Phillip Kue won his third state wrestling championship two weeks ago.  Kue, who is going to wrestle for Ohio State next year but will never wear the Eagle singlet again, said, “It feels good and sad at the same time.”

Kue knew as the returning champion he would have to come out better each match. He knew there was a target on his back the whole time so he came out ready and his mindset was different every single match. Kue ended his high school career like how people would dream of: On top and heading to Ohio State.

Co-Head Coach Ehren Schneider said, “He performed as expected, he’s the most dominant wrestler in the state and expects nothing less.”

Junior Bailey Sparks placed fourth at state in his first appearance there.  Sparks wrestled two kids he lost to earlier in the season and avenged his loss by beating them both, and he is looking to go to state again next year.

Schneider was proud of Sparks for placing as high as he did in state and was happy that he exceeded expectations.

Senior Ihe Gonzalez performed well and placed sixth overall. However, an incident with Icy Hot was an incident that was very crucial for him, especially wrestling for state.

Gonzalez’s opponent had Icy Hot on his shoulder before the match began which eventually led to the balm getting in his eyes during the match. This caused constant burning and irritation to his eyes, and certainly affected the outcome.

If this didn’t take place in the finals, Schneider said, “I know he would of placed higher on the podium.”