Boys’ Wrestling Awarded Runner Up at State Duals in Early February

Senior Harrison Gibson qualifying for duals. Melissa Trenary photo.

Senior Harrison Gibson of Southeast Polk Boys’ wrestling recently participated in his last state duals as a Ram. On February 4 at Xtream Arena in Coralville, the annual state duals took place. Southeast Polk defeated Dubuque Hempstead and Ankeny Hawks, but lost to Waverly-Shell Rock in the finals, placing the Rams as the state runner up. 

Gibson has been wrestling for 10 years and has been a large success point for the Rams. He shares he has taken many lessons from the sport. 

“It teaches you a lot about life. It’s really like a family when you’re there with everyone supporting each other,” said Gibson.

Having close connections with teammates has set the Rams apart from other schools. Gibson believes it positively affected their season.

“Everyone is always ready to go and cheer each other on, it helps us put forth our best effort,” said Gibson. “There was a lot of downtime at duals for us to hang out and just relax with each other.”

As Gibson and the Rams finish out their season, they continue to motivate each other and inspire young athletes to join the future of the wrestling program.

“Stick to the grind, and always go the extra mile because it will pay off in the end,” said Gibson.