By Pat Dailey (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Willard welcomes back five medalists from last season’s Class 3 State Tournament and eight returning State qualifiers overall.
Tigers coach Jeff Davis happily reports the likes of Caleb Caldwell, Alex Nunez, Brady Griffin and Noah Rogers didn’t rest on their laurels during the off-season.
“Our kids have been training and look to improve on their state performances from last season,” he said. “We had many athletes go to Fargo (North Dakota) and make national dual teams. Noah and Alex both competed at Fargo and did very well. Caleb, Brady and Alex also competed and did well at the Disney Duals.”
Caldwell was 39-6 and a runner-up at 144 pounds at State last season. Gary Walker took third at 165, Jase Motlaugh was fifth at 175, Brady Griffin fifth at 285 and Nunez sixth at 215.
Also making State were Rogers, Chris Trudwell and Izik Sims.
Caldwell projects at either 144 or 150 this season, while Walker will be at 165 or 175, Motlaugh at 175 or 190, Nunez at 215 or 285 and Griffin at 285.
“(They) are all very solid,” Davis said. “I like our team and our staff is even better than in past years, so that is really exciting.”
Walker, who was 36-4 last season, will go for gold as a senior.
“Gary will have as good a chance as he has ever had to compete and end his season with a state championship,” Davis said.
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Trudwell projects at 120 or 132, Rogers at 150 or 157 and Sims at 190 or 215.
Willard’s freshmen include Nick Lamonte (113) Ethan Craft (126), Jackson Redd (132), Gunnar Puryer (132, 138), Cade Shurtz (138, 144) and Kain Gateley (190, 215)
“All are really solid youth wrestlers who are capable of making a positive impact on our program,” Davis said.
Davis’ first go-around at Willard last winter saw him coach against his former wrestlers from Bolivar.
“It was tough having to compete against those guys,” he said. “I absolutely loved coaching in Bolivar and I loved my kids there. Moving on to Willard had nothing to do with the student athletes or staff. They still come down in the summer to train and some even went to camp with us. I’m pretty close with their staff and we talk quite often. I wish nothing but the best for Bolivar and their staff and root for them unless they are competing against us.”
Willard’s girls program benefited from the presence of state champion Catherine Dutton last season, after she transferred from Central for her senior year.
“Catherine is an outstanding young lady and we were so fortunate to have her be part of our program,” Davis said. “I think she showed the young women in our program that you can have success and she always set a positive example.”
The Lady Tigers will look to Ashlan Thompson for leadership this season. She was 38-8 and fifth at State at 135 last season.
“Ashlan spent a ton of time training with Team Missouri on the National Duals Team and also the Fargo Team,” Davis said. “We are very excited to have her back for her senior year and believe that the sky’s the limit with this young lady. She is a very hard-working coachable athlete that likes to scrap. I think she is planning on moving up in weight which will allow her to just focus on wrestling and not so much cutting weight. That will be huge for her. She is an outstanding young woman and a great leader for our girls team.”
Willard also has returning state qualifiers in Gina Sellers and Harmony Moore.
“We had a couple of girls lose in the bubble match at Districts last year,” Davis said. “Hopefully, we can get those young ladies to State this year.
“We also have some really solid freshmen girls coming in that could have a positive impact on our team as well,” he added.
