) of Great Falls High.
Christian was actually the 182-pound state champion last season and was wrestling at 205 pounds until recently. He entered the divisional tournament at 285 pounds and knocked off defending 285-pound state champion Marsh from Helena Capital to earn the top seed in the Western AA.
If the two are able to make return trips to finals night, fans will be treated to a showdown of former Class AA state champions. The semifinals are scheduled for Saturday morning at 9:30, with finals night to follow Saturday at 4 p.m.