In nearly every high school sport, it is expected for the senior class to lead and be the example for the underclassmen. For the Manhattan High wrestling team that is certainly the case as they take first in the Centennial League tournament.

MHS won with a score of 186.5 over the weekend at Topeka West, beating the nearest competition, Shawnee Heights, by 24 points.

“I feel like we performed very well,” senior Hunter Christansen said. “No one gave up even if they already lost. The wrestlers on the backside of the brackets never gave up and that helped us to get enough to team points to allow us to win.”

Despite only three wrestlers being seniors, they were still the biggest contributors. The three seniors include Christansen, Abraham Sanchez and Jalin Harper. The group contributed a total of 59.5 points, 32 coming from Christansen and Sanchez. Both Christansen and Sanchez scored 16 points, and 27.5 coming from Harper. The 59.5 total for the senior class accounts for 32 percent of the teams total points. Harper placed first, while both Christansen and Sanchez placed second.

“Well for one, Harper has been tremendous for the program,” junior Bubba Wilson said. “He is an excellent leader in and out of the mat room. A.B. Sanchez is an amazing athlete as well. He is just coming off an injury and he has all the heart in the world and a good light hearted attitude. I think our seniors this year are definitely special people, they will be missed next season.”

Seniors were not the only contributors. Freshman Joshua Pence and sophomore Tate Sauder both placed first and scored a total of 45 points, 21 from Pence and 24 from Sauder. Sophomore Darius Island-Jones placed third and scored 13 team points. Overall, the underclassmen contributed 58 points.

MHS wrestling is beginning to turn the page on their regular season, as they enter sub-state and state tournaments. The senior class is yet again expected to play an important role in the outcome of the team’s final tournaments.

“The seniors play the leader role,” Wilson said. “They keep us on track and remind us of our ultimate goal, which is to win another state title.”