Trojans, Panthers ready for districts, state

Going into the district tournament this weekend followed by the state tournament the following weekend is always Park Hill wrestling coach Bill Erneste’s favorite time of the year. Not only is it when championships are won and lost, but it’s also when you see the progress made since last season, usually compared to how the team and individuals finished this time last year.

“This is the time of year I love, it’s the most exciting time to find out if all your hard work pays off,” Erneste said. “Some of these guys started working last March to prepare so they can do better than they did last year.”

Park Hill placed first in districts last year before going on to place third at state. This was after rebounding from a couple rough duals earlier in their schedule. Erneste sees similarities between last season and this season and feels good about having the right team in place for success.

“I would say last year’s team and this year’s team definitely have parallels,” Erneste said. “As long as we have the whole team put together exactly the way we want them, I’m going to be very pleased. That’s my only job this week, to get the horses to the show. Once we get there, it’s just time to perform.”

It’s rare for Erneste, when talking about his lineup, to single out any one wrestler. A common theme with this year’s team is a hunger for a title, evident in almost every wrestler’s story. Starting at the lower weights, Erneste describes freshman KeShawn Hayes’s several youth titles and desire to win one now at the varsity level, his son John wanting to compete for a title this year after a third place finish last year at state, and freshman Hunter Roberts who has had a lot of one point decisions this year, winning them all. Similar stories resonate up and down the Trojan roster, whether it be an underclassmen looking to establish themselves or a senior looking for their last chance to go out on top.

“The best way to describe our feelings going into districts and state is we have a careful confidence,” Erneste said. “We’re not going in there expecting people to bow down, but we’re going to be prepared. We’re not going to overlook anyone.”

Park Hill has won five state titles under Erneste’s watch and he says there is no one way to win a championship. Sometimes a highly talented team can help, but it starts with one basic formula.

“We’ve won five titles and all of them have been different. Sometimes you just win it with your guns,” Erneste said. “When we changed to the four class format, it started to come down to placing eight guys at state and putting four of them in the finals. That’s kind of how we’re looking at it this year.”

First and more importantly, is districts at Ray-Pec this weekend, where the Trojans hope to place and qualify as many wrestlers as possible to earn them a trip to the state tournament next weekend in Columbia. With everything on the line, the competition should be top notch.

“Anytime it’s a district tournament where if you win you’re moving on and if you lose you’re done, so there are going to be some good matches,” Erneste said.

Park Hill South Wrestling
Returning five state qualifiers from last year’s conference championship and district runner-up team, Park Hill South wrestling isn’t going into the district tournament this year as quite the underdog they were this time last year.

Captains Brett Rounkles, Nick Gillespie, and Chase Gray are looking to lead a Panthers team into districts this weekend with a chance to match and possibly beat their performance from last year. Joining them will be the remaining two qualifiers Alex Fortuna and Jimmy Carpenter.

As Park Hill South coach Dan Dunkin said at the beginning of the season, this is the time of year they focus on the most. While last year’s success was newfound, this year’s success, which they’ve shown in multiple capacities throughout the year, is geared towards the state tournament and advancing as many Panthers out of districts as possible.