The Fountain Hills High School wrestling season came to a close last week in the two-day state tournament.

Due to the unusual nature of this year’s competitions, all members of a school’s wrestling team were invited to take part in the state tournament. As head coach Luke Salzman pointed out, the grapplers being limited to duels these past couple of months made the postseason showdown a pretty unique experience.

“We sent 11 wrestlers to the Division IV state tournament Tuesday and Wednesday [March 9-10],” Salzman said. “This was the first tournament of the year and was held at Poston Butte High School.”

Despite the sudden increase in competition, Salzman said the Falcons still had a good showing.

“Three of our wrestlers made it to the second day of competition, including sophomore JP Cahil at 120 pounds,” Salzman continued. “Sophomore Ty Jablonsky ended top eight in the 106-pound weight class bracket and senior Dominick Flynn wrestled an excellent tournament, placing fifth in a tough 152-pound weight class.”

With the 2020-21 season now in the rearview mirror, Salzman said his squad is planning for what everyone hopes will be a normal season next winter.

“Overall, the team did well adapting to a long season,” Salzman said. “they are already talking about next season and improving in the offseason.”