03/02/2026
A year to remember.
We started the season with 75 wrestlers and ended with 65 on the squad.
It is unbelievably difficult to manage 65+ kids aged 14-18 years old on the daily for ~at least~ 4 months of the year.
In November, many of us had just met. Some had a lifetime of service to our community. All that made it to the end accepted the challenge at hand(to varying degrees π). Show up, be accountable, be reliable, follow our core covenants, don't talk when coach is talking, have fun, and most importantly always BE YOUR BEST.
Along the way there were so many:
- Family Dynamics
- Individual Stories
- Emotions
- "Whys"
- "Why nots"
- Firsts
- Lasts
- Struggles
- Growth
- Lessons
- Memories
- Can't leave out blood, sweat, tears, and puke.
It's a tough road for young man to choose and accept with equanimity.
It all coalesced into one of the best seasons in Washburn Rural Men's history while earning our 7th team trophy in the last 9 years!
School Records:
- Team points(180)
- State Finalists(tied 5)
- Second most placers of all time(9)
- Our 3rd 3x State Champion(Landen Kocher-Munoz)
To finish as strong as we did was was largely expected by our coaches at least. Having watched the kids across the state grow on the mat the last decade+, the wrestling part of all this is *usually* pretty cut and dry. It was a banner year for 6A wrestling seeing Maize break the all time team point record(237) and Manhattan with the 6th most points of all time(192.5). Suffice to say, 6A was STRONG this year.
What you can never see coming is the affect the time spent together can have on us all. Everything accomplished is a part of a much larger community effort at work that extends far beyond the whistles and, at Washburn Rural, we are here for it.
We are looking forward to everyone's the next season and the seasons to come. As a whole we will continue to strive to be grateful for it all!
2026 KSHSAA State Championship Results
Team: 3rd Place
Individual:
Hayden Broxterman - 5th place
Andrew Peterson - Runner up
Ryder Harrison - Runner up
Cooper Stivers - Runner up
Landen Kocher-Munoz - STATE CHAMPION (3x)
Brodye Kocher-Munoz - 3rd place
Brenner Beninga - 6th place
Jadyn Baum - STATE CHAMPION
Kaiden Marshall - 5th place
Photo Credit is all other the place but special thanks to Lindsey's Lens, Liam Keating, Mac Moore, and a few more!