MEEKER | This past weekend, the No. 3-ranked Class 2A Meeker High School boys wrestling team turned in a strong showing at the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 2A Region 1 tournament in Cedaredge, crowning two regional champions and advancing multiple wrestlers to the state championships for this weekend.
Junior Koy Weber, ranked No. 1 and last season’s state runner-up, captured his third regional championship this year at 132 pounds, rolling through the bracket with a technical fall and a semifinal pin before earning a first-place finish via medical forfeit in the championship bout. Weber finished the tournament with 27.5 team points.
“My past experiences shape my mindset going into the state tournament by giving me confidence knowing I can accomplish my goals,” Weber said. “I stay confident by keeping a steady mind and staying positive going forward. I take it one match at a time and focus on winning. My ultimate goal this weekend is to win state and help my team do their very best too.”
Senior Holton Harvey added another highlight to his postseason résumé, winning the regional championship at 144 pounds. Harvey recorded a pin in the opening round, a technical fall in the quarterfinals, a decision in the semifinals, and closed the tournament with a pin in the title match to secure first place and 27.5 team points.
“Regionals showed me I’m tougher than I thought,” Harvey said. “I battled through some hard matches and gained confidence going into state. As a senior, it feels different because it’s my last shot. I’m going to give it everything I have and leave it all on the mat. I’m focusing on staying sharp, keeping a strong pace, and cleaning up the small details in practice this week. It means a lot to help lead this group to state. I want to set the example and represent our team the right way. When I step onto the mat at Ball Arena, my focus is to wrestle my match, control what I can, and have no regrets. This will be my third time qualifying for state.”
Freshman Kael Overton, ranked No. 2, placed third at 138 pounds, rebounding from a semifinal loss with a technical fall in the consolation semifinals before earning a major decision in the third-place match. Overton scored 18 team points.
“What did it take for you to wrestle your way through regionals?” Overton said. “It came down to trusting my training and staying focused on each match. I tried not to overthink things and just wrestled to the best of my ability. I focus on controlling what I can, my preparation, my mindset, and executing what I’ve worked on in practice. I just go out and perform with all I’ve got. I am mainly focused on just going all out in every period, starting off aggressive and wrestling my match. Practicing and competing with great teammates pushes me every day. It keeps me sharp and helps me stay ready for whatever comes at state. My goal is simple: go out, wrestle my best, trust my training, and let it all fly.”
Junior Orion Musser also finished third at 165 pounds, responding to a semifinal setback with a consolation-round pin and another fall in the third-place match to contribute 18 points.
Sophomore Jonah Christensen reached the finals at 190 pounds, pinning his way through the opening three rounds before placing second. “The toughest moment for me was definitely losing in the finals knowing I had so much more in my tank,” Christensen said. “Getting your mind right at a long tournament like that is difficult, but I made sure to stay up and active between matches to keep my blood pumping. I think my coaches give me a huge advantage going into state. With there only being a few of us going, they can give us all the help we need in the areas we need it. Lack of depth in our room really tanked our team score. It’s incredibly important to have all the spots filled if we hope to bring home any hardware. I’m so very proud and excited to represent Meeker on the state stage. I feel so welcomed. This will be my first wrestling season ever, so yes this will be my first time qualifying and I look forward to representing.” Christensen finished with 24 team points.
Sophomore Eli Rundberg placed fifth at 120 pounds after recording two pins early in the tournament and added 15 team points. Sophomore Cooper Maupin placed fifth at 150 pounds, scoring 11 points, while senior Drake Jones also finished fifth at 175 pounds with 10 points.
Freshman Corbin Grant placed sixth at 126 pounds and contributed nine team points, while sophomore Jaxen Mills earned a consolation-round pin at 157 pounds to add three points. Freshman Dylan Rundberg competed at 106 pounds and wrestled hard throughout his bracket.
Once again for a second week in row, we did not hear back from Head Coach Stryker Lane before press time.
Meeker finished third overall as a team, totaling 163.0 points, and will advance Koy Weber, Orion Musser, Jonah Christensen, Kael Overton and Holton Harvey to the Colorado High School Wrestling State Championships this coming week at Ball Arena in Denver.
