A great morning previewed a great day for North Callaway boys wrestling.

The Thunderbirds had four kids advance to the Class 1 state tournament finals on Thursday at Mizzou Arena in Columbia. Kellen Long and Collin Moore won state titles to be among five medalists to put North Callaway in third, securing the program’s first state trophy.

North Callaway State Wrestling Photo Gallery

“I’m really proud of these boys,” head coach Brock Davis said. “In such a tough district and the state, there was so much good wrestling going on. I couldn’t be happier with how the boys performed.”

Long and Moore won state titles at 157 and 165 pounds, respectively. Moore is a back-to-back state champion while Long added his first state championship to cap a career with four state medals and over 150 career wins. Hunter Long finished second at 215, Gunnar Wenneker was second at 285 and Wyatt Haden finished sixth at 175.

In the semifinals on Thursday morning, North Callaway had four in matches and all of them advanced to the finals that evening. Kellen Long won a 5-3 decision in overtime against El Dorado Springs’ Emory Crawford, Moore won 2-1 against Marceline’s Cody Rodgers, Hunter Long beat Versailles’ Wyatt Burks 4-2 and Gunnar Wenneker beat South Harrison’s Ruger Johnson 2-1 in overtime. 

“They did what they came here to do,” Davis said. They were not worrying about the results and just focused on wrestling. All the guys do a great job of keeping their heads in the game.”

Davis said that put North Callaway in a good position in the team standings after being tied for fourth after Day 1 on Feb. 25. Centralia owned a 9.5 lead over Marceline heading into the finals, and North Callaway was close behind. 

The Thunderbirds finished with 105 points, which was behind Centralia's 115.5 points and Marceline's 106.5 points. Six of their seven qualifiers made it to Day 2.

Moore would have a tough battle with Cole Camp’s Grant Rodriguez in the finals. He ultimately won 3-2 in overtime after winning by one point in the semifinals and following last season when he won his first state title in a 1-0 decision. 

“Thank you to all these kids,” Moore said. “They come and wrestle their hearts out. I love competition. I have some mental words like, ‘I’m not just going to sit there on bottom, and I’m not going to get run down. ‘ I’m going to sit there on top, I’m going to do what I do and get the job done.”

Moore said Rodriguez was really strong and was good on bottom, which made his approach difficult. That wasn’t enough to overpower Moore’s mindset that has lasted until the end of this season, and he said he has even stayed loose by joking around in the tunnel to counter nerves.

“Don’t be satisfied with last year,” Moore said. “I came in thinking I needed to defend a title but really I just needed to get another one and chase that. That’s what I did.”

The Long brothers came to the program this year along with their father, coach and activities director Dale Long. Kellen Long said he had a more positive mindset and “the right coach” who knows wrestling well.

Kellen Long pinned Polo’s Chase Wilson in the second period to win the match that he couldn’t in his sophomore year at Butler. Long said he executed a spladle, which he described as “a painful move” and “once you get hit in it, it’s hard to get out of.” 

“I was feeling so excited,” Long said. “I haven’t hit that move very much this year. Being able to hit it in the state finals is one of the best feelings ever.”

Long had the accomplishments and talent to win him a state championship but said the atmosphere at North Callaway gave him a missing component. He said he had a “true family team bond,” which he hasn’t always had.

“They’re all friends, and we all hang out and play games to and from tournaments,” Long said. “It’s just a blast to be with them all the time, and they’re always there for support no matter what.”

North Callaway hadn’t had a state champion until Lane Kimbley won a title two years ago. Moore won a state title the next year and then the Thunderbirds upped the ante this season with two state champions and the program’s first state trophy following another district title.

Davis said North Callaway’s wrestlers have “great practice partners” in the wrestling room and that is a big reason for the team’s success. The team atmosphere is supportive, according to Davis, and this results in them doing seemingly meaningless things like bleaching their hair the past two state tournaments. However their hair looks next year, Davis said North Callaway will again focus on competing rather than strictly titles or medals.

“It’s huge,” Davis said. “They fed off each other the whole weekend in districts and into this week. They are their biggest support system, and they love showing it. It’s a really cool thing to be a part of.”

Giboney, Baker eliminated on Day 1

The North Callaway girls sent two wrestlers to state this year.

Brooke Giboney, who is a senior that made her third appearance, and Ella Baker, who is a sophomore that made her first appearance, each went 0-2 at the Class 1 state tournament at Mizzou Arena in Columbia.

Giboney lost via technical fall to  105-pound third-place medalist Nico Brooks, of Hillsboro, and then was pinned by Excelsior Springs’ Analese Happy in the third period. Baker was pinned by 135-pound state champion Rylie Ingrassia, of Harrisonville, and then was pinned by Polo’s Dotty Bolling.