By Mike Moore
Sports Correspondent
Already bound for the WIAA team state wrestling tournament in March, four Burlington High School wrestlers kept their dreams of individual titles afloat last weekend.
Josh Bird, Ben Hornickle, Tyler Kirkeeng, and Lucas Shenkenberg advanced from Saturday’s sectional meet at Horlick High School in Racine. They will compete in the WIAA Division 1 individual state championship Thursday through Saturday at the Kohl Center in Madison.
Demons coach Jade Gribble had hoped to bring a larger contingent to the state capital after Burlington wrestlers from all 14 weight classes qualified for the sectional. Still, he left Racine proud of the effort his entire team put in.
Bird, a sophomore, has his sights set on a second straight Division 1 title. He rolled through the 132-pound bracket with two pins, stopping Connor Widmar of Kenosha Bradford to win the sectional.
In fact, he enters the state tournament ranked No. 1 at that weight in the Wisconsin Wrestling Online poll, after topping the field at 120 as a freshman. Gribble said the 132 field is stocked with talent. That’s just fine with Bird, who has gone 23-1 after missing the early part of the season due to injury.
“He’s definitely not running away from competition,” Gribble said. “He wants to wrestle the best. He wants to be the best.”
In a rematch of the regional final a week earlier, Hornickle continued his dominance of Racine Case’s Taylor Choinski to win the 126-pound sectional title. The 13-0 major decision improved Hornickle’s season record to 34-1.
The junior, ranked No. 5 in the WWO poll, will try to take the next step after finishing fourth at state each of his first two seasons. Gribble has sensed that Hornickle is wrestling with more confidence leading up to the tournament.
Kirkeeng and Shenkenberg moved on to the individual state meet thanks to second-place finishes. A senior, Kirkeeng went after Union Grove’s Tony Beck before being pinned in the title match at 285 pounds.
“Tyler was being aggressive,” Gribble said. “I never have a problem with kids losing by being aggressive.”
Gribble called Shenkenberg’s performance at 138 a mild surprise, saying the junior put together his best streak at the right time. Shenkenberg (28-15) pinned Oak Creek’s Sean LaBodda, winner of the Milwaukee Bay View/Bradley Tech regional, in the semifinals.
This will be his first crack at an individual state tournament. Gribble noted that it’s extremely valuable for wrestlers to get a state appearance under their belt because the atmosphere is so different.
“Getting to state early is important so you don’t have that deer-in-the-headlights look later on,” he said. “It’s important to put kids in high-pressure situations.”
Other Demons who could have challenged in Madison simply ran up against tough competition in the sectional, he added. That included senior Greg Miller, ranked No. 9 in the state at 220, who closed out his individual high school career by finishing fourth. Gribble praised him as a strong team leader.
Twice, Gribble has coached Burlington wrestlers to individual WIAA championships. Now in his 10th year, he has four more chances to see Demons rise to the top.
“Hopefully we can come home with a couple more,” he said. “I know one thing. I know the kids will leave it all out there, and that’s all I can ask for.”
For schedules detailing the weekend wrestling sessions, or to buy tickets, go to www.wiaawi.org.
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